Chapter 2.
For a good three minutes, Cal stood in front of the door, wondering what he should do. He always went through this, every time. He ended up knocking on the door, tentatively.
"Rose," he said, barely a whisper. He listened. No answer. He called again, this time louder. But still, nothing. So, instead he sighed, and let himself in.
The first thing that caught his eye was his wife laying on the bed, just staring into space, depressed and pathetic. Her eyes showed eyes of fear, as he moved closer to the bed.
Rose Dewitt-Bukater Hockley was, in almost everyone's opinion, an extremely beautiful girl. She was only seventeen, but she was already a beauty. He could remember the first time he met her. She was very tall with a lovely, curvy shape. She had smooth, clear, skin that looked like porcelain, and lovely red hair in gentle natural curls. Her eyes were a blend of green and blue, and they seemed to be full of fire and passion. Still a young girl, her eyes were as bright as that of a child. When Caledon Hockley first saw Rose, he knew he had to have her, and quick; he was sure that he wasn't the only man looking at her.
But sometimes, beauty, beneath its golden surface, can be the root of evil. It can cause problems, especially in a blossoming young woman like Rose. Rose, being a typical teenage girl, was well aware of her good looks, and sometimes used it to her advantage. She knew she was pretty. She knew she could have any man she wanted. And that's what she wanted. Someone besides Cal. She hated him in the beginning, and most likely still did. She hated her mother when she was told she had to marry him. His name on someone's tongue was enough to make her cringe. It was hard to believe it, though since she took a liking to him on the same day she met him. Rose was sure she would be happy with this man. Yes, he was a quite handsome and a charming gentleman. His looks and chivalrous manners made him hard to resist. Yes, he was extremely wealthy, and that would help Rose and her mother with their money problems, which came about when Charles Dewitt-Bukater gambled away their money, and suddenly died, leaving the two women to worry about their future. Actually it was the main reason why Ruth Dewitt-Bukater was forcing Rose into an early marriage. She was depending on Rose to "save" her from losing everything she was accustomed to. Rose's mother wasn't ready nor willing to give up the luxurious bubble she always lived in. So, in the beginning, Rose agreed to the marriage of Caledon Hockley because he was handsome and he would solve all the financial problems. He was like a real life Prince Charming who would come and save the day, and end all the misery.
But as time passed, she began to feel like a naive little fool. She thought Cal would love her, and she would love him, but she began to grow wisdom and understand that he wasn't here to love Rose. He was there to help her family. She didn't love him, it was complete infatuation, and it was the same way with Cal. He liked her because she was pretty, and he could show her off like a trophy or a prized horse. He knew he was going to be the envy of all of his friends. Here he was, Caledon Hockley, walking around with a young, pretty bride! What man wouldn't want to have what he had?
And in the beginning that was all Cal cared for. He only cared about Rose's looks and how she must always keep up appearances for the sake of his reputation. Cal's father was Nathaniel Hockley the steel tycoon, and he was extremely wealthy, and everyone looked up him. And Cal was his only son, who was, for the majority of his life, an egotistical, snobby, manipulative person, with quite a heart of ice. He was a person that took his ego and his status a little too serious. Appearance was everything to him. Rose was part of that appearance. To Cal, she was a possession, a doll, something used only for a show. Rose almost felt like a whore with him.
When Cal looked back on the kind of person he was before, he couldn't help but get a little irritated. He was controlling. He knew Rose was the perfect target for manipulation, since she was young and a little naive. He never thought it would be a challenge to control Rose.
But to Cal's surprise it started out as a challenge. Rose was not your ordinary girl. Once he began to control her, she fought back. She would fight back in a very quiet, subdued manner, making biting sarcastic remarks. He learned quickly that despite her beauty and youth, she was an intelligent woman with a sharp tongue.
Controlling Rose wasn't the easiest task in the world for anyone to do. After all, she was still young and had a good deal of spirit. But Cal wouldn't let it go. He couldn't bear the fact, that a seventeen-year old girl, who was going to be his wife, had the nerve to go against him, to disagree with him, to tell him "no," who dared argue with him. If there was one thing about Cal Hockley that everyone knew about, it was that Cal always got his way. Always, no arguments. He was right, you were wrong, he was superior, you were inferior, he lead, you followed wordlessly, end of story. Cal was used to controlling people all his life. He was used to being intimidating, and in a way enjoyed it. And when he didn't get his way, or when he wasn't in control, he turned angry. And Cal always had a very vindictive, violent temper.
He never showed mercy for Rose. He didn't care for Rose, in a humane way. When she became too much for his control, he did what he called "slapping her into line." He always made sure, however, that Ruth never found out what he was doing to Rose. Even though, now that he thought of it, he was quite sure that Ruth wouldn't care if her daughter was being verbally and physically abused by her fiance. Honestly, Ruth proved to be a selfish mother.
In the end, Rose, who learned to be fearful of Cal, took his abuse silently, and finally succumbed to his demands. She allowed him to control her, insult her, treat her like a child, or just a doll or a trophy. She didn't see any reason to tell her mother. Her mother wouldn't believe her, and even if she did believe her daughter, she would ask Rose to deal with it, for the money.
Yes, Rose was scared for her life, and she lived through the abuse, but she never gave up hope. She promised herself that Cal could take her freedom, but he would never take away her strength or her spirit. She was sure that someday, someone would help her. She was waiting for love most of all. All her life, she wanted to be loved. And give love too, because she was filled with a need to give love to everyone. She thought she would find that wonderful feeling in Cal. But, since she didn't find that in this cruel, abusive man, she figured she made a mistake, and was determined to find love in someone else. Because she was pretty, and men had been looking at her with lust since she was a fifteen, she figured finding love wouldn't be so hard for her.
And in the end she did find it. And a world of problems and emotional death. All of those things happened on a ship that will be remembered forever–Titanic. She went on the Titanic with her mother and Cal. They were all going to America for the wedding. Rose dreaded this Titanic from the second she stepped out of the expensive new car, and found herself standing in front of it. She hated the people she was surrounded by, these narrow-minded people, who never had anything of importance to say. And most of all, she hated Cal, who placed a bondage on her, and her mother, for seeing it, and allowing it.
Rose nearly gave up strength. She almost committed suicide, but at the last minute, she didn't. Why? Because she was saved. She was saved by a man named Jack Dawson. And Jack Dawson was a boy who was a little older than she. He came from modest beginnings, and spent his life taking care of himself, after his parents died. They came from two different worlds; Rose lived in luxury, sheltered from the sufferings of the lower class, while Jack was poor, sometimes living on the street, making his money doing odd jobs here and there, mostly selling his paintings.
But it didn't matter to them. Regardless of the fact that they were like two galaxies colliding together, they fell in love with each other instantly. Finally, Rose found someone who loved her for what she was on the inside. It was as if God answered her prayers finally.
Cal knew about it. And he knew that if he let it go on long enough, he would lose her. And as usual of him, he became intensely jealous. He tried to pull her away from the boy. But he soon found it was too late. The damage was done. Rose was already involved in an affair with Jack.
Jealousy turned to hate. He hated Rose. She fooled him. A child fooled him! He never felt so..embarrassed in his entire life. He gave her a good slapping for what she did.
After he slapped Rose, it seemed as if God punished them both.
When the Titanic hit an iceberg on that same night everything came into light, the ship, which was thought unsinkable, began to sink. Caledon Hockley never felt so scared and so horrified in his entire life. He was scared for his own safety, but most of all, Rose's. She left to find Jack. She ran off to be with him. She was planning on running away with him. Fifteen hundred people lost their lives on that ship that night. And that's what haunted Cal. Seeing all those people die, seeing those people struggling, but never have a chance, just horrified him, nearly drove him to tears seeing all those dead bodies. And the thing that made him feel horrible was that he survived and witnessed it. Why did he live? Why were those innocent people chosen to die? Why did he have to see that happen? He saw the bodies of children frozen in the water. Was that fair to deny them the right to have a full life, and Cal, a man of thirty to continue with his life? It made him feel sick and now, he began to question his existence. He looked back at his past life. He thought about what he did to help others. He couldn't remember a single act of pure kindness coming from him. He thought about the kind of person he was. He never thought of this before, so he went through a state of confusion. He didn't know anything about himself. He didn't know what kind of person he was. He didn't know who he was.
And then he thought of Rose. His first thought was, She's dead. He thought of Rose, and tried to remember her. And suddenly, he stopped thinking about her beautiful surface, and looked deep into her. He concluded that Rose was unlike any other woman he had ever met–intelligent, good-natured, with a beautiful spirit. She was beautiful inside and out. And not only did he overlook it, but he tried to destroy it. And in a way, Cal felt a bit guilty, for he believed that it was his fault she died.
When he found that Rose was alive, he was so happy that he surprised himself. He was overjoyed to know that Rose was alive. But when he found her, and met her, he hardly recognized her. She sat there wet, scared, and shaking. He took her home, and to his large house, and a week later, they were married. It was a quick, disappointing wedding. Rose was depressed and only Cal could see that.
She never changed her mood since then and she only got worse. Cal found himself missing his old Rose, the old spirit. But he doubted it would ever come back. It was as if her spirit was at the bottom of the Atlantic with the Titanic, as if it collapsed and died away like a candle.
Jack Dawson, the man Rose loved more than her world, had died on the Titanic. To her, all hope died with him. She promised herself that Cal wouldn't take away her spirit. And true, Cal never did that. The death of Jack Dawson did.
She spent months mourning him and mourning her spirit, and feeling sorry for herself, because she let Cal get her. And now, she was trapped for life. She was scared of him. Suicide was definitely in her future.
But Cal was damaged too. He was still in shock from the Titanic. He was scared for Rose. He didn't completely change. He was still the same selfish, controlling man he was before. But another Cal was rising up. Another one that was desperate to help his wife. He was changing, and he didn't even know it half the time.
He stared at his wife in bed, no longer the pretty, headstrong girl she was before. Her eyes were dull and lacked emotion except fear. Her hair was stringy and dirty. She seemed much older than her seventeen years.
He tried to touch her, but she backed away. He tried to coax her.
"Rose, " he said in his proud voice. "Why don't you..come down for dinner, hm?"
Rose shook her head.
"You need to eat something." He said this softly.
Rose tried to sit up, but failed. So she said in a very weak voice, "I'm...I'm not hungry."
Cal nodded. "All right then," he sighed, as he got up from the bed and walked toward the door. He was about to leave, when he stopped and looked back at Rose. "You will eat tomorrow though," he said, his old controlling voice crawling back up.
And as he walked out, he saw, out of the corner of his eye, Rose shudder.