Summary: follows the story and plight of the Andrea Gail and her unfortunate crew as they head off to sea for one more haul before the end of the season. A new crew mate joins them, the niece of Billy Tyne himself... things get complicated fast as a love found too late blooms and unavoidable tragedy tries to tear it apart. Bobby/OFC
Disclaimer: I do not, in anyway, own this story or the people in it. This was based off a tragic event rewritten as a book and then later turned into a movie... I'm just taking those characters and the story and adding a little twist to it.
Warning(s): Um... nothing really major. There's a bit of cussing, but nothing that wasn't said in the actual movie. So, yeah, nothing really warning worthy.
Special Thanks to all readers and reviewers:
CSIVinDieselAddict:
LaLa-036: whoa-ho! Sorry the update took so long to get out – I got wrapped up in other things and stories and responsibilities for a while there, but hopefully I'll be able to get back into the old roll of things.
Glynnis007:
Littlemissbookworm:
'The Perfect Storm'
Chapter Nine
Deacon did her best with obeying Bobby - she did her best to cast Christina from her own mind and let the man handle it, but it was hard to do and she often found herself shying away from a touch or a kiss because it was awkward to be that way with a man who had a girl waiting for him back home. She tried though, and Bobby was patient with her; he understood without needing an explanation when Deacon got shy... if anyone could believe the girl actually got shy over things.
"So, why Bobby?"
Deacon looked up from where she'd been leaning against the edge of the boat, looking over the sea, and to the blond man who had come up beside her. Sully was smoking a cigarette, a small smirk tugging at his lips and gaze fixed on the horizon she'd just been looking at. Deacon was momentarily stunned - this was the first time the man had willingly addressed her, civilly, since she came on board so long ago.
He glanced at her, brows arched expectantly.
"What about Bobby?" She shifted her weight on the metal edge, not entirely sure if she was comfortable around Sully or not. Especially alone like this - the rest of the guys were all in the cabin, taking a much needed break while Billy steered them out to the Flemish Cap. Bobby was in there too; he'd been napping when Deacon left to stand out on the deck.
"Why'd you pick him?" Sully asked again, looking amused. "You picked the only guy here that's already got himself a girl."
"What, you saying I should of picked you instead?" She gave him a look.
"No," The blond shook his head, "I'm just wonderin' how you went about picking him instead of someone else."
"Well..." She sighed heavily, amused by this conversation. Who'd have figured Sully would come up to her and ask her something like this of all things? "I didn't really pick him. It just sort of happened."
"How?"
"How? What do you mean 'how'?" She scowled at him, feeling her face heat up despite her best efforts, "I don't know how! It just... happened. Like how bodies just somehow know how and when to breathe; there's no way to know how some things happen. They just do."
Sully looked side long at her for a long while, studying her profile. He shrugged, giving a sigh and a small nod, like he understood on some level. Dragging heavily on his cigarette, the blond glanced at her again, "What about Christina?"
"Jesus, is that the only thing any of you think about?" she shook her head, pushing away from the railing and turning her back on the blond man. Her hands were on her hips, head bowed. Turning back around to face Sully, she rubbed her fingers against her forehead. "I don't know about that either. I don't know…"
"Better figure it out soon."
"I know!" She snapped, looking him over slowly after a short pause, "What do you think should be done?"
"Not really any of business…"
She scoffed, "Like you care?"
He smirked, alarmed even himself at how easy it was to talk to this woman. With how they had started out, he hadn't thought it would be nearly this simple. "Yeah, well… this is different."
"Why?"
Sully hesitated, dragging on his cigarette again with a cautious look to his eyes. He shrugged, saying nothing.
"Why's it different, Sullivan?" she demanded, coming to lean back against the railing again, arms crossed over her chest and eyes on the blond's face.
He sighed, "'Cause I don't see a happy ending however which way all this stuff between you and Bobby needs up."
"Happy ending?" Her brow twitched in amusement, lips hitched in a smirk.
"You're sweet on him, and he's pretty sweet on you too, right?" He used his hands as he spoke, "But Bobby's not over Christina completely yet, is he? You two end up together forever and all that cutesy shit and you guys will be happy, but it'll break Christina's heart. That'll hurt Bobby and so, no happy ending."
Deacon listened as Sully spoke, a small frown in her brow.
"The other possibility here is that you and he don't end up together. He goes home to Christina and does things right by her like he promised, leaving you behind…" He tossed his cigarette over into the water, "but that'll break your heart, right? Christina's happy, but Bobby's gonna be miserable over hurting you. No happy ending." He shrugged, palms out and fingers spread, "Now, I don't see any other option here for any of you."
"That's 'cause there aren't any more options for us but those, Sully." She sighed, chewing on her bottom lip. A soft chuckle bubbled out of her, lips tweaking in false amusement, "No sense in looking for a happy ending in this, though. There's no such thing."
He arched a brow at her.
"There's no such thing as a happy ending." She clarified with a wave of her hand, "Not the kind you're talking about anyway. Those belong in children's books; they don't exist in reality."
Sully nodded, chest heaving with a sigh, "True. Still," he shrugged, "it'll be a shame."
"What will?"
"Watchin' everything fall apart."
Deacon watched as Sully left her behind on the deck. The blond man headed down into the cabin from whence he came and she watched in silence until he disappeared through the door and down the stairs. She felt a scowl slink across her face; she'd be damned if she just let things fall apart. Sure, she was in one damn good pickle with this relationship she had going on with Bobby, and she still couldn't even consider the man tossing Christina to the curb without getting flustered and feeling guilty, but she loved him… Deacon couldn't give up Bobby anymore then she could think of him giving up Christina. He was a weakness that both frustrated the hell out of
her and one she was glad to harbor; like an addictive drug, she didn't think she could give him up even if she wanted to, and she certainly wouldn't just give him up at this point… not even for the whole world.
Lost in her mind, she jumped when a shadow fell over her and the heat of another person's body mixed with her's. She breathed a sigh of relief, hearing Bobby chuckle as he looked down at her.
"What are you doing out here?" He asked her, hand coming up to tuck a loose strand of her hair back behind one of her ears.
"Nothing," she gave him a smile, "Just thinkin'."
"Yeah? What about?"
She shrugged a shoulder, sighing softly as she did. "Lots of different things. You."
"Me?" His voice sounded surprised and a boyish grin tugged at his lips. He leaned forward against her, each hand braced on the railing on either side of Deacon – trapping her between his arms and chest. "What about me?"
She shook her head at him, "Just thinkin'."
"Alight, fine, don't share with me."
"I won't." She chuckled as he made a face at her, "Have a good nap?"
"Actually, yes. Had a nice dream."
"The one where you're flyin' again?"
"No. Better."
"Oh really? What was it about then?"
"You." He told her softly. He watched as the smirk eased off her lips and her eyes took on a sober glow to them; he gave her a smile as soft as his words, tipping his head in to press a kiss to her temple. "Dreamt about how much I love you. Dreamt about you and me, out at the dock back in Gloucester, stockin' up our own ship… getting' ready for a weekend out at sea. Just you and me."
He said it all against her hair, lips pressed to her temple, and Deacon felt herself give in to that girly impulse Bobby always woke within her – she felt herself practically melt. Brows knit and eyes closed, face leaning in against Bobby's.
"Got me to thinkin'…" He continued, one hand leaving the railing and lifting to wrap around her and press against her back. "I want that, Deac. I want that for use someday."
"Yeah?" She smiled and returned the hug he had her in, hands coming up to take purchase on either of his sides. She felt her heart leap into her throat, "…sounds like a good dream."
He tucked a kiss high against her jaw; the hand on her back now rubbing in slow, small circles against the fabric of the hoodie she wore. His voice was slow and almost hesitant, "Is it… somethin' you might want? For us?"
She hesitated a bit herself; feeling and listening to him breathe so close against her. He was talking, in essence, about a future between them and even though they'd talked about such things before, somehow it felt a lot more serious this time. Bobby was serious about this. Ultimately, she felt that anxious flutter in her chest as she nodded. "Yes… I'd… I want that too, Bobby."
She felt him smile against her jaw, "Serious?"
Deacon nodded.
"Then… when we shove in, stay in Gloucester. No more jokin', no more excuses…" He murmured against her temple, "Just stay in Gloucester."
She hesitated again and then let her head fall onto his shoulder, face tilted inward. She stared at his neck as she spoke, "…where would I stay?"
"The Crow's Nest."
"I can't afford it, not even at a reduced price." She sighed against his shoulder, "And I'm not living there on credit. Feels too much like I'm robbing your mother…"
He chuckled and so did she.
"Not a problem, sweetheart." Bobby gave her a squeeze, "Not a problem."
"How you figure?" She scoffed, "I've got no money, no place to live…"
"Stay with me at The Crow's Nest."
She lifted her head and pulled back enough to look him in the eyes. A small furrow folded her brow as she stared at him, expression curious and questioning. Had he seriously just asked her to live with him? Just like that? That easily? He looked seven different kinds of serious now as she stared at those honest brown eyes of his and she couldn't hold back the smile that stretched her lips. She had the chance to secure an actual future with this man, right here and now, all depending on how she responded…
She leaned forward just enough to make her desire known to the man, leaving her lips to hover just in front of his. He grinned at her, closing the distance for them in a tender, loving kiss that spoke volumes of the man's feelings on top of everything else he had already gone and said. She
nodded as he kissed her, unsettling their lips a little as she did, but he didn't seem to mind in the least.
"Alright." She nodded again, looking up at him as he pressed their foreheads together, "I'll stay in Gloucester when we pull in. I'll stay with you."
She knew she'd made the right choice the second after she said it; a smile exploded across Bobby's face, brighter than any smile she'd ever seen on him before. His arms closed in around her, lifting her up off her feet against him as he spun them around once on the deck in his glee – she laughed at the sight they must have been to anyone watching, but she let him have his moment and locked her arms around his neck. He settled her back on her feet, dropping in for another deep rooted kiss.
"But-"
"Ah…! I said no more excuses – no 'but's, Deac."
"No, seriously," she remained close against him with her arms around his neck. Her brow furrowed tenfold as she continued, "…what about… what about Christina?" He sighed heavily, head drooping on his neck and she hushed his protests, "Now just listen, it's somethin' we're gonna have to actually talk about sooner or later. Considering I've agreed to stay with you now would be a good time…"
"I already told you," Bobby stressed to her, "let me handle Christina."
"And I will, but I'd like to know just how you plan on handling her." She let go of him and turned back to the railing, her back now to him. "You live with her in The Crow's Nest now, right?"
"No," he returned to his previous position; a hand on the railing on either side of her. He leaned against her, his chest against her back, and nestled his chin on her shoulder. "Remember? I told you she was plannin' to move us out into house when I got back…"
"That just makes it worse!" She snapped at him, "She's gone and bought a house for you two…" She shook her head, attempting to break free from his hold around her, "This isn't right. This isn't gonna work, Bobby."
"Hey," he scowled deeply at her, "don't you say shit like that. This is gonna work fine. You let me worry about Christina; all you got to be concerned with is what we're gonna name that boat of ours and where we're gonna go on it first."
She turned in his hold, looking up at him thoughtfully. "You're really serious about this?"
"Serious as a fuckin' heart attack." He grinned at her with that loveable Bobby grin of his, "I am in love with you, Deacon Gallagher. And I'd give anything to be with you."
The honesty in his eyes was almost painful to look at and left her sheepish as she stared up at them. She smiled, "Anything?"
He nodded his head, leaning their foreheads together again, "I'd chase your scrawny ass back to Manchester if I had to."
"Thomas and my father would eat you alive."
He shrugged, "I'd let them so long as I got to be with you."
She just stared at him for a long while, marveling at the honesty in him and the adoration his eyes seemed to worship her with. She'd never felt such a gaze on her before.
"Hey!"
She and Bobby tipped their heads over to look back towards the cabin where someone had just shouted out on to the deck. It was Bugsy, beckoning them over with a largely amused grin on his weasel-like face.
"If you two're done makin' gaga eyes at each other, Murph's got some dinner ready for us." He shouted out to them, snickering as he did. He, above everyone else on board, seemed to find the relationship between Deacon and Bobby extremely amusing. He disappeared back into the cabin then, mission complete.
Deacon chuckled, grabbing hold of one of Bobby's hands to lead him to the cabin with her. "Come on, lover boy. Thinkin' on an empty stomach is bad for everyone…"
He consented, letting her drag him over to the cabin door and down the small set of stairs to join the rest of the crew for dinner. Murph had made steaks tonight and everyone was in a jolly good mood this evening as they all sat down at their little table to eat. It just might have been the best and most companionable dinner they six had shared with each other since they'd been together.
REVIEW PLEASE! Comments and constructive criticism welcomed!
Sorry this chapter is a little short, but it was intended to only be a filler chapter… the next will be longer and will hopefully get out a lot quicker than this one did.
I apologize for any and all spelling/grammatical errors that might be found while reading. I have no beta and I tend to read over mistakes...