Philadelphia 1912
The whole city was outraged by the event of the previous day. No one could talk about anything but the runaway bride. A true disgrace. It was impossible for Meredith to function properly. Standing in the doorway of Rose's room she stared at her belongings. Touching them gently as she walked through the space she could only feel emptiness. Oh how I wish for her to be safe, She thought. Caledon Hockley was on a hunting spree and would do anything to bring her back. But what Meredith was more afraid of is what they'd do with her love. Although Meredith didn't know him personally, she felt nothing but bad for the poor guy. A voice called behind her and when she turned around it was Mrs. DeWitt Bukater's burning eyes she saw. It seemed as if she had aged ten years overnight.
"You can pack your bags and leave first thing in the morning." was all Ruth managed to say, "I don't want Rose to have anything to do with you anymore when she returns."
Meredith stayed surprisingly calm when she heard those words and nodded. "As you wish, ma'am." Now she was on her own again, just as she had always been. No matter what happened or whom she'd meet along the way there would always be a time where she was alone again. Ruth spared her one look and walked away. Within seconds Tom rushed towards her and wrapped his arms around her now trembling body. She allowed to cry in the safety of his embrace.
"I don't want anything to happen to her. How can I leave when she needs me."
"And who is it you need, darling." He said, "Let me help you."
For now she did not know what to say back and only focussed on the warmth of his touch. She wanted this moment to last forever. To simply be together with him. At the end of the day there was still no improvement in the situation. The servants spoke of officers gathering around the station of Chicago where they would wait for her, but apparently she never arrived. Tom had taken her out for a walk to clear her head, for Meredith was sick of worry. They walked in a calm but steady pace, enjoying every bit of fresh air.
Chicago 1912
Despite the heat of the season, her torn up clothes and the fear of being caught every step they took, Rose managed to follow Jack without any form of complaint. He held her close, not allowing her out of his sight for a minute. Jack stopped for a moment and took a note out of the pocket of his pants. It had an address on it. Staring at the letters on the note, then moving his gaze to her he shook his head.
"Let's see if I can find us a cab. It's too far to walk." He said.
"Jack, I am fine," Rose disagreed with his proposition, "What if anyone sees us?"
"I think it's more of a risk to walk through the city." And at that moment, as if the gods had heard him, a taxi drove by. They both ran behind it, waving their hands in the air and screaming. As it finally stopped they opened the door and Jack handed him the address. The driver looked them up and down, being utterly confused by the two and the state they were in. Rose's dress was now more black than white and there were holes and rips all over the fabric. Jack tried to brush it off and smiled at the man.
"It's a tradition where I am from." He jokingly said, "I am from Wisconsin."
"You don't have to fool me, boy. I know who you are," He looked at Rose, "Your face is all over the newspapers. Little runaway bride." Both their stomachs twisted whilst listening to the man. They were caught and it was all for nothing. He suddenly burst out laughing. "Look at your faces! You really think I am going to give you away? Well don't worry about that miss," He lit up a cigarette and took a sharp turn. Rose moved closer towards Jack and grabbed his hand., "Let me tell you something," the driver continued, "My wife was engaged when I met her and you know what I did? I ran into that church and swept her off her feet. You should have seen that bastard's face!" He laughed once more. More dramatic this time as if he was reliving the moment once more, "Now we have seven children ya know."
"Well good for you, sir." Jack responded. He looked at Rose, who was still a bit unsure about the situation. For the first time she felt the tiredness in her body. Perhaps it wasn't only due to the events of the past two day, but the past few months. Losing Jack, then finding him again, yet losing him once more. Her family finding her and forcing her to come back home. Losing the baby. Everything had taken a toll on her and her body was only now recognising it.
"Those rich bastards need to learn that they can't have everything in this life. You can't buy happiness." He then stepped on his breaks and everyone jolted forward. They had stopped in front of a block of houses. They seemed small, but also looked luxurious in some way. Jack handed the chauffeur his money, thanked him for his discretion and helped Rose out of the Car. There was silence for a moment apart from birds flying over. They walked towards one of the houses and Jack knocked on the door.
"Are you alright, Rose?" He asked her. Before she could respond, the door yanked open and they stared straight in the eyes of John, Florence's brother. He looked at them for a moment, utterly confused by the whole scenario.
"What in God's name?" He gasped.
"I didn't know where else to go, John. It is only for a little while. We'll be gone before you know it." Another shadow appeared from behind John. It was Louise, her eyes widened.
"Jack!" She moved passed her fiance and hugged the visitor tightly. Then she turned towards Rose and looked her up and down. "My God, dear, are you all right? Here let's get you two inside." They followed Louis into the warmth of the house. It was small, yet cosy. Candles burned everywhere to light up the room. John stood in the doorway observing the situation and shaking his head in disbelief.
"So you really think that after leaving my sister you could casually stop by with someone new?" John stated. Louise gave him a warning look from the other side of the room.
"John, don't. We know the situation. Florence isn't angry and so shouldn't you."
"This whole city is in an uproar because you ran away." He pointed at Rose and took something off a side table. He placed it in front of her and Rose looked straight into her own eyes. It was a picture of her and Cal when they got off the Carpathia. Next to it was another image from the previous day. She was sitting in the carriage together with Elizabeth and it shocked her how scared she looked in the photograph. She was indeed The Runaway Bride, laughing stock of the year. Or so the article said. "You have to go back, you know that, don't you?" John continued, "You really think a woman of your status can just flee like this?"
"John, stop it right now!" Louise stood in front of him, disappointed in the man she loved. Jack and Rose found each other's gaze. He looked worried and was afraid that he had failed her, that he couldn't protect her. Rose took a deep breath before she looked at John and spoke. "I will never go back. I have made my decision in front of 500 people, perhaps the whole country. If you don't want us here, then fine, you have every right to and we will find somewhere else to go." She stood up and walked towards the door, preparing herself that they had to leave any minute, "but I will not leave Jack."
The room turned silent with everyone having their own thoughts rushing through their minds. Rose's heart was pounding due all the adrenaline running within her. How she longed for a moment of rest, for the world to stand still. They would be together during that time, just the two of them enjoying nothing but each other. After more seconds past by, Jack took his bags again and headed towards the door as well.
"Wait," John suddenly said, "I am sorry. I shouldn't have been so angry. It's just a bit overwhelming that's all."
"We understand," Jack responded, "It's only for the night. We'll be gone tomorrow morning."
"No. The police will still be around tomorrow. You can stay here until it is safe."
"And you can stay at my place, Rose." Louise interrupted them.
"Thank you." said Rose. A small smile appeared on her face, followed by a shiver running down her spine. Jack looked worried and took a sweater out of one of his bags.
"You're cold and tired, Rose. Put this on." The wool itched slightly on her skin, but it had his scent in it which made her feel warm in an instant. Fuelling their bodies with bread and butter followed by a bottle of red wine it occurred to so called runaway bride that she had never appreciated food as much until this very moment. The bread and butter melted within her mouth and she didn't have to use a big variety of cutlery to be able to eat it. She ripped the loaf into pieces and only used a knife, then eating it with her hands. Rain started to tick on the windows. A summer night had turned into autumn. As the sun slowly disappeared behind the horizon and light moved out of the way for darkness, they all trusted it would be safe for the ladies to go out. Jack stood up from his chair and pulled Rose aside for a moment.
"I am walking with you. I don't want you two to go out alone." He stated.
Rose shook her head heavily. "No, Jack. You stay here with John. They can't see us together like this." she pointed at the wedding dress she was still wearing. Louise moved towards them. "I have a telephone at my apartment. We will call when we get there."
"You call us right away, all right."
"Yes, Jack." Rose couldn't help but chuckle at his concern. She pulled him in for a kiss, "Goodnight."
The two men watched as the two women walked into the darkness of the night. John put a hand on Jack's shoulder. "I am sorry, Jack, about my behavior tonight. You are a lot different with her then you were with Florence. You truly love her, don't you?"
Jack looked at his friend nodded his head. "Yes," he whispered, "I really do."
It was a shorter walk towards Louise's apartment than Rose had anticipated. It was quiet outside, the rain had made everyone go inside. Only two cars drove by and both times the girls managed to hide themselves. One was in fact a police car, but the officer inside the vehicle didn't look at his surroundings. As they walked up the little stairs that led towards the entrance of the building they let out a sigh of relief once they walked inside. Louise's home was at the top floor, but since it was a rather new complex there fortunately was an elevator. The place was rather big and decorated in the newest fashion. It was a luxurious space for a young woman living on her own. Before they shared another word with each other, Louise took the phone off the horn and called John to tell them they had arrived safely. Then she turned towards Rose and smiled. "Let's get you cleaned up, dear."
"Before that, can I make a quick call as well?"
Philadelphia 1912
Her maid came rushing into the sitting area of the hotel room. "Ma'am," She said rather loud, "there is a phone call for you."
She looked up at her servant, raised an eyebrow and put down her glass of whiskey with an annoyed manner. "Who call at this hour? Who is it?"
"She won't tell, ma'am, but it is a woman and she says that it is very urgent."
Even more annoyed she grabbed the telephone. "Brown." was all she said. The voice on the other side of the line made her lose her balance for a moment and she had to place her hand against the wall to support herself. "Darlin," she cried, "My goodness you don't know how relieved I am to hear from you!"
"Molly, are you alone?" The voice asked her almost desperately.
"Yes, I am alone. Rose, where are you? Where is Jack?"
"I can't say where I am, Molly, but I want you to know that I am all right. We are both safe."
"They will not stop looking until they have found you. Can't you just come back and we'll figure out what to do. I will help you, Rose. I promise."
Rose felt nothing but safe and at ease whilst hearing the warmth of Molly Brown's voice. Despite fully trusting her every move she made could have indescribable consequences. It was also her job to protect him. A tear rolled down her cheek slowly. "I can't, Molly. I am never coming back. You don't know what they will do to him when they see him. I can't have that. I will let nobody come near him. Never."
It stayed quiet for a moment. Rose only heard her breathing and could also almost hear her think. Then Molly spoke again with a certain pain and sadness in her voice. "Then I wish you all the luck in the world, darlin'. I will always keep thinking of you both and your strength of choosing each other above all else. That takes real bravery to do so in this cruel world we live in."
"Thank you, Molly." Rose whispered. She was now fully crying. All the stress and tension was leaving her body. "I only ask one more thing of you, if you don't mind."
"And that is?"
"Could you tell Meredith, my maid, that she doesn't need to worry about me and that I will never forget her."
With Molly agreeing on it and saying her last goodbyes, Rose put down the telephone and felt Louise's hand on her shoulder. She turned around letting her new friend lead her towards the bathroom where she had run a bath for her. Stepping into the warm water it quickly turned rather dark because of all the dirt that was coming off her body. Louise was nothing but a kindred spirit trying her hardest to make her guest feel at ease. She had also put a spare nightgown in the bathroom and was waiting in her living room with a pot of tea.
"It might not all be as luxurious as you are used to." Louise chuckled as Rose walked in.
"Don't be absurd. I can't imagine anything as luxurious as this. Having your own place and living alone. I can't imagine having a place where there aren't people rushing around constantly."
"I don't really live here to be exact. I am at John's place most of the time and only come here to sleep. I was kind of unbearable when my mother passed away three years ago. Therefore my darling father thought it to be a good idea to have my own place where I could cool down."
Rose took a sip of her tea and listened to Louise's stories in pure awe. She spoke so freely about her life, nothing seemed to be an issue. She smiled at the idea of her first proper conversation she had with Jack. As they walked along the decks for hours she then also listened to his stories with amazement. She felt drawn to his way of speaking. The things he told her were about the real things. It was life. Even then she noticed people staring at him with disgust and also gave her looks of disapproval. Then he took her hand and dragged her with him towards the railing. How hard she tried not to laugh and kept pulling back, whereas in fact, in that exact moment, she already wanted to fly away with him. Over the sea and into the unknown.
"My father is kind of a workaholic," Louise continued, "He used to work as a professor for the University of Chicago and helped with founding the University of Chicago Press. That's where I met John."
Her words soon started to fade for they both realised how tired they were. Placing her head onto the soft pillow of her bed, Rose inhaled the relaxing smell of lavender that was lingering over the sheets. She had made it, she thought. There was still a persisting danger roaming around, but she had made it to a form of safety. Rose was brave and had finally allowed herself to listen to the desires of her heart. Like Molly told her, choosing each other above anything else was heroic. She was still holding Jack's sweater in her hands and held it close against her body, finally drifting off into a deep sleep.