On April 10, 1912, nineteen-year-old Elizabeth Collins boards the Titanic as a first-class passenger with her strict mother and gentle father. Unlike her mother, she is a kind and loving person who accepts everyone as one of her own, no matter their...
Elizabeth stayed with Alexander until the other stoker came back with a first aid crew.
Even though the nurses said they could take it from there, she insisted on staying until she was sure he'd be okay.
They finally gave their approval and started treating him.
She then quickly noticed that the captain of Titanic, Edward J. Smith, was standing beside the handsome stranger, inspecting Alexander's condition.
"Thank you for letting us know about your friend, Mr. Barrett," he said, his deep voice as mighty as the ship. "He will be well taken care of."
"Don't thank me, sir," the stranger replied. "Thank the woman over there. She's the one who sent me to you."
The captain shifted his gaze over to Elizabeth and regarded her with a small smile.
"Your assistance is most appreciated, Miss Collins."
"Of course," she nodded politely. "I was not going to let him waste away out here."
Once the captain was sure that everything was settled, he walked up the promenade deck and went back to the bridge, leaving Elizabeth with the stranger.
They stood in awkward silence for a moment, but the stranger broke it by saying, "Thank you for taking care of Alex. I'm very grateful."
"No need to thank me," she waved him off. "It was no trouble at all."
The corner of his lips turned up in a smile, and he stuck out his hand for her to shake.
"It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss Collins," he said.
She blushed at his manners but quickly regained herself by saying, "You can call me Elizabeth, sir."
"Elizabeth," he breathed. "How beautiful. My name is Frederick Barrett."
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Barrett."
Frederick eventually let go of her hand and walked back to his friend, but Elizabeth could not stop the undeniable skip of her heart when he glanced over his shoulder at her, his soft gaze causing an unfamiliar sensation within her.
What is happening to me? she thought in confusion.
He looked as though he wanted to say something else, but he remained silent and went to Alex's side.
Elizabeth pressed a hand on her chest and took a deep breath to steady her racing pulse.
Realizing that she probably needed to get back to her parents, she lifted up her skirts and speed-walked across the deck, saying goodbye to Alex as she did so.
Elizabeth slowed down once she got inside, and she smoothed out her dress to make it appear like nothing happened.
Her mother and father were no longer in the first-class lounge, so she went to a nearby waiter and asked if he knew about her parents' whereabouts.
"Of course, Miss Collins," the waiter nodded. "They went to the Café Parisien, which is on the bridge deck. You may take the Grand Staircase or lifts if you would like to."
She nodded her thanks and headed to the lifts, stepping in when one was free.
When she got to the B-Deck, she spotted the restaurant she was looking for and peered in through the open door.
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Her parents were sitting at the table by the windows and were snacking on various types of hors d'oeuvres.
Violet never ate very much because she would constantly worry about being too chubby, so she would eat tiny amounts of food on a daily basis.
Elizabeth was thin, but in a healthy way.
Her mother, however, looked like a walking skeleton with skin and makeup.
She sucked in a breath at the thought, then proceeded forward.
Violet immediately whipped her head around and faced Elizabeth with a disapproving look.
"Where have you been?" she scorned. "You look like a mess."
"Nice to see you, too," Elizabeth muttered while sitting down.
She went to reach for one of the yummy snacks, but her mother smacked her hand away and said, "Do go and clean your hands. You are as filthy as those wretched stokers."
Elizabeth bit her lip and held back the retort she wanted to say, instead settling for a glare as she got up and went down a hallway to a nearby restroom.
While she washed her hands, she decided she would not tell Violet of what had happened on the boat deck.
Not only did she not want to be chided by her mother, but she also didn't want her to further insult the two stokers that she had helped.
It would only make Elizabeth more agitated at her infuriating behavior.
She nodded to herself in agreement, opened the door, and walked out with confidence.
When she returned to the table, Elizabeth folded her hands in her lap and sat up straight. "Do I look better, Mother?"
She could've sworn that Violet's eye had twitched at her snarky remark, and she did her best to hide the smirk that wanted to form on her red lips.
With a measured inhale, Violet asked, "Where were you?"
"Out on the boat deck," Elizabeth replied vaguely.
"Really?" she raised her eyebrow. "Then how did your hands become so dirty? Were you making out with one of the third-class rats?"
"Violet, enough," Robert said. "She probably leaned on something that was dusty."
"This ship is brand new," Violet retorted. "I highly doubt that she would already be dirty."
Elizabeth ignored her mother's pointed look and shrugged in a nonchalant manner.
"I was tending to the plants at home before we left, so they were already dirty when we came onboard."
Violet scrutinized Elizabeth and tilted her head, unconvinced.
"You would do well to act like a lady while we are on Titanic," she sniffed. "I don't want people seeing my daughter looking like a homeless witch on the streets."
She fumed inwardly at her mother's disrespectful words, but she bit into one of the appetizers to keep herself from exploding.
I won't let her dampen my time here, Elizabeth thought. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I will be myself, no matter what.
