Never as it seems Chapter 6, a lost fanfic

A/N I'm so sorry for taking so long to post this chapter. I do have my excuses but won't bother you with them. I'll just say that I will try to make shorter breaks between chapters. Pinky promise? :D Again thank you my readers and my reviewers. You make me work worth it. As usual feedback appreciated.

WARNING

This chapter hasn't been beta-read. If you find any glaring mistakes, please let me know =='. I'm not a native speaker, you know :)

CHAPTER 6

The large room illuminated only by a weak light diffused by a lampshade hasn't been used in years but this was a special occasion; a ball, and the dress code was extremely rigid. Samantha sat on a music stool and fumbled with the endless ribbons attached to her dress. Long strands of blond hair had got in her eyes but she didn't move a muscle allowing her mother to meticulously spin hundreds of locks on her head. It's been the fourth hour and the small girl didn't utter a single word of protest. Pretty tall for her age, she was the perfect target of ridicule at school. With years to come most boys would leave the insulting to the girls and focus on courting her, but for the time her height was only a plus when her mum could do her hair without bending down. More precisely that was a good thing only for her mum.

"Mum?"

"Yes, honey?"

"Why are you curling my hair?"

She prayed that this time she'd be granted a truthful answer. She still had homework to do, dishes to wash and a stomach to feed.

The woman's lips curved in a smile. "I told you already, sweetheart. You're going to a ball."

Another perfect golden lock bounced off the curler and landed on the girl's back.

"Mum?" Samantha tried again.

"Yes, pumpkin?"

"It's almost 3 a.m. I think it's too late for a ball."

Samantha's mother gathered another layer of Sam's hair and started to brush it slowly, careful not to cause her daughter any pain. Pain wasn't good. Not the physical one. This kind of pain was bearable. But the void of pain that starts as a dull ache in your heart and than engulfs your whole chest was far from bearable. She promised herself that she would sacrifice anything to spare her little girl this suffering.

"I love you, sweetie."

Samantha bit her lip. "I love you too, mum."

Someone's arms circled her from behind and she stiffened involuntarily. Private space was something Ana-Lucia Cortez could break a couple of jaws for. In fact, she did break a couple of jaws to teach some people the value of private space. Fortunately for the owner of the arms, Ana was in no mood to fight as she crouched next to her make-shift bed thinking about Donald's funeral.

"Don't you have anything to do, Sam?" she felt the girl's smile against her slouched back.

"Other than hugging you? Nope," came a cheery answer.

Ana untangled herself from the embrace smirking under her nose at Samantha's antics.

"You're the most huggable person I ever met. How many have you attacked already?"

Sam frowned deep in thought. "Let me think. I still have a couple of people who escaped my cuddling. Taylor is a bit troublesome"

"A bit? I never thought the guy can ran this fast!"Ana couldn't help the chuckle escape her lips as she remembered the scene.

"Me neither. He's one tough challenge." Sam's voice was serious and Ana eyed her with open amusement.

"Oh, never mind. I'll get him soon enough. Could you go with me to the jungle? I really need to pee," she continued and shuffled her legs meaningly.

"What about Libby? Usually, she's the one to assist you."

"I don't want to bother her right now," Sam explained and Ana had no more strength to argue. After all it was her who invented the never-go-to-the-jungle-alone rule in the first place. They started to stroll leisurely towards the thick trees. On first glance, the weather seemed ideal for a walk. Sun poured down the sky uninterrupted by even the smallest clouds. The humidity, however, especially when combined with a swarm of tropical bugs, turned the place from an ideal tourist resort into a sauna straight from Hell.

"Ana?"

Something in Samantha's voice made the policewoman anxious.

"Yeah?" she said still walking.

The girl bit on her bottom lip nervously and continued in slightly smaller voice than before.

"Do you think that Donald, or Irma, or any of those other people who died from injuries, would have survived if…you know…we weren't on the Island?"

"You mean, if we hadn't crashed?"

"No. I mean, if we somehow had access to better medical supplies or something…" Sam rushed to explain but seemed at a loss of words.

"Well, given that miraculously we found a hospital in the middle of the jungle, then perhaps yes."

The other girl went silent and Ana stopped her by the shoulder looking her in the eyes.

"Hey, there was nothing we could have done. You and Libby did everything and even more to help them. We can only focus on the living right now."

Samantha avoided Ana's eyes and her lips trembled dangerously. Oh, no you won't, thought Ana and spun the girl around making her face the nearby bushes.

"It looks like a nice spot. Don't take too long," she instructed the younger girl and pushed her forwards.

Samantha swallowed the gulp that formed in her throat and headed for the bushes without looking back. When she came back stomping through thick bushes, she looked less agitated and the walk back to the beach was filled with lighter subjects. At least, up to a point. Somewhere halfway to the beach Ana stood dead in her tracks. Samantha stumbled on her a bit but regained her balance. She opened her mouth to ask the obvious question but shut it immediately when she noticed the rigidness of Ana's body. She looked ready to pounce any second. Her body was facing slightly one side and Sam dared a look this way. Just then a rustle of leaves revealed a new presence coming from the direction.

"Nice weather for a walk, isn't it girls?"

Ana recognised Eli's voice as and relaxed her stance. A few more seconds and she would have him tackled to a ground. The boy stepped through the bushes with Goodwin behind him.

"Need some bodyguards to back you up?" joked Goodwin and edged towards Ana who immediately relaxed completely. This Peace Corps guy held the aura of confidence that made him trust worthy.

"We're completely fine. But thanks for the offer" she answered and four of them started heading back to the camp.

"You'll be even better if you know what we heard in the jungle mere minutes ago" Eli said smugly.

Nothing that provided sounds and was from this Goddamn jungle could be good as far as Ana could tell. "What exactly did you hear?"

Eli smiled crookedly. "A chicken." He announced and waited for the applause.

This is something new Ana thought. "Are you sure it wasn't some other gull?"

"I beg your pardon? I can tell a difference between a chicken and a gull. My grandma lives on a farm. I used to visit her when I was a kid," he boasted " I'm the closest to a chicken expert you can get on this Island, m'am"

Gleeful laughter filled the jungle at Eli's comment. The boy feigned offence but soon enough joined the amusement. He stepped a bit back from the group to glance at Sam and was shocked to find that she wasn't even smiling her usual smile. Instead, she was shuffling a bit behind them with her eyes glued firmly to her feet so he couldn't make out her humour. Not being very keen on Sam's mood swings, he shrugged it off and returned to walking by Goodwin's side. They just made it back to the camp and before Eli could do anything Sam was already gone walking the opposite direction.

The following two days he could hardly spot her sitting with Mr Eko, who still didn't utter a single word since the night they were attacked, or vanishing somewhere else. To give himself some credit for not approaching her he was kept busy going to a jungle in search of the chicken. Ana and Taylor were sceptical but he managed to convince Goodwin and a couple of other people to come with him. Nathan never followed them on their errands. Truth be told, that guy never seemed to be around the camp. He even refused to follow Ana's rule about going to a jungle with somebody to assist. He seemed to enjoy playing on her nerves. Not very wise if anybody asked me. I bet that woman knows judo or some other kung-fu tricks thought Eli while leading another Find the Chicken party.

He got distracted for a second and missed the unmistakable cackle of chickens. Luckily enough, Goodwin and the rest ran in the direction of the animal's cries. Eli followed closely behind them happy that they found more than one chicken.

"Go ahead of them! Form a circle!" he shouted instructions. Goodwin was the first to spot the birds and managed to herd them towards a small clearing. When all men reached the same place they started to form a living pen. The chickens moved very fast and two of them managed to get pass the human barrier and back to the jungle. Just one was left and Eli licked his lips in anticipation. Our last hope he thought and lunged forward. He missed the target by inches and found himself face flat on the ground. Bells rung in his ears and he could taste dirt in his mouth. He lifted his head from the ground just in time to see Goodwin twist the chicken's neck with a sick crack. He cringed at the thought of switching places with the bird. Goodwin definitely looked strong enough to snap his neck like a twig.

"You okay, kid?" asked Brandon, the Mike Jordan wannabe, and helped Eli to his feet.

"With the view of a bucket of chicken wings as dinner? Never been better."

Bandon laughed at that and the both went with Goodwin back to the camp. Although, Eli wasn't the one catching the bird, his strut implied otherwise. Goodwin moved to gutter the animal while Eli caught up with Libby who was observing their comeback from the hunt.

"Isn't it the most beautiful chicken in the world?" he grinned.

"And a feisty one" Libby retorted and lightly touched Eli's forehead making him hiss in sudden pain. There was no blood, just redness mixed with dirt. Some skin had been scratched off but overall it didn't look life threatening in the least.

"It's just a bump" she continued with her doctor voice "Clean it with water and you should be fine. But if you feel dizzy, nauseous or experience vision problems, immediately come to me."

"Sir, yes sir" he answered bitterly and while still massaging the sore place he left.

He regained good humour when later that evening he inhaled the mouth watering smell of a roasted chicken. Every taste bud in his tongue stood on tiptoes in anticipation of the feast to come. This could have been the most sinewy, stinky, old piece of meat in the world, but still it would have tasted like heaven compared to a forced diet of bananas and mangoes. He planned to cherish every second of devouring his piece of chicken but after almost drooling over the first bite he gnawed at the rest at the speed of light. He even sucked on the bone marrow and licked the little bones shiny clean. It only whetted his appetite but for the time being it would have to work. He looked around and noted that he seemed to be the only one who finished eating so quickly. Samantha hadn't even started eating her share of the meat.

Eli settled next to her. "You better go get the meat before they'll eat your share. I almost suffered a heavy brain trauma hunting this little bastard. It's a precious bird, you know"

The small smile on her face lifted his spirits. "Goodwin got me a plate, see?" she said presenting him with the plate that had been lying next to her bag.

"So why aren't you eating it? You're not a vegan, aren't you?" he asked suspiciously. Vegetarianism was one of those things he just couldn't quite understand.

"No. Well…"she sighed"I guess I need some proteins after all"

Eli watched her eat the chicken and it felt strangely intimate. It felt as if he was nourishing her, taking care of her health. With any other girl, he would know what to do, what to say to keep the things on the right track. "Samantha" and "any other girl" just didn't sit right. She was infuriatingly weird but at the same time natural. It felt nice just sitting next to her. He risked a glance at her but long strands of blond covered her face as she was slightly bent over her plate. Silence seemed the most appropriate option for the time. But it was the comfortable type.

~oo0oo~

"Ana! Wait!" At the sound of urgency in Libby's voice, Ana stopped and looked back.

"Something's wrong?" she asked. Libby caught up with her trying to catch her breath from the run.

"Have you seen Sam?" she finally managed to ask. Ana searched her mind for the last time she saw Samantha. Apart from the trip to the bathroom, she didn't pay too much attention to the girl's whereabouts. She had the nasty habit of popping out of nowhere.

"Not really. Isn't she with Mr. Eko?" Ana took a guess.

"That's what got me alarmed. When I asked him about her, he immediately darted for the jungle. He's worried and to be honest so am I. It's not a safe place. I asked in the camp and nobody saw her since yesterday. What if she was kidnapped?"

Ana jumped into more calculated tone sensing the panic in the other woman. "Calm down, Libby. You know how she can be so clueless. Remember the time she went playing with the kids just out of the blue?"

"But we all saw them going. It's not like she sneaked out. Our camp isn't big so how it was possible for her to just vanish into thin air?" Libby reasoned.

She got a point and Ana knew it. The sun was almost setting and darkness wasn't the best company for a search party. Especially on a mysterious land full of hostile inhabitants. She still hoped that Sam was just irresponsible enough to wander alone further down the beach rather than into the jungle. She's gonna be in a whole new world of trouble if that's the case Ana thought angrily. She dropped the wood she was carrying and started walking towards Goodwin who cared for the fire.

"Are everybody else in the camp?" she directed the question at Libby, who paced beside her. Both women knew that Ana meant Nathan.

"Beside Mr. Eko who went on his own to look for Sam. But I wouldn't worry for him."

When they reached Goodwin, he looked up at them sensing that something bad must have happened. He forced his face into neutral expression although inside he was scared that his cover had been blown. Immediately, he calculated the route of escape. First a blow to Ana's stomach with a shove of a shoulder that would make her double over and bump into Libby. Just enough time to reach the trees and his hiding place for the gun.

"What's up?" he asked casually keeping panic from his voice.

"Samantha seems to be missing. I'll take Taylor and Brandon to look for her. I want you to stay here with Libby and watch out for anything suspicious. We'll come back before nightfall."

Goodwin nodded and had no chance to say anything more as Ana grabbed Taylor and Brandon and explained to them the plan. Taylor wasn't too sharp but he obeyed her without questions and Brandon was the obvious physical asset she needed. They took make-shift tools for boar hunting she planned for the next day and took off. Ana replayed the plan in her mind again and finally decided that she preferred to have Nathan by her side just in case. He was standing by the trees so she changed the original route to pass him by. Before she reached him a cry from the camp stopped her in her tracks.

"Ana!" someone screamed and she quickly spun around expecting the worst case scenario. She saw Libby running for her dear life in the direction of the jungle. Ana looked there and saw Mr. Eko carrying in his arms something covered in a blanket.

"God, don't do this to me" she whispered to no one in particular and sprinted back to the camp. Mr Eko laid the bundle near the fire. Libby was already uncovering the blanket when Ana reached her. From over the doctor's shoulder she saw Samantha's unnaturally pale face. She looked even skinnier than usual and seemed to have a fever. At least she was alive.

"What happened? What's wrong with her?" she snapped at Mr. Eko. The man lifted his gaze from to girl to Ana and the policewoman shut up at the hard look in his eyes.

"Move away people! She needs space to breathe!" Libby screamed at the small crowd that circled around the fire.

"You heard the doctor!" Ana barked and finally the crowd moved away still glancing back and whispering. Goodwin held Eli's wrist because the boy tried to sit next to Sam.

"She's in good hands. Let her rest." he urged the younger boy and they both went for more wood.

Meanwhile, Libby checked Sam's vitals.

"I need a clean piece of cloth, a bowl of water and my medical kit" she instructed in rushed voice.

"I'm on it" said Ana and set off to bring the supplies.

"Stay with me, Samantha. It's gonna be fine" Libby whispered to the feverish girl. At this moment the girl started to wriggle. The sudden pain convulsed her face and Libby heard her moan. She was clutching her stomach and mumbling incomprehensibly. Food poisoning? We had the chicken for yesterday's dinner but.. Libby thought and looked at Mr. Eko. Their eyes met and wordlessly they got to the same conclusion. At this time Ana returned and Libby got herself busy caring for the girl. At the back of her head a nagging thought stayed : Why she's the only one sick if we all ate the same thing?

~~~~~~~~~~BONUS SCENE~~~~~~~~~~

Libby gets scared

Meanwhile, Libby checked Sam's vitals.

"I need a clean piece of cloth, a bowl of water and my medical kit" she instructed in rushed voice.

"I'm on it" said Ana and set off to bring the supplies.

"It.. it hurts..."she managed to sputter.

"I know, hun. Hold on."

"I...I.." Sam stuttered.

"What is it? What you want to say?"

The girl coughed hard until she was red on her face but eventually managed to whisper with difficulty. "I see dead people"

Libby felt the chills on her arms. She was not a person to believe in supernatural but Samantha's voice was serious.

"I...I..." Sam stuttered again, straining to say something more. Libby wasn't sure she wanted to hear it.

"I...I.."continued the girl."I...I think I need to lay off the booze," she said and burped loudly.