Hurley and Ben sat across each other, each on a big rock. Desmond lay on the ground, unconscious, and the two new protectors of the island let it soak in. Ben finally had a true friend. Someone who he can really trust, because Hurley had just asked him to help with an eternal job. Now that is true friendship.
"So...you said that the reason people can't leave the island is because that's the way Jacob made it," Hurley said. "But won't there still be that bubble thing around the island that gives you weird side effects if you pass through it?"
"Maybe," Ben replied. "But don't worry about it. I know some certain compass bearings that have some sort of a...hole in the bubble. So we can get Desmond home just fine. And who knows, maybe when Jack went down there, he...reset the island or something. And now maybe that bubble isn't even there anymore."
"You think Jack really did it? How can we be sure?"
"Well, the island isn't shaking anymore, and the light is back on. So I'm pretty sure. Don't you think?"
"I guess." Hurley took a deep breath and looked around at his surroundings. "So...now what?"
"I don't know," Ben said. "I was just thinking the same thing."
"Do I start finding candidates to replace me right away? Or do I wait a few years? Or a thousand years?"
"For now, I would just wait to see what happens. This island is special, you know. When it's ready for you, it will communicate with you."
"I just don't know what to protect the light from. The Smoke Monster is gone, so nobody wants to put it out anymore."
"I'm sure someone will come along."
"Oh great," Hurley scoffed. "Then what am I supposed to do?"
"Hugo, don't worry about it. I will help you. I promise."
"Thanks, dude," Hurley said. He looked down and played with his fingers, not really knowing how to deal with the awkward silence. "So I can still leave the island every once in a while, right? I mean, the last time I saw my mom and dad, I was on the run from the law. They probably think I got arrested. Or they might think I'm dead."
"I would assume you can leave the island. I know Richard did it all the time, and I'm sure Jacob did too. You can visit your parents, and you can visit anyone else you want to, too."
"But how will we come and go from the island? We don't have any more submarines. They all kinda...blew up."
"We still have Desmond's old boat."
"Oh yeah."
Desmond gave out a small grunt, and twitched his face. He opened his eyes and blinked a few times.
"Hey!" Hurley said. "Desmond! Can you hear us?"
Desmond sat up. "Yeah, I can."
"What happened down there?" Ben asked.
"I don't know. I pulled...a plug of some sort down there. And I blacked out...How did I end up out here?"
"Jack went down there for you," Hurley said.
"Jack?" Desmond wondered. "Where is he now?"
Hurley couldn't say it. He tried to, but he couldn't without choking. His eyes burned, and he just couldn't say it. "He's still down there," Ben said. "He...didn't make it."
The three of them had a moment of silence for the man who had done so much for them. The man who leaded them, the man who helped them, the man who cared about them.
"Well, let's go get him," Desmond spoke up.
Ben raised his eyebrows. "What?"
"We can't just leave him there. He needs to be buried. Properly."
"He's right," Hurley said. "How are we going to get him."
"Tie the rope to me and I'll go back down there. I'll tie it to him, and you pull him back up. Throw the rope back down, and pull me."
Ben and Hurley looked at each other. "Okay," Ben agreed.
Shortly, Hurley and Ben were slowly lowering Desmond down back into the Heart of the Island. When Desmond finally reached the bottom, he pulled Jack out of the water, careful not to get harmed again from the electromagnetism. He brought Jack over to the rope, and tied him tightly to it.
"Alright!" Desmond called up. "He's ready! Be careful!"
Desmond watched as a limp Jack was slowly being raised into the sunlight. It was difficult to watch, knowing he was dead.
Quietly, Desmond sniffed some tears and said, "Thanks Jack. For everything."
After Desmond was back out of the Heart, they peacefully laid Jack on a big rock.
"So...should we bury him back at the old grave yard?" Hurley asked. "The one back by our old camp?"
"If you think it's the right thing to do," Ben said. "I know there's already a pre-dug grave there that I made a few days ago."
Desmond looked at Ben. "Why did you dig a grave and not put a body in it?"
"It was for myself...It's a long story. Should we make a stretcher?"
"Wait," Desmond said. "I think I know some people who might want to come to the funeral."
Hurley crossed his arms. "Who?"
"Rose and Bernard."
They left Jack on the rock as they journeyed to Rose and Bernard's camp. Desmond, being the only one who knew where it was, led the way. It didn't take long to get there.
"Rose! Bernard!" Desmond called out.
"Dude, they've just been living out here for three years?" Hurley said.
"Yeah. I hope we're not intruding. They said they didn't really liked to be bothered."
Just then, Rose and Bernard emerged from the jungle. When they saw the trio, they looked taken aback.
"Oh look, more company," Rose said
Hurley didn't look like he could be more thrilled. "Dudes! It's so great to see you!" He ran to them, with outstretched arms, hugging them at the same time.
"Hi Hurley," Rose smiled.
"It's so great to see you guys!"
"It's good to see you too, Hurley," Bernard said.
Hurley let them go. "What have you been doing out here?"
"We're just enjoying ourselves," Bernard explained. "Getting into disagreements with the Others, running from the Smoke Monster, and time traveling was just too much for us."
"We've been taking care of Vincent too," Rose said.
"Really? Where is he?" Hurley asked.
"We were just out looking for him. But don't worry. He always manages to find his way back," Bernard said.
"Have you seen anyone else besides us?" Hurley wondered.
"We just saw Locke with these two, Ben and Desmond, just a while ago. He seems different," Rose dropped her face. "I always thought he was one to trust. But he threatened to kill us, so I guess not."
"Well, that wasn't Locke. That was the Smoke Monster," Hurley said.
Bernard scrunched his eyebrows together. "Well, that's why we don't like to get involved. Nothing makes sense!"
"We've also seen Kate, Juliet, and Sawyer about two weeks ago just before that bright white flash," rose said. "How are they all? Are they holding up alright? They seemed...stressed."
"Well, I think Kate and Sawyer are alright. I hope they're alright. But Juliet...she died," Hurley choked.
"Oh. We're sorry," Bernard said.
Desmond stepped forward. "Guys? The reason we're here is because someone else died too. And we were wondering if you wanted to attend the funeral."
"Someone else died?" Rose said. "Who?"
"Jack."
"What?" Bernard let out. "Jack? No..."
"I'm sorry, brothah. He just died. About a half hour ago. We're going to bury him at our old beach camp. Would you like to come?" Desmond asked. The two of them looked a little resistant at first, but Desmond spoke up again. "There's no more drama. No one is left on the island. It's just us three. And the Monster is dead. Nothing more is going to happen."
"Yes..." Rose said. "We'll come."
A roaring sound came from over head. The five of them looked up to see the Ajira plane being flown off the island.
"Frank did it," Ben said. "He got them off the island."
"I hope Kate, Sawyer, and Claire got there on time," Hurley said.
"I'm sure they did," Ben assured.
"Who is Frank?" Rose asked.
Hurley almost chuckled. "He was on the freighter when it came here three years ago. Wow, that seems like such a long time ago. But he flew the plane off the island. And that's where Kate and Sawyer were heading earlier. They probably got Claire on the plane, too. And Richard and Miles were on it."
"Who's Richard?" Bernard asked.
"Richard...is a long story," Ben said.
Vincent came running out of the jungle at that moment, barking.
"Vincent!" Hurley called. "Dude, I'm so happy to see that at least you have survived this crazy island!" Vincent sits down and continues to bark.
"Vincent, what's the matter?" Bernard said.
Vincent instantly stood up and ran back into the jungle. Hurley ran after him.
"Vincent! Wait!" Hurley yelled.
"Hurley, it's okay! He probably just saw a bird to chase or something," Rose said.
"No, I think he wants us to follow him."
Hurley ran through the jungle after the lab, and Rose, Bernard, Ben, and Desmond followed closely behind. Hurley was eager to see what Vincent wanted to show him. And when Hurley saw it, he felt like screaming and crying at the same time. Jack was laying down in a bamboo clearing, still dead. Rose, Bernard, Ben, and Desmond caught up. Desmond gasped.
"How did he end up here?" Desmond asked.
"Where did you leave him?" Bernard wondered.
"About a mile east of here," Ben said.
Rose turned to him. "Where that light is?"
"How do you know about the light?"
"We only live a mile away from it. We've seen it many times."
"But you didn't do anything about it?" Desmond said.
Bernard sighed. "We just figured it was another weird function of the island, so we just left it alone."
"Guys," Hurley spoke up. "What are we going to do with Jack?"
"Hurley, it's up to you," Ben said. "Do you still want to bring him back to your old camp?"
Hurley contemplated this. "I don't know...I mean, I think we should bury him here. I don't know how or why, but he ended up in this spot. Maybe that means something. Maybe that means he should be buried here."
"I couldn't agree more," Ben said. "Let's bury him here."
"Bernard, hun?" Rose said. "Will you back to the hut and get the shovels?"
"Of course," he answered.
Hurley stepped backward. "I'll come."
"Hurley, it's okay. It's only two shovels," Bernard said.
"No. I'll come."
Hurley and Bernard walked back towards the hut, neither one knowing exactly what to say. Hurley finally told him what was on his mind. "Remember that day three years ago? When I did a cannonball into the ocean?"
"Yeah, I remember. Why?" Bernard said.
"Well, I feel like that's the happiest I've been for three years. I mean, right after that, we found out Charlie died. Then we were running from the people on the freighter. Then I got off the island, but I was still miserable because I was lying to the whole world for three years. Then I get back here, and Sayid, Sun, and Jin die. And now Jack is dead...I just wish I could be happy.
"Hurley, don't worry. Soon enough, you will be in the right place, happy as you can be. Because you're the kind of guy that deserves that."
"Thanks, dude."
Later, when Jack is already buried in the ground, Hurley, Ben, Desmond, Rose, Bernard, and Vincent stood around his grave. Hurley was making a speech.
"Jack was my best friend. After Charlie was gone, he was always there for me. Once we were off the Island, he would visit me at the institution. When we were in the Dharma Initiative, he was always friendly to me. A few days ago, he helped me lead a team to Locke's group where I got to be a leader for the first time in my life. Jack was also a hero. On our first day here, he saved Rose's life... Claire's life...and my life. And he didn't even know any of us. If that's not a hero, then I don't know what is. I hope he knows what a great person he was. I hope he knows how much he helped me develop on this Island. I hope he knows how much he will be missed. Rest in peace, Jack Shephard."
No one dared to speak. They all silently said goodbye to Jack in their hearts. Finally, Ben said, "That was...good, Hugo."
"Thanks, dude. So...what now?"
"Well, I was thinking about that too," Ben said. "Do you know who Cindy, Zack, and Emma are?"
"No, I can't say that I do."
"Cindy was a flight attendant on Oceanic 815. Zack and Emma were two children also on the plane. They were all in the tail section."
"Oh, yeah, I've heard Libby talk about them."
"Well, I believe they are with a group of people still alive on this island. They've been begging to go home for three years. We could start there. Since they were my former people, they might have an idea of how to get off the island. They can help Desmond go home, too."
"Okay. Rose? Bernard? Would you like to leave the island? I can make it happen. Or if you really want to, you can stay," Hurley said.
"Hurley, if it will help you, we can stay here. We'll even abandon out hut and go to live with you and Ben," Rose said.
"You would really do that?" Hurley wondered.
"Of course," Bernard said.
Hurley smiled. "Cool. Thanks, guys. And Desmond? I don't care if you want to stay on the island, but you have to leave. You need to get back to Penny. You can't just leave her again."
"No offense, brothah, but I want to get the hell out of here as soon as possible. But you have to promise that you will still come and visit me, yeah?"
"Of course I will," Hurley agreed. He looked up at the sky, then back at Ben. "Well, let's go find the Others."
"Hurley, they aren't the Others anymore," Ben said. "They're your people."
"Actually, Ben...we're both wrong. They're our people."