Jock
Southampton
April 9, 1912

"You're rushing again."

The band let out a collective sigh as the bandmaster, Wallace Hartley, scolded Jock once more. Jock removed his violin and mute from his shoulder, unable to hide the smile on his face.

"At this rate, we'll never be ready for the Titanic!" Hartley berated, lightly smacking Jock's hand with the back of his bow.

"A break, Wallace?" Georges Krins, the other violinist, begged. The other band members murmured in agreement.

Hartley studied them carefully before at last nodding. "Ten minutes, gentlemen, and then more practice. It seems like we've gotten worse over the last two days rather than better."

As Jock prepared to stand to stretch his legs, Hartley roughly pushed him back into his seat. "Not so fast there, boy-o," he said with a stern expression that reminded Jock of his father. "You need to practice this Strauss and perfect the tempo before I'll allow you on board tomorrow."

Jock couldn't help but narrow his eyes as he watched the other band members leave the small hotel drawing room they had been practicing in for the last two days. Jock knew he hadn't been focused since arriving in Southampton a few days ago, but it was hardly his fault. His fianceé, Mary, had told him she was expecting his child just before he had boarded his train to Southampton from Dumfries. He had been elated, of course. Jock, who his friends teased couldn't stay in one place for more than a day, had somehow fallen in love with a girl from his hometown. So much so that they had been planning on getting married. The announcement of Mary's pregnancy had at last settled "The Great Matter" as Mary's mother teased. They would marry as soon as Jock was back from the Titanic's maiden voyage.

At the thought, Jock stood and went to the nearby window, careful to look over his shoulder to make sure Hartley was no longer in the room to berate him. The view overlooked the pier, which normally would've given him a clear view of the ocean, but today it was obstructed by the largest ship known to man. Jock was still in shock that he would be among the band on the grandest vessel that had ever sailed across the Atlantic. He had certainly sailed on luxurious liners before, but had always been put up in steerage among the crew's quarters. Titanic's luxury was so grand that not only was the band's accommodations in second class, but each member had been given a free additional ticket!

A clap on Jock's shoulder made him jump. He turned, to his relief, to see John Woodward, one of the two cellists in the band, and who Jock had spent an entire winter with in Jamaica. He was wearing a disappointed expression, his large mustache twisted in a scowl.

"It's not like you to be so unprepared," Woodward said, his dark eyes squinting beneath his round spectacles. "And on our grandest adventure yet! I'd say, this is far more exciting than Jamaica."

Jock shrugged, shuffling his boots on the plush carpet. "I think I'd rather be in Kingston than the English coast this time of year."

Woodward let out a heart laugh. "Regardless, you should probably use this time to practice so Hartley can't toss you overboard."

"Who says he'll let me on board in the first place?" Jock said with a twinkle in his eye, earning another laugh from Woodward.

"Say, where's your girl?" Woodward asked, glancing into the hotel lobby which was abuzz with guests. "Didn't you use your extra ticket?"

"I did, and more," Jock admitted. "But Mary's not coming. I brought my sister and her two children."

"Blimey, you've earned a place in heaven for that," Woodward said. "But how on earth did you have enough for the extra tickets? Even a steerage ticket costs nearly as much as a first class ticket on other liners!"

"Georges, Teddy, and Roger weren't going to use theirs," Jock replied, casually leaning against the window sill. "So I'm sharing a room with my nephew while my sister, her baby, and her maid share another."

"Lucky bloke," Woodward sighed. "I'm lucky enough to be sharing a room with Hartley, Clarke, and Georges."

"A full string quartet in a room together," Jock teased. "I'm sure Hartley will have you practicing well into the evening."

Woodward shrugged. "Speaking of, I better leave before Hartley's on my case about not letting you practice."

After a moment longer of staring out the window at Titanic, Jock made his way back to the stiff chair he had been playing in all afternoon and took his violin back out of its case. As he tightened his bow and rested his violin underneath his chin, his fingers lightly brushed the initials A.H. on the underside of the instrument. What would his father think knowing his son was about to be a violinist on the grandest ship in the world?

As the first notes of Strauss's waltz rang across the room, Jock couldn't help but smirk.

He couldn't wait to see his father's face when he returned home only for him to find out not only was he going to get married to Mary right away, but she was expecting his child as well.