Title: Six
Author: Liz (angelicrebel at gmail dot com)
Distribution: See profile.
Rating: G
Spoilers/Timeline: Tag to 1.04 - Walkabout
Ship: Jack/Kate (OTP!!!)
Disclaimer: They're not mine, dude.
Summary: "You have to break sometime. You can't keep counting to five forever."

Kate glanced around the group gathered next to the burning fuselage, unable to stop herself from looking for Jack again. It didn't seem to matter that Charlie had said he hadn't seen him; Kate's eyes wouldn't stop scanning the crowd for close-cropped dark hair and twin scratches on each cheek. Kate shifted her weight, assessing Claire's pile of memorabilia. Too long, she thought. Too much. She quietly slipped away from the group and, scolding herself for reasons she didn't quite understand, scanned the beach for him.

And there he was, mere yards away. He looked so lonely, sitting there staring out to sea. He had to still be within hearing distance, she thought. She realized how hard the last few days must have been for him. It wasn't just her captor he'd been taking care of. Kate had seen the way everyone – herself included – looked to him for leadership, for guidance. Any disappointment she'd felt that he had apparently skipped out on the memorial service vanished as she noted his absolute stillness, the tension that seemed to be flowing off of him in waves.

Without hesitation, she crossed the beach and sat down at his side. He didn't look up, didn't turn his head.

"Kate," he said, and she thought that if it was only on this island that she could hear a man like Jack say her name that way, she'd gladly stay there forever.

She searched for words, wondering what to ask first. What was wrong, when had he last slept, did he eat, could she help. Finally she settled on "Jack."

To him, it sounded like a benediction. He turned his head and drank in the sight of her profile as if he was Dante looking at Beatrice and finding salvation. "I'm sorry I didn't go over there," he said, not knowing what to say.

Kate smiled out to sea. "I understand."

Jack blinked.

"You're many things, Dr. Jack," she said wryly, still staring out over the black ocean. "But you're not cold. And you're not unfeeling."

He was still staring at her profile in wonder when she turned and met his gaze. "But you are human, Jack. You have to break sometime." She smiled softly. "You can't count to five forever."

Jack swallowed convulsively and couldn't help but look away. "I have to be strong for them," he said softly. "I have to." He wondered, somewhere in the back of his mind, how he could possibly be so open with her. He'd known her for a matter of days, knew nothing more than her first name and that she had a criminal past. And yet, he knew the quality of her mercy, her quiet compassion, and her strength. He knew the angles of her face and the curve of her sad smile.

In sudden frustration, he pushed himself to his feet in a jerky motion and began to stride quickly down the beach. Though his mind was full of visions and half-truths and a litany of exactly how much medicine was left in his makeshift hospital, he heard Kate get up behind him and start to follow. He didn't turn to look at her, but he imagined her movements were graceful and her face purposeful.

He didn't expect her to jog, though, and so when she caught up with him sooner than he expected and gently touched his arm, he couldn't stop himself from pulling her hard against him and burying his face in her hair. She smelled of salt and sea and sand, with a dash of redemption thrown in for spice. He was broken, but it felt like coming home.

Kate merely wrapped her arms around Jack's waist and held on. "Six," she said softly.

And suddenly, he wasn't broken anymore.

.fin.