A/N: This is the second part of "Running." At the time of this posting at least one person wanted to see it and that's good enough for me.

Disclaimer: I do not own Lost, or its concepts and ideas.

I want to thank and credit http/ because I got all the dialogue from the scene correct thanks to their transcripts of the episode.

When she finally stops she collapses, suddenly realizing that she's out of breath, and that she just can't go anymore. She sits, not crying, because she'll never cry because of Wayne - she promised herself that a long time ago - but sitting there broken. She's not good. She's terrible. She's terrible. Terrible.

It begins to echo in her head, over and over, one word. Terrible. Terrible. Terrible.

"Kate, what are you doing out here? What happened in the hatch, Kate? Why'd you leave? I come back -- I find Sawyer just lying on the ground. You just took off…" It's Jack.

Suddenly she's angry, no not just angry, she's disgusted. Just like she was when she found out about Wayne. She's disgusted. She doesn't know why, she just is. But concern jumps through all of this and words spill out of her mouth.

"Is he okay?" That might, she reflects, have been the wrong thing to say to Jack just now.

"Yes Kate, he's fine." Yeah, probably the wrong thing to say.

"I'm sorry." She just needs to get away from here. She needs to, because if she doesn't nothing good is going to happen here. Things are spiraling out of control, and everything's so close to the surface. She needs to be in control. She needs to leave.

"Are you?" His tone is angry, but there's something else there to, almost a plea.

"Yes!" Her fury washes over her like a tide, breaking on his unprepared head, and it feels good.

"Yeah I'm sorry! I'm sorry I'm not as perfect as you. I'm sorry that I'm not as good." She struggles for some semblance of composure, looking for calm, for quiet, or at least for stony silence. She can't find it.

"Okay, what's going on with you?" God, this is going to drive her crazy! Does he have to keep asking her these things? Does he have to try and be a shrink now of all times?

"Just forget it." Control. Complete control. Just walk away. So she does, she walks away from him. Only it isn't working, because his hand is on her arm, and he's grabbing her, and sounding just a bit out of control himself.

"No don't walk away from me."

"Let go of me! Just -" Anything to get her away from there. This can all be explained away later - not enough sleep, stress, whatever, if she can just keep from coming apart at the seams.

"No Kate." She's in his arms, and any other time the tingles that are running through her might of made her think, but right now she's sure she's going insane and so she's got bigger things to worry about. "Kate, Kate, Kate…"

"Don't! I've got…" Crying? Is this her, coming completely unglued? Yes, this is her. These are all the tears, this is everything. He's hugging her. Is this him? Maybe this is her, but is this him?

"It's okay. It's okay."

And all of a sudden words are tumbling out of her mouth, following each other in no logical pattern. "Please, this place is crazy…it's just…I can't…it's driving me nuts…"

"I know. It's okay. It's alright. It's alright." It's not, not really, but she wonders if that matters right now?

His hand is on her arm, she finally realizes that she's so very close to him, and she's looking into his eyes because it suddenly seems to be unavoidable. He's just right there and everything rushes into her throat at once, fear and anger and sorrow and God only knows what else, all surging up until she isn't sure if there's much to say. She doesn't know what's going to happen, but its not in her control anymore, nothing is.

And the obvious realization that this isn't moving in a particularly safe direction comes far to late as his lips touch hers and her eyes close because this is Jack.

And she can love.

Shock penetrates the deep joy that has created a haze around her brain as she finds that she can love. She can love him as much as she ever loved anyone, probably more, and her heart seems to slow down as she falls into him because he's just Jack.

The realization of what she's doing blasts and shivers through her like a bolt of lightning and she draws herself away. The look on his face isn't readable, and she doesn't try. She just runs.

She's always been good at running.

"Kate…!"

And she's gone again.

Because she knows she can never be good.

A/N: I appreciate that it's not a happy ending exactly, but I just stopped at the end of the scene. Please review. J