Author's Note: This is not what I think is going to happen next season at all. I'm actually very, very optimistic about Suliet next season. However, I wanted to explore a darker/sadder possibility too. I hope you still enjoy it! I'm working on a Dharma fic now, so the next story will be more upbeat, promise.

A flash of light. Sawyer opened his eyes slowly: he was lying on the beach. It was dark and the only sound was the waves pounding against the shore. Jack and Kate stirred on either side of him. There was a moment of quiet as they all tried to get their bearings, but the still was soon shattered. Jack leapt up and quickly assessing the situation, ran towards the badly wounded Sayid with Kate following not far behind.

Once Jack moved, Sawyer was able to see Juliet, lying ten feet away. He ran to her, every step closer showing him the extent of her injuries more clearly. By the time he reached her side, he felt sick; her legs were crushed, deep gashes covered her pale arms, and her red shirt was dyed even darker by blood. He dropped to the sand and gently held her hand, wiping off the blood by her mouth.

"Juliet," he choked, his voice hoarse and strangled by tears. When she didn't respond, he yelled toward the group down the beach, "Jack! Jack! Over here, Doc!" But Jack ignored him, hunched over Sayid, and Sawyer became increasingly desperate. "What the hell is wrong with you, Doc? She's hurt!"

"He won't come," Juliet whispered, her eyes fluttering open.

Sawyer quickly turned back to her. "Hey. Hey, beautiful," Sawyer said, his voice softening. "It's going to be okay. You're going to be okay. I won't let anything happen to you."

"No," she stated. "Jack knows there's no hope. He saw me, but he knows he can't help. There's a chance he could save Sayid. Triage."

Sawyer felt nauseous. "No, no. You're going to be okay," he repeated, refusing to believe otherwise.

"James," she said, her breathing increasingly difficult. "This was my choice. I did this for you and I don't regret it." She squeezed his hand.

"I love you," Sawyer said fiercely.

She died with a smile on her face.

They buried her the next morning, in a small clearing off the beach. It was a dismal day with a bleak rain falling, reflecting the mood of the group. With Miles' help, Sawyer dug the grave and lowered Juliet's broken body into it. When his grief became too much, Kate hugged him as he sobbed, Jack and Hurley filling in the grave for him.

They all gathered in a somber circle as Jin gave an eloquent eulogy, remembering Juliet's bravery and strength, her kindness and loyalty. Standing beside his newly-reunited wife, Jin finished by saying Juliet would have been happy to know her sacrifice had saved them all, brought them back to where and when they were supposed to be.

But Sawyer disagreed. This wasn't where he was supposed to be. He was supposed to be with Juliet, always. He wanted to be in the grave with her, not alive because she sacrificed herself for him.

The others shook his hand, hugged him and whispered meaningless words of encouragement as they left. He lingered by Juliet's grave for hours, unable to leave her behind. Gradually the clouds increased, the rain became heavy, and thunder boomed across the ocean, and Sawyer wept and raged along with the storm.

Time passed. The group integrated with Richard and Ilana's people, but Sawyer kept to himself. He spent most of his days alone, sitting on the beach, looking out over the angry surf, slowly drowning in a maelstrom of grief. Hurley brought him food and tried to make him laugh. Kate brought him water and said he needed to talk to someone. He ignored them both, content to sit on the sand with pain and guilt as his only companions.

When Ilana and Richard called them all to war, Sawyer joined them. Jack had made a stirring speech about how they were fighting for good. Juliet was good, and so Sawyer decided to fight for her.

So he found himself crouched beside Jack, holding a rifle, cloaked by a gnarled tree and the humid night. A firefight soon erupted, bullets screaming through the night, people yelling, bombs exploding, chaos raining down around them. When the battle ended and the smoke cleared, good had won, but Sawyer was lying on the ground, drenched in his own blood.

Jack was quickly at his side, putting pressure on the wound.

"It's okay, Doc," Sawyer coughed. "You know you ain't gonna save me. Go help someone else."

"I'm sorry, Sawyer."

"Don't be," Sawyer said around the pain, "This was my choice. I did it for her." Jack squeezed his shoulder, smiled sadly, and left.

The shouts of the others and the noises of the jungle faded to a distant thunder, and peace settled around Sawyer. His vision slowly faded to white. But even then, he could see something moving toward him. As it approached, he could make out a figure. Then a halo of golden hair. Piercing blue eyes. The figure held out its hand.

"Juliet," he whispered.

He died with a smile on his face.

The sun shone brightly in a clear blue sky on the morning they buried him. They placed his body in the same grave as Juliet's, thinking it only appropriate to bury them together. The group gathered around the grave as Miles gave the eulogy this time, fondly recalling his three years of being Jim LaFleur's colleague and comrade. But as much as they would miss their friend, the group was upbeat. The war had been won, they finally had peace, the sun was warm on their faces, and they knew Sawyer was where he wanted to be, at Juliet's side forever.