Jack shook his head. "I don't any constellations."
"I don't really get why people made the constellations," Boone said. "You know, why they drew little lines between the stars. I don't get it. They look pretty like they are. Why do people have to claim everything and turn it into something?" He shrugged. "I guess some people don't like wonder."
"Boone?"
Boone turned to look at him. "Yeah?"
"Shut up," Jack said, a smile in his voice.
Boone gave him a smile and looked back at the stars. "Was I getting existential again?"
"Something like that," Jack replied. "Come on, we better head back."
"No, let's stay," Boone said.
"Boone, it could be dangerous out here," Jack stated.
"Could not be," Boone countered.
"It's dark," Jack pointed out. "I keep telling people to be back by dark, I can't go staying out all night."
"It's not like there's a curfew, Jack," Boone stated, trying to resist the urge to roll his eyes but not quite succeeding.
"We shouldn't even be out here," Jack said. "What if Shannon needed anything?"
"Rose and Bernard were looking after her, she'll be fine," Boone insisted. "In fact it's them you should worry about, she's probably killed them."
"I need to catch up with Michael, see if they had any luck," Jack continued. "And if they did I'm going to have to check Walt out."
"You're just anti-fun, aren't you?" Boone commented.
Jack looked at him. "Have you been taking sulking lessons from Shannon?"
"I'm not sulking," Boone replied, pointedly refusing to look at him. Which was immature but it seemed to be working.
"Quit pouting," Jack told him.
Boone tried to hide his smile and concentrate on pouting more. Jack shook his head and rolled his eyes.
"Definitely taking lessons from Shannon," Jack said. "Fine, we can stay a little longer. But if we get eaten or kidnapped then expect some 'I told you so's."
Boone turned to smile at him. "You'd rather be out here with me than in that stupid hatch with them anyway."
Jack smiled at him. "Yeah, you're right," he said. "But now we have to think of something to do to entertain ourselves," he added, rolling onto his side and propping himself up on his elbow.
"What did you have in mind?" Boone asked innocently, again trying to hide the smile.
Jack pretended to think about it. "Poker?"
"We don't have any cards," Boone pointed out.
"Damn," Jack said. "I was just about to raise the stakes to strip poker."
Boone smiled at him. "There are easier ways to get me naked."
"Yeah?" Jack asked. "What would they be?"
"I'm sure you could work it out," Boone said.
"Don't I get a hint?" Jack asked, leaning over him.
Boone smiled and shook his head. "Trial and error," he said. "You gotta work for it."
"You just said this was the easier way," Jack pointed out.
Boone shrugged. "Changed my mind."
Jack shook his head, a half smile on his lips, trying to work out if he was enamoured or frustrated. Actually Boone kind of wished it was both. Then Jack licked his lips and Boone mirrored the motion and then Jack was kissing him.
Boone loved the way Jack kissed him. It was so gentle and so strong at the same time. Jack was a gentleman and Boone couldn't really say he'd ever been with a gentleman before. Not that he was all giving him flowers and chocolates and crap like that. Actually that would be kind of creepy. But he looked after Boone and he cared for Boone and Boone knew that a lot of that was probably down to the doctor in him but he knew there was something else there too. Jack was a nice guy. A bona fide nice guy. And, okay, he wasn't perfect, but Boone wasn't looking for perfect. Perfection would just make Boone feel even worse about himself in comparison. Having a slightly flawed doctor boyfriend was better than having an out and out hero doctor boyfriend. Which he was fairly sure was quite selfish on his part but he didn't mean it that way. Jack's imperfections were just as special to Boone as the so many things that were right about the man.
And he was strong. Not just physically strong but emotionally strong, mentally strong. He had passion. The way he kissed Boone he could tell that it was about more than just kissing, it was about giving something to each other and taking something from each other. It was about telling Boone everything that he couldn't say in words. Boone knew that Jack was no good on the communication front but when they were kissing, when they were together like this, Boone could feel everything that Jack wanted to say but just didn't know how. He could feel the warmth and the longing and the need and the want. He could feel the love. At least he thought it was love. But Boone was still smitten so it was quite possible he was getting ahead of himself. But Jack did almost say it that time.
Then Jack suddenly pulled away, his head shooting up and Boone felt cold and breathless. He opened his eyes and looked at Jack who was scanning the jungle around them.
"Did you hear something?" Jack asked.
Boone just looked at him, still a little dazed. "What?"
"Hear something? Did you hear something?" Jack asked, his eyes moving over the shadows where the light from the fire and the moon didn't quite reach.
"What are you talking about?" Boone asked.
"I heard something," Jack explained. "It could be them. The others. Or a polar bear."
"Or someone from the camp," Boone suggested. He looked at Jack who was still looking around. "I didn't hear anything."
Jack finally looked back down at him. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
"You might have missed it."
Boone gave him a look. "You shouldn't just stop when you're kissing someone like that. It's very rude."
"It could have been a polar bear," Jack said, not even sounding convinced himself anymore. "Or the others. It could have been the others."
"Could have been," Boone said. "But I think they'd have got us by now."
Jack took one more look around before turning his attention fully back to Boone. "Right, yeah, sorry."
"That's okay," Boone said. "Make it up me."
Jack smiled. "Okay then."
He leaned back in and Boone pulled him down further, increasing the connection between their bodies. He let his hands wander over Jack's torso as Jack leaned into his touch and deepened the kiss, encouraging Boone to open his mouth wider which Boone was more than happy to go with.
But then suddenly he pulled away again and Boone started staring serious daggers at him. Jack opened his mouth to speak.
"No, I didn't hear anything," Boone pre-empted.
Jack looked at him. "I swear I heard something." He looked around again. "Maybe we should get out of here, this isn't a good idea."
"You have no sense of adventure," Boone told him.
Jack looked back down at him. "I had sex in the middle of the day."
"Firstly, that wasn't sex, and secondly, you can't use that to claim you're exciting for the rest of your life."
"Can't I at least use it to the end of the week?" Jack asked.
Boone smiled and was about to say something when he heard a twig breaking nearby. Jack looked at him.
"Okay, I heard that one," Boone admitted.
"Come on, let's just go back to the hatch," Jack said, getting to his feet and helping Boone up.
Back at the hatch, Michael, Sayid and Locke had just gotten back. Jack gave them a questioning look but Michael just shook his head. Jack went to check on Shannon, Sayid hot on his heels, and Michael went through to the lab.
"Have you found anything to go on while you're out there?" Boone asked Locke.
Locke shook his head. "Nothing concrete but I believe we're narrowing it down."
"So you don't have a clue," Boone concluded.
"Sometimes faith pays off, Boone," Locke told him. "Faith and perseverance."
"Let me guess. The island will tell you what to do, right? Give you a sign, lead the way."
"I believe that if we trust and if we persist then the path will reveal itself to us," Locke said.
Boone nodded. "I wish I believed that like you do."
"What do you believe, Boone?"
Boone shrugged. "I don't believe much of anything, John."
"Everyone believes in something," Locke told him. "Even disbelief is a belief in something. Sceptics thing they've got it figured out, they think they're not going to buy into the whole belief hoopla but what they don't realise is that believing something isn't true is just as strong a crux as believing something is true." He looked at Boone, a long, meaningful look. "What do you believe, Boone?"
Boone thought about it. What did he believe? He didn't believe they were going to be stuck on this island forever but he also didn't believe they were going to get rescued. He didn't believe in the supernatural but he also didn't believe that all the coincidences on this island were just that.
"I want to believe in second chances," Boone said. "But I don't know if I do."
Locke nodded. "Second chances," he repeated. "I believe in second chances."
Boone looked at him. "You do?"
"I told you about my legs, Boone," Locke said. "I told you what the island gave me. So you just have to think, what did the island give you? What was your second chance?"
"I'm not dead," he offered. "I mean, really, I should have died twice. I should have died in the crash and I should have died in the Beechcraft."
Locke nodded. "But we all should have died," he said. "What else did the island give you?"
Boone suddenly became aware of Jack's presence down the hall, keeping a respectful distance but clearly also keeping an eye out for Boone. Which was a vast improvement from when he used to threaten Locke with bodily harm when he spoke to Boone.
"Shannon's okay?" Boone asked.
Jack nodded. "Fine," he said. He seemed to consider the pair of them for another moment. "I'm going to bed."
Boone nodded. "I won't be long."
"Okay," Jack said, giving one last look of warning at Locke before exiting.
Locke turned his attention directly back to Boone. "You believe in something, Boone, everyone does. Some people just don't know what they believe in till it comes down to the wire."
"Everyday you make choices that you're not even aware of and they make up your life," Boone said. "Is that what beliefs are like?"
Locke nodded, looking proud. "I guess there are, yes."
Boone nodded. "It's funny how stuff that you have no awareness of set's the whole course of your life. What's the point of even making decisions when everything keeps happening around you anyway?"
"Belief isn't enough, Boone," Locke told him. "Blind faith is dangerous, it needs to be steered. Faith and perseverance."
Boone nodded again. Things were still a little muggy in his mind but he figured he got the gist of it.
"Anyway, it's getting late, I think it's time to turn in," Locke said. "Sleep well," he added and Boone swore he saw a veiled smile.
"Yeah, night," Boone said as he watched him turn tail and leave. He shook his head a little and headed to join Jack.