Your World and Mine

Lils: So, this story is an idea based on a dream I had one night. It's actually pretty funny how all of this can come together…I mean, I didn't even think about making it a story before I talked to Jaye, who was real enthusiastic about the idea. Anyway, this story is our made-up account of what could have happened had none of the Lost characters gotten on the plane and crashed on the island! Including all of your favorite characters, and also a few original ones from me, most of them from my dream. Anyway, I've said enough, so I'll leave it up to Jaye now!

Jaye: Ha, this is going to be so much fun! Yes, Lils dream sounded awesome, so we're starting this story! Yay! Funness!

Disclaimer: We know we don't own Charlie or any of the other Lost characters, but we do own this plot, and the original characters within the story.

Chapter one: Initiation Assignment

Charlie Pace pulled into the parking lot and stopped his car. The hum of the engine died, and he sat and listened to the sound of the rain that was slamming down onto the roof of the car. He gripped the steering wheel, squinting through the dark, rain-splattered windshield at the club in front of him. Dim light burst through the many windows of the club, casting a sickly glow on Charlie's face. Finally he set the emergency break, which protested with a loud grinding.

"Oh, shut up," Charlie moaned as he kicked the door open and stepped out into the rain. He pulled the hood of his black jacket over his head and jogged up to the grimy walls of the building. He was thankful to get under the overhang, and pressed his face against the nearest window-wall. Sure enough, as he scanned the tiny facility, he saw a group of men collected in a large back booth.

He stood away from the window and stepped through the door, rolling his eyes at the bell that tinkled above him as he stepped inside. He looked around the club once more, and headed toward the booth at the back of the smoke-filled room. Loud music pumped in his ears, and he sidestepped a waitress that gave him a suggestive look. When he finally reached the booth in the back, he sat down heavily, sighing. "I hate this place," he said. "Why do we always have to meet here?"

With him sitting at the table, the group now consisted of four people. At the far end of the table, a rather large man with a tussle of blonde hair took up more than his fair share of the booth. Sitting next to him was a young man who was just as scrawny as the large man was wide. He had horrible teeth and lips that looked like he had grabbed the corners of his mouth and pulled, giving him an awkward, fish-like appearance. Next to him was a chap with his hands laced in front of him on the grubby table, his eyes distant. There were several empty bottles surrounding him.

"Stop your wining," he said, blinking slowly.

"Derk is right," said the fat man. "You're new. You'll get used to it."

Charlie frowned and tapped his fingers anxiously on the table, clicking his many rock-tour rings.

"Where's Levet?" he asked, feeling discomfited under the fat man's critical gaze.

"You mean Alec?" said Fish-Lips, grinning, showcasing his very few, gold-capped teeth. Charlie grimaced at the sight of them. "He's over there. Keeping watch. I swear, he's strange."

Charlie followed Fish-Lip's finger toward the opposite end of the club. He spotted a handsome young kid with long, disheveled brown hair that hung over his deep, thoughtful eyes. Levet was the youngest of the group, but he wasn't new, like Charlie was.

Actually Levet and Charlie had run into each other – literally, run into each other – on the street one day. They had had a bit of conversation before Fish-Lips had come marching around the corner, shouting curses after the unfortunate nineteen-year-old. Turns out Levet caused frequent trouble for the gang, first with trying to end it – Charlie discovered that had not gone over well – and then getting sucked into it.

"But, let's get down to business." The fat man's voice snapped Charlie's attention away from the sulking young man. "You want to join us, right?"

Charlie nodded, hands shaking—whether from nervousness or his desperate need for a fix, he didn't know. "Yeah. What do I need to do?"

"Well," Fish-Lips said, that horrid grin still on his face, "first you need to be…initiated."

Charlie was starting to think that this was a bad idea. He had heard about gangs that had "initiations" that included cutting off people's fingers or shooting their mums with a water gun loaded with snake venom…or something like that. "Initiated?" he said, trying to act like he had no clue about what Fish-Lips had said.

"Yeah, git, initiated," the fat man sneered. "As in doin' somethin' to prove you're not bloody useless, and you won't snitch!"

"What kind of…initiation?" Charlie asked, biting his lip.

"Levet! Bring 'im in," Derk said in a bored voice.

Levet moved aside, giving Charlie a sad look as he did so, and letting in a young man who seemed to be around Charlie's own age. He walked quickly over to the table and slammed a picture down in front of Charlie.

Charlie picked up the snapshot and studied it. There was a beautiful young girl in it that had blonde hair that waved slightly, and blue eyes that seemed to smile at him. She had a hand rested on her slightly swollen stomach, and she was smiling shyly at the camera. Charlie tore his gaze from the picture and looked back up at the man in confusion.

"I…don't get it," he admitted, shaking his head slowly. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Not with the picture," the man said, shaking his head and glaring daggers at the photo. "To the girl."

Charlie's blood ran cold. Was he going to have to kill this young, happy looking woman? "Do what to her?" He must have asked it, though he couldn't quite remember doing so because of the shock.

"Make her fall for you," the man said slowly, looking at Charlie as if he were an idiot, "and then take everything she has from her."

Charlie's mind flashed to Lucy, how he'd done mostly the same thing…and then went wrong and fell for her as well. She'd tried to help him. And he'd stolen from her, and now she hated him. He swallowed, looking desperately toward the exit.

"Having second thoughts?" Fish-Lips leered at him. "You do realize that now you have to do it…because we can't just let someone go running on their merry way to the cops, can we, rocker boy?"

Charlie closed his eyes, inhaled, exhaled, and then opened them again. "No…I'll…I'll do it," he said so softly that only he could hear.

"What was that?"

"I'll do it," he said, louder this time, though his voice shook.

"Good," the young man that had brought the picture shot. "She's going to some Astrology gig at this address next Monday at four-fifteen."

He scribbled down the address and shoved it at Charlie. Charlie gaped at it. "Sydney? Australia? I barely had enough money to get into this club, how'm I supposed to afford that?"

The man rolled his eyes and pulled two plane tickets out of his jacket pocket. "You're not—but you'd better pay me back."

Charlie reluctantly accepted the tickets—his last excuse had failed. He felt panic rise inside him, and he felt his hands begin to shake uncontrollably.

"Heh." Fish-Lips gave him a look. "Look at him shake. Here." He reached inside his pocket and pulled out a small black baggie. Charlie looked at it, then back up at Fish-Lips, not sure what to do or say. "Hey, we're friends now, remember? My fix is your fix."

"B-bathroom." It was all he could think of. Charlie stood up quickly, too quickly, and knocked over one of Derk's empty bottles. He rushed to set it back up, feeling all eyes on him as he did so, and wished that his fingers would hold still and cooperate. Finally Derk gave him a shove.

"Get outta here! And take your new girlfriend with you," he said, his sunken eyes glinting with laughter as he flicked the snapshot of the young blonde girl across the table. Charlie glared at him, and shoved the picture in his pocket, heading for the men's room.

Charlie heaved the bathroom door open and fell against the sink, his nose inches from the grimy, dirt-crusted drain. He tried the water, and decided he had better not touch it – it reminded him of genuine toilet water. Instead he tossed the black baggie back and forth between his hands, his eyes closed. He could still hear the music of the club pounding in his ears – a rhythmic, calming sound, reminding him of his band – before he really understood what he was doing, the baggie was untied and opened, and he was staring greedily down at the chalky powder in front of him.

Something inside him seemed to bloom at the sight of it, and he felt instantly relaxed, instantly relieved. Like parched flower that had finally received water.

"That stuff…it'll kill you."

Charlie whirled around, the flower bursting into flames. In its place stood a monster with ember eyes, and he was blinded by a sudden, frightening hatred. Through the monster's eyes Charlie saw Levet standing against the door. His head was leaned back, but his long brown hair still lay over his eyes. His long, pale face showed nothing but distaste.

"What do you know?" Charlie's monster snapped viciously. "You're just a kid."

"Like that matters?"

It looked as though Levet wasn't going to back down, and at that moment, Charlie hated every inch of him…or rather, Charlie's monster did as it clutched the baggie of sweet heroin in its claws. Levet stuck his hands inside his gray jacket, seemingly unafraid of the thing that was standing in front of him.

That was what Charlie liked about Alec Levet. He would stand in front of anyone. Even Derk or Fish-Lips, and on more than one occasion, in front of Doug Manson – the fat guy in the booth – the head of the gang. For that Levet had of course been punished, and although he kept quiet about it, Charlie couldn't help but wonder what had become of Levet's family after Manson had been through with him…But the monster despised young Alec now, and Charlie's own admiration was quite forgotten.

"What do you want?" it hissed. Somehow Levet stayed collected, apparently immune to the venom the monster had spat at him.

"I'm going with you to Sydney," he said.

"What?"

"To Australia. You're not leaving me here with them…"

"Come on, you're a big boy. You can handle it." The words were out before Charlie could stop them. A silence fell between the two, a silence that Charlie furtively regretted. He knew Levet turned to him, and now he had just slammed him down…reminding himself of something Derk would do.

The music pounded in the background, the monster slowly fading away. Charlie tied up the baggie and stuck it into his pocket, then he pulled himself up and sat on the sink. "You really wanna come?" he asked.

"Yeah." Charlie could tell Levet was trying hard to keep the excitement from his voice.

"You think Manson'll let you go?"

"He can't tell me what to do."

There it was again. Levet was fearless, while Charlie could barely stand to look at the gang-leader in the eyes.

"Okay," he said simply, clapping his hands.

"Okay?"

Then something happened. Alec smiled, the only time Charlie had ever seen him do it, and he smiled back. And then someone knocked on the door. Levet jumped and pulled the rusty door open, his smile disappearing instantly when he saw Fish-Lips standing across from him.

"What happened to Charlie? He didn't pass out, did he?" He was shouting over the throbbing of the music.

"I'm right here," Charlie said, shoving his still shaking hands into his hoodie. "And no, I didn't pass out."

Yet, he added silently. Don't count on it staying that way.

"I'm going with Charlie," Levet said bluntly. "He needs a cover for being in an astrology class without knowing anything about it."

Fish-Lips stared at him. "Charlie can get a book—you can read, can't you?"

"I'm a druggie—not an illiterate!" Charlie shot, forgetting himself. "Of course I can read!"

"So you're not as much as a push over as we thought, eh?" Fish-Lips sneered.

Charlie fell silent. Levet looked from him to Fish-Lips and then back to Charlie. Levet closed his eyes and shook his head. Fish-Lips laughed through the tension. "Come on, Pace. Let's have one last party before you have to go."

Charlie was on the verge of agreeing. He wanted to say, "Yeah!" and then run out into the middle of the club to drink the night away, but something in Levet's gaze stopped him.

"What about the kid?" he asked slowly, unsurely, feeling insignificant as Fish-Lips looked at him in surprise, like an ant under a microscope, about to get fried by the sun.

"What about him?"

"He's coming with me, isn't he?"

Fish-Lips smiled his awful, stretchy smile, and Charlie realized for the first time how drunk he must be.

"Sure, what ever, Pace. Now come on!"

He grabbed Charlie's wrist and towed him from the bathroom, out into the middle of the club. A drink was thrust in his hand and he took it, suddenly feeling light and at ease. As the night went on, the party intensified, making it so that Charlie could barely move for the all the people around him. He took more drinks without question, kissed a few girls, and swayed to the music that pounded in his ears. Soon the lights seemed to dim, and the music became a dull throbbing. Everything seemed to slow down.

Charlie looked down at the drink in his hands and finally stopped moving. His stomach lurched and he suddenly felt like he weighed nothing. People around him laughed and screamed and danced, but it seemed as though his world had stopped. He felt his feet slip out from underneath him and then his head hit the floor.

The next thing he knew he was lying against the hood of his car, his shirt soaking with sweat and his stomach churning painfully. He opened his eyes and squinted as light burst into his head, his skull cracking in two, or so it felt like.

"Oh…" he moaned. He felt like he was going to be sick…He pressed his fingers into his eyes, shivering as the pain intensified, and then slowly died away. As he lay there he began to put things together. Slowly, agonizingly, last night's meeting came back to him. He remembered the word "initiation" and then he remembered the picture that was folded in his jacket pocket. He reached down and pulled it out, holding the directly above his eyes. He saw a young woman with wispy blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes smiling at him, and then he remembered something else. Charlie reached into his pocket once again and lifted two plane tickets beside the snapshot of the pretty young woman. They said Sydney, Australia, although he couldn't remember exactly why…

"Oh look, he's awake!"

Charlie jumped and shoved the snapshot and the tickets back into his pocket. Then he rolled off the hood of his car, landing in a heap on the damp asphalt. He looked up and saw Fish-Lips standing above him, looking rather more smug than usual. "Hell of a night, Pace. You feeling that hangover? You look a mess. Here, let me help you."

Charlie reached up and grabbed Fish-Lip's hand, and was pulled quickly to his feet. The effect was so dizzying he nearly fell over again, but before he could even do that, Fish-Lips had grabbed his hoodie and shoved him up against the passenger-side window. "Now listen. You have four weeks to be through with this job, Pace. Four weeks, you understand?"

Charlie nodded slowly, his fearful reaction somewhat subdued. Fish-Lips pressed him harder against the window. "If you don't get this done Manson'll have to deal with you, and believe me Pace, you won't want that."

Charlie slurred, "I'll do it…four weeks…okay."

Fish-Lips dropped Charlie onto the asphalt, and said once more, "Four weeks, Pace. That's all you get—and not a sodding minute more."

Levet opened up the driver's side door and climbed in.

"What'choo doin'?" Charlie asked, dazed, standing up shakily.

"Look, man, you're too drunk to be driving. You can't finish this job if you're dead," Levet said simply.

Charlie shrugged. "Yeah, whatever…"

He got in the back seat and lied down, a hand over his aching eyes. Fish-Lips slammed the door, and mouthed "Four weeks!"

Levet started the car and backed it out of the parking space, looking over his shoulder and through the cracked back window.

"God, Charlie, where'd you get this pile of junk?" he asked.

"I got it for my seventeenth birthday…" Charlie muttered. "It's been mauled by fans."

Levet raised an eyebrow as he pulled out of the parking lot, but said nothing else.

"And its been in a few…accidents," Charlie elaborated.

Levet shook his head. "Were you high during those 'accidents'?"

Charlie uncovered his eyes, sat up, and met Levet's eyes through the rear-view mirror. "Whazzat matter?"

Levet sighed. "Nothing."

"You know, you don't act like you're nineteen," Charlie slurred.

Levet gave him a thoughtful look and stepped on the gas.

"Where's your place?" he asked.

"My what?"

"Your place," Levet repeated, turning sharply. "You've got to get your stuff before we can head for the airport."

"Whoa – " Charlie sat up, his head spinning. "We're leaving today?"

"Yeah." Levet came to a stop at a stoplight. Charlie ran a hand down his day and a half's worth of facial stubble, sighing. His stomach grumbled unpleasantly. "You heard Deloach, didn't you? You have four weeks or…"

"Or Manson'll get me. Big deal…what's he going to do to me? Put a hoarse head in my sheets?"

Levet's brow furrowed and his lips tightened, but he didn't say anything more until the light turned green. "Where's your place?" he asked again.

"Not mine," Charlie mumbled. "Liam's."

"Whose?"

"My brother's. Stop by there."

Charlie gave Levet instructions and then lay back down, feeling worse and worse every time the car went over a bump. He knew the suspension was crummy, but couldn't help but feel angry and frustrated. He stuck his hands in his pockets, feeling the snapshot and plane tickets…and also the little baggie Fish-Lips had gifted him with. A smile curled around his lips.

Then the car came to a puttering stop. Levet ground the emergency break in place and pushed the door open with difficulty. Then he came around to Charlie, who was sitting up slowly, concealing the baggie back inside his pocket. He figured Levet thought that maybe he had left it at the club. Charlie quickly opened his door and leaned out into the driveway.

"This is it," he said, looking up with jealousy at his brother's fine, modern house. "I have a…a guest room here with some stuff in it for me to pick up."

Levet said nothing, only nodded, staring at the house as well. "And I need a shower," Charlie added as he walked up onto the threshold, pausing with his fingers only inches away from the doorbell. He took a deep breath and pressed the button, listening as the bell rang throughout the inside of the house.

The door opened after a few uncomfortable seconds that felt like hours going by.

"Charlie!"

"Liam."

Liam Pace stood in the doorway, his eyes wide with pleasurable surprise. Charlie was suddenly conscious of his matted hair, stubbly face, and overall junky appearance. He scratched his chin, mustering up a smile.

"What are you doing here, lil' bro?" asked Liam, still smiling warmly even though Charlie was a mess. Then, thankfully, his gaze lifted and he looked behind Charlie's shoulder at Levet, who had been standing quite still, his face unreadable. "And who's this?"

"His name's Levet," Charlie explained, eager to step into the air-conditioned interior of his brother's house. "Mind if we come in? I just need to pack some things…and maybe take a shower or something…"

"Out all night, were you?" Liam said, his smile wavering for the first time, but nevertheless he stepped aside, allowing Charlie and Levet to enter over the doorstep.

"Eh…yeah," Charlie said.

"Well…come on in. You too…Levet?"

Levet nodded, and the two of them stepped into the house.

"Uncle Charlie!" a young voice yelled. A small blonde girl ran up to Charlie.

"Hey, Meggie!" Charlie smiled, hugging his three-year-old niece. "How's my favorite niece?"

Levet stared at the small girl with a sad look on his face, a flash of pain going through his eyes, before he covered it up again.

"Uncle Charlie, where were you?" Megan asked, smiling up at him.

"Yeah, I'd like to know that too," Liam said, frowning slightly.

"I was at a friend's house, Meg," Charlie said, ruffling her hair affectionately. Liam didn't seem to buy it, but he let it pass. "Hey, bro, I'm gonna go and take a shower, that okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, go ahead," Liam answered, nodding. Charlie walked up the stairs and took a left to get to the bathroom.

Liam and Levet were silent for a moment. Liam sighed, and turned his gaze to his daughter who was looking at him with such innocent blue eyes. "Meg? Can you go to mummy for a minute?"

Megan nodded and skipped out of the room.

"So," Liam said after he heard the door to his and Karen's bedroom shut.

"So you're Liam?" Levet asked, messing with a loose thread on the edge of his shirt. "Charlie talks about you a lot…"

"Mostly bad?" Liam mused.

Levet looked up, surprised. "No," he said. "Nothing bad. He's always raving about how great you are, and how you're better to him than he deserves. The only negative thing he's said was when he got really, really high…he said that you got him started on the drugs."

Liam frowned. "He's still using? Are you?"

Levet shook his head. "I wouldn't pick that up if it were the last substance on the planet. Not after what happened to me because of it. I've been trying to get Charlie to stop."

"That's good. Me too." Liam's voice sounded tense, as though even the thought of trying to talk his brother out of such a strong addiction made him flustered.

Meanwhile, Charlie stepped under the water pouring out from the showerhead. Steam rose about him as he let the water hit his forehead, his eyes closed. It was amazing how something as simple as a shower could make him feel so…renewed. The smell of the club vanished, as did the caked residue left on his skin, all that to be replaced with a wonderful-smelling shampoo.

Charlie twisted the water off, shook his head, and wrapped himself in a towel. He stepped from the shower and faced his old clothes. They still smelled of smoke and alcohol, but he put them back on anyway, shrugging. He could deal with it. He looked over his shoulder and flipped on the fan, letting the steamy air swirl around him…but more importantly, the fan acted as a cover as he quickly pulled out the black baggie in his pocket.

A few minutes later he emerged from the bathroom, looking better, smelling reasonably better, and feeling measurably happier now that he had had his fix. Charlie looked around the house for a few moments before stepping into the kitchen to find Liam and Levet sitting at the table, with what looked like coffee in their hands.

"I didn't know you liked coffee," he said, taking a seat next to Levet, who shrugged, and fiddled with the curved handle of his cup.

"Levet tells me you two are shipping out," said Liam. "Where to?"

"Erm…nowhere far…just…Australia. Sydney, Australia."

Liam's eyes got big in his head. "Sydney," he repeated. "Why?"

"To do…stuff," Charlie said, beginning to get irritated. "It's a band thing. But you wouldn't know, would you?"

At this, Charlie's brother looked hurt. A silence fell over them. Finally, Charlie cleared his throat and pushed his chair away from the table. "I'm going to go…pack," he announced, and left the kitchen as fast as he could. He followed a hallway up to a flight of stairs and climbed them, arriving in front of a door. He pulled it open, but when he tried to pull it shut behind him, he found he couldn't. "Levet. Get outta here."

Levet held his ground.

"You've had the baggie all along, haven't you?"

"What are you, my mum?"

"No. But he's your brother, and this is his house."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Charlie stalked past the four-poster bed and headed for the closet.

"You tell me."

Charlie didn't look back at him. He kept his gaze concentrated on the assortment of shirts hanging on the rack at the top of the closet. He grabbed the nearest one and tossed it over his shoulder, onto the bed.

"He's my brother," he grumbled finally. "And I can lie to him if I want. He lied to me and…and that's how this all started." Charlie threw another shirt over his shoulder. This one missed the bed. Without speaking, Levet bent down and picked it up.

And thus went packing. Charlie tossing random shirts, pants, and other necessities over his shoulder and Levet packing them into a suitcase found under the bed. They were done in little over ten minutes, and when Charlie had secured the last of the locks on the bag, they stood and faced each other.

"Let's just…get some things straight, okay?" Charlie felt the Heroin Monster creep up inside him. "You are not the boss of me. I do what I want. He lied to me. He was the one with the heroin in the first place…" He pointed accusingly at the closed door. "So don't think you can tell me what I can and can't do."

Charlie stared at Levet, who looked oddly out of place standing between Charlie and the door that had obviously represented Liam. Heroin Monster growled, and Charlie marched toward the door. "We should get going – "

"Uncle Charlie?"

Charlie tensed, silently cursing himself. "Yeah, Meggie?"

"What's heroin? And why did daddy get it?" Megan asked, her small face filled with confusion.

Charlie sighed. "Nothing, Meggie…It's nothing…"

Megan looked at him, and Charlie felt sad when he realized that even this little, three-year-old girl could see right through him.

Charlie walked back down to the kitchen, Levet trudging after him, followed by Megan, who was asking him many questions.

"What's your name?"

"Alec."

"Where do you live?"

"In Manchester."

"My daddy said that my mummy's sick because she's going to have a baby!" Megan's face glowed. "I'm gonna be a big sissy! Do you have a sister?"

Levet closed his eyes. "Yes. I do."

"What's her name?"

Charlie seemed to have finally caught on to the pained look in Levet's eyes. "Hey, Meggie, I'm gonna have to go now okay? I'll see you soon, okay?"

Megan looked sad. "Oh…okay Uncle Charlie. I love you!"

Charlie smiled sadly, messing up her hair again. "I love you too, kid. Hey, Liam, we're leaving, all right?"

Liam looked up from his spot on the couch, where he was reading a book. "Okay," he shrugged. "If you need anything…you can call here."

"Sure." Charlie stuck his hands in his pockets and wavered in the doorway. "Yeah, okay. So…we'll just be going."

"Alright." Liam pulled the book back up to his face. "If you're ever in town again by yourself, Alec, don't be shy to stop by and pay us a visit. I think Meggie enjoys your company."

Levet shrugged, clearly a little confused, giving the impression that he was not used to everyday, conversational manners.

"Okay," he said finally, and turned to Charlie, but Charlie was waiting for something. He wasn't exactly sure what, but it was like something was missing. And then, suddenly, it dawned on him: Liam wasn't on drugs anymore. He had cleaned himself up – made a life for himself – gotten a family. Charlie was missing that. A family…a life.

Feeling distant, he reached for the door and opened it, stepping out into thelatemorning sunlight.

END OF CHAPTER

Jaye: Well, there's the first chappie… Hee this is fun too…

Lils: All right…so, as I'm sure you've noticed, this story is going to be a lot different than our others. It's…darker, in a way…with new characters and an ever-twisting plot line. But you know, we won't update without reviews…so REVIEW!