Elizabeth smiled at Pintel and Ragetti. "Yes, you may feel the baby kick," she said to them. She took Ragetti's hand and put it to the right spot on her belly. Once the baby kicked, the pirate squealed, "Blimey!" "My turn!" Pintel said angrily. He pushed Ragetti out of the way and put his hand on Elizabeth's stomach. The baby kicked and he shuddered, "So strange." She added, "And a little creepy. Mostly amazing. Lads, I'm going to rest for a bit. Help me up?" Each pirate took hold of one of her arms and pulled her up off the chair.

It had been weeks since the crew of the Black Pearl had conquered the seductive sirens. Elizabeth was still proud of herself for figuring out an escape. Once they'd gotten through, Jack had said, "I can't believe that actually worked..." "Me neither," she had admitted. Since then, Elizabeth had been growing nervous. She'd lost track of time and wasn't sure how far she was into her pregnancy. It had been at LEAST six months.

Elizabeth wobbled to the crew's quarters and laid down on the cot that the pirates had set up for her on the floor. It had gotten too difficult for her to climb in and out of the hammock. This way, someone only had to help her up.

As she slept, Elizabeth dreamed of what Captain Teague had told her all those months ago, "You know, it's not just about living forever, Lizzie. The trick is, living with yourself... forever." She tossed and turned on her cot. Then, she heard Calypso's voice in her head, "If you drink from da Fountain of Yout', you will live forever. Can you live wit' da pain dat your love for Jack is causing you forever?" She groaned in her sleep as these words replayed in her mind.

How could this be? Just months ago, she was so sure of herself and her decision to live forever. Could she have changed so much in a matter of months? She started to sweat as all of these thoughts rushed through her mind. Then, she heard Marty, "Land ho!" Not long after, she heard boots hurrying down the steps behind her. The small pirate was in front of her.
"Miss Elizabeth, the Fountain of Youth is here! I mean, we're there!"
"Really?" she asked.
"Aye." He smiled excitedly.
"Well, I'd better get up then." She tried pushing herself up, but with no success.
"Uh... I'll help." He got behind her, trying to push her up, but no.
"I think... "
"Yes, I'll go get help."
"That would be best."

The small man ran up the steps, leaving her alone in the crew's quarters. A short time later, Jack was next to her, looking down at her with a devious smile on his face. She frowned at him, asking, "What?" "Can't get up?" he asked.
"You know I can't. We've done this before."
"I know, I just like hearing you say it, is all." He chuckled.
"You think this is funny?"
"Ah, yes. Quite humorous."
"Well, help me up and I'll show you something even more humorous." She glared at him.
"Don't threaten me, Mrs. Turner."
She raised an eyebrow at him. He hadn't called her that in a long time.
He held out both hands to her. She took them, and he pulled her up.

Elizabeth steadied herself, but she couldn't help but notice that Jack had not let go of her hands. She was no longer holding onto his, but he was still attached. He seemed to realize this, for he shook his head and dropped her limbs as if they were burning his hands. "Shall we?" he asked, heading for the steps. She grinned and followed him.

"I've never seen this island before," Jack confessed. He, Elizabeth and Barbossa were all sitting in a longboat as Pintel and Ragetti rowed them towards the spit of land. "That's amazing," Elizabeth replied, "it seemed like you've been everywhere."
"Maybe I just don't remember." He smirked.

Barbossa's hands were tied, just in case. Secretly, Jack wanted it for his own amusement. The rest of the crew was floating behind their longboat, in their own. Out of the blue, Barbossa said to Elizabeth, "I didn't know he was going to poison ye." The woman cocked her head, asking, "What?"
"Hoag said he wouldn't cause ye any harm. He lied. I told him not to hurt ye."
She smiled at him and patted him on the leg.
Jack cut in, "That's awful nice of you, Hector. I knew you'd warm up to me eventually."
"I said he couldn't hurt ELIZABETH. Told him he could do to YE whatever he liked, I did."
The captain scoffed.
Elizabeth giggled.

Once they arrived to the island, all of the pirates exited their boats and stretched their legs on the shore. The place wasn't much. It was basically a floating mountain covered in trees. Jack could hear birds in the distance. That's not all he heard. Ever since Marty had called "Land ho", all Jack could hear echoing in his head was his father's words. "You've made the greatest mistake a pirate could ever make... You've fallen in love...It's not just about living forever, Jackie. The trick is, living with yourself forever.." Forever. And ever. And ever.

"Jack? Are you okay?" Elizabeth asked. He didn't realize that his mind had wandered so suddenly. With one look at her, he knew. No. No, he couldn't do this forever. And ever. And ever. He couldn't live with himself, alone, without her, forever. And ever. And ever. She was smiling at him, staring with her big brown eyes. Forever was an awfully long time. She was waiting for an answer. He answered, but not for the question she asked, "No, I can't."
"What?" She walked towards him.
"I mean," he realized his error, "yes, I'm bloody okay!"
"Sorry!" She sarcastically muttered, holding up her hands in defense.

Finally, he could use the charts. Jack pulled the round map from his jacket and unrolled it. He held it against the tree and turned the circles within the piece. "The long route is the short way," he read aloud. He grunted, rolled up the chart and put it back in his pocket. "Why are these things never clear?" he asked himself. Elizabeth offered, "Perhaps it means that the easiest way to get there would be to take the hardest way possible."
"It's worth a try."
He looked around and found a path that was narrow and rocky. The trees had grown in the walkway. Difficult enough. He turned, facing his crew, shouting, "Follow me, gents!" The pirates roared with excitement.

As they headed into the forest, the trees started appearing to be more dense than Jack had presumed them to be, while on the ship. He had to chop some vines with his sword and work his way around some trees. "This place is beautiful," Elizabeth exclaimed softly. Barbossa added, "Remind me much of the little island at which Calypso resided while in human form."
"But you can tell it isn't, because there are no running streams or exotic plants. These are mostly palm trees."

Stumbling through the forest, Jack could tell that the men behind him were getting restless with impatience. They'd been walking for a good couple of hours now. On top of that, Elizabeth was growing more and more tired and weak every minute. "Jack," she asked, "can we stop for a moment? I'm carrying quite a load here." She touched her stomach. He replied, "I don't think the crew would like it if we stopped."
"But, Jack-"
"However, I know how we can work around it."
"How?"
"Like this!"

Jack walked over to her and scooped her up in his arms-carrying her like a groom would carry his bride across the threshold. She wasn't as heavy as he thought she would have been. "Jack! Put me down! Put me down!" she cried. He ignored her, continuing to trudge through the forest. Barbossa chuckled behind them. Elizabeth kept on struggling, growling, "If you don't put me down right now, I'll-"
"You'll what?"
"I'll..."
"What?"
"I'll throw your hat on the dirty ground!" She reached for it.
He pulled his head back. "Don't even think about it."
"I just DID think about it." She frowned.
"You are always so bloody difficult!" He rolled his eyes.
"And YOU are always so bloody ridiculous!"

Elizabeth leaned her head against Jack's broad shoulder. She'd obviously given up on trying to escape. He held his breath, using all of his will power not to let his feelings overcome him. He'd forgotten how hard it was not to break the rules when she was so close to him.

'Forever? How long is that, really?' Elizabeth's thoughts tormented her. As she was being carried by Jack like this, she questioned the choice that laid ahead of her. "The trick is, living with yourself forever." "Can you live wit' da pain dat your love for Jack is causing you... forever?" Forever. And ever. And ever. She held onto the collar of Jack's jacket.

It was then that she felt Jack halt. Elizabeth looked up at him, asking, "Why have you stopped?" "I hear running water," he replied, "we're nearly there." Her heart stopped beating. Months ago, she would have been shaking with excitement. Now, she was shaking with anxiety. Sweating. Dreading it. "Lads! We're getting closer!" Jack yelled to his crew.

The pirates started walking faster, ahead of Jack. Elizabeth was surprised, but glad, that he didn't quicken his steps. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The sound of the water reached her ears. It grew louder and louder with each step Jack took. "We're there," he whispered in her ear, setting her down.

Elizabeth stood and watched all of the pirates shriek with glee and jump into the water. Barbossa simply fell into it. The Fountain of Youth was a glistening lake, with a waterfall running down into it. It was truly beautiful. The crew splashed around like children on their first trip to the beach. They cupped their hands and drank the water from them. Only Jack and Elizabeth were not in the water.

Why wasn't Jack going in the water? Didn't he want to live forever? She was afraid to ask. He wasn't, though, "Why aren't you in the water, Lizzie?" Her eyes widened in worry. "I, uh... " she stammered. She couldn't tell him! He'd laugh at her, or come up with a clever remark, like, "So, even the bonds of holy matrimony could not keep you from me?" or "Tsk, tsk, Mrs. Turner." Good thing she as a skilled liar, "Well, Jack, I thought about it, and I think it would be unfair for me to drink the water. If I choose to live forever while pregnant, I'm choosing for my baby as well. The baby lives off of what I eat or drink right now. It would be a drastic decision if I drank the water. My child would share the same fate. He or she deserves a choice." She was amazed at herself for sounding so convincing.

Elizabeth glanced at Jack. He nodded, agreeing with her, "That seems fair enough. You could always come back later for yourself."
"Exactly. Now, what's your excuse?"
He stiffened. "I... "
"Isn't this what you want most?"
"No. That's why we had to use Barbossa with the compass, remember?"
"Oh, right. Then, why?"
"... I, too, thought about it. There's nothing I fear more than death, love, but I know that the only reason we live is to eventually die. I think the Creator of this earth, whoever that may be, chose for us to die so that we could live the small number of days we have, to the fullest... Although, I so like the sound of 'The Immortal Captain Jack Sparrow'..."
"Oh, I see... I guess."

Elizabeth mentally shook her head. 'Rubbish,' she thought, 'Jack would not do something like that. Is he up to something?' He was lying, she could tell. She knew better than to trust Jack, especially when he changed his mind so fast. She was desperate to find the truth.

Gibbs stepped out of the water of life, drenched, and strode over to Jack and Elizabeth. "So," he asked, "any particular reason why you two aren't in the water?"
Jack replied, "Any particular reason why you're so interested in other people's business?"
"Jack?"
"Master Gibbs, go enjoy yourself." He pointed to the water.
"If you say so."