A war had begun. Many happenings were going on that Claire had only heard hearsay about. Michael was back, but two castaways were dead. Claire stroked Aaron's soft cheek with the back of her fingers. He was the only thing she had. If she ever lost Aaron, Claire didn't know what she'd do. She couldn't imagine a time anymore when she wanted to give him away.
Claire looked up from Aaron's crib, peering around at the beach. Locke was always gone now, his protection of her forgotten in the wind. Jack had more responsibilities than he could handle. Even Mr. Eko had gone off on a cause that she was unaware of. Claire felt exposed and vulnerable without their protection. There were other men on the island, of course, but she didn't feel comfortable asking for their help.
A familiar short figure trudged into Claire's vision. He was holding his guitar, heading to his usual spot down the beach to play the melancholy tunes he'd been so fond of playing lately. For the last couple of days she had watched from a distance as he tried to build the structure he and Mr. Eko had started. She wasn't sure what the structure was to be, but from what she guessed by her knowledge of Eko, it was to be a church.
It was bold of her at Ana Lucia and Libby's funeral to reach out and grasped his hand. She couldn't explain why she did it. Maybe it was her need for comfort, or maybe she needed to know he was real and not going anywhere. Deep inside her, she felt that he truly cared for her and Aaron. The whole mess with the drugs and lies had battered the trust she had in him, but there was still something there and that's what brought her to his side a few minutes later.
"Hey," she greeted, securely cradling Aaron in her arms.
Charlie looked over at her, giving her a soft smile. "Hey, how are you?"
"I'm all right," replied Claire. She plopped down beside him without asking. Charlie's smile broadened secretly at that fact. "What is that structure you and Mr. Eko are building?"
"A church," Charlie answered, absently stroking the strings of his guitar. "I was excited to be building it with him, but now that he's occupied in the hatch," a slight bitterness edged into his voice, "I'm having to finish it alone."
Claire frowned. Building the church sounded important to Charlie. He was a determined man, a fact that she felt from the moment she remembered the imaginary peanut butter he gave her months ago. "I could help."
Charlie turned to her, a look of surprise on his squinted features. "You'd help me build the church?"
"Of course." Claire shrugged, a small smile on her lips.
"Thank you, Claire." With that, Charlie reached out and placed a hand upon her hand on Aaron's blanket.
She knew they'd be safe with Charlie.
"Will you be able to lift this up to me?"
Claire bent down, lifting the skinny bare tree waist high. She nodded testing the weight of it. "Yeah, I think I can get it up there to you. Let's try, at least."
"Okay." Charlie nodded sharply, and went over to the makeshift ladder Mr. Eko had put together. Claire stepped over to the crib sitting in the shade of a tree, glancing down at the sleeping babe inside. A soft smile crossed her lips then she went back to where Charlie was waiting for her to hand him the stripped tree to add to the roof.
Claire grunted as she lifted it to his outstretched hands. Charlie pulled it up, setting it on the brace board, and sliding it in place. Holding it with one hand, the other hand dug in his pocket to retrieve a vine rope to tie the tree to the brace board. When it was secure, he met Claire's eye and smiled. "Well, one down," he glanced over at the pile of stripped trees that would one day make the roof, "More than I can count to go."
Two days passed with much progress. There were many things happening around them, but Charlie had learned that being apart of it all wasn't as important to him as doing what felt right. Building the church with Claire was the only thing that felt right in his life, and he wasn't going to throw that away like he always did.
The more they worked, the more open Claire became to him. She started telling him stories of her childhood, how she didn't know her father and how that had affected her decision to put Aaron up for adoption when Thomas abandon her. Charlie listened taking in every word, fitting the pieces together of the other information she had told him of her past. In turn, he told her of his brother and their highs and pitfalls in the music industry. It was surprising how easily they had opened up to one another, far more easier than it had been before their fallout.
The roof of the church was halfway finished, but the pile of narrow stripped trees was growing increasingly low. Charlie wasn't one to go out and become an instantly lumberjack. He grimaced as he stared down the ax leaning against one of the support poles. They needed more trees to complete the church, and he doubted Claire would volunteer to chop some down. He wouldn't let her do it anyway even if she did volunteer.
While Claire was busy feeding Aaron around evening of their third day of building, Charlie trudged out into the jungle gripping the well-worn ax and following the path Eko had carved in the ground. He came upon a grove of thin trees, perfect size for using, and stopped. He scanned for the one he wanted to chop down first, and resigned to the one directly in front of him. He took in a deep breath, shoulders rising high then dropping. He raised the ax, bringing it down with all his strength close to the base of the tree. A painful tinge vibrated up his arms into the rest of his body as the blade made contact with the solid surface. Charlie gritted his teeth, sucking in a breath. He waited a moment before examining his handy work: only a little indention, barely enough to even see. He groaned, knowing this was going to take a while.
Charlie trudged back to Claire's tent an hour after sunset. Every muscle ached and blisters had formed on his hands. How Eko cut those trees down without trouble was beyond him. He peeked in the tent to see Aaron sound asleep in Claire's arms, but when he looked closer, he noticed Claire was asleep as well, her back against a tree trunk that made up part of her tent.
A satisfied smile crossed Charlie's lips. These were the moments he loved, the moments he'd missed after their fallout. He spoke a silent prayer of thanksgiving as he gingerly made his way to Claire, lifting Aaron from her grasp. She moaned, but he hushed her and touched the side of her face. Claire settled into a peaceful sleep again.
Charlie plopped down on his blanket outside the tent. He was happy to be back where he use to sleep instead of far down the beach away from Claire and the baby. He gazed down at Aaron, little arms stirring. "It's okay, Aaron. Your Mum isn't far off, and I'm not going anywhere with you."
Just three weeks ago, he had stolen Aaron from his crib twice. The first time was accidentally, but the second time was obviously on purpose. A pang of guilt and anger pierced Charlie. He was desperate to keep the baby safe. He was willing to go as far as possible, even hurting Claire. That goal was achieved at a high price. But Aaron was safe now. When Mr. Eko told him of the baby's baptism, he sighed in relief and felt tears pricks in his eyes. That small gesture of Claire's gave him hope that deep down she believed in him. He held onto that belief, and the outcome was paying off.
He absently rubbed Aaron's soft arm that was now lying still on top of the blanket. "I never meant to hurt you or your Mum. I did what I did, because I care about you two. Probably more than I've ever cared about anyone. After I did something really wrong to this girl I cared about while back, I didn't think I could ever feel this way, but I do and it's even more than I ever expected. You and your Mum have really changed my life, and I find myself never wanting to go back to anything I did in the past. Well, except for my music, but I'm going to make new music.
"You know, Aaron, I really wish I was your dad. All children need a dad, and I can't imagine anyone else taking that role in your life. Your Mum may not admit it, but she needs someone to take care of her. I've never said this to anyone before besides my mum and brother, but I love you and I love your Mum. Maybe one day I could be your dad."
Aaron suddenly stirred, and his little hand caught hold of Charlie's thumb. A brilliant smile lit Charlie's face as he gazed down at the babe holding his finger. "Maybe one day."