This little two shot is based on Cinzia's dream and I just hope I do it justice, LOL. I haven't forgotten about "Not With Anyone", I am working on the last two chapters and they will be up soon. Also after that, there's another little ficlet I hope you guys will enjoy.
Summary: An AU story set post The End. Five years after the last survivors leave the island, five years after they bury an empty coffin with Jack's name on the tombstone, a war wages across the world. Kate Austen and Claire Littleton enlist as volunteer nurses in military hospitals. It is in one of those hospitals that their world are turned further upside down.
Soldiers
Chapter 1: Ghosts
"Oh, thank God," Kate said, dropping heavily on the worn out couch in the nurses' break room. The small room resembled a closet more than it did a room, but it was enough for the over worked nurses looking for a few minutes' respite before they had to go back out to tend to the brave men and women who filled the rooms and halls of the hospital.
"Finally catching a break?" came Claire's voice from behind her, surprising her friend with a warm cup of coffee and a sweet smile.
"Aw, you're a God sent!" Kate said, a wide smile spreading across her features as she hugged the warm cup, "first break in fourteen hours. I was this close to collapsing on top of Dr. Hopper's last patient," she confessed with an embarrassed giggle.
"Well, enjoy it while it lasts, I'm off to take these to the ogre upstairs," Claire joked about their boss as she carried a pile of files and headed out, leaving her friend to catch a short nap before having to face it all over again.
Claire walked the hallways, trying hard to avoid the cries and pained voices that filled the spaces. No matter how much of the horrors of wars they see, they can never get used to it, with everyday proving a more difficult and testing battle against their own fears, memories and demons. With her head bowed and concentration focused, she walked quickly along the long, cold corridors, until she was completely oblivious of her surroundings. It was then that she walked straight into the soldier in front of her who seemed disoriented.
"I'm so sorry," they both said together.
He was so much taller than her and she had bumped into his back, and when he turned around, Claire let out a loud gasp, dropping the pile of files she had been carrying.
"I'm sorry, are you ok?" He said, kneeling to pick up what she had dropped.
"Jack?" she said, her voice cracking, watching as her brother, who she believed had been dead for the past five years, stood in front of her, very much alive.
"I'm sorry?" he asked, eyeing the obviously emotional woman in confusion.
"Jack... it's me, Claire," she explained, trying to hold back the tears. She knew it couldn't be possible it was him, but he was just like him, so real, down to his warm eyes and short cropped hair.
"I'm sorry," the soldier said, offering her an apologetic smile, "you must have me confused with someone else. My name is Bryan."
Claire shook her head, refusing to believe that her minds was playing tricks on her, but did not want to push her luck, the man before her obviously not recognizing her. "I'm sorry, I guess I am. Excuse me, I am just terribly tired," she apologized with a smile.
"It's alright," he said with a gentle smile, "I wonder if you could help me though... I am looking for Dr. Jameson," he said.
"Of course," Claire said, "she's in building 23, across the yard," she said pointing the soldier towards the exit.
"Thank you, Nurse Littleton," he said and walked past her, disappearing down the hall among the masses of uniforms like an apparition. Claire took a deep breath. She did not care who that man said he was, she knew it was Jack. She saw his face every day in the picture that sat next to the front door of their small apartment. There was no way she would confuse him for anyone else.
Claire walked back hurriedly towards the nurses' break room after submitting the paperwork to her boss. She took a deep breath before entering the room. She had very little time to debate whether to tell Kate what she had just seen or not. The other woman had gone a long way from the time they left the island and she lost Jack. It had been a very hard time, and Claire knew she still had days where she locked herself in her room and cried for hours. She knew telling her such a thing could be devastating, especially at a time like this. Kate was finally in a good place, she was finally accepting that she should move on, even considering going out with a guy who had been pursuing her for a while. Claire knew telling her that Jack might still be alive would push her back into a darker place, but how could she know such a thing and not tell her?
"Kate, sweetie? Are you awake?" she asked when she saw her best friend lying with her eyes closed.
"No, I am asleep on a beach in Hawaii, so shut up," Kate said jokingly, urging Claire to leave her alone.
"Kate, please, I need to tell you something," Claire said in serious tone that Kate was not often used to, not since she stopped sneaking out in the middle of the night to visit Jack's old apartment.
Kate opened her eyes and sat up straight, "Claire, what is it?" she asked concerned.
Claire sat next to her, locking her gaze and smiling warmly, "I just saw... someone," she said.
Kate blinked a few times, confused at her friend's demeanor, "Who?" she asked.
Claire swallowed hard against the lump that formed in her throat, she was about to drop a bomb, and it was even harder than she thought. "It was..." Claire started, but before she could utter the next syllable, a deafening sound erupted and shook the entire compound, throwing them both of the couch.
BUILDING 23 HAS BEEN BOMBED! ALL MEDICAL PERSONNEL REPORT TO BUILDING 23! BUILDING 23 HAS BEEN BOMBED! ALL MEDICAL PERSONNEL REPORT TO BUILDING 23! BUILDING 23 HAS BEEN BOMBED! ALL MEDICAL PERSONNEL REPORT TO BUILDING 23!
The voice over the PA repeated over the sounds of wails and cries and sirens, over the mayhem and chaos that spread across the hospital.
"Oh my God," Claire cried. She had just sent Jack to building 23.
So? What do you think? Anyone interested in reading the rest of this? Drop me a review if you are :D