Hello all you wonderful people~ I'm back with another chapter! Haha, I re-watched Titanic again and loved every second of it :) Like seriously, I can never ever get tired of watching that show! Oh well, I'll keep quiet for now! Hope you all enjoy this chapter and I'll see you guys at the bottom of the chapter!
Just a friendly reminder, it is 14 April 1912! This would be the third part of 14 April :) I know I said 2 halves but I thought I would add in a third part of 14 April. ( Psst... THE ACTUAL SINKING CHAPTER :D )
- Will -
It was currently twenty minutes after 11 at night. Will was near the wheelhouse, on watch when Jim came up next to him. "It's really clear and cold out." Jim commented, rubbing his shoulders to generate heat and keep warm. The two officers could literally see the clouds of breath leaving their mouths. "Yes..." Will said, looking far out into the calm ocean. "Jim, would you be so kind to get me a cup of tea?" Will continued, smiling at the junior officer. Jim groaned. "Fine." He walked off to go get his senior officer his tea, knowing it was no use arguing.
- Jim -
He held the saucer holding the teacup and was careful not to spill it on the way up. As he neared the wheelhouse, he heard the sound of the phone ringing non-stop. He quickened his pace a little and answered it after it rang twice.
"Is there anyone there?" Jim heard Frederick Fleet's panicked voice ask over the phone.
"Yes, what do you see?" He responded calmly.
"Iceberg, right ahead!" Fleet cried.
"Thank you."
Jim ran to the door and opened it, "Iceberg, right ahead!" He yelled to Will, who ran to his side, both hands on either side of the door frame of the bridge as he gave the order 'Hard to Starboard' which Jim repeated loudly. Hichens, who was at the helm turned it swiftly, his face full of concentration.
Meanwhile, Will ran to the wheelhouse to run the engines full astern. As he was rushing past Jim, he knocked into his shoulder, causing all the tea to spill but that was the least of their worries. "Turn! Turn! Smartly!" He said to Hichens from the wheelhouse.
"Hard over!" Hichens said to Jim. "Helm's hard over, sir!" He passed the message quickly. Will then ran back out to see what was happening, Jim watching from behind him. "Is it hard over?" He frantically asked Jim again. "It is. Yes sir, hard over." The Sixth officer replied, still holding the tea cup and saucer in his hands.
"Come on. Come on. Turn. " he muttered under his breath as he watched the ship move, sweat dripping down the side of his face. The two officers heard as a fellow crewman shouted "It's gonna hit!" from the bow of the ship.
Hichens, in the bridge, had his hands on the helm still. Due to a mixture of his fear and the impact of the collision, his hands shook violently as the iceberg scrapped the starboard side of the ship. The next order was given out by Will. "Hard to port!" He hollered. Jim repeated it to Hichens who turned the helm the other direction. The first officer watched as the a small part of the iceberg broke into many blocks that fell onto the deck of the ship. He immediately ran back to the bridge to close all the watertight doors. After the iceberg had passed, Will was still in a state of shock. "Note the time and enter it in the log." He said stiffly to Jim.
The wooden door behind them opened and the captain walked in. "What was that, Mr. Murdoch?" The bearded man asked his first officer. "An iceberg sir." He replied almost breathlessly. Captain Smith turned to look out the window. " I put her hard to starboard, and ran the engines full astern, but it was too close. I tried to port round it, but she hit. And I-" Will's explanation was cut off by the captain. "Close the watertight doors." He instructed. "Doors are closed, sir."
"Find the carpenter and get him to sound the ship." Captain Smith said. "Yes, sir!" Will quickly replied before dashing off to find him.
- Jim -
He waited anxiously in the bridge for Mr. Andrews to come. As the shipbuilder walked into the chart room and laid his blueprints down on the table, securing the corners with a gold paperweight, Bruce Ismay walked in as well. "This is most unfortunate, Captain." He said.
"Water 14 feet above the keel in 10 minutes" Jim couldn't make out what he was doing for sure since his view was blocked by several officers, but Thomas pointed to various parts of the ship on the blueprint. "in the forepeak, in all three holds, and in Boiler Room 6." He finished almost breathlessly, seeing as he rushed up carrying heavy scrolls of blueprints.
"That's right, sir." The Fourth Officer, Joseph Boxhall confirmed.
"When can we get underway, damn it?" Bruce said, irritated.
"That's five compartments." Thomas said, raising his voice. He was annoyed at Mr. Ismay but he was resisting so badly to tell him to shut up. He looked at the Captain. "She can stay afloat with the first four compartments breached, but not five. Not five." After a moment, he continued. "As she goes down by the head, the water will spill over the tops of the bulkheads at E deck, from one to the next, back and back. There's no stopping it." He made gestures on the paper to show him.
"The pumps. If we open the pumps, we-" The captain's suggestion was cut off by Thomas. "The pumps buy you time, but minutes only. From this moment, no matter what we do, Titanic, will founder." As he finished, he felt Bruce staring at him in disbelief. "But this ship can't sink!" He said.
"She's made of iron, sir. I assure you, she can. And she will. It is a mathematical certainty." The shipbuilder explained sadly.
"How much time?" Captain Smith asked, eyes wide, still trying to process the information. "An hour, two at most." He broke the news. Bruce looked as if he was about to faint. "And how many aboard, Mr. Murdoch?" Captain asked the first officer, not looking at him. "2,200 souls on board, sir." He said as Chief Officer Henry Wilde walked into the room.
"Well, I believe you may get your headlines, Mr. Ismay." The captain said. He gave out orders to uncover the lifeboats and all the officers immediately moved into action.
Jim was at a loss for words after the sudden turn of events. All he knew was that he had to find Elizabeth to tell her what was going on. He knew that if he held it off any longer, there would be orders to get the lifeboats ready and to instruct the passengers to put on their lifebelts and report to the boat deck immediately. He had to get to her before he had to do his duty as an officer.
Jim roughly remembered where the room was as he went down to A Deck and brisk walked until he reached cabin A-34. He knocked on the white door quickly and the door opened, revealing a worried Elizabeth. "Jim!" She gasped, wrapping her arms around his neck, hugging him close. He wrapped his around her waist. They parted after a few moments.
"What's going on, Jim?" She asked in a low whisper, seeing as it was close to midnight and she did not want to wake anyone up. "The ship struck an iceberg. The Titanic will sink in an hour or two." He said seriously, putting his hands on her arms. Elizabeth gasped, speechless.
"Officer Moody?" Another voice called. They both turned to see Third Officer Herbert Pitman there. "Captain Smith has sent out orders to uncover the lifeboats. Get up on deck as soon as you can. And Miss? Please dress warmly, put on a lifebelt and go up to the boat deck immediately." His gaze alternated between Elizabeth and Jim before he rushed off to do as he was ordered. Under normal circumstances, he would comment about them in physical contact but it wasn't exactly a normal circumstance, seeing how the ship was sinking.
Jim's attention was back on Elizabeth. "I'll see you later. Get Clary and yourself dressed and I'll see you up on deck." He said to her quickly and as he was about to leave, Elizabeth pulled him back for a quick kiss. "Stay safe." She said, smiling lightly at him. "You too." He grinned widely at her, hastily pecking her on the forehead before rushing off.
- Elizabeth -
Shocked, Elizabeth went back into the room, shutting the door behind her. She leaned against the wooden door with a hand cupped over her mouth. "What's wrong Liz?" Clara asked, concerned. She was dressed up in her maid uniform, complete with the white apron and bonnet. "The ship is going to sink as it collided with an iceberg. She only has an hour, two at most." Elizabeth finally said, looking at the maid.
"What?" Clara asked in disbelief. "There's no time to waste. Come now, I'm going to assume we'll need to wear the thickest coats we have." Elizabeth said. "R...right. I'll be right back, Liz." Clara curtseyed quickly before going into the wardrobe to get out their warmest coats. Elizabeth, on the other hand, went to her bedroom to get some important things.
She picked out a big clutch bag which was small enough to fit in a coat pocket. She went over to the vanity table and took the whole stack of photographs, gently shoving it into the bag. She then opened a few drawers, taking out as much of her expensive jewellery as the bag could hold. Of course she didn't forget to put her pocket watch in one of the hidden pockets on her dress. She even double-checked the pocket between her dress' neckline and her corset ( A/N : You know when those movie stars pull things out of their bras ) to make sure that the pocket watch Jim gave her was secure and would not fall out.
At that time, Clara came into the room with two lifebelts and two thick coats hanging off her arm. "Liz, I got the jackets!" Clara exclaimed, walking over to Elizabeth. She helped her to put on a thick, black, wool coat before putting on her own, putting something into her coat pocket, something that looked like a book. Clara obviously did not want to leave behind her book.
"Let's go." Elizabeth nodded at Clara as the two girls walked out of her bedroom. They were about to leave when Elizabeth stopped them after taking a glance at one of the tables. She ran over to it and grabbed the small leather notebook that Thomas gave her and shoved it into her coat pocket. "Let's go now." Elizabeth held Clara's hand as they left the cabin, each taking one last look at the stateroom that they knew they would never ever see again.
- Jim -
Jim had been uncovering the lifeboats with the other crew members. He had been pulled away many times by many of the first-class passengers, all inquiring about what was going on. His answer was the same every time. "We're getting ready to load the passengers into the lifeboats." He didn't want to tell them that the ship was sinking, neither did he want to tell them that it was only a lifeboat drill, when it so obviously was not.
- Elizabeth -
Elizabeth had just gotten out onto the boat deck with Clara. She checked the time. It was five minutes after midnight. She caught sight of Jim and pulled him aside.
- Jim -
Someone else just pulled his arm out of the crowd. "We're getting ready to-" He almost gave that same answer, assuming it was another first-class passenger asking why they were out in the cold at such an ungodly hour. "Liz!" He was pleasantly surprised. "Where's Harry?" Clara asked from beside them.
"Now that you mention it, he doesn't seem to be here...I thought he was with you!" Jim's eyes widened as he answered Clara. "Perhaps he's still...sleeping?" Elizabeth suggested. "We have to wake him." Jim stated the obvious. "I'll go." Clara offered, immediately walking off. "I'll go with her." Elizabeth smiled at Jim before rushing off to follow Clara.
- Clara -
She was walking down the deck when Elizabeth caught up to her, walking beside her. They quickly entered the officers' quarters, making their way to Harry's room. Clara knocked lightly on the door. She knocked REALLY lightly. You could almost say she didn't make a sound. "Oh for God's sake Clary!" Elizabeth banged so loudly on the door that Clara thought she would break it down.
A very sleepy Harry opened the door in a few minutes. His hair was awfully messy and his shirt was unbuttoned. Clara blushed while Elizabeth cleared her throat, looking at his well-toned core. "Oh, sorry!" He gasped, turning to adjust them. "There's no time for that. The ship struck an iceberg. In an hour or two all this will be at the bottom of the Atlantic. The captain gave the officers orders to uncover the lifeboats." Elizabeth said firmly.
"Well...Okay." Harry stared at her in shock. Judging by the noise he heard outside, he figured that she probably wasn't lying so he closed the door to change into his full officer's uniform. "Clary, I'll be heading out first. Find me on deck." Elizabeth put a hand on the maid's shoulder, smiled at her before briskly walking off.
Elizabeth walked right past the Marconi room, but it was better to be safe than sorry. She walked back to the Marconi room, seeing Jack hard at work, tapping away. Harold stood behind him, deep in thought.
"Harold?" She walked in and put a hand on his shoulder. "Liz!" He jumped a little in shock. "I came to say goodbye just in case we didn't cross paths again." She frowned at him. Harold leaned down and hugged her tightly. She wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I'm really going to miss you." She said softly. "None of that talk. We're all gonna make it out of this, you hear me?" Harold pulled apart to smile at her.
Elizabeth gave Harold a half-hearted smile before walking over to a hardworking Jack. Harold followed her. Jack knew she was about to say something so he took off one side of his headphones, but did not stop working. "Harold, Jack, you two are one of the best friends I have ever made so far in my life. Even though we've known each other for a little over a day, you've created a lasting impact on me. I really wish the both of you all the best and...and..." She thought about the possibility that she may never see these two jokesters ever again and started to sob.
Harold took her in his arms again, frowning. Jack held back tears. Granted he didn't know these two people for a long time but they had grown on him, taking up a special place in his heart. The three friends stayed like this for a while. They didn't realise it was nearing 12.30 am.
"Come on now, Liz. You've got to go back out. Find a lifeboat and get on it immediately." Harold said, giving her a comforting smile as he wiped away her tears. Elizabeth smiled back at him before walking to Jack, hugging him from the side and giving him a peck on the cheek. He looked at her and gave her smile and a kiss on her forehead before going back to tapping away.
Elizabeth went back to Harold. She tip-toed and pressed her lips to his cheek as well. "I'll be waiting to play Tiddlywinks with you after all this is over." She joked, wiping away some more tears. Harold hugged her one last time before he watched her walk out of the Marconi room.
( A/N : From here on, I'll add in what time it is so that you guys can have a clearer visualisation of what's going on. Please tell me if it helps or if I should go back to making the time unknown' )
- Elizabeth -
12.40 am
Elizabeth walked out to the area around Lifeboat 7. "Clary!" She called out, soon joining her maid's side after spotting her. The two ladies stood there, watching Harry work when he suddenly turned to them. "Clary, Liz, get in the boat." He said. "Are...are you getting on?" Clara asked him with wide eyes. "Not anytime soon." He replied honestly. "I'm not leaving without you, Harry." She said softly but firmly. "Please Clary... I can't work without knowing that you'll be safe." He pleaded with her, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Nothing you can say is going to make me get off this ship without you." She replied with resolute.
"All right then. But stay close to me and don't wander off." He said reluctantly. "Okay guys...I have to go find Jim. Do you know where he is?" Elizabeth cut in. "He should be at the port side." Harry replied. "Can I follow her?" Clara asked innocently. Harry started to laugh. "What did I just say about staying close to me?"
"Come on Harry. It's just opposite the ship. Plus, the ship isn't even going down yet." Elizabeth reasoned with him. "Fine. But if you're not back in twenty minutes, I'm going off to search for you." Harry said, touching Clara's cheek gently. "Got it." Clara smiled a little at him before Elizabeth and her went off again.
- Augustine -
12.50 am
She walked out onto the boat deck, not sure why they had to conduct a lifeboat drill so late into the night. Two crew members walked past her. "...believe the ship is sinking..." Augustine heard clearly. The ship was sinking! She thought that there was a possible chance they were lying or just talking rubbish but she herself could feel the slight tilt of the ship. It was a very subtle tilt but she was a sharp woman. She initially had her doubts but the conversation between the two men confirmed her worst fear.
Way in front of her, she saw Elizabeth and her maid, Clara walking in her general direction. Suddenly, an idea popped in her head. Maybe this ship sinking wouldn't be so bad after all.
- Elizabeth -
12.53 am
Elizabeth and Clara, hand in hand, almost made it into the interior of the ship when a hand was on Elizabeth's shoulder. She turned to see her aunt Augustine, crying. At first she felt sympathetic towards her, seeing the older lady cry really tugged at her heartstrings. But then she remembered what the same older lady had done to her best friend and the look of pity on her face quickly turned to a 'lady are you shitting me' kind of expression.
"What do you want?" Elizabeth asked coldly. "My photograph of Helen and I is...still in my stateroom." She replied, sobbing into a laced handkerchief. "How is that our problem?" Elizabeth's voice was full of scorn and was serious. "Please...Please come with me to retrieve it...please..." Was all Augustine could say.
"You have hands and legs, I'm sure it's not that far of a walk." Elizabeth rolled her eyes at her aunt and was about to head into the ship but Clara pulled her back. "What is it Clary?" She asked her friend with a warm expression. "We can't just leave her." The soft-hearted maid bit her lower lip, looking at the crying woman. "Are you fucking me Clary? Have you forgotten what she did to you? Must I slap you again to get your senses working?" Elizabeth looked at her in disbelief, even swearing so angry she was.
"Liz...I'm helping her, with or without your help." Clara said to Elizabeth, standing her ground. Elizabeth looked at her for a while, contemplating whether or not to listen to her ludicrous idea. "Clary, you are crazy and I don't know why I'm doing this." Elizabeth said, shaking her head as she walked into the ship, Clara and Augustine following closely behind her. Little did they know someone else saw them go back in.
1.00 am
"Thank you..." Augustine kept on repeating as if it was a chant as the trio walked down the labyrinth of corridors, reaching Augustine's stateroom in no time. The older woman took out her cabin keys from one of the pockets of her coat. "All right lady. Tell us where the photograph is." Elizabeth said, her voice unfeeling. "In...in the bedroom." She said, her tears clearing up.
Elizabeth and Clara disappeared into the bedroom, leaving Augustine at the entrance. As soon as the lady saw that her niece and her maid were no longer in sight, she continued carrying out her plan. She quietly walked over to the seating area, pulling a wooden chair out of the room. She also made sure to jam the knob, so that it could not be opened from the inside.
Augustine looked around to make sure that there was no one left in the hallway before she silently and cautiously locked the door with her keys, putting the chair under the knob to be sure that they could not get out at all. She then regained her composure as best she could and walked back out onto the deck, casually throwing her keys off the ship as she walked.
- Elizabeth -
1.08 am
Clara and herself had practically turned the room upside down but there was no sign of the photograph anywhere. "Are you sure your photograph is here?" Elizabeth asked as she walked out of the room. Augustine was no longer there. "Uh...Augustine?" She walked around the whole cabin trying to find her aunt but she was nowhere to be found.
"What is it Liz?" Clara asked as she joined Elizabeth. "She's not here anymore." Elizabeth stated. "Maybe she found the picture and went out first. Come on, let's go." Clara shrugged and held Elizabeth's hand and the two girls walked over to the door. Elizabeth turned the knob but it just wouldn't budge. She let go of her maid's hand and tried again to no avail. "Clary? I think she locked us in." Elizabeth said, turning to face the blonde, colour slowly draining from her face.
Now to thank those who left reviews! Thank you to rebeccajoleneaumanwilson and the guest for your reviews!
rebeccajoleneaumanwilson : You're very welcome :) One of the greatest parts of being a writer is inspiring others :)
guest : thank you for your review!
DUN DUN DUN Suspense everywhere! The mean old aunt Augustine locked the two of them up after tricking them :O Do you guys hate her yet? But guys...the sinking is ACTUALLY ACTUALLY happening! In fact, the next chapter :) I'm not lying this time.
At this point in time, I'd like to remind EVERYONE that this story at some parts may NOT be historically correct so some people who actually lived MAY die and likewise. :) Muahahahaha...
To everyone else, I hope you all are enjoying the story as well! Have a nice day and review if you liked the chapter! :D