A New Beginning

Chapter 20: Polite Conversation

Chapter 20: Polite Conversation

This chapter is in memory of Harold Bride, one of the heroes and survivors of the Titanic. This is also in honour of those men who bravely clung to Collapsible Boat B and survived the horrible night in the sea. And to those who passed away on this boat and tried to hold on till the very end. They will always be remembered.

Emma and Harold cling to the underside of the tiny lifeboat. Around them, the muffled screams of those unfortunate souls freezing and dying in the water haunting them as they float inches above the black sea. The boat occasionally rocks as either survivors climb aboard the upturned lifeboat or the more horrifying thought, the dead are falling off to a watery grave.

Tears fall from Emma's face. She prays that someway, somehow, Jack and Rose are safe.

"What a night eh?" Harold whispers.

Emma squints in the dark to make out the face of this man. He's young, can't be more than twenty years old at the most. His legs hang limply over the water, one bend at a weird angle. He breaths profusely as he tries to catch his breath and calm himself. Emma assumes that he wants to simply chat with her to distract both of them from the disaster they had both just witnessed.

"Yes," she sighs. "What a night."

"Got family waiting for you in New York then?" he asks.

"No..." Emma says. "I lost my mom a few months back and my father last month."

"I-I'm sorry," Harold says.

"I've only got my husband and my baby sister."

"Were they on the ship?" he asks.

"They were, but they managed to get away on a boat,"

"How come you didn't go with them?" Harold pauses. "Forgive me... I-I stepped out of line... "

"It's all right," Emma says. "In such a situation, manners are the last thing I'm concerned about. I went to help a friend, who's loved one had been arrested and trapped down in the ship."

"Did you save him?"

"We did...but it seemed fruitless in the end. They-they are probably among those in the water now..."

Emma can feel more tears come to her eyes and she sniffles loudly.

"I-I'm sorry." she squeaks.

"That's quite alright," he says, and Emma can faintly see him nod towards her. "But help is coming..."

Emma's heart skips a beat.

"It is?!" she gasps. "When? Where? How do you know that?"

"I'm the junior wireless operator of the ship," Harold explains. Emma can hear a slight bit of pride in his voice over his title. "My partner, Jack Phillips and I were working until the water came into the room. We received several responses from ships, including her sister Olympic, but the Carpathia is on her way."

"How far away?!" Emma asks, hope filling her up with warmth and excitement.

"They were four hours away last we spoke to them."

Emma's heart sank, her stomach twisting up and she let more tears fall on her cheeks.

"Most of them will be dead by then," she whimpers. Her body begins to shake with sobs, rocking the boat slightly.

Harold sighs and remains silent. Reality has hit Emma and it has hit her hard. There was little chance that those who were still aboard as the ship went down will survive until rescue could come. She knew as well as anyone that in such cold waters, people had a twenty-minute or less lifespan. She begins to pray that the lifeboats are going to pick up as many survivors as possible and hopefully Jack and Rose are among them. They are strong, and they had each other, they had to have survived.