Lizzie waved to the boys as she entered her house, and they drove off. Tensions were still pretty high, and there was a lot of baggage to sort through, but they seemed to be doing alright in her opinion.
She hurried to her room and called up James. She braced herself as it was immediately answered.
"The crow's feet are drenched in snow. My sugar is missing, but I'll melt for the right price," James said in monotone.
"You're a spy now? The crow flies at midnight?"
"Oh, hey, Liz." The sounds of shuffling to get upright could be heard. "There's a scavenger hunt going on, and I volunteered to stay and give out our clue."
"How nice of you."
"Got all my weapons leveled up. I'm so overpowered right now."
Lizzie rolled her eyes. "Good for you. Guess what!"
"Will drowned Jack in the bathtub?"
"Almost! Hector Barbossa is staying the weekend," she replied and pulled the receiver from her ear. She grinned as James could be heard shouting obscenities.
"Lizzie! Liz? Elizabeth!"
"I'm here."
"Stay there. I'm heading over."
"Oh, my god… James, it's fine. I'm fine. He's leaving tomorrow," she explained. "He's...not that bad?"
James scoffed. "He's a pirate."
"And now he's a skateboard enthusiast."
There was a long pause on the other end of the line. "A what?"
"Skater punk. From what Jack says, he's not bad?"
There was more silence.
"You okay over there?"
"I'm fine," came the gruff reply.
"You wanna come over tomorrow? All of them will be in Boston to drop off Ashley."
"Who?"
"Barbossa's middle name, apparently. He prefers it to Hector. Something about the way his grandma says it. Like he's in constant trouble." She grinned as James broke out in laughter.
"Yeah, I'll— Shit. Call waiting. Love you, bye!"
Lizzie replaced her phone in its cradle and laid back on her bed with a smile. As always, in her opinion, her meddling yielded great results.
That night at Jack's…
"We can go see a movie, too," Will offered as Ashley picked through Jack's collection of movies and recorded shows. Jack's legs were propped across his lap, pinning him in place. He gave one of Jack's ankles a light squeeze.
"I'm broke and depressed, and happiness will only make it worse," Jack replied.
"But your car's getting fixed," Will said. "If anything, you should be celebrating."
"I should be getting a salvage title, not my mom's boyfriend's money. I'm not a charity case!" said Jack as he waved his hands about to emphasize his point. "It's bribery, is what it is!"
When they arrived back at the apartment, there had been an envelope sitting on the dining table, addressed to Jack. Apparently, Weatherby felt that it would be a shame if Jack's car was never restored to its true glory and had written a check to cover what the insurance company wouldn't. And then some.
"I'm not...not grateful, but this is weird!" Jack complained as Ashley wandered off. "Is he buying my approval for dating my mom?"
"I think he's trying to be nice," Will replied.
"Would he be offended if I tore it up and gave it back? Is that an option?"
"It's an option, and I think he'd understand if you turned it down."
"But I wanna keep it" Jack whined as he glared at the ceiling.
Ashley returned and lightly tapped Will's shoulder.
Will looked up in confusion, then down as a small plastic bottle was surreptitiously handed to him. He took it and blushed as he read the label on the lube. "Er… I don't think…"
"I'm gonna grab us a pizza," Ashley said as he patted Will's shoulder. "I have shit luck with delivery, so I'll be back in thirty or so. Maybe longer since I'm walking."
"Bring back beer," Jack said miserably.
"Only if they have something you like," Ashley called back as he left.
Will stared at the bottle and bit his lip. He didn't think it was a trap. He glanced at Jack, still fretting over the check. He took a deep breath and swallowed. "Wanna head to your room? We can negotiate the terms for the rest of my birthday present."
Jack propped himself on his elbows and raised a brow. "What do you…" He trailed off as he caught sight of the lube. "I knew I bought condoms for a reason!"
Will laughed as Jack struggled upright, wincing partway.
"I'm good! Doc said I'm clear. Just sore," he insisted. "And hoping to be more sore," he added, pitching his voice low.
The next day at Logan International Airport…
Jack watched a plane fly overhead as Will drove up to the passenger dropoff. "That is gonna fuck with me for a while…"
Ashley followed his gaze and grimaced. "Yeah. Now Grandma's words make sense." He cleared his throat and affected an accented falsetto. "Oh, Hector, you will return a changed man. I look forward to your comparisons of planes and boats."
"It's like she's here," Jack muttered. "Did she curse me in a past life?"
"I'll ask."
Will stopped the car and turned in his seat to face Ashley. "You know it's no trouble for us to wait with you. I don't hate you or anything."
Ashley shook his head. "Naw, man. Clean break. I got a lot of shit to work through, I think I should take up journaling. Gonna work on how to ask my grandma if she needs help at the shop." He paused and made a face. "Without her being all 'I told you so.'"
Will nodded along as Jack laughed, wondering if he should be grateful that he never met the woman. "Well… I guess, until next time?" He winced at the finality of his tone. "I mean, now. Not next life. You're not cut out of our lives or anything like that. I'm not… Okay, so I get jealous, but I don't see you as much of a threat anymore. And that sounds worse."
Ashley smiled as Jack's laughter got worse. "How's this sound: Next time I find him first, I'll just put a bow on him and hand deliver his ass to you. Deal?"
"If you remember, sure."
"Grandma might know some tricks," Ashley said with a thoughtful look.
"Tricks to get you in the loony bin," Jack said under his breath, wiping at his eyes.
"She's not that bad!"
"I'm sure she's lovely, and maybe I'll get to meet her," Will said, putting a hand between the pair. "Now, Jack, if you would kindly let Ashley out before I get yelled at for taking too long."
A couple hours later on Port Whisk Beach…
Jack kicked a rock out into the ocean. He could remember with stark clarity doing the same action as a child in another life. He frowned at the water in confusion.
"Something wrong?" asked Will.
"Yeah. I'm conscious."
"Er…"
"Just remembered something without passing out," Jack explained.
"You say that like it's a bad thing," Will said with a laugh as he pulled Jack against him. He rested his chin on Jack's shoulder as he watched the ocean with Jack.
Jack shook his head. "Just weird is all. I got used to it, y'know? Never actually thought it'd get fixed. Not really." He leaned back into Will and brought his hands behind himself, seeking out Will's belt. "Amazing what a good dicking will do!"
Will groaned and let go of Jack, lightly pushing him away.
"You saying last night wasn't fun?"
"Oh, I'm not complaining. But I'm also not the one limping."
Jack paused and threw Will a glare. "Because of my leg, not because you gave me a good ramming. I wasn't gonna insult your technique, but if that's what you're after…"
"Whatever. I'll just ignore the begging next time." Will laughed as Jack pulled him back against his chest, reversing their previous positions.
"Now don'tcha be gettin' any ideas in that pretty little head of yours," Jack said as he lightly kissed Will just behind his ear, making the other shiver.
"I honestly think your conversation with Ashley did you a lot of good. Both of you."
"Yeah, I guess. But lemme pretend it was a magic fuck." Jack sighed as he let go of Will.
Will turned around in confusion. "You okay?"
Jack shrugged and hugged himself. "I remember waiting," he whispered. "I wasn't sure if I could go through that again."
"Jack…"
"I mean… I will," he said with a note of conviction. "I think we're worth it."
Will smiled softly and gently pried one of Jack's hands loose and took it in his own. "We'll make the most of this life first, okay? Make it worth the wait."
"Can't believe I'm agreeing with Jimbo, but you acting like a mature adult is weird."
"One of us has to be the adult."
Jack rolled his eyes and tugged on his hand, pulling Will closer. "Whatever. Don't get too old on me. I'm still a horny teen, and I intend to make up for lost time."
"You haven't changed one bit," Will said with a laugh. "Good thing there's no treasure to dig up." He tilted head and frowned as Jack's eyes unfocused for a moment. "No. Oh, no. God, no!"
"Treasure hunting's a real job, and I know things. Not all of it's cursed," Jack insisted as held Will's hands tightly.
"Get a real education first."
"But-"
"You can be the Indiana Jones of the ocean. You can introduce yourself as Doctor Sparrow. How's that sound?"
"Like I'm gonna need a hat," Jack said with a grin. He leaned in and gave Will a quick kiss. "You know this means I'm allowed to go after cursed shit now, right? I know a couple counter curses!"
Will sighed and leaned his forehead against Jack's, closing his eyes. "I guess it's a step up from piracy, and you'll just find a way to do it anyway."
"Still mad about the privateering thing, huh?" Jack asked softly.
Will cupped Jack's cheek and lightly kissed him. "I'm mad you didn't tell me your plan. You'd be surprised what I'll let you get away with if you're just honest with me." He narrowed his eyes as Jack lit up with an air of mischief. "Within reason."
"I'm always reasonable."
"Keep telling yourself that," Will said before silencing Jack's argument with a deep kiss.
ooo
AN: Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!