"Did you hear that, Declan? Time travelers!" Bessie is screaming, pacing the room back and forth.

Declan hasn't said a word. He's remained unmoving, his gaze boring into me for the past five minutes.

Ever since I dropped the biggest bombshell known to man.

"Aren't you going to say anything, Declan? We're housing two troublemakers and liars. Tell them to get out!"

"It's not a lie!" Casey stands, yelling back. "Think about it! We don't have a room of our own on the ship, you found us unconscious on deck, soak and wet…in clothes that don't even exist yet!"

"How dare you…"

"Bessie," Declan says softly, turning to his wife. "Let's hear the children out. Hmmm?"

"Hear them out? Hear them out?! You're going to let your affection for this boy cloud any reasonable judgement you may have? Is that it?"

"It's the truth," I say quietly, keeping my focus on Declan. Bessie is a lost cause. I don't blame her for being pissed and thinking we're lying our asses off. No one in their right mind would ever think we're telling the truth.

Declan sighs, crossing one leg over the other. He taps his chair lightly with one finger, weighing his words before speaking. "And tell me, Derek, how does an unsinkable ship sink?"

"It's got a rep for being unsinkable, but it's not. No one ever actually said the Titanic can't sink. They kind of just sold people on the idea to sell more tickets."

"They lied to us then? To make us feel safe?"

"Sorta, I guess," I shrug. I can feel sweat breaking out on my upper lip and I'm regretting the whole idea of telling them the truth. "I mean, sure, they have the watertight compartments and junk, but they never thought several of those rooms would be punctured at the same time."

"Declan! You can't honestly believe a word they are saying?"

"Go into the bedroom, Bessie. I need to have a little chat with Derek and Casey…alone."

"Declan…"

"Please, dear. Do as I ask."

Bessie's face is raging, but she stomps off, slamming the door loudly behind her. I flinch at the sound, waiting for my 'new best friend' to kick Casey and I out. What will we do? Where will we go? With the authorities after us now, we will have to be disguised every time we venture out of this room from this moment forward.

Otherwise, we'll never survive.

"Please, Casey, dear…have a seat," he motions for her to sit back down. Casey's fists are balled up tight and she's torn between wanting to scream and doing as Declan asks. I stand up a little bit, reaching out for her wrist. I pull her towards me, and to my relief, she relents underneath my touch.

"Come here, Princess," I say softly, putting my arm across her leg as she sits down, holding both of her hands in one of mine.

When I turn back to Declan, he's looking down at our fingers, and I can see a small smile touch his mouth. Even when he thinks we're lying about his impending doom, he's still team Derek and Casey.

"So, continue…" he says, willing to hear more.

I raise my eyebrows in surprise. "What do you want to know?" I ask hesitantly.

"Why don't you start from the beginning. If what you say is true…where exactly are you from and how did you end up on the Titanic?"

I tell Declan about everything, starting with how Casey and I met, our family, and how we're from the year 2007. I tell him about New York Harbor and how we had plans to set sail for the Bahamas before Casey fell into the ocean and I jumped in after her. I told him about our drowning and how we died…or how I thought we died. When we woke up, we were aboard the most famous ship to ever exist and how we've been trying to somehow slow the Titanic and change its course.

Declan looks thoughtful for a moment, letting my words sink in.

"There are only sixteen lifeboats…" he trails off, gazing downward in thought.

"Twenty," Casey chimes in for the first time. Her tone has returned to normal and she's squeezing my hand tightly. "There are four collapsible boats in addition to the regular sixteen."

"Which means there are only a little over 1,000 seats available?"

"A…a little under 1200," Casey stammers, looking down.

"Barely enough for half," Declan gives a sigh before standing. He slowly walks over to the nearby mantle, resting one hand against it. "Is there another ship within the vicinity that comes to save the day?"

Casey and I look at each other. I'm only aware of the Carpathia that picks us up a few hours after the sinking, but she chimes in, much to my own surprise. I must have missed this part of the movie. "The Californian isn't far, but it will ignore the distress signals we give."

"I see," Declan nods. He rubs one finger against his bottom lip, deep in thought. I'm wondering what's going on in his mind and whether he even believes a word we've spoken.

"Do you believe us?" Casey asks in a small voice, mimicking my own thoughts.

Declan gives us a tight smile, but he looks troubled and somewhat sad. "It's a tall tale, you know. It's hard to believe something so fantastical without seeing it with my own eyes. I supposed I'll believe you tomorrow night at…11:40 pm, did you say?"

"I was hoping you'd mentally prepare yourself before then, but I understand," I respond, unable to think of one good reason as to why he should believe us. I wouldn't believe us either if I was in his shoes.

To my surprise, Declan asks an eerie question that I'm not able to answer. "Do I die?"

Casey and I freeze, both of our palms sweaty. We've been spending the last few days so focused on saving the ship that we haven't allowed ourselves to really ponder over the severity of what's about to happen and how horrific the whole scene will be, playing out before our very eyes.

"Some men survive by pure luck…but only women and children are allowed in lifeboats," I say, my voice cracking against my will.

"As to be expected," Declan sighs. "Well then," he suddenly brightens, confusing the hell out of me and Casey. "Care to join me in a game of cards while we wait for our imminent demise, Derek?"

Against our better judgement, Casey and I put on heavy coats, along with hats that are pulled down low over our ears. We've been stuck inside all day and the Claustrophobia is getting to be too much. It's well past dark as we move our way outside, making sure to stay hidden within the shadows. When it's clear that no one is around, we stand in between two lifeboats, further hiding us from anyone who may come along and recognize us, alerting the authorities.

"Declan took that better than I thought he would," Casey mutters, gripping her hands tight around the railings.

"Yea," I agree, staring out at the dark endless sea. It's the first night that I can see my breath while speaking. Tomorrow night will be much colder, and I shudder at the thought. "I don't think he believes a word of it, though."

"No, I don't think he does, either," she agrees.

I can barely see Casey's face from underneath her large hat, but she's biting down on her lower lip and I have the sudden urge to put my finger under her chin and bring that sweet mouth to mine for a kiss. I haven't kissed her since our first time in the stairwell hours ago, and it's driving me insane.

It will never be enough.

Bessie hid herself inside the bedroom all afternoon. On occasion, Declan would stand up from our card game to go check on her. She threw her shoe at him once, causing him to quickly shut the door in response and shake his head. She refused to come out as long as Casey and I were still staying with them. I have to hand it to Declan. Whether he believes us or not, he is a really great guy.

He's totally in the doghouse with his wife, but he's sticking by us, and I appreciate every moment of it.

"Derek?" I hear Casey say, a cloud of white air spewing from her mouth.

"Yea?"

"What if the course of history can't be changed? What if it's not supposed to be changed? What if that's why we failed?"

I reach up, wrapping my arm around her, holding her tight against my side. "Why do you say that?"

"I mean…think about it," she begins. "If we save an extra 1500 people that should have died almost a century ago, do you realize how many offspring that is? It could be complete anarchy in the street by 2007."

"Or there could be a cure for cancer or HIV," I shrug, almost regretting my words immediately. It will only make the situation worse if we think about all the great things that could be in our future by saving so many lives.

"Derek," Casey whines slightly, covering her eyes and placing her elbows on the barrier. "I'm starting to freak out."

Her breathing is becoming labored and I'm scared that she's about to pass out. "Baby," I say softly. I cringe slightly at the use of the word that just flew out of my mouth. I'm not sure how Casey will react to it, but to my surprise, she doesn't look offended. She doesn't even acknowledge it. Probably because she's so fucking scared right now.

I wrap my arms around her, drawing her to me, holding her tight against my body. She collapses against me.

Casey is clasping me so firmly, that I wouldn't be able to breathe is she was any bigger. I want to tell her that everything will be okay, but I can't. The words are lodged in my throat because I no longer believe the words myself.

It's not going to be okay. By this time tomorrow night, Titanic will be sailing at top speed towards an ice burg, and there is nothing we can do about it.

In the midst of my troubling thoughts, a terrifying realization comes to mind, and I freeze.

Casey must feel my body go rigid, because she lifts her eyes to look up at me, dried tears coating her face.

"Derek? What is it?"

"It's nothing," I say with a shitty reassuring smile. As I suspect, she doesn't buy it.

"Derek?" she asks again, pressing me to continue.

"I don't want to scare you," I whisper, leaning down to brush my lips against hers lightly. She lets me kiss her, but the moment I pull back, she asks again.

"What is it?"

"Case…" I begin, swallowing hard. "We got here by the Atlantic."

"So…?" she presses, her brow furrowing in confusion.

I look over the side of the ship, and into the black depths below. "What if that's our only way home? The sea brought us here…maybe it can take us back."

A look of pure fear glistens in her eyes at the words I speak. She's shaking, and I don't think it's from the cold surrounding us.

"So, you think that we were meant to go down with the ship all along? We were put on the Titanic because it's a guaranteed way home?" She looks away briefly, weighing both of our words. "That means the lifeboats are completely out of the question for either of us," she finishes as she chokes on the last sentence.

"I think going down with the ship really is the way home, Case."

She turns her eyes upwards to gaze at me, and to my amazement, she raises her chin high, willing herself to stop trembling. "Promise me we'll do this together…and when we make it home, nothing changes between us. I'm sick of the fighting, Derek. I want everything to stay the same. Just as it is right now."

I lift the corner of my mouth in a smirk, taking her cheek into one of my palms. I lower my voice to a serious whisper, wanting her to know that every word I speak is the absolute truth. "We always fought because we were trying to ignore this undeniable attraction between us, Casey. I promise to never leave you. Not here…not back in New York…not back in London. I want to get home so that I can live a life with you. I need you to trust in that."

"I do," she nods her head firmly. "I guess this is it then." I pull her back against my chest, resting my chin on top of her head. The next words she speaks sink right into my bones.

"Tomorrow night…we go down with the Titanic."