CALIFORNIA PARADISE
Chapter Thirty-Five
"So, what’s your story?" July
sixteenth had been brought upon them just two hours ago, and the princess had
been forced to bed and only fell asleep with the consolation that the sooner
she went to bed, the sooner she could wake up and celebrate. Meanwhile, Jack
and Rose were just about ready to turn out the lights.
Rose sat propped up by the satin pillows, and
her silk nightgown reflected all the colors of the light. "I’ve told you
my story."
"Not all of it." Jack was strictly
against pajamas. He sat in underpants and T-shirt while he twirled a strand of
Rose’s hair around his finger.
"Are you sure you want to hear
this?"
"Have I ever lied to you before?"
"The first eleven years of my life were
pure heaven. We had this big, modern mansion and I could do whatever I wanted.
My mother always wanted to reform me and make me into a lady. And she did, but
only to some extent. My father happened to have the kindest soul in the
universe, and even Mother wouldn’t dare talk back to him. He was never cruel,
and I’ve never once seen him lay a finger on her or raise his voice. It’s just
that when you look into his eyes, you know you shouldn’t mess with him.
He taught me to fight with words, not through hatred. I could go on for ages
about all the values he taught me, and if it hadn’t been for those values, I
might not be here today. Mother taught me values in her own way. She showed me
how to be a fighter and be persistent. But that was all shattered when she
remarried. I was thirteen, and even then I could tell that Hiber was trouble. I
was right. Slowly, I began to watch my own mother become a hypocrite to her
words. He hit her, and he raised his voice. I loathed him through
and through. I found him weak and stupid. He sensed this, and had Mother send
me away to school. There, I picked my friends carefully. I studied everyone and
finally made my selections. I picked the rebels. The ones that fought for their
freedom from that prison they called a boarding school, and you could just see
their whole bodies shake with confusion at not being free.
Unfortunately, after only a year, the school began to take its toll on them.
They soon turned into robots that wouldn’t have left the school if killer
sharks attacked. I found myself alone. I begged for mercy from my parents, but
Hiber did a good job of keeping the letters from reaching Mother. My next
tactic was to fit in. I was the perfect young lady. The administrators raved
about me. After being one of their most difficult students, they practically
sent a letter home every day to show how proud they were. But I wasn’t the
perfect young lady. Inside, I screamed for freedom. At sixteen, I was finally
taken home for good. My first day back was spent at Hiber’s funeral. I was
truly sad that he was dead. No matter how horrible a person is, I would never
even dream of being glad when they were gone. But I was glad for my new
freedom. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to enjoy it for very long. Mother pounced
on me with our debts. I had never worried about money a day in my life, so you
can imagine how I didn’t take it for real. I was just, Okay. That’s too bad.
What else is new? I was snapped into reality when I realized why it was so
crucial that I be nice to this one particular man that was a friend of Hiber’s.
I had always naturally assumed that I would stumble across some perfect guy, or
Daddy would come for a visit and bring Prince Charming along with him. I was
totally unprepared for Mr. Caledon Hockley. My life from then to Titanic seemed
like one, long, horrible day. Things went too fast, and there was no way that I
could stop them. If it wasn’t Cal inviting me to go someplace, Mother wanted us
to go someplace! Oh! And then there was the engagement! We were at my house, on
the little backyard porch, and it was so rehearsed. Just the way he said
it gave me a flash of Mother telling him what to say word for word. Rose,
would you be my wife forever and for always? He didn’t even ask it. He just
said it as a statement. All I could do was stare down at the diamond and
picture forever and for always with him. I must have stared for a long time,
because he laughed, and said, It’s wonderful. I know. I’ll just take your
response as a yes, then. Before I had even realized what had just happened,
he’d already got up, hugged me, and gone back inside the house to spread the
news. Then, it was a series of trips, one after the other. The Titanic was just
another one to me. It was on the morning right before boarding that I woke
up--my eyes must have been the size of saucers, and it finally hit me what
exactly was waiting for me back in America. But I never lived that life out.
Instead, the universe had something else in store for me."
Rose went on with the story. She went through
her point of view on the Titanic, even describing the parts Jack already knew.
Then, she went on to the year spent with Rich and separated from Jack. Finally,
she got to the bliss and pleasure.
"All my life I dreamed of a paradise
that the angels themselves might look down on and envy. And I wanted those
cheesy storybook endings where all the characters meet at the end and everyone
is happy. I have my California paradise already. And, sooner than soon, I’m
going to get my happily ever after."
"That was an amazing story."
"I don’t think I’ll ever tell it
again."
"Why not?"
"Because it’s meant to replay over and
over again in my heart. Not be tomorrow’s gossip."
"I’ll tell you what. When you’re an old,
old woman, just days before going to bed and getting her eternal rest, you
should tell the story. I’ll, of course, be long gone, because everyone knows
you’re gonna wear me down any day now, but you’ll be just as vibrant as
ever."
"I would never know the right time. Or
the right people to tell it to. Or even the right way to tell it."
"I have a feeling you’ll know,"
Jack assured her, just before switching the lights off.