FLIGHT INTO FREEDOM: before, during, and after the flying scene
Rose sat at the table listening to her mother’s tireless droning about the wedding arrangements. Now Ruth was telling the Odyssey of the lavender bridesmaid gowns and how she had to return them for a more “favorable” color. But Rose wasn’t paying attention to none of the conversation really. Her thoughts at the moment were with Jack. It had been a full hour since she saw him last. A full hour since he had bagged her to not marry Cal, to save herself and her fiery spirit. She was beyond touched by his speech. So full of concern and an emotion that she was too afraid to acknowledge. If she acknowledged that emotion, it would mean that she was missing out on a chance of true happiness. No. It was best to ignore it. To not even give name to the emotion in Jack’s voice or his eyes of cobalt blue. Eyes that constantly found herself getting lost in. After all, emotions such as love and passion was something a true lady knew nothing about. And that was what Rose was. A well brought up lady. A lady that knew her place in society.
At that last
thought, Rose’s gaze fell on a table at the far corner of the café. Where a mother was telling her daughter to
set up straight and how to place a handkerchief on her lap. Rose frowned, seeing herself in that
child. Being groomed to be everything a
well brought up girl ought to be. A
girl that pushed her feelings aside and lived a lonely life void of love. She looked back at her mother and first class
friends. Women that were cold and
emotionless. Women who had spent all
their lives pushing aside their true feelings to become heartless prudes. Who wanted to stamp out the spirits of those
that came afterwards.
Picking up her now
cold cup of tea, Rose dumped the liquid in her lap, ruining her dress. Her mind was mad up. No longer would she be her mother’s puppet.
“Rose! What are you doing!” Ruth exclaimed,
horrified by what she deemed as a crime.
“That dress was a Paris original and costed Cal a fortune and now look
at it! It’s ruined! Go up and change right now!”
“Yes mother,” Rose
got to her feet, hiding her glee at finally behind dismissed from the boring
tea party. “Good day ladies.” Heading
out of the café, Rose rolled her eyes as she heard the Countess of Rothes
declare the ruination of the dress a tragedy.
Rose exited the
diner, her destination not her room to change, but towards the steerage section
of the ship in search of the one man that truly understood her and accepted her
for what she truly was. Nat as some
fragile debutante who was in danger of fainting spells and the like, but as a
bright intelligent woman who had dreams and desires of her own.
~*~
Jack leaned against the rail, his mind on the night before, when he took Rose to the party in Steerage. On the fiery, daring spirit he had been witness to. The spirit that was going to die a slow painful death in the confines of high society.
He didn’t know what
he had expected to happen in the
gymnasium. But he wasn’t
expecting her to return to that cold stuffy world of her mother and fiancée’s. Rose was going to wilt and die in that
environment and there was nothing he could do about it.
“Jack,” He whirled
around at the sound of her voice, nervous yet determined. There she stood, a sheepish smile on her
face, the wind tossing her auburn curls.
What was this? Was she there to torture him with her
beauty? With her fiery spirit that will
be snuffed out once she was married to Cal?
Was he some kind of cruel joke for her?
Or a fling before she settled down?’ “I
changed my mind,” She smiled. Despite
his confused thoughts, Jack found himself smiling happily. It was her eyes that told him that this was
more then a fling. That this was her
first steps towards freedom. “They told
me that you might be up…” Rose began, but Jack quieted her. There was so much that he wanted to
show her. So much that he wanted to share.
“Give me your hand,”
he gently requested, knowing just how to convey what they both were feeling at
the moment. Not even with a touch of
hesitancy, Rose slipped her hand into his.
She had no clue what
he had planned, but she was a willing participant.
“Close your eyes,”
Jack requested, stepping behind her.
“Keep them closed. No peeking.”
Rose giggled as she
squeezed her eyes closed. What was Jack
up to? She couldn’t wait to find
out. So far, everything Jack had shown
her was magical and fun.
“Ok. Step upon the rail,” He stepped up behind
her, amazed that she was doing everything he was telling her to do. “do you trust me?” Stupid question
Dawson. After all she’s done with you,
of course she does.
“I trust you,” She
sighed as he lifted her hands off the railing and out to her sides.
“Open your eyes,” He
lets go of her hands and placed his on her waist.
Rose gasped in
surprise and delight as she found herself racing over the ocean. “I’m flying! Jack,” She looked into his smiling blue eyes, fully happy with
her decision to leave her high-class world behind.
Lacing his fingers
through hers, Jack felt like singing.
Rose had perfectly described how he had wanted her to feel. Like she was flying into freedom, like a
bold eagle. “Come Josephine in my
flying machine and it’s up she goes, up she goes.”
Rose laughed. Oh what a perfect song for this. “Up up to the sky dear.”
“Oh my sky is on
fire,” Jack laughed.
“Up and up,
good-bye!” They sang in unison.
Rose turned to sing
another verse, but fell silent as Jack’s arms wrapped around her, pulling her
close. She turned her head and found
his lips meeting hers. Jack and the
ship were suddenly one force, buoying her into a future of love, freedom, and
optimism.
After a few minutes,
the kiss ended. Jack hoped down and
helped Rose back onto the deck. Both of
their hearts were beating a thousand miles a minute. He know now that what he felt for Rose was more then
affection. It was love. Something he had thought would never happen
to him.
“Jack…what do we do
now?” Rose looked into his eyes, knowing that from here on out, where he’d go,
she’d be sure to follow.
“What do you want to
do?” Jack asked, willing to let her make the decisions for a while.
Rose smiled
mischievously. She wanted to throw her
new found freedom in her mother and Cal’s face and she knew just how to do
that.
“Will you draw me
Jack? In my stateroom?”
Jack looked at her
as if she was crazy. Sure he wouldn’t
mind drawing her, but in her mother
and fiancée’s stateroom? That was
suicide. But he couldn’t refuse
her. He’d grant her every desire if he
could. “If that’s what you want.”
“Oh it is,” Rose
giggled, grabbing his hand to lead him up to the first class section of the
ship. Both were unaware of the night of
adventure, passion, and tragedy ahead of them.