Sorry, no Juliet. Marc is going to be a little annoying on Jack's DC trip, but don't worry, he will come in handy in chapter 10...
Chapter 8. D.C.
Jack spent the next two days coming up with subtle ways to talk Marc out of it, but, to his dismay, when the 8th of December rolled around, he found himself boarding a plane to DC with his friend. To make matters worse, even though he wasn't part of the conference, Marc had charmed the receptionist into letting him book the room adjoining Jack's, so he would be there, in the hotel, to walk him to the door of the conference room each morning, and more than likely, meet him in the afternoon.
It was like being in elementary school again; Jack was pretty sure that aside from his brief sojourn with the Others, that was the last time he'd had this much supervision. Getting away, even for an hour or two, was going to be a nightmare; he was beginning to think that if he killed Marc, that would at least give him a reason to go back on the run with Kate. Not that he needed a reason these days; he would have done it just to see her again.
With no escape, Jack spent the first day of his trip trapped in the hotel's conference room, checking his watch at regular intervals, as he waited for an opportunity to slip off unnoticed. It didn't come before Marc arrived; in fact, a doctor from one of the local hospitals recognised him, cornering him during the interval, and lecturing him about the now famous surgery he'd performed on Sarah, despite the fact that he was there.
Afterwards, he told him what an honour it would be for Jack to come in and speak to his interns; thinking that it might buy him enough time away from Marc, and the hotel, to sneak in a visit to Sam, Jack agreed, though he had no idea what he would say. His days of impromptu speeches were over; he no longer had any interest in having his words thrown back at him, like he had countless times on the island. If he heard the words "live together, die alone," one more time, he was pretty sure he would have no choice but to go on the run with Kate, because he would probably throttle the person who uttered them…
When Marc met him at the door at five, Jack only had enough time alone to shower and change into more casual clothes before he was dragged out into the city. Since Jack was adamant in his refusal to encourage Marc's plan to get him drunk, and he was pretty sure, laid, Marc chose a bar he liked, and, inside, Jack spent the next few hours fidgeting in his seat, as he had at the conference, only with a beer in front of him instead of coffee. He couldn't have been very good company, because by ten o'clock, Marc had ditched him for a blonde he met at the bar, leaving Jack to walk back to the hotel alone.
It was too late to call in on Sam at work by then; his office would have closed hours ago. Hoping for a miracle he was pretty sure wouldn't come, he stopped at the front desk, borrowing their phone book, but finding nothing listed under "S. Austen", he took the lift up to his room, and went to bed, disappointed.
Jack's next two days in D.C. weren't much better. He got up, had breakfast with Marc, went to the conference while Marc visited his new "friend", Amy, tagged along with them in the evening when they went out, going to bed early, frustrated and angry with the situation.
On the third night, he refused to drink, resolving to rent a car, and drive around the city, later, after Marc had inevitably gone home with the blonde. He didn't expect to find Kate that way, or even Sam, but it helped to do something, anything, in his current condition. He was out all night, creeping along the residential streets, looking for some sign of either of them, but it was a big city, and by seven o'clock, he was forced to go back to the hotel, no closer to learning anything new.
His cell rang once; he thought it might be Sawyer, but it was only Marc, calling to let him know that he wouldn't be coming back to the hotel that night. As if that was news.
His one consolation was that being invited to speak at the hospital meant another day in D.C., and another chance to talk to Sam. If he could get rid of Marc, he would have the morning to himself, to do whatever he wanted. He hadn't had time do any laundry, so he still needed to buy a new shirt, but that would still leave him plenty of time to visit the military base, and Kate's father.
Marc hated shopping, so it seemed like the perfect cover story; that was why Jack was surprised that, when he told him he was going to the mall at breakfast, his friend offered to come with him.
"I thought you'd have plans," Jack said meaningfully, but fate didn't seem to be smiling on him any more this morning than it had last night.
Marc shrugged. "Amy has to work today, so we said our goodbyes last night." He grinned as he stood to refill his plate. "Guess that means you've got me all to yourself today, buddy." He left the table, then turned back, adding, "Besides, I came here to hang out – it seems a little wrong to keep ditching you for some chick I'm probably never going to see again."
Jack was glad his friend wasn't there to see his look of irritation; he knew he meant well, by coming on this trip, and keeping an eye on him, but his constant presence was becoming intolerable. He only had one day left in D.C.; he didn't want to waste it making small talk with Marc, not when he didn't know how long it would be before he could get back here.
He couldn't think of a way to get rid of him without offending him, though, so after breakfast, they took Jack's rental car, and drove to the mall. Jack wasn't in the mood for shopping, but he had nothing clean, or ironed, to wear to the hospital this afternoon, so his plan was to grab the first decent shirt he could find and get out of there, before it turned into an ordeal.
Of course his friend didn't understand his impatience; thinking that it was just a way to kill time, he kept forcing Jack to stop every few minutes while he carried out some errand he never seemed to get around to at home. These ranged from the trifling, like buying new shoes for work, to the irritatingly time-consuming, like choosing a birthday his mother, which took them almost two hours, longer than Jack had wanted to spend there.
Three hours after they'd set out, at almost twelve o'clock, Jack had finally managed to get a shirt, and was about to suggest that they meet back at the hotel, when he saw something that stopped him in his tracks, shoving all thoughts of Marc and Sam out of his head.
There, maybe ten yards ahead of him, on the other side of the walkway, was Kate, standing still, like an apparition, as if she were waiting for something. Her hair was longer, and straighter, than it had been the last time he'd seen her, falling almost to her waist, and she looked like she'd put on weight, but still, he would have known her anywhere. She was still beautiful, still Kate.
But the change in her appearance wasn't the biggest surprise. For eleven long months, Jack had dreamt of this moment, of looking up to see her standing in front of him, but nothing could prepare him for what he saw when he tore his gaze away from her face, letting his eyes fall on the object in front of her.
It was a pram, her right hand resting comfortably on the handle, rocking it back and forth while she waited, her own eyes fixed on whatever was inside.
So Kate has a baby, but how? The test was negative...
