Thanks for the reviews. I'm glad that you can all see what I've been building to! You'll be pleased to know that Kate is going to spend quite a few chapters in this timeline, but I won't tell you what the outcome of that is. I'm a little worried, though -- is anyone else a little confused and weirded out by the idea of Kate dating AU Jack? Is he even the same guy if he hasn't married Sarah, or gotten the tattoos, or become the leader of the survivors? It makes it hard to decide how far things should go... ;)

Chapter 10. Soul Mates

While in hindsight, she realised that it was naive, considering the size of its population, Kate hadn't expected there to be so many hospitals in L.A. Driving around the following morning with a map spread out across the passenger seat beside her, she wished she'd thought to ask Jack the name of the one that he worked at, but it had never seemed important before. She'd never expected to go there; life had been so much easier when she could just walk to the caves, or the Hatch, to see him.

It was almost midday by the time she reached St. Sebastian's, one of the final stops on her list, parking the car, and going inside to make yet another enquiry.

"Excuse me? Can you tell me if there's a Jack Shephard working here, please?" she asked the woman parked behind a computer at the nurses' station, for what felt like the hundredth time that day, praying that she would be rewarded with a more encouraging answer than she had at the last ten hospitals she'd tried. She was almost ready to give up and start searching the phone book.

The woman didn't look up, shifting her gaze from the screen to a directory to the phone beside her as she said, in a professional monotone, "Just a moment, and I'll page him for you."

Still unsure of how to introduce herself, Kate tried to explain that all she wanted was confirmation that she was in the right place, but Jack must have been somewhere nearby, because no sooner had she finished making the call, than Kate found herself face to face with him, staring into his soulful dark eyes.

"Hi," was all she could manage, shocked as she was to see him standing in front of her in a dress shirt and lab coat, his hair long and boyish, so familiar, and yet so foreign to her at the same time.

"Dr. Shephard, this young lady was asking to see you," the woman at the desk informed him with a fleeting glance in their direction, before returning her attention to her work.

After thanking her, Jack acknowledged Kate with a friendly, albeit professional smile. "You must be Mr. Collins's daughter – Jessica, right?" he said, filling in the gaps when she stumbled over her words, trying to figure out how to strike up a conversation with him without freaking him out.

When she didn't answer right away, not wanting to lie, and start their relationship off on the wrong foot this time, he set off down the hall at a brisk pace, stopping while he waited for her to follow.

"Let me get his chart and I'll fill you in on his condition."

He led her to a room a few doors down from the nurses' station, where an old man lay asleep, hooked up to an IV and several monitors.

Feeling uncomfortable at intruding on his rest, she was relieved when Jack glanced up from making notations on his chart, understanding dawning across his features when he registered her expression.

"You have no idea who he is, do you?" he said, cocking an eyebrow at her, managing to look both confused and entertained at the same time.

"No," she confessed, letting out the breath she was holding, and they both laughed to break the tension, before he frowned at her, concentrating on her face, as if he were trying remember where he knew her from, or if he should.

"Do you mind if I ask who you are?" he said as they stepped back out into the hall, closing the door behind her. "I feel like we've met somewhere before."

She felt a little jolt of excitement at the idea that the connection they'd shared on the island might even transcend it. None of that had happened to him yet, so there was no way for him to remember who she was, or how he felt about her, but he seemed to know that she was someone worth talking to. It was almost enough to make her believe in soul mates.

"What if I told you we have – or we will – three years from now, when our plane crashes on an island?" she told him, and just like she knew he would, he laughed.

"I'd say you have one hell of an imagination there," he assured her with a grin, shaking his head. "A plane crash – that's a good one."

None of that mattered now, not until the time came to prevent it, so she held out her hand, finding it strange to be telling him her name after she'd heard it come out of his mouth a thousand times, in fear, anger, comfort, teasing… "In that case, I'm Kate. I guess you could say I'm a fan."

"Nice to meet you, Kate," he said, shaking her hand, drawing out the contact for a few seconds longer than was necessary before letting it go. "I'm Jack – but I guess you already knew that."

He smiled at her, holding her gaze, looking slightly dazed by their encounter before adding, "Are you a doctor?"

"Not really," she admitted, feeling her face grow hot, hoping that he wouldn't ask her what she was doing there, or how she'd found out about his work if she wasn't. "Not even close. In fact, I didn't even go to college," she finished nervously.

"A patient?" he tried again.

She shook her head, raising an eyebrow at him. "Do I look like I need surgery to you?"

He chuckled as he added, "And you're not a relative…

"So you just like hospitals?" he suggested, looking dubious, but not concerned that she was someone he should alert security to. In fact, if she had to hazard a guess, by the twinkle in his eyes, and the way his mouth turned up at the corners, she'd say that she had him intrigued. He was definitely flirting with her.

"What can I say?" she joked. "The smell of disinfectant just does it for me, I guess."

He laughed again, a real, infectious laugh, running his fingers through his bangs, looking ten years younger than the man she'd known on the island, and she decided that he didn't do it nearly enough. That was one thing she wouldn't mind changing. "You know, you really should get a new hobby. Hanging out in hospitals isn't exactly my idea of a good time."

"Oh really? And what is your idea of a good time, Dr. Shephard?" she countered, amazed by how familiar it all was, the two of them teasing each other, just like old times.

"Lately? Getting home early enough for a night in front of the TV." Sobering as she seemed to strike a nerve, he looked so sad and lonely all of a sudden that it made her heart break for him; remembering what Juliet told her about him being married, she snuck a peak at his left hand, but if he had been by that point, he wasn't anymore.

"I bet your girlfriend appreciates that," she said, testing him, just in case, grinning in spite of the sympathy she felt for him when he let out a self-deprecating laugh.

"I'm sure she would if I had one."

So he was single.

She could definitely work with that.

An awkward silence fell over them as the mood changed, and clearing his throat, he scratched his head, shifting his weight. "Listen, I haven't done this in a while," he confessed, and she could tell that he was nervous, "but would you like to get coffee some time? Or a drink? I have to get back to work, but I'd really like to continue this."

Even a casual date was better than anything she could have hoped for from their first meeting; she was sure he'd be a tougher nut to crack. It was strange what a difference not being a fugitive on an island made. "How about lunch?" she suggested, determined not to let him go until she was sure that she'd made a lasting impression. "Even spinal surgeons have to eat, right?"

"Right," he agreed, looking pleasantly surprised at how eager she was. He almost seemed to have been expecting her to reject him. She wondered why that was. "It'll have to be at the cafeteria, though," he added with a sheepish smile, and she thought she understood. He didn't have a lot of time for relationships. Most women probably got tired of waiting for him and moved on. "I've got a patient in the ICU, so I can't go too far."

"That's okay," she told him with a grin, too excited by the prospect of a real date with him to care that it wasn't somewhere more romantic. "I've eaten in worse places."

Poor (AU) Jack is confused, but he probably thinks it's his lucky day!

Next chapter: Kate has lunch with AU Jack... and maybe even dinner as well... ;)