The sun beat down hard on my neck. That raft trip that we're planning is really gonna kill the back of my neck. "We need to regroup. Fill each other in," I say, after Jack makes yet another case for a lie. "Sun, Kate, Jack, and I were all together. Frank, Desmond, Sayid, you were all on the freighter. Hurley, you were with Locke's group. We need to fill each other in on the last couple of days."
"Well, the boat was pretty exciting," Desmond says, his arm around Penny. "I guess most of you don't know about your mate Michael. Tia, you looked surprised when I told you he was below deck."
"Yeah, I was. What the hell was he doing here?"
"He was a spy for Ben, dude," Hurley says. "Locke, like, gave Ben freedom in exchange for info on the boat, 'cause Ben, like, had a spy."
"And the spy was Michael?" Kate asks, holding Aaron.
"Yes," Sayid says.
"He got Walt back. The Others let them go. Why would he work for Ben again?" Kate asks.
"He didn't explain exactly," Sayid says. "The best I can figure is that life was not so pleasant when he got back."
Everyone pauses at this suggestion.
"What else happened on the boat?" Jack asks, breaking the silence.
"That man and his team, Keamy—," Sayid says.
"You mean that crazy marine guy who killed Ben's daughter?" Hurley asks.
"Yes, that one. He came to the Island to capture Ben and he didn't care who he killed to get it done."
"But one of the Others killed him?" I ask.
"Yeah," Kate says. "His name is Richard."
"Okay, so the Others killed Keamy's mercenary team. Ben brought Michael on the boat—,"
"And you lost your appendix!" Hurley exclaims, cutting Jack off.
Jack chuckles. "Yeah, that happened. So now we need a story," he continues. Everyone in the group fidgets awkwardly and Jack sighs. "Look, I know we don't want to do this, but it has to be done. Charles Widmore, he wanted us to look dead. It's why he planted that fake crash below the ocean."
"And now we need to protect a group of people who disappeared on a moving Island?" I ask.
Jack rolls his eyes. "The Island didn't move," he says.
"Dude, you can't keep denying that. It disappeared right in front of us!" Hurley says.
"Let's just assume Widmore can find the Island. We need him to believe that we'll go along with whatever he suggests."
"Fine then. What's our story?" I ask.
"Well, I've been thinking about this. What if we say the plane landed in the water and all of us got out with a few more survivors who later died? Namely Claire, because we'll need to explain Aaron." Kate hugs Aaron closer to her chest.
"Who will we pick?" Sayid asks.
"Boone, Shannon, and Libby," Jack says, looking between Sayid, Hurley, and myself. "You three had relationships with them. What if you slip?"
"Not Shannon," Sayid says. "Who will believe that a brother and sister made it out together? Keep Boone. Not Shannon."
"Charlie then." I say. "He was in that band, Drive Shaft. He's a public figure people will recognize."
"So Charlie, Boone, Libby, and Claire who all died before rescue."
We shape the rest of our story, piece by piece, making it believable. Penny and Desmond throw in suggestions as third parties. Frank brings everyone beer. Throughout the whole process, Hurley is the least interactive. When we have a solid story, he speaks up. "Dude, they'll find out."
"Not if we stick to the story."
"I don't know, Jack," Sayid says. "It could be a risk."
"It's the only way. We have to do this. Look, we're running out of time. We gotta make a decision now. So are we all okay with this?"
"This is a decision that will affect the rest of our lives. I'm not taking it lightly," Sayid says.
"Kate?" Jack asks.
"Yeah," she agrees.
"Sun?" She just nods her head.
"Frank?"
"What?" he says, his head jerking up.
"Sorry you got dragged into this, but we need to know that you're with us."
"Whatever you guys decide, I'll just roll with."
Jack turns back to the group. "Hurley, what about you?"
"I don't think we should lie, dude."
"We need to protect the people that we left behind, Hurley."
"How does lying protect them?"
"It protects them from Charles Widmore. The guy hired a boatload of people to kill all of us. He faked a plane crash. I mean, you think if we tell the truth that he's gonna leave them alone?"
Hurley turns to Penny. "Look, he's your dad, right? Can't you just, like, call him off?"
"There's no calling my father off."
"But he'll never find them. I mean, the Island disappeared. We all saw it. It's gone. Bloop!"
"You think anyone's gonna believe that? Believe any of it? They're gonna think you're crazy."
"Not if someone backs me up. Sayid, come on," he says, turning. "They'll think I'm nuts if I tell the truth. But what if we all do? And if we can stick together, we can make 'em believe us. I don't want to spend the rest of my life lying. Do you?"
"No," Sayid says. "But I don't believe we have a better choice." Hurley drops his head in disappointment. "Sorry, Hurley, but we have to lie."
"You know what, dude? I'm gonna remember this. And someday, you're gonna need my help, and I'm telling you right now, you're not getting it."
There's an awkward pause as Jack asks the rest of us if we're okay with the plan. I agree and Penny sets the boat on course for a small Indonesian island where we hide below deck and Penny and Desmond buy what we need. Then we set the boat for Membata, a small island near the Sunda Trench where the fake plane rests. We get off the boat and paddle our way to Manukangga. I did get a really bad sunburn.
