Chapter 4 "Ah, there he is. Jack come over here." Andrew Dawson motioned for Jack to come over. Jack could see Rose's head pop up at the sound of his name. He quietly went towards them. Andrew continued, "And this here is Jack." "Pleased to meet you Mr. Dawson." Ruth Dewitt Bukator extended her hand towards him. She seemed to be looking him over from head to toe as if she were looking for some error in the way he dressed or acted. But Jack was the perfect gentleman. He kindly took her hand and shook it politely. "My pleasure Mrs. Bukator. It was so thoughtful for you to invite us." "Oh, no trouble at all. I wanted everyone here for my daughter's birthday. Speaking of my daughter, where is she?" Ruth looked around and spotted Rose at the next table. "Oh there she is. Rose? Rose, could you please come over here?" Jack watched as she told the little girl something and gracefully stood up and walked over to them. Ruth continued, "Rose I'd like to introduce you to Mr. Dawson's son, Jack. I believe you two have already met though." "Yes actually, we have." Rose looked over at Jack with a slight grin on her face. "Yes, we have." It came out almost a whisper, but Jack could hear it crystal clear. "Well that settles that then. What's on your mind son?" Andrew Dawson said as he lifted up his brandy and took a swift drink. "Well actually, I came over here to see if Miss Bukator would care to dance." Ruth's attention went directly to her daughter. "Rose?" "I'd love to." Jack offered her his arm to Rose who gladly took it. They made their way to the dance floor and gracefully stepped into place. "I guess I'd better wish you a happy birthday then, huh? I know your probably tired of hearing that though." "You might say that. But thank you anyway. So Mr. Dawson," But he interrupted her, "Jack, just call me Jack. Mr. Dawson sounds so formal and stiff." Rose smiled. "Very well then, Jack. But only if you'll call me Rose. To tell you the truth, I've always felt the same way. Funny you'd say that." Jack smiled. "So Jack, have you lived here in Philadelphia all your life? I don't recall seeing you before." "Actually, I'm originally from Wisconsin. Chippewa Falls that is. But when my parents died about 4 years ago, I moved in with my Uncle Andrew in New York." Rose was confused. "But I thought Andrew was your father." "Well in a way he is. He took me in when I had no relatives. I guess you could say he sort of adopted me. If it wasn't for him, I would have followed my friend Ben out to California. Ben's living off the streets now though. I guess you could say he saved me from poverty. But I respect Andrew. I consider him my own father. That's why I address him in such a manner." Rose nodded her head. "How'd you wind up in Philadelphia then?" "My father had better business down here, so he just packed up everything and brought me down. You see, he has no other family besides me. His family died of yellow fever about 10 years ago and he's been on his own ever since." "I'm so sorry to hear that. That must have been so hard….for both of you really." "It was hard at first, but you learn to go on with your life. I know my parents wouldn't have wanted me to spend the rest of my life in mourning. If anything, their death taught me to appreciate life. You have to make each day count because you never know what's going to happen to you next. Life's a gift and I'm certainly not going to waste it by doing nothing with it." Rose was absolutely touched by what Jack had just said. "That's amazing Jack. It really is. I like how you put that- make each day count. It's so true." "It most certainly is. And thank you." "For what?" "For being the first person in 4 years to actually understand that. Most people I've met thought I was acting immorally and being disrespectful to their memory. But I feel that I'm living the life that they never will. I'm living for them." Rose was in awe. "I'm not like most people Jack. I respect you for what you've done." "Thank you Rose. I can tell you're not like everyone else though. You're definitely not like any of the other girls I've met around here. You seem to look at what's on the inside, rather than the outside." Rose smiled. "Well you know what they say…"Don't judge a book on its cover". My father always said that. My mother didn't really like it. My parents were two completely different people. My father was always genuine about what he did. He liked to help others, no matter what their looks or financial status. My mother on the other hand never cares about the stuff that really counts like that. She looks at how wealthy someone is and how they dress and act. I guess that's why we've never gotten along." "Everyone's different. You just have to learn how to live with the different ones though. My father was the same way. We never agreed about anything. For my whole life, I took him for granted. I took for granted that he was just a fool and that he meant nothing to me. It wasn't until he was gone, did I realize the father I really had. I found out about so much more after his death. I miss him immensely now." "You really understand, don't you Jack?" "I guess you might say it took my parent's deaths and 4 years without them to finally understand life." |
