The pages of Sawyer's book stuck slightly to each other as he tried to turn them, due to the condensation in the air caused by the storm.

He pushed his glassed further up the bridge of his nose, reminding himself once again how nerdy he must look. He hated wearing his glasses, but he couldn't read without them. This thought lessened his spirits even more, as it made him feel like an old man.

It was so ironic, he almost laughed out loud. A nerdy old man. It couldn't be further from how he had been feeling that morning, probably the best morning since he landed on the island, heck, maybe in his whole life, swimming in that wonderful lake with -

"Freckles!"

Kate didn't bother to correct him. He knew her name alright, but he preferred to invent his own.

"What do you want?" He asked, sounding angrier than he had meant to.

"Not quite the greeting I had expected." She remarked, sitting down beside Sawyer, leaning her back against the cave wall.

"I just almost got struck by lightning." Sawyer replied bitingly. "Sorry if I'm not radiating positive chi."

"Are you okay?" Kate asked, realizing she had neglected to ask him this before.

Sawyer grunted, turning back to his book.

"I'll take that as a 'yes'" Kate said, plucking the book from his hands and sitting on it so he couldn't get it.

Sawyer looked at her for a few seconds, then smirked.

"You gotta find yourself a better hiding place, sweet cheeks." He said. "You know I'll go under there."

But he took off his glasses anyway, folded them up and tucked them so that they hung on the front of his shirt, giving her the undivided attention that was reserved only for Kate.

"I know that sometimes-"

"Shannon!"

Kate was cut off mid-sentence by Boone's distressed cry. He had leapt to his feet, and was looking around in desperation.

"What is it?" Jack asked, also getting up, and approaching Boone. There was a fearful gleam in his eye.

"It's Shannon!" He shouted. "She's not here!"

"What?" Jack shouted, then regained his cool head. "Wait, what do you mean she's not here?"

"Do I have to spell it out for you?" Boone yelled, growing increasingly agitated. "She's not here! As in somewhere else! Out there!"

He pointed to the exit of the cave, where another bolt of lightning flashed, as if just to emphasize his point.

A lump identical to Hurley's had now risen in Jack's throat. He ignored it.

"Boone, calm down!" Jack said, using his authoritive voice. "Okay? Just calm down."

He turned around to scan the faces of the cave's other occupants, all of which were now staring at him and Boone.

"Has anyone seen Shannon?" He asked, needing to yell to be sure he could be heard by everybody, as the outside sounds were still very loud.

A murmur of 'no's swept around the crowd, but all soon hushed by a loud 'yes!' from the back of the cave.

"Yes!" Said Charlie again, scrambling down from the rock formation he had been sitting on. "Only about fifteen minutes ago! She was sitting on that boulder with the flat top near the beach."

"Just… sitting there?" Boone asked, in the middle of all this?" Knowing his sister, he wouldn't be surprised.

"Well, y'know, it wasn't raining or anything." Charlie said. "Just really windy. O'course, she didn't think to help move any of the stuff, the little -"

Charlie stopped abruptly, realizing he was saying this out loud. He shut his mouth, turning a deep shade of purple.

"I have to go get her!" Boone said, starting for the exit of the exit of the cave, but Jack caught his arm and pulled him back.

"Are you crazy?" He asked. "Didn't you see what almost happened to Sawyer? You could be killed!"

"What about Shannon?" Boone shouted.

Jack stared at him, lost for words. He knew Boone was right. Shannon was helpless by herself, and what if she had an asthma attack?

"Fine." Jack consented. "Go, but -"

"I'll come with you." A voice spoke up from the back of the cave with a strong Iraqi accent.

Sayid stepped forward, speaking for the first time since they had taken refuge in the cave.

Boone stared at Sayid skeptically.

"I don't know…" He began.

"Suppose you were to get hit by lightning," Sayid interrupted. "or flying debris. There's a chance you could survive, so long as you had someone there to get you back to camp."

Boone still didn't say anything.

"Going alone would be suicide." The Iraqi finished.

After a few more seconds of consideration, Boone finally nodded his head.

"Fine." He said. "But we have to hurry."

Sayid nodded and, wasting no time, they began towards the cave mouth, taking nothing with them but the clothes on their back, for fear of being slowed down.

"Wait." Came a voice from the back of the cave, just before they stepped outside.

Boone spun around, starting to get really mad.

"What is it now?" He asked impatiently. "I have to go save my sister!"

The voice was soon identified as Sawyer's, as he got up and approached Boone and Sayid.

"I'm coming." He said, not making any move to see if this was ok.

"No." Boone said straight away. "You can play the hero another day, but this is serious."

If this comment had in anyway offended Sawyer, he didn't show it.

"Think about it this way, Tonto." He said, laying the sarcasm on thickly. "They say lightning don't strike twice in the same place. You'd be safe as houses with me."

Boone considered this for a few seconds, before he spoke.

"Try to keep up." He said, not making eye contact as he charged out of the cave, instantly saturated, with Sayid and Sawyer in tow.