Lost and its characters belong to other people way cooler than me. I'm just borrowing for fun. Jack and Sawyer have another round of cards. Post-rescue.
Tossing the Deck
By Mystic
April 8th 3006
It became their communication after the island. A smokey bar, a deck of cards, and a few beers. They sat alone in a booth near the back exit, until one of them ran out of money and they always played one more hand, all or nothin'. Jack stared at the chips on the red cloth and he threw his cards down suddenly, his hands resting on the table at either side of them.
He had nothing and he knew it, four random spades and an ace, knew Sawyer had him beat, because his head wasn't in the game. He glanced up, expecting to see the other man's dark eyes bright with glee, but instead, Sawyer was staring into him, his lips set in a frown to match his own. As if he could read his mind, or at least know it was more than just defeat. Sawyer took up his cards, shuffled them into the deck and laid them down flat on the table. He folded his arms there, his face coming into the light, accenting the greys in his dirty blonde hair.
"That's it then, ain't it," he huffed, his voice thick with beer and a want for sleep he couldn't ever calmly have.
Jack rubbed at the bridge of his nose and shook his head before blinking at the other man.
"What's goin' on in that head of yours, Doc?" Sawyer asked, leaning back into the comforts of the darkness. Where neither could fully make out the other's face, relying on memories and some imagination. Jack liked it that way, it removed him one step emotionally from the other man.
"It's pointless," Jack motioned to the cards. "Holding on for no good reason."
"We could do something else, sides getting' drunk and broke in dark bars, Jack."
Jack smiled, his head cocked slightly to the right as he watched Sawyer's hands pick up the cards and shuffle them again. "Thought that's what you were good at."
"Got other talents," Sawyer drawled.
"Yeah, you could teach me to con."
Sawyer laughed. "And you could teach me how to be a surgeon."
They chuckled together until they were silent, listening to a sad old song on the Jukebox in the far corner. Jack felt his foot connect with Sawyer's, felt the slight jerk the other man's leg made and he closed his eyes, sighing loudly. "Everything feels pointless here."
"Got used to livin' in that life-n-death hell hole," Sawyer told him quietly, and Jack can't tell if he's talking about him or himself.
He peered over at him curiously, watched the way his eyes stare right back – he can see them, even in the darkness. The steely blue, the furrowed brow, the concentration. "What do you do all day, Sawyer?" Jack waited for the smile, for the head to fall back slightly, the hair to slide away from his face as he considers the question. The other man moves on cue and it made Jack's heart thump faster.
"Bed beautiful women and take 'em for all they got." He shrugged. "Same as before."
"You ever love any of them?" Jack asked. He watches something mysterious pass across his face, something he can't hide, even in the darkest of bars. "You ever love her?" And it's gone again. Hidden away because she wasn't the one. "That was just a game to you, wasn't it."
Sawyer smiled, leaned forward again and Jack felt his foot break away, disconnecting them again. "I'm guessing you saw the morning news."
Jack turned his head away, it was all the answer he would give. "How much did you get for her?"
"Maybe the question you oughtta be askin' yourself, Doc, is how much I got from her."
He knocked the table up with his knees as he reached forward to strangle him. His hand managed to clasp around Sawyer's neck, warm and thick, before someone pulled him off. He shouted at the other man, watching Sawyer's grin fade and his head drop as he stood next to the table. He hands went to his waist before he bent down to start picking up the mess of cards and chips.
Jack found himself outside, sitting on the bottom step of the bar and he held his hands out in front of him a moment before letting them drop, his elbows propped on his knees. He heard the door open behind him, heard the familiar stride and felt his presence at his side. "How come you ain't ever turned her in?"
He shook his head.
"I didn't love her," Sawyer admitted. "Not the way you did." He sucked his teeth. "Never understood that, you know. Lots of weird shit on that island and the one question always bothered me was why a guy like you would fall so deep in the trance of a girl like that."
Jack looked up, saw the hand Sawyer held out for him to take. He took it, feeling the rough palm dig into his as he helped him off the ground. He released the other man, starting towards his car. When he heard the gravel give under Sawyer's footsteps, he stopped and turned, watching Sawyer slow. "So how much did you get?"
The space between them seemed to multiply as he watched the frown grow on Sawyer's face. The other man shook his head., ran a hand through his hair as he looked towards the ground. "Nothin' made it worth it."
Nodding, Jack turned away, his keys in his hand.
"Thought this would be the one hand I win." Sawyer shouted. "All the shit we been through, I never understood what made a girl like that love a guy like you so much." He flared his nose. "She wouldn't stop talking about how much she missed you. How much she wished things could be different. To be with you."
Jack planted his hands at his waist and laughed. His head fell back slightly and he stared up at the stars a moment before turning away again. "How's it feel Sawyer?" Jack managed, glancing sideways at Sawyer. "Winning that round."
"Not like I thought it would." Sawyer lowered his head and Jack looked away. He climbed into his car quickly, slamming the door and pulling out of the space. He looked one last time at Sawyer, still standing in front of the bar. His hand still wrapped tight around a deck of cards that smelled like sand and mangoes.
Finis