A beam of bright light shone on the pinewood flooring in the covered promenade. Stretching along the floor, it crept closer until it encompassed Jimmy, who was currently sitting on a teak, wooden bench. Jimmy preferred the enclosed promenade because it created a sturdy barrier against the interminable sea and its mercurial mood. In the promenade, Jimmy was offered fresh air without the constant reminder of where he was. Fortunately, Jimmy also had others to detract him from that which he feared most. On this warm, sunny Saturday,Uncle Will, Constance, and Edwin had joined him, while Miss O’Riley and Aunt Meredith took some time for themselves. It was just after breakfast, which had unfortunately turned out to be as disappointing as the previous night had been. Robert was still mad at him for yesterday’s incident. Jimmy still didn’t blame him. Who would have forgiven him, other than Seanan? Yet, some naïve part of Jimmy had hoped a night’s separation would have settled the animosity.
Jimmy tried his usual medication of losing himself in his book. The book he had in his hands was quite interesting but was depressing all the same. Instead of detracting him from his plight, the book reinforced Jimmy’s predicament, throwing it in his face. It reminded Jimmy that, like this “Oliver Twist,” he was an orphan. Jimmy personally did not want to be reminded of this lamentable truth. The story also reminded Jimmy of the previous day. Oliver, like Robert, had hardly known the person who gave birth to him. Because of this relatable fact, Jimmy found himself thinking about what he had said at tea (“I KNEW my mum and dad, I LOVED my mum and dad”). An impotent, vicious anger overwhelmed Jimmy. Why did he have to say that? He felt like a fool, but he also kept thinking Robert was an idiot for pressing the situation. Jimmy tried to return his thoughts to Oliver Twist but realized that the book was acting like a piece of paper on burning logs. It only succeeded in idiomatically fueling the flames.
Jimmy soon became fed up with the story, tossing it under the seat he was sitting in. A scowl covered his face. He rapidly and heatedly pulled up his knees onto the bench in an infantile attempt to hide his face, to hide the tell-tale signs of what truly was going on in his eight year old head. Deep-rooted animosity for Robert began to grow within Jimmy, and he had a hard time getting rid of the feeling, succeeding only when he convinced himself it was his own fault. There was nothing Robert did wrong, other than trying to know his friend, and that wasn’t a crime. The self-blame, though, began to wear at Jimmy’s self-esteem. He slowly began to feel depressed. Absentmindedly, he began to play with the wrappings on his left hand. Uncle Will stopped him quickly, scolding him for playing with the bandages:
“You mustn’t do that, little man. We can’t have you pulling out your stitches. That would only create more problems.”
Jimmy quickly stopped. He was holding true to his determination to not be sent back to the hospital during this voyage. He attempted to smile at Uncle Will, but it turned into nothing more than an accentuated frown. It appeared to Jimmy that Uncle Will noticed this. He walked over to his oldest nephew, picking him up and setting Jimmy on his lap once he had taken his seat. A period of silence ensued where Uncle Will held his nephew near. Jimmy was lost in his own thoughts, although Uncle Will’s presence comforted him. Now that he thought more about it, Jimmy realized that after the events of the previous night, he would rather it had been Uncle Will comforting him than anyone else.
“Uncle Will, is Robert ever going to be my friend again?” asked Jimmy abruptly.
“I can’t say that I know for sure,” replied Uncle Will, his head gently resting on Jimmy’s, “I would very much like to simply say ‘yes,’ but I don’t want to make you a promise I can’t uphold.”
Jimmy cuddled up next to his uncle, milking every ounce of comfort he could. He didn’t want to cry, but he definitely felt as though he would. Uncle Will hugged Jimmy tightly as he nestled into his arms.
“I wish – I wish you could make him be my friend again Uncle Will.”
“That wouldn’t solve anything, dear boy,” replied Uncle Will, “If anything, it would only cause more problems.”
“I know,” Jimmy murmured, “But I still wish.”
“I know what I might be able to do, though,” said Uncle Will.
“What?” asked Jimmy eagerly, looking at his uncle. He was willing to hear anything that might fix his broken friendship.
“I could talk to Robert and his uncle and aunt. Perhaps all we need to do is to explain the situation.”
“Do you think that would work, Uncle Will?”
“We can’t do anything more than try.”
Again excited by Uncle Will’s ingenuity, Jimmy hopped off his uncle’s lap and helped him to his feet. Uncle Will grabbed the book he had borrowed from the library, which had been orphaned on a nearby teak bench when Uncle Will had gone to comfort Jimmy. Edwin sat up immediately in response to this change of pace. He had been biding his time playing with two toy wooden horses, made for him by his father, two of his very few possessions from that time. Constance had been reading one of Jimmy’s penny dreadfuls, curious as to why Jimmy found them so appealing. She responded in much the same way Edwin had to the sudden action, essentially jumping off of the bench she had been relaxing on. Together, the four members of the family began trekking back to the staterooms, leaving the promenade – and Oliver Twist – behind.
They covered the short distance to their staterooms rather swiftly. One of the two oaken Second Class landings was nearby, and they descended it to D-Deck, where their staterooms were situated. Within a couple of minutes, they arrived at the rooms. Jimmy immediately noticed that Aunt Meredith and Miss O’Riley had just returned from the library, as both women had a couple of unfamiliar novels in their hands. Uncle Will kissed a greeting to his wife, and then proceeded to ask Miss O’Riley if she would be kind enough to watch Edwin as Jimmy, Constance, and he went to go speak with Robert’s aunt and uncle. Jimmy’s excitement increased as he saw Miss O’Riley nod her head in willing compliance.
Jimmy’s newfound good mood was momentarily dampened when Edwin began to cry because he wanted to go with his older brother. Jimmy quickly scurried back to his brother. Kneeling on the ground, he reassured Edwin that he really would not want to come with Jimmy this time. He told him that it would just be boring. Edwin protested that he wanted to join the trio, and that “he would be a really good boy,” but he was still not allowed to come. Thinking quickly, Jimmy went into his own stateroom and grabbed Edwin’s teddy bear. Jimmy gave the bear to Edwin, who stopped crying at that point. Jimmy wiped the tears from his little brother’s eyes, gave Edwin a quick hug, and then rushed back to Uncle Will and Constance, both of whom were smiling at him. What once might have been a peculiar act for Jimmy now was becoming more regular. Jimmy was becoming the father that Edwin had never really had.
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