THE TRUNK
Written by Lisa
Long
Based on some situations originated by James Cameron.
Only a few more steps, was the thought of Rose Calvert as she made
her slow ascent up the narrow staircase. The wooden steps creaked and groaned
beneath her feet as she made her way to the narrow door that led to the small
attic room.
She glanced up at it and felt her
heart speed up a bit. It had been years since she had been up here. Not since
her beloved Andrew had passed. But what lay behind those doors was a part of
Rose that no one even knew existed, not even Andrew. They had been married for
fifty-two years, and each day had been a blessing and a gift. She had done her
best to make him happy, and he had done the same for her.
Finally, she reached the top and
paused for a moment to catch her breath. Age had its restrictions, restrictions
that Rose hated. Trapped inside of this old body was a young woman who still yearned
for adventure. Not that she didn’t have her fill of them back in the day,
because she certainly had lived her life on her own terms. But, no matter that
she had lived to see a hundred, she could always think of things she wished she
could have done, seen, or accomplished before time passed her by.
Shaking herself from her
thoughts, she focused on the doorknob and gave it a twist. It gave a low creak
as she pushed it open. Peering inside the dim room, she felt around for the
light switch next to the doorframe and clicked it on. Suddenly, a muted
yellowish glow appeared over everything, exposing the confines of the shadowy
room. Adjusting her eyes, Rose gripped her cane and went in further, doing a
quick scan of the contents.
That’s when she saw it. The
trunk…her trunk. Smiling to herself, she came over to it and stopped in front
of it. It was still as huge as she remembered. It was cumbersome, but it held
everything dear to her. It was a mixture of leather and mahogany, and on a
brass plate secured to the top was the inscription Rose Dawson.
She and this trunk had seen many
a wonderful trip together. She had purchased it while she was working as an
actress, and its scarred sides and worn appearance told of its usefulness to
her.
On the outside, it didn’t look
like much, but what was on the inside was priceless. She bent forward, holding
her cane tightly, and ran her withered hand across the brass plating. Such a
long time ago, but still so fresh in her mind. She bent down further and felt
her bones protest at the movement. It didn’t matter now. She wanted to open it,
to see inside.
Once she was on the ground, she
unlocked the trunk and lifted the lid. A multitude of memories came spilling
out as she looked upon each item. Everything had a meaning, and everything had
a memory attached to it. There were mementos from every aspect of her life in
this worn trunk, from her actress days to her marriage and the births of her
children and beyond. But deep down inside of it, hidden and locked away for
years, was who and what Rose Dawson Calvert really was.
She set aside each item with
care, sometimes stopping to ponder over the size of a baby bootie that belonged
to her daughter, Lilly, or the drawing of a purple elephant from her son, Seth.
They were precious and wonderful and meant everything to her. Still, she went
deeper inside the trunk, setting things out until she reached the bottom. A
small silver hoop attached to the bottom was the only thing that hinted that
there was more. With a tug, it lifted a bit.
Rose pulled the panel up and
looked over it, down into the lower belly of the trunk. With a catch in her
throat, her weary eyes rested upon the object of her quest. She closed them,
and immediately her mind wandered back…
*****
It was cold down in the bowels
of the ship, but inside of the Renault it was warm. They lay together, his head
upon her chest. She stroked his hair and he kissed her again. Then he lifted
her discarded dress and held it up to her. "I believe this is yours."
He grinned.
"I believe you may be
right," she answered, taking it from him. He held onto it and came
forward, kissing her sweetly again.
*****
Rose touched her lips, which were
no longer full and supple, but lips that Jack had once kissed with passion and
love. She set the panel aside and reached for what she had come up here for.
Her dress…
It was still beautiful, the soft
pastel colors still visible in spite of the years. She had kept it all this
time. This dress…the dress she had worn the night the Titanic had sank from
beneath them, the night her world had changed forever, the night Jack had died.
There was more to the dress than any of that, although it was all of that and
more, but it was the dress she wore the night she and Jack had come together.
For that reason alone, she had cherished it and kept it tucked away.
As she placed the dress carefully
back in the trunk, she knew this was the last time she would see it. She was
going back to Jack now. She knew it, and she wanted it more than anything. She
and Lizzie were leaving in the morning to fly out to the Keldysh, and she
wouldn’t be coming back. She had kept her promise all of these years, and now
it was time.
She was finally going home to
Jack…forever.
The End.