AN: Hello! Below is the first chapter of an old story of mine I'm reworking. I had posted the first two chapters of this under an old UN (ontheceiling) in 2005 after the finale of Season 1. This is the first piece of fanfic I've written in over 15 years (yikes) and I'm certainly a bit rusty. This story will depart significantly from the original but the general idea is the same.
This is heavily AU and (given my loose memory of the show) maybe only partially true to the character's backstories as presented by the end of Season 1. For any errors, I apologize. I know this fandom has slowed down quite a bit so I'm really only writing this for myself, but would very sincerely appreciate any feedback as I get my sea legs back.
Chapter One
Twigs crunched and cracked beneath their feet, echoing out around them, as they made their way through the dark jungle to their campsites after a long day. Jack held his torch high, leading the group through the thick foliage. Branches, teeming with leaves, hung around them, forcing them to bow their heads as they negotiated the now-trodden path towards the caves.
"Tomorrow, I'll talk to Sayid," Jack said over his shoulder to the others. "See if I can get him to change his mind about that thing."
Kate and Hurley followed with heads down, eyes on the path beneath their feet, their arms sagging with exhaustion and the weight of their torches. Locke was at the end of their entourage, without a torch, his head held high. His brow was knit tight in thought, his lips pursed in consideration.
They'd been at the hatch all day, exploring, arguing, and trying to decide what the hell to do with it and what it could mean. Their thoughts were heavy with questions, and all the hopes they quietly turned over in their minds, for what might lay in store for them. Its presence was so confusing, but impossible not to feel the slightest shivers of excitement over. But managing expectations was crucial. They'd all been disappointed before.
"I'm not so sure that's a good idea, Jack," Locke said from behind them.
Jack threw a look over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of Locke's face in the glow of his torch. "And why is that?" He ducked under a low-hanging branch, stopping to hold it up for Kate to pass beneath.
"Sayid is a man very set in his ways. We still don't have any idea what's down there. Instead of trying to get the man to change his mind, why don't we wait to show him what the hatch has to offer us?" Locke went on.
Jack had now regained his lead of the group. Switching his torch from his right hand to his left, he said, "Sayid is experienced, John. We could benefit from his help. Besides, his ideas aside, he's just as invested in exploring this island as the four of us are."
Locke was silent, and Jack looked over his shoulder to make sure he was still following them. Locke was still in the back, but watching the trail silently, again engrossed in thought. They traveled in silence a moment longer until Kate spoke up.
"Jack, I don't think going down into that thing is a very good idea." Her voice was insistent with concern.
"Yeah, dude," Hurley joined in, moving beside Kate as they walked. "I mean, that monster thing could be down there."
Jack put his hand up, shaking his head.
"We don't have any plans yet, but with the sun up tomorrow, and, hopefully, with Sayid's help, we'll think of a safe way to explore it."
They were again surrounded by silence brought on by Jack's empty reassurance. Kate's nerves fizzled around the edges with the unsettling knowledge of the now open hatch, its exploration sitting in the distance of time like an exam she didn't want to take, wasn't prepared for.
The caves slowly came into sight, and Hurley let out a sigh of relief. The trees thinned and grew sparse as they came into the clearing, greeted by the soft sounds of falling water. The group splintered and parted ways as they came to the mouth of the caves. Hurley gratefully set down his bag and torch at his campsite. He took a long drink from his water bottle, his body eased out the tension of the long day as he unpacked.
"Home, sweet home," Locke smiled at Jack and Kate and he passed them to move to his belongings at the far side of the cave. Setting his bag down, Locke also began to unpack, settling down to relax after a long physical day in the jungle.
Jack inhaled deeply, removing his backpack from his shoulders, letting them sink down. He rolled them back a few times, stretching his tired muscles.
Kate watched this, still feeling tense. Her journey wasn't over - her camp on the beach was at least another twenty minutes' walk away and the backpack that hung on her frame felt like it was packed with bricks. With every wave of fatigue, another brick was added.
"Well," Kate started, getting Jack's attention, "I'll see you in the morning."
He turned to face her. "What? Kate, it's too dark to go back to the beach now," he took a step towards her. "You can just stay here tonight, and in the morning, you can come with us to the beach when I go to talk to Sayid."
Kate bristled, smirking. She knew this was coming.
"I think I can manage to get to the beach from here." She rested a hand on her hip. "I've still got my torch."
Jack sighed. "One night here won't kill you," he smiled in an attempt to placate her.
"Neither will going back to the beach tonight."
Jack put his hands on his hips, mirroring her obstinance. The low voices of the people around them bouncing off the walls in the cave. The fire at the center cracked and popped in protest.
"Come on, Kate," he said, the smile falling from his lips. "It's dangerous out there, and you're exhausted. We all are, it was a long day." The sun had set a few hours ago, the night sky above the trees oppressively black, cut through with the milky knife of moonlight. What light that managed to filter through the canopy was sparse and edged in shadows. It was a short walk to the beach during the day, but at night the trail was murky, wild. Jack's logical mind played out the statistical probability of danger in venturing into the dark alone, and he knew that for someone capable like Kate, someone who kept her wits about her and knew what to listen for, the odds leaned in favor of an uneventful hike. However, a sliver of Jack's consciousness was pulled to the reality of their situation, each member of their group wholly paramount to their survival. The risks here, in even the most mundane of activities, weighing more for them all.
"Exactly," Kate began, trying to reassure him. "And the sooner I leave, the sooner I get back." She could handle the walk. He needed to stop worrying about her.
"Can't just humor me for one night?" he shook his head at her, smiling at her unwillingness to stay.
She was silent, and he got her message, shaking his head again, looking down at his feet as his mind fell to a resolution.
"I don't like the idea of you out there alone when it's this dark." He walked to the makeshift stand where he had set his torch and lifted it from its holder. Picking his backpack up from the ground, he slung it over one shoulder.
He turned back to face her, and saw her with her eyebrows raised at him in questioning.
"If you're not gonna stay here, you'll have to let me walk you back."
Kate watched him for a moment, considering. Him walking her to the beach meant he would be walking back to the caves alone, and he already looked exhausted. The muscles of his arms pulled at his shirt, begging for relief, but he stood stock still, holding his tense stature, waiting for her reaction.
"Well?"
She smiled slightly in submission. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, Jack."
He laughed lightly, resettling the bag over his shoulder. She turned from him and began down the trail towards the beach, the amber glow of her torch illuminating the area around her.
It was silent once again and they were surrounded by the sounds of their footsteps on the dry earth. Kate brushed a strand of hair out of her face as she stepped over a large knotted root protruding from the ground. Behind her, Jack stepped over it carefully, keeping his eyes moving around them, awaiting any sign of a disturbance.
"So what do you think it is?"
Her voice sounded out of place in the empty air, and startled Jack.
"What?"
"What do you think's in it, I mean," she clarified , slowing her pace so they were walking side-by-side.
Jack shook his head, switching his torch to his left hand to keep it away from Kate. Shadows danced across her features from the torch she held high with an aching arm.
"I don't know, Kate," he looked back to the trail ahead of them. "It's presence here is completely unaccounted for. It could be anything. It could be nothing."
Kate watched his eyes fall towards the ground as his body pulled along after his fierce mind. He reached up to his neck with his free hand and gripped the corner between his shoulder and neck in a fruitless attempt at easing some of the strain there, before dropping his hand and letting his arm hang heavily at his side. He pushed forward through the trees along their path, his exhaustion hanging around him like a fog.
"How long since your last full-night's sleep, Jack?"
Kate tried not to betray her concern and she watched his features for any reaction. His eyes snapped to her face for only an instant - what did she see there, recognition? Shame? He looked away, having been caught.
"When was yours?"
He was stalling, deflecting. Kept trodding forward, stepping around gnarled roots and rocks carefully.
"Jack, if you keep going like this..." her voice had lowered and she stopped moving down the trail. He looked back and saw that she had stopped.
"Kate - " he turned to face her, putting a hand up to cut her off. "Please"
"Please what? You're going to walk around telling everyone else what's good for us but not take your own advice?"
He scoffed at this, not amused by this line of questioning, or the timing of it.
"Kate," he said firmly, setting his jaw. "I'm fine." he turned to continue down the trail and away from her, his irritation palpable.
"Right, you're 'fine'," she said, caustically, increasing her pace to catch up to him. She stepped in front of him and forced him to a stop again. "Do you think we don't notice? That we're all too naive or stupid to see what a hypocrite you are?"
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she saw the flash of anger flicker behind Jack's eyes, like the first strike of a match. Before he could speak, she pressed on, not knowing the next time she'd get to confront him like this.
"You're not doing anyone any good by letting yourself fall apart. I know you don't want to hear it, but a lot of people here rely on you, need you to be ok so they can keep some kind of faith that we're all going to be ok."
He shook his head and let out a small laugh, like a comma to her sentence.
"A lot of people," he looked back up at her. "But not you, right Kate?"
She rolled her eyes at this. "This isn't about me, Jack."
"Well no of course not, why would it ever be."
"You're changing the subject because you know I'm right."
"Yeah Kate, I know that I'm tired and I know that people look to me for security, for guidance, whether or not that's something I can actually give to them. Thank you for stating the obvious."
"Jack, you can give that to them. You do it everyday. I mean Jesus, look around you! Look where we are. You're doing it right now."
"I wasn't exactly given a choice about it, was I?"
"Don't put this on me. I'm capable of taking care of myself. It's your insecurity that brought you here to be my escort."
A veil of pain washed across Jack's face, the air falling silent but for the shivering fauna around them, the crackling of their torches. He nodded slowly, dropping his eyes to the ground between them. Her mind raced, grasping for anything she can say to stop this from unraveling, pull back what she started.
"You're right, Kate," he said, his voice low and resigned. "Because that sleep I so desperately need? I won't get it if I have to wonder all night if you made it back to the beach in one piece. This is what I know how to do. So I'm doing it." He turned and continued down the trail.
"Jack," she started, trying to hide the disappointment in her voice, but he cut her off.
"Kate," he said, turning to face her fully. "All these people here with us, they're terrified. They don't just need me to take a look at cuts and twisted ankles. They need to feel the security of things being taken care of. I never said that I was someone who should or could provide that security, but this is the situation I find myself in. Their fear hurts them just as much as the hazards of this island do."
"That's what you're not seeing about all of this. About how we're going to survive here. We need people to be afraid, Jack. Fear keeps you alert, it makes you aware of your surroundings. But more than that, fear will keep people hoping for safety. As soon as they feel that safety here, on this island, we're done. There would be no faith for rescue without fear of abandonment."
"Jesus, this is still about moving to the caves? As if moving there makes us less desperate to get the hell out of here?" He's raising his voice now, incredulous, eyes flaring.
"No, this is about you being unwilling or unable to accept that it isn't your job to wipe away everyone's fears and bring about everyone's safety. People should be scared, that's what is going to get us out of here."
"That's all well and good as a philosophy, Kate, but not in practice. In real life fear is dangerous. Fear - especially the constant, unyielding kind - causes harm to the body. It hinders rational thought and your ability to make decisions. Prolonged stress and anxiety wreak havoc on you physiologically, mentally and emotionally. And that poses danger to all of us."
"It's like you don't even hear what you're saying," she's shaking her head, astonished at how someone so rational cannot see the duplicity in their own statements and actions.
"People don't want to be afraid. They don't want to wake up every morning and go to sleep every night afraid of what the next day will bring. They actively seek ways to alleviate it, avoid it. First they look for the basics like food, water, and shelter. But that isn't enough to really sustain a person. Eventually, people need more than that - protection, community, leadership. And you don't just find that growing in the trees, it needs to be provided by someone else."
"Oh well, heavy is the head that wears the crown right?" She said bitterly.
"Don't belittle me, Kate."
"So what is your philosophy then? You have the higher moral authority to determine what's best and then dictate it to the rest of us?"
"Is that really what you think of me? That I walk around here like some overlord barking directions at people?"
"Is an overlord also exempt from the rules they impose on others?"
"Sacrifices have to be made, Kate! Are you actually trying to stand here and tell me I have some kind of choice in any of this? What would you have me do, sit on the sidelines and watch people get hurt, not fix the problems I see around me?"
"You're not hearing a word that I'm saying."
"No, the problem is I am hearing you, Kate. In case you haven't noticed, there aren't any weekends around here. No holidays. No days off. Every day there's risk of new threats, every hike into the hills or trip down the beach presents hazards. People aren't going to stop getting hurt just because I may be tired."
"Yes, use that as the excuse, Jack. The excuse for why you are incapable of taking care of yourself or, god forbid, sharing some of this responsibility you've piled onto yourself. You'd give your own shirt off your back if it meant someone else was a little more comfortable, to hell with the consequences. You gave your own blood away for Christ's sake, Jack. That's why you're here right now, instead of back at the caves getting the rest you so desperately need. You refuse to set any limits for yourself."
"You think I'm the only person people look to on this godforsaken rock? You need to take a look around you Kate."
"This isn't about -"
"No, that isn't how this works. I listened to all of your astute observations about me, Kate. Now it's my turn." he stepped closer to her and her heart was racing from the confrontation, from the apprehension of all the hurtful things he could say to her as a reflection of what she'd said to him, the ways she was challenging him by tossing accusations at his feet and daring him to take a swing. He lowered his voice when he spoke.
"You like to think you're an outsider here, that somehow you're so different from all of us that you can disappear into the outskirts and no one will notice. That you're inconsequential, just another seat number on the manifest, right? As much as you don't want to admit it, people around here look to you, too. Your confidence, your opinion, comforts these people. You pretend not to see it, and prefer to think they're all weary of you or don't trust you. But they're just intimidated. Intimidated by your courage and your defiance. But they depend on it. So as much as you'll never want to admit it, you're just as much a leader as I am to these people. The only difference is you're too afraid to step into the responsibility that presents."
She felt the air go out of her like a balloon struck by a pin. Jack's firm belief in self sacrifice turned against her now, showing her that she owed them more, but was shirking her responsibilities for the sake of her own survival and individualism, and her fear of assimilation. That didn't fit into Jack's worldview and Kate felt a cold cloud of panic descend on her at the idea of being unworthy or a disappointment in his eyes.
He took a deep breath and hesitated, standing there for a moment, but decided against saying anything more, and turned from her, going down the trail.
Kate stood there for a moment longer, feeling the shake in her hands and the cold sweat on her palms, willing him to turn around and throw more at her. She felt infuriated that he could turn this argument on her, when all she was trying to do was get Jack to go easier on himself, but also felt the bitter satisfaction at being hurt, the small nagging at the back of her mind reminding her that she deserved it, that Jack was right. Her habit of fading into the sidelines was nothing more than sidestepping any kind of responsibility or place within the group that made her a more central cog to their survival machine. She couldn't afford those ties. She watched his back moving away from her, his shoulders slumped and his arm rigidly holding the torch above him.
They didn't speak for the rest of the hike. The ground beneath them slowly softened, becoming mixed with sand, and the distant crash of the waves filtering through the trees. Kate felt a pinch in her chest as she ran out of time to talk to him. To say what, she didn't know. Apologize? Antagonize him more to see what other daggers he could press into her? Anything was better than facing the rest of this chilly night on the beach wishing she'd said something else, restless with their argument spanning endlessly into the depths of her mind, stretching out like the ocean. She was left with the feeling of having come out the victor in a fight she hadn't meant to pick, the one that had scored the most points in hurting her adversary. Around them, the trees began to spread apart, leading them out to the open sand, dispersed fires, and silent air.
A few paces beyond the trail, Jack stepped aside, his feet sinking into the sand. Kate moved forward and slowly turned toward him, the wind from the surf blowing strands of her hair across her face. She pushed them behind her ear and looked down to the sand, not able to meet his eyes.
"Thanks for walking me back," Kate said finally, a peace offering. It sounded hollow to her ears. He nodded, acknowledging the olive branch. But his limbs felt weighed down with all the things she'd said to him on the trail, the feeling of her persecution, the disdain in her eyes.
"No problem, Kate," his eyes met hers again.
"You do realize that now you will have to walk back in the dark," she tried, teasingly, hoping to instill some small grain of levity.
"Yeah, well," he laughed slightly, mirthlessly. "I'd rather it be me than you," he said, unsmiling.
"Right," she said, defeated. If he'd taken any stock in her words, he wasn't showing it. He'd spent the last half of their walk installing his barrier to her, closing off any conduit between them.
Another wave of fatigue spread across her, and her mouth opened wide in a yawn she couldn't suppress, but she tried to cover with the back of her hand. Seeing this, Jack took a step back in preparation to leave. He started shifting his backpack on his shoulders, getting ready for the trek back to the caves.
"Jack," she began, catching his eye. "Same offer. You're more than welcome." She gestured behind her, toward the sprawling campsites across the beach. A futile effort, she knew.
"Thanks, but I need to head back."
"See you in the morning then?" she asked, probing for the promise of some kind of redemption, proof they've avoided lasting damage.
"Yeah, see you then," he said, turning and heading back up onto the trail leading to the caves. His movements were heavy and measured. She watched him until the light from his torch faded into the jungle, the glow swallowed by the island.
Jack walked the path as he had the night before, but this time without the insistent danger of the dark or the threats of their argument. A few hours after sunrise, the sun began to push through the treetops with more insistence, the air around him growing warmer. If they started soon enough, they could get to the hatch and formulate a plan before the hottest hours of the day.
As the trail thinned beneath his feet, mixing dirt and leaves with sand, Jack's heart sagged with apprehension. He was jittery from lack of sleep, his muscles ached from the grueling activity his body had been enduring for weeks that never seemed to let up. As he emerged from the trees into the full force of the morning sun, he avoided glancing down the beach toward her camp.
Several yards away, he found Shannon sitting outside her shelter on a blanket slowly folding clothes with the deliberation of someone seeking distraction in a mindless task. He approached her and caught her eye.
"Morning, Shannon."
"Hey, Jack," she smiled at him, but it looked more like muscle memory than anything else. The circles under her eyes spoke of her sleepless grieving. Jack felt a bolt of guilt course down his spine.
"Know where I can find Sayid?" he asked, squinting out at the shoreline, hoping to see him walking towards them, but didn't.
"Actually," Shannon paused, holding the shirt she was folding in her lap, "He just left to go get something to eat. He should be back any minute."
"Thanks, Shannon." Jack nodded, turning to look around him again. Before setting off across the sand, he said, "I have something that could help you sleep, back at the caves. I'd be happy to bring some by later if you're interested."
She smiled up at him, her fingers absently twisting the fabric in her hands.
"Thanks Jack. I'll think about it."
Shannon turned her face back down to her clothes, carefully folding each of the articles, lost in thought.
Jack turned from her shelter and walked out towards the middle of the beach, watching as the other survivors maneuvered through the monotonous day. As he was observing them, Charlie came forward, balancing water bottles awkwardly in his arms.
"Hey, Jack," he said, smiling broadly, nearly dropping a water bottle. He stuck his arm out and caught it by the cap between two fingers.
"Morning, Charlie," Jack smiled back, amused at Charlie's energy and spirit.
"Hey, have you seen Kate? Is she up yet?"
That was a foolish question, and he knew it. Most mornings when he was still staying at the beach, he would spy her awake walking the surf as the sun barely peeked out over the water.
"You know," Charlie began, brow furrowing in thought, "I don't think so. She might still be asleep. You can check her tent."
Charlie seemed unperturbed by this notion. It seemed completely rational that people would sleep in when given the opportunity, but Jack knew otherwise. Kate knew that they were going back to the hatch that morning, and she wasn't one to miss out on anything. Jack half expected her to come to the caves and wake him up, raring to go.
"I better get these to the caves," Charlie continued, again almost losing balance.
"Thanks, Charlie," Jack said, stepping aside so Charlie could move on towards the path through the jungle.
Something stirred in his chest. Jack had no real evidence to believe anything was amiss, but he couldn't help feeling a small twist of nerves in his stomach. Maybe she'd decided to go out on her own this morning, just to spite him after their argument last night and further prove her point.
Jack headed towards her shelter, which was a little bit further down the beach. A tarp hung down to the sand, concealing the inside. As he approached the tarp, the hope of seeing her pull it aside and come out was tugging at the back of his mind.
"Kate?" He called out to the still structure and waited. The tarp caught in the ocean breeze and rustled but otherwise there was no movement or sound from within.
"Kate?" He called again, this time louder, and more insistent.
Jack stood stock still in front of the tarp, glancing around for any signs that she'd already left or was just out getting some breakfast but saw nothing. He tightened his jaw, and reached up to the corner of the tarp, gripping the thick plastic before pulling it back.
He let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding when he saw her lying inside, chest rising slowly in sleep. Jack moved to the other side of the shelter and tied the tarp back.
Kneeling down beside her calm features, he examined her for a moment. She was completely unguarded: no witty comebacks or sarcastic looks, just her face, with her hand brought up, near her cheek. This person, who had just last night tore at him and did her damndest to call him on his bullshit, now quiet and still. He sat back on his heels.
"Hey, Kate," he said, loud enough to wake her, but not startle her. He watched her eyes remain shut and no changes appear on her face.
"Kate," he tried again, punctuating it more clearly this time, but still no reaction.
Jack reached out a hand and rested it on her shoulder, putting slight pressure on it.
"Wake up, Kate," he said, his voice becoming louder and more urgent. His heart rate quickened and the sound dropped out from his ears. He put more pressure on her shoulder, pushing more fervently now, but still with no response.
"Kate!" Jack yelled, on his knees next to her, his heart sinking to the sand.
His hand shot out to her extended wrist, and rested his fingers there, waiting. His heart was pounding, he could feel the blood rushing behind his ears, unsure if the pulse he was feeling was hers or his own.
But then he felt it, like the tip of a pin. She had a pulse, a weak one, but it was there. On closer inspection, the rising and falling of her chest was shallow and dispersed unevenly. Her skin was pale, even in the illuminating morning sun.
One hand pressed to her wrist, he moved his other hand to her forehead, feeling its radiant heat before touching her. Beads of sweat formed on her hairline and her skin was sweltering.
"Jesus," he muttered. She couldn't have stayed with him one night, could she?
"I need some help over here!" He yelled over his shoulder, heads turning in his direction immediately. His voice was panicked and strained; more desperate than the others had heard before.
At Shannon's tent, Sayid was walking towards her with a handful of fruit when he heard Jack's call. Dropping the food onto the blanket next to Shannon, he tore down the beach in the direction of Kate's shelter with others close behind.
Stopping abruptly at Jack's side, he saw Kate's body lying in front of him; her wrist in his hand.
Jack turned and saw him standing there.
"I need water and clean cloth, whatever you can find," he ordered hurriedly, his face pleading with the group that stood around and above him.
Several people around them went running into their shelters to get anything they could to help.
"Jack," Sayid said, calmly from behind him, using his voice to force Jack's eyes to his, "What can I do to help?"
Jack caught his eye, and took a deep breath. "I need you to get Sun from the caves and bring her here," Jack said, regaining his composure. There was a task at hand; he couldn't afford to let his performance slip. "And have Charlie bring as much cold water back from the caves as possible."
Sayid nodded briskly, and set off immediately into the jungle for the caves.
Several people came running back with bottles of water and pieces of ripped cloth. Jack took them and turned back to Kate's still form. Pouring water onto a cloth, he gently ringed it out, and slowly began dabbing at her forehead with the somewhat cool liquid. Running the cloth over her warm skin, he felt his heart beating out of his chest. Fevers could cause many things ranging in severity from vomiting and chills to delirium and hallucinations but if a fever progressed until it reached unconsciousness, antibiotics were likely needed. If that was even the cause of her current state. His mind raced, he considered all the possible culprits, tried to remember what they'd been eating, where they'd been in the jungle. A fever from eating something was one thing, but a fever could indicate a range of more sinister problems, things that he simply did not have the tools to address.
Re-wetting the cloth, Jack sat at her side, pressing it to her skin, his mind swimming.
A wave of dizziness ran over her, and Kate squeezed her eyes shut to calm the rolling feeling in the pit of her stomach. Pale light shone through to her eyes, sending the waves of nausea crashing again.
Slowly, she blinked her eyes open, squinting them at the bright, florescent light that washed over her. Her head was pounding, her limbs felt heavy and warm, and she was overtaken by the smell of cleaning products, antiseptics, sterilization.
What she could immediately tell is that she was somehow laying in a raised bed, white sheets surrounding her. Looking down at her chest she could see she was wearing a thick fabric gown - a hospital gown? - with a cotton blanket tucked over her legs.
Like a kettle slowly coming to a boil she realized she was somewhere very unfamiliar. Looking around her, she saw the floor was covered in stark white tiles, thick drapes closed out light from a window on the right side of her bed. Two large wood doors stood on the wall to her left, one open to reveal a small bathroom and the other slightly ajar leading into an equally white space beyond. The only sounds she heard were the distant murmurs of voices she didn't recognize.
Her pulse quickened. Was this a dream? Nothing around her held any significance or triggered a single memory. It was whitewashed and barren, something from another reality she didn't understand.
Thinking back to how she'd arrived there brought nothing - just an empty span of blank memory. She didn't know if it was morning or evening, The pain in her head was beginning to frighten her. She pulled back the blanket to examine her legs, bare under the hospital gown but for a pair of bright pink socks. Her movements tugged at the carousel of monitors and IV tubes beside her and her breathing hitched in her chest. Why was she here? What was going on and why didn't she remember how she wound up there?
She tugged the pulse monitor clamp from her finger and heard the machine softly trilling at losing its connection to her. Gingerly she pulled the IV from her hand, the sting of the needle escaping her skin telling her she wasn't dreaming. Stumbling from the bed, she made her way to the bathroom.
Gripping the white sink she looked up at herself in the mirror and gasped. The side of her face was bruised from the edge of her jaw up to her hairline, a swollen bulge beneath her eye several shades of crimson and purple. Her eyebrow held several rows of small white bandages, spots of dried blood darkening the edges. Her hair was tousled but otherwise clean, cleaner than she had seen it in a long time. She brought her hand up to gingerly touch the side of her face and measure the extent of the injuries and froze. Her left hand bore two platinum rings on her third finger, one studded prominently with a brilliant glittering stone.
Her heart thudded in her chest and tears rushed to her eyes reflexively, the walls of her foreign environment and her own unidentifiable reflection closing in on her like a vice. Her breath was catching in her throat and she could hear the strangled gasps echoing in the small tiled bathroom. She turned the water on and ran her fingers under the cold water, cupping her hands and bringing it up to her face. She splashed it across her skin over and over again, water dripping down her arms, off her chin, onto her hospital gown. She looked back at her face in the mirror above the sink, her eyes red and face flushed with confusion and fear.
"Kate?" she heard a voice call out into the room. She froze. She heard footsteps march into the room and she peaked out the bathroom door to see a man in a suit standing next to the bed she had climbed out if not three minutes before, his back to her. This man grasped the back of his neck, rubbing the short dark hair on the back of his head before spinning quickly to walk out of the room. But he immediately stopped short when he caught her eyes peeking through the crack in the bathroom door.
Kate's lungs seized in her chest.
"Jack?" she breathed, her small voice wavering, nearly inaudible. She didn't move.
TBC