AFTER DISASTER
Chapter Three

Cal and Ruth were standing behind them, watching as Jack and Rose flew at the bow of the ship. Jack and Rose lowered their arms and got off of the railing.

"Hello, Rose," said Ruth in a disappointed tone.

"Hello, Mother," said Rose in an equally disappointed tone.

"Rose, come on. Let's get out of here," whispered Jack, but Rose stayed put.

"Jack," said Cal. "You're still alive, are you?"

"Well, I'm standing right here, aren't I?" Jack told him in a harsh, sarcastic tone. The mood was full of hatred and disgust.

"Clearly," said Cal in an unhappy tone. "Rose, Sweetpea, come on. Let's get you away from this filthy rat of a man."

"No!" snapped Rose.

"What?" asked Cal.

"I said no! I'm not going with you!" Rose snapped.

"Rose DeWitt Bukater, you'd better…" Ruth began, but Rose cut her off.

"No, Mother! Rose DeWitt Bukater died on the Titanic! I told this to Molly Brown! I am Rose Dawson!" Rose shouted at her.

"Rose, dear, this man can't support you! I can!" Cal tried to reason with her.

"I don't care, Cal! You just want me so you can control me! Jack wants me because he loves me!" Rose snapped. She wrapped her arms around Jack's neck.

"Fine. You want him? That's fine!" Cal snapped. "By the way, I put the Heart of the Ocean in the pocket of that coat!"

"I know!" Rose snapped. "I'm sorry, but if you want it back, you'll have to dive to the bottom of the harbor." She pointed to the water and glared at him. "You want it? Go get it."

"You threw it into the ocean?" Cal exclaimed. He made a lunge towards Rose, but Jack jumped in front of her and punched him in the face.

"Don't touch her!" he shouted, furious. Cal stepped back a bit.

"Fine. I hope you enjoy your lives together," he said quietly, and he walked away.

"Rose, you are giving up everything you've ever known," said Ruth.

"Everything I've ever loved is right here," said Rose, her arms around Jack's neck again. Ruth nodded.

"I'll see you later, Rose," she said. She followed Cal.

"She's kind of right, Rose. I mean, she didn't word it correctly, but she's right. You gave up high society. You gave up eating large meals. You gave up nice clothes. All for me," Jack told her.

"Exactly," Rose said. Jack smiled at her. "Because if you jump, I jump." Jack kissed her, and the two of them walked back to the bow.

*****

Later that evening, Jack was walking around on the outside deck. The stars were out, and Jack was smoking a cigarette. He just wandered around, hoping to run into Fabrizio, when he ended up running into Lynette instead.

"Hello, Lynette," he said.

"Hello, Jack," said Lynette.

"Where are you off to?" asked Jack.

"To find Martin," replied Lynette.

"Have you seen Fabrizio?" asked Jack.

"He went down with the ship," replied Lynette.

"Oh," said Jack. "Well, good luck with finding Martin, and if you see Rose, tell her I'm up here."

"All right, Jack," said Lynette, running off again. Right after Lynette left, Rose showed up.

"That was a pretty fast message delivery," Jack said.

"No. I just knew you were up here," Rose said. She took his cigarette and smoked it.

"Well, that wasn't very ladylike, was it?" Jack asked.

"Jack, when was the last time I was ladylike?" Rose asked him.

"Three days ago," Jack replied. They laughed. "Where's Joshua?"

"Asleep," said Rose. She walked towards the stern of the Carpathia, followed by Jack.

"You all right, Rose?" Jack asked. She shook her head. "What's wrong?" Rose sighed.

"Nothing is the same since the Titanic sank. Families were ripped apart. Lynette lost her husband. Joshua lost his parents," she said.

"Well, think about it, Rose. If that hadn't happened, then you might still be marrying Cal, Lynette wouldn't have met Martin, and Joshua wouldn't have us," Jack told her. "Rose, things happen for a reason."

"I just wish that you still had that drawing," Rose said in a depressed tone. Jack wrapped his arms around her.

"We could always do it again," said Jack. "My artistic talents aren't going anywhere."

"It wouldn't be the same, Jack," said Rose, walking away. Jack followed her. "Everything is gone. Our drawing, the Heart of the Ocean, all of our clothes, that car." Jack turned Rose around and hugged her.

"The only thing we need is each other, and that's all we'll ever need," Jack whispered. Rose dug her face into his shoulder and started crying. Jack kissed the top of her head. "It'll be all right, Rose. Everything will be fine."

Chapter Four
Stories