Another Juliet and James one-shot from before they became a couple. Enjoy...
"No, James and I are not together--we're just friends." That one simple sentence had become my motto for our first two months in Dharmaville. It was as if everywhere I went, anytime I went there, someone would badger me about my relationship with the so called ship captain.
Amy would scamper up to me after clearly watching from afar as I spoke to James about various topics--each time asking a different version of, "Are you two dating yet, because it's about time!"
"No, James and I are not together--we're just friends." I answered quickly, unaware of why she couldn't just accept the fact.
This always caused Amy to breath out a heavy, dissapointed sigh or roll her eyes irritatedly before concluding, "It'll happen one day. Just wait and see."
Or Miles would be standing against the door frame, arms crossed, and during the midst of one of James and my famous arguments, bluntly ask, "Will you two just shut up and make out already? We all know you want to."
"You two date?" Jin would ask soon after, confused at what was going on around him. James would give Miles an angry look, eyebrows furrowed, and I would say mechanically, "No, James and I are not together--we're just friends."
Or even Dan, before he left to Ann Arbor, would hold his head in his hands and stare dreamily out at the Dharma scenery. He would always sit in the same spot everyday, looking at the same rocks, the same ocean, the same grains of sand.
And everyday I would sit alongside him, not speaking but just letting him know someone was there for him. It wasn't until one unusually cold day, when he decided to say, "I..I miss her. You're lucky you h--have someone here. Make sure you enjoy it while it lasts."
"Who do I have?" I asked dryly and after a beat he replied simply, "Sawyer."
"No, James and I are not together--we're just friends." I answered like I had so many times before.
And I continued to say the same sentence many times after. But somewhere along the line, it was no longer true.
"Why do you think everyone wants us to date?" I asked questioningly one day, looking up towards James who was standing next to the couch I was seated on.
"Must be 'cause we're always together." Was his simple answer, and as the words left his mouth I found myself shaking my head and wondering aloud, "I thought that too--at first. But that can't be it, there must be more to it."
"Then I guess it's 'cause we're both stubborn, sly, strong, and undeniably sexy. If ya think 'bout it, it makes perfect sence for them to assume we'll end up together."
There was then a quick, awkward pause, but after a beat I concluded softly, "They don't know what their talking about."
"Nah, 'course not." He replied equally as soft, all the while inching closer to me. We locked eyes for what felt like an eternity, and during that time any and every rational thought had left my brain. The same must have happened to James as well for he gently grabbed my face in his palms and lead me towards his lips. The kiss started out slow and steady but quickly turned into a rapid fit of passion, our tounges entwining and heartbeats brisk.
"Ya always been this good or have you had lots a' practice?" He asked against my skin after letting his lips finally leave my body. I smiled genuinely as I lifted my hands away from his soft, silky hair and answered, "You wouldn't want to know."
"You're probably right. Don't really care either to tell ya the truth, all I know is you're a damn good kisser now an' that's all that matters, ain't it?" He retorted to which I chuckled and whispered suggestively, "If you think I'm good at kissing, just wait until you see what else I'm good at."
"That an invitation, Blondie?" He asked with a sly smile, "'Cause if it is, I'm RSVP'in right now."
"Now, now, James, lets not get ahead of ourselves." I argued, "You don't want rush things."
"To hell I don't!" He protested, "The sooner the better, ain't that how the sayin' goes?"
I chuckled at his eagerness but nonetheless shook my head and stated plainly, "Not going to happen tonight, James."
But it did.
I awoke with one hand pressed squarely on James' chest, my head fit snuggly on his shoulder, and his breath tickling my forehead.
"What's going on?" I asked groggily as my eyelids fluttered open, not yet fully registering my surroundings.
"Don't tell me ya don't remember last night?" He chuckled, "I know I'll never forget it."
"Last night." I repeated, becoming more awake and suddenly remembering what had happened. I then exhaled deeply, shaking my head and as James noticed this, he asked, "What's a' matter? You regret it?"
"No." I sighed, "I just hate when I'm wrong. I've been relentlessly telling people that this--that us--was never going to happen. And now it has."
"Well it's not like this is the first time you were wrong. It's happened before." He said with a straight face, resulting in a quasi-slap on the arm.
"Well it ain't a lie!" He defended, now lazily getting up from the bed and throwing on his work clothes. I followed suit, putting on my own blue overalls and he observed, "Ya look good in that getup...don't know if I ever mentioned it."
"You have." I stated plainly, "But I never thought you meant it."
"I'd never lie to you, Jules."
Only a short while after dressing and having breakfast, was it time for work. We both departed on our separate ways, James hopping into one of the newer vans with Jin to further search the grid, and I to work on a rattled old van in the hot, burning sun.
Despite the heat, the day went by rather fast and when I opened the door to Jin, Miles, James, and my home, two of the men were already there.
"Hello Miles." I said whilst walking into the room, giving him a small wave before looking to the man next to him and adding, "Hi James."
"Hey Jules." He replied and without thinking, I strolled over and gave him a swift peck on the lips.
"You two--kissing? Juliet and Jim? The southerner and the hot chick? When the hell did you two start...well, this? And Jules, if you say 'James and I are not together--we're just friends' I swear to Go--"
"Well Miles..." I started slowly, trying to string the words together in my mind before actually speaking, "James and I are...we're just--"
"Sleepin' together. It's casual." James interrupted, causing Miles to murmur an unenthusiastic 'oh'. I, on the other hand, took a step forward and while blinking numerously, asked slowly and sternly, "That's all we are?"
"Huh?" He asked, feigning confusion, "I thought that's what you wanted."
"No, James, no. That's not what I wanted." I said sternly, "But it's perfectly clear that it's what you want."
"Trouble in paradise already?" Miles chuckled while turning to James, somehow finding the situation amusing.
"Get the hell outta here." James growled, taking an authoritative step forward. Miles willingly complied, although was clearly stiffling a laugh at our expence when I interrupted, "You don't have to leave, Miles. You can stay."
"What the hell do ya--"
"I'm leaving." I stated brashly, speaking over James as I turned towards the door and made my way outside.
With each step I took, I cursed myself for being so irrational. I knew that I had no right to be angry: I knew that James only said we were 'casual' to get Miles to leave us the hell alone. I knew what he really wanted from me, that he wanted a relationship--a real relationship. I knew that he had changed drastically from being a selfish, insensitive, unreasonable man who wouldn't dare open up to anyone. Now he was a headstrong, trustful, admirable man who had easily let down his guard to a woman he had no justification of trusting.
"Juliet." I heard a voice behind me say gruffly, and without moving I said bluntly, "You don't have to apologize, James."
"I ain't comin' out here to say I'm sorry." He replied, "I came out here to tell ya I know what you're tryin' to pull."
"I'm not trying to pull anything--" I started, now spinning around to look him in the eyes before he explained, "You're tryin' to find any excuse ya can to walk away from us. You're scared, ya don't know what's gonna happen if we actually try for a real relationship."
He paused and I simply stared at him, not letting my expression falter even though all of what he was saying was ultimately true.
"I've ran away from millions o' chicks before, Jules." He continued, inevitably causing me to think back on the day he jumped out of the helicopter, "But I'm not runnin' now--and I'm not gonna let you run away neither."
There was a long pause, both of us waiting for the other to break the silence until I complied, "Why me? Out of all the girls you could've had, out of all the marks you could've stayed for, why choose me?"
"'Cause...none of them knew me. They knew the guy I pretended to be and they loved him--but if they knew the real me, they woulda' never felt the same way." He paused and then added, "An' all them other girls, they just used me 'cause some other, better guy wouldn't. But you're different. You know the real me and I know the real you."
There was another beat of silence where James looked unsure of himself, as if he didn't know if what he had just said had made an impact on me at all. But only after a moment, he realized that it indeed did, for I said, "Can't argue with that, Mr. Sensitive. Hope you realize that after that big spiel, you're stuck with me indefinitely."
"Sounds good to me, Blondie."
Hope you all liked it. Thanks for reading and please review. And on an unrelated note, did any of you watch Flashforward this week? :)