Chapter 3
Jack was briskly following the path, amazed that Claire had been found. Nearly everyone had figured that by now, Claire was not coming back. Now she had made a miraculous appearance, and Shannon said she seemed all right. This made him feel very much at ease, he had been worried and not at all hopeful about the fate of Claire and her baby.
He saw Locke, Boone and Claire coming up the path. He immediately looked her over. She looked tired, very tired, and lost in thought. She was sweaty from a long walk in the heat. She had cuts on her face, most of them shallow, and dark circles around her eyes. He had expected much worse.
"Hey, Claire!" he said, smiling at her. "How're you doing?"
She looked up, his presence unnoticed until he spoke. "I'm fine." She said quietly. She seemed to be searching his face for something. It puzzled him, but he tried to forget it. "Your baby okay?"
"Yeah. I think so." She said, looking down at her stomach.
The four of them sat down in the middle of the path, Claire leaning against a tree. She closed her eyes, and folded her hands across her stomach. Jack watched her for a second, then took the medicine bag he'd been holding in his hand and put it on the ground. He unzipped it, and pulled out a tube of anti-bacterial cream for the large cut across her forehead. As he leaned over her to apply it, she opened her eyes again.
"What are you doing?" she said, alarmed, trying to scramble away from him.
He looked at her strangely. "It's just so your cut won't get infected."
He glanced at Locke, who said, "I think before you examine her, we need to talk first."
Claire settled back, looking slightly embarrassed at her reaction. "You're a doctor?" she asked.
Jack realized then what the problem with Claire was. He sat back and nodded, trying not to look visibly disappointed that she wasn't as well as she looked. Poor Claire.
"We found Claire in the forest last night. She'd been wandering around for hours, trying to get out. That's all she remembers since before the plane crash." Locke told him.
Jack looked back at Claire, who seemed like she was thinking very hard. "But you remember everything before the crash? Your name, your childhood, where you lived?"
"Yes. Yes." Claire said impatiently. "But… you're a doctor."
He nodded.
"And you've… checked on my baby before?" she continued, furrowing her brow.
He nodded again, wondering why this was such a hard concept to grasp.
"Before… I was kidnapped… did you tell me my baby would be born any day now?"
Jack leaned forward eagerly. "You remember that?"
Claire looked down at her hands nervously. "I think I do."
He smiled reassuringly at her. "Well, then, that's a good sign!" He stood up, and Boone and Locke did the same. Boone carefully helped Claire up.
"You know what you need the most?" Jack said kindly to her. "I bet you'd really appreciate a good meal."
She smiled shyly and nodded.
"The caves are right nearby. It's not a long walk at all. After you eat, I'll check on your baby." Jack told her, leading the way up the path, and wondering if they would ever find out why Ethan abducted Claire.
A/N Sorry this chapter's a bit on the short side... I'm halfway through Chapter 4 though... : D
