Kate sat on the edge of the small, uncomfortable bed in her cell and glanced at the clock for the fifth time in under a minute. He would be here soon. Anxiously she got up and paced the cell. Her feet, clad in prison issue blue paper slippers, were cold as she walked over the dark cement. The air conditioning was on too high. Again.

Where is he? She wondered glancing again at the clock outside her cell. Pressing her face against the thick glass she looked as far as she could down the dank hallway. No Jack.

She nervously twisted a lock of hair that had come loose from her braid. Of course it had come loose, she thought bitterly, she wasn't allowed hair bands. The sort of damage she could do with a fabric encased circle of rubber was beyond her, but there was nothing she could do about it.

She wished he would just get there so she could get this over with. She wondered again if this would be the last time she saw him and the knots in her stomach tightened with the thought. She hoped the answer was no, but it was Jack. She had no idea how he would react to her plan.

"Come on" she murmured to herself as she pulled the plastic chair over to the glass wall. The chair was orange with thin metal legs and reminded Kate of grade school. I could do more damage with this damn chair than a rubber band she thought dismissively.

She sat down and tapped her foot, waiting for Jack to come again.

-----------

When Jack had first come to visit her, she had been overjoyed to see him. She had been in her cell just over a week, and already the confinement was creeping in on the edges of her sanity. He had been sympathetic and kind, but most importantly, he hadn't asked very many questions. Their visit had been short, but just seeing his face had been exactly what she had needed.

When he came again the following day, she had been slightly confused, but not ungrateful.

On the third day when he had come again with a slick lawyer in tow, she began to worry. Then he had told her of his plan. He was staying in Tucson until her trial date, and probably after that as well. He was going to pay for everything, and he was going to get her out. After hearing that, she had just been plain angry.

She could not let him do this, not Jack. What kind of life would that be? She wasn't worth it. He had other obligations. She had yelled, and he had listened with a suspiciously calm look on his face. When she was finished, he simply nodded and looked down. Then looking up at her he had said "Okay, see you tomorrow Kate."

She looked at him furiously and turned her back, not saying a word. A guard came up to Jack and reminded him that his hour was up, and with that he was gone.

True to his word, he had shown up the next day. Kate lay on her slim mattress and looked at the ceiling. She didn't respond to his hello, but he hadn't seemed surprised. He simply dragged his chair closer to the glass and spoke through the tiny holes. He talked about the inane details of his life, his cheap motel and what takeout he had gotten for dinner the night before. Kate hated to admit it, even to herself, but it was oddly comforting.

A few minutes before he left he had told her about the first time he had gone grocery shopping after getting back to LA. He had been recognized as one of the survivors by a small but pushy old woman. He remembered her because her name had been Kate too. She had followed him around the store and insisted on helping him shop. "You look thin, what you need is some carbohydrates. You're a man, you need food fit for a man!"

"Turns out she was right" he said, finishing his story, "Cause all I wanted to eat that first week was Frosted Mini Wheats. I didn't even know I liked Frosted Mini Wheats."

Kate smiled up at the ceiling, hoping he couldn't see her. He stood up and turned to go. "See you tomorrow, Kate." He said softly, and again, she didn't say anything.

Kate wasn't stupid. She knew that the prison's visiting hours were only once a week. She couldn't imagine what strings Jack had pulled, what cash he had forked over, in order to see her every day for an hour. Soon he would see that it was a waste of time, and he would give up.

But there he was the next day.

Kate was in the same position she had been in the day before. And Jack still didn't acknowledge that there was anything disconcerting about it.

"Were on the cover of People." he announced with out so much as a hello. "Well, you aren't, but the rest of us are. Were on the Island, they took it right before we left. They had already taken you away. Want me to read it to you?"

She, of course, didn't respond. "Hey Kate," he said, bending down so he could speak directly into the holes, "If the answer is yes, just lay there and don't say anything, k?" he waited a beat. "Well, if you insist…."

He pulled his chair up and began to read.

48 survivors from all walks of life are stranded on an uncharted pacific island. They must fend for themselves for over 60 days, hunting their own food and creatingtheirown shelter. Leaders emerge, tensions are pushed, and danger is a constant presence. It sounds like summer's latest reality show, but for the passengers of Flight 815, the reality was all too real.

"The reality was all too real." Jack scoffed. "Who writes this shit?"

Jack continued reading and Kate reluctantly pulled herself into a sitting position. He pretended not to notice the move, but she heard the slightest change in his voice.

"Alright Jack" she said walking over to the glass with her arms crossed. She tried to make it seem like she was appeasing him rather than satisfying her own curiosity, but they both knew the truth.

Jack looked up from his chair, "There's a picture of you in here too, wanna see?" His voice was pinched, as if he wanted her answer to be no.

"Mug shot?" she asked

He held the magazine up to the glass, and she saw the first mug shot she had ever taken. It was dated April 11, 1998. She had been 19 years old. The girl staring back at her looked frightened and raw. Her broken jaw was swollen and her left eye was black and blue. Or it would have been if the photograph was in color.

"Of course." She murmured. "Ill say it again, I've taken better pictures than that." Then she quickly changed the subject. "Let's see the cover."

Again, Jack pressed the magazine to the glass and Kate bent down so she could inspect it closely. Most of the people were staring at the camera with stunned looks of happiness and confusion. She located Jack and Sawyer standing next to each other in the lower right corner of the group. Sawyer looked angry, probably the angriest she had ever seen him, and she had seen him pretty furious. Jack's face was blank, but the eyes that stared out of the picture were full of emotion, an odd mixture of regret and fury. She had no trouble reading the guilt she had seen again and again in his dark eyes.

"You gonna finish reading to me?" she asked quietly as she pulled up her chair.

-----------------

After that visit, Kate no longer tried to stop Jack from coming to see her. Their daily routine had become so comforting to her, more so than he could ever know. When he was there, her cell didn't seem so small and she didn't feel the intense loneliness that pressed in on her in his absence. She didn't feel the tightness in her chest and her heart didn't race out of control. There was no blackness on the periphery of her vision and her mind was calm.

But when he was gone. When he was gone her panic was out of control, and it was getting harder and harder to reel it in. She couldn't do it anymore, and she would do anything in her power to get out. She had done it before and she could do it again.

Kate glanced at the clock again and looked down the hallway. She breathed a sigh of relief as she saw him approaching her cell. He looked remarkably similar to the way he had looked on the island, just a little less rough around the edges. His jeans and casual button down were clean and his hiking boots were new. His hair was the slightest bit shorter and he was clean shaven. She almost wished he wouldn't shave everyday. She missed his dark stubble and the way gray peaked through at his jawline.

"Hey" he said with a smile as he put his sunglasses in his front pocket. "I think Marge over there is getting a little too comfortable with the searches, if you know what I mean."

He looked at her "What's wrong?" he asked and involuntarily raised his hands to touch her face before remembering the glass.

"Nothing." she shook her head and smiled at him. Here goes nothing, she thought to herself.

The sat, they talked. They had been doing it for weeks. When Kate saw the clock hit 3:37 she went for it. She slumped slightly in her chair, then slid out of it completely. Her green eyes rolled back into her head and she arched her back, seizing uncontrollably. She balled her hands into tiny awkward fists and saliva rolled down her chin.

"Kate!" Jack shouted instantly. "Hey! " Jack called down the corridor. "Hey, can I get some help here?"

Two guards came running down the hallway. Looking at Kate, they seemed at a loss for what to do.

"I'm a doctor, let me in!" Jack demanded.

"We have a doctor on staff" one guard said looking at the other.

"He's over at Juvey today, half mile down the road."

"There's no time, let me in now." Jack said becoming more and more anxious. Kate continued to seize, sweat forming on her brow because of the physical exertion.

"She could run." One of them said.

"Look," Jack said, trying to remain calm and reason with them. "I highly doubt she can run in this condition, besides, if she did, she wouldn't get far, this is a maximum security prison, she wouldn't make it out of the hallway. Lock me in. Trust me, she's not going anywhere."

The guards exchanged a look and seemed to concede that letting him in was worse than the alternative. "Fine" one said unlocking the door. "Marge, the computer?" Apparently there was also an internal lock controlled from the guard station just at the entrance of the hallway. Marge hurried to disarm it.

Once inside, Jack heard the locks click in place as he rushed to her. He kneeled down behind her, gingerly picking up her head and turning it to the side. "Kate?" he whispered. Her spasms began to subside and she shook her head.

"Jack? What happened?" She said slowly, confusion in her voice. "How did you get in here?"

"You had a seizure, but you seem okay now. Just rest, okay?" Her head was still resting on his knees and stroked the damp hair at her temples as he looked down at her.

"She looks okay now, Buddy." The guard said into the cell, "Thinks its time you got out of there."

"Hey," Jack answered sharply, "I'm the doctor here." Then apologetically adjusting his tone, he continued "Can one of you bring her some juice?"

Marge obliged. Kate struggled to get up, but Jack stopped her, "No Kate, rest." Gingerly he lifted her off the ground and placed her in her bed. Marge slipped a plastic cup full of orange juice through a tray in the glass. Jack retrieved it. Then sitting on the edge of her bed, he leaned Kate's head back and tilted the glass to her mouth. She gulped ravenously.

When Kate was finished with her juice, the guard again suggested that it might be time to for him to leave.

"Just a minute." Kate pleaded and wrapped her arms around Jacks waist. "Thank you." She whispered. Her arms were concealed by the blanket wrapped around her shoulders and she covertly reached under Jacks shirt. She felt his body tighten, but she continued, her hand searching for his boxers just above his jeans. Once she found it, she slid a folded piece of paper between his skin and the elastic.

Jack pulled out of the hug, his eyes searching hers. She saw the slow realization come over his face and shock entered his expression. He stood up abruptly and walked to her cell door.

"You stay right there!" Marge ordered Kate as she let Jack out.

Marge lead Jack down the hallway by his arm, and he stared at Kate as he left. But for the first time, he didn't say "See you tomorrow, Kate."