This piece is an alternate ending/sequel to my other Titanic fanfic 'Titanic: The Tale Of Master Jack Dawson'. For those who would like a brief summary, Jack and Rose are role swapped. Jack Dawson is a first class passenger set to marry Catherine Hockley, however upon meeting Rose, a third class maid, his perceptions and ideas of love are drastically altered. I plan for this to be a much more regularly updated and longer piece, containing more development for characters in the movie. It will be set in New York after the sinking of the Titanic and will focus on Jack as he tries to deal with the aftermath of losing the Titanic and his true love. This deviates from the timeline of the movie and therefore will not transition back to old Jack as he tells Lovett and Bodine his tale. I have recently started up a page, a site used to grant funding through the form of pledges so artists can make some income for their works. My writing has been and always will be free. However if you have liked my work and wish to donate to my cause as well as contribute to the future of my writing, please visit my page from my profile. More information will be provided there. For one off donations please visit my digital tip jar which can also be found on said profile page. Thank you and enjoy.
The bow had been submerged completely and was pulling the stern back with it. Jack assessed the situation and instructed Rose and Tommy to climb over the rail, knowing the ship was about to be pulled vertical. The Titanic did just that, following the bow slowly into the depths.
"Listen to me Rose, take a deep breath and hold it right before we go into the water. The ship will suck us down. Kick for the surface and keep hold of my hand" shouted Jack.
He felt the responsive squeeze and heard the words "I trust you Jack".
The three of them faced the ocean that was rushing toward them, the other passengers being swallowed before them. The ship was about to disappear completely, the rush of water sounding like the galloping of a thousand horses. "Now!" yelled Jack right before he inhaled.
With that the water hit him with its icy touch, causing pain to ripple through his entire body.
The water pulled at Jack's body with great force, and he found himself losing grip of Rose. He grabbed desperately in the water, hoping to reconnect with her but her hand was nowhere to be found. Jack surfaced and gasped, allowing the cool air to fill his lungs. He was surrounded by people, their cries deafening like a thunder of fear. Far off in the distance came the faint glow of torches, but the lifeboats were not coming any closer.
Jack looked around at the dead bodies that bobbled beside him like corks and frantically began searching for what he had lost.
"Rose! Tommy!" But his cries were drowned out by the collective screams of the dying. Jack knew he had to act fast, before he had to surrender to hypothermia like some of the people around him. He swam towards floating debris and clambered onto what looked like a stateroom door. Clinging to the side was one of the ship's crewman with a lanyard strung around his neck. Attached was a silver whistle, but even that wouldn't be loud enough to compete with the distressed pleas of the victims around him. Jack took a moment to breathe and then continued to call out for Rose and Tommy. Exhausted and fearing the worst, Jack curled up carefully and closed his eyes and prayed he'd wake up from this nightmare.
Unsure of how much time had passed, Jack's eyes snapped open as he sat upright. The silence that now surrounded him was more unsettling than the cries he heard before. It seemed the likelihood to find Rose or Tommy, or even to survive, was impossible. Jack despondently reflected on his brief time with Rose and how he'd never fulfil any of the dreams they shared. His thoughts were interrupted by a voice that carried across the empty air.
"Is there anybody out there?" came the bellow beyond Jack's field of vision. Jack turned hurriedly to the crewman who was still frozen to the door and grabbed the lanyard. He pressed his shivering lips to the cold metal and blew as loudly as he could, hoping it was enough to attract the attention of one of the lifeboats.
"Over here!" yelled a voice as the floodlight swang around and illuminated Jack. Relief flooded Jack as the wooden lifeboat rowed slowly towards him, and stopped beside the door. He used all the strength he could muster to take Officer Lowe's hand and board the boat. He was cloaked with a blanket and then with the assistance of Officer Lowe, he found a seat.
"How many have been rescued from the water?" asked Jack through chattering teeth.
"Only five so far" replied the officer ashamedly, his shoulders drooping.
All Jack could offer was a small nod, fatigued from the ordeal. In the night, on the now still black sea, Jack saw one more lifeboat paddling towards the wreckage. Out of twenty of the lifeboats, only two came back. A tear rolled silently down Jack's face as he buried himself in his blanket and waited for whatever was to come next.
After what seemed like an eternity, Officer Lowe let out an excited yell and lit up a flare. As golden light bathed the boat, Jack unhooded himself and saw a large ship approaching. The lifeboats began to pull up beside the ship, which was labelled in fancy white cursive as the RMS Carpathia. The sun was starting to rise, illuminating their saviour ship and the people on it. Some of the survivors had already been brought aboard and were watching to see who else made it. The lifeboat that Jack was on approached the ship and a rope ladder swang down. Officer Lowe helped Jack and the one other survivor on the boat get to their feet and up the ladder. The crewmen pulled Jack on board and offered him fresh blankets. He then took to the line of people who were being processed.
"What's your name sir?" asked a crewman as Jack gladly accepted a hot cup of tea.
"Jack. Jack Dawson" he said between sips, his hands shaking.
The blanketed figure in front of Jack stopped, turned around and grinned. Jack nearly choked on his tea.
"Tommy? How did you survive?"
"Luck of the Irish, that and all the whiskey I drank beforehand" smiled Tommy weakly. Jack laughed happily as they both headed towards the same door.
"Mister Dawson sir, first class is this way" interrupted the crewman, gestured with his hand.
"He's not going back there, right boyo?"
Jack hadn't really thought about it. As much as he never wanted to see Catherine again, he at least wanted to check on his mother and to see Molly Brown. Now that Rose was gone, where else could he turn to?
"Of course" said Jack numbly following the crewman's direction.
"You've got to be kiddin me, so much for all that talk about leaving that life behind for Rose" growled Tommy.
Jack avoided Tommy's glare and shifted uncomfortably on his feet as another crewman came over to escort Tommy to steerage. None of that mattered now that Rose was gone.
The door to the first class deck swag open and Jack was once again surrounded by familiar faces. John Jacob Aster's wife Madeline wept into the arms of Molly, who excused herself upon meeting Jack's gaze.
"Thank the Lord you're safe sonny" she said, taking him into her arms. He hugged back and cried into her shoulder.
"I don't think Rose made it. We tried to make it through together but I lost her" he wept unashamedly.
"I'm sorry Jack, she was a beautiful young lady," she said, wiping her eyes then lowering her voice to a whisper "I was hoping that you'd know better than to come back to this crowd."
"I know, I just needed to make sure Mother was okay."
"Sonny, some paper and a pen please" called out Molly as she snapped her fingers at the crewman that led Jack in. He returned promptly and Molly took a sheet of paper and wrote on it quickly, thanking the crewman and dismissing him.
"If you ever need anything come visit my hotel in New York. Even if I'm not there, you are always welcome there. You're like a son to me Jack."
He read over the address and nodded, slipping the paper into his pocket.
"I will, thank you Molly" he said, hugging her once more to say goodbye and with that she made her way back to Madeline Astor.
Jack rounded a corner to see Ruth and Catherine sipping tea on a bench, with Trudy fixing their blankets to keep their shoulders covered.
"Master Jack!" Trudy exclaimed in surprise, rushing to his side to escort him to a seat.
Catherine and Ruth looked up in unison, their jaws dropping in disbelief.
"Jack, you're alive" stuttered Catherine, standing up to embrace him. His mother uncharacteristically held him in her arms and cried. Throughout it all Jack stood numbly, unsure if he had made the right choice in coming back to his old life.
"Do you recall seeing my father on the ship?" inquired Catherine with a hint of suspicion, taking a step back to observe him. His skin was as pale as chalk; his hair had become matted and wild.
"Was that before or after you sent him to hound me down?" replied Jack coolly.
"Oh Jack don't look so glum, let's just let bygones be bygones and move forward with our lives" said Catherine, stroking his face with exaggerated tenderness. Jack looked into her watery eyes, and knew that there was very little authenticity in her tears.
Ruth took both of their hands and held them in hers, smiling at the pair of them.
"Precisely. The marriage can go ahead as planned and we can soon forget this whole ordeal."
Ruth turned to comfort Catherine as Jack sat beside them, unsure of how he could ever move forward now that he had resumed his old life with these people.
As the evening approached, Jack excused himself and hurried to the steerage deck where he searched desperately for Tommy.
"Look who came crawling back" sneered Tommy, obviously still angry from Jack's earlier decision.
"I had to check on them Tommy, they're all I have left now."
"What about the life you wanted Jack. Or does that mean nothin' now? Did Fabrizio mean nothin'? Do I mean nothin'? Does Rose mean nothin'?"
"Rose meant everything to me."
"She's gone Jack" Tommy replied gruffly. "Maybe it's best you go back to all you have left."
Jack nodded solemnly and silently left the steerage area, feeling more alone than he ever had before.