Ch. 4: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Cal's POV)
After arriving in New York, Cal and Ruth stayed at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel and prepared to return home. Cal sent his father, Nathan, a telegram that Rose was dead and that he would return home within the next few days. Cal knew his father would be furious over the loss of the Heart of the Ocean, but knew that the insurance would cover that loss. And instead of a wedding, the Hockley Family would be paying for Rose's funeral.
Of course there was no body found… Cal truly believed that Rose's body was within Titanic at the bottom of the sea. Cal got the copy of the survivor and deceased lists and was able to get Rose Dewitt-Bukator declared legally dead…having no idea that she was alive and well as Rose Dawson.
Once back safely home Pittsburg and Philadelphia society was outraged hearing that such a beautiful and young woman of high society died in that horrible tragedy. Cal was now the object of pity being the man that lost his beloved fiancé. But rumors also began to swirl that Rose must have left Cal during the voyage; how else could they explain why a first class girl was not on a lifeboat? Cal was angry with those rumors, especially since they were based in truth. Rose had left him for another man; a lowly third-class artist who was inferior to Cal in every way. Nathan Hockley could see how these rumors were affecting his son, but decided to talk to Cal after they dealt with canceling the wedding and Rose's funeral.
The funeral was the hardest day of Cal's life. Ruth and Cal decided to hold the funeral in Philadelphia, where Rose was born and raised. Ruth was crying bitterly; no doubt blaming herself for putting all that pressure on Rose. The service was lovely and honored Rose's young life. There was no burial at the cemetery.
There was a small reception at the Hockley's Philadelphia home; the Philadelphia home would have been Cal and Rose's home after their wedding. The Hockley family planned to stay a few days there and return to Pittsburg. Afterwards Ruth said her goodbyes and headed to her home. Ruth had no idea what she was going to do next, thinking that the Hockley family would leave her out in the cold. But Cal had arranged that Ruth would be taken cared for, despite the fact that she was no longer going to be his mother-in-law. Cal no longer wanted to be that bastard that Rose hated, and he felt that by helping Ruth it would be a step in the right direction to make up for his misdeeds.
Cal headed to his room, and just sat there in the dark. He had a long and emotional day…the funeral was not only a goodbye to Rose, but goodbye to the life that he and Rose would have shared. Throughout the engagement, Cal really did try to get Rose to fall in love with him. From the start he could tell that Rose wasn't in love with him, but she didn't hate him. At first, it appeared that Rose was willing to give him a chance. But he let his social and business obligations get in the way; he realized that he didn't make the time to truly get to know Rose. Rose began to become more distant, and by the time of their European vacation Rose's rebellious side was coming out more and more. Cal actually loved Rose's spirited side, but it was not appropriate out in public. So he tried to control it; a grave mistake now that he thought about it.
Thinking of the whole ordeal, Cal wondered how the hell Jack Dawson managed to get Rose to fall in love with him so quickly. What did that gutter rat have that he didn't? Jack didn't have one cent to his name; Cal had to admit that Jack was handsome and charming. He was also closer to Rose in age; Cal didn't know how old Jack was, but he suspected Jack was in his 20s. The more that Cal thought on it, he figured that Jack claimed Rose's heart just by being himself. There was a sense of friendship between them at the dinner, which quickly turned to love.
Cal remembered when he first met Rose. Ruth and Rose were at a local charity ball that he and his father were attending, when Ruth saw the opportunity to introduce them. Cal was immediately taken with Rose's beauty the moment he set eyes on her.
Cal wasn't sure if he ever wanted to get married; he was quite wild in his youth and had numerous girlfriends over the years. That was the reason why his father hired Spicer Lovejoy to keep his son out of trouble. Nathan was growing increasingly frustrated that his 30 year old son had yet to find a suitable wife, and finally gave Cal an ultimatum. Cal must marry before his 31st birthday or be disinherited.
Ruth and Rose began to attend more social functions that the Hockleys were attending. It turned out that Rose's father was a former business partner of Nathan Hockley. Nathan had heard rumors that the Dewitt-Bukators were becoming bankrupt, and when Ruth approached him a deal was made. Ruth offered that Rose would make a suitable wife for Cal, in exchange for help in paying off the Dewitt-Bukator's debts. Cal was not happy at first, but when he realized it was the beautiful redhead that he met at that charity ball he agreed. Nathan arranged for Cal to begin to court Rose, and plans were made for Cal to propose within a few months.
Cal became fascinated with Rose during their whirlwind courtship, and he actually began to fall in love with her. Rose was different from the other first class women; she had spirit and passion. She was intelligent and very well read; she was rather opinionated and wasn't afraid to speak her mind. Rose expressed an interest in wanting to attend university, but that was out of the question. Most high society women were expected to run their homes and only went to finishing school to learn these skills.
Cal was afraid that he wouldn't have anything in common with Rose, but they both loved the arts. Rose was more into the newer art scenes, where he had more traditional tastes. Rose loved any type of art that made her feel something. It led to some healthy debates between them, which Rose would end up winning most of them. Cal ended up proposing at his mother's birthday gala, and Rose accepted his proposal. Rose had a smile on her face, but it did not quite reach her eyes.
After the engagement was announced, wedding plans began. Cal and Rose were engaged the fall of 1911, and plans were made for them to be married in the spring of 1912. The wedding was set for May 1912, with an engagement gala to be held in April. To celebrate their engagement, Cal arranged for a European vacation, and they headed off to Europe in February 1912. Their last stop was in Paris, France where Rose was able to get some fine art and do some exquisite shopping. In France, Cal found and bought Rose's engagement gift, the Heart of the Ocean. One week later, they were in England preparing to head home when Cal heard the stories of the great unsinkable Titanic. Titanic was scheduled to head to New York on April 10th, and Cal quickly booked the tickets for their return trip home. Cal wanted to impress Rose, so he booked nothing but the best. He would be one of the wealthiest passengers onboard Titanic, until J.J and Madeline Astor boarded in Cherbourg, France.
It was supposed to just be an ordinary trip returning home; he did not count on Jack Dawson changing everything! He remembered that night that he first laid eyes on that third class ruffian; Cal had been socializing with the other first class men when he was called out to the stern. Rose had apparently been attacked by a third class passenger! It made his blood boil that someone would attack Rose! He took one look at Rose and saw her torn dress and her tear-streaked face. Cal hated seeing Rose looking like that, and immediately confronted the man. He was angry when he grabbed Jack and yelled, "What made you think you could put your hands on my fiancé?! Look at me you filth! What did you think you were doing?!"
The man held his ground, but both men did not expect for Rose to speak up! Rose told him that it was a stupid accident; that she had been leaning over the railings to look at the propellers and slipped, only to be rescued by the third class man. Cal did not notice the pleading look in Rose's eyes that she gave Jack. He saw Jack give a look towards Rose, and then confirmed Rose's story. Part of Cal did not truly believe Rose, but he was just grateful that she was okay. He was going to leave without a thought until Gracie reminded him that the man deserved a reward for saving Rose. He quickly told Lovejoy to give Jack $20 as a reward, to which Rose scoffed at. That's when he invited Jack to dinner, and was more than surprised when Jack accepted his offer.
After the ordeal, Rose retreated to her stateroom and decided to get ready for bed. Cal knew that Rose had been rather melancholy and decided to present her with his engagement gift to cheer her up. Rose looked absolutely breathtaking in her simple white nightdress. She was sitting at her vanity combing her hair, but she had a look of sadness in her eyes. When he walked in, her features changed. She had a look that she was on guard, and he hoped that his gift would show how much he cared for her.
At the dinner he couldn't believe Jack Dawson's transformation! He had expected for Dawson to show up in his lowly third-class rags and make a fool of himself. Dawson walked up to him, with Rose on his arm, looking the very picture of a first-class gentleman. He was amazed how well Dawson did that night; Jack managed to charm every person he met. But he was a bit uneasy seeing the easy and friendly relationship between his fiancé and Dawson. He should have put a stop to it right then and there; but he suspected if he had done that it would have drove Rose into Jack's arms even faster.
Cal was furious when he found out from Lovejoy that Rose had snuck off to a third-class party with Jack, and made his displeasure known at breakfast the next morning. That was another thing Cal hated himself for; he acted like a spoiled child and he could not forget the fear in Rose's eyes. He would also never forget the look of love in Rose's eyes that she had for Jack right before she jumped from the lifeboat.
Cal took another sip of his brandy, and felt his grief and anger course through his veins. Cal desperately wanted these emotions to be gone, but he knew that it would be a long time before he could heal. Part of him feared he never would. Tragically he knew that a part of him would always be in love with Rose and would forever hate himself for not realizing it until it was too late.