April 15th, 1975

Jacob was bored; in fact, that was putting it lightly. He felt boredom consuming him, like it would soon take him entirely and leave nothing behind. He sat cross-legged, staring out the window and into the back garden below; across from this house were other houses. All Painted neatly with well-kept gardens. It was as if someone had copied each house and placed them down individually. Only a few differences existed. One had a rather large green summer house with a blue roof with pink flowers painted on the side.  A house with a pool sat next to the garden with the beautifully painted summerhouse. A pool that sat empty on this cold April afternoon. He sighed as his gaze lingered on the world beyond this house. He knew these gardens, for he had played in them. He longed to swim in that pool, but today, it was impossible, and on cue, the afternoon sky lit up with a flash soon followed by the roar of thunder that echoed across the neighbourhood. The rain continued its dance as it cascaded across the gardens, turning grass into muddy mounds of never-ending mud. The Type of mud your parents would complain about after you mess around in it. April showers were common, but deep down inside, he wished it would stop. The boredom was killing him slowly. 

He let out the most profound sigh as he turned away from the storm that raged outside; there was only so much time he could watch the rain turn everything into misery. Weather like this made him wish he was back home. Back home, he had more things to do. His parents had recently got him a new video game console that kept him busy for hours, but he did not have that here. Instead, he had books, jigsaw puzzles, and an old TV that never had anything good on it. He was not even sure if it worked properly anymore. He wished he could have stayed home, but it's something his parents outright refused to let him do. You are only eleven, and you will stay with your grandfather, which they had reminded him of when he had asked. His grandfather was an old man in his 80s. Though he was still an energetic man who was always seeking to help others, he still worked with many charities in the local area. Jacob wondered if this was the resson his parents had the jobs they did. His mother worked as a nurse in a local hospital, and his father had become a ship captain working under a company he did not know the name of. Jacob looked up to his parents but couldn't help but feel sad that he spent many days at his grandfather's. A place he did not want to be in right now.

He pulled himself out of the seat and let out a loud groan. If he read one more book or attempted one more Jigsaw, he was almost sure he would go entirely insane. He paced the room, his head looking up at the room. If the infernal rain would stop, he could go outside and play with his friends. The noticeable blessing about his grandfather’s house was that it was very close to his home, which meant he still had his friends close. Still, the rain kept them apart right now. For whatever reason, their parents seemed to be against them going out in the rain, even though it was simply water. He knew he could likely sneak by his grandfather, who was busy working on something for an upcoming local fair, but he knew that would be wrong. His respect for his grandfather was immense; he had always found his stories about his life interesting. He had been a lawyer throughout the years and had many tales to discuss that interested him greatly. Jacob wasn’t exactly sure what a lawyer was, but it sounded interesting. When he told his grandfather he wanted to be like him one day, the old man smiled and nodded. It was as if his grandfather was hiding something, though Jacob ignored it. He wasn’t sure he cared; whatever the secret was, it did not involve him, and that was quite all right.

He stopped pacing the room as his gaze appeared on an old battered trunk at the bottom of the bed. He recalled that this trunk had always been there, yet he had always ignored it, never daring to open it. He had been raised to respect others' privacy, which he had always kept at the forefront of his mind.  But now, with the boredom increasing by the second, he felt drawn to this old leather trunk. It was like a magnet drawing him ever closer. He knelt in front of it and placed his hand on the latch. It was not locked. He hesitated for a second. His parents would not be happy if they found out he was snooping in his grandfather's belongings, but on the other hand, his grandfather had often rewarded him for his curiosity when it had a good outcome. He took the deepest breath and then pulled open the trunk lid. He was unsure what he expected to find inside, maybe some old records from the 50s; he knew his father liked collecting them, so he wondered if his grandfather was the same. The only way he could learn was to look down.

He was slightly disappointed as he peered into the old trunk; it was a bunch of old photos. Nevertheless, it was better than staring longingly into the sky outside, hoping it would answer his prayers and stop raining. He began to look through the contents of the trunk. There were many photos inside. He recognized his grandfather standing before the Statue of Liberty dated May 21st 1924. He looked so young compared to how he looked now. He had seen photos of his grandfather before but never one from this far back. He looked through the other images, but nothing interested him. One photo dated April 14th, 1952, caught his eye, for it contained not only his grandfather but also his father and his uncles. He peered more closely at it and realized they were standing on the ship's deck. He looked at the photo briefly before putting it down and returned to searching through the trunk.

Unbeknownst to Jacob, the door to his room had opened, and his grandfather had entered. Now towering above him, he watched Jacob closely. His glasses sat firmly on his face. Engrossed in the trunk and its contents, Jacob did not notice as he found something exciting right at the bottom of the trunk. A brown battered leather journal that had not seen the light of day for some time. He picked it up and blew the dust off it before looking closely at it as if it were the holy grail. "You have found the journal, then; I wondered how long it would take," his grandfather chuckled. The sudden noise and realization that he was not alone made Jacob jump. The Journal went flying out of his hands and onto the floor. He had been caught snooping into what seemed to be a very personal thing to his grandfather. "I, I, I am sorry for snooping" Jacob muttered as he pulled himself off the floor. He picked up the Journal and offered it to his grandfather, who took it without hesitation. Jacob fully expected to receive a telling-off now and maybe even get grounded. He had no idea how his grandfather would react.

There was a brief silence as the panic in Jacob rose, but his grandfather's response was not what he had expected. "By Jove, I've not seen this old thing in years". His grandfather moved to the bed and sat down, balancing his cane on the nightstand.  No punishment had yet come, so Jacob relaxed a bit. Maybe His grandfather wouldn't tell his parents he had been snooping. "I see you're bored, my boy. The rain outside keeps you cooped up inside. It's only natural you went looking for something to do. Why don't you come sit next to me," his grandfather said with a smile. The kind of smile that Jacob had come to know and love, the one that reassured him that all was okay. He carefully climbed onto the bed and sat cross-legged next to his grandfather, who kept his eyes focused on the old battered Journal. "This Journal means a lot to me, boy. It's a reminder of old friends, of older times. Chester, Irene, Edward, Conner, Johanas, Basil, Murdoch. But you don't want to hear about my silly old tale", his grandfather said.

Jacob looked at his grandfather, his face a canvas of confusion; he had heard many stories before, tales that lulled him to sleep. It's how Jacob learned about his grandfather's past and was now sure what he wanted to do with his future. So why now, all of a sudden, did his grandfather seem hesitant about sharing the story within the Journal? "Have you ever heard about the Titanic, my boy?" his grandfather asked. His bewilderment deepened as he responded, "I've seen the movie". His grandfather chuckled at this, a sound that Jacob found perplexing. "The movies never tell the full picture, my boy; they always leave some details out", his grandfather explained. Jacob's respect for his grandfather's wisdom and experience kept him from questioning further as his grandfather continued to gaze longingly at the book. He moved his hand over the cover and sighed. He closed his eyes and looked as if he had been transported to another world. "I'd love to hear your tale, grandfather", Jacob pointed out, hoping it would encourage him to share whatever story he had to tell. It had to be better than staring out at the rain.

His grandfather nodded, a glimmer of excitement in his eyes as he advised Jacob to get comfortable. Jacob shifted slightly to be closer to his grandfather, then carefully rested his head on his shoulder. He saw his grandfather smiling as he opened the weathered, leather-bound Journal. Jacob was ready, for this had to beat his ever-increasing boredom. His grandfather took the deepest breath he could, then let out the loudest sigh he had ever heard. "Well, my boy, the story begins on April 10th, 1912. Over Sixty-three years ago," his grandfather said, his voice filled with a hint of mystery as Jacob closed his eyes to picture it.