LOVE FOR LIFE AND BEYOND
Chapter One
"When I say so, take a deep breath and
jump," said Jack. Rose was thankful that he was relatively calm—were it
not for the precarious position they were in and the fact that she wasn’t prone
to them, she would be in hysterics by now.
"And...now!"
Rose jumped. The icy water hit her in the
exact way Jack had described—like a thousand knives stabbing her all over her
body. It was so cold and she was being pulled away from Jack—she couldn’t let go
of his hand. She mustn’t. Somehow, she managed to keep her grip and they
surfaced together.
"We have to find some debris to climb onto.
We’ll freeze if we don’t."
They swam about and found a
not-too-trustworthy looking board that just might hold them both. Rose
clambered up, her lifebelt hampering her efforts. Jack was afraid there
wouldn’t be enough room for both of them and didn’t climb on, but Rose thought
otherwise.
"There is room. You know that water is
freezing. Stop trying to be brave. Get on."
Jack could tell from her tone of voice that
she wouldn’t take no for an answer. He climbed on, and they did stay
afloat.
They commenced singing every song they knew
to keep themselves awake.
"Come Josephine in my flying machine..."
After what seemed like an eternity, they
heard a voice calling, "Is there anyone alive out there? Can anybody hear
me?"
Rose tried to call out, but her voice was too
weak. They had to attract attention some other way. Just then, the same thought
crossed their minds. The whistle! With clumsy strokes, they swam over to the
dead officer. Rose grabbed the whistle and blew with all her might. The boat
turned back.