"I promise," Jack said. He braced himself for whatever she was going to say next. Rose sat up. She lowered her head, letting her hair cover most of her face. Jack watched as she slowly ran a finger down her left forearm.
"Twelve," she said. She repeated the process with the other arm. "Fifteen...I don't remember if I've ever counted them before...it doesn't seem like so many now."
It was too dark for him to see her arms in any detail, but he knew she was counting scars. He'd caught glimpses of them at different times, but she'd never let him see them up close.
"What are they from?" he asked quietly.
She jerked her head up, startled by the sound of his voice. It was as if she'd forgotten he was even there. "Glass," she said. "Window glass."
He tried to ignore his racing mind and waited for her to continue. After what felt like an eternity, she did. "I jumped. Isn't that kind of ironic?" she asked. She laughed humorlessly.
"Why'd you jump?"
"There wasn't any other way..." Her voice shook slightly. "I wouldn't—I couldn't stay there. It would have killed me. He would have killed me. I know it. He came so close, but stopped..."
And suddenly, she was back there, still shivering from the icy water, the heavy wool coat she wore still soaked through. Slumped on the floor, she didn't even have the strength to try to protect herself—
"Rose!" Jack's voice ripped through her flashback, bringing her out of it. He cradled her face in his hands. "Don't go away, Rose. Stay here," he said. "Stay with me."
"Don't let me do that," she begged, tears in her eyes. "Please don't let me do that." She wrapped her arms around him.
He was too upset to notice it was the first time she'd touched him while fully awake. All he could do was hug her tightly."You don't have to talk about it," he said. "I'm sorry I asked you to. You don't ever have to."
"I want to," she whispered. "But I'm not strong enough."
"Don't say that. It isn't true."
They sat in silence after that. Eventually, Rose fell asleep. Jack slowly lay down, careful not to move her more than was necessary. He stayed awake as long as he could, making sure the nightmare didn't come, and for the first time, it didn't.