AFTER TITANIC
Chapter Four
It had been two days since Jack’s proposal.
Now the two lovers were standing in front of the captain, ready to be married.
The past few days have been busy for the lovebirds. First, Jack had to find the
captain to perform the wedding. Then, they had to find someone to be a witness.
A nice steerage girl that Rose had befriended had loaned her best white dress,
and the girl’s older brother loaned Jack a simple suit. Finally, everything was
ready for the ceremony.
"Nervous?" Jack had asked, before
he went up to meet the captain.
"No. As long as I have you, I’ll never
be nervous again." Rose smiled, desperately wanting to kiss him. She
wished they hadn’t agreed to wait until the captain pronounced them man and
wife to kiss again. She longed for his warm lips so much.
"I’ll see you up there, Rose. I love
you." Jack gently caressed her cheek, then headed towards the captain
before she could respond.
"I love you, too, Jack. I can’t wait to
be Mrs. Jack Dawson," Rose whispered to herself, clutching the bouquet in
her trembling hands. She guessed she was nervous after all.
The music began. Rose slowly walked up the
red carpeted pathway leading to Jack and the captain. "I’m heading towards
my future." Rose smiled to herself in satisfaction.
"She’s a lovely bride." The captain
squeezed Jack’s shoulder before Rose reached them. "Make her happy, lad.
She’s all you’ll ever need."
"Hi, Jack." Rose smiled, once she
reached them.
"Hello, Rose." Jack smiled, his
blue eyes brimming over with love.
"Let’s begin," the captain replied.
"Since we don’t have a audience, there’s no need for a big speech. I’ll
just make this short and sweet. Do you, Jack, take Rose for your lawfully
wedded wife, to have and told, for richer or poorer, through sickness and
health, until death do you part?"
"Yes. I do." Jack smiled
confidently. There was no doubt that he wanted to spend the rest of his life
with Rose.
"And do you, Rose, take Jack as your
lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, for richer and for poorer,
through sickness and health, until death do you part?"
Rose looked at the captain as if the answer
was obvious; especially after all they went through to get to this moment.
"I do."
"Well then, I pronounce you man and
wife. You may kiss the bride."
The kiss that sealed the marriage was the sweetest
and most passionate kiss that they had ever had. They were now man and wife,
and looked towards the future.
Their honeymoon was spent in the infirmary
where they had been spending their nights. But instead of sleeping in separate
beds, they were allowed to share a bed, now that they were man and wife.
"Oh, Jack, I am so happy." Rose
looked up at her husband, who now seemed to be deep in thought. "Jack,
what’s wrong? You don’t regret marrying me, do you?"
Jack snapped out of his reverie and laughed. "No,
Rose, I don’t regret marrying you. But you may regret marrying me. It just
occurred to me that we have nowhere to go after the ship docks tomorrow. I have
no money and nowhere in New York to stay. I don’t see how I’ll be able to
support you."
"Don’t worry about that now. We’ll think
of something. In the meantime, this is our wedding night. No more seriousness.
Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, ma’am." Jack smiled, leaning
down to kiss his wife. "I love you, Rose. I just want you to be
happy."
"And I am happy, Jack. I’m happy with
you."
"Then that’s all I want. For you to be
with me. Always." Jack caressed her hair. He couldn’t believe how
beautiful she was and that she was all his. Her love was the most precious gift
he’d ever received.
Rose snuggled close to Jack as he yawned
tiredly. It had been a long day. It had tired him out immensely. He would have
loved to get some sleep, but he didn’t want to stop looking at Rose.
"I guess you want to get some
sleep." Rose looked away from his gaze. "Since we disembark tomorrow,
I think it’s a good idea. We can figure out what we’re going to do
tomorrow."
"Rose…" Jack began.
"I love you, Jack. Good night." She
shut her eyes and drifted off into a comfortable sleep.
"Good night, my darling Rose." Jack
smiled, tenderly kissing her forehead before drifting off.