Chapter 39: A Night to Remember
"Peter, please hurry up, we're going to be late!" Emma calls from the kitchen. She's warming milk on the kettle for Sybil. Holly has volunteered to care for Sybil while Emma and Peter went to this dinner. Holly brought Thomas along and he was doing a puzzle on the floor of the living room.
Holly comes in with Sybil.
"You look amazing!" Holly says, complementing Emma's dress.
"Thank you," Emma says, taking the kettle off the stove. She gives Holly a little twirl. Emma is dressed in a lovely purple gown, it was long, but it gave her plenty of room to move. The dress was embroidered with tiny black beads all around the skirt, which seemed to dance whenever Emma twirled. The dress was short sleeved, with a more open neckline, where Emma had placed one of her mother's necklaces to pull the outfit together. Emma's hair was done up in a bun. Sybil screeches in delight.
"You like it too huh?" Emma smiles, scooping up her sister. She lifts Sybil above her head and kisses her.
"So this dinner, you're going to…is it a charity event?" Holly asks.
"Kind of, it's mostly to raise awareness on Women's Rights and some of the proceeds are going to Titanic victims,"
"Oh, and who's running it?"
"Molly Brown, she was on the Titanic. She's also an advocate for Women's Rights," Emma answers as she pours the warm milk into the bottle.
"Oh, I've heard of her! The papers were calling her the "Unsinkable Molly Brown" because she insisted on women taking turns at the oars and she even stood up to an officer."
"That is one brave woman," Emma nods. She sits at the table and puts the bottle in Sybil's mouth.
"How late do you think it'll go?" Holly asks.
"Hard to say, but there will be dancing, so I'd say pretty late,"
"Well, you two should have a night out together."
Emma nods. The last time they had a night out was on the Titanic when life was a little bit simpler and times were a little bit happier. She does her best not to tear up. She pulls Sybil onto her shoulder to burp her.
Holly looks at Emma with a tearful smile. "I can't tell you how happy we are that you're alive Emma…" she says. "When Peter though he lost you, he wasn't the same boy I grew up with. It felt like when you passed away, so did Peter."
Emma smiles at Holly. "Well, I'm back and so is he, forever and always,"
"I hope this night out will help him come back fully."
"Who says I ever left?" Peter says with a smile.
Emma gives Sybil to Holly and wraps her arms around him.
"We're both back and that's what matters," Emma gushes.
Peter is dressed in a fine black suit with a blue tie. His leg had recovered quite a lot, but he still has a bit of limp in his step.
"You ready to go?" Peter asks.
"Are you sure you'll be okay without your crutch?" Emma asks in concern.
"I'll be fine, now let's have a good night," Peter says, heading for the door.
"Bring Cinderella back at a reasonable hour Prince Charming," Holly jokes. She lifts Sybil's hand to wave at them.
"Bye Uncle Peeta, Bye Aunt Emma!" Thomas calls.
"Bye, have a good night." The couple calls back before climbing into the car.
…
"This way Sweetpea," Cal says, directing her down the hall.
"I was here the other day Caledon, I know my way," Rose mumbles angrily.
Cal squeezes her shoulder hard as a warning. "This wasn't my idea, but so long as we are in the public eye, let's try to pretend that we love each other."
Rose tries not to shudder as they enter the well-lit hall. It has been decorated with streamers and flowers. The tables are each set with white table cloths, wine glasses and vases of bright daffodils in the center. The auction items are lined along the back wall and the stage is set up with the speaker's podium and the equipment for the band. Servers were coming around with clear glasses of wine. Cal took one for himself and downed the works immediately. Rose took one but pretended to drink it. She felt out of place in this dinner, like she didn't belong and yet she had grown up with fancy dinners like this. There were several people she recognized from similar society parties. Cal manages to make small talk with them and Rose simply nods along. Once again she felt like she was in a room, screaming at the top of her lungs and no one could hear her.
Rose slips away to browse through the auction table to see what was being bid on. A luxury cruise trip for two, a certificate for a Turkish spa day, a full silver tea set, antique vases, her paintings and ones that she assumes are from the amateur artist. Rose takes a close look at them, one of them reminds her of little Cora, with the bright eyes and lively curls holding a bouquet of flowers, set against a nature scene. The other was a simply farmland scene. The final one took her by surprise, a woman that looked so much like her it was uncanny; from the emerald green eyes to fiery red hair in perfect ringlets and a rather demure facial expression.
How could it…? Could it really be me? That's impossible!
"There you are Sweetpea," Cal says, grabbing her arm, scaring her half to death. "I would like to introduce you to some friends from the office, Mr. Jacob Sims and his wife Charlotte, as well as Cecil Jones and his wife, Mary."
Rose forces a smile onto her face. The ladies begin congratulating Rose and Cal on their engagement and how they hoped the wedding planning was going well. Rose did her best to answer any of the women's questions and cling to Cal's arm to make it seem like they were in love.
…
Jack tugs at his tie as he enters the hall. He tries not to feel nervous, this wasn't like the first class dinner on Titanic, but his stomach was turning anyways. Father Bill went in ahead of Jack and began to mingle with the different people, easy enough for a pastor, but for Jack, it was more difficult. He grabs himself some wine and begins searching for Molly. He wanted to finish the conversation about where Rose was before she was called away.
"You lost stranger?" a voice says behind him.
He turns to see a young blonde woman with relatively short hair walking towards him. Her eyes are a dark shade of brown and she's dressed in a slim dress decorated with sequins splattered all over. She looks Jack over with almost a hunger, but also curiosity. Her face was youthful, almost angelic, with her dark red lips making her entire face pop.
"I'm sorry?" Jack asks in confusion.
"You, you lost?" she says again.
"I-I don't think so,"
The girl grins. "What I mean is, do you feel lost in a crowd like this?"
Jack swallows. "Do I stand out that much?"
"Like a red balloon in the sky," she says.
Jack re-adjusts his tie.
"I'm just kidding," the girl smiles, giving a soft giggle. "I've been going to dinners like these since I was a kid, so I know when someone is trying to fit in." The girl downs another glass of wine and grabs another. "I can't stand parties like these, they're so boring, if it wasn't for the keynote speaker, I'd be more hammered than I already am."
Jack steps back as the woman gets closer, she does have a bit of sway in her step, indicating intoxication and she needs to hold onto his shoulder to stand still.
"Do you…do you know the speaker?" Jack asks, trying to fill the awkward admittance that the girl was drunk.
"Know her? She's my mother." The girl holds out her hand. "My name is Daisy, Daisy Baker, my mom is Edna Baker, the one speaking tonight. Which is why I becoming as drunk as possible," Daisy says, finishing her next glass. "You going to drink that?" she asks, eyeing his glass. Jack pulls his cup away from her and puts it on a server's tray.
"Why?" Jack asks.
"Because!" Daisy says loudly. "Because no one is going to take her seriously. The world is too engrained in Victorian society to ever think that women deserve to be equal. As far as they want, keep treating women like shit!"
Several people eye them after Daisy's loud proclamation. Jack tries to guide her into a nearby corner to prevent her from embarrassing herself further or bumping into other people.
"All these rich assholes care about is the stuff at the auction and the free booze, Fancy stuff they don't give a shit about the cause!"
"I'm sure that's not true," Jack protests, sweating a bit. He had handled drunk women before, mostly prostitutes, but it was often in an alleyway or somewhere a little more private. "I'm sure some people care about the cause, I certainly do."
"That's because you're from the lower classes, your mind is more open than any of these other assholes. They've got more money than they know what to do with so they flaunt and want the world to stay the same so they stay on top. Meanwhile, everyone else puts their nose in the dirt to make this world go round!" Daisy slurs a bit.
Jack had to admit, that despite how intoxicated Daisy was, she had a point. It was one of the many reasons Jack resented the upper class, but he knew not everyone was like that, Rose certainly wasn't.
"You may be right, but that's what these speeches are for, to help change people's minds."
"Bullshit!" Daisy cries loud enough for the entire hall to hear. "Just you watch, half the men will go outside for cigars and the women will excuse themselves to the powder room. You'll see!"
"Daisy!" a woman with thick gold glasses and with dark brown eyes come up to them. She had her hair pulled up into a bun and a formal dress on. She holds pieces of paper with her and she walks with some pride. Jack immediately realizes that this is Edna Baker, the keynote speaker.
"Daisy Baker, where have you been? You're supposed to be with your father."
"I'm sorry Mummy, but there was no booze where Daddy was sitting!"
"Daisy please, every time I do something like this, you end up leaning dangerously."
"It numbs the fact that you will be booed off the stage and the audience will throw rotten tomatoes at us,"
"You're exaggerating, that only ever happened once now go towards your father. People will be sitting soon."
Daisy hobbles along grabs a server and plants a big kiss on his mouth and continues her was towards the stage.
Edna turns to Jack. "Thank you for bringing her over here. I don't know what I'm going to do with her. Ever since I started speaking publicly, she's been drinking like there's no tomorrow. It's an embarrassment to the family."
Jack simply nods as they both watch Daisy stumble to the stage.
"I don't entirely blame her," Edna continues. "This is a difficult profession to do, not many people in this day and age take you seriously and all the time spent being criticized, I guess she drinks to take the edge off of humiliation."
Jack looks at Edna.
"But what kind of example would I be if I just gave up after every loud jeer or insult. I'd be just like any other woman these days (figuratively speaking that is), lay back and let the men run the world. Keep in mind, it was the Virgin Mary who brought Jesus into the world."
"That's very inspiring," Jack says, trying to calm the anxious woman down a bit. "If it makes you feel any better, I support you and your cause, it is a very honourable thing to do and the fact that you never give up is very motivating."
"Thank you, son," Edna says with a smile. "I'm glad you're of the modern age."
"I've seen what this world does to women, treats them like possessions, nothing more and shoves them to the side. It's sad if I'm honest with myself."
Edna grins at Jack. "You could be a keynote speaker yourself son."
"I wish," Jack says with a small smile.
"Anyways, thank you for helping my daughter. You'd better find your seat; dinner will be served soon."
"You're welcome," Jack says. "Break a leg up there."
"Thank you," Edna says before disappearing into the crowd.
…
Emma and Peter are sitting as the salads are served to everyone. The couple had seen a few people from work that they were able to chat up with, but to be honest, the best was yet to come.
Eventually, Molly Brown comes to the podium and the room falls silent.
"Good evening to one and all. I am so very glad that your attendance indicates at least some support for women like us. Or if you are simply here for the shiny things, that's fine too."
There is subtle laughter at Molly's joke.
"I'd first like to thank my almost superhuman committee for being able to pull this off, their love and commitment allowed us to put this event on to raise money for Women's Rights, but also widows and survivors from the Titanic. As a survivor myself, I can say that spending hours in that tiny boat in the freezing cold, with little hope of rescue and hearing others around me who were not so fortunate, took it's toll on me, on my very. I know not many of you can relate to the horrific tragedy and sorrow that was felt that night, but I can assure you, it felt like losing you're most precious loved one, a thousand times over. And although I did not lose anyone close to me in the Atlantic, I know many did and this is my way to give love and support to those who need it more than I do. My heart will go on and we shall never forget you. Now can we all please have a moment of silence for all those we lost."
The room is deadly quiet and many people bow their heads in remembrance. Emma reaches over and grabs Peter's hand tightly. The night would haunt them forever and they must remember those who were not as lucky.
Molly clears her throat and continues. "When I got off the boat, I had many people ask me how I survived and I simply said it was because I was unsinkable, in reality, it was because I was unbreakable. Women like us get beaten down on many, many occasions in our lifetime and often, we just stay down. But it is time for us to take our place in this world and get the respect we deserve. Equal pay, equal rights, we should put it to a vote. The world does not revolve around men entirely. In the words of Alice Paul, 'There will never be a new world order until women are a part of it'"
There is a loud applause, mostly from women, but there is scattered applause among the men. Rose wants to stand up to applaud Molly even more, but with Cal watching her like a hawk, it's best to stay put. Jack too is applauding loudly, proud of Molly's words.
"Now will you all please bow your heads as Father Bill of the St. Gabriel Catholic church will lead us in prayer before the main course is served."
Jack looks surprised that Father Bill was leading the prayer, but the pastor gives him a wink before heading up to the podium.
The priest clears his throat.
"O Christ God, bless the food and drink of Thy servants, for holy art Thou, always, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen."
Once the prayer is said the main course, lasagna is served. Emma and Peter smile and chat with the people at their tables.
Meanwhile, Jack across the room remains relatively quiet as Father Bill engages the others in conversation about different gospels. Eventually, the others ask about the beautiful paintings from the unknown artist and Jack admits that they are his. Immediately, everyone begins asking him about how long he'd been an artist and such. He felt more comfortable and more accepted afterward.
If only Rose, on another side of the room was having such a great time. The men around her bantered about the stock market and current business, while the ladies gossiped about the keynote speaker and other pointless rumours. Rose felt awful, Cal had once again trapped her in the world she hated with a burning passion. She does her best to nod along and feign interest, but everything was making her zone out. She wished Wendy had come instead or even trade places with Wendy instead of slowly being suffocated by her mother's society.
Approximately halfway through the meal, Edna Baker comes to the podium to begin her speech. Most of the men around Rose simply continue eating or excuse themselves for a cigar in the adjacent room. Rose wants to put down her cutlery to listen, but the baby is making her hungry so she continues to eat.
Edna Baker's speech is quite inspiring; it is clear to all four of the dinner guests. She cares deeply about her work and has done extensive research on the subject. She talks about the history and treatment of women in education, the workforce and in general. Even now, when women were going to school but never putting their skills to use and how men never saw women as their equals, merely possessions or things to be eyed from a distance. She goes on to list the benefits of having women being able to vote and how the chances of councilmen and leaders' chances of being elected would double by a very large margin. She then lists the many famous women in history from Laura Secord to Harriet Tubman who never gave up and made a name for themselves for acts of heroism and such.
By the end of her speech, Edna Baker is practically red in the face with passion. She pauses and the room breaks into relatively soft applause, scattered in some places. Jack looks at Edna, slightly disappointed that she didn't get a bigger applause, but is sort of used to it based on their discussion earlier.
Rose is very pleased to have listened to Edna's speech, it made her feel empowered and confident, she could make a life for herself and her child, live out her dreams as an actress even. Cal did put a damper on things, muttering to his colleagues that Edna was a crackpot and was clearly grasping at straws to get people to listen to her. Rose wanted to badly to punch him in the face.
…
As the dinner dishes are collected, Molly comes up to thank all the committees for their hard work before the auctioneer comes to the podium. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to announce winners of tonight's auction. I would like to thank everyone for their time and generosity, much of these funds will go to Titanic victims." He holds out his list. "The very first item, an antique silver tea set goes to Johnathan Morgan with a startling 1500 dollars"
There is applause as the auctioneer goes on listing of the highest bids on the items. Emma and Peter listen together, glad that they didn't waste their money on expensive things they didn't need. If the committee had simply asked for a donation, they would've given it willingly, but sponsorship was alright too, they agreed. Rose saw that her paintings went for quite a lot, over 1000 dollars or more, which Cal jokingly went on that it was way more than they were worth.
"And now finally, the most bid on piece of the night, nicknamed; "The Lady in Red" painted by J. Dawson
The portrait of the red-haired woman is shown. There is much applause. Jack couldn't believe it. His painting of Rose was the most desired piece of the auction and someone bought it for more 5000 dollars. Plus, the amount of money, the other two paintings made. Father Bill looks over at Jack from across the table and grins. Jack now has enough money to support himself for months, maybe even years
Rose gasps to herself when she sees the portrait again and the name. J. Dawson
No, it can't be… He was dead. It was probably some other artist. After all, Dawson was a common name. The "J" probably stood for Joel or Jackson or Jeffery. She felt tears come to her eyes. She swallows hard and begins fiddling with the napkin on her lap. She hates that Cal is here, ruining what should have been a night of freedom for her. She simply wanted to have a night to herself, since everything else was being controlled by her mother. Tonight was supposed to be fun and instead, it's a complete nightmare.
"Now ladies and gentlemen, coffee and dessert will be served and the dancing will begin shortly."
Once the noise began to pick up, the patrons around him began congratulating Jack on his success. Jack thanked them all with a bright smile. He went to talk to the auctioneer and the man told him the money would be written in a cheque
She excuses herself, but Cal grabs her arm firmly.
"Where are you going Sweet pea?" he asks through gritted teeth.
"I need to powder my nose," Rose whispers. Cal releases her then.
Instead of heading for the washrooms, Rose headed outside towards the street. Cal had ruined everything that night, once again making her life miserable. She was so desperate to escape this life, she just wanted to end it all. She pulls her hair out as she walks towards the street. She rips off the necklace Cal had given her. Tears are burning her eyes. She felt all the emotions she felt the night she wanted to jump off the ship. It felt like it was deja vu, only this time, there would be no Jack to save her.
She walked to the edge of the street, which was teaming with cars, rushing along into the night.
Rose's breath catches in her throat.
Don't do it... she hears in her head. She wishes Jack would just say those words again, pull her back over the side.
She stops at the curb. The cars rushing by moving her dress, inches from her body.
She thinks back to her child...their child...
"No..." she says to herself. "Jack did not die just to have me end it all..."
His words about her going to make babies and growing old, dying an old lady warm in bed echo in her mind. Tears stream down her face. She steps back from the street.
Rose walks back towards the hall, music now echoing out towards her.
She pauses and then walks around the building, where there are less light and excitement. She finds a spot on the grass in a small garden.
She lays back on the grass and stares up at the sky. The moon is almost full tonight and very few stars could be seen since the bright lights of New York City drowned them out. Rose is suddenly thrown back to the awful night where she lay atop the wreckage of a door and she and Jack drifted, praying for help. Tears filled her eyes and Rose swallowed hard.
If only music could bring him back… she thought.
She lays a hand on her still flat stomach.
At least you're still with me. She thought. I promise that I will love you with every breath in my body!
She begins to sing.
Come, Josephine, my flying machine…
…
"Shall we dance Madame?" Peter asks as the music begins to play.
Emma smiles. "But Peter your leg…"
"Never mind my leg, let's dance up a storm…"
Emma laughs and takes Peter's hand. The band is relatively lively, not anything special, but just enough that the two of them can dance at a decent speed.
"I love you…" Emma whispers to Peter.
"I love you too…" Peter smiles.
…
Jack goes outside for a smoke break. He was slightly bored now that the dancing had started but he had no one to dance with. He had tried to go see Molly, but she was nowhere in sight. He'd also collected the cheques for his paintings, so he was ready to call it a night. Father Bill was still busy with some people, so he thought he'd grab a smoke and then flag a cab back to the church. He can't help but feel excited that he's earned so much money, enough to buy his own house even if he's careful. What makes him feel faint is the fact that people actually liked his artwork and paid money to own it. It had always been his dream to be recognized, but until now that was all it seemed to be, a dream. If it hadn't been for Father Bill, he would never have taken that chance, taken the risk and be rewarded for it. Money meant a little, but the fact that he was living his dream, that was the best prize of all. He looks up to the sky.
"Thank you, God," he smiles.
As he's lighting his cigarette up, he hears a weird noise. He steps away from the building to hear it better with the music and noisy crowds inside. It's unusual, it sounds like an independent melody, so he begins to walk, trying to find the source of the sound.
As he gets closer he knows it is a woman singing. He begins to follow the sound, around the building, towards the back of the hall. It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dark. He sees a woman lying down on the grass, not caring who sees her. He sees the red curls and the flowing blue dress that seemed to match the night sky. As he drew closer, the voice sounded more and more familiar. It was a very sweet and demure voice, quiet but melodic. He definitely knew the song.
Oh say let us fly girl,
Where dear? To the sky girl
Oh you, flying machine
Come, Josephine, in my flying machine
Going up, all on, goodbye…
That was our song… he thought. The last time he heard it, he was clinging to a piece of a door in the Atlantic.
He approaches the woman. He blinks twice to make sure he wasn't seeing things. His heart pounds loudly in his ears and he begins to sweat. He didn't want to fill himself with false hope again. He also didn't want to frighten the woman either. He flicks his cigarette onto the pavement and gets closer.
As she finishes the last few words, the woman sits up. She appears to have been crying. She wipes her tears from her face, then two words escape her mouth.
"Oh, Jack," she says. "I miss you,"
Jack's heart begins racing and his breath becomes shallow. He pinches himself to make sure he's not dreaming. He begins to walk even faster towards her. He wants to get this woman in his arms. He's missed her so much. He has no reservations now that she's said the words that he'd longed to hear.
Rose stands up and turns. She too, gasps, she blinks several times to make sure she isn't hallucinating. She takes a step forward as the man gets closer. She can see his features more clearly. It can't be him! I must be dreaming!
"Jack?"