So, in this world, the helicopters came, and Boone, Shannon, Ana Lucia, Libby, and Charlie all survived. Plus, Ben and a couple of Others (including Danielle) were rescued as well. This is about one or two years after the rescue.
Enjoy!
The air was still. The little street was absolutely silent. The only noises were purely serene - a bird singing, this slight rustle of trees as a light breeze shook their branches, the light chatter of squirrels jumping from tree to tree. The little street was also covered in seven inches of snow.
On this little street sat a little house, as quiet as the others, with two stories. Inside was a modestly decorated household, simple and charming. Up the stairs were three bedrooms, two of which were currently occupied. One was occupied by the house's owner - he was fast asleep in the master bedroom. In the other room, the guest bedroom, was a guest who had been visiting the house for quite some time. He was just waking up.
He was short in stature, in his late twenties, and had shaggy, blond hair. He slept quietly, twitching in his sleep. After a few more moments, he woke up with a groan of annoyance. He sluggishly sat up and pushed himself out of bed, walking across the room to the small window. He raised a had to peek through the blinds.
"SNOW!"
The blue eyes of Charlie Pace flew open. He ran out of his bedroom, and into the master bedroom across the hallway. "Des! Dezzy, wake up, mate!" He leaped onto the bed, where 'Des' was sleeping. The thirty-two year old woke with a start.
"Wot's wrong, brutha?" The slurred, heavily-accented voice was hard to hear, because Desmond Hume was trying his best to shove his face as far into the pillow as possible. Why did Charlie have to wake him up so early? He didn't even want him in the house. But, when his wife, Penelope Hume, heard about Charlie's boarding needs, she offered up the guest bedroom without a second thought. Charlie was to live with them until his fiancé, Claire Littleton, finished college in her native Australia and flew to the U.K. to live with Charlie and her young son, Aaron. Currently, the pregnant Penelope was in the United States, meeting with some American executives to talk about her company's future in America. Penny had inherited her father's company after he passed away. That left the house with Desmond, Charlie, and Charlie's goldfish, Sayid.
"Nothing's wrong!" Charlie said with a laugh. He sat up on the bed, legs crossed.
Desmond lifted himself off the bed by his arms, staring at his pillow. "Then why did ya wake me up, brutha?" he asked, irritated.
"Because it's SNOWING!" Charlie shouted the last word, bouncing of the bed.
Desmond sat up, certain that there'd be know way he would be allowed any more sleep. "Hush, Charlie. You'll wake up the neighbors." He walked over to the window, peering out through the blinds. "Hmm. A lot of snow last night," he noticed audibly.
Charlie ran up and grabbed Desmond's sleeve, tugging on it like a four year old. "Can we go play in the snow? Please? Pleaaaaaaaaaaaaase?" He looked up at Desmond with puppy-dog eyes, sticking his lower lip out in a pout.
Desmond quickly considered his options. "Fine," he muttered, defeated. Charlie let out a squeal of joy and ran out of the room. "GET DRESSED FIRST!" Desmond yelled. He heard a grumble of annoyance coming from the direction of Charlie's room, and had to laugh.
A few minutes later, and Desmond descended the stairs. He was wearing a warm outfit, topped off with a black winter coat with a black plaid interior. Waiting for him at the door was Charlie, who was wearing a coat that made him look like the child of bright green marshmallows.
Desmond opened the door and walked outside, followed by Charlie. The moment the door shut, Charlie raised a hand. "Wait! I need my hat."
Desmond rolled his eyes, and dug into his pocket. "Here," he muttered, shoving the keys into Charlie's hand.
"Thanks, Des!" Charlie quickly unlocked the door and went inside.
Desmond started to stroll down the driveway in his snowboots, snow crunching underfoot. Everything was pretty and white, covered with a cold blanket of snow. He took in a deep breath, and let it out with a smile. Although he may not share Charlie's enthusiasm, he did like the snow.
"Got it!" Charlie's yell, accompanied by the door slamming, shook Desmond out of his reverie. He turned around, and saw Charlie running towards him. Now, he was wearing a bright orange cap. Overall, he was dressed quite warmly, albeit casually. Desmond, in his plain coat and jeans, was dressed the same: casual.
Enter Benjamin Linus.
Benjamin Linus was never dressed casually. For example, today he was wearing a black winter trench coat, stylish snow boots, a black tophat, and a red scarf. In his right hand was his omnipresent walking stick; in his left, a red leash to which a medium-sized dog was trotting along. He looked up.
"Hello, Desmond! Hello Charlie!"
Desmond smiled and walked up to the mailbox. Ever since they'd been rescued from the island, Ben and Desmond had been close friends. Now, their houses were side by side. Charlie remained in the yard, making snow angels.
"Hey, Ben. Classes cancelled tadae?" Desmond leaned on the Hume's mailbox as he spoke.
Ben smiled. "Yup." He unclipped the leash from the dog's collar. "Home, Sawyer." The dog, Sawyer, trotted up the driveway of the house next to Desmond's. Sawyer leapt up and pushed the doorbell with his nose. "Can't drive out to Oxford in this weather."
Desmond chuckled. "Can't drive anywhere in this weather, brutha." Ben laughed in agreement. The door to Ben's house opened, and a woman patted the dog on the head.
"Hello boy. Is daddy talking to Desmond?" She spoke with a slight French accent. The dog barked and ran inside. The woman looked out at the mailbox.
"Hello boys!"
"Hi Danielle!" Desmond waved jovially.
"Hi, honey," Ben called. "Make sure he doesn't track snow in!"
Danielle nodded and closed the door. Ben rolled up Sawyer's leash and put it in his pocket. "So, Desmond, Danielle was wondering if you and Charlie could come over for dinner tomorrow. She's making this new pasta and wants 'people who won't lie to make her feel better'. Are you free?"
Desmond shrugged. "I dunno. I'll 'ave tae look at my planner." He glanced at Charlie over his shoulder. "Hey, Charlie! Can ya run inside and grab my planner?"
Charlie jumped up, brushing snow off of his arms. "Sure! Can I have the keys?"
Desmond blinked. "I gave ya the keys, brutha. When ya when to get your hat."
"You did?" Charlie thought a moment. Then, his jaw dropped. "Uh oh…" He ran up to the porch and started inside the window. There, sitting on the coffe table, were the house keys. "I think I left them in the house, mate."
Desmond rolled his eyes. "Wonderful, brutha. Just wonderful."
Ben looked concerned. "Don't you have a spare set?"
Desmond sighed. "Of course. But Penny has them, and she won't be back for a couple a weeks."
"What'll we do now?" Charlie ran up to the two of them, obviously panicking. "Where will we live? What will we eat? What about Sayid?"
Desmond, fed up with questions, clenched his fists and glared at Charlie. "You're fish is just gunna 'afta die, brutha!"
Charlie's eyes widened. "But…but…" He sighed, frowning.
Desmond's gaze softened. "Sorry, mate."
Ben smiled. "I have an idea. Why don't you live with us until Penny gets home?"
A solution! Desmond grinned. "You would do that, really?"
Ben nodded. "Of course! Let's go talk to Danielle; I'm sure she'll be thrilled."
The three men started to walk up the Linus' driveway. Desmond smiled. "Hey, Ben."
"Yes?"
"I think we'll be able to make it to dinner tomorrow."
R&R?