*Creeps out into the light* Well… I have written… finally. Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chap… even though that was last year in *wince* June…  I don't remember what movies were in theaters then, so I'll just pick a couple…

Dedication: To Kim, for helping me out with this chapter and prodding me to write, although not on this story… ^_^

Disclaimer: Don't own Newsies, Aaron Lohr (if only!) or Gabe Damon. I only own Star, Claire, Travis and other characters you don't recognize. Don't own the RMS Titanic either… *winces* I know it's horribly cliché, but I just couldn't help myself!

Twists of Life

Chapter Eleven

 The cab pulled up in front of the Hard Rock Café to let Gabe and Star out. Several girl in mini-skirts and tube tops looked at Gabe like they weren't quite sure if he was famous or not, for which the two were very thankful. They made it inside without any trouble and were shown to a table off to the side, as they'd requested.

 "So what are we supposed to do now?" Star toyed with her fork as she tried to concentrate on the menu.

"Order food?" Gabe felt just as nervous as Star looked, but he refused to let it show. They'd figure out what was happening sooner or later, but there was no use obsessing over it in the meanwhile. "Let's just eat and worry about this later, alright? Just work on having a good time right now."

"You kids ready to order?" The waitress stood over them, tapping her pen against her order pad. They looked up at her a bit sheepishly, unaware until that moment that she'd been standing there for quite some time.

"Uh, yeah." The two placed their orders quickly and handed her the menus.

"I'll come back in a couple minutes with your drinks," the waitress said. She winked at them knowingly and walked off, still tapping the order pad.

  "So…" Star searched her mind for something to say. "About that kiss last night… I don't normally do that kind of thing… Go around kissing guys I just met, I mean." She watched Gabe's expression nervously. "So, I don't want you to go around thinking I'm a slut or anythi…" She stopped when she saw him grinning.

 "Don't worry about it. It wasn't anything either of us could help. I don't normally kiss girls I've only known for a day either." They grinned at each other in relief, not noticing when the waitress returned to put their drinks on the table.

~*~*~*~*~FLASHBACK~*~*~*~*~

"When are we going to get home mom?" 11 year-old Claire Damon looked up at her mother, bouncing a little on her right foot.

"Honey, we just started a couple of hours ago. Why don't you go and explore the ship with your brother?" Star smiled indulgently at her daughter and gently pushed her in the direction of the door. "And take Amanda Jean with you!"

Gabe wrapped his arms around his wife and rested his chin on her head. "Hard to believe we've been married almost twelve years, huh? It seems like only yesterday we were selling newspapers and starving on the streets, and now we're in a first class cabin aboard the most famous ship of it's time." He took her hand and they walked out onto the private deck connecting to their rooms.

~*~

Star was jolted out of a sound sleep by an awful grating noise and what felt like an earthquake, and for a second she thought maybe it had been a dream and Gabe had rolled over in bed. She reached out for him to reassure herself, but her hand felt only warm sheets where he had been. "Gabe?" She got out of bed and switched on the light, terror clutching at her mind for a reason she couldn't put her finger on.

"I'm with the kids, hon." Gabe's voice floated through the darkness of the main room. "I'm going to check and see what's going on. The engines have stopped."

As he stepped out the door, Star realized he was right. Why would the engines stop? She put on a robe and poked her head out into the hall, a bit surprised at all the activity going on. Gabe was talking to a crewmember and as she watched, he turned and came back towards her, looking puzzled.

"They say it's nothing but that we should put out lifejackets on just in case."

"In case of what? What happened Gabe?" Star was already moving to where the life jackets were stored. "Claire! Aaron! Bring your sister and get in here please!"

"I'll go up to the main deck and look around." Gabe grabbed a life jacket and was halfway to the door when Star stopped him.

"No! We'll all go." She waved off his protests and they all got dressed in warm clothes and coats before stepping out into the confusion of the hallway.

When they reached the main deck, Gabe picked up Amanda and had Aaron hold onto his coattails while Claire and Star followed closely, holding on to each other for dear life. The deck was a madhouse. Women were crying and children were screaming and running around wildly. Star noticed that the deck was slightly tilted towards the front of the boat.

"Please board the lifeboats!" A deckhand was shouting at the top of his lungs, trying to herd the crowd towards the lifeboats that were being readied. Some people got in, while others simply laughed or stared numbly at him, not seeming to realize the significance of what was being said. Suddenly, a woman flung herself into the crowd screaming, "It's sinking! It's sinking!" The rest of the passengers stampeded towards the lifeboats.

 "Women and children first please! Women and children!" A gunshot rang out and a man fell over the railing. The ship was now very obviously slanted and people were falling and crawling over each other to reach the lifeboats.

 In an unspoken agreement, Star and Gabe took the children to a spot next to the wall, where there weren't as many people.

"Take the kids and go." Gabe shoved Amanda into Star's arms and transferred Aaron's grip to her coat. "I'll follow when they let the men go." He kissed his family and led them through the crowd to the nearest boat. He lifted Aaron and Claire in and turned to help Star step across.

"I'm sorry ma'am, there's only room for one more." An officer held his arm out, preventing Star from stepping into the lifeboat. Without hesitation, Star handed Amanda Jean to Aaron and turned away, tears streaming down her face. Gabe looked at their three children.

 "When you get to New York, go straight to our house and wait there if we haven't found you yet. We'll see you soon. I love you."  He and Star fought their way slowly through the crowd to find another boat. The deck of the ship was steeply slanted now and more and more people were jumping over the side in a last attempt to live.  

"Gabe, there are no more boats. We'll have to jump or go down with the ship." Star hoped the children had made it all right, because she wasn't sure she and Gabe would. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her head into his chest, taking comfort in the familiarity of his arms encircling her and his chin resting on her head.

As they stood there in a moment of indecision, their minds were made up for them. A slightly overweight woman lost her balance and fell against them, knocking them into a man who was standing against the railing. The man stumbled out of the way and in anger shoved the couple into the railing, causing them to flip up and over it. The last thing Star saw as she was sucked back into the ship was Gabe's face staring calmly back at her.

~*~*~*~*~END FLASHBACK~*~*~*~*~

"Kids? Hey! You want your food or not?" Star and Gabe looked up in confusion at the waitress who was standing next to them tapping her foot impatiently.

"Uh, yeah." They sat back in their chairs and let her put the food down. Neither of them said a word for the rest of the meal.

 

A/N: I like killing people, I know… But hey! At least it's a chapter!