A/N: Hi there readers, so this is my first Titanic fanfiction but I have so much planned for it. It will be a multi-chapter take on Jack and Rose's relationship after the sinking. Follow them as they begin building an unfamiliar life together, and adjust to every hardship thrown there way. There will be a lot of romance, drama, angst and even some action so if you enjoy that sort of thing then I suggest you keep checking back regularly for updates. Any reviews would be much appreciated, it keeps me motivated and I'd love to get some feedback from readers. Thanks for reading everyone, and I hope you all stick around! I'll do my best to update as regularly as I can. With that said, enjoy!

Chapter 1: Never Letting Go

It seemed an eternity ago when he had snuck up behind her as she straddled the stern of the once great ship. Her hands, which were heavy on the rail, had been the only measure keeping her secure as she debated whether or not to ignore her high-class obligations and hurl herself into the black abyss of the ocean. He had been there to pull her back that day, to keep her from giving up on a life she had yet to really live. At the time he had been nothing more then a kind stranger. In the days to follow, he was the man who ignited passion in her she never knew could exist. He had shown her that there was more to life then socialite gossip and luncheons. That a man's worth was not measured by his politics or wealth, but by his experiences as a human being. Jack Dawson was more human then anyone she had ever met.

Till Jack, her entire life had been ruled by status and appearances. It had been the very stress of needing to maintain their elite lifestyle that had drove her father to take his own life. It was the need to keep up the appearance that made her mother force Rose to engage Cal. With Jack, she had hope that things could be different. That though the future could be unpredictable and shaky it could also be like Jack was, thrilling and her own.

Like Jack had told her, she had fire that was worth keeping ignited. She wasn't ready to give that up. She wasn't ready to give him up. Not now. Why when he had just entered her life was he being taken away? It was cruel really, to think that love had somehow found it's way to her when it wasn't supposed to. It was like fate was catching up to them, recognizing that two people from such different worlds were never meant to be together. Not happily every after anyway.

For every moment that the lifeboats stalled in the distance nearby meant even longer they'd be left in the water and with each breath that escaped their lips, a little life escaped as well.

Lying on the raft with her hand clasped in Jack's, all she could think about was the promise she had made him, to never let go…but they were dying. She knew it, and Jack had to know it as well.

How was she supposed to keep that promise to him, when every part of her wanted to close her eyes and slip away into darkness?

Jack was wrong that night on the ship. He had told her the worst part about falling into the water would be the pain. It wasn't the pain that was the worst part. It was not feeling the pain. It had only taken minutes for the chill of the ocean to prickle into their nerves, sheath its way deep into their skin and turn every part of her numb. She could barely feel anything anymore, and that is what scared her the most. She didn't want to forget the touch of Jack's hand in her own and she tried to ignore the realization that his thumb was no longer caressing her skin the way it had been a few moments ago. She couldn't see his face as she lay on her back, staring into the night sky. She didn't dare turn to look at him, for fear what she might find. Instead she stared straight up, willing her eyes to remain open.

In any other situation it might have been a beautiful night on the North Atlantic. The stars, which were bright with yellow light, flickered in clusters above them. The ocean had stilled to an eerie calmness with only a few desperate murmurs from the lonely survivors and there was a crisp, calm breeze running its way over the ocean surface. She exhaled a strained breath, a puff of fog forming around her lips as the words to the song Jack had sung to her in the early evening found its way into her mind.

"Come Josephine in my flying machine. Going up she goes, up she goes…"

She sung quietly to him and to the other survivors wishing she could be like the woman in the song and fly off to some remarkable new world known only to her and Jack. She pierced her lips and closed her eyes, feeling the tears, which threatened to fall already beginning to freeze along the brim of her eyes before they could. For a moment the whir of the wind in her ears was all the sound that surrounded her until the slightest tremble of a whisper sang behind her.

"…Ba-balance y-yourself like a b-bird on a beam."

Rose's eyes opened slowly. His voice had been weak, barely audible. She almost believed she had imagined it.

"In the a-air she goes. Th-there she goes."

Despite herself, a stiff smile of pure joy pulled at the corner of her lips. The simple gesture caused her discomfort, as the ice around her jawline broke apart in thin cracks. She didn't care. Jack was still alive, he was a survivor, it didn't matter how little time they might have. All that mattered was in that moment, Jack was listening and singing back and it was all she needed to keep going.

…