A/N: Many thanks to my last anonymous reviewer. I hope that you and everyone else enjoys that story :-)
Something different: STOPP ACTA! - for more info see my profile - important sign the petition: .org/de/eu_save_the_internet_spread/
Various demonstrations against ACTA will be held throughout Europe on Saturday 11th of February more info see .org/de/eu_save_the_internet_spread/
Please spread this info to everyone or this side, you tube and co may soon be history.
P. S. I think in America this is called SOPA. It's the same though.
It was past two o'clock in the morning and Ella still hadn't gone to bed, but was sitting beside Jack listening to his astonishing story.
"She promised me that she would survive."
Silently she took his hand squeezing it in her own. Not that she had any reason by now they could be more than just friends, but she wanted to show him how she would be there for him. Jack realizing this gave her a weak smile.
"I still remember the cold…I think I will my whole life...," his voice trailed off.
Ella looked at the clock on the ceiling. No sign of her aunt and fiancé yet.
"That's perfectly understandable; I can't begin to understand what you've been through, Mr. Dawson. I mean being on the Titanic. I remember my governess, who know her, she demanded that we go to the one of the official mourning's as she lost her brother once removed on the ship. But of course being on it yourself, it's something different."
Jack turned his head to the window, as if Rose would show up against it every minute. Before breaking down in the streets yesterday he had almost managed to shut out the cries of help. Now they were there once more, louder than ever.
"Yes, it affected every one," Jack said looking away.
His mind was with Rose and the other people had died. There was this other thing he couldn't get out of his head.
"To think that none of this mess would've happened if I hadn't befriended her…," he choked out knowing somehow that he was being unfair to himself.
Ella realized that at once.
"Oh, no, Mr. Dawson, what are you saying here? From what I understood of all this, you saved her life. If it weren't for you she would still be with that horrible fiancé of hers."
Maybe, but she'd be alive.
Much to his own surprise he had even told her about Caledon Hockley, something had made him sure that she wouldn't take advantage of this knowledge. The only thing he hadn't told her was the intimacy he had shared with Rose and of course the story about how they had met at the stern of the ship. This story was something he felt he didn't have the right to share with anyone without Rose's approval.
'How can I, Mr. Dawson? It's like a contract, who know? You're not going to tell my aunt that I went out alone and I won't mention a word about Mr. Hockley or the Titanic,' she had said.
'So we're blackmailing each other vice versa?'
'Exactly.'
Both had laughed wholeheartedly at this. Rose would've said that Jack at least hadn't lost his humour. But now Ella was staring at him with eyes wide open, as he was just telling her about Cal's threat.
"What a horrible man! First he wants to shoot his own fiancée and now that she's dead he still can't leave it!" she shouted her whole detestation for Cal being put into the sentence. "And I thought that he was a gentleman."
"Well, he thinks he is."
Jack smiled weakly trying to draw strength from Ella's eyes and her reassuring gaze. It didn't help much.
"I'm tired," he exclaimed.
Not that he wanted to sleep. He knew exactly of whom he'd dream, but he also couldn't stand more questions at least not for the moment to be. He needed time to think about everything, to decide about what to do next.
"Ella, dear, you're still up?"
Ella's eyes showed her surprise.
"My aunt, my god, what do I tell her?"
Forgotten the diamond and Cal and even the Titanic, gone was the courageous girl, replaced by the sixteen-year-old, who feared nothing more than her aunt discovering her secret.
No time for thinking about an excuse as her aunt showed up the minute they had heard her voice.
"Do you know what time it is?"
"I'm sorry. I just wanted to…"
"I don't care what you wanted to do. From what you told me on the telephone Mr. Dawson here is all and needs his rests and you're just disturbing him."
"She isn't…," Jack started, but shrank down under her cold stare, much like that of Ruth Dewitt Bukater.
"Whatever are you doing here in his room? Don't you know how improper this is? What should your fiancé think, if he finds you here?"
There they were. The words Jack had waited for ever since she had entered the room, while Ella was angry with her aunt that she hadn't even asked about Jack's condition.
"We can't risk that he calls off the marriage. Now get up and go to bed."
Why couldn't they risk the marriage to be called off? – She asked herself the whole night.
Whoever wanted to marry here anyways?
I for once don't.
For breakfast Mr. Lindsay was there again. Ella wasn't paying much attention to his talks.
After having heard what Mr. Dawson had been through she had even more respect for him. He was a real man; he knew what life was about, not like the boring man sitting with her at the table.
Ella was silently stabbing her eggs.
Mr. Dawson still hadn't gotten up, but at least Ella now was aware of what had happened to him.
This Miss Rose she must've been a wonderful woman and what a man this Mr. Dawson was that he wanted to give her live for her.
'It should've been me to die.'
Ella had wanted to stop him of accusing himself, told him that it wasn't his fault. Who could've known that an unsinkable ship would hit an iceberg on its first journey?
'I was so happy and couldn't believe my luck.'
Rose being a first class girl was even more romantically – what a love story. Dimly Ella heard Roger and her aunt talking, but wasn't paying much attention. Ella had never seen it that way, but of course for people like Jack; the Titanic was more than just a ship, more than a simple way to cross the ocean- it was their chance, for most the only – to flee the dark, hard life and start out completely new.
Ella had had trouble not to shed tears for all the people, whose hopes were crashed by a stupid ship-owner and an even more careless captain. The answer to why the Titanic had sunk was so easy, it was almost laughable – it was money, only and ever cash and the need to show-off. Because someone had decided he wanted to win a blue-ribbon, he had chosen not to care about other people's lives, chosen not to take his job serious.
"I think a wedding here in Boston will be most suitable. Don't you think so, Ella?"
Her head shot up at once.
"Ella, are you listening? Whatever are you doing with your meat? Do you know how many people would die to get such a meal?"
I can imagine.
Now she really could, after hearing his story.
"I'm sorry," she told her aunt looking down. "…yes, sure…you're right," she stammered.
Lettice shook her head, knowing that there was something else to it that her niece wasn't telling her. Roger and she had spent the whole day in the city looking for wedding staff.
"It would've been nice, if you had accompanied us. We saw quite a lot of beautiful wedding dresses, but you need to try it on. One I liked especially, it wasn't white, but more crème, would've perfectly fitted with your hair…"
Ella stopped paying attention once more.
Not once had she asked her about Mr. Dawson. Wasn't she interested? All they cared about was that stupid wedding.
Jack had described the scenery in water, the panic before on the ship and the people running around trying to save their lives – yet there was nothing that could save them, with such intensity that Ella had felt like being on board as well.
"You're right, Mr. Lindsay," her aunt smiled.
He had just told yet another silly joke, not funny at all. Ella felt her aunt nudging her against her feet. She should say something, but she couldn't, she couldn't stand it – them – anymore. She had to get out of here.
Without warning she stood up, causing her aunt and Roger to look at her with wondering eyes.
"Ella, dear, is something wrong?" Lettice asked.
"Are you ill, my love?"
I'm not your love, dam you. I shouldn't be here at all. Whoever allowed you to call me like this?
"I'm just tired," she told them. "And I want to look how Mr. Dawson it doing," she explained leaving before anyone could stop her, but she did see the angry and confused looks of her aunt and Mr. Lindsay.
"What about Mr. Dawson? What happened?"
Lettice didn't answer him, just shook her head, looking after her niece. Maybe it had been a bad idea to have this Mr. Dawson come with them. Ella was admiring him in a way that wasn't appropriate for an engaged woman.
"Oh, good, you're awake," she exclaimed as the opened the door.
Jack turned his head.
"Yes, I couldn't sleep anymore," he said looking up from his drawings.
The image of Rose was smiling at him.
"You're really good, Mr. Dawson. I've never seen anyone doing better pictures."
Jack forced a smile.
"Did you come here to tell me this?"
"No," she shook her head. "I wanted to tell you that I'm here to support you."
Jack looked at her bewildered.
"You want to help me?"
"Yes, you and your friend…I mean you said that you don't know where this diamond is. Well now who says that the easiest and simplest way mustn't be the right one?"
"I've no idea which simple way you're talking about."
"I mean you can't be certain that your Rose is really dead and you can't certain that the diamond is really lying underneath the Atlantic Ocean. Now, who tells you that they are both not together, her alive and having the diamond with her?"
"I've never thought about it in this way," Jack choked out.
"But I've and I'm going to help you now, find them both," she exclaimed slamming the door behind her before Jack could react.
He had described Rose to her carefully and she'd seen the pictures. She figured that it couldn't be too difficult to find a rich girl with red hair and popularity like hers. Wherever a living Rose would be going she'd surely attract a lot of attention.
She'd be known all over the place.