I found my father towards the front of the ship, chatting animatedly with a man who looked to be about the same age as him. "Ah, here she is," my father said when he caught me approaching out of the corner of his eye. "Charles, this is my daughter, Katharine. Kat, this is Charles Lightoller, second officer aboard the Titanic and a good friend of mine." Charles held out his hand and kissed mine when I offered it to him. "Sweet Katharine, I haven't seen you since you were an infant. She's splendid, William," he said turning to my father, who beamed in reply. "Your father has told me a lot about you, including that this is your first time aboard a ship! Amazing, considering your father's love of the sea."
"Yes, well I'm afraid I haven't gotten the opportunity since mum died, although I am honored to be able to say my first voyage was aboard the grand Titanic." Lightoller looked sad for a moment, "Yes, your mother was a lovely woman. My wife was crushed when she heard of Emily's death."
I nodded understandingly, it had been the roughest time of my young life, and I glanced at my father to see that he was peering sadly down at his shoes. Mr. Lightoller must have noticed as well, for he quickly changed the subject. "I would love to give you and your father a tour of the ship tomorrow, if that would be something you'd be interested in…"
I smiled appreciatively both for the distraction and the offer. "Yes, very much so, thank you Mr. Lightoller." "Please, dear, call me Charles. Well then, I suppose I should actually do my job instead of moseying about," he laughed, "It's great to finally see you again, William. You must join me tonight; some of the officers like to get together for a few rounds of poker." "I think I'll take you up on that offer Charles," my father chuckled. "Fantastic, I will meet you here at eight then." He kissed my hand again and headed towards the bridge.
"Charles is a great man. His wife was very close friends with your mother. They sent each other letters frequently." I nodded, but didn't want to get onto the topic of my mum. I linked arms with my father and began to walk along the decks of the ship, gazing out at the sea and the fading shore of England. "I can see why you love the sea so much father, it's beautiful." "Ah, Kat, you haven't seen a thing yet. Just wait until we're really out, into the open waters…there's nothing that can describe it." I sighed dreamily and rested my head against his shoulder for a moment, suddenly tired.
"I think I'll go and take a nap before dinner, Daddy. Let me know if you find anything interesting out here," I smiled. "Alright sweetheart, I'll wake you in a little while."
I was heading down the hallways in the second class section of the ship when I once again ran into the Welsh officer, Harry. It felt good to say his name, right almost. I was wondering why I felt that way when I noticed he had a broad smile on his face, and I turned around discreetly to check if it was me who had inspired it. "Katharine, we meet again," he said with a knee-weakening crooked grin. "Officer Lowe," I mock saluted him and we both laughed. "I know I said I hoped to see you again, but I didn't mean to imply that you should follow me," he teased. "Follow you? This is my part of the ship!" I protested. "Your part of the ship, eh? I'm an officer, Katharine. The entire ship is mine to roam." "Oh well aren't you all high and mighty?" We both broke into a small fit of laughter, and his eyes shone happily, making my stomach flip.
"Where are you off to?" he asked when we could breathe again. "I was about to take a nap…there didn't seem to be anything else to do and I was getting a bit tired." "Nothing else to do?" he asked incredulously, "This ship has everything you could imagine! Turkish baths…a gym…swimming pools…libraries…" I held up my hand and he stopped talking. "I know all that already…but I was under the impression that they were reserved for first class only." "Technically, yes. But with the gown you're wearing, it shouldn't be hard to pass you off as a first class girl." I looked down at my dark green gown, one of Aunt Maggie's gifts. It was one of the last dresses she gave me before leaving for New York. 'It'll compliment you're green eyes so nicely, Kitty,' I remember her saying, using her nickname for me. "Besides," Harry continued, "you're hanging around with an officer, I've got connections." I rolled my eyes and shrieked happily when he pulled me towards the first class decks.
When we reached the decks, he linked his arm with mine and stuck his nose high up in the air, mocking the arrogant attitudes of the passengers surrounding us. I stifled my hysterics as I watched him make a fool of himself, and noticed the judging glares that the first class members sent our way. They must have assumed that I was a high society girl, hanging around with a lowly officer. I shook my head in disgust at their attitudes, and tightened my grip on Harry's arm. He must have noticed, because he smiled breathtakingly down at me.
Soon we came upon a door, and he led me inside. It was the swimming pool, and there was no one there at the moment. I kneeled down alongside it and ran my hand over the surface of the water. It was surprisingly warm, and I allowed my arm to travel a little further into the pool. "It's heated, and the very first of its kind to ever be found on a ship," Harry remarked as he knelt beside me. "It's wonderful…I wish I could take a swim in it whenever I pleased. These rules of society really start to weigh heavily on me." Harold met my eyes with understanding and pulled me to my feet, his face momentarily only inches from my own. I turned my face and pretended I was distracted admiring the lavish tiling on the floor. Harold more than likely caught my discomfort at his close proximity, because he began heading for the door. "Would you like to explore some more of the ship?" I nodded anxiously and followed him, and then on a sudden impulse I grabbed his hand. He paused and looked down at our now intertwined fingers, then up at me with a curious expression on his face, but he said nothing and pushed open the door.
We had been walking, hand in hand, for a short while when we saw a group of officers gathered ahead. Harry abruptly dropped my hand, letting it fall to my side, and I looked up at him with rejection in my eyes. "I would love nothing more than to continue holding your hand, Katharine, but there are strict rules against officers forming relationships with passengers. I could lose my job should someone report me to the captain." "Oh, of course, I didn't think of that. I feel foolish." I had averted my eyes to the floor and toyed with fabric on my dress. He put his finger under my chin and tilted my head so I was staring directly into his chocolate eyes. "Don't feel foolish, love. I should have mentioned it earlier." I nodded, blushing, and we continued on down the deck and past the officers, the perfect picture of innocence.
