Title: A Second Chance

Spoilers: Takes place right after s2 ep11 (The Hunting Party) when Sawyer, Jack, Locke, and Kate return.

Summary: After Jack snobs Kate for following them to try to get Michael back, Kate's on the outsides with him and begins to feel alone again, that is until she finds solace in a surprising friend she didn't know she had.

Ship: Chate

Disclaimer:I don't own anything except the plot and the Kate/Charlie ship I captain proudly.

Chapter One: The Aftermath

. . . .

Kate sat on the beach and looked around her. Locke was settling in for the night, Sawyer had opened up To Kill a Mockingbird, Jack was making rounds to check on everyone, a heaviness in his heart mixed with disappointment, and she was sitting alone with her legs tucked close into her chest as she watched the waves of the ocean flow in and then back out. The last time she had felt this alone was when she found out her own mother had called the cops on her; that had definitely been a very lonely feeling. That was when she knew for a fact that she was on her own. The only other person who was sitting alone was Charlie but he seemed involved as he strummed his guitar with his eyes closed.

She could still just barely make out the faint rope scar on his neck from when he had been strung up by Ethan, if that had even been his real name. She felt a foreign twinge in her chest whenever she looked at Charlie's injuries, but she knew that it went deeper than physical pain. Just like everyone else on the island, he had mental pain as well.

Kate could feel herself begin to feel dizzy from not having drunk enough water on the journey she had taken with the guys earlier. She didn't want to interrupt Charlie so she forced herself to stand up and walked over slowly to Sawyer as he relaxed in his makeshift tent.

"You know, this book has nothin' in here about how to kill damn mockingbirds," Sawyer smirked with feign disappointment. "What can I do you for, freckles?"

Kate gave him a weak smile and ran a hand through her tangled mess of curls. "I just want to ask you something, Sawyer."

He set his book down but continued to grin, searching her face. "I'm an Aquarius," he replied smartly, his dimples visible.

Kate chuckled weakly to herself but regained her composure before she sighed. "I want to know why you didn't stay behind when Jack told me to. You could've taken my place and pushed the button, but you didn't even offer."

Sawyer sat up now with an unexpected look on his face, surprised. "Well I'm sorry, Sweetcheeks," he started sarcastically, "but the last time I checked, we weren't officially together. You sure are swell but if you think I'd give up my chance to get revenge from when Zeke shot me on the raft, you must be out of your damn mind! What difference does it make? You trailed us anyway!"

Kate was doing her best to bite back all the words she wanted to say to him but she could feel herself coming apart at the seams. She wanted him to know how hurt and angry she was but at the same time, she didn't want to lose him as an ally.

"You knew I wanted to go! You knew, Sawyer! Why can't you ever swallow your pride and do something to make other people happy? Oh yeah, then you'd actually have to care about something!" Kate yelled at him before she could bite back her words.

Sawyer stood up abruptly now and looked at Kate in what she could only guess was his version of disbelief but there was also anger in his dark eyes. "Careful, sweetheart. You best watch where you step because you're startin' to tread on some very thin ice."

Kate stared back at him, unable to help but feel injured at his lack of actions earlier. She had really thought there was something between the two of them but the gesture of not letting her take his place spoke volumes to her.

"What are you going to do, Sawyer? Going to hit me?" Kate almost challenged but didn't blink as he started walking closer to her.

"Honey, you're most certainly cruisin' for a bruisin' but lucky for you, I don't hit women," Sawyer remarked darkly as he grabbed his book and began to saunter off through the sand down the beach, leaving Kate alone, once again.

She let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. There was some sick part of her that hoped he would've hit her, just so she could feel some sort of physical contact with him. Kate blinked away tears that were laced in her olive green eyes before she looked over at Charlie who was watching her with almost sad eyes. She gave him a weak, sad smile before she put her hands in her back pockets and slowly walked over to Charlie.

"Hey, Charlie. Do you mind if… if I join you?"

He looked up at her and scooted over so she had room to sit down beside him. "Yeah, of course. I mean, no, I don't mind."

"Thanks," Kate made herself comfortable and was surprised when she could faintly smell Charlie's scent. It didn't smell like sweat. It smelled like man, though. It smelled like home. "How are you doing?"

Charlie strummed a few cords before he gave her a sideways smile and chuckled lightly. "That's a very broad question," he said quietly. "I'm alright, I suppose. Who couldn't be okay between Michael running off blindly into the jungle after his son, Locke and Jack bickering like an old married couple, and the tailies shooting our own people, right?"

Kate laughed grimly and nodded in agreement. "You have a good point there, Charlie. You always seem to be in high spirits… I don't know how you do it."

Charlie glanced over at her and smiled for the first time in a long time. He rested his chin on the side of his guitar and shrugged. "I have my bad moments, you know? Just like any other person on this stupid bloody island. I guess I just try to see the good in things when I can."

Kate smiled warmly at him and nodded understandingly before her smile soon faded and she looked down at her nail bitten hands. "So what good came out of you being strung up by Ethan and almost dying?"

She must have caught him off guard before his eyes went cloudy for a moment and his smile quickly vanished as well. Silence passed between them for a good five minutes before he finally spoke again. "Maybe… maybe it was to help Jack fix someone, help him regain his faith in himself, you know?"

Kate thought about this for awhile but she couldn't muster up the strength to feel anything for Jack right now. "Maybe, Charlie. So, umm… you're looking a bit… sick. Are you feeling okay?" Kate asked him after a few moments before she placed the back of her hand on his forehead.

He tried to casually move away from her hand and then ran his fingertips over his forehead, gently scratching it in a fetal attempt to get rid of the urges he was feeling. "I'm fine… it's just so… hot out right now. That's all, but thank you, for… for caring," Charlie added tentatively before nodding surely.

"You're welcome, Charlie. You seem to be the only bright spot around here. The last thing I want is for something bad to happen to you," she smiled softly before standing up and dusting her pants off.

Charlie chuckled and grinned up at her appreciatively before he started to fool around with his guitar once again as Kate started to walk away, but looked up to watch her, wishing he could find the courage and the opportunity to talk to her more.

She started to head into the jungle to go for a walk as the sun began to set. She wanted to wash herself off from grim and sweat before she settled down for the night. Kate slowly made her way through the dense jungle, wishing that she could change how things went earlier with Sawyer and with Jack. She wished she had just turned back instead of trailing them. As soon as she found the spring where her and Sawyer had found the case before, she started undressing down to her underwear and used a cloth to clean her arms. She was there for almost forty-five minutes when she heard a cracking sound behind her. Kate tried not to jump as hurriedly put her shirt on over the top of her bra and turned around, looking around for any sign of movement, eying the swaying branches in the brush. She could feel her heart in her throat, half expecting an Other to jump out and attack her. This was one of the moments when she wished that she had stolen one of Jack's guns he was keeping locked in the case.

Her body relaxed when she saw Jack walk out from the brush and glance unsurprisingly at her, maybe even a bit disappointed to have run into her.

"Jesus, you scared me, Jack," Kate chuckled in relief, beginning to put her jeans back on.

Jack didn't laugh in return as he walked over to the water and knelt down to cool his face and neck off. He was silent as he did this, his eyes closed.

"Talk to me, Jack. Please…"

Jack looked back at her and then stood up, shrugging but she knew the kind of look he was giving her. "And say what? What do you want me to say?"

"Say you forgive me! Say that we're okay!" Kate pleaded, looking at him with almost desperate eyes.

Jack sighed, shaking his head as he pursed his lips. He was quiet for awhile as Kate looked at him but she could tell there was something that he wanted to say that he was holding himself back from saying.

"What is it? Say something, Jack! I can tell you want to!"

Jack stormed over to her now, rage in his eyes. "We almost had him! We almost found Michael! They were going to give us him if it hadn't been for you!"

Kate was taken aback by his sudden outburst and she shook her head. "You didn't almost have him, Jack. They wouldn't have given you Michael, even if I hadn't been there."

"You don't know that!"

"I do know that, Jack. They're not the… giving type! They would've probably killed all three of you if you had kept sassing them the way you were!"

"Sassing them? Really? And what do you think you know, Kate?! Do tell me because apparently, you know a hell of a lot more than I do!"

Kate was feeling her own brand of anger and frustration as he unloaded onto her and didn't feel like she had to dignify him with an answer. She was about to walk past him when he suddenly grabbed her arm roughly, easily stopping her from leaving.

"Let go, Jack…"

"Tell me. Tell me what they said to you when they caught you. Did they mention Ben?"

Kate looked up at in utter confusion now. "Who? They barely said two words to me after throwing a bag over my head, Jack. They didn't mention anyone named Ben…"

Jack's grip tightened on her arm until she could tell his fingers were going to leave bruises. "Why? Why did you follow us, Kate?"

She cringed in pain and felt tears well in her dark eyes but didn't look at him. "You know why, Jack! I wanted to help you, now let me go!"

Kate began to walk away from him again but he held her tightly still, pulling her back with more force than she ever felt from him before. He shook his head and felt her try to fight against him, shoving him with the strength that she had. She felt a familiar fear build up inside of her as she struggled against the man she had come to know as a friend. She shouldn't be afraid of him, and yet… she felt panic fill her chest, repeatedly trying to slap him as hard as she could to make an escape but instead was met with a sudden and unexpected slap of his own.

His backhand met her face with such force that it sent her straight to the ground. She was breathing heavy, tasting blood on her lips. Kate looked up at him, swallowing hard, and then didn't waste any time before she forced herself up off the ground and took off running.

"KATE! KATE, COME BACK!"

She ignored Jack's voice. It was no longer the voice of comfort but of someone who she had been trying to forget her entire life: Wayne. She had lied to the Marshall about how Wayne had never touched her. It could've been a lot worse than it was and she hadn't let it get past receiving a physical beating every now and then but she had hoped and prayed that it would've ended once he was gone.

Kate had run for a good half twenty minutes before she realized she had literally run into Sawyer who caught her before she could fall into the sand. She felt hot tears running down her cheeks, which she had internally cursed herself for, and then involuntarily flinched as he grabbed her arms.

"Hey, hey… where's the fire, Freckles?"

She was still breathing heavily as he looked up at him; meeting his eyes and seeing them change appearance from sarcastic to genuine concern. To her surprise, he ran a hand through her hair and then examined her face, moving it delicately to the side to look at the red hand print on her skin and then moved her chin upwards to examine her split lip.

"Who did this to you, Baby?" Sawyer asked with genuine worry.

The nickname was foreign on his lips but it made her stomach twist. "I-I'm fine, Sawyer. I just… I just fell is all," she lied through her teeth.

"Yeah, I'm sure. You think I was born yesterday? If I hadn't heard that excuse from my momma growin' up, I just might actually believe you. Now what actually happened?"

Kate thought for awhile and decided she didn't care about Jack anymore. If he wanted to be like this, then she would appreciate Sawyer's concern for her, even if it was temporary.

"J-Jack… we got into a fight about… about what happened this morning with the three of us and… he did this."

Sawyer gave a disapproving sigh and leaned back, his thumb still gently on her chin, absentmindedly caressing it. "That jackass…. you stay here, Freckles. I'll be right back…"

Kate came to her senses when she watched him begin to storm angrily away towards the direction she had come, knowing instantly where he was going and what he was going to do. She followed him and grabbed his arm.

"Sawyer! Don't… I don't need you to defend my honor," she replied, knowing that Sawyer kicking Jack's ass wouldn't solve anything. "Just let him go."

He struggled at first when she had grabbed his arm but gave him, giving a sideways glare in the direction of the jungle she had come through before his face softened and he turned his attention back to her.

"Are you sure you're alright? It figures he's the only damned doc on the island and he nearly breaks you in half," he sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"I'm fine, I'll heal. Thank you anyway, Sawyer… really," she searched his face appreciatively and nodded, not wanting her gratefulness to go unnoticed by him. She gently ran her hand on his shoulder.

He nodded in acknowledgement and walked with her along the beach towards her tent. "You know, if you're feeling lonely tonight, you can always crawl into my sleeping bag with me," Sawyer smirked.

Kate chuckled now weakly and shook her head before rolling her eyes. "Thanks, but no thanks. I think I'll pass on that offer."

"Your loss, little lady." Sawyer stopped outside her tent and then looked awkwardly from her to her tent before he finally forced himself to begin to walk back to his own tent.

She watched him, feeling cold and empty once again. Had he actually been truly concerned about her well being earlier? It was so unlike Sawyer. Kate watched him go uncertainly before she crawled into her tent and laid down, listening to the noises outside as the sun started to set.

"Jack! Jack… do you have my medicine?" a British voice asked almost eagerly.

Kate listened intently but anxiously, doing everything in her power not to let herself chew on her bottom lip or her nails at the moment.

"Oh, right." A rattling of a bottle. "Here you go, Charlie."

"Cheers."

She wondered what the medicine had been for. Was Charlie sick with something or was it something worse? Was it like when Shannon was having her asthma attacks? Kate's thoughts were interrupted when she heard footsteps getting closer to her tent and then soon stop outside the closed flap of it. She recognized the shoes and felt her heart stop in her chest, nearly holding her breath until she saw the shoes finally leave in another direction of the beach. She breathed a sigh of relief and then still felt a panic that she hadn't felt since she was a child living with her mother and Wayne. She waited several moments before she came out of her tent and glanced around nervously.

Kate made her way towards Sawyer's tent and crawled inside of it, making sure the flap closed behind her but stayed in her kneeling position in case he kicked her out. He set his book down and looked like he was about to make a smart ass comment when she saw the apprehensive and scared look on her face. He sat upright and searched her face with the same soft expression she had seen earlier.

"Everythin' alright, sweetheart?"

She silently shook her head briefly and then looked down at her hands, feeling embarrassed. Kate felt like the same terrified ten year old who got knocked around by her drunk father. She felt ashamed; Jack wasn't her father, and he hadn't even been drunk, but the fact that he had been stone cold sober seemed to intensify her fear of the situation.

"Come here, Freckles. It's alright…"

She moved slowly towards him as he scooted over to make room for her and then laid between the crook of his left arm and his side, resting her head on his chest. Kate focused on him caressing her hair with his left hand while his right held his book up and he continued to rid by the small candle that was lit inside the tent.

This felt real. This felt so natural to her, and he felt safe. Safe was never a word she thought she would ever feel with him but somehow, it was true. Kate listened to the sound of the pages of his book turning and the crackling of the fire outside, the faint sound of Claire comforting her crying baby Aaron and all felt right with the world in the safety of Sawyer's arms.

I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, please review so I know whether or not to keep going with it.