AFTER TITANIC
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Rose woke up in the hospital chair, but this
time it was Thomas Andrews who stood before her.
"Ready to go, young Rose?" he
asked, stretching out his hand.
"Yes." Rose nodded. "How is
Jack?"
"He's fine. Just worried about his Rose.
He said you left in tears this morning."
"They didn't give me enough time with
him. I wasn't ready to go," Rose cried.
"Shh, Rose. Don't cry. You'll have more
time with him tonight. That's what matters. And I bet you have a lot to share
with him. So let's hurry to him instead of wasting time in here."
Taking his hand, Rose followed Thomas Andrews
down to the third class level and into Jack's tiny cabin, which was empty.
"Where's Jack?" Rose asked, looking
around the tiny cabin.
"I don't know." Thomas Andrews
shook his head. "But he should be here soon. He told me to bring you
here."
"Rose!" Jack entered the room and
immediately took her in his arms. "I'm sorry I'm late. I got held
up."
"I'll leave you two alone." Thomas
Andrews smiled at the lovebirds and left the room.
"Oh, Jack, so much has happened today.
Tommy said his first word." Rose smiled as Jack released her and led her
deeper into the room.
"Oh, really? What was it?"
"Well, Mother brought him over to the
hospital, and he pointed at you and said dada. Jack, his first word was
dada."
Jack was stunned. His little boy knew he was
his father and loved him and he wasn't there to see it. "That's wonderful,
Rose."
"Oh, Jack, he misses you so much. He
started to cry when you didn't get up to play with him. So did Molly. They love
you so much. You just have to come back home."
"I want to, Rose. Really I do.
But...things are so much easier here. I don't have to worry about much except
you and the children, but I know you're well taken care of."
Rose didn't like how this was sounding. It
was like he was saying good-bye. "Jack...I don't like this. You are going
to wake up, aren't you?"
Jack just looked at her, then back down at
the floor. How could he make her see where he was coming from? How hard it was
for him to try to get back. That was the reason why he was late meeting her. He
was trying so hard to be awake when she woke up. But he now knew that wouldn't
happen tonight. Every time he tried, it drained him.
Rose looked into his blue eyes and for the
first time saw how exhausted he was.
"I'm just so tired, Rose. Sometimes all
I want to do is rest and not think about anything. But that doesn't mean I
don't want to come home, because I do. And I'll keep trying to, Rose. As long
as I'm able, I'm going to keep trying to come home to you and the children. I
promise."
Rose now had tears in her eyes. "I
understand, Jack. I understand, and I promise to be patient."
Jack smiled and gently touched her face.
"Thank you, Rose. That means a lot to me. And maybe when you come back to
visit me, I won't be here. I'll be awake and waiting for you to wake up."
Rose smiled. Then, that morning with Cal came
flooding back. "Oh, Jack, I forgot to tell you...I ran into Cal this
morning."
"What?" Jack was more alert.
"What did he want?"
"To apologize for his actions on
Titanic. He sounded so sincere, but I don't buy it."
Jack was silent. He didn't know what to say.
"But what took the cake was when he came
in with his newborn son and declared he was naming him Jack Dawson Hockley. Can
you believe that? Like the fact he's naming his son after you is going to make
all his crimes go away." Rose was once again angry.
"I don't know, Rose. Naming his firstborn
son after me...that's a lot. He may be sincere this time, Rose." Jack
laughed. "Man, I wish I could see that. Caledon Hockley apologizing and
then naming his son after the man he hates."
"He said that even if the worst happens,
there will always be a Jack Dawson on the planet, and that the world needed a
lot more of them." Rose smiled.
"Well, we'll see if he's sincere or not.
His true colors will show themselves sooner or later." Jack sighed tiredly
and leaned back against the headboard.
"Jack?" Rose was concerned. How
draining was it to keep her here and talk to her? If it was too draining, she'd
leave...even though she didn't want to leave him, ever.
"I'm all right, Rose. I'm just tired.
That's all. I'll be fine," Jack reassured her.
"Maybe I should...go."
"You don't have to if you don't want to.
I know how much you want to stay."
"But if I stay, you'll be too tired to
try waking up. So I'll leave now. I'll be back again if you don't wake
up." Rose got up. "I'll head back now."
"I’ll walk you."
"But, Jack..."
"No objections, Rose. It's best if I
walk you. Some of the people here are bitter. If you're not escorted by Tommy,
Fabri, or Mr. Andrews, or myself...they'll make sure you don't leave here. Do
you understand?"
Rose nodded and took his hand. "Let's
go."
They walked in comfortable silence. Rose
stepped closer to Jack as they walked past the other third class passengers and
felt their glares on the back of her neck. She truly was scared.
"Jack..."
"Don't worry, Rose. You're safe."
Jack put a reassuring arm around her as they turned up the first class
stairway.
"Jack..."
"I love you, Rose." Jack turned to
her as they stepped into the hospital room.
"How do I go back?"
"Just sit in that chair and close your
eyes. Think about home...think about the twins and your mother and how much
they need you." Jack smiled and wiped a stray red curl away from her eyes.
"What if I can't do it?"
"You'll be able to, Rose. I know you
can. I'll stay here with you and hold your hand until you do." Jack led
her to the chair and knelt down beside her. "Go home, Rose. Go home and
take care of our children."
"Good-bye, Jack." Rose closed her
eyes and followed Jack's directions.
"Until we meet again, my love."
Jack lightly kissed her hand as she drifted off back to the real world.
She awoke with a peaceful feeling. She had
spoken to Jack and spent a reasonable amount of time with him. For the first
time since the shooting, Rose felt at peace.