As Mitch finally hooked up the webcam and saw Jenna’s face on the screen, the first snowfall began outside his office window. Mitch’s wife, Rachel, had been nagging him to set up this device since they moved to New York from Florida. Jenna, Rachel’s sister, still lived back in Florida. With the webcam now functioning, it was finally the perfect time for Mitch and Jenna to reveal their surprise to Rachel and the kids.
Mitch and Rachel had four kids, all of whom were busy doing their homework upstairs. Rachel was in the Kitchen taking her chicken out of the oven. From his office, Mitch called his kids and wife into the room. “Dad, do we have to come right now? I’m trying to finish my anatomy quiz!” Chloe yelled from upstairs. Amanda, clearly not as worried about her homework, went flying down the stairs as fast as she could. Still in her tutu from ballet class, she entered Mitch’s office, showing her dad the pirouettes she had learnt that day. Chloe and Rachel entered the room together, confused as to what this family meeting was going to be about. Nick was the last to go in, his headphones still on and the music blaring. As Amanda was twirling around the room, she noticed a face she recognized on her dad’s computer. She almost screamed with excitement as she saw her Aunt Jenna on the computer screen. However, just as she was about to shout out “Aunt Jenna!!” the face on the screen quickly held her finger up to her mouth to keep Amanda quiet. Amanda’s eyes doubled in size as she went to sit down on the couch.

As Mitch thanked Amanda for quieting the room, he took a deep breath. He explained to his family that he had been planning a big surprise for months and could not wait to finally share the news with them. Nick said, “Oh… did you finally become a genius and set up the webcam that mom has been bugging you about for months?” The kids all laughed. Mitch responded, “Funny you asked that. I did in fact become a genius!” Nick rolled his eyes and put his headphones back on. “Dad, I understand you’re excited, but can you please hurry up? I still have to memorize all of the bones in the skeleton by tomorrow afternoon and I only know the tibia!” Chloe said. Amanda pulled her tutu over her head, barely able to control her excitement, and screamed “GUYS! Dad has a really good surpriiiiiise!!!!” Seeing that Mitch needed some backup, Rachel got up and shushed the kids.

When Mitch finally got everyone’s attention, he told them to shut their eyes and get ready for their surprise. He then turned his computer screen around to face his family and requested that they open their eyes. The screen showed a pair of hands holding a brochure for a Disney cruise. “Oh so I was right. The surprise was that you fixed the webcam. Great job dad!” Nick said sarcastically. Rachel, upon seeing the tickets, quickly said, “I think I left the oven on. Please excuse me for a second.” As she left the room, she whispered in Mitch’s ear, “you know I hate cruises.” Amanda yelled out “AUNT JENNA!!” Jenna lowered the brochure and said “Surprise! We’re all going this Christmas to the Caribbean on the Disney cruise line! Kids, your dad worked very hard on this, so you owe him a big thank-you. Your cousin Isabel and I will be joining you guys and we are both very excited!” Amanda loved Isabel; they got along perfectly as they were both the same age of six.
Mitch interrupted Jenna and continued, “We will be leaving for Florida the day after school gets out. The cruise is ten days and we will visit many beautiful islands. I am really looking forward to it.” Nick shrugged his shoulders and left the office. Chloe thanked her dad and Aunt Jenna, but had to run to learn the bones so she exited behind her brother. Amanda was jumping up and down on the couch chanting “Mickey, Minnie, Mickey, Minnie!” Rachel was busy looking for her Xanex.

After Amanda said goodbye to Jenna and excitedly left the room, Mitch disabled the webcam. Rachel confronted Mitch, now that they were alone, and asked him why he would book a cruise when he knows she is terrified of them. Mitch told her that he thought with her sister and all the kids going with them, it would be a fun idea. He then pulled her in for a hug as he stressed that there are not many cases where ships have been in accidents.

The three weeks leading up to the trip went by extremely fast. The family met Isabel and Aunt Jenna at the front of the cruise ship. The excitement in the air was certainly noticeable, except for Rachel. She had been nervous for the past three weeks, dreading this trip. They boarded the ship together, most of the family talking passionately about their upcoming ten-days. It did not take long for everyone to settle into their rooms and unpack their belongings. Aunt Jenna finished unpacking first and announced she was going to take a walk around to find the “perfect spots” as she put it. As the rest of the family continued to unpack, and just as Amanda was expressing to Isabel which part of the trip she was most excited for, the captain of the ship came on the loudspeaker. “We will be having an emergency drill in five minutes. This will only be a drill. Please report to the dining room for instructions.” “What about Jenna?” Rachel said nervously to Mitch. “She will meet us there” Mitch replied casually. The family, including Isabel, left the room to attend the instructional meeting.

The dining hall was a large room, filled with tables and chairs. Mitch led the family to a corner, in clear sight of the entrance so that Jenna could see them as she entered. Mitch and Rachel kept their eyes focused on the door, scanning all the people that entered. However, moments passed and Jenna had yet to enter the room. “Were is my mom?“ Isabel said nervously. “She probably just took a wrong turn, she will be here soon. No need to worry” Mitch said, though not taking his eyes of the door. At that moment, a voice came on the loud speaker. This time, however, it was not the captain. It was an automotive voice that simply said, “Passenger overboard. Passenger Overboard.”

Rachel’s face went white. “That’s Jenna!” She screamed to Mitch. “Don’t be ridiculous” he responded, “This is all part of the drill.” However, as he said this, the loud speaker blared to life again, and this time it was the Captain. “Please report back to your rooms. This is not a drill. All crew members to the main cabin.” Rachel couldn’t move. She knew her sister was in trouble. Nick and Chloe started making their way back to their room. Mitch grabbed Rachel’s arm and said, “Jenna is fine. She is probably in the room. Grab Isabel and Amanda and let’s go.”

They pushed through the crowd and made their way to their room, however, it wasn’t Jenna who was inside, but the Captain. “There has been an accident. Perhaps the kids should wait outside.” He said before any of the family could speak. “What do you mean by accident.” Mitch said slowly, ignoring the part about the kids. The Captain eyed the kids carefully and spoke “A woman, who we have just identified as Jenna Clemons, fell overboard.” “What do you mean fell overboard?” Rachel whispered. The Captain sighed and continued, “We aren’t exactly sure how it happened. We are starting an investigation, but initial evidence suggests that some people were not aware the drill was about to occur and they got scared from the alarm and began pushing their way to the front. It seems that Mrs. Clemons was accidentally pushed and proceeded to fall off of the ship.” At this point Mitch turned towards Chloe and Nick and said. “Take Isabel and Amanda outside. Now.”

Without a word, Chloe ushered the kids outside the door and Nick closed it behind them. Silence filled the now childless room. Rachel turned towards the door, waiting for her sister to walk through it, but as it turned out, she would need to wait forever.