A few days had passed since Sayid had left. I didn't know that many people on the beaches anymore. Charlie had convinced Claire to go to the caves, and Sayid was gone. The only person left was… Sawyer.

I made a gagging noise, and went to sleep.

I woke up to someone shaking me. I jolted backwards when I saw Sawyer's face.

"What the hell?" I asked, tensing up.

"Now don't be so happy to see me," Sawyer quipped. I made a face at him. "C'mon. Staypuft and Driveshaft have opened up a golf course." I nodded and yawned.

Sawyer had to steady me more than once on our way there. I don't do well after I wake up. Finally, Sawyer just kept a hand on my forearm until we arrived.

I watched Charlie steady himself, watching the ball intently. It had gone quiet. Charlie pulled back, and just before the club hit the ball…

"Yellow!" I screamed, then ducked behind Sawyer when Charlie looked my way. I giggled.

For the first time since the crash, I really laughed. I laughed until my stomach hurt, especially when Charlie and another guy named Hurley started dancing. Even Sawyer seemed to be having a good time.

We walked back together. I didn't want to walk through the jungle alone, not at night.

"Good night, Sawyer," I said, walking back to my tent.

"Yeah, yeah," Sawyer replied. I looked up, grinning, and was surprised to see someone sitting in Sayid's tent.

"Sayid?" I shouted, moving forwards. The person in the tent turned around, and sure enough, there he was. I laughed, rushing towards him. He was smiling too, and caught me up into a hug. "I was so worried about you! I'm glad you're back!"

Sayid nodded. "I'm glad to be back," he replied.

I stayed with him until I could barely keep my eyes open. Finally, I walked back to my tent, and fell asleep.

I woke up in a cold sweat. "What a weird dream," I said to myself. Why was Claire crying? She looked so upset, I thought, remembering my dream.

I heard footfalls in the sand, and looked up to see Michael's son standing in front of me. "Walt, right?" I asked. He nodded. There was a strange expression in his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Claire and Charlie have been kidnapped," he said, and walked away. I froze, and my heart began to race. Kidnapped? I thought. The word screamed in my brain, and my throat began to close up.

I began to pace, thinking furiously.

"You look like a tiger in a cage," someone remarked, and I recognized Sawyer's voice immediately. "Why so restless?"

"Didn't you hear about Charlie and Claire?" I asked earnestly. Sawyer nodded.

"Ah," he breathed, "yeah. Shortstuff and Preggo were sna-"

"Don't do that!" I cried. Sawyer gave me a look. "Don't… belittle them like that." I could see anger in his eyes. I sighed and sat down. "I'm sorry. I just wish I could do something, instead of just sitting here and hoping they'll be alright," I whispered. Tears of frustration blurred my vision, and I hit the ground next to me. "Damn it."

"Hey. You kiss your mother with that mouth?" Sawyer wise-cracked. I glared death at him, and he remembered that my parents were dead. He cleared his throat uncomfortably, then sat down next to me.

"Look," he said, sighing. He opened his mouth a few times, as if he couldn't find the right words to say.

"Don't strain yourself," I jibed. I could tell he wasn't the consoling type.

"There's really nothing we can do except hope," Sawyer said. "Maybe, if we're lucky, it'll help." I stared at him, and he quailed under my gaze. He finally cried, "What? What more do you want?"

"Nothing," I answered. "Thank you." Sawyer grumbled. Somehow, his words had stopped my tears.

We sat next to each other for a long time. Sawyer finally got up, said a quick goodbye, and left. I stared out into the rolling ocean, then crawled to my tent.

Hours passed. It rained a bit, but other than that, nothing changed. I was beginning to feel sick with worry when Sayid walked up.

"They've found Charlie," he said breathlessly. I looked up at him, eyes wide. I got up immediately. Sayid helped me to the caves, when I found a very shaken up Charlie sitting on the ground.

"Oh," I cried in relief. "Oh, Charlie! I'm so glad you're okay!" I hugged him fiercely, then pulled back and looked in his eyes. They were frighteningly empty.

"Charlie," I said, shaking him. He finally stopped looking through me, and looked at me. "Did you fight? Did you protect her as much as you could?" Charlie nodded. The look on his face made me want to cry, but I didn't. Not yet. "At least you did something. All I could do was… wait." I hugged Charlie again, then got up and left.

I slept most of the next day. The day after, I was surprised to see the blonde girl with Sayid. They were bent over some maps that Sayid had taken from a French woman in the jungle.

As I got closer, I could tell that both of them were frustrated. The girl was struggling to translate the maps, until Sayid said something to make her leave in a huff. I waited until she left, then entered his tent.

"Who was she?" I asked, sitting on the corner of his table.

"Shannon," he replied. I noticed how clipped his movements were. I could tell he was angry.

"You gotta give the girl some credit," I began. "I mean, she was trying pretty hard to translate those papers. Maybe it's what she's trying to translate that's weird, not her translation of it." Sayid was glaring at me, and I shrugged. "Just a suggestion," I said. I hopped off the table and went back to my tent.

The rest of my day was spent drawing. I finally got Sawyer down. I guess my spending a bit more time with it made his portrait easier.

I spent more time with Sayid and Shannon the next day. Just as I had noticed the chemistry between Charlie and Claire, I saw Sayid and Shannon warm up to each other. They had light, easy conversations, and they seemed to enjoy each other's company.

Shannon left to go do something or other, and I nudged Sayid with my elbow once she'd gone. "Yeah?" I asked, motioning to Shannon. "Yeah?" Sayid gave me a weary look.

We were talking when Shannon's brother Boone walked up.

"Stay away from my sister," he said to Sayid. I admired his protectiveness towards his sister, but Sayid wasn't some monster. He wasn't going to hurt Shannon.

Sayid wasn't the least bit intimidated, but Boone didn't back down. I saw him clench his fists, and spoke up.

"I'm sorry, we didn't realize she belonged to you," I said sweetly. "Why don't you put a collar on her with a little tag that says 'Property of Boone' so everyone knows?" Boone growled low in his throat and took a step towards me.

"Boone!" The creepy bald man—Locke—called. I saw Boone's jaw clench and unclench, but he turned to go.

"Yeah, fuck off!" I yelled, flipping off his back. "Pog mo thoin, bitch!" Sayid gave me a look. "My granma was Irish," I said, grinning widely. Besides learning lots of interesting Irish insults, she taught me how to win in a barfight.

Sayid shook his head as if to say 'You're hopeless'. I smiled again, and Shannon came into view.

"I'll leave you two alone," I stage-whispered, and walked away with a little wave of my fingers.