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The light of dawn stretched out over the sea. Red morning light turned it into the same firey inferno Edward felt squeezing his heart. A tight pain that made bile rise into his throat, even as he tried to push past it, ignore the feeling of betrayal that grew bigger with every passing minute that Stede didn't show up. It threatened to take him over, destroy the person he had become. The person that Stede helped him find.
He looked off onto the sea, taking a moment to steady himself before taking a step forward, towards the boat that was meant to take them both off the mainland and back to their crew, where Izzy had most likely already wrecked havoc.
„Edward. Oh– Ed!“ quick steps caught up to him. So familiar and yet still so surprising when Edward had already given up any hope that Stede would still come.
„I am so sorry,“ Stede starting speaking before he even fully arrived, „He – Badminton – woke me up. He almost killed me. Really, I feared I would never make it and then it was already so late. I thought you already left. You have no idea how glad I am that you are still here.“
It was Edward that crossed the last step between them to wrap his arms around his partner, pressing him against his chest with an urgency that spoke of the longing he had felt in the past few month he spent with the crew of The Revenge. Stede didn't immediately reciprocate the gesture. Just like with their kiss he needed a second before he fully understood the situation and reacted accordingly, his fingers tangling in Edward's hair.
„I thought you left,“ he confessed, quietly, even as he hoped that Stede couldn't hear him.
„I could never. Besides,“ Stede took a step back, smiling a bit awkwardly, „We still have to got to China. And, of course, pick up our crew. We can't leave them behind.“
In his life, Edward had many regrets. Blackbeard wasn't a kind man and if he had been who he was a few years ago, Stede would have been dead long ago. Edward was similarly thankful that he was able to hold him now, feel his hand in his as the sun rose behind his back, his figure casting a shadow over the small dock.
„Of course not,“ he managed. Stede lit up, his smile becoming wider as he exitingly took a step forward, his hand still in Edward's. They bumped into each other, unsure where to put their hands, where they were allowed to touch.
It was Edward, again, who took the initiative.
Their second kiss felt more natural. They knew how the other felt. There was no worry that one of them would not want it and yet it was still new, still exciting. Way more chaste than Edward wished but they still had to leave. There was no time to waste, no matter how much he wanted to stay in this exact place, simply holding Stede close so that he would never have to fear losing him again. It was a new feeling for Edward. There weren't many opportunities for romance when you were Blackbeard, the most feared pirate of the sea.
And wasn't it funny that it should be Stede Bonnet, The Gentleman Pirate, that managed to win over his heart where so many men and women had failed.
Stede's face was flushed when they seperated. He was ridiculously innocent. A pirate that blushed when he was being kissed. Edward would laugh if it wasn't so endearing that it was him – Edward – that got him so worked up. That made his heart flutter in the same way that Edward's did whenever he looked at Stede. A terrible, giddy feeling that only went away when he was finally allowed to touch him.
„Well, it is getting quite late. We should really leave before they end up finding us. I believe this would make them shoot us after all. That would be quite... counterproductive, I'd say,“ he laughed. Edward would have preferred to just keep kissing him but he was right. They would still have the rest of their journey. They would go home together and Edward would make sure noone would ever mess with Stede again.
„You're right,“ Edward held onto Stede's hand as they boarded the ship, pressing a kiss to his knuckles before letting go so he could take the rudders.
If he could, he would promise Stede eternity. Their profession didn't allow such commitments, when every day could be the last one. Instead, Edward would promise him everything else in life that he could give him and most of all, himself. Stede managed to invade his mind in only a few months. Edward would not let go of what they had. He could only hope that, for once, everything would turn out as they wanted.
As he looked across the boat to see Stede, looking off across the sea with the same longing for freedom Edward always had, he couldn't help but think that it would work out.
They would find their happiness.