Thanks to everyone who took the time to review, it means so much more to me than you'll ever know! Now, heres an incredibly sappy chapter...
Kate stood in the middle of her cell about three feet back from the glass, waiting. She could see her reflection in the dim glass. Her arms were crossed high on her chest, mouth a thin pressed line, brow furrowed in irritation. In one hand she held a slip of paper. She tried consciously to relax her features, but glancing back at her reflection a few moments later, the fury was again evident on her face.
She heard him approach and her heart began to beat faster. She didn't know if it was her apprehension or merely him. He came into view and noticed her grim posture. He said nothing but paused a moment and ran a hand over his close shorn hair. She could see him trying to decide how to react. As he stood there looking at the cement floor, she noticed that he hadn't shaved that morning. A flicker of memory flashed behind her eyes and a warm blush burned her neck and cheeks.
He immediately went into his daily routine, pulling the hard backed gray chair over to the glass. He looked up at her, unmoving in her cell. "Something bothering you, Kate?" he asked rather calmly, raising his eyebrows slightly.
His relaxed demeanor bugged the shit out of her. She closed her eyes and exhaled.
"Are you gonna tell me what's bothering you, or do I have to guess?" He said it condescendingly, like he was challenging her.
A small angry noise escaped her throat and she uncrossed her arms and closed the distance to the glass. She pressed the paper to the glass in front of him. "You're my doctor now?" She said coldly.
"That looks like you signature, Kate." he answered, matching her tone. He sat in the chair, arms resting on his knees, still looking up at her.
"I was chemically altered, Jack" she said, emphasizing his name in her anger, "I really don't think it will hold up in court."
"Ah," he said, a hint of a smile playing at his lips, "so you do remember."
"Vaguely," she said waving her hand dismissively in the air. "Don't change the subject." She wasn't going to let him talk her out of her anger.
He stood up, their bodies now separated by only the thick glass. His posture was almost confrontational and the energy between them was electric. He looked ready for a fight. At that moment Kate was thankful for the first time that an unbreakable pane of glass separated them. Not that Jack would ever even think of hurting her, but the distance between them was somehow comforting. She didn't have to think too much about the thick tension between them.
Jack opened his mouth to speak, but thought better of it. He rubbed the wrinkles in his forehead and looked away from her. When he spoke, he looked directly in her eyes. They were suddenly dark pools of kindness and calm. "Kate," Jack asked sincerely, "Why is this such a bad thing?"
"Because Jack." She said, and paused, trying to form the right words. "Because you didn't ask, because its too personal."
"Kate, I don't want someone who doesn't fully understand your medical condition treating you. Think about why you were sedated in the first place." He said it pointedly and rationally. And she had to admit that he made sense.
She said nothing, trying to come up with a better argument against him. He stood looking at her. Finally, she said the only thing she could come up with. "You're a spinal surgeon, not a general practitioner!"
"Kate," he said, his voice low. He spoke through the holes higher in the glass, just at his mouth where he stood. She was shorter and had to crane her neck a bit to reach them. "Don't you want me to answer your other question, the one from two days ago?"
No, was her gut instinct. She didn't want to know, she shouldn't have even asked. He was still here, and that was all that mattered. "No Jack, you don't have to, we can pretend it never – "
He cut her off. "I don't want to pretend it never happened. I want to answer your question, Kate."
Her rage melted into an agonizing vulnerability. This was much, much worse. At least with anger came power. But the way he could so effectively shut down her defenses with a look and a few words was incredibly unnerving. She blinked back the tears that were already pressing against her eyes and managed a nod.
"I have one question first." He said it so low that she could just barely make out what he was saying. She realized that he didn't want any recording devices in the cell to pick up their conversation.
"Okay." She said, her voice just above a whisper.
"Did you do it?" Time seemed to slow down. She could feel the warmth from his breath when he spoke, smell the trace amount of mint from his toothpaste.
"Do what?" She asked him, stalling for time.
"You know what. What they say you did, did you do it?"
For a half second, instinct took over and she considered lying. But what would be the point, Jack could always see right through her. Besides, she didn't want to lie to him. She looked behind her to where the camera was positioned in the high corner of her cell. Then she looked at the camera to the left of Jack's head. She moved slightly to the right so the lens' view of her was blocked. She mouthed "Yes."
Jack nodded, unsurprised. "Did you have good reason?"
"That's two questions, Jack." She tried to say it lightly, but it was impossible.
Jack let out a shaky laugh. Before he could say anything in response, she again said "Yes."
"Okay then," He said slowly nodding his head. "Well, my answer would have been the same either way, but this makes it easier."
Oh my God, she thought, This is it, this is when I never see him again. She tried to take him all in, to memorize his features. The way the sharp bump on his nose seemed to be perpetually sunburned. The way he stood now, his thumbs hitched in his pockets, his legs spread slightly. Long minutes seemed to pass but in reality, it couldn't have been more than ten seconds.
"I'm in." He said.
She took a step back from the glass. "What?" She asked dumbly.
"I said I'm in, the answer is yes."
She turned away from him and her shoulders tightened as a single sob escaped her lips. She brought her hands to her face and pressed the heels of her palms into her eyes until she saw dark red spots.
"Kate," he said, his voice thick, "Kate come here okay?"
She took a deep breath and shook her hands at her sides. She noticed she was still holding the paper in her hands. She let go of it and watched as it drifted back and forth to the ground. Then twisting her dark curls into a bun she turned around to look at him. His eyes were glassy with unshed tears, but his face was calm. He looked determined.
His hands were no longer in his pockets, but resting on the glass. She could see the flattened pads of his fingertips, and when she walked over to him, she brought her hands up to match them on her side of the divide.
For a moment, neither of them said anything. Just as Kate opened her mouth to speak, she heard one of the guards yell down the hall. "You two wanna break up your little conference before your Goddamned sexual tension melts the glass?"
"Sir? We're going to need you to sit down." said the female guard.
Jack smiled and looked down as he backed away from the glass. "Thank you!" the smartass guard yelled down to them.
Jack sat and looked at Kate still standing at the glass. "Now what?"
"Later." She said shaking her head. Her loose bun came undone and she pawed at her hair, trying to reshape it into the knot that had come loose. "They let you bring a pen in here, but I still can't have a fucking hairband!" she said exasperated. She glanced at Jack, he was biting his lip, trying to stop a smile that insisted on coming.
"Not a word." She threatened.
"Its just, all that time on the island, and everything in here, I don't think I've ever heard you drop the F-Bomb. There was plenty of opportunity"
"You have no idea how irritating this is. All I ask is a rubber band. This borders on a violation of my civil rights." She smiled slightly, they were both relieved that they could fall so easily back into the ease of small talk after such an intense few minutes.
"What day is it?" she asked suddenly. It was hard to keep track with so little to break up the days.
"Wednesday." He answered without having to think about it.
"Okay, Friday we'll discuss…other things." She finished lamely.
"How?" he asked.
"Friday." She said firmly.
Jack's time was just about up. He stood up slowly, reluctant to leave. "You know, I still don't know if I'm your doctor or not. Before you decide, think about how it could make certain things easier. I just think – "
"Shut up Jack," she cut him off, "You're my doctor."
She watched him smile as he exited the square frame of her view. After a few moments, she no longer heard his footsteps, and he was officially gone. She wandered aimlessly around her cell until settling on her flat mattress. She leaned back and closed her eyes. Only twenty-three hours till he was back.