News
February 1914
"You've grown a whole inch, Cora!" Rose stared at her measuring tape before showing it to the girl who was excitedly jumping up and down.
"Is that a lot?" Cora asked curiously. She watched how Rose drew another line on the wall. It was placed a significant amount above the previous one. It made her giggle loudly into the room.
"I have to start making you some new clothes, missy." Cora's body wasn't the only thing that had grown in the past year and a half. Rose's personal development had grown along with it. Within the span of months, she managed to transform herself into an independent young woman. They now had a life worth living. It still wasn't much, but it was comfortable enough to feel satisfied. Work brought food on the table and a roof over their heads, and it had even made it possible for Rose to make friends. The attic had become their haven. Walls covered in photographs and pictures from magazines and the pink curtains welcomed a warm glow into the room whenever the sun shined through the window. Rose's face moved and she caught her reflection in the mirror. A sense of pride made her smile.
"Now we must hurry, Rose. Or I'll be late for school." Cora pushed through the door and rushed down the stairs to meet the other women for breakfast.
"Good morning, Cora love." Winifred hugged her and placed a gentle kiss on the top of her head. Rose followed closely behind her and raised an eyebrow as she looked at the table.
"How come you're already up?" she asked at Bernice who was slowly stirring her cup of coffee.
"Do you mean: 'Why are you still up?'" She chuckled and took a sip of her beverage. Bernice was the same age as Rose and moved in only a few months ago, yet she had managed to capture everyone's heart within the span of days. Rose somewhat felt connected to her past, for she had ran away from home; from her parents who granted her nothing but a dark and cruel future. Now, Bernice danced for her money and slept with rich men, but she did not seem to mind. At least, that is what she told everyone else. She was the warmth and light of this house as she kept everyone's spirits high.
"A letter has arrived for you, Rose." Winifred handed over an envelope.
"A letter?" Rose looked up in utter confusion. She hadn't received a letter in ages.
"Oh la la la," the other girls laughed, "Have you got something to tell us?"
Ignoring their teasing remarks, she ripped it open and folded out the paper. Within seconds she recognized the handwriting.
My Dear Rose,
I know this letter must come as a surprise to you for I always much rather hear the sound of your voice through the phone. Only, this time I cannot find the courage to speak to you, therefore I am writing my words down like the coward that I am. If you must know, I have put myself into an unimaginable situation. I am carrying the child of a man I barely know. I believe it happened at the New Year's party back in New York, but I will spare you the details. I feel quite hopeless to be fair and fear the thought that you find me foolish or perhaps even hate me. If you do so, please to spare my feeling. Do not write me back. Use this letter only as a source of information.
I love you, always,
Elizabeth.
"Jesus, Mary and Joseph." Rose gasped as she covered her mouth with her trembling hand. To make sure she wasn't dreaming, she read the letter once again. It was real and she felt beyond horrible for her friend.
"No love letter?"
Without responding, Rose almost crunched up the entirety of the letter before placing it inside of her purse. "Come on, Cora. We must catch the bus." She stood up, pulled the child's backpack off the floor, and collected both their coats. Even though she was so young, Cora had learned to read her guardian's body language like no other. Without words being spoken out loud, she could sense whenever she was sad or happy, tired or excited. Yet right now, she couldn't read anything at all. She was confused. Cora simply followed her outside and waited until she could rush inside of her classroom. Rose blew her a kiss one last time, but young Cora had already disappeared between her classmates.
"Miss Cartmell, I was hoping to catch you today."
"Yes?" Rose turned around to face Cora's teacher. The woman's complexion reminded her of an elf; kind and majestic.
"I was hoping I could speak to you about Cora's school results."
"Right… you want to do it now?"
"It can wait, miss Cartmell. I know you're busy. But if you manage to find a spot in your schedule this week, I'd be very much obliged."
"I'll see what I can arrange, miss Blythe, but I am afraid I can't get any time off from work during the day."
"I understand," she moved her eyes through the room, thinking, "You're picking up Cora from school today?"
"Yes."
"How about a moment after school? I promise you it won't be long."
Rose nodded her head. "All right. I think that will do."
Her desk was already stacked with files that needed translation at the time Rose entered the office. It had become her specialty to convert English texts into French and German and the other way around. The whole office relied on her skill. Despite the hard work and long hours, Rose managed to earn a decent amount of money.
She placed her purse underneath her desk and threw her coat onto the peg that was standing in the corner. All the other girls were already hectically ticking the time away, but Rose couldn't get herself to get started. She stared at her typewriter, then moved her gaze to the French document, which letters seemed to dance in front of her eyes. There was something to be done first.
Usually, she would use the telephone at work to call her friend every Friday afternoon, but Rose found it to be too long of a wait to get some clarity on the whole situation. Pushing her chair aside with grate force, Rose could feel the eyes of her colleagues following her as she headed towards the grand hall.
"Elizabeth." Rose breathed as she finally heard a connection.
"Oh Rose, please don't. You're going to make me cry." Elizabeth whispered from the other side of the line.
"I really don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything. I've been a fool, Rose. A big fool."
"No!" She hissed through the phone, "Listen, Elizabeth. I want to help you just like you helped me."
"I think that is very kind of you, but there is nothing to be done. Even my father wants nothing to do with me anymore."
"What I've learned is that there is always something to be done. Listen, I know there is a doctor in Philadelphia who can take care of your situation. I can call him if you want, and you'll be on your way within a few days."
Elizabeth stayed quiet for a few seconds and Rose could hear she was in fact crying. "If you call him, Rose, there will be a big chance that people find out you're still alive. And besides, my faith is too strong to get rid of it. I know God will punish me for it."
"Then come to San Francisco. You can stay with me and the other girls until the baby is born and find a family who is willing to adopt it. It will avoid scandal."
"I love you, Rose. Truly. I am grateful for your concern, but there is nothing to be done than to marry the father."
"Please don't." Rose cried. Her stomach clenched together; her heart felt heavy, "From the bottom of my heart I am begging you not to marry that man."
"I have to go now, Rose. Mabel is calling for me." Then, the line died. Rose smashed the phone back onto the hook and groaned. Pinching the skin on the top of her hand, she wanted to believe she was simply existing inside of a bad dream. But, when nothing happened, another groan fell from her lips.
"Bad news?" Ursula Jackson, Mr. Mills' secretary asked her as she headed over. The woman's gaze was cold, and Rose knew that, even though a year had gone by, she still didn't like her.
"No." Rose simply said.
"Right," She cleared her throat, "Mr. Mills wants you to finish the documents that are on your desk by the end of the week. He is out of town for a few days so you can hand them over to me."
"Of course, miss Jackson." Rose turned around and walked away from the woman as fast as she could. Still, her heart felt heavy from Elizabeth's news; it made the time go by unbelievable slow. But as soon as the clock hit five, Rose rushed out the office the get on the first bus that passed by.
In the cold, Cora's dark curls blew because of the strong wind as she was the only child left on the schoolyard.
"Darling, why aren't you inside?" Rose asked worriedly, "It is freezing outside."
Cora looked up at her and shrugged her shoulders. "Miss Blythe had to talk to other teachers first."
"But that doesn't mean you have to wait outside." Rose took off her scarf and wrapped it around Cora's trembling body before heading back inside.
"Cora, can you wait here for a minute whilst I speak to miss Blythe?" Rose asked as they were standing in the hallway.
Cora nodded her head, took out a book out of her bag and leaned her full body against the wall. When Rose entered the classroom, miss Blythe was patiently waiting behind her desk. She pointed her hand at the chair in front of her. "It is so good to see you, miss Cartmell."
"I hope it is," Rose chuckled nervously as she sat down, "To be fair, you are having me quite worried."
"There is nothing to be worried about, miss Cartmell. On the contrary," Miss Blythe shook her head and opened one of her drawers to collect a pile of papers. She laid them in front of her and spread them like a deck of money at the bank, "I wanted to talk to you about Cora's school results. They're good. Far from good actually; they're outstanding."
Holding her breath for a second, Rose leaned over the inspect her work thoroughly. Cora's handwriting was neat without barely any spelling mistakes. She remembered herself when she was a young girl and how her governess would scold her when it came to her academic abilities. Even from simply scanning the paperwork, Rose could tell that the little girl beheld a capability which she hadn't noticed before. It had not occurred to her that Cora was already interested in literature and newspapers. When buying groceries, she collected the right amount of money before Rose could even blink. In a way, she felt ashamed of her oblivion.
"I don't know what to say, miss Blythe."
"Of course, but I think now is a good moment to discuss this matter before it can go wrong?"
"What can go wrong?" Rose could feel a knot starting to form in her stomach.
"About ten years ago, I had a pupil in my class who was highly intelligent like Cora. Eventually, his behavior started to change because of the lack intellectual challenges I was giving him, so he stopped doing schoolwork all together. His parents believed that school wasn't the place for him and took him out so he could start working. I didn't notice it back then," she sighed, "Even teachers make mistakes, miss Cartmell and highly regret it. Therefore, I feel it is my duty to not make the same mistake again."
"I understand. Although you shouldn't be worried about me taking Cora out of school. I know the advantages of having a good education, especially for women."
Miss Blythe gave her a lopsided grin and placed the papers back inside the drawer. "I can see that you are a modern woman, miss Cartmell. But I still want to provide Cora more stimulation. I was thinking about letting Cora take extra classes with the older students. Not more than twice a week, for I don't want to exhaust the child."
"Miss Blythe," Rose said, "I appreciate your involvement with Cora's education and wellbeing very much. She couldn't be more grateful with a teacher like you. The only thing is that I simply don't have the money for extra lessons."
"Who said anything about money?"
Still taken back by the news she had just gotten; Rose left the classroom with her heart beating loudly against her chest. There was a sense of pride underneath the puzzlement she felt about the situation. Cora beheld a form of power that most people would envy.
"I am done, darling," Rose said as she walked out of the classroom before staring straight into the eyes of a dark-haired man, "Oh, hello."
He stood up and smiled at her. "I hope I am not frighting you."
"You're not. I was just not expecting anyone."
"At least you're not the only one being put on the spot for you child's behavior." He looked at the boy sitting next to him. He had his arms crossed and stared at the floor.
"Far from it, sir. My cousin Cora is doing quite well. Perhaps even too well."
"Cousin, of course!" The man laughed and shook his head, "A woman as young and radiant as you could not even possibly be a mother."
"I am going on twenty, sir. Therefore, it is technically possible." In another world she would have been a married woman by now and perchance be carrying the child of a man she hated. But it was not something to be worried about no longer.
"Forgive me for my inappropriate remark." The man scratched the back of his neck.
"You're forgiven, sir."
"I am Frank," he stretched his arm to shake her hand, "Frank Rodgers."
"Rose Cartmell."
There was that smile again; charming yet intangible. "It was a pleasure to meet you, miss Cartmell, but now I must go now and talk about my son's mischief."
"Good luck, Mr. Rodgers."
It was already pitch black when the girls arrived home. Only the light of candles shined through the windows. Electricity was a luxury everyone in the house could only dream of. Rose pushed the front door open, her body felt tired; all she wanted to do was fell down onto her bed and crawl underneath her sheets. The scent of boiled vegetables still roamed around the house and voiced echoed from outside the kitchen.
"Rose, Cora, is that you?" Doreen called.
"Yes!" Rose called back before entering the room. Everyone was already enjoying their meal.
"Why are you so late?" Winifred asked.
"I was called in to school to talk about Cora." Rose grabbed two plates and filled them with potatoes and cauliflower. There was only a tiny piece of meat left.
Cora took it and placed it in front of her. "Can I have some water, please?"
Doreen leaned forward to face the girl, "Cora, isn't it woh-tah?"
"No, it's wah-ter."
"Oh, how I miss your little accent." Doreen laughed as she lit up a cigarette.
Winifred sighed as she looked at Doreen "You know I don't like it when you smoke inside of the house."
"Since when?"
"I just don't like it and you know it," she turned her attention back to Rose who was on the verge of inhaling the food that was on her plate, "I hope it wasn't bad."
"Far from it, actually. Miss Blythe, Cora's teacher, has brought to my attention that her school achievements are basically brilliant. She wants to offer her extra lessons with the other pupils."
Everyone stayed quiet for a little while before Bernice was the only one who became excited. "Isn't that great!"
Rose quickly realized that none of the girls had ever had a form of proper education. They couldn't quite grasp the reality of it. The past of a rich girl still lingered inside of her. What she had been brought up with were mostly uncommon for the others. This moment brought her back to the first few weeks of her arrival at the house. How she had demanded to find a good school for Cora, even though she had no money.
"She can help me with sewing," Doreen had told Rose, "Bring even more food to the table."
"She is only six years old, Doreen, and there is enough food on the table. The only thing she needs is to be properly taken care of."
The silence remained after Bernice's outburst of excitement. "How are you going to pay for it?" Winifred eventually asked.
"Miss Blythe told me that I don't have to pay anything extra," Rose turned her attention back to Cora, "But first I need her to agree. I want it to be Cora's own decision."
"And you think a seven year old is able to make such a decision?"
Rose simply nodded. She was certain of it.