We got back by submarine. That's all I know. Hurley convinced me to take a sedative orange juice of some kind. Walt didn't have to take it. I woke up outside. Somehow Ben managed to get me out of the sub and onto some sort of cot. Walt was sitting beside me when I woke up.
"Hurley didn't make you take the sedative?" I ask him, taking a bottle of water he hands me.
"No, he said I'd be able to handle the trip. Something about bearings and time-flashes."
I nod my head in understanding, remembering what happened to Desmond when he went off course. This was probably just a precaution in case I lost my constant. "Where is Hurley?"
"I don't know. I helped Ben carry you in here to this house." I look around of the first time and see that I'm inside one of the old Barracks houses. James told me that after three years of neglect, they'd become run-down, but this one looks like it's been fixed up and I could smell the remains of fresh paint. "Why didn't you ever come for me?" Walt asked, bringing me out of my observations.
"Excuse me?"
"Don't play dumb, Tia. How come you or Jack or anybody came to get me? You knew I had no parents. You knew my dad died. Why didn't you ever come to visit me?"
I take a deep breath, worrying that he won't understand. "Walt, you have to believe me. I had plans. The first time I got off the Island, I swear I had plans. Sun and I, we were planning to kill Ben and then I was gonna come find you, after I knew he was gone and you'd be safe."
"But you never killed Ben."
"Because Sun changed her mind. She thought Jin was dead, but then Ben proved he was alive and convinced her to come back. I only came back for her."
"You still could have visited me. Or written me a letter. I deserved to know the truth!" Walt said, his voice getting louder with every word.
"I did visit. The day Locke found you, I was there, but I was scared. I didn't want to deal with Locke so I ran. And I'm sorry, Walt. I'm so sorry."
Walt stares at his hands for a moment. "I got fed up with it," he says, twiddling his thumbs. "I was so upset at you guys for not coming for me. And after John visited me, I went to Hurley as Santa Rosa. I wanted to know why you lied."
"We lied for stupid reasons," I say. "Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if we hadn't lied, but we did and there's nothing I can do to change that."
Walt keeps looking at his hands as Hurley comes into the room. "Awesome, dude, you're awake!" he says. "You wanna come with me?"
I stand and walk over to him, Walt following me. But Hurley hold up his hand. "Not you, dude," he says to Walt. "Ben's coming here for you in a moment. He's gonna take you to your job." Walt looks a little uneasy at this but Hurley chuckles. "Don't worry about Ben, dude. He works for me now." Hurley turns and leaves the house and I follow him.
Outside the Barracks look basically the same as they did three years ago, except now, they're not yellow. Well, some of them are, but a bunch are now all different colors. Green, blue, pink…
"You like it?" Hurley asks. I shrug my shoulders. "Yeah, I guess you're not really here for the scenery."
"You know why I'm here," I say.
"Yeah," Hurley mutters, placing his hand on my shoulder and leading me to the tree line at the edge of the Barracks. "You're here for him."
At the edge of the tree line a brown tuft of hair peeks out, a pair of blue eyes pierce my own like I never thought they would again.
"Boone."