Olivia
Olivia Mae Hamilton gazed in awe upon the grand sight before her. The RMS Titanic gleamed brightly as a beacon of hope for the young British girl. Soon, she would be on her way to America, to be married to one of the richest men in America, and Olivia couldn't think of a more pleasing thought.
"Are you alright, Miss?"
Olivia turned to her left and saw her personal maid, Holly Spencer. Holly had been her maid since Olivia was 10, making young Holly only 9. Holly's parents had been part of the Hamilton staff long before Holly was even born. When they died, instead of sending her to an orphanage, the Hamilton's kindly gave her the position of Olivia's personal maid.
"I'm fine, Holly. Get the bags will you?" Olivia said as she made her way to the ship.
After going through the necessary steps, Olivia and Holly were on their way up the plank, on their way to a new life. Stepping into the ship, Olivia marveled at the elegance of it while Holly made sure to give the officer on duty their names. After ensuring that they were indeed first class passengers, the two young girls were on their way to the suite.
"Since it is just the two of us, Mother and Father made sure to put us both in the suite," Olivia said dismissively, looking around the room with a curious gaze.
"Which room are you going to be in?" Holly asked, as a steward came in with the bags.
"The one to the left, I should say. It is far bigger and I do need a sizeable amount of room for all of my things," Olivia said, peering into the room.
She walked in and sat at the vanity as Holly began dragging her trunks one by one into the room. Looking into the mirror, she smiled at her reflection. She really was gorgeous. Her long blonde curls were piled elegantly onto her head in a bun and her clear green eyes shone brightly. Touching her hair lightly, she stood up and peered out the window to see the ocean go on for miles and miles.
"I think I'm going to go up to the deck to see the ship off from the port. Come up and find me once you've finished putting the rest of my trunks in here," she said before leaving the room.
She made her way quickly out onto the first class deck and smiled seeing the dock at Southhampton. Looking at all of the people still on the dock while she was privileged enough to be on Titanic made her smile. She looked for about ten minutes until the horn on the ship sounded, signaling that it was the top of the hour, or eleven o'clock. She turned around and looked at all the first class passengers meandering around, some waving to the people on the dock, some taking a look around deck, and some going to have tea in the café. Deciding to go for tea, she headed towards the café, not bothering to wait for Holly. She knew that the young maid would be out here waiting for her when she finished the tea.
That was one of the best things about Holly. No matter what, she always did what Olivia told her to, even if it caused herself physical harm or embarrassment. Not that she ever made Holly do anything that physically harmed her, at least not on purpose anyway. She did, however, order her maid to do embarrassing things quite often. It was one of her favorite past times. She smiled to herself as she entered the café, looking around for someone to join.
Not seeing anyone of any particular interest, she sat down by herself. Ordering some tea with lemon, she looked around the room once more. There weren't that many people in the room, and out of the people that were in here, she didn't recognize any of them, which was surprising as she knew most people with money. Her tea arrived and she waved the steward off, not bothering to thank him. It was his job, after all. Sipping her tea daintily, she didn't realize Holly had arrived in the café until she was sat across from her.
"Took you long enough to get up here," Olivia said, not looking at her.
"You had a lot of trunks to move," Holly replied.
"When will we be leaving this dreadful place? I am eager to get to America to meet my fiancé," Olivia asked, ignoring Holly.
"We will leave in about 45 minutes." Holly answered.
"Must we wait so long? I am ready to be away from this place. We've been here far too long," Olivia complained, setting her tea cup down.
"There are more passengers that need to be boarded. The world does not revolve around you, Olivia," Holly replied absently.
Olivia turned her head sharply to look at Holly.
"Well, it should. I am nearly the richest person on this ship. They should be catering to my every need," Olivia said, lifting her chin slightly.
"That's what I'm here for. And you could have gone to America earlier with your parents. You didn't have to stay here for an extra month," Holly replied.
"Yes, well, I wanted to visit Paris one last time before we left. And I wanted to sail on Titanic. It is far more luxurious than the liner Mother and Father sailed on," Olivia said.
"Only the best," muttered Holly sarcastically.
"Of course," Olivia replied, recognizing the sarcasm in Holly's voice but choosing to ignore it.
They spent the remainder of the time in the café, talking idly of many different things. When the horn sounded that Titanic was leaving the dock, Holly turned to Olivia.
"Would you like to go out to the deck and watch as we leave?" she asked.
"Why would I want to do that?" Olivia asked, confused.
"To see England for the last time," Holly replied.
"I'd rather not. I'm so sick of England and what is has to offer. I am ready to be in America, getting married and starting my new life." Olivia said.
"Alright, well where would you like to go then?" Holly asked.
"Father arranged some sort of meeting with some of the more important people on the ship. Getting in good with them and such. I'm supposed to meet with them at lunch. I suppose I should go dress for that." Olivia said, rising from her chair.
They silently made their way out of the café and back towards their suite. When they arrived, Holly picked out a dress for Olivia to wear while Olivia herself picked out some jewelry. She looked through her jewelry box and picked out all of the most expensive and beautiful pieces. After quickly dressing in her gown and having Holly put on her makeup and jewelry, she was ready to go.
"I'll have you escort me to the dining hall and then you'll be free to go as you please. Be back in two hours to escort me out of the dining hall. I shall like to have a look around the promenade deck when I've finished." Olivia said, entering the front room with Holly trailing behind her.
They walked silently down to the dining hall, Holly walking about a foot behind Olivia. When they reached the dining hall, Olivia nodded to Holly and stepped into the room.
Looking around, Olivia spotted John Jacob Astor, the richest man on the ship, and his young wife Madeline. Since he was the richest, Olivia figured this is where she should go.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Astor," Olivia said as she approached him.
"Ah. Miss Olivia Mae. How wonderful to see you, darling!" Mr. Astor exclaimed, grabbing her offered hand and placing a light kiss on her knuckles.
"Madeline, darling, how wonderful to see you again," Olivia said, leaning in and exchanging a light hug with the younger girl.
"Oh, yes. It is quite wonderful to see you, Olivia. I had rather hoped that you would be on the ship. I had heard how you were waiting to sail on Titanic." Madeline replied, careful not to brush her stomach against Olivia.
Olivia smirked inwardly at Madeline's delicate condition that was painfully obvious, despite how hard they were trying to hide it, but she chose not to comment.
"However could I pass up the opportunity to sail on the grandest ship in the world, no less on her maiden voyage? I told Father I simply must be on the Titanic, and not the dreadful liner they were taking a month previous." Olivia replied as they made their way to a table.
Mr. Astor introduced her to more important people, including Mr. Thomas Andrews, the ship's designer, Mr. Bruce Ismay, the owner of White Star Line, Mr. Caledon Hockley, a young millionaire traveling with his younger fiancée, Rose Dewitt Bukater, and her mother, Ruth.
As she ordered her lunch as made small talk with all of the people around the table, Olivia thought to herself that there was no other place she'd rather be.