Okay! Chapter 4! You asked for it, so here it is.

Thank you to my wonderful reviewers! You guys rock, and I love coming and reading all of your encouraging comments!

Sorry for the stupidly long amount of time between updates. Hopefully the length of this chapter will make up for it. Speaking of which…

This chapter is really, ridiculously long. At 10,500 (!) words, it's longer than the first three chapters put together. So sit back. Get comfy. Unplug the phones. Maybe find some snacks or something. Cause you're gonna be here for awhile!


As Kate stood on the beach locked in a fierce embrace with Jack, she decided that this was where she wanted to stay forever.

Unfortunately, it was only three minutes before a familiar voice broke the silence.

"Umm, dudes? Not to like, break up the happy reunion or anything, but it's getting kinda late, and…I still want to know where Jack has been all this time."

Jack laughed as Kate pulled away from him slightly, muttering less than friendly words about Hurley under her breath. Finally taking a good look at him, Kate gasped as she took in Jack's injuries. "Jack…you're hurt."

"Did you just notice that? Damn, Freckles! Remind me to never hire you for a surveillance job..."

Ignoring Sawyer, Kate touched the wound the side of Jack's head tenderly, but quickly drew her hand back when he winced. "Oh, Jack, I'm sorry! That looks awful…you're bleeding! What happened to you out there?"

"Yeah, dude, what did happen? And didn't that hurt, Kate running into you like that? I mean, if I couldn't hug you, Kate's tackle-hug must've-"

"No, Hurley, I'm fine. It didn't-"

"What!" Kate's exclamation cut Jack off, and she stared at him in disbelief. "I hurt you? Why didn't you say something?"

"Kate, I'm fine, I swear. I'm just a little banged up-"

"A little banged up! Doc, have you seen your wrist? If that's only 'a little banged up,' I'd love to see what you think a real injury looks like."

Jack glared at Sawyer over Kate's shoulder. "Sawyer, seriously man, you are not helping me here."

Kate looked up at Jack imploringly. "Jack, how hurt are you, really?"

Jack sighed. "I'm fine. It's not that bad. I'm mostly just tired." Sawyer and Charlie scoffed, but Jack ignored them and began listing injuries, genuinely unaware of the fact that most people would not be describing such troubles as 'not that bad.'

"My wrist is the worst, but it's sort of reached the point were the whole thing has gone numb. I'm pretty sure it's a clean break, so someone'll just have to snap it back into alignment. Although it has been like this for awhile…" Jack paused for a second and looked his wrist, as though pondering how exactly he was going to fix the mangled joint, but then continued. "And my head isn't too bad, the bleeding has nearly stopped and the cut itself is most likely pretty shallow…I should check it. At worst, it'll need some stitches." His voice was less confident now, obviously realizing that the aliments would all need more tending to than he thought. "And I rolled my ankle slightly, but the swelling is more or less down, so that's almost all better. Should probably stay off it for a day or two." Stopping as though finished, Jack took in the stunned expressions around him, more honest confusion written across his face. "Oh, and I've got a few bruised ribs that are practically healed," he added as a casual afterthought. "Should probably get some ice…on…them…" Jack trailed off, catching the frighteningly angry look on Kate's face

"Bruised ribs!" Kate looked at Jack as though she couldn't believe his stupidity and then began yelling, upset that her hugging him had, without doubt, caused him a sizeable amount of pain. "Why didn't you stop me?"

Jack, knowing that he was in big trouble, did his best to assuage Kate's exasperation. "Kate, honestly, I'm fine. I didn't even notice the pain. Really. I was so happy to see you, and I just-"

"You have bruised ribs, and you let me jump on you like that? Jack, what the hell is the matter with you? How could you possibly let me hurt you so much? I mean,-"

"Kate."

Kate continued her rant, ignoring Jack, his interruptions, and the increasingly amused look on his face.

"-you've got bruised ribs, and you let me run into you at full speed! That could be-"

"Kate."

"-the stupidest thing that you have ever done! And your wrist! There is no way that it doesn't hurt, and I must have knocked it when I barreled into you! How could I not notice? But Jack, really, bruised ribs,-"

"Kate!"

"-you can't possibly tell me that it didn't hurt! How could-"

Kate was cut off again, this time by Jack's lips descending on hers. Her eyes fluttered closed as he kissed her softly, and she was quickly filled with a warm, overwhelming happiness. Jack stepped closer to her, not leaving an inch of space between their bodies, and Kate felt him seek out her hand with his good one, lacing their fingers together snugly once he found it. She smiled against his mouth, touched by the sweet gesture. It was simple act, but so endearingly and adorably Jack that Kate could help but feel a powerful surge of emotions, none of which she could name, though all left her with a breathless and pleasantly dizzy feeling.

Jack pulled away after another moment, his forehead resting on hers and their bodies still pressed together. Kate put a hand on his chest, doing her best to steady herself and not melt into a puddle at his feet.

Slowly, Kate opened her eyes, and she found herself trapped in Jack's gaze, mesmerized by the adoring look in his eyes and the knee-weakening smile that was displayed on his face.

"Guess I found a new way to keep you from yelling at me, huh?" he whispered, winking at her impishly.

Kate smacked him playfully on the arm, amused by the mood-lightening comment, and Jack laughed before kissing the tip of her nose fondly.

Once again, Kate and Jack found themselves wanting to stay in the moment forever and once again, the moment was broken by one the three stooges; this time, it was Charlie's turn.

"Well, this is bloody brilliant. First I had to deal with the verbal copulating, and now we're going to be witness to even more of these public displays of affection."

Sawyer and Hurley laughed, but Claire cuffed Charlie round the head, a disciplinary action she was rather fond of. "Charlie, leave them alone. Honestly, what a way to ruin the moment!" Claire looked at Jack and Kate apologetically. "Sorry guys. I swear, sometimes it's like I have two children instead of one!"

Jack and Kate laughed at the put out look on Charlie's face. They were standing next to each other, still impossibly close together. Jack's arm was slung around Kate's shoulders, her arm wrapped securely around his waist with her thumb hooked through one of the belt loops in his jeans. Kate stood on her tiptoes and kissed Jack adoringly on the cheek, much to Sawyer's dismay.

"Alright, can we stop the love-fest already? You all can find plenty of other times to do that, preferably when the rest of us ain't watching and waiting to hear the returning hero's story. So whaddaya say, Jackie-boy?"

Jack rolled his eyes dramatically. "Honestly, Sawyer, this 'Jackie-boy' thing has got to stop. I know you love giving us all cute little nicknames, but this one is a record low, even by your standards."

Kate smiled up at Jack, only half-teasingly. "I think it's cute."

Jack pulled a comical face, appalled.

Kate smiled more broadly, batting her eyelashes. "Can I call you that?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"How about just 'Jackie'?"

"No chance in hell."

Kate pouted and saw Jack's resolve visibly crumbling before her eyes. "Pleeease, Jack?"

Jack sighed spectacularly, torn between making Kate happy and preserving his dignity. "Why would you want to call me that? I have a perfectly good name that you can use."

"She's testing you, mate. Wants to see how you'll respond to her absurd womanly requests."

"Definitely. The old ball and chain. You're screwed, man."

"Doc's gonna get his ass kicked by his woman. Wish I had some popcorn…you got any with you, Lardo?"

"Not cool, dude. Not cool."

Claire made eye contact with Kate, sighing and muttering something that sounded strangely like 'Men!' before smacking all three of them on their heads.

Slap! "Ow! Damn, woman!"

Slap! "Dude!"

Slap! "Claire, love, would you stop that already?"

"Only if the three of you will be quiet! Jack still hasn't told us what happened, all because you keep interrupting him!"

"You know, if they keep interrupting me, I might not tell them at all. I'm in serious need of pain meds and some sleep. I think I should leave now and just tell Kate. She hasn't interrupted me yet."

"No, but she did slam into you and almost break your ribs."

Jack nodded his head in fake agreement with Sawyer's exaggeration. "Good point. I'm not telling any of you, then."

Laughing at the outraged expressions on all their faces, Jack relented. "Fine, I'll tell you. This way, I'll only have to tell the story once…because as soon as Hurley and Charlie find out, the whole camp'll know."

"So what happened?"

Jack sighed again. "It's rather stupid, if truth be told. I'll let you guess. What's the most ridiculous thing that could possibly happen to keep me away for two weeks but still manage to give me some physical injuries?"

"You were abducted by brain-eating purple aliens that took you to the mother-ship, flew your unconscious body to their home planet and studied you, then cloned you, meaning that the person standing in front of us right now is not the real Jack but a brainless Jack-clone that was planted here to re-integrate with us, take over the island, and start a new brain-eating purple alien civilization," Charlie answered promptly.

Everyone stared at him open-mouthed, Sawyer with something akin to revulsion written across his face.

"What?" Charlie asked innocently. "You said 'most ridiculous.'"

Jack closed his eyes as if in pain, trying to remember why on earth he had come back in the first place. Coincidentally, Kate chose that moment to wrap her other arm around his waist firmly, once again pulling his body close to hers. 'Oh,' he thought. 'That's why.'

After re-tightening his hold on Kate, Jack decided to try again. "Okay, Charlie. Pick the second most ridiculous thing that could possibly happen to keep me away for two weeks but still manage to give me some physical injuries."

"You were abducted by rifle-toting, green aliens who-"

"Stop!" Jack yelled. "Just…stop. I can't take it anymore. At this rate, we're going to be here all night. And, astonishingly, what you said is reasonably close to what happened."

It was Jack's turn to be gawked at.

After a minute, Sawyer broke the stunned silence. "Doc, are you trying to tell us that you actually were abducted by rifle-toting green aliens?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "No. Of course not. I said he was reasonably close, remember?" He smirked. "Replace the green aliens with a psychotic French chick."

Jack's casual statement was met with even more shocked staring.

"Mate, are you saying that it was Rousseau?"

"No, genius, he was talking about the other psychotic French chick," muttered Sawyer sarcastically.

"Dude! There's more than one?"

"No! Could you two be any stupider? Of course he's talking about Rousseau!" Sawyer yelled, provoking Hurley and Charlie enough to start a new argument with him. Claire rushed over to rescue Aaron and try to shut the three yelling men up.

Jack let out a strangled sound, half-laugh and half-sob, and pulled Kate even closer to him, his lips right next to her ear. "Let's leave," he whispered, his breath tickling her skin. "I can't take it anymore. I swear that if we don't leave right now, I'm going to kill them all. Can I? Please?"

Kate giggled at the comical desperation in his voice. "Yeah. Let's go to the hatch and get you cleaned up, okay? Pain meds and sleep, just like you said." Kate paused for a second, chewing on her bottom lip. "It was really Rousseau?" she whispered dejectedly.

Feeling Jack nod, Kate sighed sadly, her eyes tearing up. "We questioned her, Jack. We found her wandering the jungle and I asked her myself if she had seen you. She said no. She…I shouldn't have believed her! Jack, I am so sorry." Kate was crying now, tears rolling slowly down her face. It was her fault...by believing Rousseau, she had delayed Jack's return home. How could she have been so stupid?

Jack felt his heart break, knowing that Kate was blaming herself. "Shhh, Kate, it's alright. Please don't cry. Everything worked out. Please don't be sorry, because you have nothing to be sorry for. I'm back, and everything's fine, right?" Kate just shook her head feebly against his chest.

"Look, Kate, it's not your fault that an insane French woman took me captive. I don't even know why she wanted me…" Jack paused here for dramatic effect "…though I assume that she was merely enthralled by my dashing good looks and couldn't control herself."

Jack's remark earned him a laugh out of Kate, who pulled back so she could see his face. "Yeah," she whispered happily, albeit a bit tearily. "I guess you are pretty cute."

"I really am, aren't I?"

Jack laughed after saying this and, breaking from his fake vanity, leaned over and kissed the remaining tears from Kate's face. "No more blaming yourself, okay?" he whispered softly in her ear.

Kate nodded. "Okay." Glancing at the four arguing adults and the crying baby, she giggled. "Let's get out of here."

Jack readily agreed. "Yes please! Judging by the way that they're yelling, I'm pretty sure they won't even notice we're gone."

Amused by Jack's eagerness to sneak away, Kate grabbed his good hand in hers again and started walking towards the edge of the jungle. She figured that it would be easy enough to just walk away without their four friends noticing; apparently Jack had other ideas. Taking a wide berth around the other adults, Jack took the lead, all the time using exaggerated stealth moves. Kate fought hard not to laugh at the mock intense look on his face; she knew that making too much noise would alert someone to the fact that they were leaving. This wouldn't really matter, being as they had free will and could do whatever they pleased, but Kate knew that Jack was going through his routine purely for her entertainment. He was successful; she was nearly in tears for trying to hold back laughter.

They reached the tree line, and Kate finally gave into the hysterics as Jack half dove behind a large tree, pulling her with him. He leaned back against the trunk and Kate stumbled into him, laughing into his chest as his arms snuck around her waist. Jack was laughing too, but he was doing his best to stay quiet; even though they were hidden, they were still within hearing range.

"Shhh, Kate!" came his whisper, the seriousness of the statement strangled by laughter. "They're gonna hear us! Please don't make me go back there!"

More laughing from Kate.

"Shhhh!"

The laughter died down slightly as Kate glanced up at Jack, biting her lip to keep from bursting into hilarity again. She was expecting his face to be a picture of calm; Kate never expected to see the amount of joy that she saw displayed of Jack's face, his eyes lit up in delight.

"God, Kate, you are the worst secret agent ever!"

This statement sent Kate back into a fit of mirth, and Jack rolled his eyes good-naturedly as she once again buried her face into his chest to muffle the noise. She seemed to have forgotten about the bruised ribs, but Jack certainly wasn't going to complain.

"Your lack of sneakiness is okay, though," he whispered, his arms pulling her closer. "I'm enough James Bond for the both of us." Kate laughed even harder at this and Jack stood patiently as she fought to get herself under control, hiding his beaming smile against her hair.

Finally, Kate took a deep breath and pulled away from him, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes.

"Better?" Jack questioned smugly, a smile still playing across his face.

Kate nodded. "Yeah. I'm good."

"About time. I thought you were never going to stop."

"It's your fault for making me laugh so hard."

"Oh sure, blame me: poor, innocent Jackie." Jack stopped, catching the highly amused look on Kate's face, and realized what he had just said. "Did I just refer to myself as 'Jackie'?"

Kate grinned at him playfully. "Yes. Yes you did."

Jack cursed under his breath. "Damn Sawyer and his nicknames…"

Smiling, Kate wound her arms around his neck. She had him now. "And, because you called yourself that, I retain the right to call you that."

Jack sighed. It was inevitable anyway…might as get it over with. "Fine. But only you can say it. And only when we're alone."

Kate grinned in triumph and kissed him soundly on the lips. "I win," she whispered breathlessly after pulling away.

Jack sighed again, though it was halfhearted and may very well been a sigh of contentment. "Don't you always?"

Kate just smiled and shook her head before pulling him away from the tree. "Let's go, Bond." Jack chuckled and began walking next to her, but was stopped as quickly as he started by Kate grabbing his shoulder. "Jack, you're limping."

"Of course I'm limping. Sprained ankle, remember? It's no big deal…I've been walking on it all day."

Kate rolled her eyes at his stubbornness. "All the more reason to not put full weight on it now. Come here." Kate walked over to Jack's side and pulled his arm around her shoulders and then wrapped her arm firmly around his waist. "See? Just lean on me a little when you walk. It'll give that ankle a break."

Jack grinned and gave a mock salute. "Yes ma'am!"

"That's more like it. To the hatch!"

"Actually, can we stop at my tent first? Not to sound girly or anything but…I would love a change of clothes."

Kate smiled at him sympathetically. "Of course." She had somehow managed to forget that he was back from two weeks of being captured in the jungle. Kate shook her head. Only Jack would be able to return after an ordeal like that and play it all off like it was 'no big deal'. He was clearly in a lot of pain, mostly from his wrist, though he was doing a good job of trying to hide it. Kate would take care of him though; soon those two weeks would all just be a bad memory.

"What are you thinking about?"

Kate was shaken from her thoughts by Jack's question. "Huh?"

Jack chuckled. "Where were you? You left me for a minute there."

"Oh…it was nothing. I was just…just wondering how we're gonna get to your tent without being mobbed by the entire camp." She smirked "You're very popular."

Jack groaned. "Damn. I forgot about them. Not that I don't like everybody caring about me and all, but I really don't want to deal with the horde right now."

"We'll just have to sneak around back. Your tent is right on the edge of camp, and its sunset, so there's not much light for anyone to see us by. Then we'll go to the hatch. People will find out that you're back anyway, since Charlie and Hurley are sure to spread the news around the first chance they get, so we don't have to feel guilty about everyone spending more time worrying about you."

Jack beamed at her. "I retract my earlier statement. You would just make an excellent secret agent…provided you wear a muzzle."

Kate poked him in the side for his last comment, but clapped her hands over her mouth in horror when Jack gave a sharp hiss of pain. "Oh my God! Jack, I am so, so sorry!"

"It's okay. Don't worry about it." Jack's statement was unconvincing however, being as he was speaking through clenched teeth, his jaw screwed up tightly against the painful sting in his side.

"I cannot believe I just did that! And I've been hugging you again too…Jack, I'm sorry!"

"It's fine. Hugging me is fine." Jack was feeling better now, the pain having dulled to an ache that he was fully capable of ignoring. "It's the poking and prodding that we need to rule out. Definitely can't have anymore of that."

"Jack, that makes no sense!"

"Sure it does. It's almost healed, so you hugging me doesn't really hurt. Poking me, however, pushes harder and in a more concentrated spot making it hurt more."

Kate still looked skeptical, but Jack just draped his arm around her shoulders again and began steering them around the edge of camp. "I'm fine, see? Now, let's put this master plan of yours into action."

As it turned out, they could have made it without the master plan. The other castaways were shockingly unaware of their surroundings and before Jack and Kate knew it, they were in his tent.

"Wow. That was suspiciously easy. No booby traps, no explosions, no nothing. I don't feel like we accomplished anything."

Kate laughed at Jack's obvious disappointment in the lack of peril. "When you're all healed, I'll have Sayid set up an army training course for you to run through. Ropes, climbing, the whole deal. That'll make up for the lack of excitement here, shouldn't it?" she asked sarcastically, eyes alight with teasing humor.

Jack grinned roguishly. "Only if he uses some of the unstable dynamite in the construction of the thing. I like the thrill I get from knowing I could blow up any second."

Kate just shook her head at him and looked around the tent. She loved it in here…everything about it screamed 'Jack'. His clothes were folded neatly, but placed in somewhat unorganized stacks in the sand. There were some medical supplies too: important stuff that she figured he wanted to keep separate from the main stash that was kept in the hatch, and some little things like bandages and aspirin that he always seemed to have with him.

"Can you grab me some jeans and a shirt? I want to look through my supplies, see if maybe I can find something to help with my wrist." Jack turned and began sifting one-handed through the piles of medical stuff.

"Sure thing, Jackie." Kate laughed, watching Jack's shoulders shudder at the use of his much detested nickname. She figured the pleasure of teasing him about it would wear off soon enough, but for now it was exceptionally entertaining.

Kate wandered over to Jack's clothes and began searching through the small piles.

"You can just grab whatever's on top," she heard from across the tent. "I don't really care."

"What's the matter Jack?" she teased, "Trying to hide your underwear from me?"

"Of course not," Jack said, and Kate heard the laughter in his voice. "Speaking of which," he continued, "grab me a pair of boxers, would you? Don't get too excited though…I've hidden all the ones with cute little patterns on them."

Kate giggled. "So none with smiley faces or little hearts or anything?"

"Unfortunately not. Sorry to disappoint."

She finally found the articles of clothing that she had been rummaging around for: the most worn and softest pair of jeans that were ripped at the knee, which she knew was his favorite, and the purple button-down shirt with the sleeves ripped off…because it was her favorite. Grinning to herself, Kate also picked up a black pair of the requested boxer shorts. Turning with clothes in hand, she stepped back over to Jack.

"Is you're backpack in here?" she questioned, looking around.

"There may be an extra one around here somewhere." Jack smirked. "I don't have my backpack anymore…psycho-bitch took it after she captured me and didn't return it."

Kate snorted at Jack's less-than-affectionate nickname for Rousseau. Spotting a small rucksack in the corner of the tent, she grabbed it, stuffing his clothes inside. Jack reached over and dropped a container of pills inside, then did up the bag's zipper.

"What are those for?" Kate asked softly.

"They should help with the hurting in my wrist…if the pain doesn't make me pass out first." Jack stated matter-of-factly.

Kate winced. "Is it that bad?" she whispered worriedly.

"Not at the moment. It's currently reduced to a sort of throbbing ache. But someone's gonna have to set it, and it's been like this for a long time. My guess is that I'll do some screaming, and quite possibly some very un-manly crying."

"Who…who's going to set it? You can't do that yourself, and there's no way I can."

"I think we're gonna have to find Sun, see if she'll help me. She knowledgeable enough that she should be able to do it."

"Okay. Let's get you to the hatch and then I'll go find her. If we're lucky she'll be in the garden. She usually stays pretty late and then heads back to the beach right around sunset."

"How convenient. See? No one can say I don't have good timing."

"Well, personally, I would have liked you to come home fourteen sunsets earlier."

"Yeah…sorry about that. But the queen of darkness had me under constant surveillance."

Kate laughed again. "Queen of darkness, huh? You're just full of these names for her, aren't you?"

"Yup." There was delight evident in Jack's voice. "I had two weeks to come up with them all. Sawyer will be proud."

"Well, let's go, and when we get to the hatch, you can write them all down."

The couple snuck out of the tent, once again unnoticed by the rest of the camp, and began walking slowly down the path to the hatch. Jack's arm was in its new favorite place, positioned securely around Kate's shoulders.

"I never thought I'd be so excited to go to the hatch," Jack said happily. "I don't really like it down there, because of the beeping and that damn button, but-"

"There's no more button."

Jack looked at Kate incredulously. "What are you talking about?"

"Locke stopped pushing it. One day last week during his shift, he got this Zen look on his face and said 'the island doesn't want me to do this anymore'. The timer ran out, nothing happened, and he went to play backgammon with Walt. And that was the end of that."

"He just…stopped? Just like that? After all that-? He…" Jack trailed off resignedly, shaking his head with a sigh. "Forget it. I need sleep."

Kate sniggered as they kept walking, Jack occasionally muttering an expletive about fanatical bald men under his breath.

They reached a bend in the path, and Kate stopped short, listening closely.

Jack, completely oblivious, was jerked to a stop. "What is it?" he asked.

"I hear someone. Two someones, actually. I think its Sayid with Shannon. They were in the hatch before listening to music or something."

Jack smirked. "Want to mess with them a little?" Off Kate's enthusiastic nod, he continued. "Just keep walking past them. Act natural. See how long it takes them to notice me. I bet Shannon notices first."

"Fine. I bet Sayid."

"Deal."

Smiling, Jack and Kate continued walking leisurely down the path, pretending to be deep in conversation. They walked around the bend, and there were Shannon and Sayid, walking hand in hand towards them. As they walked past, Jack gave a small nod of his head.

"Hey Sayid, Shannon."

"Hi guys," echoed Kate.

Sayid glanced at them. "Hello."

Shannon smiled at them brightly. "Hi Kate! Hi Jack!"

The two couples passed, and Jack and Kate walked a few steps then turned around, watching Shannon and Sayid walk away.

"Anyway Sayid, as I was say- Wait a minute! Jack?" Shannon whipped her head around, eyes widening as she saw Jack, who gave her a small wave. "Jack! Oh my God! You're back!"

"I'm back. And thanks for noticing me, Sayid." Jack added sarcastically. "Honestly, not even a second glance. That cuts deep, man."

Sayid smiled apologetically as he and Shannon rushed back towards Kate and Jack. "I am sorry, my friend. I am glad to see you though. But I was expecting a more exciting return on your part, not to just see you strolling along a path with Kate."

Jack grinned and untangled his usable arm from Kate in order to shake Sayid's extended hand. "Well, you know me…I like to keep a low profile."

Shannon smiled at him in slight disbelief. "Where the hell have you been all this time? And what happened to your wrist? It's gross!"

Kate grimaced. "That would be the work of a mad French woman."

Sayid looked shocked. "Rousseau?"

Shannon gasped. "No!"

"Yes."

"That bitch!" shrieked Shannon. "Kate we need to, like, kill her! That evil boyfriend stealer! First Sayid, now Jack! We should warn Claire, tell her to guard Charlie."

Kate nodded enthusiastically.

Jack smirked at Kate. "So I'm your boyfriend now, huh?"

Kate grinned. "Yup. Got a problem with that?"

"None whatsoever," Jack answered.

Shannon gasped again. "Oh my God! Are you two finally together! I was just kidding when I called him your boyfriend!" Kate nodded, smiling happily, and Shannon let out a high-pitched squeal before bounding forward and hugging Kate.

Jack and Sayid looked on with amused expressions as Shannon and Kate finished their hugging, jumping and squeeing. When the girly celebration was over, Sayid turned to Jack. "I can't believe that it was Rousseau."

"Oh come on Sayid, the woman is completely crazy."

"Shannon, no she is not. Danielle is just-"

"Actually man, I'm gonna have to agree with Shannon on this one," interrupted Jack. "She's actually clinically insane. She may have been different before, but now she's mentally ill. She's sick. Completely flipped a shit."

Kate and Shannon laughed at Jack's description of Rousseau. "He's come up with some great nicknames for her," Kate added.

Shannon's face was a picture of delight "Oooh, what are they?"

"'Psycho-bitch' and 'the queen of darkness' were the highlights."

Even Sayid smiled at this, accepting the fact that his formerly sort-of-friend Rousseau was a kook, and Shannon yelled, "Way to go Jack!" and slapped Kate high-five.

Jack laughed. "Thank you. I try."

"So what's the whole story? We want all the juicy details."

Jack smiled at the excited look on Shannon's face. "I'll tell you, but only if you promise to tell everyone at camp. I don't want to have to go through the story fifty times tomorrow."

"Day after tomorrow," interjected Kate. "You're injured and exhausted, and are therefore confined to bed for at least one whole day. More than that if I can find some tranquilizers."

Jack smiled cooperatively. "Correction…I don't want to have to go through the story fifty times the day after tomorrow."

Kate beamed at him.

"Jack, I solemnly swear on all that is holy that if you tell me the story, everyone at camp will know every detail by midnight tonight."

"Midnight tonight? That's pretty impressive, Shannon."

"I know. I'll just tell Charlie and Hurley…they'll help me."

Jack and Kate laughed. "They already know. Of course, when we left they were in the middle of an argument with Sawyer and Claire, so they'll probably be held up a while…"

"Whatever, just tell the story already!"

"Right. So when we were out hunting, Locke and I were arguing, and Charlie was singing the chorus to "You All Everybody" over and over again. It was really annoying, but we couldn't make him stop. Anyway, all of a sudden we heard gunshots. We all took off running, but ended up getting separated, Charlie and Locke going in one direction and me by myself. I was running pretty fast, and I didn't notice Rousseau's trap until I was caught in it. It was one of those damn rope things where it catches you around the ankle and hauls you up into a tree. It swung me to the side, and I hit my head on a branch or something. It knocked me out."

"Is that where the wound on the side of your head came from?" asked Sayid.

"No, that was a more recent development. The tree hit the back of my head. So, when I finally came to, Rousseau was there cutting me down. I was still groggy and didn't get a chance to prepare myself for the fall. It was a pretty far distance and I landed on my wrist, which broke…obviously."

Kate looked at him in horror. "Jack, it's been broken for two weeks!"

Jack nodded. "Yup. So my wrist broke, and I think that I yelled, but I actually don't remember because I passed out again pretty quickly. Must have been the pain or something. Next thing I know, I'm waking up in some underground cavern thing."

"The psycho's lair," added Shannon, sharing a giggle with Kate.

Jack smiled at the two women fondly before continuing. "So there I am, half-unconscious, wrist-broken, with this colossal bump on the back of my head, and in strolls Satan herself. And she starts yelling at me and asking what I assume were questions. I wouldn't know…she spent the whole time talking in French. That would have been fine, if I knew how to speak French…but I don't. So this nut is trying to interrogate me in a language I don't speak, even though we know that she speaks English perfectly well. And that's basically what we did for two weeks. She would yell at me in French, and I would yell back in English or just ignore her, which made her pretty mad. The only word I understood the whole time was 'Alex', who we know is her daughter."

"Did she…torture you at all?" asked Sayid.

Jack shrugged. "Not really. She did that thing with the electricity that you told us about, but only a couple times early on. It was the third day or something, but I lost track of time so I don't really know. The only other thing she seemed especially fond of was kicking me over and over again in the ribs…and she wears those fucking combat boots, which I grew to hate fairly quickly, being as they caused way more pain than if she had been wearing sneakers like a normal person."

"How did you escape?"

Jack smirked. "I didn't. She let me go. And, keeping in theme with the rest of this ordeal, it was completely absurd. Early this morning, she just randomly grabbed her rifle, put a bag over my head, and started dragging me through the jungle. Since I couldn't see, I rolled my ankle at some point during the walk on a tree root or something. We finally reached the beach, and she pulled the bag off and wordlessly pointed in the direction of camp. Then she handed me a bottle of water, took the butt of her rifle, and nailed me in the head with it…that would be the cause of the bleeding head wound. After she hit me, I dropped to the ground, and she just walked away, muttering in French. I think I may have blacked out for a few minutes, but then I got up and started walking. I hiked all day along the shoreline and…here I am," he finished lamely.

Sayid looked at Shannon.

Shannon looked at Kate.

Kate looked at Sayid.

They all looked at Jack…

and started laughing.

"That could be," choked out Shannon between laughs, "the stupidest, most un-dangerous captive story I have ever heard."

"Utterly bizarre," added Sayid.

Jack looked comically indignant, but joined in on the laughter after a second. "That's nice guys. Real nice." He looked to Kate for some support, but she just shook her head, tears of laughter rolling down her face.

"Sorry Jack," she said, still laughing. "But that was really anticlimactic."

Jack chuckled. "Like I said…I like to keep a low profile."

Kate hugged him gently, an apology for laughing at him. "Ready to go?" she asked.

Jack nodded. "Yeah." He turned to Sayid and Shannon. "Do you guys know where Sun is? I need her to come set my wrist for me."

"Yeah, she's at the beach helping Jin with something. You can go ahead… we'll find her and send her to the hatch."

"Thanks guys," said Kate, relieved that she wouldn't have to leave Jack's side.

Jack smiled his thanks, and together he and Kate turned and headed for the hatch.

Once they were out of earshot, Shannon squealed happily. "They are so cute!" she whispered to Sayid. "Come on, we need to go tell everyone!" She grabbed his head and took off for the beach.

Sayid just smiled as Shannon dragged him along. Women were scary.


"I don't know what I want to do first," Jack announced happily as he and Kate entered the hatch. "Shower, eat, sleep, or down an entire bottle of painkillers."

Kate laughed. "Decisions, decisions."

"I know. I lead an exciting life."

"How about you take a couple of aspirin, not the whole bottle, and then have your shower. Sun should be here by the time you're finished, so she can set your arm. Then you can eat or sleep, whichever you prefer."

"That is an excellent idea! You're so smart!" Jack laughed, kissing Kate on the cheek. He then slid the backpack that held his change of clothes off Kate's shoulders and started heading towards the bathroom.

"Didn't you say you wanted painkillers?" Kate called after his retreating back.

Jack turned around to look at her but continued limping backwards, somehow managing to maneuver around every obstacle without tripping. "Yeah, but I might as well just wait until we fix my wrist," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "Then, instead of that useless aspirin, I can use the good stuff!"

Kate laughed. "Wonderful…now you're a drug addict."

"That's me. The drug addicted spinal surgeon. With a broken wrist." Reaching the door, Jack gave a goofy bow. "And now the drug addicted spinal surgeon bids you farewell, as he is about to take the best shower of his life."

Kate giggled at his theatrics. "I think you've been hit on the head a few too many times in the past two weeks."

"That is certainly possible."

"Give a shout if you need anything, okay?"

"Will do!" Jack yelled, already closing the door behind him.

Kate sighed. She missed him. Which was ridiculous. It was incredible how attached to him she had become in the short time that he had been back. He had been out of her sight for a grand total of eleven seconds…she would see him again in about ten minutes…and she missed him. Kate sighed again. Ridiculous.

Kate plopped down onto the couch, willing either Jack to hurry up and finish, or Sun to hurry up and get there so that she would at least have someone to talk to while she waited.

After an agonizing few minutes, Kate finally heard the water turn off. A few agonizing minutes after that and she heard the bathroom door open.

"Hey Kate?"

"Hey what?" Kate smirked. She was still on the couch and he was standing in the bathroom doorway around the corner, out of her eyesight.

"Very funny. Okay, now this is gonna sound really stupid but…I can't get my shirt on one-handed."

Kate broke into laughter. "Then how did you get your other shirt off?"

"Well, I was all excited about my shower, so I sort of just yanked it over my head without thinking…which turned out to be a very bad thing for my wrist. I spent the next few minutes muttering some words that I'm not going to repeat around your innocent little ears."

"Jack, I'm sure I've heard it all before."

"Probably. But I'm still not repeating myself. So…think you could help me with the shirt?"

"Of course I will."

Still laughing to herself, Kate got up and walked around the corner. There was Jack, two weeks of dirt washed away, the blood all cleaned off of his face and his hair still wet from the shower. He was standing in bare feet and just his jeans, an adorably frustrated look on his face as he glared at the offending purple shirt in his hands. Kate opened her mouth to crack a joke, but as her eyes drifted to Jack's chest, the words died in her throat.

His entire torso was covered in horrible bruising, the skin painted with a vicious pattern of black and blue marks.

Jack looked up, noticing Kate's arrival in front of him, but the smile fell from his face when he saw the shocked expression on hers. "Kate?" he asked confusedly. "What's the matter?" Kate gestured jerkily at him and Jack glanced down at his chest, suddenly remembering. "Oh…that."

"Yeah, that!" Kate had found her voice. "What did she do to you?"

"I told you, lots of kicking."

"You said that it wasn't that bad!"

"Kate, really, it's worse than it looks…"

"Jack, you are bruised like five different colors!"

"Five? No way. I only counted four."

"Jack! What is the matter with you? Why do you keep playing this down like it's nothing? Let me repeat: You are bruised five-"

"Four!"

"-different colors!"

"Kate, I'm telling you, it's only four."

"Don't you think you're focusing on the wrong part of the argument?"

"We're arguing?"

Kate mouthed at him noiselessly for a moment before muttering, "You're infuriating."

Jack laughed and limped over to her, shirt still in hand. "Why are you so hung up on this?"

Anger gone, Kate looked up at him tearily. "Because you're hurt. And I hate that you're hurt, and I hate even more that you won't just admit to it and let me take care of you…And I also hate that I can't hug you right now because you might break into a million pieces or something."

Jack smiled gently. "I'm not going to break. I said the hugging was fine, remember? Just no poking."

Kate shook her head. "I don't want to hurt you," she whispered.

"You won't." Jack pulled Kate close to him and she laid her head on his chest, ear right above his heart so that she could listen to his heartbeat as they stood there together.

"You know," she heard him say after a moment, "it's actually good that I'm bruised five different colors. It means that it's healing."

"I thought you said it was only four?"

"Four, five…whatever."

Kate shook her head as she snuggled closer to him. "You really are infuriating," she mumbled weakly.

"I know. But you love me anyway."

"This is true."

"And I love you even though you haven't helped me put my shirt on yet."

Kate laughed and pulled away, taking the hint. After all, Sun would be there any minute. She took the shirt from Jack and helped him put his arms through it, buttoning it up once it was settled on his shoulders. "Does the wound on your head need any stitches?" she asked as she straightened his collar, tugging at it until it lay flat.

"No, I looked at it in the mirror and it seems okay. Could you put a bandage on it for me though? Should probably disinfect it too, just to be safe."

"Sure. Where would I find said bandages and disinfectant?"

Jack pointed to the kitchen. "Last I saw them, they were stacked on the side table in there. But I don't know if anyone has moved them since."

"Okay. Let me help you over to the bed, and then I'll go look."

Jack smiled at Kate's need to take care of him and didn't he protest as she helped him limp over to the bunk bed. After sitting him down on the edge of the bottom bunk, Kate turned to Jack with a smirk. "Now you be a good boy and don't move while Doctor Kate goes and gets the-" Kate broke off and looked at him sheepishly. "What is Doctor Kate getting, exactly?"

Jack grinned. "Just grab the small bottle of rubbing alcohol, a couple pieces of gauze, and some medical tape."

"Right. I knew that. Be right back."

Jack laughed as Kate dashed into the kitchen, coming back a moment later with the required medical supplies. After dropping the stuff unceremoniously onto the bed next to him, Kate started to walk away again. "Let me just go grab a chair or something."

"Not necessary," replied Jack with a smile, and he promptly grabbed Kate's waist and pulled her down onto his lap.

Kate raised her eyebrows amusedly, her face mere inches from his. "But this'll work too, I guess," she said, loving being so close to him.

"See? Jack has an answer for everything."

"Don't you mean Jackie has an answer for everything?"

Jack pouted. "That was just plain mean."

"Sorry," said Kate, not sounding sorry at all, "couldn't help myself." Reaching over, she picked up a piece of gauze and opened the bottle of rubbing alcohol, then poured a small amount of the strange-smelling liquid onto the white square of material. "Ready?" she asked him.

"That depends. Do I get a lollipop if I don't cry?"

Kate laughed at the look of boyish innocence on his face. "Yes Jack. You can have a lollipop if you don't cry," she answered, playing along.

"Well then I'm ready."

Kate leaned forward and dabbed at the wound on Jack's head with the saturated cloth. He winced faintly at the initial sting, but then cracked a bright smile. "Guess I get that lollipop, huh?"

Kate giggled and, finished with the disinfectant, picked up the roll of tape and a clean piece of gauze. "Guess so. It's a shame that we're on an island where there aren't any lollipops." She unwound a length of tape from the roll and stretched it taut, holding it up in the air in front of Jack's mouth.

"What kind of a sucky doctor are you? Of course there are lollipops!" Jack gripped a spot on the length of tape between his front teeth and, with a rapid jerk of his head, ripped off the piece that Kate needed.

"Oh yeah? Where?" Kate reached up and placed the gauze over Jack's cut, gently securing it with the tape.

"The third cabinet to the left above the kitchen sink, all the way in the back," he answered, smirk playing across his face.

Kate, surprised at his prompt and specific answer, was just about to retort when Jack's gaze fell over her shoulder. "Hey Sun!" he said with a grin.

Kate turned and Sun was indeed there, smiling at them kindly. For an instant, Kate thought about moving from her place on Jack's lap, but his hand was on her waist firmly and she probably couldn't have moved even if she wanted to. So instead, she echoed Jack's greeting with a smile of her own.

"It's good to see you, Jack. And it's good to see you smiling again, Kate," Sun said, a knowing grin on her face.

Kate blushed faintly and Jack laughed, dropping a kiss to Kate's shoulder. "It's good to see you too, Sun. And please tell me that someone gave you the story so that I don't have to go through it again," said Jack, a hint of desperation in his voice.

Sun laughed. "Yes, Sayid and Shannon told me the whole story; I'm glad that you are alright. They also said you that you need my assistance with an injury."

"Umm, yeah. Do you think you could help me out with this mess?" asked Jack, holding up the disaster that was his wrist for emphasis. "It needs to be set, and I can't do it myself. Please?"

A flicker of uncertainty passed over Sun's face, but it passed quickly. "Of course I will help you, Jack."

Jack smiled his thanks at Sun and Kate reluctantly moved off his lap, knowing that she couldn't stay there while his wrist was being set. She moved the bandages and alcohol off of the bed and onto a side table before sitting herself down next to Jack. She smiled slightly as Jack went into doctor-mode, Sun examining his wrist gently.

"The break looks like it's clean enough. You just have to wrench it back into position. After that, it'll just take time to heal," he said.

Sun nodded. "I should be able to do that. Will you need me to splint it afterwards?"

Jack shook his head no. "There's still too much swelling for that. We'll put ice on it tonight, and hopefully the inflammation will go down. I'll decide what we're going to do with it after that."

"You could put a cast on it," Kate chimed in helpfully.

Jack chuckled. "That would be the ideal thing to do, put we don't exactly have the equipment for that."

Kate looked at him strangely. "Yes we do. Remember, there were a couple kits for making casts in the hatch medical supplies?"

Realization dawned on Jack's face. "Oh yeah. I completely forgot about that! I was hoping we would never have any broken bones here…so much for that plan," he added dryly. "Okay. So when the swelling is down tomorrow, Kate'll help me put a cast on it."

Kate nodded emphatically. "Yeah. Kate'll- wait a second! I'm Kate!" She looked at Jack, who laughed. Kate rolled her eyes and continued. "Seriously, me? Jack, I can't do it!"

"Sure you can. I'll show you how, it'll be fine." He turned to Sun. "Now let's get this over with."

Sun smiled at Jack's brave front. "Okay. I'm ready whenever you are ready."

Jack took a deep breath and clasped Kate's hand in his. "I apologize in advance for any screaming and/or crying that I do."

"Jack! Don't you dare try to act all macho. You have my and Sun's full permission to bawl like a baby." Kate smiled encouragingly at him. "We won't tell anyone. Promise."

Jack nodded resolutely. "Alright. Let's do it."

Kate squeezed Jack's hand tighter and moved her body closer to his as Sun moved forward and took Jack's wrist in her hands. After adjusting her grip, Sun looked up at him. "Ready?" she asked.

Jack nodded again, steely confidence written across his face.

"Alright." said Sun. Jack turned his head away from his wrist, his face pointed towards Kate. "On the count of three, Jack," Sun stated, as calmly as she could. "One…two…three!"

On three, Sun quickly pulled as hard as she could on Jack's wrist, forcing it straight again.

CRACK!

Jack gave an anguished yell and screwed his face up against the intensity of the pain, tears streaming uninhibited from under his tightly closed eyelids, his jaw clenched to keep him from screaming out again. His grip on Kate's hand had reached an almost painful level and Kate moved her hand away, sitting up on the bed on her knees and wrapping Jack in her arms. One arm went around his chest, pulling him nearly into her lap, the other up around his neck, her hand running through the hair on the back of his head soothingly. Jack buried his face at the point where Kate's neck and shoulder met, nestling as close to her as he could, needing to feel something other then the pain. His good arm clung to her, hand fisted in the hem of her shirt; his other arm and newly fixed wrist lay awkwardly in his lap. Kate felt Jack shaking, his whole body trembling from the pain, and she hugged him even tighter to her.

"I know, Jack," she whispered brokenly in his ear, her own tears choking her voice. "I know it hurts, baby. I know." She kissed his temple lovingly and then pressed her face to his soft hair, murmuring to him quietly. "It'll pass though. Sun ran to get some ice, she'll be right back. I promise it'll pass soon. Just hang on…"

Sun had indeed run to get ice, going almost the instant after she was done with Jack's wrist. She had taken all of the ice cubes from a tray and wrapped them in a clean dishtowel, creating a makeshift icepack. Sun walked swiftly back into the bedroom and over to the edge of the bed, smiling slightly at the way that Jack and Kate were clinging to each other. As gently as she could, Sun arranged the ice around Jack's wrist, doing her best not to jostle it too much.

Stepping back a bit, Sun did her best to assess the situation. Jack seemed to be doing alright, considering. He was taking deep shaky breaths of air, waiting for the pain to ease up a bit. The ice should help with that, she thought, hopefully making the wrist cold enough that it would numb slightly. Sun sighed. There wasn't much else that she could do to help. "Kate?" she said quietly. Kate looked up startled, as if she had not yet realized that Sun was back. "I think that is about all I can do for now. The wrist should be fine…it will just take a while to heal."

Kate nodded. "Okay. I'm going to go get those pills that he brought…he said before that they would help with the pain."

"I think that would be a good idea," Sun agreed.

Knowing that Jack was pretty much out of it and currently unaware of what was going on around him, Kate lowered her voice to a whisper and moved her lips back down to his ear. "Jack? I'm going to go get the pain meds for you, okay? It'll help make your arm feel better." Kate grudgingly began pulling her arms away from him, moving to get up, but Jack only held onto her tighter. "Jack? You've gotta let go, baby. I promise I'll be right back." Like a stubborn child, Jack shook his head once against her neck and used his arm to pull her closer to him, a sign that he was under no circumstances going to let her get up. Kate felt her heart melt at Jack's unexpected display of weakness and slid her arms back around him before turning to look at Sun helplessly.

Sun smiled softly. "Don't worry; I'll get them for you. Where are they?"

"In his backpack. I'm pretty sure he dropped it in the doorway of the bathroom."

Sun nodded and walked away, returning a minute later with the bottle of pills, which she handed to Kate. "I'm going to head back to the beach now, unless there is anything else that you need?"

"No, we're okay. Do you want me to walk back with you? It's probably dark by now."

"No thank you. I'm sure I will be fine; it's not a far walk. And I think you are more needed here," she added, smiling and gesturing towards Jack.

Kate grinned. "Yeah, I guess so. Thank you so much for your help, Sun."

"You're welcome. I will see you tomorrow." And with another small smile, Sun had turned and left.

Kate watched Sun leave and then gave her full attention to Jack. He seemed a little better; his body wasn't shaking anymore and his breathing had calmed down noticeably.

"Is it getting any better yet?" Kate asked him moments later. Jack nodded and pulled away from her slightly, allowing Kate to see his face for the first time since Sun had set his wrist. Kate hated seeing the pained expression displayed across his features, forehead scrunched up and his jaw clamped tight.

Kate pressed her lips to the spot right below his ear, leaving a reverent kiss there. She moved her lips lower and kissed him again, and then again, working her way along the stubbled jaw towards his mouth. Jack's body relaxed under her ministrations, clenched muscles loosening as his eyes fluttered shut. Kate kissed him once on the lips firmly, warmly, before leaning back to look at him. She smiled at the peaceful look on his face and ran a finger down his cheek, causing Jack to open his eyes again. "Hey Kate?" he whispered, voice rough.

"Yeah?"

"Can I have some of those pills that you're hoarding?" he asked, corner of his mouth turning up in a weak smirk.

Kate breathed a laugh. "Of course you can. How many should you take? And don't you dare say the whole bottle, because that is not happening."

"Two's fine."

Kate reached behind her and picked up the bottle, opening the lid and shaking two white pills onto Jack's outstretched palm. "I'll go get you some water," she said, putting the medicine bottle on the floor.

"Don't bother. I don't need it." And with that, Jack dry swallowed the two capsules like it was nothing.

Kate stared at him in awe. "How did you do that?"

"Drug addicted spinal surgeon, remember?" Jack was smirking faintly again, obviously feeling better enough to crack jokes.

Kate laughed, relieved that he was feeling better, and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "Don't break anymore bones, okay?" she pleaded, lips skimming his skin with every word. "Because that was awful. And I was only watching."

"I'll do my best."

Giggling, Kate pulled away. "So what now? We've covered two of the four things that were on your list, plus one painful thing that wasn't. That leaves eating or sleeping."

Jack yawned. "Definitely sleeping…I'm exhausted. I'll eat tomorrow. You owe me a cherry lollipop anyway."

"Who said it's gonna be cherry? That was never part of the deal. You just said 'a lollipop'. I can give you whichever flavor my little heart desires." Kate smirked. She loved teasing him.

"We'll see about that."

"Yeah. Tomorrow, since you're gonna sleep now. Should we put ice on your ankle or your ribs?"

Jack shook his head. "Nah. Screw it. Too cold."

"It's ice, Jack. It's supposed to be cold."

"I know. But I've already got some on my wrist, which is bad enough. I hate being cold. Maybe I'll but some on my ankle tomorrow if it's not better…since you're not going to let me get up anyway."

"Damn straight."

Jack laughed at the finality in her voice. "But I'm not putting it on my ribs. Much too cold. It's inhuman"

"You're such a sissy."

"I know. But ice makes me want to cry. And I just did enough of that to last me awhile. Like forever." He sent her a beaming smile and Kate rolled her eyes, trying and failing to bite back a smile.

"Alright," she said after a moment, getting up and heading towards the light switch. "Let me go turn off the lights so you can get some sleep."

"We!" Jack called after her retreating back.

"What?"

"Go turn off the lights so we can get some sleep. You're gonna sleep too." Jack watched as Kate flicked the light switch on the wall. The room went dusky with pale light still coming in from the other room, but Jack didn't care; he was so tired that he would have had no trouble sleeping even if the lights had remained on.

"Oh really?" Kate raised an eyebrow at him as she walked back across the room.

"Yes really. Hurley told me that you haven't been sleeping much recently. But you're going to sleep tonight. Doctor's orders." Jack gave her his glowing smile again, and Kate knew she was helpless to refuse…not that she would have refused him anyway; she was in desperate need of some rest.

"Well, if it's the doctor's orders…guess I don't have much choice, do I?" said Kate, feigning opposition to Jack's proposal.

"Nope. The doctor's a smart guy...you'd best listen to him." Jack's lips turned up in a smirk and he lay back on the bed, his eyes closing in bliss the second his head hit the pillow. "Okay, it's official; I'm never getting up."

Kate smiled at the serene look on Jack's face. "Never ever?" she questioned with a smile, unable to resist teasing him slightly.

"Never ever. Way too comfortable."

Laughing, Kate moved over to the ladder that led to the top bunk and put her foot on the bottom rung. The structure squeaked when she put her weight on it, causing Jack's eyes to shoot open.

"Woah, hey, what are you doing?"

Kate looked at him strangely. "I'm going to sleep, remember?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "I know that. I meant what are you going to the top bunk for?" He pouted and gave her puppy dog eyes. "Aren't you gonna stay with me?"

"Jack, I don't think there's enough room." Kate hated the words coming out of her mouth; of course she wanted to stay with him, but the bed was small and she felt that he should have the extra space due to his injuries. Kate knew she would give in without much persuasion though…the pleading look on his face was nearly too much for her to handle.

"We'll make room." Jack held out his hand to her. "We'll just have to squeeze reeeally close together," he added with a grin.

Kate, to neither of their surprise, relented. Taking Jack's outstretched hand, she allowed him to pull her to the side of the bed.

"Take off your shoes," Jack said, a teasing smile playing on his lips. "Can't have you kicking me and ruining my beauty sleep."

Kate laughed and kicked off her shoes and socks before looking at Jack expectantly.

"What?" he asked.

"You kind of need to scoot over."

"Actually, it'd be better if I stay on this side. So that my bad arm is on the outside instead of in the middle."

Agreeing with this logic, Kate walked to the foot of the bed and, after moving carefully over Jack's legs, crawled up the bed until she was lying next to him, sharing the one pillow with their faces close together. "This good?" Kate whispered, running her fingertips gently down the side of Jack' face.

Jack grinned. "Almost." He slid his arm under Kate's waist and pulled towards him until every inch of her body was touching his. "That's better," he breathed as Kate rested her cheek on his chest, the top of her head tucked comfortably under his chin.

"Goodnight Jack," Kate whispered.

"Mmm…g'night," Jack mumbled, speech punctured by a yawn. "Sleep well, because I'll probably drive you crazy tomorrow. You see, my doctor put me on bed rest and I'm not very good at doing nothing. Oh, and I'll be collecting on the candy that you owe me…" Jack's words trailed off while his eyes closed again, already starting to fall asleep.

Kate giggled as her eyes fluttered shut, her arm slung loosely over Jack's stomach, fingers sliding up just under the hem on his shirt to rest on the warm skin of his hip. She sighed happily as her body drifted into sleep, mind content with tomorrow's promise of the man she loved and cherry lollipops.


You made it through the chapter alive! …provided you weren't suffocated by the fluff… Lol! So. Good? Bad? Let's hear it, people!

Also…this may be the end.

GASP!

I might continue, but I am thinking on new stories and have got a couple good (I hope) ideas in the planning stage. But who knows? I may add another chapter or two onto this before I start something new.

Some reviews should help convince me! ...cough hint!hint! cough…

Thanks for reading!