LET’S LEAVE THE PAST BEHIND
Chapter Twenty-Six

Two hours later, Rose, Jacquelyn, and Nancy found themselves at the market, shopping for that night’s dinner. While Nancy and Jacquelyn shopped, Rose walked aimlessly, her mind stuck in the past. She was remembering the first time she ever saw Jack. He was sitting down in steerage staring right at her, his blue eyes gazing into her soul. She had thought him very handsome at the time. She was so shocked the night she had tried to jump to find the same handsome man again staring at her.

"Rose?" Jacquelyn stepped up behind her, concern in her voice.

"I’m all right." Rose forced a smile and followed her sister-in-law to a stand with fruits and vegetables.

Meanwhile, not too far away, Bill and his houseguest were shopping for food for the next month or so. The young man wondered why all the people were looking at him strangely. It was like they were staring at a ghost.

"Why are they staring like that?" Jack asked his friend.

"They always stare when I come to town. Part of the joys of being a hermit I guess. Just ignore them and keep shopping." Bill grunted an explanation and kept on examining the different meats set out on the stands.

Jack turned to start for the vegetable and fruit stands when he saw her. The redhead from his dreams. She was standing with two other women that seemed slightly familiar, but he couldn’t place them. Judging from her slightly distended abdomen she was with child.

"Hey Jack what’s wrong with you?" Bill almost ran into the back of him. "Why are you standing there staring at that girl for?"

At that instant she looked up and their eyes met. The girl’s face went pale and her green eyes widen with a mixture of shock, disbelief, and recognition. Did she know him? Could she fill him in on the blanks of his past? It would explain why he was dreaming of her anyway.

"Rose darling are you okay? Is it the baby?" Nancy heard Rose gasp.

"Oh, my God. Momma look." Jacquelyn followed Rose’s gaze.

"It can’t be…." Rose whispered to herself. "Jack?"

"Rose wait!" Nancy quickly followed her daughter in law as she moved towards the young man who seemed frozen to that very spot.

"Jack?" Rose asked once she reached him. She reached out and touched his hand. "Is it really you?"

"Do I know you?" Jack asked. Of course he knew her…well sort of. She was in his dreams every night and obviously she knew him by the way she looked at him and said his name.

"Rose wait!" Nancy and Jacquelyn caught up, neither taking their eyes off Jack. Bill all the while stood to the side nervously. He knew this must be the young man’s family. They all couldn’t take their eyes off of him.

"It’s me Rose…don’t you remember? Oh, God we thought you were dead…there was a memorial service and everything." She began to ramble.

"Rose?" Jack asked, his mind in turmoil. Nothing was making sense.

Rose bursts into tears and immediately threw her arms around him hugging him tightly as if he might disappear. "Oh, Jack! I prayed you’d come back to me and you have!"

Jack looked over at the two women Rose was with, confusion clear in his eyes. Nothing was making sense.

"Old man Bill?" Jacquelyn noticed the old man standing behind Jack. What did he have to do with all of this? The man was a mean old man who lived deep in the Wissota woods and didn’t like visitors. What was Jack doing with him?

"Who are you?" Jack pulled away from Rose, staring at Jacquelyn and Nancy.

"Why don’t you recognize your own twin sister Jack?" Jacquelyn asked, stepping closer to her brother, just to be met with clear lack of recognition. "Oh, my God. You don’t do you? You don’t remember any of us."

"Jack?" Rose asked searching his face for any signs that he recognized any of them.

"I’m sorry. I don’t." Jack backed away from Rose. "I don’t know any of you. Just her…she’s in my dreams." He looked at the redhead, her green eyes filling with tears, as were Nancy’s. Her own son didn’t even know her. It was breaking her heart.

"What did you do?" Jacquelyn looked at Bill. "What did you do to my brother you mean old man?"

"Nothing! I’ve done nothing to the boy." Bill denied. "All I did was pull him out of that lake and gave him a place to live for the past couple of months!"

"Am I supposed to know any of you?" Jack asked, staring at the eldest woman, who for some reason provoked a feeling of warmth and protection from him.

"That explains why they never found him. They never bothered to check old man Bill’s cabin." Jacquelyn shook her head. "Jack…I’m your sister, Jacquelyn Dawson. This is our mother Nancy Dawson and this is your wife, Rose Dawson. You two are newlyweds and are expecting a baby. And your name of course is Jack Dawson. You live with us just on the edge of town."

"Wait a minute." Bill interrupts. "How do you know he’s this brother of yours?"

"Because he is." Rose spoke up. "I’d know these hands from anywhere." She squeezed his hand. "And those eyes."

"Not to mention we’re looking right at him." Jacquelyn snapped.

"Why don’t we all go back to the house and we can get things settled there?" Nancy suggested. "Maybe it’ll jog Jack’s memory."

"No way." Bill rejected the idea. "I don’t go into stranger’s houses."

"Well we weren’t inviting you. Only Jack." Jacquelyn crossed her arms.

"Jack…the decision is yours. Do you want to go back to the house with us?" Rose was recovering from the shock of finding her husband alive.

Jack shrugged. He didn’t know what to do. He wanted to spend more time with the lovely redhead the older woman named Nancy claimed was his wife. But he didn’t want to hurt Bill’s feelings either.

Bill sighed. Even though he didn’t like the townspeople, and the Dawsons were a big part of the town, he didn’t want to hinder his friend’s recovery either. For the past couple of months Bill had enjoyed Jack’s company and they had become pretty good friends. The first and only friend Bill had ever made. "All right we’ll come. But only if it is meant to help him."

"Thank you." Rose nodded to her husband’s savior, taking Jack’s hand in her own. "Just follow us."

*****

They found Richie and Jolene out on the porch just sitting and enjoying each other’s company. Richie got to his feet and stared at Jack in disbelief. "Jack?"

"Who are you?" Jack asked.

"Jack this is your eldest brother Richie Dawson and his wife Jolene. They got married just a couple of months ago." Rose explained. "This is the house where we live."

"Where’s your father at Richie?" Nancy asked.

"In the sitting room. What’s wrong with him?"

"He doesn’t remember anything. It’s best that we take our time with him, maybe even call a doctor to get his advice." Nancy answered. "Come on. Let’s go inside. Your father is going to be overjoyed."

"Of course. His favorite son is alive after all." Richie snorted, disappearing into the house with the others.

"What’s his problem?" Bill asked.

"Let’s just go inside and see what happens." Jacquelyn followed her mother and brother, leaving Bill, Jack, and Rose alone on the porch.

"Jack? Does any of this seem familiar to you?" Rose asked.

Jack just shook his head. He couldn’t remember anything about the house he had grew up in. "I’m sorry."

"Don’t be sorry. It’s all right. Just take your time. You don’t have to remember anything or anyone right away." Rose gently smiled, her heart beating a little faster when Jack gently smiled back.

"Thank you." He squeezed her hand like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Come on. Let’s go in." She smiled, leading him into the house.

Charles Dawson was in the living room waiting for them. His eyes widen with shock and indescribable joy to see Jack walk through the door with Rose and Bill.

"Jack! My son! You’re alive!" Charles dashed to his son and pulled him into his arms. "It’s all right son. We’ll help you get well again. Just hang in there."

"I take it you’re my father." Jack smiled the old Dawson smile that he used to smile when he was attempting humor.

Charles just laughed and nodded. He looked over at Bill. "Thank you. Thank you for helping him. He could have died out there if it wasn’t for you."

"It wasn’t a problem. Jack’s a great young man to have around. I wish I had a son like him." Bill shrugged.

"Do you remember any of this Jack?" Nancy asked hopefully.

Jack just shook his head regretfully. "I’m sorry."

"Don’t be sorry son. It’ll all come back to you eventually." Charles squeezed his hand.

"Rose, how about his drawings? Maybe those will jog his memory." Jacquelyn suggested.

"I’ll go get his portfolio." Rose ran upstairs to their room where she had left the portfolio. She opened to a picture Jack had sketched of the Titanic sinking into the ocean. Should she let him see that one? It was a bittersweet memory. It was the place they had met and first kissed and made love. But it was also a place where they had fought for their lives and had almost died.

"Rose are you still in here?" Jacquelyn came in to see her gazing at the sketch of the Titanic.

"Is this worth remembering, Jacquelyn?" Rose looked at her, unshed tears gleaming in her eyes.

Jacquelyn nodded. "It’s something you both went through. He’d want to remember it…no matter how horrible it was."

"It wasn’t all horrible. I mean that was where we first met…where he showed me how to be free…where we first…well you know."

"Well then what’s the problem?"

Rose sighed. "You right. Titanic was a special place for us. Not all bad, not all good. Wait a minute, there’s one more thing I need to get." Rose went over to her jewelry box and took out the necklace. "This should really jog his memory of happy times." Rose smiled, showing the necklace to Jacquelyn.

"The Heart of the Ocean." the other girl smiled. "Come on Rose. They’re waiting."

*****

Jack was sitting on the couch. Bill was sitting on his other side, and Nancy was sitting on the other.

"We’re back." Jacquelyn announced. Nancy got up and let Rose have her place.

"This is your art portfolio Jack. You’re a very talented artist. This all your work." She opened the portfolio to the first page. A drawing of her sitting on the porch, smiling widely.

"I did this?" He looked at Rose in wonder. The drawing was spectacular. It caught Rose’s very essence and the love shining in her eyes. Rose smiled and nodded. "Your art was one of the things that drew me to you."

"Looks like you’re sitting on some talent." Bill glanced at the sketch.

Jack turned the page to other scenes of his and Rose’s life together, nothing really jogging his memory until he came to the drawing of Titanic sinking into the depths of the ocean. Suddenly his dream of him and Rose running through a sinking ship came back to him. "The Titanic?"

Rose nodded, not saying anything. She was going to let Jack ask all the questions.

"Were…were we passengers?" He looked at her, his blue eyes clouded with turmoil. Something wanted to come back to him, but he was afraid to let it through. If he was on the Titanic, he wasn’t sure that he wanted to remember.

"That was where we met." Rose swallowed. This trip down memory lane was going to be hard on her. She could feel it. But it had to be taken if Jack was going to get his memory back.

"How?"

"You had won a ticket in a game of poker. I was a first class passenger and you were third."

Jack was really confused. As far as he knew, first and third class didn’t mix. "Okay. So how did we get together?"

Rose looked away from Jack. Talking of this time was harder than she originally thought. "I was about to jump off the back of the ship, but you stopped me. You were invited to dinner in first class and we got to know one another and fell in love. After the ship sank and we were rescued, we got married in New York and came here to Chippewa Falls. We’ve been here ever since."

Jack just nodded and turned the page to a sketch of him and Rose kissing at the bow of the ship. "Did this really happen?"

Rose smiled and nodded, remembering that first kiss. "It was the first time we’ve ever kissed. I’ll never forget that. Are you remembering anything now Jack?"

Jack sighed and closed his eyes. "Very little."

Rose nodded and brought out the necklace. The diamonds shimmered and gleamed in the light. "How about this? Does this bring back anything?"

"Wow! Is that a beauty." Bill whistled.

Jack stared at the diamond as a scene flashed through his mind. They were in a stateroom, and Jack was examining the diamond admiringly, thinking of how he’d like to sketch it. Then Rose was beside him, peering over his shoulder.

"I want you to draw me like one of your French girls. Wearing this."

"Okay." Jack had nodded.

"Wearing only this."

Then the scene changed. Rose was lying on the couch, wearing nothing but the necklace. "Are you blushing Mr. Big artiste. I can’t imagine Monsieur Monet blushing."

"He draws landscapes." was Jack’s answer.

"I drew you with this on and you were teasing me." Jack’s eyes lit up with the memory as he came back to the present.

Rose happily smiled. "You remembered!"

"Quick something else." Jacquelyn got excited.

"Wait a minute. One thing at a time." Rose put the necklace away. "Jack, can you remember anything else about the time on Titanic?"

"Running down a corridor. A wall of water was behind us." Jack nodded.

Rose nodded grimly. "Yes. That happened as well."

"Well I think that’s enough for one night." Bill cleared his throat and got to his feet. "Jack are you ready to go?"

"Go? Go where? He’s home." Jacquelyn also got to her feet.

"Well, it doesn’t look like you’ve got much room here." Bill looked about the house.

"That’s because Jack and Rose shared a bed." Richie joined his sister. "Jack should be here with his family."

"Jack what do you want to do?" Rose asked, hoping he’d want to stay with her. She didn’t think she could go through another night without him.

"Uh…well…Bill if you don’t mind…I think I’m going to stay here. Maybe work on my memory some more." Jack nodded.

"It’s your decision kid. Besides I can hardly blame you. Your wife is a lot prettier to look at than me. I’d want to stay with her too if I was in your shoes."

Jack blushed. He hadn’t thought about it before, but Rose was the main reason for staying. He couldn’t bring himself to leave her side.

"Well that settles it then. My brother stays here with his family." Jacquelyn grinned. "We do thank you though for taking care of him when he needed it. But you’re no longer needed."

"Jacquelyn, stop being rude." Nancy scolded her daughter. "We are appreciative of what you did for our son. If there’s any way we can repay you for your kindness…"

"Nah, Jack’s company was enough. He’s a great young man. Well I guess I’ll be seeing you around Jack." Bill waved, not really ready to go back to his lonely life at the cabin. He never actually knew how lonely his life was until Jack had come along. But this was for the best. Jack needed to get well and get his memory back and it wasn’t going to happen by staying at the cabin.

Jack only smiled and waved at his friend, feeling a bit guilty for leaving the old man alone in the cabin. Bill took one more glance around the house and left.

"Well, what do we do now?" Jacquelyn asked, glancing at Rose, who was showing Jack more of his sketches.

"Let’s let Jack get used to the house again. Let him relax some." Nancy smiled. "Rose would you like to help us in the kitchen?" Nancy asked.

Jack spoke up. "If you don’t mind…I’d like her to stay." She of course was the only person in the house he felt truly comfortable with at the moment and didn’t want her to leave.

"Oh. Okay. We’ll be in the kitchen if you need anything." Nancy nodded.

"We’ll be out on the porch." Charles smiled beckoning for Richie to follow him.

"They seem like nice people." Jack sighed.

"But you don’t remember them do you?" Rose gently asked, her heart going out to her love. He must be totally lost right now.

Jack shook his head. "What if I never remember them? What if I’m like this for good?"

"Shh, Jack. This isn’t forever. You’ll get your memory back. You’re getting it back already. Maybe in bits and pieces and slowly but it’s coming back."

Jack smiled thankfully at her and glanced down at her abdomen. "So…how far along are you?"

"Four months. Five more months we’ll be parents. You were so happy when we learned we were expecting. You’re so great with children, you’re going to be a spectacular father." Rose hesitantly touched his face, not sure if she was going too fast for him. But to her surprise Jack leaned down and gently kissed her at first, then the kiss deepened, his arms went around her waist and held her close. Her arms automatically went over his shoulders and around his neck. Being that close to him was pure heaven and she didn’t want it to stop.

Finally, Jack pulled away, a bit breathless and apologetic. "Uh…I’m sorry…I know I overstepped…" He stammered, but Rose placed a finger over his lips.

"Jack you don’t need to be sorry. I’m your wife. We’ve done things a lot worse than that together. Anytime you want to kiss me like that, or anything else, it’s all right by me. You have nothing to be ashamed about."

"I just feel so connected to you Rose. You were the first face I remembered. The one person who's been on my mind since this whole mess started. At first I thought you were just a figment of my imagination. Someone as lovely as you couldn’t possibly exist. But when I saw you today…I knew that you were real and a part of my heart."

Rose had tears in her eyes. Even without his memory, Jack knew just what to say to touch her heart. "Oh, Jack…I love you so much. These past two months have been pure hell for me. I thought I’d never see you again or feel your arms around me. But now here you are. I’m never going to let you go again. Do you hear me Jack Dawson? You’re stuck with me for life."

Jack laughed. "Well that’s a pleasure I truly accept." He pulled her in for another kiss, never wanting to let her go again.

Chapter Twenty-Seven
Stories