Making It Count (Titanic Rose fanfiction) part 1

Bonus chapter 2

Cathleens pov

*4 weeks after the wedding*

Me and Christopher were home sitting by the fire when I heard a knock and coughing at the door. I opened it to see my mother, Charlie, and Jesse.

"Mother. This is a pleasant surprise", I greeted her, "I didn't know you were..-", she then violently coughed again.

"I'm sorry", she said in a husky tone before coughing more, "I'm sorry", she cleared her lungs. She then took a deep clean breath of air, "I'm dying Catherine. I have cancer", she told me before she coughed even more, "I didn't..-", she continued to cough again, "I didn't come here to ask you for anything. Other than take care of Jesse and Charlie for me", she then pushed them towards me.

"Mother I..-"

"No. Don't say another word Catherine. I trust you with them. You're the only family they have now. They love you Catherine. I..I love you", tears then started to well in my eyes. I then ran up to her and cuddled her. Charlie and Jesse then slipped inside. My mother then pulled away and started to cough again.

"Mother you can stay..-", she continued to cough,

"No. No. I can't stay here", she started to retreat back, "I deserve to die on the streets. And that's how it'll be Cath. Just make sure..-", she then took a pause and coughed more and more, "just make sure that Charlie and Jesse are brought up well. Clean, washed, good school, good friends. I know you will do that for me. Better.. Better then I ever can or could", she gave me a sad look. Knowing that she couldn't give me everything. Knowing that I had none of that. Knowing that I worked my way up and earned it. Knowing that I left her, Charlie and Jesse behind in the gutters.

She coughed a bit more before she disappeared off into the night. Leaving me still standing and thinking.

Michelle Hawkins Pov (Cathleen's mother)

I walked about on the cold dirty streets on New York. My lungs burned. Every time I breathed it felt like I was breathing out fire. Every breath. Every step. Every move. I was coming closer to my death.

I grabbed on the edge of a garbage bin in an alley. And slowly pulled myself down to the ground hugging my knees wanting the never ending pain to pass. I then felt a dark cold shadow hover over me. Ready to take me to my doom of what I had done to all my children. I continued to whimper knowing that my time has come. Then it threw a blanket over me.

"I'm not leaving you mother", the voice spoke.

"Catherine", my voice broke saying her name. She then sat down beside me.

"I'm not leaving you mother. Not by yourself" awwwww. I just smiled at her before my lungs got relit and I had to cough out the carbon. "Here", she said giving me her thermos to drink.

"Ahhhh", the sweet lemon smoothed my throat.

"Come on mother", Catherine got up.

"Urgh. I'm not getting up and going anywhere. My destiny is to die here and that is where I shall stay", I stood up to her. She just folded her arms.

"Mother. It is no ones destiny to die on the sidewalk. Wouldn't you hate after you die people look at you? As well as creating a stench that no one would want to move you?"

"Well if that's the price they have to pay then so be it"

"But no one likes that mother. Come on I want to show you something", she gave me her hand, "please. Just before you die", I then thought about it and I accepted her offer. I then leaned on her for support.