Chapter 25 - Once In A Lifetime Opportunity

A month after they had married, Jack and Rose moved to Ireland, wishing to continue their wish to travel the world. Leaving behind the Brooke's had been harder than expected but they had settled into their new life well. The shops bell rang for the thousandth time that day, adjusting her apron, Rose went to wait on the young man which had just come in. He was tall, with dirty blonde curls and a slight beard. He smoked a cigarette, and eyed over the menu quickly. It was dinnertime so the lunch rush would soon be arriving. From the period between 12-2pm customers flocked into the café where Rose had worked since early February. The young man approached the counter, sitting himself on a stool, he didn't appear to be making any sort of a decision so Rose found a newspaper and began to flick through the pages, tucking a red curl behind her ear. The usual tripe was in the papers, nothing which Rose found interesting. Turning the page, there was a large photograph of the Titanic, leaning over she placed her head in his hands and began to read over the print. The Titanic had dominated the headlines around the world since work on her had completed in early 1911 but now the hype was back as she was due to set sail on her maiden voyage in less than three weeks from Southampton.

'Are you sailing on her?' An Irish voice came, and the young man who had entered a few minutes earlier looked at her.

'Oh no.' Rose smiled, closing the paper. She didn't know why she was actually reading it, to kill time she guessed.

The man bowed his head a little, removing his hat. 'Just thought you would have been with how interested you looked in the paper.'

Rose smiled, she took the small pencil from behind her ear and found a scrap piece of paper. 'What can I get for you?'

'Erm, just the omelette and a tea. Don't want anything too heavy, the sisters cooking dinner tonight.' Closing the menu, he placed it back in the rack and turned his attention back to Rose. 'So you're American?'

Rose turned to face him as she poured tea into a small cup. She found people were always fascinated by her accent. 'Yes I am, and you are Irish.' she laughed, stating the obvious.

'Through and through. But the sister and I, we're going to the States.' He told her, rubbing his beard. 'We're going on the Titanic.'

Rose frowned for a second, she wasn't prejudice against anyone but this man certainly didn't look as though he could afford a ticket aboard the greatest ship ever built. 'Oh, really? What's taking you there?'

Sighing the man accepted his tea, taking a quiet sip. 'Well to cut a long story short, I love my country but the sister, well she's pregnant, the father of the kid - well, he's a bastard.' Rose glanced around seeing a few old women raise their unapproved faces at this mans swearing. 'He don't want anything to do with her or the kid, and no matter how many times I threatened to paste him he wouldn't listen.'

Rose shook her head. 'That's awful. I do hope your sister is all right.' Rose continued to whisk an egg as she listened to the man.

'Aye, she'll be fine. I didn't mind staying in Ireland, but the gossips and the old folks who make comments and judge her, the narrow minded fools, they make her life a misery. Some even suggested the kid was mine!'

'That's ludicrous!'

'Well, she lets it get to her so she suggested we move to America for a better life and we got third class tickets for Titanic.' He shrugged, taking another sip from his tea.

'Well I do hope you find peace over there.' She smiled to him, handing the omelette to him on a plate. 'And what a way to travel aboard the ship.'

'Aye, it is.' he began to stuff his face, obviously hungry. 'You make a great omelette.' He grinned to her. She was relieved someone enjoyed her cooking, she had to admit she was all right, better than she was when she had first met Jack. 'I'm Tommy Ryan.' He offered his hand to her, chewing his lunch.

'Rose Dawson.' She smiled, taking his hand.

'Dawson? Dawson? Hey I work with a Dawson…he's American too, perhaps your related? Jack's the name.'

Rose smiled, feeling her heart flutter at the mention of her husbands name. 'Yes, he's my husband.'

Tommy stopped chewing for a moment, to think. Of course she was. 'You're the famous Rose Dawson. Tell you something he was right, you're a corker. Jackie boy tells all the lads about his lovely wife.'

Rose grinned, she took a seat enjoying the conversation with this man. 'Is that right?'

'It is.' Tommy finished his lunch, passing the plate to Rose. 'I didn't imagine Jack marrying someone as lovely as you.' He grinned.

The shops bell rang again, and as if on cue, Jack entered wearing a navy blue overall. He works at the docks lugging in the fish and coal from the boats and loading mail onto the huge liners, in just a few weeks the Titanic would be stopping here in Queenstown to collect passengers and mail, and he couldn't wait to get a proper glimpse, he would even try to sketch her if he had enough time. Slapping Tommy on the back, he took a seat next to his friend.

'Were your ears burning?' Tommy teased. Jack frowned looking between his wife and Tommy. 'We were just talking about you.'

'Oh is that right?' Jack laughed. 'I see you met my wife Rose.'

'I sure did, she makes a mean omelette.' Rose smiled at the compliment.

'I was just telling her that I was going on the Titanic. The biggest object ever made by the hands of man.' Tommy reached into his pocket and found his tobacco.

'Is she an Irish ship?' Rose asked.

'Of course, built in Belfast, solid as a rock. Fifteen thousands Irishmen built the ship. She's unsinkable.' Tommy declared proudly. He lit his cigarette, offering his matches to Jack.

'I heard she was unsinkable.'

'I doubt it, nothings for certain right? I mean she could sink.' Jack pointed out. He didn't understand why she was dubbed as 'unsinkable.'

'Its bullshit.' Tommy wafted away his smoke. 'You two should come.'

Rose looked to Jack, who simply rolled his eyes. 'We don't have that kinds of money.' Jack pointed out.

'Neither did we. £6 10Shillings 0d each for third class tickets. It was a months wage but for the going rate I think its great.'

Shoving another log onto the stove, Jack wiped the dirt from his hands down his overalls, he needed to take a bath later. Rose sat in her rocking chair, knitting a sweater which she had started weeks ago for Jack, but her mind was obviously elsewhere - on what Tommy had said. Since he had mentioned her and Jack joining him on the Titanic she had thought of little else. She didn't know what it was but she felt a need to be on the ship and to go home. Jack sensed her absentmindedness, stroking her head tenderly, he kissed the top of her head, breaking her concentration.

'What's wrong, you've been like this all day.' He whispered to her, still stroking her hair. Placing her half knitted sweater on the end table, she turned to Jack.

'I don't know. Its just what Tommy was saying earlier about going to America.' Rose stood from the rocking chair and walked to the kitchen, she didn't know what to prepare for dinner.

'You want to go too?' He asked her.

Turning around to face him, she leant against the cupboards. 'I don't know. I just miss home, I want us to start living Jack, all the things we talked about…going to Los Angeles, to the pier in Santa Monica, riding horseback on the beach. I know we've been married three months but in that three months all we have done is slave away for little or nothing.' Sighing, she felt a little better for releasing all of her thoughts out. Jack came towards her a little.

'I know darling, no one said this was going to be easy. I want those things too, but I was there alone before, I slept under bridges and rode the railroad for free and got kicked off when they found out. I don't want you to end up hurt. I just thought maybe if we got some money together we could go then.' He pulled her into his arms, but she resisted a little.

'But how can we get money together when we have to pay for a roof over our heads. I don't want to stay in Ireland forever.' She whispered to him. 'I just think this could be our chance. I know we have little money, but we have some saved away and we could dip into that for a little while. I want an adventure Jack.'

Smiling he kissed her forehead, the fire within her was still alive and he hoped it never burned out. He knew that inside of her there was a woman who had been suppressed and smothered for years but now she had a chance to live freely. Jack himself had always lived on a whim and had promised Rose the same things, so why was he so hesitant. 'All right.'

Rose glanced up to him with a small smile curving on the corner of her lips. 'All right?'

'Yeah why not. We'll get the tickets and get on the Titanic. Like Tommy said it's a once in a lifetime opportunity, we'll go home together, then the world is ours.' Letting out a small scream, she jumped into Jack's arms and he laughed so hard knowing how happy she was.