The Ship That Wasn't

Looking up from his textbook, James Ream realised he had missed the entire lecture. The panic came and went in an instant as he always knew the lectures were hit and miss. In fact looking over old textbooks benefited James more than any monotone lecturer could. He stood up and followed the procession of students out of the lecture theatre and made his way to his car. James' day wasn't quite done with and he decided to head to an internet cafe just in town.

This was always one of his favourite spots as it was relatively quiet at most times in the day, it also helped that the WiFi was at its best in there. James could sit for hours doing whatever he wanted. Most of his time was spent researching historical events due to his course being centred around such things. In fact his dissertation was to identify a historical event and the idea of 'what if it never happened?'

For James the hardest part of this dissertation was to simply narrow down an event. An almost impossible task because each one looked more engaging than the last. Could he take the easy route of 'what if there wasn't a mass extinction of dinosaurs?'. No, James wanted something to really indulge his mind in. Anything the Greeks, Egyptians, Romans or Persian's did? Still wasn't scratching his mind like he wanted.

Modern history was the next port of call and the obvious choices of World War 1 and World War 2 sprung to mind. However, the hours in this particular day were dwindling and the time was almost 8pm. James checked his phone and he had a text from his mother.

'When will you be home?' which was sent at 7:30pm.

'Will start driving home now..' James replied at 8:02pm

James was fortunate that his university campus was only an hours drive to his home. He never took up residence on campus as he never felt the need to as the cost of accommodation outweighed the cost to run his car.

The night was warm and the sun slowly dipped below the horizon creating a gorgeous deep red sky. James tuned the cars radio and found the station he wanted. It played old style rock and roll with bands like Rolling Stones and The Beatles blaring out the speakers.

James was tapping his finger along on his steering wheel and humming the tunes to himself. He could muster a hum as he still felt uneasy singing out loud, even though no one would be able to hear him. An hour passed by and he was home, with his mother on the porch ready to greet him. He pulled into the drive, flicked off his seat belt and leapt out the car.

‘Those books be keeping you occupied then?’ His mother, Diane Ream, asked.

‘Sorry, mum… just struggling to settle on a topic for my dissertation’ James confessed.

‘It’s okay, you need to do what you need to do… Just make sure to let me know in future if you’re going to be late home. Can you do that for me?’ Diane said.

With a huff and puff, James looked up at his mother leaning against the frame that held the porch together. She had her bathrobe on and hair up in a bun which suggested she was preparing for bed.

‘Sure mum, I’ll let you know.’

‘Thank you. Now come on in and get some food in you, you look like you need it!’ His mother replied in a caring, but harsh tone.

James rolled his eyes and replied ‘That’s what happens when you take on an absolutely titanic task.’

Diane looked at him puzzled and James could sense that something was confusing her about what he said. He raised his eyebrow, but ultimately shrugged it off as she would certainly ask if something needed to be asked. James walked into the house and straight upstairs to change into an attire more suited for the home. Grey joggers, a stained white top, socks with a multitude of holes in and thin jumper to complete the look.

James stood at the mirror in his room and examined the face staring back at him. His hair had lost its structure throughout the day and, by time the evening swung around, it was hard to keep out of his face. Strips of the pushed back hair had come loose and were now tickling his forehead. The skin around his eyes looked dark and stretched thin, in other words you could tell immediately he was tired.

As James laid in bed that night, he started to ponder using the Titanic as the plot for his dissertation. Not a precursor for World War 1, but a feat of human engineering that went totally wrong. Did it stop humanity from going bigger and bolder in the future? No, it didn't. It never has, so why has it been idolised and romanticised in film and literature for almost a century? It was at that moment that James reached for his phone that was laying on charge on his bedside table. He typed in his pass-code and loaded up the Safari internet browser. His fingers hovered over the letters as he worked out where to start the research, maybe start with the James Cameron epic.

Titanic

Nothing. Not a single search result returned what he wanted. James checked to see if he spelt it wrong, so typed it all out again. Slower this time and making sure every letter was in the right place.

Titanic

Again, nothing. Maybe he blocked it as a keyword? James wasn't even sure you could do that. Confusion set in and then he remembered his mother's puzzled expression when he mentioned the word 'Titanic'. Everyone has heard of it, even if it was from James Cameron's film. That's when he got the idea to look up Mr Cameron on IMDB.

James Cameron IMDB

After clicking on the first result, James went to find the list of all the director's film credits.

Avatar... The Terminator

No Titanic. James wasn't sure what to do next until one of his closest friends popped up on Whatsapp.

New Message: Taylor Hardy

Without even reading what his friend had messaged, James smashed into his phone a lengthy text about this revelation he was having or was he just going mad?

'Hey man, I know this is going to sound pretty fucking weird, but I need you to answer me something honestly. No fucking around. I need a straight answer and don't judge me for asking this, because I feel pretty shitting stupid asking it. Like, everyone knows this happened right? You've heard of the Titanic haven't you? Like, I'm working out whether I should use it for my dissertation, but I'm sitting here researching it and it's like it never happened. I'm fucking crazy right?'

James didn't expect the reply to be immediate, but it was irritating him that it wasn't a quick response. He was beginning to lose his mind about it, but after checking the message again he could see his friend was just simply typing. After a few minutes, James’ phone buzzed and a new message from Taylor came through.

‘Titanic? Never heard of that in my life. What is it supposed to be? On my mum’s life, I’ve never heard of it being a thing. I wish I could help man, but I simply don’t have a clue what the fuck you’re on about…’

Panic and deeper confusion set in for James. Why did he know about this historical event and yet the internet had no idea of existence? The internet knows all right?

James didn’t know where to begin. It was 2am and his mother wouldn’t let him out at this time, so all he had was his phone and laptop. He rose from his bed and sat down at his desk, switched the lamp on and flicked open his laptop. Quietly tapping in his pass code to avoid making too much noise, as his mother was only one room over and the walls weren’t exactly thick.

He dithered a little as he fired up his internet browser, unsure of where to begin. James started with documents and articles from 1912/1913 that would possibly give way to the idea of ship crashing in the ocean. Nothing of note was recorded except from a couple of fishing vessels that succumbed to the might of the ocean. No sign of a maiden voyage having occurred, which would’ve have attracted a lot of media attention and been on the front cover of every newspaper up and down The United Kingdom.

James then decided to check any news articles from 1911 that gave light to construction taking place on a huge ship. Again, the result didn’t return anything he needed. He scratched his head and as the time ticked past 4am, an idea popped into his mind. Post on a forum asking whether anyone has heard of the ‘Titanic’.

He knew that sometimes forums and certain chat rooms could divulge information not readily available on the internet itself. James found himself on a variety of sites posting the exact same question in each one, including Reddit.

Has anyone ever heard of a ship called the Titanic, which crashed and sunk in 1912?

A few curious minds were quick to reply, but still no one knew what James was going on about. He would spend the next 24 hours consistently checking each site and every comment in the hope someone knew something. He felt completely ridiculous that something that so obviously happened within his conscience, was not known in anyone else’s.

James had now been awake for an agonising 36 hours and delusion was starting to set in. He could barely read words anymore and his eyes were almost forcing themselves shut, so unfortunately sleep was now needed.

13 hours had passed and James’ eyes bolted open realising that he hadn’t set any alarm for his morning lectures. Missing one day of university was fine, but two warrants a call home to check up on the whereabouts of a student. He didn’t want his mother knowing his absence as she was quite a traditional woman. She believed education was the key for anyones future and of course it was her money that was being spent on the course James was taking. His head started to spin and a whirlwind of thoughts produced no answers for his current situation other than to just turn up at the university and check himself in despite the lecture having ended two hours ago.

James got in his car and drove to his campus, but as he was driving a thought occurred to him, he could use the library to check up on his forums. So, after arriving at campus and putting his professor at ease, he walked down to the library. His expectations were low, but he wasn’t going to let it get him down. The determination to get answers one way or another was strong and his determination was about to pay off.

Reddit was full of commentators that were confused by the question and assumed James was writing some weird fiction. Other forums and websites just challenged his mental state, which he knew would happen. All that remained was one site that focused on historical events in the early 20th century and it allowed its users to share family stories and documents that have been passed down by those who lived in that generation.

Historyforall.org.uk

There was a notification on this website, which hovered above his inbox icon. Unsure of how the website worked or really what it meant, James clicked on what appeared to be his inbox and there was a message with a subject line that read…

I know…

What the hell was this, James thought to himself. The message itself had no detail other than a location and a date.

Ophelia’s Diner

15th April. 10am.

The date looked familiar, but a finger couldn’t be placed on exactly why. However, it was tomorrow and after a quick Google search the only diner with that name was a three hour drive away. His first thought was how he could tell his mother that he needed to go on a six hour round trip, in the middle of the week and half way through a semester. Unless he could convince her that his professor had recommended his students visit a specific place to help with their education. Could she buy that?

James was always going to go despite any protest from his mother, this could be the vital information that he needed or he would be the victim of some sick prank. The former weighed heavier on his mind and would take any risk to solve this life altering realisation.

The time came for James to lay down his intricate lie, which he wasn’t comfortable doing, but he knew he had to do it. He chose to do it over dinner as that was when his mother was more open to a conversation.

‘Mum, I just want to run something by you if that’s okay?’ James started.

‘Sure, honey.’ Diane replied.

‘Our professor has recommended us to visit a library tomorrow for the day. The only catch is that it’s a three hour drive away. Now I know this is extreme, but he said this particular library holds an extensive amount of history books that could be useful for us.’ James nervously tiptoed around the subject, hoping for a quick resolution.

His mother took a while to process what James had just said, but eventually nodded her head.

‘Whatever you need to do James. Just keep me updated on where you are and that you’re okay. I’ll leave some money on the counter in case you need extra petrol money.’

Diane worked as a personal assistant to a branch manager. James always forgot the company’s name, but he knew his mother never struggled for money, which is why she was able to afford his university course and pay for his car.

James was relieved and then scoffed down his dinner to plan for the events of tomorrow. He checked the inbox again as soon as he got in his room and sat down at his desk. Nothing new had come through. An early night was required in order to start his journey in the best way, so with the alarm set for 6am, James fell asleep.

The ring from his phone was deafening, but it woke him up and that was the important factor of it. James made sure he looked presentable before he left and made sure his hair looked its best, as he had no idea who to expect in that diner. As he got in his car, he could see his mother in the window wave as he made his way out the drive.

While on the road his mind kept wandering to different places and it was lucky the roads were quiet as his concentration was extremely low, especially as he got closer to Ophelia’s.

James arrived in the car park at 9:35am. He reversed into a free spot at the back of the car park so he had full vision of the area. Any car that came into the car park would be clocked by James. Two cars were already here, a red Vauxhall and a black Toyota. No customers were inside the diner, as the huge windows revealed the entire layout of the fast food establishment. James assumed it was the workers cars.

With one eye on the time and his other on any movement, the 10am deadline fast approached. The sky was clear and the sun shone through which made looking directly ahead a slight issue, but he could still make out any movement if he squinted hard enough.

The time was 9:58am when he saw a dark figure approach the entrance of the diner. That was James’ cue to leap out of his car and make his way to the diner. However, he maintained eye contact with the figure the whole time and watched as they sat down next to the window. James himself slinked his way inside the diner and decided to sit on the table diagonal to the person. As he walked alongside the table, he could work out that the figure was male and of a smaller frame. Perhaps no bigger than James was himself. James felt less intimidated as he made his way to the table of choice.

A waitress made her way to the man’s table and took what seemed like a small order, but what was curious was that both the man and the waitress looked over at James sitting at his table. James looked down at the menu and pretended to not notice, but did catch the waitress nod at the man after looking over.

As James was browsing the menu he could hear the click clack of heels getting louder until they stopped right next to him. It was the waitress with two cups of coffee. James looked startled, but before any words left his mouth, the man from the other table sat down opposite him. The man was wearing a grey pullover hoodie, with the hood up. Despite the hood being up, the man’s hair protruded from the rim of his hood. This gave way to the idea that the man had mid to long length hair.

The waitress turned and clicked clacked away, leaving James and the man alone.

‘It was good to see you arrive early.’ The man quietly stated.

James didn’t really know what to say as this all seemed so coordinated, it seemed like something wasn’t right.

‘I never like to be late for things, it’s bad for my karma…’ James jokingly replied.

The man looked up and seemed puzzled by James’ brazen attempt at humour with a complete stranger. His eyes locked with James’ and it felt like his soul was being looked at rather than this body and face. The man’s eyes appeared more sunken and dark than James’, with quite a noticeable scar under his left eye. It started at the side of his nose and stopped midway across the top of his cheek.

‘My name is Arthur, Arthur Jones and I know exactly what happened in 1912…’

‘Wh… what? You know about the Titanic??’ James asked with intent.

‘Keep your damn voice down, anyone can be listening. I mean anyone.’ Arthur replied with a furious tone.

‘But, yes. I know the Titanic. 1,500 died in one of the worst maritime disasters of the 20th century. Despite this, it spawned a centuries worth of literature and film with James Cameron’s Titanic being the most notable of the lot.’ Arthur continued.

The words coming out of Arthur’s mouth were like music to James’ ears. Someone knew. He wasn’t totally crazy.

‘Why do only me and you know about this event actually taking place?’ James queried.

With a sigh, Arthur knew it was time.

‘When the Titanic was built and put in service, it was the biggest ship in the world. It was a significant feat of human engineering that was supposed to have a long life sailing across the ocean and giving passengers luxurious accommodation as they travelled across the pond. So, when the maiden voyage was about to take place, there was huge interest from all over the country.’ Arthur stopped to take a gulp of coffee before resuming.

‘You can imagine that when this ship never reached its destination and actually sunk halfway across the ocean, it would cause some untold devastation. Add in the 1,500 lives that were lost and you’ve got a recipe for disaster for the British government. It was as embarrassing as it was truly upsetting.’

James listened with intensity and hung on every word like he was being told the story for the first time.

‘What do governments do best? They hide things. It couldn’t go public otherwise it would cripple the economy and raise questions of British engineering. So, any survivors found and the families of anyone aboard were firstly compensated greatly to keep quiet. However, word started to spread, and the government decided to use an experimental form of brainwashing. Well, they didn’t call it that. It was titled the CRP, which stood for Compulsory Re-education Program. It essentially plucked anyone that was associated with the ship and forced to forget it ever happened.’ Arthur stopped all of a sudden and looked around, his skin turned a pale white and sweat started to form on his brow.

‘James, I don’t have a lot of time left. But, you need to get out of here and visit a place in America. I know it sounds ridiculous, but there’s a man that lives out there with all the information I have and more.’

Arthur slipped James a note. No sooner had the paper left his hand, Arthur’s head slammed against the table. Blood trickled out of his mouth and his eyes were staring inwards towards the counter.

The waitress who served us earlier was standing and staring at James while slowly rubbing the inside of a coffee cup with a cloth. With an uncomfortable realisation setting in, James stood up and walked towards the exit which was doubled up as the entrance. As he walked by, he glanced his eyes to his right and could see another body on the floor of the kitchen. It was the chef. The only two people now alive in the diner was James and the waitress.

With the note firmly in his grasp, James briskly walked out the door and almost started to running to his car. The waitress wasn’t following him, instead he could see her fumbling around with Arthur’s body and dragging it towards the kitchen of the diner. As James got in his car, he fired up the engine and pulled away. As he looked towards the diner, he could make out the waitress staring back at him again.

Now, how was James going to convince his mother to allow him to go to America?