CHANGES
Chapter Twenty-Two
Authors Note:
There will probably be a lot of cuss words
and graphical scenes used in the next few chapters, so if you're offended by
such things, I suggest you don't read. If you choose to ignore this, don't
email me and complain :)
"I can't believe we gave in." Rose
sighed as she ripped into a random box.
Jack smiled, settling down next to her.
"It got them off our backs, didn't it? 'Sides, this place isn't that
bad."
Rose groaned, falling back on the floor.
"Yeah, about that. I'd rather them bug us about moving here than constant
questions about our plans for marriage."
"Maybe we should just run off and
elope," Jack suggested, raising an eyebrow.
Shaking her head, Rose gave him a considering
look. "Tempting, Mr. Dawson, very tempting. However, you know if we did
that, we would never hear the end of it."
"Maybe we should just get married, then.
It's not like it'll change much with us. We're already living together."
"What happened to the rebel child in
you?" Rose teased. "We're adults. We shouldn't have to give into our
parents demands whenever they want."
Jack grinned and helped her to a standing
position before wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her. "Are you
sure you're not just avoiding becoming a Dawson?" he murmured, a light
tone in his voice.
"No," Rose responded, kissing him
soundly.
Three Months Later
"Just leave, Jack," Rose yelled,
causing the one-and-a-half-year-old to jump and drop her toy with a loud thud.
"No, I won't leave. This is my house
just as much as it is yours," Jack retorted, crossing his arms defiantly.
Rose narrowed her anger filled eyes before
grabbing her daughter and her keys. "Fine. We'll leave," she said
before slamming the apartment door behind her.
Jack was immediately at her heels as she
stomped through the parking lot. "Where the hell do you think you're
taking my daughter?"
Whirling around, her glare landed on him,
hard. "I'm taking my daughter wherever I damn well please!"
"Like hell you are," he growled,
stepping closer and attempting to take the confused child from her hysterical
mother. But he underestimated Rose's fury, howling in pain as her hand came
into contact with his face. "Bitch," he seethed.
"Asshole," she shot back, buckling
Amanda into her car seat. "Rot in hell," she said before climbing
into the vehicle and speeding off.
*****
Six hours later, there was a loud knock on
the door at Frankie DeWitt-Bukater's New York City apartment. Jumping off the
couch, he was surprised to see his sister and niece standing there. "Rose?
What are you doing here?"
Rose bit her lip. "You said if I ever
needed to get away from Jack, I could always come to you..." she said
quietly.
Frankie surveyed his sisters appearance.
Never had he seen her look so...vacant, disconnected. "Of course. Come on
in. Why don't you lay her down on my bed?" he asked, noticing Amanda's
sleeping state. Rose nodded. "Right down there. Last room on the
right."
"Thank you," she murmured. A few
minutes later she came back into the kitchen. "I'm sorry to just show up
like this."
Frankie shrugged. "Don't worry about it.
But, um, care to tell me what happened?"
Rose sighed, her gaze dropping to the floor
before meeting her brothers. "We had a fight. I don't even remember what
it was about. He said some horrible things and I said some and it just got out
of hand. I had to get away from him, but he wouldn't leave. So I grabbed
Mandy...I wasn't going to leave her there with him like that, not that he'd
hurt her, but, I don't know..." Her voice trailed off. Silence filled the
space until she spoke up again. "God, I'm such an idiot."
"Why do you say that?" Frankie
asked, handing her a drink.
Leaning against the counter, she stared at
him with a strange, twisted smile. "Because, he's Jack! I should've known
that this would end up being a mess. I mean, we were born to hate each other.
Just delusional for awhile there." Exhaling loudly, she sank down to the
floor, her head in her hands. "But it hurts so much..."
Frankie sat down next to her, putting an arm
around her shoulders. Rose sighed again and leaned up against him. "You're
wrong there, Rosie. You two are destined for greatness. It's just one fight.
You'll overcome it, you'll see. He loves you too much to just let you go."
"I know," Rose whispered, finally
letting her tears flow freely.
*****
"What'll it be?" the blonde-haired
woman asked the dejected-looking blonde-haired man. He glanced up briefly
before dropping his sky-blue eyes again.
"Vodka. Straight."
The woman nodded and moved to get his drink.
"Haven't seen you around here before. Where you from?" she asked,
placing the glass in front of him.
"Boston," was his half-hearted
response.
"Figured you were American," she
said with a light laugh. The man looked up and managed a small smile. She took
it as a sign and held out her hand. "Kaci London, bartender
extraordinaire."
"Jack Dawson," he returned, taking
the offered hand.
Kaci smiled warmly. "You're looking a
little down, Jack. What's ailing ya?"
Jack shrugged and took a swig of his drink.
"Life."
"Woman problems, eh?" Kaci asked,
continuing their conversation as she served another customer.
"Something like that," Jack
muttered.
"Aw, c'mon, you can talk to me. Hey, I
get off in about ten minutes, we could go upstairs so you don't have all these
folk poking their noses in your business."
Jack studied the woman for a second. Maybe it
was desperation to get all his thoughts off his chest or perhaps it was the
alcohol, but he found himself agreeing.