Chapter 2: Red Rose Red Rose, why are you so blue?
(authors note: sorry about all the errors in the previous chapter I sort of forgot to edit it. Anyway back to the story)
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"Rose." The voice was haunting yet sweet as wine. Rose opened her eyes to see the shining face of the young nurse that had been caring for her.
"What day is it?" The same question that had haunted her dreams entered her head once more, as the nurse searched for answers, for a reason. Rose knew something was wrong that the nurse was searching for something, but what, money, answers, pain, agony, truth?
"April the 15th. I have already told you what day it is. Where's Jack?" Rose searched the room for familiar faces but only saw her reflection in the small mirror across the room.
"Jack?" The nurse's eyes filled with sorrow, and rose knew then that it was true, that jack would never come back. Life wouldn't be the same.
The tears dripped down Rose's cheek slowly but they were still there, silent and calm. Rose's heart raced, yet she did not weep there were no more than a few tears left in her eyes. A small drip in the ocean of sorrow, she had nothing. Her eyes were as green as the stems of the few flowers the doctors had brought to her room to lighten the mood that hung low in the room as a mist over the river. The flowers were multi-colored reds, greens, pinks, and blues. Rose's tears fell away and she sat in silence as the nurse checked her lip were her teeth had been stuck the day before. "You sure did get your teeth in there deep. I don't see how you could've done that through the pain." The nurse inspected each bruise each frost bitten area on Rose's body. "Well you look much warmer today. You gave us quiet a scare there for a while you wouldn't warm up, and you kept moving like you were in the ocean swimming." The nurse carefully rebadged Rose's wounds, pulled up a chair and sat next to Rose's head.
"Why am I so lost?" Rose's word confused the nurse in such a way that words can't describe it, in a way that could never be understood.
"Lost? Your not lost you are here in the hospital that the small cruise ship brought you and the 58 other survivors back to. Why do you say you are lost?
"I have nothing, I am nothing. How can I ever be saved, how can it ever be right?" Rose's eyes filled with tears again, and the nurse silently traced Rose's face with her long white fingers.
"Shhhhh there, there it's ok. Shhhh don't worry. It must be excruciating thinking about your family."
Rose lay in silence the tears running down her cheeks. 'Where is jack?' The question was all Rose could think about. The nurse's soft touch lulled Rose into a light sleep and she entered the dream again.
They were all around in the water, screaming. Jack clung to her hand as rose lay on the door, the water lapping at her side like a dogs tongue licking a bone to get the flavor be for biting in for the kill. The screams were death, were lone, she lay there watching, hoping for a boat to return. No one came. She and jack stuck to the door, as the boats filled with the lucky women and children who had managed to get away from the ship in time. It was too late, they were drifting off. They didn't care. People flowed like honey from a jar towards the boats for a spot to stay, to rest.
She resisted the stream but as she woke her eyes did the screaming themselves. She stood up for the first time since what seemed to be that morning. The night was full and dark, no lights, no life. She walked to the window and pushed the window open a crack and looked out onto the ocean. She breathed in as much air as she could before almost collapsing. She returned to the bed and lay there watching the window blinds on the window flap back and forth in a hepatizing pattern. She was still watching the blinds when the nurse returned. She didn't realize Rose was awake and scolded herself for leaving the window open. "I am so stupid sometimes. How could I have forgotten to close the window. Poor girl is probably cold again." AS she turned around she saw Rose's open eyes. "Oh I am so sorry did I wake you?"
"No, I was already awake. And you can leave the window open I opened it to get some fresh air." Rose watched as the nurse reopened the closed window.
"You mean to say you got up?"
"Of course I got up I can't lay here like a dog that was told to sit and stay. I am not like that. Or I'm not anymore."
"Oh I see."
"I am sorry if I sound snobby, I am just used to living in a huge party with multiple rich couples, and families. I followed like a good girl, but inside I was screaming! But I am now free. Or I guess that's what I am calling it."
"Yes, well I understand, it must be hard going with your parents everywere."
"Well I don't have to worry about that anymore now do I?" She laughed slightly for the first time in days. Her eyes seamed to sparkle with a light that had been blown out and was now relit by a guardian angel.
"Your smile is a wonderful sight." The nurse said with a huge grin on her own face. The two of them sat or in rose's case lay in silence looking into each other's eyes. "Your face is as a red rose in the dark blue night." The nurse said as the silence was broken but her words of such kindness.
"Mother was the opposite; she always said I was a wilting flower in a rich garden. I never believed her." Rose paused as the look in her eyes turned warmer than ever before. "I am glad I am a red Rose to someone and not just a weed that is thrown around to different people to collect money."
"I am sorry that your mother was like that."
"I was used to it, it didn't bother me very much."
"Oh, well I must go check on some of the other people. Keep your smile shining red rose." The nurse smiled in Rose's direction and left the room. Rose felt her heart lift with joy, as the nurse gave her nickname that would last for a life-time; she began smiling broader than she had since the night she danced with Jack in the lower deck of the wonderful titanic.
The next day she got the good news that she could leave that afternoon and return home. 'Home,' the word was a heaven on earth in her eyes. And sue cleared her head from Jacks name for once and walked to the cab that would return her to the palace where she once lived with her parents. The first thing on her mind was 'remodel!' .
