AFTER STARTING ANEW
Chapter Seven

May 4, 1913

“Rose, Rose, where are you?”

Jack put a brown bag down on the kitchen table, and patted Byron on the head. The dog had an unusually guilty look on his face.

“What have you been up to, eh? Where’s Rose?” he asked the dog, half expecting an answer.

Jack smiled to himself, thinking about what a wonderful evening lie ahead. This was their first anniversary. It was Sunday, and he’d been asked by Mr. Thompson to come in and do some special work on an ad that was being run in tomorrow’s paper. When Jack had explained about this being a special date, Mr. Thompson said he understood, but that the drawing still needed to be done. He had, however, given Jack double overtime pay, told him that he could go home at three and didn’t need to be at work again until eleven the next morning. Both he and Rose had been satisfied with that arrangement. She would have time during the day to make the food for the picnic they had planned and he would be home in enough time for them to make something of the afternoon.

“Rose?” he called again.

He wandered into the parlor and there he saw her, sitting on the couch, her hands in her face. He winced when he saw that pose. For he remembered all too well a night last fall when he had come home and found her looking much the same only sitting in the kitchen. The night they had that awful fight. He was almost afraid to speak again, fearful of starting another bad scene.

“Are you okay?” he finally asked, still standing in the doorway and hoping for the best.

She looked up at him and pulled her hands down from her face. But when she shook her head and smiled, he was greatly relieved.

“What’s going on?” he asked, sitting down on the couch next to her.

“Oh, Jack. You won’t believe my day. It’s so pathetic that it’s funny.”

She leaned against him, laughing.

“Well, what happened?” he wanted to know.

“Jack, everything has gone wrong. First, you had to work today. Then I was going to make the perfect picnic meal for us. That was going to be my anniversary gift to you,” she said, sighing. “To show you how my cooking has improved.”

He put his arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder. She went on to explain that she had made a little roast that had smelled wonderful. After sampling a bite, she let it sit on the stove to cool. Her menu for the picnic was to have been thinly sliced roast beef sandwiches, homemade bread, sliced cucumbers in a sweet and sour sauce, lemonade and freshly baked sugar cookies.

“I had all these organized plans, Jack. And nothing worked. The girls needed to be changed and while I was doing that, Byron got the roast. The yeast for the bread was old and I realized that I forgot to get the cucumbers and the lemons on Friday.”

“Ah, no wonder he looked so guilty when I walked in here,” Jack remarked knowingly.

Jack looked down at Rose with laughter in his eyes. She wrinkled her nose and giggled against his chest.

“Then mother’s little neighbor Ben, came with a note from her. She feels awful that she can’t come and watch the girls tonight because she has a terrible cold. And the final straw was that when I was just about to take the cookies out of the oven, I thought I heard someone at the front door. It was a big cat that was harassing Byron through the window. But in those few seconds, the cookies burned.”

Rose shook her head from side to side. She smiled again at Jack.

“I guess last year these things would have bothered me. But now it really is funny. And I guess we’ll remember this in years to come. The anniversary that wasn’t.”

Jack stood up and pulled Rose with him.

“Come on. It’ll always be our anniversary. And I think I have something we can have for dinner. Mr. Thompson got everyone some Chinese food from Lim’s to eat for lunch, but we were all too busy. So they gave it to me to take home. We can warm it up and eat that. And there is still that bottle of red wine left that I won at work last Christmas.”

At that moment a loud clap of thunder shook the house and lightening flashed nearby. Instinctively Jack put his arms around Rose.

“Guess we weren’t going to have a picnic in the park anyway,” he chuckled. “We’ll do it here.”

Rose eyed him flirtatiously. “Do what here?”

He put his forehead against hers.

“Rose, I’m shocked. You, the mother of two daughters? Thinking of things like that?” he teased.

“Jack, I love you. We really do have fun, even when things go wrong, don’t we?”

“Mmm. I love you too. Now, how about if we get a blanket for the floor and have our dinner in here? We better get some candles too, in case the electricity goes off later.”

Rose started to go and find the candles and the blanket. Before she left the room, she turned to Jack. He looked at her with that intense stare of his. She stopped where she was, unable to move beyond his gaze. Even after one year of being married to him, that piercing look of his, still rendered her helpless and weak.

“I love you, Rose. I don’t know what my life would have been without you.”

He took a few steps towards her and embraced her again. Their mouths joined in a deep kiss that awakened the need for each other within them. When their lips parted, Rose leaned her head back and closed her eyes halfway.

“That was better than the roast anyway, Jack.”

He smiled and burst out laughing. “Come on, let’s get this picnic set up before Byron eats the other food."

Darkness had settled outside and candles flickered against the parlor walls. The electricity had gone out just as night began to fall. But for Rose and Jack it provided a perfect romantic background for their evening at home.

“Jack? This really is very cozy isn’t it?”

Rose spoke very quietly. She was patiently trying to coax Edy to take a few more mouthfuls of cereal.

“Yeah, it is cozy. Reminds me of some evenings I spent at home when I was a kid. Those were good times. And we’ll remember this night that way too.”

He was laying on the floor, his knees bent. He had Molly in his hands lifting her gently in the air as the amazed little girl squealed in delight. Rose watched Jack as he tenderly held his four month old daughter. He certainly was comfortable with small children. And he did all the parenting things she did with the same ease as he did everything else. He was always there to help her feed, bathe, dress or diaper one of the girls. In fact, her friends were all quite jealous, as their husbands wanted no part of babies. But Jack seemed to find them fun.

“I really never pictured you as a father last May,” whispered Rose.

“I didn’t exactly think about you as a mother either,” agreed Jack. “I’m not sorry that we have these two children, but sometimes, when I think about what could have happened, I age about twenty years. I might not have made it. You would have been alone. As I said, I’m not sorry, but we really took a chance that night. I don’t want to say that we should have known better. I loved you so much even then. Let’s just be glad that everything worked out.”

“Come on, Edy, one more bite.” Rose was listening to what Jack said, but her eyes were watching the baby. “I was scared Jack. Really scared, when I realized I was pregnant. You really want to know the truth?”

He gave her a puzzled look.

“I was scared to death the day I married you too,” she confessed. “I knew you, but it had been for such a short time. I trusted you. I did. But I was still so frightened, Jack. I was afraid that I would be hopeless as a wife.”

He sat up and stretched his legs out, resting the baby on his lap.

“Well, now that the truth is coming out, I’ll tell you I was pretty scared too.”

Rose looked up at him with a surprise on her face. “You scared? After all we had been through?”

“That? The Titanic? That was raw terror. Getting married was worse. I had no idea what was going to happen along the way. And I was afraid for you. I hoped that I was not asking too much of you, you know, giving up the life you had.”

Molly began to whimper and he picked her up and started to rock her in his arms.

“But when I looked at you, so pale, with that worried look on your face, I realized that you were just as nervous as I was. Inside, Rose, I just knew it was right. That there would never be anyone else.”

From the side of the room, came a loud groan. Rose and Jack turned their heads in the direction of the sound. They muffled their laughter so as not to wake the now sleeping Molly.

“I guess old Byron is pretty content after that roast,” was Jack’s wry comment.

“He’s so sweet though, Jack. I am really attached to him,” said Rose. “I’m glad you got him for me.”

Jack looked at her thoughtfully for a minute.

“I wish I could get you more Rose. I really don’t have anything for you today. With the babies, things are a bit tight. Though this double overtime today will help a lot.”

Rose stood up and rocked Edy.

“I don’t need anything. I’m just happy being with you. That’s enough and you know that.”

He placed the sleeping baby against his shoulder. Molly snuggled against him and gave a contented sigh. Slowly he too rose to his feet. Jack walked over to the fireplace mantle and from behind the clock, he pulled out an envelope. He gave it to Rose, who took it with one hand.

“What’s in there?” she asked mystified. “I can’t open it with the baby.”

“Turn it over and look at the return address,” Jack suggested.

She fumbled with the letter, careful not to disturb Edy whose eyes were just closing. She squinted in the candlelight, confused at what she saw.

“University of Denver?”

Jack nodded proudly.

“Jack? I don’t understand.”

He took a breath and began his explanation.

“Remember when we were in Chippewa Falls last year?”

Rose shook her head up and down in affirmation.

“In that old metal box, I found the money from my parents and the list of things they planned to do with it all. They had a certain amount set aside for my education. It’s important to me Rose to follow their dreams for me. I want it too. I didn’t want to say anything until now, in case things did not work out.”

Rose frowned. “If what didn’t work out?”

He pulled the letter from the envelope she held.

“Getting in. Since I never officially finished high school, I wasn’t sure if I could do this. But I went there and explained everything and I took a bunch of tests. And I showed them some of my work.”

He grinned and went on. “They gave me credit for four years of high school and because I did so well on the entrance examinations, they are giving me quite a scholarship. Between that and the money I found, I’ll be going for almost nothing. Just books and things like that.”

Rose gasped, her eyes shining with pride.

“Jack, that’s wonderful. I don’t know what to say. I’m speechless, but so happy.”

He put his head down, slightly embarrassed.

“It’s going to take awhile, since I can only go to school at night. And it won’t be easy, Rose. I’ll have to study. But I promise you, I won’t let you down when it comes to the girls and having some time to ourselves a couple of times a month. But when I’m done, I’ll qualify as an art teacher. The salary will be good and I’ll be able to inspire other people to know and love art. That’s really what I want.”

Rose took a few steps over to where he stood. She looked up at him, her face filled with happiness. It was frustrating to be so happy, ecstatic and have a sleeping infant in her arms. She wanted to throw her arms around Jack and have him swing her in a circle. But for right now, she would have to be satisfied with a more subdued reaction.

“I’m so proud of you. So proud, Jack. This is like a gift. I understand and how ever long it takes, I’ll help you in anyway I can. I love you so much. Maybe we can put these girls to bed now and still have a little of the day to ourselves,” she asked hopefully.

Little crinkles formed around his eyes. His mouth broke into a smile.

“I’m glad you understand, Rose. This will make a real difference for us, for them. But come on, we still have a little celebrating to do,” he said with longing in his eyes.

He looked toward the stairway and then back at her. She smiled, her thoughts exactly the same as his.

Rose stretched in the bed and pulled the sheet up around her shoulders. She smiled to herself as she thought of the activities of the last couple of hours. Their coming together was sometimes urgent, sometimes leisurely, but always gentle. It left her with a feeling of peace and contentment that she was positive could only belong to her and Jack. Surely no other couple in the world could experience what they did.

Rose reached over in the bed to hold Jack’s hand, but he was not there.

“Jack? Jack?” she whispered.

As she sat up, concerned and confused at his absence, she heard a soft thump that came from the corner of their room, near the window.

“What was that?”

She was speaking to herself. But she was not alone in the room. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw Jack sitting in the rocking chair. One of the girls was nestled against his shoulder, his head resting against hers. Both father and daughter looked to be sound asleep. He appeared to have dressed hastily, wearing his pants and an unbuttoned shirt.

Rose reached for her robe, got up and walked across the room. Peacefully slumbering on the blanket, next to Byron, was her other child. Byron was keeping watch over all of them.

She bent down and picked up the thick glass baby bottle.

“This must have been the noise I heard,” she thought. “It must have fallen out of Jack’s hand.”

The dog’s ears perked up when Rose reached down for the bottle.

“Shhh, Byron. Let them sleep.”

She was so touched as she observed this tender scene. Jack with his two girls. They must have awakened and somehow, she had not heard them. How like him to get up and take care of all this by himself.

It was not often these days that Rose thought of what her life would have been like without Jack. The prospects were too frightening. Living with Cal would have been pure hell and marriage to someone other than Jack was unthinkable. She knew deep inside that only Jack could give her both the nurturing and independence that she needed and desired. Only he would want to help her take care of their children. For behind his often brash and impulsive behavior, there lie the gentlest and kindest of hearts.

She sat down on the floor in front of the rocker and picked up Edy who was on the blanket. Byron sighed and turned over on his side. Rose leaned back against Jack’s legs settling herself comfortably with the baby. She thought of how they had talked about this first anniversary and how much they had wanted it to be special. Things really had not worked out as they planned. But it still had been a wonderful day. The impromptu, candlelight dinner, the quiet evening with the twins and a time of passion and love. She would remember this anniversary for a long time, of that she was sure.

Edy squirmed in her arms.

“Shhh, little one. You don’t want to wake your father and sister.”

Rose felt Jack’s knee wiggle against her back.

“Hey, Rose,” he murmured, sleepily, “Happy Anniversary.”

She arched her head back and saw the loving smile on his face.

“Happy anniversary, Jack.”

Chapter Eight
Stories