Chapter 12

As boat fourteen pulled away from the ship Harlean sat in the boat, her eyes dried now but her heart aching in pain as she saw the once great ship that stood tall and proud in the docks of Southampton, sink into the Atlantic Ocean.

Her mind then went to her Uncle, her brave wonderful Uncle, whom she had worshiped since a child. Every trip he would bring something back for her and her brothers, and he had always been good to her. She remembered being fourteen when he sat her down and told her that should he ever be on a ship and it was going to sink, he would go down with her. It was tradition, and he had always been a tradition following man.

As she sat in the boat, that freezing cold night, she forced any tears she wanted to shed to stay inside, because she knew he would not want her to be sad. He had lived his life and he would die on the sea.

And as she sat there and the ship grew farther and farther away, her thoughts were on Jack, and Sparks. The man she adored and thought of as a brother, and the man who had stolen her heart. She sat there and prayed that come the next morning she would have Harold to hold her, to take care of her. Harlean had no idea how her family would take to the idea of her and a sailor, a messenger at that, but she decided they would have to accept it, because Harold was the man she had been told would come along one day, she knew that when they kissed the night before.

XX

Upon returning to the Messaging room Harold told Jack that Harlean was safe and he could have sworn he saw a somewhat look of relief pass over Jack's face.

"Here, give the Captain this update," Jack said as he quickly wrote something down on a piece of paper and handed it to Harold.

He looked over it for a moment and then rushed off, a moment later he returned, "He said thanks."

Over the course of the next half hour messages kept on leaving the ship, hoping for more help to get there faster. Harold checked outside the door and water was already half way up the deck and almost no boats left, and there was the band, still playing, still trying to keep things calm. Something told him those brave men would not be leaving the ship that night.

He then went back into the room, "I'm going to run to the bridge and get us some lifejackets," he said.

Harold then tore out of the room and ran up the deck; he retrieved two jackets, threw his on and then went back to the Messaging room.

"Come on, put this on," Harold ordered.

Jack didn't move, "You're mad," Harold commented as he then began to put the coat on his friend. He then grabbed Jack's boots from behind the curtain and put them on his friend's feet. Harold then looked, the Captain was in the door, "There is nothing more you two can do, thank you for your service, it's every man for him self now and I am releasing you from your duty," he said.

"Yes sir," Harold and Jack said.

"Harold come with me a moment," the Captain said.

"Yes sir," Harold then followed the Captain out of the room, he glanced at all the people running about, screaming as the water came ever closer.

"My niece truly loves you; I saw it in her eyes tonight when we sent her off of this damned ship. The sea has always been her love, as it has been mine, and personally I can't see anyone but a Sailor becoming her husband, promise me you will take care of her," the Captain asked.

Harold nodded, "Yes sir, of course sir," he answered.

"Give her this for me and tell her I love her," the Captain then handed Harold his gold pocket watch.

Harold took it, glanced at it, it had the initials EJS on it, he then pocketed it, "Yes sir."

"Good lad, take care," the men shook hands and that was the last Harold Bride saw of Captain Smith.

When Harold returned Jack was still attempting to send messages, "We gotta go," he stated as he went behind the green curtain to retrieve his coat and the last of the money. He shoved some papers, mostly messages they had received that day and that night and put them into his pocket. When he turned back around he was infuriated to see a Stoker trying to steal Jack's coat.

"Get off him!" Harold shouted as he punched the Stoker.

The man stumbled but went for Harold this time, at this moment Jack decided he was going to leave his post and help his friend get this man out of their way so they could attempt to survive. He knew Harold wouldn't leave without him and he knew Harlean would be distraught if she lost Harold. Jack punched the Stoker this time and for a few seconds the Messengers attacked the man until finally he fell to the floor out cold.

Jack grabbed his coat and the two men left the room, "I'll see you on the Carpathia," Harold said as then the men went in opposite directions.

That was the last time Harold Bride saw his best friend Jack Phillips…alive.

XX

"Mr Lowe," Harlean's soft voice asked, the boat had since stopped, the officer had decided that they were in a safe enough distance so the ship would not pull them down.

"Yes Miss Carpenter?" he asked.

"Do you have the time?" she replied.

Harold pulled out his watch and looked at it, "Two fifteen," he answered.

"Thank you."

At this point the ship was almost all the way up in the air, the lights under the water gave off a scary effect, and then two about a minute or so later the lights were off and screams came from the ship. Harlean closed her eyes, but she knew that nothing would ever be able to block out that image, and so she opened them again, in time to see the ship almost totally up in the air, it gave off a large groan and then like stepping on a twig, it broke in half.

Gasps and crying came from her boat and the other boats around them, Harlean remained silent as the ship then rose into the air once more. It sat there for a moment and then it began to go down, this was it. Her Uncle's last moments, thousands of others' last moments, and possibly Harold's last. A few seconds passed, but they felt like hours as the ship went farther down into the dark black sea, and then it was gone. The RMS Titanic had sunk, "What time is it now?" Harlean asked softly.

"Two twenty," Harold's voice answered, it was thick and laced with emotion.

Harlean looked around the boat and saw the women crying and clinging to people they hardly knew. The one thing that all of the people in this boat had in common; was they had no idea if the men they loved had survived.

Harlean then looked back to where the ship had been and listened with a broken heart to the thousands of cries for help.

XX

Harold had wound up on the Collapsible B, the boat had been turned over when they had tried to get it down, but he was able to find a place to sit on top. Men were swimming towards the boat and it was becoming more and more crowded by the minute, he noticed Charles Lightoller on the boat and a few other well to do men, whether they were Officers or passengers. A man then sat up on the boat and landed right on Harold's feet, but he was to tired he didn't have the heart or the strength to ask the man to move.

Finally every space on the boat was covered and it was slightly sinking into the water under the weight, and the men around the edge of the boat had to order others who were coming towards them to get away.

Harold tried to get comfortable, and wondered briefly about Jack, but he had at least kept his promise to the Captain and by morning he would be reunited with Harlean and he would be able to take care of her…

XX

A/N- THE SHIP HAS SUNK! I know I am such a morbid horrible person and I do get quite sad when I think of the ship sinking, but I was so happy when I wrote that ship sinking. You know what…this has taken me much longer than it should have to get this damn ship into the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean…now maybe me getting this done will get Gina to get her act together and finish Swallowed in the Sea! Total credit and love to her for finding the time that the ship sank for me, I am much appreciative! Now come to think of it…I gotta call Gina and tell her that the ship is in the ocean! Whoot! In my own defense I was very sad to write the stuff with Harlean and the stuff with the Captain telling Harold to take care of Harlean and giving him the watch, originally I was gonna have it be along the lines of Thomas Andrews giving Harlean the watch, cause of the comment about her needing a watch, but it never fit, not with the thing in the film of him fixing the clock in the Smoking room and such…so there you are….review and spread the love! I love you all! Beccs! ^_^