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Chapter 3

After twenty minutes of steering the vessel forward, Barbossa finally noticed a large whirlpool dead ahead of them. Everyone began scurrying around the deck, following his orders while Jack simply stood at the stern of the ship, away from everyone else.

"All hands to stations!" Barbossa shouted aloud as everyone followed his command.

"Grab hold of something, men!" Will added above the loud noise of the sudden crashing waves.

As Elizabeth grabbed the edge of one of the manropes, she turned and saw Jack standing motionless, his hands not gripping any form of support while his eyes were fixed on thin air.

"Jack!" she shouted his name several times, but received no response.

Before she was able to shout his name again, Tia Dalma turned from where she stood and blew a cold breeze straight to his face. He suddenly snapped out of his daze and looked at her.

"Hold on to something," she said calmly from her place next to Pintel and Ragetti.

With that, he grabbed onto another manrope just as Barbossa plunged head-first into the whirlpool, letting out a wicked cackle as he steered the Black Pearl.

"If Barbossa steers us correctly, this should only last for a few minutes!" Tia Dalma shouted to the crew.

As the waves began crashing down on top of them one after another, Cotton's grip on a rope loosened and he fell backwards off the edge of the ship.

"Cotton!" Gibbs shouted for the fallen pirate, but it was no use since he couldn't respond.

"I'll get him," Elizabeth exclaimed.

"No!" Will said in disagreement as another wave crashed onto the deck.

"I'm closer to him," Elizabeth replied and began climbing towards Cotton before Will could argue with her any further.

Everyone watched in worry as Elizabeth slowly climbed to the other side of the ship. A wave hit her as she moved, but she struggled to hold a tight grip on the rope and pulled herself towards a frightened Cotton.

"Hold on, I'm coming!" she exclaimed before finally reaching him and extending her hand. "Come on, take my hand!"

The pirate waited for another fearful moment before taking her hand and struggling back onto the deck of the Pearl. His foot got caught on a net and it sent both of them backwards on the deck, landing on their backs.

"Hurry and grab hold of something!" Will shouted over the angry waves.

As Cotton scurried to his feet, he ran across the deck and held onto a set of ropes near Ragetti. Elizabeth came to follow, but another wave rocked the ship and sent her facedown on the deck before the water surrounded her. Unable to grab hold of any support, she screamed as she began sliding down to the stern of the ship where Jack was standing. Another tumble made her go overboard and she held the edge with both hands. Will shouted her name and tried his hardest to reach her, but the waves were too violent and held him back.

"Elizabeth, hold on!" Will shouted, although he was unsure whether she heard him or not.

She tightened her grip as best as she could before glancing down at the ferocious waves that were attacking the Pearl and tugging at her feet. All of a sudden, she felt a pair of hands reach down and grab hers. Looking up, Elizabeth smiled when she saw her rescuer.

"Take my hand," Jack exclaimed, reaching for her.

Obeying his command, she took his hand in hers and climbed up with all her strength. He helped her over the edge and back onto the deck as everyone watched them in silence. Pulling her tightly to his chest, Jack grabbed hold of a set of ropes as she clung to his body in support. Will watched in a mixture of relief and anger as Elizabeth tilted her head into Jack's chest and closed her eyes.

"Hold on," he whispered into her ear as she nodded.

As the Pearl plunged for the final time, she felt Jack tighten his grip around her waist. Smiling inwardly, she locked her hands behind his back, taking comfort from the closeness of his body. He clenched his teeth from the pain of having her so close to him and the wounds on his body, but knowing that she was safe made it seem worthwhile. All of a sudden, a final wave crashed over them and before they knew it, they emerged from the sea to sunrise and a calm body of water. Everyone but Jack and Elizabeth released their grips and slowly crawled back onto the deck, gazing around themselves in silence.

"We made it!" Gibbs finally shouted with a clap. "We made it!"

The rest of the crew began celebrating their return while Barbossa laughed heartily at the helm. At the stern, Jack released his grip on the ropes but not on Elizabeth. Breathing heavily, she leaned back and glanced around herself at the calm sea before gazing into his eyes. They held their gaze for a long moment, blocking out the celebratory shouts from around them and focusing only on one another.

"You saved me," she said with a soft smile. "Jack…I can't believe you did that."

Before he was able to respond, Jack noticed Will approaching them from behind. Stepping away from her and releasing her body from his grasp, he placed some distance between them.

"Don't let it go to your pretty lil' head, Miss Swann," he stated in the same cold tone from earlier before walking off.

She watched him go in a mixture of sadness and confusion before her eyes landed on Will.

"Are you alright?" he asked, also in a cold tone.

"Yes," she stated, somewhat guiltily.

When he came to leave, she held onto his arm and stopped him.

"Will…," she began.

Without any hesitation, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately in an effort to remind her of what they shared between them. Taken by surprise from his sudden move, Elizabeth pulled away and broke the kiss.

"I love you Elizabeth," he stated quickly and firmly. "I want to marry you."

"I love you too Will," she replied sadly.

But the look in her eyes showed confusion, the answer that he wasn't looking for.

"I guess I have my answer," he said with a bitter scoff.

"No!" she exclaimed, stopping him from leaving once more. "Will, I'm sorry. I'm just confused!"

"Confused about what?" he snapped at her. "We're engaged! We would have been married right now if it weren't for him."

"Will…," she tried again, but he was on a roll and wasn't about to stop.

"He'll never be good enough for you Elizabeth. He'll simply toss you aside whenever he's bored. Is that what you want? What about your father? Do you want him to be ridiculed because of your selfishness?" he exclaimed.

"Of course not!" she snapped back at him.

"Then what is there to be confused about?" the anger slowly disappearing and replaced by sadness.

When she couldn't reply, Will shook his head and walked away.

"I know what I want: you," he said, facing her again. "It's your turn."

With that, he walked towards Barbossa at the opposite end of the ship. Elizabeth stood for a long moment in silence, running her hand through her silky long hair and sighing before scanning the deck for Jack. When she couldn't find him amidst the crew, her eyes focused on the stairs which led below deck. Walking across the deck and downstairs, she approached the Captain's Quarters. Her hand was on the wooden door ready to knock but something held her back.

"I will never forgive you for what you did, do you understand me?" Jack's voice echoed in her mind.

Tears welled in the corners of her eyes as she took a couple steps away from the door. When the first tear streamed down her cheek, she rushed below deck to the crew's quarters, away from everyone. Only a few seconds passed before Jack swung the door open and glanced into the hallway, having sensed a presence behind the door. Seeing no one there, he sighed sadly and closed the door once more.