Chapter 3
12 April, 1912
Waking up aboard the Titanic was the strangest experience I have ever had. I have never slept in such wonderfully nice sheets or experienced such a hearty breakfast….
Ailbhe had been very enthusiastic in her waking of Sorcha, and the blonde was tempted to just roll over and pretend that she hadn’t heard her. Though with her eagerness it was impossible to ignore. So she sat and allowed the wonderfully smelling sheets to slide down her and leveled a glare at the other woman.
“You ever heard of getting nice rest?”
“We are on the most magnificent ship on the planet and you wanna lay around in bed!” she gasped with wide eyes. “Sorcha, that is a travesty! There’s breakfast to eat and places to explore!”
Sorcha sighed and pushed the blankets off of, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed as she did so. She was reluctant to leave the overly comfortable mattress, but Ailbhe did have a point. There was so much to see and only a few days to see it.
So she moved as quickly as she could from the bed in order to pull on one of her two Sunday dresses. She figured the soft blue and lace would pass for adequate middle class attire. Ailbhe gave her an approving grin and nodded enthusiastically when she asked her opinion. “You look lovely, Sorcha!”
They walked arm in arm through the ship, both eagerly admiring the beautiful designs as they passed. It made Sorcha want to stop and sketch the intricate banisters and beautiful art pieces. A fierce growling in her stomach urged her onwards, though.
Breakfast was just as amazing as dinner was the night before. Some foods were familiar to her, but there were dishes that were apparently American that she had never heard of before.
“You ever been to America?” A woman on her left asked and Sorcha turned her head to face a woman with surprisingly short hair and a crooked grin. She shook her head.
“I have not. Ya?”
“No.” she shook her head as well. “I’m moving over to find work in New York.”
“I’m moving dere as well!” she exclaimed with a grin. “Dat is where my fiancé is.”
“Ooh you are Irish!” the woman exclaimed herself. “What a lovely accent! I’m English myself. Mary.”
She offered her hand and Sorcha immediately shook it. “Sorcha. This is my friend and cabin mate, Aildhe.”
“How are ya?” she asked, also offering Mary her hand.
“I’m good. You two are lucky. I share a cabin with a couple and their incredibly young child. The privacy curtain does not really help with covering up the poor boy’s seasickness.”
Sorcha wrinkled her nose in sympathy. “Oh, I see how awful dat could be. Poor lad.”
“Have you been on a boat before?” Mary asked and both Irishwomen shook their heads. “Neither have I.” she added and gave a nervous shrug. “I keep thinking of all the things that could go wrong.”
“Dis ship is supposed to be unsinkable, right?” Aildhe asked and Sorcha nodded.
“Grandpapa Ruaidhri told me it was.” she remarked, nodding in assurance. “He has been going on and on about this ship as it was built. It was built in Belfast, ya know?”
“Is that where you are from?” Mary asked.
“My family is more from central Ireland in a small village. Joseph’s family is from Belfast.”
“He is your fiancé?”
Sorcha gave a besotted grin and nodded. “He is!”
“Do you have a picture?” Mary asked eagerly, an intrigued look coming onto Aildhe’s face too. Sorcha gave a bit of a shrug.
“Well, not a photograph but I do have a sketch I have done of him.”
“You’re an artist!” Aildhe exclaimed. “Why did you not say so?”
“I am not an artist.” she blushed faintly and pulled her journal from the sash around her waist. “It is just a hobby.” Despite her words she did open the book to the front where a rough sketch of Joseph’s smiling face was.
“Ah! He is so handsome!” Aildhe exclaimed. “You are so lucky!”
“I would have to agree.” Mary nodded easily.
“He is very sweesh too.” she frowned at how softened her word came out and shook her head. “Sweet. Pardon, ma words get confused with Gaelic sometimes.”
“Dere are no hard ‘t’s’ in our language, ya know?” Aildhe explained for Mary’s benefit.
“No need to apologize! I love your accent. I met a family from Italy, and you would never believe their accents! So wonderful!”
“Ya like language?” Sorcha asked and Mary nodded.
“I believe they are fascinating! I’m hoping to find a job in New York that involves studying them, you know? There are so many foriegn immigrants coming into America, I would love to be able to help them transition.”
“Dat sounds like a very admirable job.” Sorcha remarked with an eager nod.
“What about you two?”
“Oh, I amn’t sure.” Aildhe shrugged sadly, her English sliding as she frowned. “Probably end up jueing housework of a sorsh. Is about all I can jue.”
“Why would you think such a thing!” Mary exclaimed, hand reaching across the table to rest on her arm. “I can tell that you are a very bright young woman.”
“My ma ‘chold me ‘dat in America, all Irish women are good for is house work.”
“Nonsense!” Sorcha exclaimed, her own speech bleeding too in her frustration. “I didn’ finish nursin’ school to be told I am only good for housework! An’ dat’s not all you’re goin’ to be stuck jueing either!”
“We can work together!” Mary added eagerly. “Nothing says that women can’t run a business.”
“A welcome wagon business?” Aildhe asked. “Do you think someone would really pay us to do that?”
“I don’t see why not?” Mary shrugged. “Even if we can’t right away, we can do something. America is the land of new opportunities. We can be whoever we want!”
A cautiously optimistic look came onto Aildhe’s face and she nodded. “I would love to! I have never really been very good at cleaning, anyway.”
Mary grinned and twisted to look at Sorcha. “You said nursing school?”
She nodded eagerly. “I just finished. I would have gone to America with Joseph after his last visit, but I had a year left. He tells me that there are plenty of nursing jobs in New York.”
“That’s wonderful!” Mary declared. “I’m sure you’ll be wonderful as a nurse!”
Sorcha blushed and gave her a small grateful grin. “Thank you Mary, I hope so.”
Breakfast was coming to a close and Mary gave the two of them questioning looks. “Would you ladies like to join me in the library?”
“For a little, that may be fun.” Aildhe agreed before glancing to Sorcha. “Ya? Ya want to come as well, Sorcha?”
“Maybe I may meet you there.” she replied as she stood. “I want to explore the ship, take a look at some of the art.”
The three women said their goodbyes and Sorcha left them to begin to explore the ship. There were seven decks to explore and either a staircase or elevator to do so. It wasn’t a hard choice and she delighted in running her hand over the beautifully crafted wood as she walked down the stairway’s expanse.
She paused at the bottom of the steps and looked up its winding expanse. It was too beautiful to not take a moment and attempt to sketch it in her journal. It didn’t do the thing a bit of justice, but at least she could say she tried.
She continued to wander around the second class accommodations until she came across a staircase downward. Curiosity instantly overcame her and she began a descent downwards.
The stairway opened into a light wood room and was bustling with people and full of laughter, many languages and music. It didn’t take Sorcha long to realize she had wandered into the third class gathering room. It immediately felt like home.
She gained the attention of a man with quite a head full of red hair almost immediately and he approached her with a crooked grin before speaking in her native language, “Don’t ya think you’re a bit lost lassie?”
“Well, I am, but that doesn’t mean I’m not happy to have come down here.” she remarked and he grinned even wider.
“Wanna slum it with the help?”
“Well, this seems much more fun than sitting in a library. I like the music.”
“What’s your name, lassie?”
“Sorcha Ni Donaill.”
“Single are you?” he grinned. “I’m Fergus O Brauchain.”
“Engaged, actually. Pleasant to meet you, Fergus.”
“You too. Planning on staying down here?”
She hesitated for a second. She had promised Ailbhe and Mary that she would join them in the library later but this atmosphere seemed so much more welcoming. She supposed it wouldn’t hurt to stay for just a small while.
She was glad that she had, as while Fergus was introducing her to some of their fellow Irish, she came across a familiar face with a delighted gasp. “Katie!”
The brunette turned to look at her, a beaming smile on her round face as she bounced to her feet. “Sorcha! Where have you disappeared to!”
“Up north with Joseph’s family.” she admitted to her long time friend with a bittersweet smile that Katie instantly returned.
“Oh, lovely. I heard that you and your family had a falling out. It was over your fiance?”
“He is Protestant.” she said simply and Katie winced.
“Oh, yes. I see how your parents reacted the way they did. Your family is the most religious I know.”
“Yes. It hurts that they do not support me, but I love Joseph.”
“I think it is so romantic! I’m moving to America to be with my sister. She says that there are many free young men in her neighborhood.”
“She’s been talking about nothing but for almost two hours!” A redhead at her side exclaimed, causing the raven haired woman at her left to chuckle.
“Forget hours! Since we got on this boat yesterday!”
Katie fondly rolled her eyes and motioned to first the red head and then the dark haired woman, “Sorcha, this is Rosie and Isibeal. Ladies, a friend of mine from home Sorcha.”
“Welcome, Sorcha!” Isibeal took a few steps closer and squeezed her to her plump body. “Will you join us? We are having a very enjoyable time trying to imagine what each person here is planning once they reach America.”
“Most of it is absolutely ridiculous. It is a fun game though!” Rosie added with a grin.
Sorcha only barely hesitated before nodding. “I would love to! Thank you!”
……...I spent until dinner down there, and didn’t have a single regret. Every moment of it was enjoyable and so very homey. I did feel guilty leaving Aildhe upstairs, but she was okay. Said we could spend the next day together, maybe really do the exploring we wanted. Seems she was not too much of a fan of sitting around the library either. I am sure though that we can find something enjoyable to do on a ship so large.
Sorcha Ni Donaill
“May I see the pictures she drew?” Natasha asked when Steve read off his mom’s name. He nodded and flipped a few pages back. There were two pages of drawings, one that was entirely a beautiful staircase and another that was up close detailings.
“Those are beautiful.” she said quietly. “What about the one of your dad she mentions?”
He very gently flipped to the picture. His father was so young in the drawing, and other than his parents wedding photo the only picture he had ever seen of Joseph Rogers. She lifted her head and smiled at him. “You look a lot like him. Same jaw, same nose. Though his isn't quite so crooked.”
Steve chuckled. “Well, he probably didn’t have it broken as many times as I did. I think he’s about twenty here? Ma was eighteen and dad was ah, I think two years older than her.”
“He is very handsome. Your mom was really talented.”
“Yeah, I got it from her.”
“You draw, Cap?”
Clint’s voice from above caused Steve to almost jump, only barely able to stop from doing so. A feat he only managed to not do in order to preserve the journal in his hands. He did look up to shoot the archer hanging from the rafters an annoyed look, though. “Clint, how long have you been up there?”
“Uhm, since you got to the part of your mom finding third class.” He dropped down to land behind the couch and lean over its back. “I really didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I couldn’t help myself.”
He looked away from the journal in Steve’s lap and asked softly, “I wish you had stopped me from making you watch Titanic.”
“Clint, it’s okay.” Steve gave him a reassuring smile.
He let out a relieved sigh. “Okay, cool.” he hesitated for a moment and then asked quietly, “Mind if I stay? I’m uhm, I’m curious what happens.”
“Course you can, Clint.”
He cheered happily and came around the other side of the couch to sit on Steve’s right. “I have never heard a first person account before. She doesn’t get hurt or anything, right?”
“No, Clint. Ma gets through it okay.”
“Okay, cool. Read on, Steve!”