Work Text:
He was dreaming.
He never dreamed, never slept enough to be able to dream, just fell into a heavy state closer to unconsciousness than sleep. It wasn't something that happened to him.
Izzy was not a dreamer of any sort. Never had a dream in his whole life. Dreaming of what ? Dreaming for what ? There was nothing to dream of, his mother told him that when he was oh so small, barely a child yet, still a baby.
Don't dream, son. You'll only be disappointed if you allow yourself to dream.
So he stuck to that.
But, tonight, he was dreaming. Dreaming the kind of dreams he never thought he could have. Dreaming the kind of dreams that weren't for people like him.
He dreamed of soft hands on his back, of firm embrace around his waist, of strong legs carrying him. He dreamed of silver curls, of salt-and-pepper beard, of brown eyes. He dreamed of a cross marking the spot on his cheek, of a ring against his throat, of words whispered a long time ago and never forgotten since.
He dreamed of Blackbeard, of his Captain, of Edward.
And the truth emerged from the veiled corner of his soul where it had always lived.
Tonight, for the first time, Izzy dreamed of love, and, even in the limbs of sleep, he heard his heart break.
In the morning, after a long and silent moment at starring in the void, he joined the rest of the crew on deck, feet unsteady, head spinning, hands shaking.
He felt sick. Lovesick.
He threw up over the railing, one lonely tear rolling down his cheek.
"You okay, Izzy?" Lucius asked behind him.
"It's the fucking storm."
Lucius opened his mouth, but didn't say another word. Instead shared an odd, knowing look with Pete and Fang who had been near enough to hear them. They shrugged and shook their heads.
There hadn't been a storm in weeks. Except for the one inside Izzy's cold, broken heart, which had suddenly stopped that night after decades of destroying everything in its path.
He finally knew the truth and he wished he had listened to his mother and never allowed himself to dream, because, now, life would never be as good as that one single, desperate slice of fantasy.