Point of View

This is the second part to my earlier fan fiction, I'll Be There. I want to dedicate this story to my daughter Laura, and my online friend nana1218 (get better soon!) who miss Charlie almost as much as Claire and Hurley.

The balmy tropical breeze whispered to the playful sapphire waves. The luminous yellow sun watched those waves tease a helpless piece of driftwood; pushing it toward the shore, only to pull it back out to sea again. Libby snuggled in closer to Hurley and put her arm around his back. Aaron was content, curled up on Hurley’s chest, while Libby idly stroked Aaron’s downy hair. Hurley sighed; Libby was so pretty doing something as simple as rubbing a baby’s head. Did she ever have any children of her own? Maybe he should ask her. No, don’t spoil this perfect moment.

WHAAAA! Come on Hurley, wake up. Your dream is over. Don’t look confused. We took a nice nap, but now I need something to eat and some dry nappies. That’s right, get up. Are we going back to see my mom? She’ll know what I need.

Look, there goes Vincent running in front of us. I like Vincent; sometimes he tells me secrets about this place where we live and the people we live with.

Okay, Hurley, Mom is right over there in our tent. Uh oh, she still looks sad. I wish she’d be happy again. She has been sad a lot since Charlie left. I miss him too.

“Here’s your little dude. He just woke up crying. We were taking a nap, but I guess he’s had enough sleep and needs a snack.” Hurley handed Aaron to Claire. “Oh…you have Charlie’s ring. Are you… you know…okay?”
Claire shifted Aaron on her lap, held up the ring, and sighed. “I like having it with me. It makes me feel better, like part of him is still here. Is that weird?”
“Nah, I’m glad he left it for you and Aaron.” Hurley turned to leave but paused. “Hey, would you want me to bring some dinner tonight?”
Claire smiled, brushing the hair out of her eyes. “Yes, that would be really nice.”
“Okay.” Hurley leaned forward and poked Aaron in the belly. “I’ll bring some oatmeal for my favorite little dude, too.”

Yuck, do not do that. No oatmeal.

Aaron started fussing. Hurley shrugged his shoulders while grinning at Claire and left.

And why does he always call me little dude, not that I liked turnip head any better.

Mom, where’s Charlie’s ring? I remember seeing it on his finger. It was shiny and I wanted to taste it. But then he’d sing me a song or make a funny face and I’d forget about it.

Whew! Thanks for changing me and feeding me. I feel much better.

Oo, Oo, Oo, are we going for a walk? Yay! I love looking at all the colors and shapes of this camp. Hey, look, there’s Hurley. Big Dude, what are you doing sneaking into Sawyer’s tent? I see you, Hurley. Mom, look. Hurley’s sneaking into Sawyer’s tent. Sawyer won’t like that.

Uh oh, it’s those new people. I don’t know if I like them. Just keep walking Mom.

Claire walked past two of the rescuers; they paused in their conversation and looked at Claire and Aaron. Noticing they were watching her, Claire approached them, offered her hand, and said, “Hi, I’m Claire Littleton and this is my baby, Aaron.”

The average sized, dark haired man shook her hand. “Hi, I’m Daniel and this is my friend Miles. We were just saying we hope we can repair at least one helicopter; so you and Aaron can be one of the first ones we take to the freighter.”

Claire smiled, “That will be great. It’s too bad about the helicopters crashing like that. You think you’ll be able to fix the one then?”

“Yeah, we think so. We’re going to the other’s compound tomorrow to see if there is anything there that could help with the repairs.” Pointing toward Aaron’s head, Daniel asked, “How’s the baby?”

Claire kissed Aaron just above the almost healed cut he had received from the falling helicopter debris a few days earlier. “Oh, you know how babies are. They heal quickly.” Aaron started fussing.

Let’s go Mom, I don’t like the way they smile at me; it makes my tummy hurt. Say goodbye Mom, weren’t we going to see Sun and Jin? I like them much better. Oh good, this is the way to Sun and Jin’s tent. Jin doesn’t talk the same as everyone else, but that’s okay. When I come to visit, he pulls out this lovely shiny watch. He lets me hold it and shake it and suck on it. Look, here we are. Hey Jin, where’s that watch? Mom is sitting down and talking with Sun. Boring. I want the watch. Alright, I’ll try to be patient.

Hey, here comes Vincent. Any new secrets, Vincent?

Vincent, you silly doggy, you already told me that one. “They aren’t strangers. They are good people.” I thought and thought about that secret, Vincent. I think you are talking about Juliet. Right? Don’t you have anything new to tell me?

“The secrets we kept and the lies we told will be said by an important person.” That makes no sense whatsoever, Vincent. My head will hurt too much if I try to figure out what that is supposed to mean.

I do trust you Vincent, but I will be walking by the time I figure that out.

Wow. “Everyone pays the price now.” That’s something new. I don’t know if I like that; it sounds sort of scary.

I know you don’t want to scare me. Would you mind singing me that song?

I like that song so much. Can I sing it with you this time? La mer Qu’on voit danser le long des golfes clairs A des reflets d’argent La mer…

Thanks for singing with me and listening to me, but I am tired now. Nighty night.

Claire brought her sleepy Aaron back to his crib after the visit with Sun. Hurley would be over with dinner soon. When she walked past the kitchen, he was busy stirring something in a pot over the fire. While tending to a few chores to pass the time, she accidently knocked Charlie’s ring into the sand. Even though she found it quickly, the thought of losing it scared her.

“I brought fish, Dharma risotto, fruit, and some ripe banana and oatmeal for my favorite little dude, just like I promised.”

Claire was changing a squirmy Aaron. “Sounds delicious, doesn’t it Aaron?” Claire finished with the nappy and kissed Aaron’s belly. The little group enjoyed their dinner and spending time together. When they were finished eating, Claire gathered the plates. Hurley reached over to take them but before she let go she asked, “When I was talking to Sun today, she told me that Jin was going to the other’s compound with Daniel and Miles’ group. Sun thought she heard you were going too. Is that true?”

With the plates still between them, Hurley hung his head, not able to make eye contact. “Yeah.”

Claire grabbed the plates, marched over to the tray, put them in noisily, and stood motionless with her back toward Hurley.

“Oh, come on Claire. Don’t be mad…This is something I got to do.”

Claire remained, her back toward Hurley, for a few minutes. Hurley just waited, not really knowing what else to do. Finally, Claire turned toward Hurley, arms folded across her chest, “Fine then. Go.”

“Uh uh. We aren’t going to end the conversation like this. Go get Charlie’s ring.”

Claire stood her ground.

“Please.” Hurley added.

Claire hesitated, then marched past Hurley, picked up Aaron, went into the tent, brought back the ring and held it out for Hurley.

“Thanks. Now turn around again. Please.” Claire started to say something but stopped and turned with Aaron on her hip. Hurley took out a chain he had “borrowed” from Sawyer’s stash earlier, and put Charlie’s ring on it.

“Now close your eyes.” Hurley was right behind Claire. She felt him move behind her, his large hands brushing her hair to one side, and then placing a chain around her neck.

“What?” Claire opened her eyes and saw the ring on the chain. She bit her lower lip and fingered the ring with her free hand.

Hurley moved to her side and took Aaron from her. “Now Charlie can always be with you.”

Claire was quiet for several moments. “Sorry…Thank you. This is so sweet. I just…”

“It’s cool, Claire. I understand.”

“Where did you find this chain?” Claire was still admiring the thoughtful gift.

Hurley chuckled. “Ask me no questions, and I’ll tell you no lies.”

Just then, Daniel and Miles walked past. They waved at Hurley and Claire. Daniel called, “Hey, Hurley, we’re leaving a half hour after dawn, you still coming?”

“I’ll be there.” Hurley waved back.

Hurley and Claire watched them walk to the community fire. When they were out of earshot, Claire asked in a low voice, “What do you think about them? Do you think they are keeping secrets or telling us lies?”

Hurley shook his head. “I don’t know what to think. We all have secrets we kept and lies we told before we crashed on this island. Are they any different from the rest of us? I wish I knew.” Hurley shrugged his shoulders. “Half the camp thinks we should trust them and half don’t. I was hoping to get some answers by going with them tomorrow.”

Claire moved in closer to Hurley’s side. They were both watching Daniel and Miles interact with a group around the community fire. Putting her small hand on Hurley’s shoulder, Claire looked up at Hurley. “I still don’t like you going with them, just...please promise me you’ll be careful.”

Hurley returned the look, “I promise.”

Neither noticed Aaron, bouncing happily on Hurley’s hip.

Hey, Vincent, where are you? I think I figured out one of those secrets.

Old Habits

This story is set after DOC and my fan fiction, All You Got To Do Is Ask, about day 90, late afternoon to evening, ending at the beginning of The Brig.

Kate walked back to camp, unconsciously hugging her water bottle and grinning. The dark purple tank top, that’s what she’d wear to go swimming with Sawyer. Back at her tent, she quickly changed and found a couple towels which she put in her backpack. Knowing she still had a couple minutes before Sawyer got there, she ran over to Sun’s tent and peeked in; Sun was napping. She looked around camp but didn’t see Jin or any of his “camping buddies” roaming around. Returning to her tent she waited, feeling slightly giddy and almost nervous. Had Sawyer asked her on a date?

“You ready to go, Freckles?” Sawyer’s voice startled Kate.

She jumped up and grabbed her backpack. “Never been more ready.” She popped out of her tent. “Where are we going?”

“Taster’s choice, you decide, the waterfall or Sayid’s beach, about three kilometers down.” Sawyer nodded his head to the left.

“Let’s go to Sayid’s beach.”

Sawyer smiled. “Sayid’s beach it is.” They chatted about nothing and everything on their way to the beach; the first food they would eat when they got rescued, their favorite color, the name of the first person they kissed. When they reached the beach, Sawyer dropped his backpack and announced, “Last one in the water’s a rotten egg.” Sawyer kicked his boots off and threw his tee shirt behind him, splashing into the surf with his blue jeans still on.

There was a lot of teasing and laughter that sunny afternoon in the sapphire blue water. The bulk of which was spent with Sawyer giving Kate tips on how to improve her body surfing technique. Tired out after riding countless waves, they returned to their backpacks. Kate offered Sawyer one of her towels. Drying off, Sawyer made Kate turn around and promise not to watch while he changed into dry jeans. Kate wrinkled up her nose, giggled, and made sure to take a peek after quickly changing into a dry top. With great flourish, Sawyer produced a blanket, mango, and Dharma nutribar. “Wanna share?”

“Is that dinner?” Kate sounded let down.

“Nah, just a snack. We’ll have dinner back at camp.” Sawyer attempted to spread the blanket and dropped the food. “Son of a bitch“ Sawyer muttered. “Don’t just stand there lazy bones; help me spread out the blanket.”

Between bites of mango and nutribar, they sat enjoying each other, the warm sand, and sound of the waves. Watching the fading yellow sun start to play hide and seek with the clouds to produce the striking hues of a tropical sunset, Sawyer and Kate knew it was time to head back to camp. Kate reached for her abandoned jeans and Sawyer shook out his tee shirt.

Tom sat up in the back of his Dad’s gray Volvo sedan, his white dress shirt unbuttoned and hanging out, and his auburn hair messed up. The rented tux and tie had come off a couple hours ago after leaving the senior prom.

Tom and Katie had a fantastic senior prom. After picking up Katie in his Dad’s new Volvo, they ate dinner at a nice restaurant and went to the prom. The decorating committee did a good job of disguising the high school gym as a romantic retreat, where they could dance the night away with their friends. Deciding to skip the post prom party to spend time with each other, they ended up parking.

“Why are you sitting up, Tom?” Katie questioned, trying to adjust her gown to cover herself.

“We got to stop now Katie. Things are getting way out of hand.” Tom was trying to button his shirt.

“Wait.” Katie placed her hand over Tom’s. “I thought we wanted things to get out of hand.”

“Katie, you deserve better than the back of a car. You should have a fancy hotel in some exotic location. I want to give that to you when we get married.”

“Tom, why does it matter if we wait or not, cause we’re going to get married anyway, right?”

Tom opened the back door and stepped out into the cool spring night to finish buttoning his shirt. “It matters to me, Katie. I love you and I’m taking you home, now.”

Katie was disappointed and the ride to her house seemed especially long and quiet.
Tom walked Katie to the door of her house. “Please don’t be mad at me, Katie. I’m doing this for you. I have four years of college to finish before we can get married.”

“I’m not mad at you, Tom. I’m just disappointed. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me. I just want you to know that.” Katie kissed Tom lovingly.

Tom reached for the doorknob, “Just trust me, Katie. It will all work out.” Tom smiled, kissed her one more time, and opened the door.

Katie stepped inside, “Thanks for tonight. Everything was beautiful.”

Tom smiled, “You’re right. Everything was beautiful, except you. You…you are exquisite.”

Katie blushed and stayed at the door to watch Tom drive away. Sighing, Katie went to turn off the TV in the living room. Wayne was asleep on the couch, several empty beer cans littered the coffee table. Passing through the kitchen, she found a note on the table from her mom; Diane was working the midnight shift at the diner and would be home around 8am. Katie climbed the stairs to her room and locked the door behind her. She changed into her pajamas and carefully hung up her prom gown. While admiring the corsage Tom gave her, she heard a thud and a curse; Wayne was awake. Katie jumped off her bed checked the lock on her door and listened. His gait sounded unsteady; Katie heard the sharp pop of another beer can opening. After what seemed like an eternity, his footsteps headed for the stairs. “Katie, you home?” Another stumble and curse, “You know how late it ish?”

“Oh God help me, he’s drunk.” Katie prayed quietly. “When is Mom getting home?” It was almost dawn.

The burnt orange sun was sinking into the midnight blue sea as Sawyer and Kate arrived back at camp. Heading directly to the kitchen to get some dinner, they found Sun who offered them some fish and rice she had cooked, hoping Jin and his buddies would be back in time for dinner. Kate thanked Sun; Sawyer got plates and forks and piled an indecent amount of fish and rice onto the plates.

“Hey, you going to eat all that?” Jack approached with two plates of his own.

“Ain’t mine to offer you. MamaSun made it and offered some to Kate and me.” Sawyer put another forkful on his plate.

“Well, Sun just said Juliet and I could have some too.” Jack countered.

“All yours.” Sawyer picked up the plates and went to Kate who was still talking with Sun. He threw a glance or two back over his shoulder at Jack.

Kate gave Sun a quick hug, “I’ll trust you know what you are doing.”

Sun replied, “I do, Kate. I believe Juliet is a good person.” Sun nodded her head at Sawyer. “Enjoy your dinner.”

“Smells good, Emeril.” Sawyer grinned at Sun.

Eating their dinner by the community fire, Sawyer watched Kate watch Juliet and Jack. Noticing Sawyer was watching her, Kate finally questioned, “What?”

“You tell me. The Doc and his favorite Other have your attention, not mine.”

“James, I just don’t trust Juliet. Now Sun is telling me she thinks Juliet is a good person.” Kate answered, pushing around the little bit of fish and rice that remained on her plate.

“You sure that’s all that’s bothering you, Freckles?” Sawyer nudged her shoulder with his.

Kate remembered standing by this same fire several months ago wanting to tell him how she felt. That night she wanted to tell him it was too dangerous for him to go on the raft; please stay, because I am worth staying for. All she had managed to say was, “Be safe, Sawyer.” But tonight, sitting by this same fire, she confided, “It really bothers me that Jack trusts Juliet too.” She looked at Sawyer to judge his reaction.

“Well, looks like we got something in common… again.” Sawyer got up and took her plate. Offering Kate his free hand, he helped her to her feet, leaned in, and whispered in her ear, “But I got something better to be bothered about right now, and it ain’t the Doc or these dishes.”

Kate smiled at him, “Your tent in five minutes?”

“You asking me, Freckles?”

Kate nodded and blushed.

“Since your asking me so nice, I’ll even go do these dishes, then…my tent…five minutes.” Sawyer kissed her; it was quick but full with the promise of the night ahead and the love they would share.

An orange-blue flame flared then settled to a slow burn as it was lowered to light the fuse. The short fuse burned quickly then pop, pop, pop.

Tom and Katie were laughing, watching the firecrackers go off in a parking lot near the community fair.

“You are too old to be playing with firecrackers.” Katie teased.

“Hey, I just want to celebrate July 4th properly.” Tom was checking the pockets of his jeans for more firecrackers. “Looks like that was it.”

“Oh, poor baby.” Katie playfully messed his hair. “Let’s grab the blanket so we can get a good spot for the fireworks.” It was starting to get dark; people began to gather in the field behind the community fair for the fireworks. They spread the blanket and sat down.

“I’m glad we have this chance to talk before the fireworks start.” Katie became serious. “You know I’m going to visit Dad tomorrow and I’m staying for two weeks, right?”

Tom nodded.

“Well, we’re going camping cause he feels bad he missed my graduation. And it’s his birthday, so I’m going to give him that scrapbook I made for him. And I’m going to ask him if I can live with him. But if he says no, I’m staying there and getting a job and my own place.”

“What?” Tom was surprised. “You can’t do that. Your home is here.”

“No, Tom, it isn’t. I can’t live here with Mom and Wayne anymore. You know how I feel about that. You’re going to college the end of next month. We’re going to be separated anyway.”

“So what does Diane think about this?” Tom questioned.

“I’m not going to tell her til I’ve already done it. Look, Tom, I’m 18 and have my high school diploma. They can’t stop me. My mind is made up.” Katie remained firm. “We’ll call each other and talk. I can come visit you at college. I’ll come back for holidays and stuff. This isn’t the end of you and me. We’re still going to get married.”

“No, this isn’t the end of us.” Tom leaned over and sealed the statement with a kiss. “I love you. It just sounds like you’re running away.”

Katie looked at Tom, sad but resolute; there wasn’t anything else to say.

(The Brig)
Even though Kate was snuggled up to Sawyer’s warm back, she was unable to fall asleep. Maybe she was overtired, maybe if she were in her own tent. Sawyer was sleeping peacefully; Kate could feel it. His arm was heavy, draped over hers, if she could just pull it out without disturbing him… She started to put on her pants.

Sawyer stirred, turning toward Kate. “Hey, where are you going?”

Kate looked over her shoulder, “I can’t sleep if I’m not in my own tent.”

Sawyer started to get up. “Fine, let’s go to your tent.”

Kate pushed her hair out of her face and rubbed her temples. “Um…It’s nothing personal. It’s…old habits…you know?”