Chapter fifteen

                                    

                                          

                            

                                
                            
                              
                                  
                              
                              
                                
                                  
                                  
                                
                              
                             
                            
                            
                          
                          
April 14th 1912
23:36 - 4 minutes before collision 
In the comfort of our stunning suite, Thomas and I found ourselves wrapped in each other's arms, basking in the warm glow of the dimly lit room. After the initial activity, we were both dressed and seated at the desk. Me sitting on Thomas's lap, as he wrote some final improvements down of the ship, before going to bed. It was just the two of us, relishing the quiet moments together.
"I must say, this has been a lovely evening," Thomas remarked, his fingers gently tracing patterns on my thigh.
I smiled, snuggling closer to him. "Indeed it has," I replied. "But being here with you makes every moment special."
He leaned down to place a soft kiss on my lips, and a contented sigh escaped my lips. "And you, my dear Eleanor, make everything more beautiful," he whispered.
As we lingered in each other's embrace, the soft hum of the ship's engines provided a soothing backdrop to our intimate moment. The gentle rocking of the Titanic seemed to lull us into a state of comfort and tranquility.
The peaceful atmosphere was quickly broken, though, as we felt the ship shudder. The wine in glasses on the desk's side was wobbling. The clanking of the chandelier above us. The sound of the ship's engine's disappeared. Our hearts skipped a beat, and Thomas and I exchanged alarmed glances.
Shortly after, a crew-member arrived at the door and announced that Captain Smith had called Thomas to help look into some sort of damage that had occurred . My guess is that the damage being announced is what caused the ship to tremble. 
We rushed to the deck, where a sense of urgency hung in the air. Thomas's arms full of paper rolls of the ship's blueprints, his other arm dragging me along with him. Captain Smith and two crew-members were waiting for us.
"Boiler room six is flooded eight feet above the plate, and the mail hold is worse." One of the crew-members told the Captain and Thomas, as we walked along the deck, "She's all buckled in, in the forward hull" "Can you shore up?" Smith requested.
"Not unless the pumps get ahead" he answered back.
"Have you seen the damage in the mail hold?" Thomas asked the crewman. "No. She's already underwater" was the response he received. This doesn't sound good. As we continued to walk I saw Rose and Jack. I stopped to speak with Rose and Jack while the rest of the group made their way to the captains room to discuss the damage.
"What is happening, Eleanor?" Rose, worriedly asked me. "I'm not sure, Rose, but it doesn't sound good. From what I heard, the ship has suffered significant damage" Unfortunately, what I said just increased her worry.
"We should tell mother and Cal." She stated, turning to face Jack. Jack gave her a nod. She then turned to me "if anything else happened to come up, will you please tell us?" She asked  me. I immediately assured her that I would make every effort to inform her as soon as I heard anything about the ship's damage. After that, they both rapidly departed.
I started walking once more towards the men's gathering in the captains room. I had arrived, when I heard Thomas say, "From this moment no matter what we do, Titanic will founder." I just stood there in disbelief. Even though he was in shock, Mr. Ismay who was standing next to me immediately responded, " But this ship can't sink."
"She's made of iron, sir. I assure you, she can...and she will." Thomas raising his voice slightly at Mr. Ismay. "It is a mathematical certainty" 
"How much time?" Smith questioned. "An hour...two at most" Thomas replied after looking over the ship's blueprint. At the news, everyone in the room and outside stood silently. Titanic, the ship that was supposed to be unsinkable, a lifeboat in it self. Was sinking. 
"And how many aboard, Mr. Murdoch?" Captain Smith questioned the officer. "2.200 souls on board, sir" Murdoch said, his voice slightly trembling.
The captain of the great Titanic then turned to the chair man of White Star saying, " Well, I believe you may get your headlines, Mr. Ismay."
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After speaking with the captain and the crew, Thomas and I made our way down to the deck. While we were in the captains room, the majority of the passengers had already been told to put on their life vests and head for the deck. However, there were no passengers there as we both stepped onto the deck; all we could see were the crew-members making the lifeboats ready.
"Mr. Wilde, where are the passengers?" Thomas asked a nearby officer. "They've all gone back inside. It's too damn cold and noisy for them." He said before shouting at a crew-member. Of course, first-class passengers who are so sensitive to a little noice and cold air. Unbearable people.
Thomas looked at his pocket watch, probably checking the amount of time left. I felt some sort of sympathy for him. He probably felt so guilty for everything. As if he had the power to prevent it. He was only a man, after all.