Work Text:
Edward Teach had never been bothered by his lack of experience when it came to romance and love. Between trying to make ends meet as a pirate, being a proper leader to his crew, and keeping up his image as the fearsome Blackbeard, he had enough on his plate already. Sure, he liked companionship and he liked sex, but he always managed to get both without getting involved in a romantic relationship. He didn’t have time for any more complications in his life, and he had to make peace with that a long time ago.
That was, however, before Stede Bonnet came along.
Stede with his brilliant smile. Stede with his impeccable manners. Stede with his gorgeous clothes. Stede, who had a whole fucking library on his ship. Who the hell even thinks of that?
Sometimes it was hard for Ed to believe that Stede was a real person, not just a figment of his imagination. Stede’s whole world was made of luxury and grace, and for a moment, Ed foolishly believed that he could be a part of it.
After the party he convinced Stede to attend, he had to admit that this was nothing more than a silly dream. He should have known it would end badly but he couldn’t help himself. He was desperate to find out what all that luxury felt like. He was desperate to feel like he belonged there, even for a moment. And at the end of the day, what hurt him the most was not that he wasn’t accepted or that he got laughed at. No, the most painful part was realizing how out of place he felt in the environment where Stede seemed to feel most at home.
Still, sorrow wasn’t the only emotion he felt after getting back on the ship. Because even though all those people made fun of him, Stede didn’t. Stede would never laugh. That was all that mattered in the grand scheme of things. Fuck the rest of them.
If Ed were better at articulating his emotions, he would have told Stede how grateful he felt when they found each other again on the deck of The Revenge, but he’d never been good with words. All he could think about was how handsome Stede looked with the light of the full moon illuminating his face. He had no idea how to express the warmth he felt whenever he thought of all the patience and kindness Stede had shown him since the first time they’d met. How could he ever put that into words? How could he explain how much it meant to finally be seen and cared for, not feared or loathed?
“You wear fine things well.”
Ed didn’t know what to make of Stede’s comment or the tenderness in his voice when he said it. He huffed in disbelief, getting lost in Stede’s gaze. He stumbled forward, only half-aware of the impulsive motion, glimpsing at Stede’s lips before coming to his mind and retreating, all the while cursing himself mentally for letting his body betray him like that. He hastily wished Stede a good night before turning away, trying to get out of the situation before he could do something even more reckless.
Still, he couldn’t resist the temptation to look back, wanting to get one last glimpse of Stede before he disappeared into his cabin. Much to Ed’s surprise, he found Stede looking back at him with an unreadable look in his eyes. If Ed hadn’t known better, he would have said it was longing. But that couldn’t have been. Stede could never want Ed the same way that he wanted Stede. That was simply not a possibility in Ed’s world.
* * *
Shit, Stede thought to himself as he walked back into his room. He knew he had been reckless. He knew Ed had probably figured him out, and now he was going to leave, and Stede would be alone again.
He tried his best to distract himself from his quickly spiraling thoughts about Ed’s potential departure, but nothing seemed to work. He changed into his nightgown, tried to fall asleep, tried to read a few pages of his favorite book, even tried to reorganize one of his bookshelves, but all his attempts proved futile. His thoughts stubbornly kept returning to Ed. He was almost sure he saw Ed step towards him and glance at his lips before deciding to withdraw. Did he really consider kissing Stede? And if so, why did he step back?
Before Stede could come to any conclusions, he got pulled back to reality by someone knocking on his door rather forcefully.
“Yes?” he asked, wondering who could be bothering him at such a late hour.
“Stede, it’s me.”
Stede felt his stomach drop as he recognized Ed’s voice.
“Coming,” he yelled after the first wave of shock left his body.
* * *
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you,” Ed began as he found himself face to face with a quite drowsy-looking Stede. It took everything in Ed not to look him over with a grin that would be very embarrassing to explain should Stede ask about it.
“Oh, it’s okay, I was just getting ready for bed,” Stede replied. “Please, come in.” He stepped away from the door with a smile on his face, watching silently as Ed walked inside.
“You’re probably wondering why I came here,” Ed began, his voice quieter than usual.
“Well, I’m always happy to see you,” Stede said, closing the door and walking over to Ed, “but yes, I am quite curious.”
It took Ed a few moments to gather his composure before speaking again.
“What did it mean?” he finally whispered, avoiding Stede’s gaze.
“I beg your pardon?” Stede asked in confusion.
“When we were standing on the deck earlier,” Ed explained, “you said I wore fine things well. What did that mean?”
Stede seemed to carefully contemplate Ed’s words before answering.
“I thought it was pretty obvious,” he said. “I think you look good in elegant clothes. They suit you.”
“You really mean that?” Ed asked in disbelief.
“Yes, of course,” Stede insisted. “It’s like you were born to wear exquisite materials.” He reached out to lay his hands on Ed’s arms. “I want you to know that you deserve fine things. I feel awful for what happened today and I don’t want you to start believing whatever those horrible people were saying to you.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Ed rasped, his head dizzy from Stede’s gentle touch. Even through the material of his shirt – well, Stede’s shirt to be precise – it felt electrifying. “I don’t care what they think of me. Your opinion is the only one that matters, Stede.”
“That’s… That is really… sweet,” Stede muttered. Ed couldn’t help but notice how flustered he suddenly seemed. It made him look even more attractive, which was quite unfair in Ed’s opinion.
“You’re unbelievable, mate,” he sighed, shaking his head with a smirk.
“Unbelievable?” Stede asked with his eyebrows raised.
“Yes, absolutely unbelievable,” Ed confirmed, reaching up to pat Stede’s shoulder.
* * *
Stede couldn’t take this anymore. Was Ed trying to tease him deliberately by coming to his room, standing so close to him, leaning into his touch, and practically flirting with him?
He cleared his throat.
“Can I… Can I ask you something?” he inquired.
“You don’t have to ask if you can ask me something. You can just… ask,” Ed replied.
“Okay,” Stede nodded, gathering every last ounce of bravery he had in himself. “When we got back to the ship after the party tonight,” he began, “I could have sworn I saw you lean closer to me before we said goodnight…”
Stede didn’t know how to continue. His palms were sweating and he was all too aware of his heart beating violently in his chest. He wondered if Ed had noticed, too.
“So, what is your question exactly?” Ed asked after a few moments of silence.
“Well, were you? Leaning in, I mean,” Stede clarified.
* * *
Ed was reluctant to speak again. He lowered his eyes and retracted his hand from Stede’s shoulder, trying to avoid further embarrassment. Stede let go of him as well, taking a step back to give him some space.
“Maybe I was,” Ed admitted after a long pause. “I don’t know what came over me. You were being so kind to me, and we were standing in the moonlight, and you looked so beautiful, and I got carried away, alright? I’m sorry, I…”
“You think I’m beautiful?” Stede interrupted with a bewildered expression on his face.
“Are you kidding me?” Ed grunted. “You’re the most beautiful person I have ever met.”
Ed knew he was entering dangerous territory again but what was the point of lying anymore? Stede knew about his feelings now. If he disapproved of them, this would make no difference. And if, by some divine miracle, he reciprocated them, then what good would holding back do?
“You cannot mean that,” Stede objected. “A man like you…”
“What do you mean a man like me?” Ed snorted.
“I mean… look at you,” Stede groaned, gesturing towards Ed. “I’m sure you’ve seen a lot of beautiful people before. Who wouldn’t want to be with you?”
“Would you?”
This was the point of no return. Everything else Ed had said, he could explain away somehow, but this… This was something he couldn’t talk his way out of. Whatever Stede’s answer was going to be, Ed would have to learn to live with it.
He held his breath.
“Yes,” came Stede’s reply after what felt like an eternity of silence.
* * *
Stede’s mouth felt awfully dry as he tried to prepare himself for Ed’s reaction, wondering whether he had read the situation completely wrong. He took another step away from Ed, trying to get some physical distance to lessen the blow of Ed’s impending rejection, but he was stopped by Ed’s fingers wrapping around his wrist.
“Where are you going?”
“I just…”
Stede didn’t know what to say. He looked up at Ed and his breath hitched when he saw the way Ed was gazing at him. He had desire in his eyes, real desire. Stede wasn’t used to being looked at like that.
Ed let go of his wrist, giving him a chance to walk away if he wanted to, but Stede made no attempt to move. When Ed realized this, he reached out again and pulled Stede close to him.
Stede let out a surprised giggle as he practically crashed into Ed, his hands coming to rest on Ed’s chest. Ed wrapped his arms around Stede’s back, holding him with a firmness that suggested he was afraid Stede would disappear should he loosen his embrace even a little bit.
“May I?” he asked softly, his eyes flicking down to Stede’s lips.
Stede didn’t trust himself to speak, so he simply nodded, already leaning in towards Ed, gasping when he felt his lips touch Ed’s. The kiss was surprisingly gentle, and Stede found it easy to relax into it. In any other situation, he would have started worrying about his clumsiness or lack of practice, but not right now. Not when Ed started stroking his back with one hand while pulling Stede even closer with the other, moaning quietly once their bodies were flush against each other.
When they finally pulled away, Stede chuckled.
“You have no idea how many times I wondered what this would feel like,” he confessed.
“I think I do,” Ed laughed, sounding a little breathless. “I just wasn’t sure how you felt.”
“To be honest, I wasn’t sure, either,” Stede shook his head. “You know, Mary is the only person I have ever been with, and I never found it particularly enjoyable,” he explained. “Our relationship was more about duty than anything else.”
“That sounds terrible,” Ed frowned. “I wish I could punch everyone who forced you into marriage against your will.”
Stede giggled before reaching out to caress Ed’s face. His hand was shaking a little but Ed didn’t seem to mind or even particularly notice.
“It’s okay now. I got out,” Stede said. “And even though I’m not proud of the way I ran off, I think it’s better off this way for everyone involved.”
“Including me,” Ed added. “Otherwise, I never would have met you.”
“Well, that would have been awful,” Stede smiled back at him. “You make me happier than I’ve ever felt.”
“Good,” Ed nodded. “You deserve to be happy, Stede Bonnet.”