Hello all you fine people :D I hope that you all have had a wonderful week so far! I'm super happy and I'm updating a day or two earlier because I got so many reviews :O Just a little short one :) Hope you all enjoy this chapter and I'll see you guys at the bottom of the chapter!
- Diana -
Diana had woken up one morning and couldn't find Elizabeth anywhere. She asked the servants and even brought herself to ask Georg but no one knew for the life of them where she had gone.
Diana went down for breakfast but saw neither Augustine nor Elizabeth there. She told a servant to bring some breakfast up to Augustine before she went about doing what she did everyday. That day in particular, there weren't any social gatherings to attend so she laid back to relax.
As she sat at one of the tables in the garden, one of the maids went up to her and told her she had a guest who requested to see her. Diana told the maid to bring the guest to sit with her in the garden.
The young man with chestnut brown hair was dressed in a suave suit bent down and kissed Diana's outstretched hand before taking a seat opposite her at her gesture.
"Allow me to introduce myself, ma'am. My name is Jasper Bennett, second son of Edward Bennett." At this, Diana's face lit up. "I never knew Edward had another son other than Jude!"
"Well, my older brother had a higher status than me after all. But reminiscence was not my intentions of coming here today." Jasper said, shrugging it off. "Then speak your intentions." Diana nodded in approval.
"I understand you have a granddaughter named Elizabeth Andrews?" Diana nodded slightly, unsure of what he was up to. "I would like to ask for her hand in marriage."
Diana's eyes widened and almost spit her tea out. "M…marriage?"
"I assure ma'am, you'll regret if you let my request slip by you." Jasper resisted the urge to smirk. "And why is that, Mr. Bennett?"
"Miss Andrews fell in love with an officer on the Titanic." Diana didn't seem too shocked but nonetheless raised her eyebrows. "If you don't give me her hand in marriage, I should like to think that her seaman would sweep her off her feet. Also, I've heard that the Barbour business isn't doing too well, is it? With my family connections, even if your family business does not thrive, the Bennetts are more than capable of providing for all of you."
Diana thought about this for a while and realized that she had nothing to lose by saying yes. She might even get revenge on Georg, letting him see how miserable his precious granddaughter was, letting him realize that marrying Bonnie as his second wife, showering her with more attention than herself was the biggest mistake of his life.
"On behalf of Elizabeth, I accept."
Later that day when Elizabeth had returned from sneaking out, Diana told her of the arrangement.
"Grandmother, how could you just accept his proposal without even seeking my consent?" Elizabeth asked in disbelief. "It is not your choice to make, Elizabeth. I'm only doing what's best for you." Diana said sternly, hiding her smirk.
"I won't marry him." She folded her arms and said adamantly. "Don't test me, Elizabeth. You shall do as I say." Diana all but glared at Elizabeth before sauntering away.
Elizabeth couldn't believe what she had heard. She started to shiver and cry, falling onto the floor at the foot of the staircase. She sobbed uncontrollably but was interrupted when there was a pat on her shoulder.
"M…Miss? Are you all…right?" A shy voice asked. Elizabeth looked up to see one of the maids look down at her nervously. "Yes, I'm fine." Elizabeth quickly wiped her tears away and allowed the timid maid to help her up.
The maid had big brown eyes, with her hair up in a bun. She was fairly short, shorter than Elizabeth by almost 4 inches. She didn't look a day over 20.
"I'll help you back to your room." The maid said, walking next to Elizabeth. "What's your name?" She asked. "I…I'm Alissa. Alissa Hyland." She answered in a small voice. Alissa's meek first impression reminded her greatly of Clara, whom she missed dearly. The rest of the journey was silent but when they reached the room, Elizabeth asked Alissa to go in with her.
Elizabeth sat on her bed while Alissa shifted around uncomfortably. "Why don't you take a seat?"
"I…I couldn't." Alissa mumbled. Elizabeth pulled her down onto a chair next to the bed. "Alissa…Can I be frank with you? As in, can I talk to you?" Alissa gulped. "Oh, you're not in trouble, don't worry." Elizabeth half-smiled to set her at ease, which worked a little as Alissa nodded.
"I'm going to need your help. I want to send a letter to a man but I'm afraid that if I pass it to another maid, they'll tell my grandmother and…that would be bad. You seem trustworthy enough. Would you pass it to the mailman for me? Also, if there is a letter addressed to me, it should reach me first before anyone else." Elizabeth asked, plea in her eyes.
Alissa looked around for a while before nodding. Elizabeth grinned and wiped a stray tear away. "M…May I ask who the man is?" Elizabeth took a second to think about whether she should let her know or not. "I'm so sorry! That was inappropriate of me to ask." Alissa apologized, blushing slightly.
"It's all right, Alissa. The man's name is James. James Paul Moody. I fell in love with him during my time on the RMS Titanic. He was the sixth officer on board." Elizabeth said, her prideful smile widening just at the mention of him, and even his position on the famous passenger liner. She saw Alissa start to smile as well.
"How about you? Is there a man you fancy?"
"Well…There is one…" Alissa started to blush at the thought. "Who?" Elizabeth asked excitedly. "It's…the chauffer, Albert." Her face was red. Elizabeth started to giggle. "Please don't laugh. Oh, just in case you wanted to know…the mailman comes two to three times every week." Alissa said quietly. "Thank you very much, Alissa." Elizabeth smiled genuinely at who was her first friend in the house, next to her grandfather.
- Jasper -
Jasper smiled all the way back to his family manor and sauntered through the doors, throwing his jacket to one of the maids before proceeding to walk up the stairs, when a voice called for him.
"Where were you Jasper?" The mellow voice asked. "I was nowhere Jude. I just…went out to visit someone."
Jude was Jasper's older brother who had hazel eyes and dark brown hair, with a small moustache neatly trimmed to match.
A baby's cry was heard and Jasper turned around. Jude had his baby son in his arms and hushed the little baby before he listened to Jasper continuing. "You'll never guess what I did."
"What did you do this time, Jasper?" Jude sighed, rocking little Quentin in his arms. "I asked a lady for her hand in marriage."
Jude almost dropped the baby in shock. "You did what now?!" He asked. "I'm going to marry someone." Jasper narrowed his eyes slightly. "Do I know her?"
"No you don't." Jasper rolled his eyes. "Can I know her?" Jude asked.
"Her name is Elizabeth Andrews." Jasper said almost triumphantly, as if talking about a trophy. "Have you asked father about this?" Jude continued to question. "Why would he care? He's never cared about me or anything I've ever done. All he ever cares about is the business…and you." Jasper spat bitterly before rushing up the stairs, ignoring his brother's calls for him.
Jude sighed. He then felt a pat on his shoulder. He turned to see his wife, Gayle. The short, strawberry blonde looked up at him with her concerned blue eyes, as if asking him what had happened. "It's nothing, pumpkin." He smiled at her before leaning down to kiss her forehead. Quentin giggled in between them and the parents couldn't resist laughing, seeing their adorable little son so happy.
- Jim -
He and the other officers, including Clara, had just gotten off the Adriatic and were in a bar near the port. "So I guess this is goodbye." Harry said to all of them. "Come on, don't be so sad. I'm sure we'll all see each other soon. For now, we're all just going back home to see our families." Charles put a hand on Harry's shoulder.
"What about Will's family? Ada?" Joseph asked. The table was silent for a moment. "I'll go visit her once I've seen Sylvia and the kids." Charles said.
After a few hours, Jim had to leave to catch his train, going to Scarborough, his hometown. The ride back was lonely and cold, but the thought of going back to his family warmed him right up.
- Harry & Clara -
Soon after Jim had left, Harry and Clara also left to catch their train ride to her hometown of Aston, in Birmingham. On the train, Harry hugged her close to him as they shared one of the blankets the stewards gave them. He couldn't help but think back about his mother, missing her like he always had for so many years. A single tear fell from his eyes.
- Charles -
Charles had also left to catch a train to Chorley, Lancashire. It was chilly on the train and he took his photo of Sylvia out and hugged it close to his form, slowly drifting to sleep.
- Herbert -
Herbert caught his train to Sutton Montis, Somerset as well, thinking about his family and girlfriend Mimi.
- Joseph -
Joseph was the last to leave the bar and narrowly caught his own train to Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire. He, of course, thought of his family, but when he was lonely, his thoughts drifted to the lady, Marjory, whom he had met on board the Carpathia.
So everyone is all back in England, all going to their respective homes to see their family~
Now to thank the amazing people who left reviews! Thank you to sarahmichellegellarfan1, Chloe and lilyp23 for your reviews!
sarahmichellegellarfan1 : Thank you for your review! Or, multiple reviews xD I know their kiss ( Clara & Harry ) was a little too quick, but it was more that Clara had never experienced anything like that and this guy ( Harry ) didn't care that she was a maid. Apart from her introverted personality, his charm really showed through and that's what really attracted him to her. I'd like to say that it was love at first sight~
Chloe : Thank you for your review! Jasper IS from a rich family! He wanted to be a steward in the first place so that he could meet people who liked him for him, instead of his position as a rich man's son. Diana ( as shown in this chapter ) knows of his family and his 'richness', hence she allowed them to get 'married'. Also, thanks for putting ideas into my brain~ Thank you ^^ I loved bringing the 7 of them back together! I find it wonderful, because all of them are so different in their own ways and their personalities are all so dynamic and fun to write! :D
lilyp23 : Thank you for your review :D
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