Title: Moving Forward
Rating: T
Summary: It's been 4 long years since they were rescued, and Jack is a mess. In the midst of his struggle, Kate comes back into his life, and when Jack tries to get back into Claire's, he finds that she has a life of her own now. Jate Conmama FF
A/n: Ok, I was reluctant to start a new fic, but I've been dying to do another Flash Forward fic, and I also wanted to write some Jate and Conmama, so I decided to do it all in one fic. See how smart I am:D Then again…If I don't get a lot of feedback, I probably won't continue, seeing as I have fanvids, 3 other WIP's, and lots of college schoolwork to do. Either way, I hope that you enjoy! Oh yeah, I changed the Jack FF on purpose, I'm not ignorant of the show's happenings. ;)
Chapter 1
Sawyer crawled into bed and pulled Claire close, kissing her hair, waking her as he did so. "I love you…"
Claire smiled, turning around. "I thought you were working all night?" She asked, somewhat groggily.
"They let me off early." He mumbled, brushing her lips with his.
She returned the gentle kiss and snuggled into his chest. "Missed you." She whispered, as he kissed her cheek and moved to her lips. "Uh…Sawyer…"
"Mwhat?" He replied quietly, his lips still on hers.
"…Jack called today."
He pulled away sharply. "What?" She didn't answer, so he sat up, running a hand through his shaggy, blonde hair. "What's it been, three years since ya heard from him?"
"Two and a half…just before we dated." She said softly, reluctant to talk about her brother to Sawyer.
"Yeah, and last ya saw him, he was drunk, poppin' pills, and beggin' fer somewhere ta stay…Only ta up and leave without a word three days later, worryin' you outta yer frikkin mind." He snarled.
"He-he doesn't mean it-"
"He doesn't mean it." Sawyer mocked, sarcasm thick in his tone. "Lemme remind you, that ya still haven't stopped worryin'. Just where has he been all this time?" He snapped.
"James…" Claire sat up with him, brushing his arm with her fingertips. "He wants to visit me. He said he was sorry, and he wanted to see me again."
"Whatever."
"…And I haven't told him about us."
"You what?"
"Or about Aaron." She added softly, a slight choke in her voice.
This time Sawyer didn't answer, he only turned his face away. "When's he comin then?"
"I don't know."
There was a long silence, and Sawyer refused to look back at her. "That's that then." He sighed and lay back down, pulling the covers over his shoulder, his face still away from Claire.
"Sawyer." She said, pain in her voice. "I know you're angry at him, but-"
"I ain't angry. I just…don't get yer hopes up, alright?"
She laughed, wrapping an arm around him lovingly. "You sound like him, you know."
"Do not." He said stubbornly.
"If the tables were turned, he'd be warning me about you. In fact…he'd be warning me about you in any situation." She teased, then sobered. "I love him, Sawyer. He's my brother. I'm not just gonna give up hope. I already lost Aaron. My mum's gone, Jack's-my father…I don't want to lose the family I have left."
"Ya got me." He grumbled, sounding almost hurt.
"I know."
"He's a junkie, Claire."
"So was Charlie."
He cursed under his breath. "…Ya shouldn't hafta lose so many people, Claire. 'Specially not your so-"
"Can we not talk about this right now?" She asked quickly. "We'll deal with it when we have to. Let's just get some sleep, alright?" She continued, clearly uncomfortable.
Sawyer exhaled loudly, closing his eyes. "Fine."
---------
Jack sat in his rundown apartment, bottle in hand as he took a long swig. He set it down and leaned against the wall. Maps covered the floor of the room. He picked up his cell phone and dialed that familiar number, that he'd been dialing for months now.
4 rings.
"Hello?"
"Hello? It's me."
"Jack, you need to stop this, I-"
"Whoa whoa, wait, don't-don't hang up, please. I know what you said -I just. I just need to see ya, please?"
There was a long pause. "…Where do you want to meet? The usual?"
"Yeah, yeah out at the airport. You know where."
"I'll see you in an hour." She said quietly.
"Thank you."
--------
"Hey."
"Hey."
"Saw you on the news…" She said quietly. "Still pulling people out of burning wreckage, huh?"
"Old habits."
"You look terrible."
She let a soft smile curve her lips as she spoke, and at the moment, Jack couldn't take it anymore. He was overcome with the longing and need he had felt for her for so long…except now she was right there in front of him, and nothing was stopping him. He stepped forward and grabbed her wrist, pulling her into him.
"Jack."
"Don't." He breathed. "Just don't."
They stood there for a short moment, neither moving as they looked into the other's eyes. Finally, Kate let out a breath and leaned forward, caressing his lips gently, her hand on the back of his head. "Jack…"
"Shh." He said, and kissed her again, his arms wrapping around her in a tight grip as he continued to kiss her. All of a sudden, Kate yanked her head back with a gasp, looking into his eyes, and then down at the ground. "What?" He asked, confused by her behavior.
"I-I can't. Jack…We-I can't." She repeated, tears shimmering in her eyes.
"Why not?"
"He-he's waiting for me."
"He. He. That's what you always tell me. Now tell me something else, Kate. Who is 'he'?" He nearly shouted, exasperated. "Is it Sawyer?"
"Jack, please-" She shook her head slowly.
"Tell me, Kate. I have a right to know." He snapped. "Is it him? Is it Sayid, is it Locke. I really don't care." He exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. "I just want the truth, Kate."
"Jack, stop it. I…I have to go." She choked, stalking towards her car.
"I have a flight tomorrow." He called, when she opened the door.
She closed her eyes and sighed, pain grasping at her heart and squeezing. "Why do you do this to yoursel-"
"We have to go back." He interrupted.
"You're never going back, Jack." Kate shouted, her voice catching in her throat.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this!"
"How do you know how it was supposed to be, Jack?" She almost whispered, her voice barely loud enough for him to hear. "It happened. We got rescued 4 years ago. You need to move forward-"
"I can't!"
"Goodbye, Jack." She said firmly, climbing into her car and turning the key.
A/n: So, what do you think? Are the two stories interesting? They'll be separate for a while, but they will merge occasionally. And yeah, yeah, I know that I always rewrite that flash forward scene, but I just love writing it. Ahh, the angst! Please review if you want me to continue! I'd love to know what you think. :D