Lost and its characters belong to JJ Abrams, Bad Robot and The Others. Jack assimilates into his new role on the island, but is concerned Kate doesn't feel the same way he does about the situation.

Lost – So This Is Bliss
By Mystic
October 2006

He tried to pretend everything was normal because that's what Jack thought Kate needed. His alarm was set for six in the morning, the same as it'd been back home and when he awoke, he was surprised to find her lying there with her eyes wide open, staring up at the ceiling. He knew it was bothering her. Leaning on his side, he smiled at her, watching her turn and smile back at him.

"Morning," he said softly, kissing her nose before her lips. She muttered something in return and he turned away, sitting up to rub his eyes. Jack was almost waiting, waiting for her to say she wanted to leave. Maybe it was what he'd expected from the beginning, for her to change her mind. It's what Sarah had done. But she just touched her brow gently, lost in thought as he stood and went to the bathroom to get ready for work.

It was the job Ben gave him. There was a small clinic hidden away at the end of the group of houses and it didn't take long to walk there. He stared up at copies of his diplomas on the wall, touched a stethoscope with his forefinger before picking it up and slinging it over his head.

The last three days had been the same. The people were curious about him, they were curious about Kate, and it'd been a long time since they'd had someone who looked on them with new eyes. Jack's waiting room was never empty and his lunch was always cut short. His receptionist, Jennifer, asked him questions between patients, questions about life back at home.

About smog and crime and things he had tried not to think about since they'd crashed. When she was done with those questions, she asked about the other side of the island. How the plane went down, how they'd survived, what they were living on. Jack rubbed his nose as his last patient walked out of the office and Jennifer packed up for the day.

He wasn't used to the clockwork.

Jack tried to relax, to accept what was going on and think of it as a vacation from the real world. There probably weren't going to be many emergencies here. There weren't going to be spinal surgeries or outbreaks of the flu or too many broken bones. It occurred to him, actually, on the first day that no children had been brought to him. He hadn't seen any.

Some part of him suspected they were kept hidden, until the 'newcomers' proved they weren't a danger to them, but it still sent eerie chills down his spine as he walked home. He thought about Kate. About the way she'd held his hand through the night, about how softly she breathed in her sleep, about how good her bare skin felt against his. He waved an arm at Juliet as she entered her house, not too far from his, and he slipped his key into the lock, hating that it went in so smoothly.

He wanted something in this place to ring of normalcy.

Sighing, Jack pulled off his jacket just inside the door, "I forgot how hard a long day at work could be," he told her absently, seeing the top of her head peeking from the couch. "I think I saw half the town today."

He chuckled to himself, 'town' was such an awkward word for it, and went towards the kitchen, his jacket deposited on the island there as he pulled open the fridge to get a jug of water. Their house had yet to be fitted with a filter for the water, which was too sour to drink. He grabbed a cup, nodding as she said, "Dinner's almost done."

There was something off in her voice. Something he recognized. "You ok?" he asked as he went into the living room. He watched her close her book and her lips shifted into a deep frown. He nodded, slowly, scared, and asked, "Second thoughts?"

She didn't raise her head when she told him, "I just don't know if I made the right choice," and Jack recoiled inside. He knew she had the choice to go back to camp with Sawyer, or to stay there with him. Ben offered him a ticket to the mainland, but he wanted the chance to be with her.

Ben understood better than Jack thought he would.

Jack didn't know how he'd function in the real world knowing she was still on that island. He didn't know what he'd have done if she'd rejected him. He watched her eyes finally rise slowly to meet his and he saw the apology there. It wasn't about him; it was about her khaki shorts, the clean top, the civilized house, the tea at her side, the book club, and the ring on her finger – the life she might have imagined for herself in other circumstances.

He put his hand on her shoulder, feeling the warmth of her skin and he sighed, "I'm glad you chose to stay."

Kate grinned up at him honestly and she put the book aside, taking hold of his hand and urging him onto the couch with her. She cuddled into him when he sat, accepting him now in ways she didn't feel able to before, and he wrapped his arms around her, feeling instantly at home there. "This place makes me nervous."

"You're not used to it," he told her, unsure of how she'd take it. He meant she was used to being on the run, to living in conditions that weren't normal. Sleeping in bus stations and hiding under cars.

Kate nodded into his chest, her hand landing softly on his stomach. "I think you're too used to it."

"I'm doing my best to fit in," he admitted, waiting for her to look up at him. "Fitting in is the only way we're going to get out."

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