This is a long on going story, I have divided it up into parts. You can read it in parts or all on one page. So get a nice drink and enjoy reading. (to go back to index, come to page 1 then Back)
Rebecca stood at the front of the ship, her curly blond hair blowing around her face. She was finely alone, for a while. The dress that she was wearing showed off her attractive body, and the sash made her hips look more then perfect. Rebecca's hands were finely clean of ink stains, and they were as soft as could be. The wind became cold and she shivered. It was nice to be alone. Rebecca looked over the edge, and watched sea animals beside the ship. How beautiful and perfect, She thought
Rebecca took the whole moment in, when a young man appeared next to her. "They're really quite beautiful, aren't they?" Without saying another word, Jack Thayer waited for a response. He wasn't in a hurry to interrupt the peacefulness of the moment. In a shirt, vest, and pants, for he'd left his coat in his suite, his deep eyes came out even more, and his relatively short hair even caught a breeze or two now and then.
"Yes they are," Rebecca replied, as she turned to see a young man standing there. Rebecca looked at how neatly dresses he was, and then looked into his eyes as she tried in vain to tuck some of her hair behind her ears. His eyes, she thought, then looked down again and out to the sea.
Jack stood for a moment, gazing out towards the sea. Then, fearing he may have been intruding turned away. "I'm sorry for interrupting you..." A few steps away, he turned back, "My name's Jack Thayer, by the way."
The young blond woman turned back towards the seventeen-year-old, saying "No you were not interrupting" Rebecca desperation she pulled out an elastic and pulled her hair back "My name is Rebecca Smith."
"Well, Miss Smith, it's my pleasure to make your acquaintance. I can't say that I've seen you around before, and I know I'd remember someone as beautiful as you." Jack unintentionally blushed, he couldn't believe that he actually said that out loud, but now that it was out, there wasn't much he could do. He just stood there for a moment, before continuing. "May I join you for a while until the sun sets? That is if you're sure I'm not interrupting you."
Rebecca also blushed, She had not received a comment like that in a long time, the newspaper business it tough and beauty does nothing to sell a story. "Sure, you can stay, it does get lonely out here" Rebecca said.
"Thank you." Jack walked back towards the prow, and stood there for the longest time, just looking out at the sea. In all of his trips across, this must have been the most beautiful day of all. "This certainly is breathtaking isn't it?" He finally said, breaking the silence. There was something about this woman that he hadn't seen before, but an instant familiarity about her as well.
"Yes, it is even more beautiful then the sunsets at the beach I go to, but nothing is more beautiful, then a sun rise, the way it chases away the darkness" Rebecca replied
"That's rather poetic, but I suppose the grandest of nature evokes something in the human spirit, doesn't it?" Jack shifted his weight and took in the view. "Where are you from?" Just as he asked this, a stronger breeze than usual caught his hair, blowing it ever so slightly out of order. He paid no mind, though. Jack found himself wanting to know more about this beautiful blond woman.
"England, I work for a news paper there, now I am heading to Toronto, where if my article on the Titanic is good enough, they are going to give me a full time job" Rebecca said as she tried to tuck the lose hair behind her ears
"Well, I wish you the best of luck with it." Jack stopped talking just long enough to notice that the sun was about to set onto the horizon. "Are you traveling alone?"
"Yes" Rebecca said, feeling the chill of the wind more then ever "So what do you do?"
"You mean when I'm not standing on the prow of a ship with a beautiful woman at sunset?" Jack replied with a glimmer in his eye.
Rebecca laughed, "I mean for a living or do you live off your parents?"
"I go to school outside of Philadelphia, and for the time being, I'm surviving on my parent's income, yes. This spring, I'm graduating and going into banking, however." Jack felt rather young at the mention of school, but nonetheless answered the question.
"I would have loved to go to school. I did almost finish high school, then my father died. I took up the newspaper job then, learn everything I know on the job, but I would love to take some writing courses at a collage." Rebecca said, she was jealous of anyone who went to school, she could not, due to money, her father left her with tons of bank loans, she went from a first class person to third in a day, but thanks to a friend and lots of work she was a hard working second class lady. She would always be a lady, because her father said so. "It is getting cold out," Rebecca said "You must be really cold since you forgot you jacket"
"Nah, it's not bad. It gets much colder in Philadelphia." Jack had noticed it had gotten a bit cooler since the sun had begun to set, but wasn't about to let Rebecca know. He hadn't even noticed that he was shivering a little.
"How is it in first class?" Rebecca asked. She was cold and wanted to go inside, but Jack just seemed to stand there, he was shivering, but still insisted that he was not cold.
"It's as extravagant of a ship that you'll ever see." Jack finally felt the cold a little. The sun had just finished setting and dusk was settling. "Would you like to see some of it? I know of a great lounge down on B deck. I'd offer you my jacket, but as you can see, it was a bit warmer when I left my suite."
"Sounds great" Rebecca said excitedly, not to see that part of the ship, but to get out of the cold "Oh, I mean I would really like that."
Jack stopped for a moment to look into Rebecca's eyes. He then offered his arm. "Shall, we?" As they stepped away from the prow and proceeded down to B deck, Jack remarked, "You know, you really are quite beautiful."
"You have told me that many time," Rebecca said, trying to act like a first class lady, the way she was trained.
"Well," Jack said smiling, "I'm sorry, let me know when you don't want to hear it any more."
"It is just, working at the paper I am not complemented a lot" Rebecca said.