Chapter 4 (Final Chapter)

The walk up to Kate's hotel room was silent, but as soon as the door was closed and they were stood out on the terrace, looking at the bustling nightlife, the conversations began. This was no time for the when-you-say-nothing-at-all moments. Things needed to be out in the open.

"Is it true?" Kate asked, turning to face him. "What Sawyer said?"

Jack continued leaning against the wall, with his back towards it. "I never loved anyone like I love you, Jack. Even when you hated me, I still loved you."

"So, even yesterday..." She said, thinking back when he had been as withdrawn as she was when she ended things. "...and you didn't say a word?"

Jack shook his head, ashamed. "I wouldn't let myself, not until I was absolutely, dead sure."

"Sure of what?"

"You remember that night on the beach when we first crashed, when you said that you could never love someone who didn't understand you?" He asked her, and she nodded. "I had to be sure that I could give it all up before coming to you. I knew that I could try, but trying wasn't good enough. Sawyer let you down with that, and I didn't want to know that I was going to do exactly the same thing. But now, knowing that" He took one of her hands between both of his. "...that I love you, I could do anything."

"I just..." She began, but then changed her wording. "I feel like I've been thrown in the deep end, and I don't know how to swim." She said, sounding a little lost.

Jack brought up her hand and kissed her knuckles. "Don't worry, there's a lifeguard on duty." He assured her, and she smiled. "I know it's not going to be easy, and we're probably going to really have to work at this, every second of every day, to get back to where we were before, but I want to do that because I want you. I want all of you, forever, you and me, every day."

Kate sighed with a small smile. "Jack..." She began, but he cut her off.

"Will you do something for me, please?" He asked her.

"Yeah." She nodded.

"I want you to picture your life for me." He told her. "30, 40 years from now. What does it look like? If it isn't with me, then I'll go, right now if you want me to. I lost you once, Kate. I'm not sure if I can do it again, but I don't think I can bear to only have half your heart either." He explained.

Kate didn't answer him with words. Instead, she put her hand on the back of his neck and pulled him down to her. Their lips met, and for a moment, Jack froze because he realised that this was what he had missed all day. It didn't take long for him to unfreeze and draw her in close to him. He put his hands on her waist, dragging her closer and deepening the kiss as he did so. They kissed for as long as they could before parting for breath, and when they did, Kate's head rolled back onto his shoulder to look up at him, panting gently for air. Her legs felt so weak that if it wasn't for his arms, she probably would have dropped to the ground. He didn't let go of her, not even loosening his hold on her. No, he had let her go once before, he was going to hold onto her forever now.

"Jack," She told him gently. "You have my whole heart. You always will."

He grinned at her, even though their lips werent together, their faces were only about an inch apart. When she spoke, he could feel her breath on his face. "You have no idea how much Sawyer has been using this against me." He told her.

Funnily enough she laughed. "You'd be surprised..." She told him. After all, Sawyer had talked to her as well.

"God, I love you so much." He said breathily.

"I love you too." She replied, the first time she had specifically said that phrase to him that day. They kissed again, and when they parted, Kate turned serious. "What you were sayin downstairs...it made me realise how much we did together..."She told him. "How much you did for me."

"It made me realise how much I loved doing it for you." He smiled.

"I guess we'll have to thank Sawyer for this." Kate remembered, seeing as he was responsible the reason that her legs refused to support her at the moment.

"He can wait." Jack said, not wanting to move.

"Good," She grinned. "Because you're not going anywhere." She said stubbornly.

"Oh really?" He challenged.

"No, you're staying right here with me." She ordered gently.

"I have something to show you first. Close your eyes." He said to her when she leaned to kiss him again. Pouting, she looked up at him unfairly. "Don't make me blindfold you!" He warned, and she laughed out loud.

She agreed, and he led her by the hand into her bedroom with her eyes closed. She wondered what it was, but was glad she didn't have to wait two hours for it this time.

"Ready?" She heard Jack ask as he released her hand, leaving her standing alone.

"I'm ready." She said with a laugh.

"Ok, then, open your eyes."

She opened them, and found herself looking at her bed. The white blanket was completely covered in roses, and a quick count she found that there was twelve of them; eleven red, and right in the centre, one white one. She gasped and looked up at Jack, who smiled innocently and motioned towards a card. She walked over to the bed, the smell of the fresh roses overcoming her and picked up the card, reading it aloud.

""To the one who always stands out in the crowd, and in my heart." Jack, this is amazing!"

Looking around, she found herself looking at everything she had advised to Sawyer. The roses, with the card that wasn't signed, but she knew that it was from Jack. The whole time they had been talking outside, he had been looking at her eyes, not her lips. On the floor around her feet were rose petals. She wondered when he had been up here to do all of this. But before she got a chance to ask, she turned around and flung her arms around him.

"Kate?" He asked, playing with a brown curl of her hair over her shoulder

"Yes, Jack?" She answered.

"There's something I've got to say to you."

"Anything." He pulled back and looked her in the eyes.

"Kate. You are so beautiful, it hurts to look at you."

She smiled, and she realised how he knew to do all of those things. First of all, he was a hopeless romantic. But secondly, these things were the things she had missed on the island, and while being on the run, and she had never really experienced them before for herself, she had only read about them, or seen them on movies, and Jack knew this.

Because with her, he always knew.

FIN