Chapter 9

Author's note: This was supposed to be up on Monday, but it took longer than I thought. Sorry guys. I know that it has been awhile, but I am finally back! I am still getting settled from moving, but I have a lot more time to update now. : ) Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, you guys make writing so much fun! Anyways, here is a new chapter for you!

"What do you remember, Jack?" Kate asked as she looked into his eyes searching for answers. She wandered if he remembered everything or just a piece of the last three years. Was it something good or bad? Was it even about them at all or was it something work related? So many questions raced through her head as she waited for Jack to answer.

"I remember the night on the boat…the night we were rescued," he answered, rubbing his head, trying to recall the flashback he had had. "We were talking about you, about how you were going to prison. I remember promising you that I wouldn't let them take you."

"Oh, Jack, I am so happy that you are back!" Kate exclaimed as she leaned in to kiss him. However, she was taken back when he moved away from her.

"I don't remember anything else, Kate," he told her, his voice full of sorrow and regret. "I can't remember anything else."

"It will come to you, we just have to be patient," Kate told him trying her best to reassure both of them. "At least you remember more than you did this morning that has to count for something."

"I guess you're right," Jack said as a small smile appeared on his face. "I promise that I will find a way back to you, Kate. I will do whatever it takes."

"I have missed you so much, Jack," Kate told him, as she hugged his waist. She had missed her Jack, the Jack who made her feel safe, the Jack who could make her go weak in the knees, and the Jack who had it all together.

They continued to walk along the beach listening to the peaceful sounds of the waves. The silence between them was no longer uncomfortable, instead it was comforting. It had been a rough couple of week for the Shephard family and now it finally seemed like they had some hope in this crazy situation.

"So what do you girls want to do first?" Kate asked cheerfully. She had been in the best mood since her walk on the beach with Jack. She felt like she had a completely different outlook on life. Jack finally remembering something, even if it was a small something, had given her hope that everything was going to be okay.

"You seem like you are in a good mood today. What is going on, Kate?" Juliet asked, taking note of Kate's new attitude. It had been a long time since she had seen her best friend so happy.

"Jack finally remembered something!" Kate told her friends. "It wasn't much, but at least it was something."

"That is great!" Sun, Claire, and Juliet all said at the same time. The girls were so happy for their friend. It had been a hard couple of years and things were finally starting to look up for the Shephard family.

"What does he remember?" Claire asked.

"The only thing he remembered was being on the rescue boat and promising to take care of me." Kate told her friends, smiling more than she had in a long time.

"That is great!" Juliet exclaimed. "It is definitely a start in the right direction."

"I know. I am so happy that he at least remembers something because he was really starting to scare me," Kate said, breathing a breath of relief.

"You and everyone else," Sun commented. "I'm sure that he will start remembering a lot more real soon, especially hanging with the boys."

"That is probably true. I just hope that they are remembering to watch the kids," Claire laughed. "You do remember last time, don't you?"

"How can anyone forget last time?" Jun said trying hard not to burst into laughter.

"Has anyone seen Aaron?" Charlie asked as he made his way into the living room. The gang was sitting in Jack and Kate's living room watching the football game and pigging out on junk food.

"Who?" Sawyer asked, not looking away from the television screen. "Touchdown!" He screamed jumping from his spot on the couch.

"Aaron. You know, Claire's baby. My soon to be son." Charlie reminded him. "Have you seen him anywhere?"

"Oh, the kid, right," Sawyer finally answered. "Nope, haven't seen him. Isn't he with the girls?"

"No, we are supposed to be babysitting him!" Charlie practically screamed causing the guys to jump a little. "We have to find him, the girls will be back any minute."

"Okay, don't panic," Jack said trying his best to stay calm. "Sawyer and Hurley, you guys look upstairs. Charlie and I will look down here and Jin, Ben, and Locke will look outside."

The guys ran around searching every inch of the house looking for the one year old, but could not seem to find him anywhere. They knew that they were in trouble when they heard the car door shut and the front door open.

"Hey guys, how did it go tonight?" Kate asked the guys as they all stood there with the 'deer caught in the headlight look'.

"Umm, fine, just fine," Jack said trying not to sound too panicked. "We had lots of fun, didn't we guys?" He asked his friends, trying to get them to talk.

"Great, everything was great!" Charlie exclaimed, his voice in a high-pitched, panicky tone. "Our team won! Go Red Sox!"

"I thought you guys were watching football," Juliet said wondering what exactly was going on with them. They didn't seem drunk, but they didn't seem right either.

"Okay, here is the truth," Jack started to say, but he was cut off by Claire's voice.

"Aww, look at how cute Aaron is," Claire said pointing to the little boy asleep in front of the television.

"Oh, thank goodness," All the guys said sighing with relief. "We thought we'd lost him."

"What?" Claire shouted as she glared at Charlie waiting for an explanation

"I mean….uh…I thought we lost the game of hide and seek," Charlie stuttered, looking at his friends for some back up. "He is so good at this game; he really knows how to hide."

"Claire will never let Charlie live that down," Kate said still laughing at the memory.

"I still don't know if I should trust him with Aaron, but I guess Aaron is the one babysitting now," Claire giggled. "Maybe I should call Aaron and see how it is going."

"Daddy, can I have more juice?" Aaron asked Charlie as he handed him his cup. Just as Charlie took the young boy's cup he heard the phone ring. "I'll get it!" He shouted as he entered the kitchen.

"Hello," he answered, not even bothering to look at the caller I.D.

"Hey, how are you guys doing?" Claire asked him. She knew that he had everything under control, but she wanted to make sure that they didn't decide to play hide and seek again.

"The kids are good, they have been in the play room watching movies," Charlie told her as he handed Aaron his cup of apple juice. "And yes, we have been checking on them."

"No hide and seek tonight?" She asked trying not to laugh.

"Ha ha, you are so funny, Claire," he replied faking a laugh.

"I know," she said. "We will be home soon. It will be about an hour or so because we decided to go shopping for baby stuff, but we shouldn't be more than an hour."

"Okay, I love you," Charlie told her, walking back into the living room to join his friends.

"I love you, too," Claire said, hanging up the phone as soon as she heard the other end click.

"Who was on the phone?" Sawyer asked, his eyes still glued to the television screen.

"That was Claire, she said that they were going to do some shopping for baby stuff and that they would be home in about an hour."

"Don't lose the kids this time, Charlie," Hurley laughed as he reminded his friend of the last time they were left to babysit.

"Hey, you were all supposed to be watching too," Charlie shot back, watching his friends try hard not to burst into fits of laughter.

The friends continued to reminisce of their last babysitting adventure as they watched the Oakland Raiders take on the Miami Dolphins. It had been a long time since they had really bonded like this. The last time they had done this was before Jack's breakdown. They had been afraid to do anything with him because he was still trying to recover and they didn't want to drink in front of him. He seemed to be doing well tonight, though. He didn't even seem bothered by the fact that all of his friends had had a beer or two. Instead, he was drinking his water and laughing it up with the guys.

"Did you have a good time with the guys tonight?" Kate asked as she crawled into bed next to Jack.

"Yeah, it was a lot of fun and it really helped me get my mind off of things," Jack answered, pulling her closer to him. "How about you?"

"I had a very relaxing time tonight," She said giving him a small peck on the lips. "I got a few things for the baby. I wasn't able to get a lot since we still don't know for sure what we are having. I also got a few clothes for myself, since I am starting to look like a whale."

"You do not look like a whale, Kate," he told her, "you look like my beautiful wife."

"Jack, I love you so much," Kate said, snuggling into his chest. "I have really missed being close to you."

"Me too, Kate, me too," Jack said kissing her forehead. "I guess we better get some sleep because we have to get up early for your doctor's appointment." He told her, shutting off the lamp next to him.

"Good night," Kate said, kissing his cheek.

"Good night," he said, hold her as close as he could.

Author's note: This is not my best chapter, but hopefully you guys thought it was okay. I know where I want to take this story, but I am having a hard time putting my thoughts on paper. Hopefully, I will be able to get it out soon. Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think and if you have any ideas.

Next Chapter: Dr. Appoinment, some memories, and some more angst.