Kate sighed as she reached up for another guava, blowing the strands of hair out of her face. She was somewhere in the jungle – it was hard to keep track these days, when everything looked the same and her mind was always filled with other things – high above the world, sitting in a tree. Her knapsack was almost full with various kinds of fruit, but she wanted to get a few more guavas for the rest of the group. She knew that today was Valentine's Day, and she thought that some of the couples might want to have a picnic or some other festivities. It's not like she would be using them anyways – Sawyer, in his moodiness, didn't seem to be talking to her right now, not that she would have taken him up on any of his offers anyways. And Jack, well… after the whole thing a few days ago, Jack had stayed far away from her. She knew that he was upset with her; she could see it in his eyes when she had stopped him on the path back. Even though she apologized, his eyes that were usually so bright when looking at her were so hollow and empty that it hurt to gaze into them. She had failed him somehow, broken everything they had worked so hard to build.
Trying to think of anything else, Kate shoved the guava in her pack and began the long descent down the tree. She had hardly moved three feet down the trunk when a voice called up to her.
"Hey, Freckles!"
She looked down to see Sawyer standing on the ground, his hands casually slung in his jeans and his neck straining to look up at her.
"What do you want, Sawyer?" she asked, continuing to climb down the tree. She was in no mood for his games right now – she just wanted to deliver the fruit and get back to her tent.
"I got a message for ya from the Doc…" Sawyer shouted up, eyes sparkling and his dimples as prominent as ever. "Says he needs to see you in the hatch pronto."
"And when did he tell you that?" Kate landed on the ground with a thud and removed the pack from her shoulder, setting it on the ground and putting her hands on her hips.
"'Bout five minutes ago. Asked if I wanted to take a walk, and said I should find you and tell you to come. Don't know why Jackass asked me to tell ya, but here I am, Freckles, just doin' my duty." Sawyer grinned.
"Do you know what he wants?"
"I haven't got a damn clue. Last thing I knew, he wasn't even talkin' to ya, so it came as quite a shock to me. Maybe he wants to kiss and make up, considering it's Valentine's Day and all."
"Sawyer…" Kate said warningly, giving him a glare. He was always so rude, especially since he knew Jack wasn't talking to her on this of all days.
"Fine, Freckles," he said, throwing his hands up in the air. "But you'd better get down there fast, you never know when he might run off with Ana Lulu again." With one final smirk, Sawyer turned and sauntered away, leaving Kate to roll her eyes at his retreating figure.
She headed towards the beach, determined to hand out the fruit before she went to the hatch. Who knew what Jack wanted – to apologize, to yell at her more, to talk about something completely unrelated and pretend nothing ever happened? It wasn't that she didn't want to see him – even though a little part of her was dreading it, he was still Jack and she still cared about him, no matter how much he had humiliated and hurt her. But she wasn't just any girl - she was Kate, who didn't let people in too easily and never got attached. 'If Jack wants to find me so bad, he knows where to look', she thought to herself as she walked out of the jungle and onto the beach.
An hour later, Kate walked into the hatch, her hair slightly disheveled and her clothes dirty from climbing the trees. Although she was still feeling uneasy about Jack's request to see her, passing out fruit to the couples on the beach had cheered her up a bit.
"Jack?" she called, seeing no one and hearing nothing after she had walked a few feet into the hatch.
"Jack?" she called louder, still not hearing anything. She walked into the main room and didn't see anything, so she walked into the bedroom to find Jack fast asleep on the bottom bunk. She stopped short and smiled at his sleeping form – he looked so peaceful, such a sudden change from his usual stressed out demeanor. She knew she shouldn't stare at him, but something about him captivated her. He twitched a little in his sleep, and she giggled to herself, wondering what he was dreaming about.
Before she could stand and stare at him any longer, he was jolted awake by the sudden beeping noise of the computer. Startled, he quickly sat up, rubbing his forehead with the back of his arm and looking around. His gaze landed on Kate, who looked down sheepishly, hoping he didn't know how long she had been standing there.
"Hey," he said, his voice slightly hoarse from his slumber.
"Hey," Kate replied, "Sawyer said you were looking for me… did you need something?"
"Uh… yeah," Jack answered, running a hand over his closely shorn hair. "I wanted to talk to you about what happened a few days ago," he said, standing up and walking towards her just slightly, enough to see the freckles dotting her face.
"Jack, you don't have to-" Kate started, but was interrupted by Jack.
"Yes, Kate, I do. I acted like an ass. I was pissed off at you for coming even when I told you not to, but when I saw Zeke with the gun to your throat…" Jack trailed off, looking down and clearing his throat before continuing. "But, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so harsh with you, I know you were just trying to help. Sometimes I just…" he trailed off again, looking at Kate. Silently, she urged him on, needing to hear what he had to say.
Taking a deep breath, he continued. "Sometimes I just don't get you, Kate. You seem so distant sometimes, I can see it in your eyes, and I don't know how to take that – I don't know whether it's because of me, or because of something in your past. You're just so hard to read, and I feel like I'm walking on eggshells around you. When you kissed me, I thought that you were finally opening up, letting someone in. But it just turned out to be another one of your schemes. And when you ran away, I just kind of shut down and blocked you out. I knew you'd run to Sawyer, and that was just so frustrating that I had to block you out. I've been hurt before Kate, and I know you have too, but you've got to stop this."
Kate looked up at him, blinking – not to hold fresh tears back, but because she couldn't believe he had finally said these things to her. She had needed to hear him say them for so long, to realize her imperfections. She knew it didn't make sense, but somehow it validated her. Jack recognizing her flaws and being upset by them made this even more real – she couldn't run from this, not from someone who had seen through the colossal walls she had built as if it were merely a small pile of rocks. She had been trying to hide behind her walls for the entire time on the island, not completely understanding that they had been shattered on the first day in that clearing where she asked him if he had a color preference for his thread. He could stare at her and seemingly know every thought running through her head, and it terrified her. It left her naked in front of him, with nothing to use as ammunition to fire back when he inevitably hurt her, just like everyone else. But she finally understood – he wasn't trying to scare her, or make her run again. He was trying to understand her, to know her – something only one person before him had ever tried to do.
"It wasn't a scheme," she whispered, pushing back a piece of hair that had fallen in front of her face.
"What? What did you say?" Jack asked. He had heard her, but he wanted to make sure what he had heard was really what she said.
Clearing her throat, she spoke louder this time. "I said, it wasn't a scheme."
There was a pause while they just stood looking at each other, Jack slightly befuddled, and Kate terrified of continuing.
"It wasn't a scheme, Jack," she repeated, looking around the room at anything but his face and his eyes searching hers. "And I know I'm distant sometimes, it's just this… this whole thing, being stuck on an island with no place to go… I'm not used to it. I'm used to getting up and running whenever I want, whenever I have to. You said we get fresh starts here, Jack, but I still feel caught up in the old way. I don't feel liberated on this island, I feel trapped! There's no where for me to go, unless I want to go off and get eaten by the monster or the others or something. When I kissed you, I was hurt, confused, upset. My past had come back to haunt me in such a way that I couldn't even think straight. But that doesn't mean I didn't feel anything. And I didn't run to Sawyer. Even if I did, it's not like it would have meant anything… it's never been about him, Jack," she said, finally looking into his eyes with the mention of his name.
Jack opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He had gotten so worked up about what he had said to Kate, and he expected her to get angry with him – maybe not yell, but at least something similar to what happened in the jungle before the kiss. Definitely not what just came out of her mouth.
"I… I just don't really know what to say, Kate," he said truthfully.
"Just please forgive me, Jack. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for running away, I'm sorry for betraying you and getting taken by Zeke… I'm sorry that I'm so confusing and hard to deal with," Kate said, blinking back tears that had formed at their exchanging words.
"Kate, it's okay," Jack said, stepping forward and touching her arms lightly with his hands. "Whatever happens, we can work through it, okay? We both apologized and everything's going to be fine." He looked into her eyes, reassuring her as she slowly nodded her head. "Now, why don't you get a shower and get changed into some nice clothes? You don't have anything planned right now, do you?" he asked.
"Yeah, Jack, I was planning on getting changed and going to see a movie, maybe hop on over to McDonalds…"
Jack looked at her, not amused by her joking, but not able to keep a small smile from creeping onto his face.
"Okay, sorry… no, Jack, I don't have anything planned – we're on a deserted island," Kate said, seeing the look on his face.
"Well, that's good, because I have a surprise for you," Jack revealed, his smile growing wider.
"A surprise?" Kate asked, raising her eyebrow and smiling herself. "What kind of surprise?"
"Oh, like I would tell you," Jack said, laughing. "Just go take a shower… I left some clothes in there for you, okay?" he added, nudging her towards the bathroom.
"Okay, okay," Kate agreed, looking over her shoulder at him one more time before she stepped into the bathroom.
After toweling herself dry, Kate looked in the cabinet for the clothes Jack had left her. She pulled out a fairly clean tan tank top and a teal skirt, only slightly frayed on the bottom, that had tan, green, and brown patterns all over it, some of them accented with rhinestones. She also found a shell necklace that went perfectly with the clothes. After she put the clothes on, she ran the hairbrush through her hair, attempting to brush out the knots. She toweled it mostly dry and left it down, tucking it behind her ears as she left the bathroom.
"Jack?" she called, looking around for him. Smelling something good coming from the kitchen, she walked in to find Jack at the counter with his back turned to her. He was wearing a dark blue shirt with grey stripes, the black dress pants that he had been wearing when they landed, and no shoes or socks, just like Kate. She stood watching him, mesmerized by the way he moved so easily around the kitchen, and how sexy it was to see him in the kitchen, in bare feet. She kept watching until he leaned down to check something in the oven and saw her standing there.
"Hey," he said as he straightened up and wiped his hands on a towel, a grin slowly spreading across his face. "You look nice."
"Thanks," she said, blushing ever so slightly and looking down. She glanced back up to him, "You too."
Smiling wider, he turned around and opened the oven again, using oven mitts to take out a tray with containers of turkey, mashed potatoes, and carrots on it.
"They aren't the best," Jack said as he carefully set the tray on the counter and began dishing the food onto two plates. "But Hurley found them in the supply closet with the rest of the food, and I figured it's at least better than boar, right?" he asked, glancing at Kate, who was leaning against the counter, an unreadable expression on her face.
"Kate? You okay?"
"Jack… you made all this for me?"
"Yeah, Kate, I made it all for you," he answered seriously, stopping what he was doing and turning to look at her. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, he said, "Happy Valentine's Day, Kate." His hand lingered on her cheek for a second before he pulled it away, leaving Kate dizzy at the touch of his hand on her face.
"So, you're hungry, right?" Jack asked as he grabbed the plates and walked out of the room, towards the table. Kate followed him and gasped as she saw what Jack had done. The blinds next to the table were pulled shut so that the room was dark, lit only by two candles on the table. Jack had already put the place settings out, and next to Kate's was a beautiful bright pink flower that looked like the tropical version of a lily. Jack set the plates on the table and turned towards Kate.
"Are you ready?" he asked, concern in his eyes. Kate hadn't said anything since he told her that he had made this all for her.
"Yeah," she said, shaking her head to make sure it wasn't all an illusion. She blinked and when the scene before her remained unchanged, moved to the table and sat down across from Jack.
They began eating in a comfortable silence, both of them lost in their own thoughts. Every now and then, they would catch each other stealing glances at the other and would look away with a sheepish grin. They both ate quickly – the food tasted like heaven compared to the boar, fish, and fruit regimen they had been on before they found the hatch – so it wasn't long before they finished and the silence was broken.
"Thank you so much for this Jack," Kate said, smiling sincerely as she watched his eyes dance in the candlelight. "It really means a lot."
"You're welcome, but don't be thanking me yet," Jack said, a devilish grin on his face.
"What do you mean?" Kate asked, confused.
"Well, there's one more surprise… dessert," Jack announced, standing up and offering Kate his hand.
"Jack, come on… you didn't have to make dessert!" Kate protested, but Jack didn't say a word, just led her to the kitchen.
"Stay right here," he said, as he walked out of the room and into the supply closet. He returned with two containers in one hand, and a smaller jar in the other. Neither of them were clear, so she couldn't figure out what was in them. Jumping up and sitting on the counter, she watched as Jack reached under the counter and pulled out a plate of plain sugar cookies.
Her eyes lit up when she saw what he had, and a childish smile spread across her face, reminding Jack of when he had given her the guava seeds.
"Sugar cookies!" she squealed. Sugar cookies were her favorite, but she hadn't had them in so long. It was pretty hard to just walk into a bakery and buy cookies when you were on the run from the police, so she had pretty much given up hope of ever having them again.
"Yes, sugar cookies… but you can only eat them on one condition," Jack said, raising his eyebrow and holding the plate up just out of Kate's reach. Kate's smile fell and her eyebrows knitted together in a mock frown. "We have to decorate them."
Jack opened the two larger containers, revealing one filled with white frosting and one filled with red frosting. The smaller jar contained rainbow-colored sprinkles.
"Agreed," Kate said, her mouth watering at the sugar cookies and frosting in front of her.
"Good," Jack replied, reaching out for two butter knives that were on the counter. Handing one to Kate, they both began scooping out frosting and decorating their cookies.
Kate had already frosted and sprinkled four cookies by the time Jack was done with one. Looking up at Kate after hearing her giggle, he noticed her four already done cookies, and reached for another to begin decorating it, shaking his head slightly. Kate reached for another as well, and stuck her knife in the red frosting, lifting out a scoop that immediately collided with Jack's hand, on the way to the white frosting. Faking mock anger, Jack looked up at her with his eyes wide and mouth open.
"Did you just spill a glob of red frosting on my hand?" Jack asked, mustering all the anger he could, but knowing that he was no where near menacing.
Kate was giggling so hard she could barely nod, so she was surprised when she felt a sticky coldness on the end of her nose. She opened her eyes and looked down to see a mass of white frosting on the tip of her nose. She quickly turned her head to look at Jack, who was looking down at his cookie, pretending like nothing happened.
"Oh no, you didn't," Kate said, not bothering with a knife and reaching her hand into the red frosting. In one quick motion, she swiped a big line of frosting across Jack's cheek. Looking up in shock, he just as quickly scooped up some more frosting and left a trail of stickiness on her forearm, just as she was rubbing some on his forehead, both of them giggling like two kids. Moving to stand in front of Kate, he grabbed her leg with a frosting-covered hand, eliciting a surprised shout from her.
"Okay, okay, forfeit," Kate said, trying to calm her giggles and removing Jack's hand from her leg. "I'd rather not be completely covered in frosting this evening… I'm pretty sticky as it is."
"Well, let me help you with that," Jack said, his face turning serious. Leaning across, he quickly kissed her nose, taking away most of the frosting on his mouth and licking his lips when he pulled away slightly, looking into her eyes dancing across his face. She could still feel his warm breath on her cheek, and she couldn't tear her eyes away from his.
"Jack…" she breathed, before he leaned down and captured her lips with his once again. Their kiss was gentle at first, nothing like the rushed and intense kiss in the jungle. This one was filled with a sweetness and tenderness that made Kate grab onto Jack's waist just for the support.
She clutched the sides of his shirt as he deepened the kiss, running his hands over her back, eventually settling with one tangled in her hair and one on her thigh. Her hands moved from his waist to his neck as she let herself go, completely absorbed in Jack and what he was doing to her. They pulled away slightly, gasping for air as they rested their foreheads together. Lifting his other hand to cup her face, he turned her chin up to look her in the eye before kissing her again, this time with an intense passion and need. She parted her lips as she felt Jack's tongue slide into her mouth, their tongues dancing before he broke the kiss and moved to start trailing kisses down her neck. She pulled his face back up to hers, exploring his mouth with her tongue while she trailed her hands beneath the bottom of his shirt, feeling him shiver at her touch.
He broke the kiss to kiss her neck again, moving aside the strap of her tank top to kiss down her shoulder and back up, swirling his tongue in the hollow of her collarbone. By the time he brought her face back to his, she was unbuttoning his shirt from the bottom up. Undoing the top button, she let her hands trail over his bare chest, her nails scraping gently. He moaned into her mouth, only intensifying the desire she felt.
Bringing his hands to the bottom of her shirt, he broke the kiss to pull the tank top over her head, leaving her sitting in just her bra and skirt. She wrapped her arms around his neck and, spreading her legs, simultaneously pulled him closer and scooted forward on the counter so she was flush against him, their bare skin touching and sending electric currents through them both.
Jack deepened the kiss once again, and Kate wrapped her legs around his waist, bringing him ever closer. Without warning, Jack picked her up and carried her towards the bedroom, gently laying her on the bed, never breaking the kiss. His hands began fumbling with the waistband of her jeans, occasionally slipping a finger or two inside, when the noise of the computer blared throughout the hatch. Breaking the kiss and sighing, Jack looked at Kate's face, slightly flushed.
"You should get that," she said, leaning up to kiss him quickly. Jack rolled off of her, padding towards the computer. A few seconds later, she heard the clock flip and Jack was walking into the room. She moved over on the bed and Jack lay down next to her, kissing her gently before pulling away, tracing circles on her bare stomach.
"What now?" she asked in a whisper, running her fingers over Jack's collar and pulling him closer.
"Well, we are in a bunk bed and there's not going to be anyone in the hatch for another two hours…" Jack said playfully, kissing her neck. Kate laughed and kissed him deeply, knowing that this was the best Valentine's Day she had ever had.