"Your sister? This Serena is your sister?" Claire repeated. "And how do you know she's dying?"

"I have a feeling by these dreams I've been having. At first, an injury appears on her without her knowing it's there and they've ended with her lying in the hospital bed and those injuries are on her body and so much more than that," explained Charlie.

Claire looked over him with a sad look on her face.

"Charlie, we didn't know," she told him in a quiet voice.

"No one knew Claire. No one on the island besides the two of you know that I have a sister. She lives in LA and we were going to meet up with each other once the plane landed. I've always wondered what would be going through her mind since we didn't show up at the airport. She's always been the one who looked out for me," Charlie explained. "I was going to stay with her at her place. Our brother didn't really approve of this at all. He thought I'd be too much of a burden on her."

"Charlie, I don't see how you could be a burden on anyone," Claire told him with a smile.

Charlie managed to smile back before Jack gently placed a hand on the man's shoulder, catching his attention.

"You can't be certain that she is dying Charlie. These dreams of her severely injured might be an unconscious fear for her safety," Jack told him.

Charlie slightly shook his head before turning to face the doctor.

"Jack, there probably have been instances where someone has a dream, then in some form has come true. It might have been avoided," Charlie protested. "She's trying to tell me something. Something more than the fact she is in the hospital."

"Like some sort of premonition? What do you think it is?" wondered Jack, still not quite believing what he was hearing.

Charlie glanced up at him before shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders.

"I don't know Jack. These dreams haven't really told me anything else. They've shown me my sister and me but nothing else," Charlie quietly said.

Charlie tried to stifle a yawn and he winced slightly. Claire noticed the bruise that was now sporting the one side of his face.

"How'd you get that Charlie?" she asked, sounding a bit surprised and worried.

Charlie placed his good hand on the side of his face and sighed.

"I don't really remember anymore. I remember falling twice and hitting something both times. That must have been the result," Charlie mused

He moved himself back enough so that he could lean against the tree, allowing Jack to examine him and both he and Claire saw how tired he was. He almost appeared exhausted and they could hardly imagine how much pain he was in from his recently broken arm.

"Charlie, go to sleep. You haven't gotten much sleep in the past two to three days. Why don't you now," Jack told him.

"No, I can't," Charlie replied.

He began to continue, knowing what they would say next as he began to cradle his injured arm again. A grimace crossed his face and a groan escaped his lips from a sudden jolt of pain.

"I can't sleep now. I'm almost afraid to go back to sleep. I almost don't want to know what's going to happen next," Charlie explained to them .

"You won't be able to function well without sleep and the fact that you will have to eventually Charlie. No one can stay awake forever," Jack told him. "And that arm of yours will have to heal as well. No sense getting sick on top of that."

"I know but I can try," Charlie said, his head drooping a bit.

Charlie tried to keep himself awake but he soon was fast asleep, unable to keep his eyes open anymore. Claire moved closer to him as Jack looked over them.

"I'll go get him a blanket. Could you stay with him until I get back?" Jack told her.

"I wasn't planning to leave even if you requested it," Claire replied.

She watched the doctor leave the clearing and stayed close to Charlie, hoping to keep him warm.

"I have to wonder what's going through your mind now Charlie. I hope you will tell me so I can help you through this," Claire quietly whispered in his ear.

She could see small beads of sweat falling down his face. She soon took notice of the slight movement of his eyelids and wondering what exactly he was dreaming about now and couldn't help but give a small smile.

00000

Charlie thought he heard a familiar voice talking to him. He recognized the voice as Claire as he looked around the area. He found himself in the clearing where Claire and Jack found him. He looked over at the tree to see himself lying next to it, Claire sitting next to him, watching over him. Jack was nowhere to be seen and he wondered where the doctor had gone.

"Claire," Charlie said, the word barely making it past his lips. "What is happening now? Am I dead?"

"No, you're not dead Charlie. But I soon am," came yet another familiar voice.

Charlie looked around to find Serena walking through the woods, towards him, injuries and all.

"Serena, what happened to you?" Charlie asked her as he hurried up to her. "How did this happen?"

"What you saw in your dreams is what happened to me, just not exactly as how you saw them. The events leading up to it were slightly different," Serena explained to him.

"You were in a car accident, weren't you? Was it on your way to the airport or from?" he managed to get out.

"On the way to the airport. I had gotten a call from the officials there about an hour before I was going to head to the airport, saying your flight had gone down and that they didn't know where. They told me they would tell me more once I got there. I never did. The accident played out exactly as you dreamt, just not with you in the car or hospital," Serena told him as she glanced away from him. "Now I lay dying in an LA hospital and I don't know what will bring me back. I feel myself ever slowly leaving my body."

"You can't die Serena! Hang in there! You and I will meet again. I promise you that," Charlie told as he reached out for her.

But she moved away from him, making him slightly confused. She seemed almost reluctant to be touched, even by him.

"Charlie, I just need to know one thing," Serena told him.

"Sure, what is it? Anything at all," Charlie replied.

Serena looked at him with a sad look on her face. Charlie could see that she was almost to tears.

"Charlie, I just need to know that you're alright. That you're safe and alive. That you are going to come home," Serena finally told him.

Charlie looked towards the ground, before turning away from her.

"Charlie?" she questioned.

"Serena, I am alright. I'm alive. Whether or not I'm safe is another story. I will come home but I have no idea when. Our flight was off course. Someday, hopefully soon, I will be in LA. I will tell you the entire story when I do reach the States and you've awoken from your coma," Charlie told her.

Serena moved closer to him and placed her arms around him in a hug. He returned it as tears began to form in his eyes.

"Charlie, I never thought something like this would happen. I wanted to try and talk to you somehow but I knew I couldn't. You're only God knows where and I'm lying unconscious in a hospital. Wherever you are Charlie, it has helped me speak to you like this... and through the dreams. You will have to tell me all about your experiences when you do get to LA because it sounds like you're in a dangerous place," Serena told him.

"I will if I make it in time," Charlie replied with a smile. "I miss you so much Serena."

"I miss you too Charlie and I think you'll make it in time. I have a strong feeling you will," Serena told him as her voice began to disappear.

Charlie noticed that the form of Serena was also disappearing. He backed away just enough to see that his surroundings were disappearing as well.

"Serena! Don't leave me!" Charlie managed to cry out.

The tears continued to stream down his face as he fell to his knees and buried his face in his hands.

TBC...