Chapter 9 - Busted
I awoke the next morning freezing. I didn't know where I was. It had been quite some time since I had awoke in a grungy room fully clothed. As I looked around the cold stone room, my eyes fell upon Nicolas, lying beside me. His body was wrapped up, his arms around his chest, his head facing toward me. His face was calm, peaceful. His breathing was steady and quiet. I remembered then. I remembered the night before; what took place beside the fire. We had stayed up into the early hours of the morning. I was pleased to realize that my parents must not have walked in on us. I would have had a lot of explaining to do if that had been the case, and I really hadn't done anything wrong. I checked the time, which read ten thirty in the morning. I was surprised no one had come into the room yet. Perhaps, I thought, I am the luckiest woman alive. Maybe sheer luck kept everyone out... I turned to Nick and rubbed his shoulder.
"Nicky," I whispered. "Nick, it's getting late. We should get up." Nick rolled onto his back, stretching, and stared at the ceiling briefly before turning back to face me. He smiled, not his goofy smile or mischievous one, but a real genuine smile.
"Good morning," he whispered back. "How did you sleep?" I smiled back.
"Alright. You?" Nick sighed as he fell back onto his back and closed his eyes.
"Better than I have in a long time..." I had noticed it, too. He hadn't been up all night, coughing. He had slept peacefully. I could only imagine how good that must have felt for him. He opened his eyes and sat up. I noticed that his face had more color than usual. It looked more like it had the night before, only now there was no fire causing it. As he began to get up, however, he began to sway. I jumped up and grabbed his arm with one hand and wrapped my other arm around his back to steady him. I guided him back to the floor before his knees gave out completely. Once he was sitting safely on the floor again, head in his hands, I spoke.
"What happened? Are you alright?" He nodded and lifted his face. He looked as though he had just seen a ghost.
"Yeah...I don't know what happened. I must have gotten up too quickly. I got dizzy and blacked out for a minute..." We sat for a few more moments before I helped him up slowly. I led him back to his room so he could change for breakfast. Once he was safely in his room, I went to mine to do the same.
Breakfast was uneventful. Jack had gotten up early and had already eaten. Nick and I ate with Mother and Father, who were quiet. They usually were at mealtimes. They said it was "proper etiquette". They finished quickly, leaving Nick and I alone at the table. We talked as we ate and Nick told stories that made me laugh as I hadn't in quite some time. We were just finishing when Jack entered the room.
"'Ello, love," he said to me. "Nick," he greeted, inclining his head slightly. He sat down between us as if there were plenty of room, when in reality, we were sitting so close together that when Jack picked up an extra chair and swung it between us backward to straddle it, he ended up more behind us than between us. We reluctantly moved our chairs slightly away from each other to make room for Jack.
Jack's face was serious, or at least, as serious as Jack could be when he had obviously already been sampling the inn's fifty-year-old supply of rum that morning. He put his hands down on the table and looked at them for a moment before turning to each of us in turn.
"Meg...Nick...I just wanted to tell you two lovebirds that you don't have to worry about ol' Jack." I looked at Nick. Nick looked at me.
"What?" we both asked in unison. Jack shook his head, like the explanation was obvious and we simply weren't getting it.
"I promise, pirate's honor, that I won't tell your mum and dad, love."
"Jack," I said slowly, "You need to explain what you're talking about." Jack rolled his eyes and head.
"The cellar is through the common room..." We were still confused, giving Jack very blank expressions. "The rum is in the cellar..." We still stared, but this time, because we under stood.
"The rum was in the cellar..." Nick started, staring into my eyes. My eyes had grown wide.
"We were in the common room!" I exclaimed. Jack nodded.
"But, lass, I promise. Your secret's safe."
"Thanks, Jack," Nick said. "We owe you one."
"Just be more careful from now on, eh?" Jack requested. Nick and I looked at each other once again, a mixture of relief and anxiety flooding through the distance between us. We spoke once again in unison as we both dove toward Jack and engulfed him in a huge hug.
"We promise!"
