Author's Note: Taffy0- Please accept my apology with getting the dates wrong- but this is according to the movie. If Port Royal was there in the movie, then it's going to be there in my story, and I only used Port Royal once…and I would like to research about all this but one, I don't have time and two, I hate history- so…bear with me please. I'm glad that you like my story, but just bear with me.
LAST TIME: Dinah had her head down, trying to figure out how to unwrap a present, when her mother gasped. She ignored it but when all the girls a moment later gasped she slowly drew her head up to see what the fuss was about. There, leaning against the door frame, with his arms crossed stood the man that made every muscle in her body tighten.
They made eye contact and he smiled, showing his colorful teeth, and said, "Hello Luv."
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Dinah slowly stood up used every drop of her patience not to lunge at Jack. She kept steady eye contact and he kept a steady smile. She was sure that he could see her feelings in her eyes and that's why she showed no emotion in her voice. "What are you doing here?"
"Well I heard you're havin' a wedding, so I just thought I'd invite myself to it. I mean, we're close, right?"
He's just trying to get a rise out of you… She told herself.
"You're presence is not wanted." Beatrice said sternly.
"Let me handle this mother," Dinah said without breaking eye contact. She hadn't seen those eyes in so long. Those eyes that showed compassion, hurt, love, and anger, now showed nothing. This aggravated Dinah and hope that he was aggravated by something she was or wasn't doing.
"Tell me the real reason you're here, Captain."
Oh…she used my title… Jack thought to himself. He held out his hands in innocence. "That's the real reason! Unless you think there's some other reason…" He said cocking his eyebrow.
"No, of course not. Well Captain, I hope that you're not the only one who came."
Jack shrugged and said, "If it's Ana Maria you're wantin', then she'll be here later. I'd just thought I'd drop by and announce my presence and congratulate dear ol' Douggie."
Danielle started giggling at the informal use of Dinah's future husband's name, but a look from Dinah stopped the giggling. She turned her head back to Jack and said politely, "Captain, please call Mr. Hall by something more appropriate, and now that you've made you're presence known, you can return to you ship and I will make an effort to come and welcome both you and Ana…properly."
Jack eyed Dinah. Properly. No kidding. She's so stiff you could tip her over and she'd bust up into a million little pieces. He nodded and started to leave when she walked toward him. "Oh Captain, let me walk you to the door, to make sure you leave." Jack smiled at this and held out his arm, she ignored it and walked up ahead of him. When he was out of the room she shut it quietly and marched to the front door. She opened and asked, "What the blast are you doing here!?"
"Why Dinah! You are happy to see me! You were hiding it so well!" Jack said sarcastically. Dinah rolled her eyes and waited. "The wedding, of course."
"That's kinda funny, seeing how you hate weddings!"
"Well this one sounded interestin', savvy?"
"You can not stand here and look me in the eye and tell me it sounded interesting."
"Why not?"
"Because it's a lie! I don't know why you're here, but you won't be staying if I have ANYTHING to do about it, Savvy?" She said, sort of mocking the phrase.
"We'll see about that, luv."
Dinah smacked him quick and then pointed outside. Jack rubbed his jaw and walked out. Once he was far enough out the door, she slammed the door. "Boy," he said quietly, "This is going to be hard…" but while the words sounded melancholy, a sly smile grew larger on his face and he walked to his ship.
After she shut the door, Dinah took deep breaths to keep the tears down. Although she had been furious and visions of strangling Jack right then and there, she wanted to fall into his arms and kiss him and hug him. She hadn't seen the man in over four months, but she had promised herself that he wasn't going to take over her heart again. And hugging him and kissing him after how she acted in the living room wasn't the best way to keep him away.
Two very slow hours later, Dinah was walking to Port. The weather had cleared up a little but there were still rain clouds hovering over her little town, Somerset. She could see the Pearl now, and it was beautiful. It's sails were out which made it look even bigger. Dinah breathed in a large breath of salt water as she came closer. She could see Jack and Ana talking on the dock, sitting down and dangling their feet over the edge. Once Jack saw Dinah he got up quickly and walked over to meet her, but she walked right past him and went and sat down next to Ana.
She started telling her about the wedding shower and how horrible it was and then she told her how Jack interrupted and then she turned and looked at him. There he was, standing with his arms crossed, just looking at Dinah. She wanted to smile, but it was weird how he was acting.
"What's with him?" Dinah asked her friend when she was done with her story.
"Dinah…Are you sure you really want to marry Douglas?"
Dinah looked at her hands, "Ana…Well see the thing is…"
"Dinah, you don't want to marry him and you know it."
"Yeah, but what other choice do I have? I mean, the only other person that would be an option is…is... well he doesn't feel for me what I used to feel for him."
"Used to?" Ana questioned, she shot a look to Jack and he was only a few feet away, listening.
"Yes, but I don't want to talk about it. Ana, my mom said you're welcome in my house, so how 'bout it?" She asked, getting up.
"Uh sure…" Ana agreed, figuring Dinah would need someone to talk to late at night. She got up and went to pack one of her trunks.
Dinah turned around and asked, "Jack, what are you doing here? I'm already getting massive headaches because of the stress of the wedding and I don't need a pirate making it worse."
"Like I told you, I wanted to see you on your special day and I certainly am not meaning to cause you any more pain."
Dinah soaked up the last sentence, not meaning to cause you any more pain…she thought to herself. That had a certain double meaning but she didn't necessarily want to think about that.
"Tell me the real reason Jack, because when I left in October, I wasn't really planning on ever seeing you again! And here you are, a month before my wedding, I only have one thing on my mind!"
Jack held his tongue before a sarcastic comment could come out of his mouth, but instead said, "What's that, Dinah?"
"What do you think!? I ask you your true feelings about me and you say something that I totally wasn't expecting and then once I get on with my life, you show up to ruin it! You want to rub my face in the fact that you don't like me as much as you let on!"
Jack watched as she kept her head high even though tears were streaming down her face, he wanted to hold her but he knew if he took a step then he would loose her completely, there was only one thing he could do. "I'm sorry."
Dinah took her eyes off the grass and looked at him.
"I'm sorry if I mislead you. I certainly didn't mean to, and now I'm here to make up for it." Now this statement had a double meaning, even if Dinah didn't know it did.
Dinah analyzed what Jack had just told her. He seemed sincere, but she could never be sure with him. She wiped the tears from her eyes and heard Ana coming from the plank. "Please excuse me if I don't invite you into my house…" She said quietly. He nodded and she and Ana walked off, Dinah trying hard not to turn around and look back.
"So you don't love him…?" Ana asked. The two girls had dressed in pajamas, got hot chocolate and were now sitting on Dinah's bed. Ana was resuming the conversation that Dinah hadn't wanted to talk about earlier. When Dinah didn't answer the question, Ana knew the answer, but went on, "I mean, you just don't fall out of love with someone…right?"
Dinah shrugged, "You could…"
"Yes, but would you…you as in Dinah Eileen Milton."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Dinah! We both know that you're emotional! You put emotion into everything, and I don't care how hard you try to hide it! You can't hide it from me."
Dinah started to pout, "Okay, well I'm only telling you this because you're my best friend."
"Spill it," Ana said with hopeful eyes and listening ears.
Dinah took in and then let out a deep breath and looked Ana in the eyes, "I don't love him…Douglas I mean…He asked me to marry him though, and with him I see promise and a happy home…And with Jack I see arguments and him leaving me…of course I'm assuming he would want to do anything with me that even remotely resembles a wedding. Because that's insane because I asked him face to face and he said no…so my ONLY option other than being an old maid is Douglas, and I'm going to take it."
Ana sighed, she was thinking of telling her of Jack's true feelings, but that would ruin it all, but now she realized that either way here, Jack had a 50-50 chance. If he told her before the wedding then she would either reject him and live the rest of her life wondering what it would've been like or she would accept him and spend her whole life wondering about if it was the right decision.
Ana worded her next sentence carefully, "What if…what if something better came along?"
"Huh?"
"Okay, say you have two…pigs! And one of them runs away. You're left with the other one, but the one who ran off, was your favorite. Now, you have to take this pig to a show…but just when you made your decision, the one who ran away comes back. Which one do you take? Your favorite or the one you've already chosen?"
"Ana, I have no idea what this has to do with Jack and Douglas!"
"Just answer it."
"Well…the favorite pig."
"Okay. So the favorite pig is Jack and the one who didn't run off is Douglas."
Dinah looked at her friend in disbelief and then started shaking her head. "Ana Maria!"
"What?"
"This is totally different from pigs! Douglas is a person! I can't ignore that! I practically handed my life over to him! He has feelings!" She said, raising her voice.
"Yes, well so does Jack." Ana said sternly, leaning in to make better eye contact with her friend.
Dinah awoke the next morning from a restless night of sleep to a plinking noise. She was trying to figure out what is was but then looked at her window. Someone was throwing rocks up to her window. She walked barefoot over to the window and opened it.
"What do you want?"
Jack dropped his handful of rocks and stared up at the window, there was the women he had been yearning to talk to since late last night. "I want to talk to you!" He yelled up.
"About what?"
"Anything you want." He said a little quieter with a softer tone.
Dinah's questions stopped and desire took over her mind and heart. She nodded and left the window to slip on some shoes and get dressed. Right before she left she grabbed a ribbon from her desk and tied her long hair in it. She quietly shut her door and left the house without a sound.
Author's Note II: Even though I have awhile 'til the end…tell me what you think about a sequel….