A Glitch in the Circle

QuidditchGirl30

The world swam before him in a mix of colors and sounds. He felt numb. No, he felt pain. Raw, relentless, unyielding pain. The pain that no one who hasn't experienced it can sympathize with, and the pain that can tear at your insides until you have nothing left. He felt that pain. He could already feel his emotions spiraling, his depression rising, and that cold jackass persona hardening back into place.

And only thirty seconds had passed since his final glimpse of her blonde hair.

He could hear Kate yelling something to Jack, and then he was being pulled away. Away from the well…away from her…He couldn't function. He couldn't think. He couldn't comprehend. He couldn't believe. The metal surrounding the well let out a shuddering groan, and disappeared, taking his heart with it.

Kate and Jack slowly let him down a safe distance away from pocket, watching in despair as he sunk lifelessly to the ground, moaning her name. He couldn't feel any physical pain, only the overwhelming emotional pain. Juliet…Juliet…His eyes squeezed shut, giving way to the multitude of tears.

The insides of his eyelids lit up.

"Wake up! Uh, God, come on!"

The first thing that Sawyer registered was that he was lying on something extremely comfortable. Something that was not the ground of the Swan. Second, something else was hitting him in the face. Whack…whack…whack…

"Come on, lazy bum! I'm going to be late!" a female's voiced whined impatiently.

His eyes snapped open in shock, as all at once the present slammed down on him. His gaze darted back and forth, drinking in the room. Cream-colored walls, a dresser, a bed, a few pictures, a door leading into a bathroom, a rather furious-looking brunette, and a big pillow headed straight for his face.

"Ow! Son of a bitch!" he cried, holding his nose. The girl paused in her movements, and dropped the pillow next to him in satisfaction. He sat up on the bed, still cradling his nose. His eyes wide, he watched as the girl shook her head and stomped out of the room. He looked down at his hands, and was shocked to see a gold ring glimmering on his left hand.

Panic seized him. Is this the future? Did I marry some young, brunette chick? Oh, Hell. Why would he getting married to a girl half his age? Did he become an alcoholic? A druggie? A pimp? Why would he become a pimp? And how the hell did he get off the island?

Then it hit him. The island. The Swan. TheHydrogen Bomb. Juliet.

Before he even thought about speaking, the girl reappeared. "It's good to see you're awake. God, I thought you were gonna sleep for another three hours. You've been out for at least fifteen. What happened to you?"

His mouth dropped open, but no sound came from his chapped lips. Although…he ran his tongue along his bottom lip, and felt no scabs and didn't taste any blood. He looked down at what he expected to be his Dharma suit, but he was dressed in a t-shirt and boxers. There was no ringing in his head that had appeared after his scuffle with Jack, and his arm was not tired. The arm that could have pulled Juliet to safety…

The girl raised her eyebrows, an amused smile tugging at the corners of her lips. A familiar smile. "What, no 'good morning, Freckles?'"

Another wave of panic punched him in the stomach. Oh, no, I fell back in love with Kate (how is that possible?), she somehow died, and now I call my young wife Freckles in her memory! What the HELL?!

When he clearly was not going to give a definitive answer, her amusement faded into one of concern. She stepped up to him and brushed a hand along his forehead. He had to refrain from wincing. Her bright, inquisitive, blue eyes narrowed as she pulled back.

"Are you feeling all right? You seem out of it…more than normal." He simply stared in open-mouth wonder at her. "Wow, nothing? Not even a snarky comment? You must really be sick. And you skipped work today. You didn't go to a bar or something like that, did you?"

She disappeared again, but he could hear her laughter. "Oh man, if you did that, your ass would be grass. Mom will be infuriated."

So she's his daughter? "M-Mom?" he croaked, groggily standing up and following her down the stairs.

She looked over her shoulder in disbelief. "Yes. My mom, your wife. I think you should lie down again, Dad. I don't think a hangover results in amnesia. Not that I would know what a hangover is like or anything," she added quickly.

Sawyer slowly, methodically, slid into a bar stool in the kitchen. His daughter (his daughter!) grabbed a box of Cheerios across the island and pulled out two bowls. His head started to pound. It was a familiar throbbing…one that he experienced a few times before Locke left to fetch everyone.

Through his fingers, he watched the girl move about the kitchen. She maneuvered with grace and agility as she danced over to fetch the milk. Her dusty blonde hair was up in a curly ponytail, and her bright blue eyes sparkled in the morning sunlight. His nickname for her was truthful, for he could faintly see a dusting of freckles across her cheeks. If he had married Kate, there'd be hell to pay…

"So while you were out cold on your sleeping excursion, I ran and got some fruit, and I know you and Mom are sick of tropical stuff but it's almost summer, ya know? Oh! And there were a few messages for you. The Humes called, and Claire is apparently doing wonderful. They say that she is doing well…she has to wear a cast on her arm for awhile, but at least she's in good condition. Clementine sent you an e-mail, which I took the liberty of checking, and she wants to meet for lunch tomorrow at the Chinese restaurant on Main Street. I am planning to hang with her later, so don't take a long time like last week. And mom sent me a text, saying her shift went overtime, so she just crashed at the hospital. She expects to be home in a few hours. And Jack called--"

"Mom?" Sawyer echoed to himself.

The girl let out a sigh. "Yes, we've been through this. I can't believe you don't remember your own wife. Do you even remember her name? Oh, God…" she trailed off at his confused expression.

Name…name…wait. What did she say? Jack?

"It's not like mom and I have different names or anything…" she muttered.

He looked up at her in anticipation. "Wait, hold on, Freckles. You said Jack called?"

"…Yes. Like he does every week."

"Jack? Jack Shepherd? Doc?"

She blinked. "Yes."

He never thought he would be so glad to hear Jack's name. He jumped up and ran to the phone, which was easily sighted by the counter. He picked up the receiver and was flipping through the neat address book that his unknown-wife had neatly filled out when his daughter dropped her empty bowl into the sink with a loud clang.

"The bus arrives in five minutes." She stated clearly, turning and leaning against the counter. Her lips pursed into a familiar smirk. "You gonna let me drive you?"

The phone rang and rang. "C'mon, Doc."

"This is the voice mailbox for Doctor Jack Shepherd…"

"Shit!" Sawyer swore, slamming the phone onto the counter. He faced his daughter, who watched his rant without emotion. "Uh, no, Freckles. Not today. Wasn't it you who said I need to go lay down? Dad's in a bit of a crisis here."

She looked out of the window for a long moment before letting out a tired exhale. "Fine. But if I don't get my fifty hours in before my six months ends, I blame you. Get better, Dad."

He nodded and ran a hand through his clean, short hair. What the hell was he supposed to do? Somehow the hydrogen bomb had gone off, and had sent him to the future. He was married to someone off of the island, but who? Who would he be able to get over Juliet for? If only damned Doc would answer his phone once in a while, then maybe he would get some answers…

"It's not like mom and I have different names or anything…"

He stopped short. He had heard her mutterings, but had been too distracted to pay attention to them. If he would be crazy enough to let himself get married, which seemed impossible, he would make sure to name his daughter Juliet. He would not have allowed it otherwise. If she had the same name as her mother, then…

Sawyer wheeled around in the direction of his retreating daughter. "Juliet!" he cried. Too late. The back door swung shut.

He stumbled blindly through the kitchen, hitting his hip against a chair, and nearly falling over a dog toy (We have a dog?). Hope had flared into his chest, and he wasn't going to wait another seven hours for the answer to his heart-wrenching question.

He bolted out of the door. She was slowly making her way down the sidewalk. "Freckles!"

She turned, and all of the familiar facial features jumped out at him. The eyes, the smile, the nose, the lips. "Yes, Dad?"

What could he say? Hey, is your name possibly Juliet? He stared blankly at her for a few moments, and he could faintly hear the rumblings of a school bus.

The words blurted out of his mouth before he could consider him. "Do you have my back?"

For a moment: nothing. For a moment she returned his blank stare. For that moment, his heart sank into his chest and he wasn't sure when he'd ever be able to love again.

But then…a flicker. A flicker of recognition passed across her face, and the undeniable smile of her mother's formed on her lips.

"Do you have mine?"

He closed his eyes as a wave of relief flooded through his system. Tears streamed down his face, and his knees buckled under him.

When he opened his eyes, a canopy of leaves filled his vision.

A/N: So, this sort of popped into my head yesterday, and I had to write it down. I'm sorry if I didn't catch the "essence" of Sawyer. I obviously do not have the quick wit that he has, nor have I written any Suliet fanfics before. The season finale was wonderfully heartbreaking, and she absolutely can't be dead. I hope you enjoyed this, and I hope it helps our never-ending wait for "Destiny Found." =] Cheers.

QuidditchGirl30