Elizabeth thought a lot about it. But could she actually accept the proposal? She could hardly believe she was thinking about it, but to accept it? So many things would change, but really none of them would change for the worst. She sat in her room, candle light illuminating her vigil figure. She was hardly breathing as she looked down upon the ring in her hand; the one that Jack had given her only hours before. She hadn't let it out of her grasp once since receiving it, and she didn't intend to let it go. Even though it had been in her grasp all the while, she hadn't dared to slip it onto her finger, for fear she wouldn't be able to take it back off again.
What was she to do? She was caught in between to loves, one was just a brotherly love, while the other was physically hurting her when the fire was not fed. Trying to conceal herself, she stood up and wandered aimlessly around the room. It was small and dark, making her shadow dance across the wall as she slowly strode around.
"Elizabeth?" The doorway was flung open, letting blinding light shine through. Elizabeth held up a hand to cover her eyes until they adjusted to the light change. "Elizabeth, come outside! You've been keeping yourself cooped up all morning!" Elizabeth sighed, knowing the statement was true. "Will, come in…" Her voice was hardly enthusiastic as she spoke, and Will uncertainly walked in, shutting the door behind him. Again Elizabeth had to let her eyes adjust to the light change. Elizabeth sighed and walked back to her bedside to sit down. How was she going to explain things to the seemingly innocent man before her? But when she looked back at him, his happy go lucky face had vanished into a serious one. How different he suddenly seemed. It gave Elizabeth the confidence she needed at the moment.
"Will…I don't think we can be married anymore." She gripped her ring even tighter as she waited for a reply. Will's eyes flashes over to her, dumbfounded. "Elizabeth, what are you talking about? We're about to be a very happy newly wedded couple!" Elizabeth averted her eyes, sighing again. It seemed she was doing a lot of that these days. "Well…we were going to be newlyweds…But now…I just have this feeling of doubt; like I'm not really up to that sort of engagement." Of course she was partly lying. If this had been Jack before her, she would be perfectly fine with this sort of engagement. But a life with Jack and a life with Will were two entirely different lives. On one hand Jack offered a lifetime of adventure and open sea, and on the other hand Will offered a life of that of a normal person. Living in Port Royal, her husband a blacksmith, two kids, and a tired housewife. Which one would you choose? Elizabeth certainly didn't think the other hand sounded very appealing.
"What do you mean Elizabeth?" Hurt showed itself in Will's eyes. "I love you…" Oh how it hurt to see Will in such pain, but it felt as if a weight was being lifted off of Elizabeth's shoulders, and she could finally move and breathe again. "I…I know. But Will…I think I'm in love with someone else…" Will locked eyes with her. "He loves you too…" A dagger was shoved into Elizabeth's heart. "How do you know?" She demanded. Will explained as a matter of factly, "He never touches you…" Elizabeth gulped. He touched me yesterday…But does that actually count? He was only handing me a gift…a really big gift… "What's that got to do with anything?" She asked. Will shrugged. "He respects you; you're different than the other women he's used to being around."
It made sense to Elizabeth, but still, was that the only reason Will thought that Jack loved her? It didn't really matter, just as long as she didn't have to live a life of misery any longer. With no further comments Will gave her a sad look and then left. Elizabeth watched him go, partly sad, but mostly happy. It suddenly felt like she was as a free as a bird…as a sparrow. Suddenly a smile spread across Elizabeth's face. A smile containing a feeling she hadn't been able to really feel for a long time; happiness. Eagerly she leapt from her bed and rushed out of her room.
Clutching the ring tightly as she raced around the Pearl, she was headed for one place, and one place alone. Her feet carried her as fast as they could until the stairs came into view. She stopped, catching her breath, and slowly took the steps downward. When she stepped onto the icy cold flooring of the rum cellar, she realized she hadn't put any shoes on before leaving her room. Now she wished she had as the cold shot up through her foot, making her whole body shiver. But she forgot about being cold when she saw him standing beside a rack of rum, his fingers slowly running along each bottle until they found what they were looking for, and eagerly grasped the bottle and pulled it out.
Elizabeth let another smile light up her face and looked down at her palm. A mark was embedded in her palm from where she had grasped the ring so hard. She easily slipped the ring onto her finger. She looked at it proudly before looking back up, hiding her hand behind her back. "Jack?" Jack didn't even jump when her voice cut through the silence of the cellar. He turned around, the rum bottle slightly tipped as he was about to take a drink. When he saw who it was he smiled. "Yes, love?" Elizabeth quickly looked down then back up, reassuring herself that she was doing the right thing. "Well…I've been thinking…" Jack's smile faded and he let the rum bottle slip through his fingers, caught himself, and then set it down on the floor. It was obvious he was expecting the worst. Elizabeth continued. "Well, since I've been thinking, I've come to a conclusion…" She stopped, knowing no words could express what she was trying to say, so instead she smiled and took her hand out from behind her back and held it up. The ring sparkled in the dark interior of the cellar, and it made a light flash in Jack's eyes. Elizabeth felt warm as a look a relief was shown in his eyes as well, and then she just couldn't wait any longer. She walked over to him looked into his eyes. "I love you too." Then she kissed him.