He nodded, holding the ice against his knee and letting out a relieved sigh. "Well, since I can't walk, would you mind getting her for me?"
group
Mercedes nodded and stood, then patted his shoulder as she passed him. She meandered through the ship in search of her best friend, biting her lip to hide her grin.
"Anyways," Hugh said after the introductions were made, his deep voice seeming to rattle the floor beneath them. "Where are we gonna be staying?"
group
Fane pointed towards where the cabins were located. "Over there. There isn't room for each of you to have your own room, so I suggest pairing up with someone you can stand."
Johnnie pointed at the sharpshooter. "Not him."
He gave her a grin. "Don't sneak up on me next time."
"I'll bunk with the girl," Hugh said.
group
"It's what I do, sharpshooter," the thief said and flicked her hair over her shoulder, then looked to Hugh and nodded. "Works for me. Just don't sit on me."
Fane listened while they discussed, then turned when she felt a finger tapping her shoulder. "Oh, Mercedes." The doctor flashed some signs with her hands, then pointed towards the cabins. Fane pinched her lips together, then turned to the group. "Do you lot think you can handle the rest on your own?"
"I'll keep 'em outta trouble!" White said, giving Fane a grin that told her that he'd most likely be causing the trouble if their was any.
"We'll be fine," Hugh assured. Out of them all, he looked the most responsible.
group
"Alright." She cast a wary look over at White, not liking that grin, but turned around and followed Mercedes to the cabins, wondering what she wanted.
Anto had switched the towel over to his other knee, and his foot was tapping at a mile a minute. He was beyond nervous about the conversation he and his first mate were about to have.
group
Mercedes left Fane once they made it close to Anto's and Mercedes's cabin. The first mate looked at her in confusion as she walked away, then curiously wandered into the cabin and looked down at Anto, shutting the door behind her. "Hi."
"I…..understand how uncomfortable this topic is for you," he began, looking down at his feet with a frown, "but I would like a bit of clarification on what you said in the captain's cabin."
group
She pursed her lips and came over to him, sitting next to him on the bed and running her hand through her hair. "Like I said," she said slowly, agonizingly trying to piece together everything she was feeling, "I don't really know how I feel. But that…" she sighed and tilted her head back. "But that doesn't mean I don't like you." She groaned and fell back completely, covering her eyes with an arm. "I'm hopeless…" she mumbled.
"What do you mean?" he asked, twisting around to face her. The ice fell to the ground and spilled out on to the floor, but he didn't particularly care at the moment.
group
"I mean that I'm a mess with no way sort through everything because emotions suck and are too confusing and less…" she held her hands up in an attempt to explain, "factual. Straight forward. I like facts. I don't like being confused, but you make me confused, but I don't not like you, and it's just—" she dropped her arms over her face and groaned again.
"I suppose I can understand where you are coming from," he said, scratching the bottom of his jaw. "It is definitely better than nothing."
group
She rubbed at the corner of her eyes with a sigh, disappointed in herself. "What about you?" she finally managed to get out, "You said you fancied me."
"And that is the truth." He stared at the dent in the wall from where he threw the stone. "You are the first person in the 7 years I've spent on the run that I've felt like staying someplace with. You let me feel welcome in a place were I cannot really fit in, and stick up for me at every turn."
group
She bit her lip, listening to him, then replaying his words over and over again once he was done. She slowly sat up and looked over at the prince. "You really think so?" she asked quietly, glancing up at his eyes.
"I mean," he glanced over at her and smiled softly, "I am still here, are I not? If it was not for you, I would have just gotten off at the port and not come back."
group
"It's still an option," she said, just as softly as he. Her gaze darted down to their hands, which were resting so close, then back up to his eyes.
"Not after meeting you, it's not." He hesitantly reached out and took her hand.
group
She sighed and laced her fingers through his, glad he had taken the lead, and rested her chin on his shoulder. "Stubborn as always, prince."
"You know," he said, leaning into her slightly, "I would hold more political clout than you if we were still in our respective positions."
group
She scoffed and poked him in the side. "Don't you even dare," she threatened with a soft laugh, then hummed and thought about it. "A prince falling for a pirate. Unfathomable."
"My dad would have killed me if he was here," he said with a small smile. "I would not much care, though."
group
"But," she said, "How would he react if I told him my name and ancestry?" She tilted her head, then scrunched up her nose. "Scratch that. He'd contact my parents and I'd be back in Hell."
"He would probably still see you as unfit," he confessed. "He was a little full of himself. A very loving father, though."
group
She sighed. "And here I thought I was the best of the best," she said with feigned sadness. She was growing comfortable with leaning against Anto and holding his hand. The fluttering emotions in her chest were finally sorting themselves out into something comprehensible the more she did this with Anto. Talked with him. Held him. Let her guard down around him.
"You should thank Mercedes, by the way," he said, gently nudging her head with his own. "She was the one who encouraged me to do this."
group
She curled her nose up but didn't pull away. "Busybody. Can't talk, but finds every excuse to get into people's business." She didn't sound angry, however. In fact, there was a hint of gratitude.
