There are always two types of people who did not sleep through the night: the one that cannot possibly handle their soul, and the one who keeps going as if nothing has happened; the last one probably has more caffeine than water in their body.
A fresh breeze from the Pacific Ocean welcomed our group to the restaurant terrace. We have Helga, whom had 5 hours of sleep and was determined to add some more once the cruise had sailed; we have Jack who was running with no sleep and had just started to experience the effects of the alcohol from last night; we also have Tommy, fresh as a lettuce after eight rounds of drinks and finally we have Fabrizio, who urgently needed to learn how to say no.
This particular time, Helga had been the only one who cared enough to change into at least a pair of jeans and a top, the other three didn't even return to their rooms. Upon arriving at the table, Tommy opened up his laptop and asked the waiter for the wifi password, earning moans from the rest of the group.
"Tommy it's the New Year" Jack scolded
"Ah well mate, I wanna see how my tradings are doing before we sail. The NASDAQ just closed and I am determined to win the competition"
"Please don't tell me you're competing on who has the most money"
"Relax, it's fake. I'll have a breakfast roll and a latte please"
The lovely Italian had already fallen asleep at the table with his head well hidden in his arms, protecting him from the sunlight. His best friend pulled up his chair and patted his shoulder so he could look at the menu.
"Brizio wake up"
"I'm having scrambled eggs with hash brown and orange juice please" Helga was the next one to order; it was their last day in Australia, before sunset they would be on their way to Kota Kinabalu. The Titanic II would finally resume its journey around the world, providing all guests the experience of being in the real Titanic along with the best comforts and the highest technology. The young ones just wished that tech included good phone service and wifi.
"Brizio... I'll have just a black coffee, thank you"
"Huh? Yeah... waffles"
"And bring him an ibuprofen with a glass of water, thank you"
The waiter nodded with a smile and promised he'll be right back with the drinks and the pill. They reminded him of his youngster days, not many of us have the chance to welcome the New Year with our best friends on a trip.
"Maybe we shouldn't have done that last round this morning" Jack said, judging by the hangover of the youngest of the group.
"Maybe we shouldn't have done any of them" The mentioned one complained.
"I can't believe we're finally going to Japan!"
"We'll be in Malaysia first Helga, and then we get to go to Japan"
As the talking continued, Jack allowed himself to get lost contemplating the water. What a year it had been. He took a moment to close his eyes and breath, taking in the sound of the ocean, the birds, the trees, the cutlery... At sea, everything moved faster, but slower.
The sudden change of working when he wanted to and how he wanted to, to going to class almost every day and turn in assignments, and then going to the kid's club all afternoon... it had been exhausting. But everything about traveling and seeing new places was worth it. And meeting these people, was definitely worth it; they made Jack's days count, he wished he could live in this moment forever.
"Jaaack... is there something you wanna share with us?"
Helga did enjoy gossip... well, don't we all?
"Mmm he doesn't hafta, we all heard him last night. Bet he scared all the fish outta the water"
"THANK YOU Tommy"
"Dawson!"
The group's attention fell on the guy in a guayabera outside the restaurant. It's too early for this... Jack thought
"Excuse me"
"Want me to go with you?" Tommy offered
"No, it's fine"
The artist took one last look at his passed-out friend and assured the other two he would be fine by himself. Even so, his Irish friend couldn't help but share how much he wanted to punch Caledon in the face.
Jack walked to the entrance where Rose stood, holding her head down and fidgeting with the phone in her hand. Upon seeing him, Rose said her goodbyes and went to greet the taller boy who welcomed her with a kiss.
"Why don't you wait for me at the table with the guys? Yeah?" She nodded and left.
Cal made sure Rose's attention was somewhere else before handing Jack a bunch of papers.
"What's this?"
"That's her diet, the vitamins she should take, the meal plan, the name of the doctors covered by the insurance in Asia and Europe and a few notes from her therapist. I was the one who was supposed to take care of all this but, now you're her boyfriend so..."
"Does she-?"
"She knows I'm giving you this, but won't mention any of it because she's too..."
"Stubborn. I know. And Ruth?"
"Ruth is also in therapy at the moment. From what I understood or at least what Rose shared with me, they didn't... mourn the loss of Barret, that's why the family dynamic is so toxic"
"Who's Barret?"
"Rose's father?"
"She never mentioned his name"
"Anyway, I trust you're old enough to take care of her. She must not be left alone at any moment. She can't go to the bathroom by herself, she can't take a bath by herself, you are the one who is going to say what she eats, when she eats and how much she eats. There are some foods that you can substitute for others... it's all in here look. You can even combine a few of them... I already registered her room for pills or laxatives or any other stuff, but I think you know her better than I do, so feel free to check any place you want. Oh and therapy is every Friday, she has the zoom link"
It was too much for the young boy, but he wasn't backing down. Never, when it came to Rose.
"Alright"
"I must go now. I hope you enjoy your time together"
And with a last sigh, Cal removed his hand from Jack's shoulder and left. The boy was still overwhelmed by all the new information but tried his best not to show it. He grabbed a chair from another table and sat beside his girlfriend. His girlfriend.
How was he supposed to tell her what to eat? Would he order for her? Wasn't that what caused her anxiety in the first place? The fact that she couldn't decide over her own life?
"Uh... here's the menu... how about... a fruit bowl and some eggs? Sounds good? Yeah i think we'll both have that and some orange juice for the lady, thank you"
The whole table stared at Jack. Was he really ordering for her?
"Are you half-cut?"
"Not now Tommy..."
"What bit you?"
"Alright, is that okay with you Rose? Please tell me it's okay with you"
"It's fine, I asked him to choose for me"
Well this is definitely not going to be easy.
After the peculiar breakfast, they headed to the cruise terminal ready to start the second leg of the trip. Helga and Fabrizio locked themselves in her room without much desires of interacting with people. Tommy and Jack installed their new stock of videogames in the console while Rose gladly shared a conversation with Tommy, it turned out they had so much in common.
Rose and Jack were the first to try out the new games, meanwhile, Tommy took a much-deserved nap. The pair spent the day laughing and cuddling in each other's arms as they battled for the win. They could get used to this. After a while, Rose was also falling into the arms of Morpheus. Jack switched from 2 players to 1 and allowed her to fall asleep on top of him. He was determined to stay awake because he knew that if he took a nap, he wouldn't be able to sleep at night and wake up early the next morning for class.
The night fell and Fabrizio (a sober and renewed Fabrizio) knocked on everyone's door urging them to go out and enjoy their last night of freedom. A new 5G network had been installed in a buffet restaurant not far from the school and they decided to head there before the rest of the passengers found out there was good signal in the area.
22:47
"I love you more"
"I missed you more"
"I miss your lips, come here"
"You two are disgusting"
Tommy had no choice but to stand the two couples around him.
Beep Beep Beep
"Aren't you gonna check, love? It has been ringing for a while"
"I'm with you, I thought I had put it on silence... but don't worry about it, it's pretty normal to get like fifty notifs in like an hour"
"Whoa, I barely get 50 in a picture"
"It's better, you only share your life with those who know you in real life. And you get to choose what they see"
Jack gave his girlfriend a kiss right before feeding her some more rice. They had agreed on sharing Rose's situation with the group. They were, as always, very supportive of her and showing her the friendship and affection that characterized their group. None of them made a big deal about it, something that Rose was thankful for. The least attention she got, the better.
"I don't miss going to class honestly" Fabrizio said
"Me neither"
"I do" Rose confessed "I wish I had something to do"
"There's Jack"
Everyone laughed at Tommy's remark, everyone but Jack. He was about to respond something to roast his friend when Liam, Tommy's friend from the business major, walked up to the group. Saved by the bell.
"Yo Tommy! What happened man?"
"Have they posted the list on the blackboard yet?"
"Yes, I took a picture"
"What? Third place? It can't be"
"What?"
"The NASDAQ contest. My portfolio was winning, I don't understand what happened..." Tommy said as he tapped his watch to check the stock exchange. A concerned frown appeared on his face.
"Tommy what's wrong?"
"Nothing, must be the new Wifi. Let me check on the computer"
His breath stopped.
"Refresh the page"
"Wait, Fabrizio let me use your laptop"
"Tommy what's going on? It's just a game, relax, it doesn't have a grade"
"Hold on... the shares of DeWitt Construction fell out of nowhere. They're at -1002% and keep getting lower. It doesn't even let me add it to my portfolio anymore... Rose what did y'all do?"
The redhead tensed up, even Jack had opted to remove his arm around her. She decided to check her last text, it was from Cal.
I thought we had agreed on something. Really? To be the whore of a gutter rat?
"Baby, what happened?"
"I don't know! I..."
"Guys" Something in Fabrizio's tone captured the attention of everyone at the table.
He pressed play on his phone. It was a video that showed Rose and Jack leaving his cabin, the girl was limping and the song I just had sex was playing on top of the footage. Rose froze to her seat as she realized the whole world had seen Jack tease her, lift her up and kiss her.
The video kept playing over and over again in her head. It couldn't seem to go away. It wouldn't. Rose couldn't possibly listen to that song again, she despised it, hated it. 15 seconds destroyed everything she had worked on for the last five months, and she hadn't read the comments yet.
'I thought she was engaged'
'Is that Hockley?'
'OMG'
'Slut'
Rose was frozen. She prayed with all her heart it was only a dream, maybe it was, it had to be. Of course the Hockleys had seen the video, they surely withdrew all their investment from the company and left us bankrupt, hence the numbers Tommy saw.
"What happened? FABRIZIO!"
"The video of you and Rose went viral"
The words were enough to make her react. The young girl's breathing had increased as the tears covered her face. Her boyfriend was in shock so Liam and Tommy went up to her and tried to calm her down, the first one instructed her to think of things 5 things she could see, hear, touch, smell and taste right now, in an attempt to keep her grounded. Jack turned pale and didn't react at all, Fabrizio had to shake him and tell him Rose wasn't well so he could get out of shock. He immediately kneeled in front of his girl and assured her everything would be alright; they would overcome this together.
The boys' mind went over on who may have done this, Rose didn't feel her body anymore, she was getting too much oxygen. She wanted to scream, hit, kick, punch. She clenched her jaw as hard as she could to keep her from going crazy. She had never felt more useless. She had only one job, pretend to be the fiancée of Caledon Hockley.
Rose didn't wonder who had posted the video, she wondered why.
This person had just ruined her reputation and left her family's business bankrupt.
What had she done to that person?