I know this is really different from what I usually write, but I feel this is one of my best peices of writing. So I woud appreciate it if everyone would give it a chance!:) Please read and review! (P.S. It gets better.)

Chapter One

Wednesday, April 10, 1912

"Incredible," breathed Juliana, as she stared up at the grand ship Titanic.

Beside her, Peter laughed softly at the sight of the wondrous expression on her face. "I told you it'd be big."

He had. Peter told her it would probably be the biggest structure she would ever see in her entire lifetime. And the most beautiful. But nothing could have prepared her for the sight of this monumental ship looming in front of her like a beacon of hope. She was going to America. Juliana Smith was actually going to America!

And it was all because of Peter, really. She knew that her parents would have never allowed her to travel on the Titanic alone.

"You're only seventeen, for heaven's sake!" her father had said. Her mother and father had always been very protective of her. So when Peter Delaney offered to accompany her on the trip, she was very grateful.

Peter had always said he wanted to go to America one day, ever since they were children, and they would sit together on her family's farm talking about the future.

"The streets are paved with gold, Jules," he'd told her once, with a faraway look in his eye. But she knew very well that when he fantasized about the New World, he never imagined traveling there on a ship as luxurious as the Titanic.

Peter's voice was calm when he spoke to her, but she could see from the look in his eyes that he was in awe, too. They walked up the gangway side by side, baggage in hand.

Jules took one last look behind her at Southampton, England; the only place she'd ever lived. Oh, how she was going to miss it! And her family. She was going to miss them so much. Her mother and father, her little brother Daniel, and of course Elizabeth. Sweet, beautiful baby Elizabeth.

She fought tears as she recalled saying good-bye them. She'd hugged each one of them tightly, not wanting to let go. She hadn't looked behind her once as she and Peter set off on foot down the dirt road that curved away from her family's house. It simply would have been too hard to look back.

Her face must have shown her sudden sadness, because Peter looked down at her, patted her light brown curls, put his arm around her shoulders, and said, "It's okay, Jules . I know you're gonna miss home. Me, too."

She craned her neck to look up at him—he was a good six or seven inches taller than she—and gave him a weak but true smile.

Once they'd left the main deck and begun their way down to steerage, the both momentarily forgot about home.

It was absolutely marvelous. Jules and Peter had never seen anything that even compared to the beauty of the ship. The newly-painted walls were astonishingly white, and everything looked so clean. There wasn't speck of dust or dirt anywhere. Surely, thought Jules, accommodations this nice should be reserved for first and second class?

This time it was Peter's turn to whisper, "Amazing."

Jules gave a small giggle as his mouth dropped open. "It really is…" she said.

In front of them, they saw a stewardess directing passengers to their rooms. They heard her say to one woman, "Single women in the stern, Miss, and men in the bow," then they watched as she pointed her arm in one direction, and her other arm in the opposite direction, down another hallway.

Jules' stomach gave a lurch. She wouldn't be sleeping close to Peter? What if she needed him?

Peter must've been thinking along the same lines, because he gave her shoulder a small squeeze and said," You'll be alright," though the expression on his face clearly said that he didn't like this arrangement and more than she did.

But, nevertheless, he told her in a confident voice, "We'll meet up in the common room once we get settled in. I heard they've a piano down there," and gave her a wink.

A piano? That lifted her spirits a little bit.

As she walked down the hallway away from Peter, she tried to distract herself by focusing on the back of the woman in front of her, who was holding the hand of a smaller girl who had to be her younger sister. Both girls had straight, shiny blonde hair, pulled into graceful buns on the top of their heads. But then a group of people pushed their way in front of Jules, so she was no longer looking at the back of the two girls.

It was just as well, as she couldn't get her mind off of Peter anyway.

She had been with Peter her whole life. He was her best friend, the truest friend she'd ever had.

He'd been there for her when her family's house caught fire and they'd lost everything. She was only eight at the time, he ten. His family had allowed her to stay with them until they'd built another home.

And she'd helped him through hard times, too. His mother had passed away just four years earlier, of pneumonia. Peter had been devastated.

Their family's farms were close; the only two for miles around. Peter had always been a walking distance away whenever she'd needed him, and when he'd needed her.

But here on the great Titanic, she couldn't just get up and walk the length of the ship in the middle of the night.

You are overreacting, she told herself sternly. It's not like you'll be completely alone.

Jules took a deep breath and pushed Peter from her thoughts as she reached her own cabin door. Gold lettering on the front read: 14.

As it turned out, the young women in front of her would be sharing a room with her on the journey. She had been so immersed in her own thoughts, she hadn't noticed them open the door to cabin number fourteen and step inside. But when she opened the door, there they were, admiring the room.

It was very pretty; the red and white bedspreads were crisp and clean, and the white sheets looked brand-new. There was nice, bright light fixture hanging from the center of the textured ceiling, and a tall dresser to hold their belongings. There were two, only two, white life vests sitting on top of the dresser. That didn't worry Jules, though. After all, the Titanic was "unsinkable", so she'd heard.

The older woman, who looked about Jules' age, was named Mary. The girl who was with her was indeed her younger sister, Lucy, who was just fourteen.

"We're going to live with our brother, Jonathan," said Mary as she placed her one suitcase down on one of the two bunk beds in the small room, after they had introduced themselves. She chose the bottom bunk, as did Jules. Jules didn't much like heights. The top bunk was taken by Lucy, who seemed perfectly happy sleeping so far from the safe, solid floor.

"When Jonathan left for America, he promised he'd send for us once he saved up enough money for our tickets," said Mary.

Then Lucy explained how Jonathan had been in America for three years now.

"You must miss him terribly," said Jules.

"Yes," replied Mary, with a sad look in her eyes. But then, in a happier voice, she said," So, what about you? What brings you to travel on the great Titanic?"

"I'm hoping to get a job, maybe save up enough money to take a few college classes in New York."

Jules didn't know what she wanted to study, just that she wanted to learn as much as she could. She hadn't yet shared her plan with Peter. She didn't even know if she'd be able to afford even one class, so she didn't want him to get too excited for her.

Fifteen minutes later, after the three girls had unpacked their belongings and changed out of their traveling clothes, they began to walk down to the common room together.

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