Title: The Breaking Of Juliet
Rating: P/G
Pairing: Jacket
Disclaimer: Not my characters
Her head was held high as they dragged Juliet and Jack, hands bound behind their backs, through the maze of interlocking tunnels. They hadn't bothered to put a bag over Jack's head. He swallowed hard wondering about it. Was it because he was with Juliet and she knew the place inside out? Or was it because they were going to kill him and her and it didn't matter what he saw now? Her head was held high, body erect, back straight, not an ounce of emotion betrayed in that ivory toned face.
They were placed in the tiniest of rooms together, their hands still tied. The rope dug into Jack's flesh, making the skin chaff and bleed at the wrists. He wondered why it didn't seem to affect Juliet, why she didn't seem to be in pain. Just nothing, her features void as they stood on either side of the room. There was no vent and it quickly became hard to breathe. The air was stuffy hitting Jack's lungs like a wet sponge. The space was so small, as if they were shoved into a closet by some evil step mother. He laughed to himself, if this were a fairytale, wasn't he suppose to be the prince? Wasn't he supposed to be the hero and Juliet the damsel in distress?
He looked around him. There was a tiny window way up top, but it was painted black. Pitch black, all but for a tiny peel near the top right hand corner. A shaft of pale sunlight broke through the darkness, telling him it was still day. Its ray beaming through, illuminating the white of Juliet's hair. Jack stared at the quiet tower of strength, her hair aglow, radiating like a halo. Jack had to remind himself that Lucifer started out an angel too.
Who was this cold hearted woman? This woman who had fed him soup, prattling on about blueberry sauce and hamburgers. Insignificant chatter at the most definitive moments of his life. Who was the woman who coldly raised a gun and shot dead one of her own then barely raised a finger to defend herself from capture?
Jack walked across the minimal square footage of the room and starred deeply through the dark at her. Not a flicker, not the remotest sign of a thought behind those beautiful blue eyes. She may as well be a robot for all the warmth she radiated.
Never once has Juliet broken. Unless you counted the time her voice wavered, Jack recalled. The time she apologized for what was being done to him and his friends. But that was just an act, Jack decided, a lead in to the video she recorded for him. Hell, she never even reacted when he threw Ben's medical file at her face. Only a mere muscle reflex, the tiniest jump back before the blank stare returned.
"Don't you react to anything?" Jack finally spoke.
Juliet shifted, rotating her shoulders a bit. Her arms must be hurting her, he thought. They pushed them back so forcefully, tied her hands so tightly.
"Excuse me?" Juliet said in the tender tone he was so used to hearing her use with him.
Jack's voice grew more agitated, "Anything. Do you feel anything, anything at all?"
Juliet glared at him, her ocean eyes piercing the darkness, piercing him for a second. Then she sighed.
"What's there to feel?"
"What's there to feel? How about pain? How about fear?" Jack asked her, no demanded of her.
"What's done is done. You did what you had to, I did what needed to be and now here we are. This is the consequence of our actions," her voice was monotone, veering towards him in a straight line.
"Always resignation, always acceptance," Jack said adjusting his balance as he lunged towards her, the rope digging further into his wrists. His lower back burned as he drew close to her body.
"Where is your humanity? Where is your heart?" he questioned of her.
Juliet shuddered. His rage washed down and over her like a thunderbolt, reverberating through her core. She could feel it course through her, stuck at her throat.
"What do you know of my heart?" she asked spitting the words out, tumbling him backward with its force, "What do you know of but your own suffering?"
The power of her words, raw with emotion, stunned him. Jack leaned against the bare wall watching the tears well in her eyes, piercing her stone façade.
"Believe me Jack, if I was not bound by this prison of silence and secrecy I could produce enough proof of a heart, even for you!"
"Juliet," Jack said softly fearing he released a tidal wave stronger than the one he did that first day he opened the Hydra door.
"Don't," she said, "You can't fix me, I don't even want you too."
"What do you want then?" Jack asked.
Juliet laughed through her tears, "That's a mute point now, don't you think?"
Jack just nodded watching her body crumble, bit by bit. But she came out and told him all the same.
"I want," she cried, "I want to build a fire and watch the island burn. Burn with yours and my desire, burn with our freedom."
Jack starred wide eyed at the display of passion. All this pent up emotion spilling, cascading like a powerful waterfall from her mouth. She cried again, inches from him. Jack wanted so desperately to hold her. To get her through this but he couldn't. He fought his binds but they wouldn't give so he did the only thing he could.
Jack slid his body down the wall till he sat on the floor. He opened his legs wide and motioned for her to draw near. Juliet tumbled to the ground and crawled on her knees into Jack's body. He folded his legs around her, enveloping Juliet's body with his. She rested on her side, her head between the crook of his neck and shoulder, and sobbed deeply. Jack tried to rock her till he felt the shakes of her body subside and her tears fell no more.
"Juliet," he whispered and she looked at him, her head upturned to face his. Jack looked at her, red eyed and cheeks tear stained and didn't say another word. He leaned his head down, locking his lips with hers in a soft caress of a sweet kiss.
Jack's lips lingered lightly on Juliet's. It wasn't so much as a kiss as just tender contact. Juliet, with her head tilted upward, hesitated. It had been so long since she let anyone in. So long since she trusted her true self with anyone. She didn't trust it now that it was actually happening with Jack.
Jack shifted his legs that were wrapped around her, loosening his hold on her. She let out a breath, the heat of it catching and falling over his neck.
"Juliet, it's okay," he said.
She did her best to sit up straight, the rope holding her arms back digging into her flesh.
"Nothing's okay Jack. Look where we are."
Jack looked around the tiny room covered in darkness. Night had settled in leaving them with no light.
"I know but," he said trying to get her to focus on his face, "We're together."
Juliet smiled at him and rested her forehead against his, "Yes, Jack, we're together."
She sat against the wall next to him and rested her head against Jack's shoulder. The two fought off sleep, both too scared that if they closed their eyes they'd never reopen them again.
"When you first read my file, what did you think?" Jack asked her.
"You mean about you? What were my first impressions of you?"
Jack nodded and Juliet laughed quietly. "I thought you were too good to be true."
"Really?" Jack asked intrigued.
"Well I mean, here you were, intelligent, accomplished, good looking and caring. You always want to help, always want to fix things for everyone."
Jack snorted, "People say that's my problem."
Juliet looked at him, determination in her eyes, "Now you listen to me Jack Sheppard. Your father is not people, and it isn't a problem, it's an attribute."
Jack starred through the darkness into her blue eyes. They shone brightly even though there was no light in the room. They pierced his soul, stirring something in him; a longing to kiss her arose in the pit of his stomach.
"My," he said then looked at the space between his legs at the cold ground, "My ex wife said it was a problem too. She said that's why she left me. That's what she said," he finished with a slight tremble to his voice.
"Well she was a cow then," Juliet stated flatly. They both laughed, the release feeling so good.
"I wish I could touch you," Jack finally said after what seemed like an eternity of silence.
"You have," Juliet stated, "I've never been able to cry in front of anyone before."
"So I reduced you to tears, should I be proud of that?" Jack asked her.
"Yes Jack," she told him, "Very proud."
They grew quiet again, the sound of silence humming through the air.
"Strangely enough, I never had a problem crying," Jack stated.
"I know that" she said and laughed, "You cried that first day we met."
"Yeah," Jack whispered.
"Crybaby," she teased.
"Yeah, well you're an emotional cripple," he spat back but only half heartedly.
Juliet kissed him on the cheek, "I know."
Jack kissed her back, the tip of his tongue wetting her skin. He could taste the salt of her tears that had run so fiercely and so freely only hours before. His breath came out in jagged threads over her cheek and neck, she longed for it to envelop her, to retreat to the safety of his inhalation, to run wild with his exhalation.
"Jack," she called in the shadows.
He answered her by placing his mouth over hers, sucking softly on her bottom lip until she relinquished her control and allowed him to deepen their kiss. She savored the taste of him and he explored the wet heat of her mouth.
"Juliet," he groaned against her as she moaned her answer into his mouth.
Suddenly a blinding light pierced the room, flooding the cocoon they had just begun to weave for themselves.
"Get up," Tom yelled at them with a snort of disgust.
Jack and Juliet struggled to their feet, squinting as their eyes adjusted to the glaring light.
"Come here," Tom said as he motioned with his gun.
Jack took a step forward.
"Not you Sheppard, her, just her," Tom explained.
Juliet looked frantically at Jack, her eyes wild with fear at the idea of separation.
"Where are you taking her?" Jack demanded to know.
"Where we take traitors to be dealt with," Tom said as he grabbed Juliet by the arm. He roughly pushed her out the door before quickly shutting it behind him.
The lights went out again, leaving Jack alone in the dark, screaming her name.
"Juliet!"
Juliet sat with perfect posture, back against the white washed wall. Jack leaned just in front of her, his elbow propping his tall body, while one foot crossed over his other. He stood staring down on her, examining her icy cold features.
"Talk to me," he said.
Juliet lifted her head towards his voice, her blue eyes scanning the rough features of his face.
"Talk to you about what, exactly Jack?" she asked.
She was shutting down again. Jack had thought she had finally opened up to him, in this tiny space, before they had dragged her off and away from him.
"What did they do to you?" he pleaded with her, "Juliet what did they do?"
She looked at him, exasperated with his ceaseless probing of her. "Nothing Jack," she sighed and leaned her head back, running her fingers through the matte of her blonde hair.
"Don't tell me nothing," Jack said taking the few steps towards her, towering over her seated figure.
They had untied Jack after they took her from him. Untied him, fed him, and gave him water. Everything but answers. He had screamed himself hoarse, calling her name, begging for them to return her to him, and then they did. Throwing her body towards him, he caught her just before she hit the floor. But she didn't cry, nor was there any trace tears on her face. Juliet calmly took herself to the corner of the room and sat there, back straight, in silence.
"Did they hurt you?" Jack asked.
Juliet smirked, "It's all they do."
Jack slid to the ground; he placed his hands on her knees and leaned in to her softly. "How? How did they hurt you?" he whispered.
Juliet shook her head, "I'm fine Jack, really."
Her voice didn't betray an ounce of feeling. It was frustrating Jack beyond belief.
"Don't do this again Juliet," he said holding her cheek against the flat of his palm.
"Do what, Jack?" she asked him, her tone linear and remote.
"This. This shutting down," Jack cried in aggravation.
"What would you prefer Jack? Would you like to hear my voice, sprinkled with emotion?" she asked in eerie calm.
"Yes, at least I'd know there's a soul still in you," Jack said.
"Maybe there isn't one." Juliet exclaimed.
"Is that what they did to you? Did they rip out what little of you was left of yourself?" Jack inquired pushing her tresses from her face, making it impossible for her to hide.
Juliet pushed his hands from her and stood up; Jack followed her as she tried to walk away from him. He grabbed her, his fingers lacing around her delicate wrist, latching onto her. She shivered slightly at his touch and he loosened his grip but didn't let go.
"Don't you see?" she said, "If I had to touch feeling, if I was actually in touch with my soul, as you put it, I'd loose my mind."
Jack stared at her, his finger absent mindedly rubbing her flesh, inching up her arm. It left a trail of warmth that coursed through Juliet's veins.
"Explain it to me," Jack asked.
"The way I am, the way I do things, I, I," Juliet struggled to find the words then shook her head once to signify she found the words, "I just do it, I don't have to think, don't have to feel. If I had to feel," she said and felt the sting of tears coming to her eyes.
"The pain has to be better than nothing, than the void," Jack told her.
"Is it Jack? Is it really?" she asked, "Jack, you feel everything, all the time. Doesn't your soul burn with the anguish?"
Jack stepped back, breaking their contact. Juliet felt suddenly cold, sorry for the distance she put between them once again. He nodded in agreement. "Yes," he simply said.
"Then don't we both end up in the same place? Soulless? I because mine is frozen in ice and yours reduced to ashes."
Jack laughed at the eloquence of her words. "Fine, so we're both soulless," he said suddenly tired, feeling the weight of being imprisoned in the tiny room they were locked in. He ran his hand across his forehead before stepping back, hitting the wall with his back. Jack let his arms hang limply at his sides, looking at Juliet who stood in the middle of the floor quietly.
He should be resolved; he should know the finality of the situation. Yet Jack couldn't see the end of himself. His whole expanse he could not see, but the end, the end was still too far away for him to give up.
"Juliet," he called to her in the dark.
"Yes Jack?"
"Come here Juliet," he said and held out his hand to her.
She took it and let him pull her into him. Juliet's body pressed close against the warmth of Jack's chest, her lips inches from his own.
"Let my fire melt your ice," he whispered as his hands went to her hips, pulling them closer to him.
Juliet smiled, "As my ice cools your burn?" she asked.
Jack nodded, "Maybe then our souls could live."