When Rose and Jack walked into the house, they found Charlie and Lilly in the sitting room together, drinking tea and talking. As soon as Lilly saw Rose, she gasped. What had happened to her? She had makeup smeared on her face and she looked like she had been crying. "Rose, what happened? Have you been crying?"

Rose didn't respond at first, and instead walked over to the sofa, where she and Jack sat down. Jack put a supporting arm around his wife's shoulders as she took a deep breath, finally ready to tell their family the truth about her life before Jack. "After the play, I was in my dressing room when my.. ex-fiance.. showed up."

"What? You've been engaged before?" Charlie asked. He was shocked.

Rose nodded. "Yes, I was engaged when I met Jack, actually. Have you guys ever heard of Hockley Steel?"

Charlie and Lilly both nodded.

"Well, I was engaged to Caledon Hockley, the son of the Pittsburgh steel tycoon. He treated me horribly, and I was only engaged to him because my mother forced me into it. He's not a pleasant man, and he wasn't too happy about the fact that I left him for Jack… I guess he'd been looking for me, because he showed up tonight after the play when I was talking to Jack. Luckily, Jack was there to protect me.. or who knows what could have happened." Rose shuddered at the thought of having to defend herself to Cal alone. He was obviously much stronger than she was, and she'd have trouble fighting him off.

Lilly gasped. "Oh my.. that must have been who the man who stopped by the house this afternoon was."

"What man?" Charlie asked, confused.

"Today, around three o'clock, a tall man with dark hair stopped by the house. You were still at work, Charlie, and Rose had already left for the play. He said that he was Rose's cousin and hadn't seen her in awhile. When I told him you weren't home, he said he would just stop by again tomorrow," Lilly said. "Rose, I'm so sorry.. I had no idea who he was, or I would have done something."

"Lilly, it's okay. It isn't your fault. Even if you knew who he was, I don't know what you could have done. Cal is a dangerous man. But, now you know who he is, so if he were to show up at the house or anything, you would know to be careful," Rose said.

"So, how did Jack manage to steal you away from this Cal? He sounds pretty powerful," Charlie asked, earning him a slight smack on the arm from Lilly. "Charlie, that's not our business!" Charlie looked at the ground, embarrassed that he let his curiousity get the best of him. Lilly was right – Jack and Rose would tell the story when they were ready.
Jack gave Charlie a slight smile, not wanting him to feel guilty. "It's quite alright, Lilly. Rose and I decided that as family, you deserve to know how we met. We don't want secrets between us."

Charlie and Lilly both nodded, somewhat excited to finally hear about how their friends met. Lilly, especially, was curious, as she knew that Rose was a first-class lady and that Jack was pretty poor after his parents died. How did two people from completely different worlds end up together?

Rose leaned her head on her husband's shoulder, as ready to talk about the Titanic as she would ever be. "Well, it all started when I boarded a ship to America with my mother and Cal in April. We had first class tickets aboard the Titanic."

Lilly's eyes widened, her face turned white as a sheet, and her hand slowly rose to her mouth. Charlie's reaction was hardly much better. He blinked a few times and then just stared at Jack and Rose.

Rose and Jack went on, taking turns telling their story. They didn't leave out a single detail, and they even discussed the more personal parts – Rose's suicide attempt, the drawing, and making love in the Renault. When they finally finished, Jack sat back, exhausted, and let Rose lean against him on the sofa. Charlie and Lilly were sitting on the sofa across from them, just staring, paler than ghosts. Lilly had tears in her eyes, and she kept trying to choke back sobs. Charlie just sat there in shock, realizing that if there were a few different twists of fate, he may have never seen his cousin again.

Lilly finally broke the silence and walked over to Jack and Rose, hugging both of them before going back to sit with her husband. "I can't believe it.."

Charlie nodded, agreeing with his wife. "Me either. Wow. Now I see why you guys are so in love, so close.. after what you've been through, I couldn't imagine. I'm so sorry you had to go through that."

"Don't be sorry, Charlie. If it wasn't for the Titanic, I would have never met Rose. Winning that ticket was the best thing that ever happened to me, because it brought me to her. I'll always be grateful for that," Jack said, causing Rose to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"And I would be dead at the bottom of the Atlantic, or worse – married to Caledon Hockley. Jack saved me in every way possible. Titanic, although it was a terrible tragedy, brought me to my soulmate," Rose added. Jack put an arm around his wife and hugged her close, kissing her red curls.

"You guys have been through so much. You deserve each other, and I'm so happy for you both that you found each other," Lilly said.

"Thanks, Lilly. You're a great friend. I'm sorry we didn't tell you earlier – it was just so hard to talk about at first. But we felt like you guys should know." Rose said.

"We understand, Rose. I can't imagine how I'd feel after going through something like that," Charlie said. Things definitely made more sense to both him and Lilly now. Rose's mannerisms had always screamed first class, but neither of them wanted to ask where she'd come from. And Lilly knew that she had grown up with maids and servants, since Rose had asked her to teach her how to cook, do laundry, and the like. Now they knew how someone so prestigious ended up with Jack, who was basically a drifter at the time. However, they were so alike and so in love, despite their different backgrounds. As Jack had once said, Rose had definitely been mailed to the wrong address. Now, she was where she belonged and felt most comfortable.

Things had definitely changed. Jack and Rose felt as if a huge burden had been lifted off of their shoulders. Although discussing the tragedy had been exhausting and had brought back some unpleasant memories, Rose had been right - it did help them to talk about it. Lilly and Charlie had a newfound respect for the couple. Jack and Rose had gone through so much just so that they could be together, and both of them were clearly willing to put their lives on the line for each other. They had done so several times on the Titanic. The Dawsons had a new outlook on life – to make each day count.

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone for the reviews! I hope everyone is still enjoying the story. Any criticism or ideas are always welcome! I'll try to update soon but I'm having a little bit of writer's block. I'll think of something, though, I'm sure! Thanks again for everyone who favorites, follows, reviews, or even just reads. Ya'll keep me motivated!