UNTIL I FOUND YOU
Chapter Two
Rose awoke to find Molly standing
over her, looking down at her in concern.
"Rosie, darling. Are you
okay? I know that must have been a terrible fright for you, seeing Jack like
that. But believe me, darling, he’s alive. He just needs you to talk to him.
Let him know you’re waiting for him to wake up so you two can go on with your
lives together."
"So it’s not a dream? Jack’s
alive?" Rose asked incredulously.
Molly just laughed and nodded.
"For now, anyway." Molly’s eyes grew serious again. "But his
condition has taken a turn for the worse, darling. You may be the only person
that can pull him through this time. He’ll come back for you. I know he would.
Come on. There’s no time to waste." Molly pulled Rose off the bed and led
her to Jack, who was still deep in the coma he had fallen into just a half hour
ago.
"A pity. He seemed to have
been doing so well." The nurse sadly shook her head. "Then he just
closed his eyes and never opened them."
"Don’t worry, darling. His
angel is here, and she’ll bring him back," Molly reassured the nurse.
Rose took two tentative steps
towards Jack’s bed, unsure of what to say that would make him wake up. She
could beg and plead and declare her undying love…but would that work? Would it
bring him back to her? It didn’t work on her father…but Jack wasn’t her father.
He was so much different than that. He was her lifeline.
"Go on, darling. Say
something. Let him know you’re here," Molly urged, taking a step back to
wait with the attending nurse.
Taking a deep breath, Rose knelt
down beside the bed and took Jack’s limp, white hand in hers, inwardly wincing
at how cold it felt. She fought the tears as she looked at him. Her bright,
vibrant Jack, reduced to a lifeless doll.
"Jack…I don’t know if you
can hear me. I mean…Molly thinks you can, and I hope you can, but I don’t know
if this will reach you. But I’m going to talk anyway. Just in case you do hear,
you’ll know how much I need you to wake up." Rose became choked up and had
to stop. Taking another deep breath, she continued. "In case you’re
wondering, it’s me, Rose. I survived, Jack. I got on this board floating in the
water and somehow I was rescued. You know, I looked for you. I kept calling
you, but I couldn’t find you anywhere. I thought you were dead. You know, this
may sound redundant…but I was planning to throw myself off the back of the ship
tonight just to be with you. But seeing that you’re here alive…barely, but
still alive…that’s no longer necessary. Besides…I probably would have chickened
out. You were right the first time. I wouldn’t have jumped. You have to come
back to me, Jack. You have to open those beautiful eyes of yours and smile at
me. I can’t go through this life without you. I don’t know how I did before.
But now…you’re like breathing for me, Jack. I need you to live. I need you to
take me to Santa Monica like we talked about and teach me to ride like a man. I
want to ride the roller coaster and drink cheap beer. But I can only do those
things with you, Jack. Please…wake up. Come back to me." Rose began to sob
and pressed Jack’s hand to her cheek. She squeezed her eyes shut against the heaviness
in her chest. She could now only hope that Jack heard her and would wake up.
"That was beautiful,
Rose." Molly laid a comforting hand on the young woman’s shoulder.
"I hope your young man wakes
up." An older woman patted Rose’s head as she passed.
"Come, Rose. We’ll go back
to my stateroom…"
"No, Molly. I’m going to
stay right here, just in case he wakes up. I don’t want him to think it was his
imagination…or to find himself alone…I’m all he has now."
Molly nodded in understanding.
"All right, darling. But I’ll be back to check on you every now and then
to make sure you’re okay. What do you want me to tell your ma and Cal?"
Rose shrugged. "Don’t tell
them you saw me or Jack. I want to remain dead to them."
Molly nodded her understanding.
"Okay, Rosie. I’ll see you later, darling."
Rose only nodded and went back to
watching over Jack, who had yet to open his eyes.