Page 20 of Love Potion

We continue the tour, traveling through rooms with projected images that feel so real, I’m tempted to reach out and touch the items around me. Jerryn is a kid in a candy store, whispering facts to me in between the narration.

We end in a room where we take seats and watch how the ship met its doom, but it’s done in such a way that it feels like we’re there too. Voices scream around us, calling out for help. Children cry, the waves smash against the ship, and I even flinch once or twice, expecting to get wet.

Jerryn grabs my hand, squeezing it in anticipation of the moment the boat splits in half and sinks below the water, taking all those souls with it.

I have to admit, as many times as I’ve watched something about the Titanic with Jerr, this experience makes it feel new again.

In front of us on the screen, the massive ship slips below the water, and the screams become splashes and gurgles until we’re left with nothing but eerie silence and softly sloshing water.

The narrator comes back on, telling us how many people were lost, how many were rescued, and ending with real footage of the ship sitting on the ocean floor.

We file out silently into the next part of the exhibit where there are more details, photographs, and artifacts from the wreckage and survivors. We walk through each display, reading the plaques and viewing the items. Jerryn keeps a tight hold on my hand the whole time, completely immersed in this experience. When we reach the end of the exhibit, he sighs happily.

“That was way more than I expected.”

“Me too, actually. The interactive part was really cool.”

“Did you think so?”

“Definitely. You enjoyed it?”

“It was incredible. I’m glad I didn’t miss it.”

“Me too.” Date mode. “Let’s go see what the gift shop has.”

His face lights up. “Really?”

“Yes, really.”

Still holding hands, we navigate through the crowds to the gift store and find the section on the Titanic. It’s pretty picked over, unfortunately, but on a bottom shelf I spot something I think might make Jerryn happy.

I bend over and grab the box. “Hey, look at this.”

Jerryn turns and peers at the box in my hand, his lips moving as he reads what it is, then gazes up at me. “Do you think it’s hard?”

“Maybe, but I’ll do it with you.”

The smile on his face right now is everything. Building a model of the Titanic with Jerryn sounds like a perfect way to spend my free time.

“Okay,” he says. “It might be fun.”

“We can make it fun.”

I head to the register, playfully shoving Jerryn’s hand away when he tries to pay for it.

“I got it.”

He tilts his head, but nods, waiting for the cashier to put the box in a bag and hand it to him. Once we’re done, I glance at my watch.

“We have thirty minutes before we need to go to the restaurant. Want to walk around a little more?”

Jerryn nods, searching my eyes. “That sounds good.”

I offer my hand and he takes it, smiling sweetly at me as we head back into the museum. So far, romancing Jerryn is going just as planned.

NINE

JERRYN

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