"Claire."

It was late. Everyone on the island had gone back to their shelters to spend the rest of the week after they'd figured out the Others weren't coming. Claire was just trying to use the time that Aaron was napping to sleep. She looked up at the man who'd called her, and while he normally sent shivers down her spine, she didn't want to talk to anyone right now. "What, Charlie?"

Charlie looked down at her, and wondered if he was doing the right thing. Maybe he should just let her sleep and go back. But he didn't even have a shelter built on the beach. And these days, he was thinking about Claire a lot more than he'd like to admit, and in a shelter-y sort of way. "C'mon, I got something to show you," Charlie said.

"Charlie, seriously, I just need to get some rest–" Claire managed to get out.

"It's right outside and it doesn't involve anything other than sitting," Charlie promised. He was nervous over whether this was going to work. It'd worked before, but this time. . . oh, hell. "Come on, I promise, it's warm andbeautiful."

I might as well see what he's got set up, Claire thought. Lord knows it'll be cute enough. Which led her down a trail of thought that normally ended in Charlie topless. But as she didn't have a night alone–anymore–she said, "Yeah, sure I'll come."

"Triffic. Come on." Charlie helped her out of her shelter and led her around to the side of it that was blocked by a piece of wreckage.

Claire was in awe. "You, built this yourself?" Claire asked, staring at it.

"What, don't like fire?" Charlie smirked. "Sides, if you look, I managed to set up a bench."

Claire looked away from the roaring fire in front of her and at the bench at her feet. "Highest quality bamboo on the whole damn Island," Charlie said. "Nothing less for my Claire." Charlie grinned and had a seat in front of the fire.

"Oh, I'm YOUR Claire, now, am I?" Claire said playfully. As she stared at the fire, she thought of what else he could do. Then she looked down at the bench, and she thought carpentry had to get hot. . . which again led to Charlie half-naked in her mind's eye.

"Who else would you belong to?" Charlie asked. "In case you haven't noticed, we're alone together out of the group. You're the reason I can't go rescuing doctors from cave-ins anymore." Now, that was a dumb thing to say, Charlie thought. "It's not like I own you or anything, just. . . have a seat." Charlie scooted over on the bench to make room for her.

Claire seriously doubted the stability of the bench, if Charlie made it alone. "You didn't make this all by yourself, did you?"

"Well, I had some help. . . from a few guys who actually TOOK woodshop." Charlie admitted in disgrace. "But, the fire's all mine!"

"That means you probably didn't build the bench topless then. There goes THAT little fantasy," Claire said with a glimmer in her eye. She took a seat next to him and stared at the fire. Wait, what did I just say? Claire panicked. Oh god. He knows about the–

"Pardon me? Does my Island goddess have an imagination?" Charlie joked. He joked, because there was no way she meant what she just said. Cos if she did, then this fire might work after all.

"Well, I meant– but I didn't mean– but, some might–" Claire spluttered.

"It's okay to think about me half-naked. Who wouldn't?" Charlie said with a grin on his face. "I mean, I'm pretty sure Jack thinks about me at night, now that you mention it."

"Okay, we have crossed the boundary into ooky-ville," Claire said, relieved he thought she was joking.

"Ookyville?" Charlie said laughing. "Tell me, what is this Ookyville place like?"

"Well," Claire started. "It's a place where doctors have wet dreams about rock gods. . ."

"Mhm?"

"And where. . . . I fall in love with Sawyer." They both burst out laughing at the thought. "And where, Shannon and Boone were really lovers and not related at all!"

"Ooh! And Locke is my biological father!" Charlie said, holding back tears.

"Oh! And Kate and Jack have been secretly getting it on outside the caves at night for months using Sawyer's stash of condoms!" Claire yelled. They both laughed until they cried and held each other.

"Well, Ookyville sounds like a horrible place," Charlie said. He wiped the tears from his eyes and was amazed Turnip-head hadn't awoken yet.

"Well, I should probably check on Aaron," Claire said, getting up. She looked down at Charlie, and just wanted to tackle him to the sand and have her way with him right there.

"If he's still asleep, promise you'll come back?" Charlie asked hopefully.

"Of course. Wouldn't think of staying in there alone, would I?" Claire stated.

"Great, I'll rebuild this," Charlie said, indicating the fire. It had dwindled since they last looked at anything other than each other. He went out and gathered some brush, along with a couple dead plants and tossed them on the flames. He walked back and forth chucking dead wood onto the fire. Finally, he sat down on the bench and stared at the stars, waiting for Claire to return.

"I hope I'm not intruding on anything," Claire said, leaning over above him with her hands on his shoulders.

"Ooh," said Charlie. "It's a Claire in my sky." He felt Claire trail a hand across his back from his shoulder down to his hips, and saw her sit next to him.

"You own the sky, now too?" Claire asked, turning to face him with one leg on either side of the bench. She poked him with her toe.

"You're impossible," he said, grinning. "Actually, due to the odds of an eight month pregnant girl, crash landing on an Island in the middle of the Pacific, while small, given that it has happened," said Claire, with Charlie barely able to follow her, "I'm improbable."

"Yep," he said. "Impossible." He looked her in the eye, making sure she didn't look away, then reached down and started tickling the bottom of her foot.

She shrank back, yelling "Not fair, not fair, not fair!" Charlie smirked and looked at the fire. Claire couldn't help but grin at him. She faced the fire, and scooched over to sit next to him. "Okay, new rule," Claire said. "No tickling."

"But, it's so much fun," Charlie said, putting on his fakest pout. "I mean, without being able to tickle Claire, what AM I supposed to DO with my life?"

Claire moved so that their legs were touching. "There are other things that you and Claire could do. . ." She brushed her foot against his.

Charlie looked at his foot, and then looked her in the eye. "Like?"

"Poke war!" Claire yelled. She tackled him to the ground and began poking him all over. She laughed like a jackal.

"Hey!" Charlie yelled, and pinned her arms to her sides with his hands. Charlie looked down and realized she was straddling him. Claire looked down and realized the same thing. They both looked each other in the eye and shared a look that said 'This is where we are.'

"So," Claire said, without a touch of awkwardness, "this is why you built the fire." He was relaxing his hold on her arms and she intertwined her hands in his.

"Could've been," Charlie said. He looked up at her, and just marveled at his Island goddess. "I thought we could use the alone-time." He paused and looked at where they were again. "I think we have our intentions worked out."

Claire smiled. After a while, she became serious, took her hands out of his and put them on his chest. "Charlie, this was really sweet, but, we can't just. . . I mean, other people have Ookyvilles too, and I'm pretty sure Shannon's has some graphic imagery about us," she said as she ran her fingers over his chest.

He smiled feebly up at her. "Claire," he began.

She placed a finger over his lips. "Sh. Don't say a thing. I just want to look for a second." She placed her hands at his sides and smiled.

He thought about earlier and grinned again. He took his hands, and slowly put them up and inside her shirt.

"Charlie? I thought we ag–AH! Not fair, not FAIR!" She giggled as he tickled her bare skin. She collapsed in a writhing ball beside him. He rolled over on top of her, with his hands still inside her shirt, and stopped tickling her.

"Sorry, you're just really cute when you're tickled," Charlie admitted. He looked down at her, hair spread out over the sand, mischievous grin on her face.

"Charlie Pace, you are a prat," she said, looking up at him. "A right son of a bitch."

"Now, now," Charlie said, "let's not bring my dear old Mam into this." He looked in her eyes as they shared a laugh. She sat up under him, as he moved back to sit on her thighs.

"You know what?" she said.

"What?"

"Fuck Shannon's Ookyville," she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and tugged him back down to the sand. She softly planted a kiss on his lips, and felt his hands move up her back, drawing her closer. The feel of his fingers on her bare skin was electric. And suddenly, even as they were pressed against each other, he was too far away.

Charlie pulled back for a second, and stared. She wasn't that far from half naked, and he knew they weren't going to stop until it had been done. He figured he might as well pause it now. "What was that you said about Sawyer's box of condoms?"

She leaned over and whispered into his ear, "I said, I think we have to ride bareback." She kissed his neck and slid out from under him.

As she walked back to her shelter, she slid her shirt off the rest of the way. She slowed down, reached behind her, undid her bra, and took it off. She turned around with her arm covering what she wouldn't show on the beach and threw both in Charlie's face. When his eyes were covered, she let her arm drop.

"I'll see you inside."