Chapter Eight
It was evening of April,18,1912 as the Carpathia was getting closer to New York. Jack, Rose, and Ruth stood out on deck, with the other survivors. Soon, it began to rain, but they could careless. Jack had his arms wrapped around her waist and Rose leaned her head on his chest as she looked up at the Statue of Liberty which held her torch up high and stood up straight, proud and tall. Rose smiled and as did Jack, who just held her close to him, not wanting to let go. Ruth was sitting on the bench a few feet away from them watching them stare up at the Statue of Liberty. A small smile came upon her lips as she saw how happy Rose was with Jack. She sighed and just looked around, finding people covered in warm blankets as they walked around on the deck.
Jack watched as Rose stared up at the Statue of Liberty. The cold droplets of rain hit against his skin, but he didn't care. He knew he had worse three short days ago, when Rose and himself had to fight for survival against the bitter cold of the North Atlantic. He knew deep down, that he would never forget how cold the water was, and how frightened Rose looked when they were at the stern as it was tilting. But throughout all the tragic experiences on that night, he won Rose's heart, and they both survived and Jack was proud of that, mostly thankful that Rose hadn't gone off to be with Cal. Just as Jack was about to let go of Rose and sit beside Ruth, a man with an umbrella and a clipboard in hand, came towards them.
"May I take your names, please?" The man asked. Jack looked down at him and smiled.
"Jack Dawson and Rose D--" Jack began before Rose interrupted.
"Dawson. Rose Dawson." Rose smiled as she leaned against his shoulder.
"Thank you." The man said, as he went to the last of the survivors. Jack looked down at Rose, confused.
"Rose?" Jack asked.
"Jack, I told you on the Titanic that I'd get off with you, and I'm keeping my word. Although it might not get off the way we expected, but we'll still get off together and Jack, nothing means more to me than being here with you in my arms." Rose said. Jack smiled and brought Rose into a passionate kiss. He was the first to pull away.
"Uh, would you consider it to be your legal name?" Jack asked, looking straight into Rose's green eyes. Rose smiled as tears glistened in her eyes.
"Of course." Rose smiled. "I would love to." With that, Jack hugged her close and kissed her with all the passion he had in him, knowing that Rose would soon be his wife, knowing that he'll be able to live the rest of his life with the woman he loved. They didn't even feel the cold rain drops hit their body, for they were too much occupied with each other to even notice. Just then, they felt the ship stop and heard people walking. Jack and Rose both broke apart and noticed that they had finally reached New York and were disembarking the ship. Jack and Rose noticed Ruth walking towards them. "We should be waiting for Annie in the infirmary. She said that we should meet her there, anyway." Rose said as she held Jack's hand.
"Okay, then let's go wait for her there." Ruth said, leading them to the infirmary, where they saw Annie dressed in a regular dress, instead of the nurses uniform she had been wearing since they seen her.
"Hey, I'm just about finished here." Annie said, as she retrieved her purse and umbrella from the closet. "Let's get going." Annie smiled as she lead Jack, Rose, and Ruth out on deck. All four disembarked the ship and stepped into New York, waiting to start a new life after what had changed their lives forever.
When they were making their way out of the pier, they noticed that reporters and family members were awaiting for what had happened to the so called 'unsinkable' ship. Some were crying, others were reunited, while reporters were asking questions about the Ship of Dreams. Annie sighed and found another way to her apartment building, which was only five blocks away from the pier. Luckily, they had escaped the chaos of the reporters and reached the building safely and unnoticed. Annie had finally reached her apartment building, with Jack, Rose, and Ruth close behind her. Annie took her keys from her purse and unlocked the front door as she lead the three people inside. They were now in the lobby of the building and there was a door that had 'landlord' written in gold plates.
"There's the landlord over there. His name is Michael Calvert. Just knock on the door and he'll give you the keys to your apartment. I'll be upstairs. I'm rather tired from all the working I've done." Annie said. Rose nodded and watched as Annie walked up a flight of steps. Rose then turned towards the landlord's door and went towards it, with Jack and her mother close behind. Rose knocked on the door a couple of times, before the door opened, revealing a man who looked to be in his mid twenties with blonde hair and blue eyes, like Jack, only his hair was shorter, and he was a couple of inches shorter than Jack.
"How may I help you?" The man to be Michael Calvert said.
"I heard that there's an apartment for rent?" Rose said.
"Oh yes. It's on the third floor." Michael Calvert said.
"May we go see it, please?" Rose asked.
"Certainly." Michael said, closing the door behind him. He then led him upstairs, to the third floor where he opened a wooden door to an empty apartment. They stepped in, and Rose looked around, as did Jack and Ruth. "This here is the living room, and over there is the kitchen." Michael said pointing straight ahead, where the kitchen could be seen. He then led them to the hallway, where there were two doors. "These are the bedrooms. The master bedroom is the one to the left, and the other bedroom is to the right." Michael then led them to the end of the hallway where he showed them the bathroom. They then went back to the living room and Michael showed them the dining room which was right next to the living room. The rooms were already furnished and cleaned. Rose looked up at Jack and he smiled, nodding his head, telling her that he liked the apartment.
"The rent is twenty dollars a month." Michael said, looking at both Jack and Rose.
"We'll take it." Jack said, smiling at the man.
"Great." Michael said. "Uh, here are your keys." Michael reached in his pant pockets and took out two keys and handed them to Jack. "Hope you enjoy your stay here."
"We will." Rose said, smiling. Michael smiled back.
"How foolish of me." Michael said. "My name is Michael Calvert." Michael held out his hand.
"Jack Dawson." Jack smiled, as he shook his hand.
"Rose Dawson." Rose smiled, as she too, shook his hand. Ruth looked confused, but let it pass.
"Ruth DeWitt-Bukater." Ruth said as she shook the man's hand.
"Okay, then. I'll be going now." Michael said. "If you guys need any company, come on down to my apartment and we could sit around and talk, okay?"
"No problem." Jack smiled. With that, Michael left their apartment, closing the door behind him. "I'll go look around, okay?" Jack said, wanting to leave Rose and her mother alone.
"Okay, Jack." Rose smiled. She watched as Jack went to the kitchen. She then turned to her mother.
"Dawson?" Ruth asked, a bit surprised. Rose sighed.
"Well, yes." Rose said. "I thought it would be best to use his name, instead of DeWitt-Bukater." Rose looked up at her mother, hoping that she wasn't upset with her.
"Well, Rose, you aren't even engaged to the man. Are you sure he wants you to use his name?" Ruth asked. Rose just smiled.
"You see mother, one, I already used his name when the officer asked for it on the Carpathia and two, he proposed after. So you see, I am engaged to Jack." Rose said, smiling happily. Ruth smiled as well.
"Congratulations." Ruth said, as she hugged her daughter tightly.
"Thank you." Rose said, as she hugged her mother back as a single tear of happiness slid down her cheek. "You don't know how much it means to me to hear that from you." Ruth pulled away and smiled.
"You don't know how much it means to me, to see you happy again." Ruth said. Rose smiled and hugged her mother.
"I am happy, mother." Rose said. "I've been happy ever since I met Jack." Ruth pulled away and rested her hand on her daughter's shoulder.
"I know you have. I could see it in your eyes whenever I looked at you." Ruth said. Suddenly, Jack came back from looking through the rooms and stood beside Rose, who leaned her head against his shoulder and yawned. "Why don't you two go in and get ready for bed. You two had a long day."
"Okay, mother." Rose said as she leaned over to kiss her mother on her cheek. "See you tomorrow morning." Ruth nodded and watched as Rose led Jack to the master bedroom, closing the door behind her. Ruth sighed and went to her own room, which was beside theirs. She closed the door behind her and began to get ready for bed.
Jack and Rose were now in their bedroom. Rose took the coat off, for the first time in three days and set it on the chair beside the bed. She was still wearing the dress she had worn the night the ship hit the iceberg, and she began to feel dirty. Rose just took off her shoes and her stockings and set them aside. She went beside the dresser and sat down looking at the mirror. Her hair was tangled and her curls were sort of dead from not washing them. Rose sighed but decided that she'll take care of that the next day. She felt Jack wrap his arms around her shoulders as he stood behind her. Rose smiled and looked at him from the mirror. She then turned around and kissed him passionately. Rose got up and wrapped her arms around him, their lips still connected.
Jack led Rose to the bed and laid Rose carefully onto the bed, with him on top of her. He pulled away to look at her face and found that she was smiling. She ran her fingers through his blonde hair and looked into his blue eyes with love and care. Jack looked down at her and smiled and he gently kissed the top of her forehead, as he began to undress Rose. As he did so, Rose unbuttoned his shirt and removed his pants, leaving them in their underclothes, which they removed themselves. Jack put the covers over them and smiled down at Rose. Rose smiled back and pulled him closer to her as she kissed him with all the passion in him.
"Put your hands on me, Jack." Rose whispered, remembering the last time she said that. She led his hand to her breast and smiled. Jack leaned down and kissed her passionately as they began to make love a second time.
It was now early morning as Rose was laying her head onto Jack's bare chest, as he had his arm around her. Both were asleep and both were happy. Meanwhile, on the other room, Ruth was already up. She looked out the window and saw people walking around the streets. She wasn't accustomed to the surroundings, but she knew she'd be happy by Rose's side. Ruth then walked towards the dresser and removed her hair from the pins that held it into a loose bun. Ruth shook her hair out and saw that it was tangled. Ruth found herself careless to the fact that she hadn't bathed in three days and she hadn't brushed her hair in those three days as well. Ruth knew that she had to go shopping with her daughter for clothes and other necessities.
Ruth got up and left her room and walked towards Jack and Rose's room, knocking on the door gently. She heard no response, so she knocked a little louder.
"Rose? Are you up?" Ruth called out.
Rose raised her head a bit at the sound of her mother's voice. Rose sighed and slowly slid out of Jack's warm embrace, trying not to wake him up. She saw him turn to his side. Rose smiled and got out of the covers and put on the dress. She then went towards the door and opened it quietly. There, she found her mother, with her hair down, smiling up at her. Rose smiled back and stepped into the hallway, as she closed the door as quietly as she could.
"Good morning, mother." Rose smiled. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yes. Perfectly well." Ruth smiled. "Uh, I was thinking that we should go shopping for clothes and other things. You know, we can't keep wearing these clothes for the rest of our lives." Ruth gave out a small laugh and Rose joined in.
"That's true." Rose said, looking down at the dress she had on. "We could go once Jack wakes up. I don't want him to worry about me if we leave without him knowing."
"Okay." Ruth said. "So, then we'll wait."
Rose lead her mother to the living room where she sat down on a cream colored couch, beside her mother. Rose folded her hands on her lap as she looked around the living room. It wasn't big, but it wasn't small either. It was just the right size. Rose smiled as she thought of what her life would be like if she married Jack. She hoped that they would get married soon, but in a church. She didn't want a big wedding, not like the one that she would've had if she married Cal. She just wanted Jack there, her mother, Annie and maybe Michael. He seemed like a very nice guy, and sure enough, Jack and Michael would become good friends. Rose sighed happily at those thoughts, and turned to face her mother, who was smiling.
"You know, I have never seen you this happy before. At least before you were engaged to Cal." Ruth admitted, noticing how happy Rose was with Jack. Rose smiled at her.
"Well, I am happy. Really happy. Especially since I have Jack now." Rose said, looking at the hallway, to see if he would step into the living room, and sure enough, she heard their bedroom door open and there he stood with the clothes that he had worn the night the ship sank, his hair all over the place, and a sleepy smile on his face.
"Morning." Jack said, scratching his head.
"Morning, Jack." Rose smiled. Ruth just smiled up at him. Rose got up and went over to him and kissed him gently on the lips. She couldn't help but laugh at him.
"What's so funny?" Jack asked.
"It's just that you have a very peculiar type of hairdo." Rose smiled as she saw Jack trying to straighten his tangled hair. "But you still are handsome." Rose wrapped her arms around his neck. Jack smiled and kissed the top of her forehead. They saw Ruth get up from the couch.
"Maybe we should go shopping now?" Ruth asked. "We really need to get more clothes and other things for the apartment."
"That sounds like a good idea." Jack said, agreeing to Ruth's plan. "Just let us put our shoes on. We wouldn't want to go walking on the sidewalk barefoot now, do we?" Jack asked as he stared at Rose who smiled up at him. Both Jack and Rose headed towards their bedroom and put on their shoes and took some money from Cal's overcoat, which Rose had worn since the sinking. Jack and Rose then left their bedroom and left their apartment, as Jack locked the door behind him. Just as they left their apartment, the door across from theirs opened and revealed Annie, dressed in a simple dress. She smiled up at them.
"Well, good morning, guys." Annie said, locking the door. "It's good to see that you two have moved here."
"We really like the place." Rose said, smiling.
"I'm glad you do." Annie smiled. "Going somewhere?"
"Uh, yeah. We're gonna go get some stuff for us and the apartment." Jack said.
"Sounds like fun. Mind if I come along?" Annie asked.
"No, not at all. We'll love it if you joined us." Jack smiled. Annie smiled back and followed them down the stairs and into the lobby. They then left the apartment building and headed towards the clothing store, which was only five blocks away from their apartment building. Once they reached the store, they went inside and began browsing around for clothes. Ruth was helping Rose with her dresses as Annie was choosing clothes for Jack at the men's section of the store.
"So, when do you plan on marrying Jack?" Ruth asked as she was looking through the dresses. Rose looked at her mother and smiled.
"I don't know. He just proposed yesterday, I'm not sure when the date of our wedding will be, but all I know is that I want to get married as soon as possible." Rose said as she looked through the dresses along with her mother. Ruth pulled out a few dresses from the rack and showed them to Rose.
"What do you think?" Ruth asked. Rose looked at the dresses and smiled.
"They're perfect." Rose said. Ruth smiled and pulled out a few more from the rack for herself. Rose turned and saw a white floor-length dressed, which was like an even gown, but wasn't as expensive as normal evening gowns were. Rose smiled and went towards it. It was short-sleeved and the front was low, but not too low. The top part of the dress had embroidery and beads covering it, making the dress look more beautiful, as the bottom part was silky and soft to the touch. Rose admired the dress and knew that it would make a perfect bridal gown for her wedding to Jack. Although it wasn't as expensive and elegant as her gown for Cal's wedding, she still loved it and thought that it looked more better than her gown assigned for her wedding to Cal. Rose found that her mother went beside her and smiled.
"That's a beautiful dress." Ruth admitted.
"I know. I'm thinking of wearing it on my wedding." Rose said. "What do you think?" Rose turned to her mother and wondered what she would think.
"It's wonderful. You should buy it." Ruth suggested. Rose smiled and took it off the rack as she placed it over her arm. "Of course we're going to need shoes and a tiara for your head and..." Ruth said as she listed the things she needed for her wedding. Rose just smiled and went to get her shoes and her other necessities for the wedding. Once they had everything they needed, Ruth and Rose went to the counter to purchase their chosen items. Once they were paid for, Rose and Ruth went to the men's section and found Jack smiling at something Annie said. Rose smiled and went towards him.
"So, what has my handsome fiancée been doing?" Rose asked, linking arms with Jack. Jack looked down and smiled.
"Ah, nothing. Just talking and choosing the right pants for me and stuff like that." Jack said. Rose smiled.
"How long does it take for a man to choose a few pairs of pants and shirts?" Rose asked. "It only took us about ten minutes to buy our things, and you're still choosing. I always thought that women spend more time shopping." Rose smiled up at him. She saw him shrug and smile brighter. Rose just leaned on his shoulder and looked down at her bag which held her wedding dress and her tiara and shoes. Rose smiled and looked up at him, hardly able to wait for the day they would get married. She saw Annie take a couple of corduroy pants from a shelf.
"How about this?" Annie asked.
"That's fine." Jack said.
"Grab a few more pairs, along with shirts and a pair of suspenders." Rose said. "I wouldn't want my Jack to wear the same clothes he has on for the rest of his life, you know." Rose looked up at him and smiled. Annie did what she was told and they went to the counter to purchase the items. Once they did, they left the clothing store and headed for the grocery store to get food for them to eat. Although Rose had no clue how to cook, she knew she'd learn. Besides, when she was younger, she sneaked into her kitchen and her cook taught her a few basics on cooking, so Rose would know how to cook some simple meals. Rose just hoped that Jack would like it. After they had everything they needed, they headed back for their apartment building. Annie had gone into her apartment, as Jack, Rose, and Ruth into theirs.
They had entered their apartment and Jack closed the door behind him. He then walked in the kitchen as he set the bags down on the counter, beginning to put all the food away in the cupboards or the icebox. It took Jack approximately ten minutes to put everything away as Rose was putting her wedding dress and her other dresses into the closet and her underclothes in the drawer, along with Jack's underclothes and the Heart of the Ocean. Rose took the necklace from the drawer and sat down on their bed as she looked at the expensive jewel which meant so much to her. This jewel held precious memories of her and Jack aboard the Titanic and Rose cherished those memories with all her heart, and she would until the day she dies.
Rose heard the door open and she looked up, finding Jack smiling at her. Rose smiled back and motioned for him to come sit beside her. He obeyed, after he closed the door behind him. He put his arm around her shoulder and looked at the jewel she was holding. Rose clutched the necklace and brought it towards her heart, as she closed her eyes. Jack smiled and hugged her close, kissing her on her cheek.
"I think we should get a deposit box for the necklace and the money. We should really start saving up all the money. I don't think we should waste it all at once." Rose said, looking up at Jack.
"You're right. We'll go to the bank later today. But for now, we have to eat breakfast. I'm starving." Jack said. Rose smiled and got up. She put the Heart of the Ocean back in the drawer, then followed Jack to the kitchen. Rose took some ingredients from the cupboards and the icebox and began preparing them. She was going to make scrambled eggs, hotcakes, and sausages with a fresh glass of orange juice. Jack watched as Rose cooked. He had no idea that she knew how to cook, but was amazed. Ruth was sitting across from him on the kitchen table and she was smiling at her daughter. Ten minutes passed, and Rose was finished preparing their breakfast. She placed the food on three plates and placed them on the table, in front of Jack, her mother, and herself. She then poured orange juice into three glasses. When she set the glasses in front of everybody, Rose sat down and began eating.
"Why, darling, this is delicious." Ruth complimented as she chewed on a scrambled egg. "I never would've thought that you could cook."
"Well, I used to sneak in the kitchen when I was younger and our cook would teach me basic things to cook. And I sure am glad that she did." Rose smiled. Ruth smiled at her daughter and saw the fire in her. Saw how Jack had fallen in love with her. If it weren't for Jack, Rose would be married to Cal and she would be miserable, she knew that.
The three finished their breakfast and Rose gathered up the dirty dishes and brought them to the sink to wash. Her mother got up and went to her room, as Jack stayed in the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind her. He placed his chin on her shoulder and watched as she washed the dishes. Jack kissed her neck gently, causing Rose to stop what she was doing and turn around, to face him. Jack held her close now and looked down at her emerald green eyes and smiled. He brought her lips to his as he kissed her passionately and lovingly. Rose was the first to pull away.
"Jack, I need to do the dishes." Rose said. "The water is running. We can't just fool around now." Rose pulled away from his embrace and went back to washing the dishes. Jack laughed and stood beside her, watching as she finished washing the dishes. She turned off the running water and wiped her hand with a dry cloth. She then looked up at him and smiled.
Rose looked into Jack's piercing blue eyes and immediately felt weak to her knees. She came closer to him and wrapped her arms around him, as he did the same to her. He leaned down and gently kissed her lips and then he kissed her cheek, and soon enough, he was kissing her whole face, causing Rose to laugh. Jack then lifted her up and began spinning her around. Rose squealed in delight as she held onto Jack's neck a little tighter and smiled brightly. A short while after, Jack put her down and held her close, looking into Rose's eyes deeply. Rose smiled and pulled Jack closer as they both kissed passionately with their arms wrapped tightly around each other, neither wanting to ever let go. Both of them would soon start a new life, in a new home.
A/N: So, what did you think about this one? Good? Bad? Too wordy? Please let me know. I love writing and I love talking to people who read my stories. Please, review!!!