CHAPTER2

When Sawyer woke the next morning he found kate leaning against his shoulder,her brown ashrew,her breathing light as she slept.Very slowly and cautiously he moved away from her and stood up.His glance strayed to the corner of the room where jack was and walked over.

Jack's eyes were closed and though sawyer was no doctor he thought the wound had stopped bleeding.

"hey...sawyer" a hoarse voice said.

"jack! hey jack your awake! "

"yes"

there was a pause for a moment where jack gazed at sawyer and sawyer looked back.Finally jack cleared his throat

"how's kate?"

"she's fine,sleeping in the corner she should get all the credit for helping you...,what were you doing anyway,creeping in the bushes!"

"...i upseted kate...she thought i had called her useless and she ran away...i guess after a minute of shock i followed her...when i heard the roar..roar of the thing..i s tarted creeping quietly...trying to find you and i guess when i did----,he smiled, bang!"

"yeah,well it was your own damn fault! you admitted it! i was proctecting kate and myself!so---"

"calm down,i'm not accusing you...but if it had'nt been for kate i guess i would have been dead..."

"i'm gonna get some food,be back soon"

Without anthor word he walked out.

Jack lay,eyes wide open and tried to get up in a sitting position.He hated being helpless,he liked to be the one to help.One...Two...three...he made a motion to get up and through his killing arm,he sat up.He sat still for a minute waiting for the pain to ebb away and when it did jack looked around the cave.It was quite barren with a smudered fire and spilt ,while shadows cast on the wall from the sun's dawning touch.Finally he saw kate.

she stirred a little as if she had felt his gaze and blinked open tired eyes.He felt guilty,it had been his fault that she was so tired..taking care of him...He looked at her and she looked at him from her sleeping position.

"jack.." she said finally and ran over to him.She did'nt hug him for which he was glad,his shoulder was still sore but merely stayed a few feet away from him.

"hey kate...i'm sorry"

"for what?"

" i did'nt mean that you were useless..."

'please don't apoligize...i was just being,being stubborn.where'd sawyer go?"

"oh,uh he just went to get some breakfast...why?"

"no reason..."

a few hours later...

after they finished eating and the sun was high in the air they walked outside and kate pulled out a map.

"we've got to get back soon the others will be worried" jack said

"don't need to be a genius to figure that out!"

"sawyer please"

"alright,alright,saywer said,no which way to the others,i want to get away from this doctor"

"see you've recovered well from the guilt"jack replied

"guys..."

"why-i was never guilty!"sawyer said angerily

"guys..."

"so the wound on my shoulder is imaginary" jack said scornfully.he was in a bad mood and though he tried his best to hide it,it kept on spewing out of his mouth and for sawyer.

"guys...!"

"so becoming a smart-ass are you!"sawyer shouted.

"GUYS!"kate roared.there was tears in her eyes and the map was crumbled in a ball in her hand."what's wrong with you two! you're acting like jerks! and guess what,she walked up to them her eyes steaming,We're lost,we're not on the map!we're not anywhere here! i made positive but you guys would'nt listen to me!"

Their was a stunned slience.

"we're...lost?"jack said weakly.It was like all the energy had drained from his body and he sagged.

"give me that!"sawyer snatched the map and kate let him not making a comment.He would believe soon enough.

"jack...what are we going to do?"

"i don't know..."

She wrapped a hand around his waist and leaned her brow on his shoulder and jack stood there still...sawyer scanning the map...

Kate felt safe for amoment then,listening to his breathing in the quiet,basking in the warmth...and counted to three

one...two...three...

and let it sink in.

"we're lost...we're lost"