A/N: Ok, I'm gonna start authors notes, coz everyone else seems to be doing them, so why not? Also, starting next chapter, I'm gonna do a reply to all of your reviews, so make sure you review from this chapter on, and you'll get a reply! Lol, how exciting. Maybe not, but y'know, I'm trying to give y'all an incentive to review, and I reckon it's better than insane screams of PLEASE! clears throat Ahem, anyway… on with the chapter!
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Shannon worked quickly, and soon, everyone was packing their things and moving back to the beach, chatting cheerfully among themselves. And on top of that, Locke had been right. So far, not a single person had wondered (aloud) how it was possible for them to all move back to the beach so soon. All they cared about was that they could.
A sudden cry drew the attention of the movers to a small man darting through the undergrowth behind them.
"Help!" Charlie called again, ducking under a low-hanging branch. "Are any of you a doctor?"
They all shook their heads and continued on their journey back to the beach.
"Nurse..?" Charlie attempted weakly. He didn't expect any of them to help. When you were stranded on an island, it was all for one.
Charlie cursed under his breath and continued on his hunt for someone with any medical experience who wasn't currently unconscious.
A half hour later, he was beginning to get desperate. No one at the beach, in the jungle, or stragglers around the caves had any idea what to do in a situation such as this.
Eventually, he decided to give up and return to Kate. He'd asked everyone at least twice and there was no point in going around for thirds. He'd just have to admit to failure.
"Sorry Kate, but would you believe it," He began, trying to keep it light as he entered the cave. "Looks like Jack was the only one with any -"
He stopped as he took in the occupants of the cave. There was Jack, of course, slumped over in the corner. Then there was Kate, chewing on her lower lip anxiously as she knelt beside the sleeping Boone. His skin had broken out in a red rash and he was shivering slightly. Tending to him was a man Charlie hadn't met before. He had floppy brown hair, which he carelessly pushed out of his face, and piercing green eyes. He was rubbing a thick green paste over Boone's chest in slow, circular motions, stopping only occasionally to dip his fingers back into the cup that held the balm.
Kate looked up when Charlie spoke.
"Oh, its ok, Charlie." She said, smiling at the brown-haired man as if he was some kind of god. "We've already found someone."
"Dr. Richard Malone." The man said, extending his hand for Charlie to shake. He had just a hint of a British accent.
"Pleasure." Charlie said tartly. Was it really necessary to slip the 'Dr.' in there? "Charlie Pace."
Richard nodded curtly and went back to rubbing the paste onto Boone's rash.
"So, uh, where'd they manage to find you?" Charlie asked, squatting beside Kate. "I thought I'd scoured the entire island, and some."
Richard laughed.
"I was living down the far end of the beach when the storm hit." He explained. "I felt it was far too risky trying to make it back here before it got really bad, so I took shelter in a cave closer to my tent." He let out a shaky little laugh. "I didn't count on it going on for so long."
"Wait." Kate said sharply, her head snapping up once she processed what Richard had just said. "There are other caves?"
"Yes." He replied, sounding surprised that Kate didn't already know this. "Well, more of an outcropping in the rock, actually. Not much good against the wind, but it kept me dry enough, in any case."
"Why wasn't anyone told about this?" Kate asked.
"Well, I -" Richard began. Suddenly, Boone started having a sort of coughing fit. His breath came out raspy and his face was turning red.
"Hey, hey, it's ok, um…" Richard leaned over to calm him. "What's his name?"
"Boone" Kate replied.
"Everything's gonna be ok, Boone." He said. "But it looks like you're having some difficulty breathing, so I'm gonna need you to calm down. Count to three, then take a deep breath, can you do that?" Boone nodded weakly though a series of coughs. "Good. Now, ready? With me. One, two, three."
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Sawyer felt actual happiness wash over him as he saw his tent come into view. It was a friendly, familiar place, complete with airline seat and tarp roof (which had blown off in the wind, but he replaced it easily).
He hadn't realized how much he'd missed feeling the soft fabric of his chair beneath him, missed pushing the sand around between his toes as he absentmindedly turned the pages of Watership Down, or the Playboy magazine he'd found in some guy's suitcase (along with a pair of fluffy handcuffs, but that wasn't really his style)
He was amazed that (almost) everything was still in its rightful place. He didn't think about it for long, but the question of 'how' did flicker across his mind for a second, then it was gone.
Sawyer started sorting through his stuff, making sure everything was still there. He opened the first suitcase and briefly checked through. Aspirin, magazines, flashlight, canned soup and…
Something wedged down the side of the case caught his attention. He dug down with his hand and pulled out a spiral-bound notebook. Then an idea struck him.
He looked at the notebook thoughtfully for a few seconds, before getting up and hunting through the rest of the cases for a pen. Time to follow through with that journal idea.
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"I'm just really worried about him." Kate said as she tramped through the jungle with Claire. "Richard doesn't even know what's wrong. I just don't want to leave him."
"Hey, don't worry. He's in good hands." Claire assured her, unsuccessfully trying to disentangle her hair from Aaron's firm grip.
"Maybe." Kate said, unconvinced. "But what if he's really sick."
"I'm sure he'll be fine." Claire insisted.
"Yeah, I'm sure you're right." Kate agreed half-heartedly. "So…" She quickly tried to change the subject. "I saw you with Charlie. You two got a bit of a thing going on?" She wiggled her eyebrows.
"Maybe." Claire replied, trying to keep a straight face, but ended up giggling. "I hope so. Charlie's such a sweet guy, you know? And he loves Aaron." The baby gurgled happily at the mention of his name. "I think he likes me. I really hope he does." She trailed off, a distant smile on her face. "So, what about you? Anything steamy between you and Jack -" She stopped suddenly when she realized what she said, a look of horror on her face. "Oh no. I'm so sorry, Kate."
Kate was staring at the ground; eye's watery at the mention of Jack.
"It's ok." She said. "It wasn't your fault."
"No, but…" Claire trailed off. "God, I'm so tactless!"
"Don't worry about it." Kate insisted, wiping the potential tears from her eyes. "Really. It's no big deal." But she knew that wasn't true. Jack was a huge deal. He always would be. Except… "I'm not even sure if Jack's the one for me."
"What?" Claire asked, forgetting all about her guilt in surprise at what Kate had just said.
"Yeah, I mean, he's sweet and everything, but he's just got too much…" Kate trailed off, searching for the right word. "Responsibility. You know? Besides, I don't think he's into the whole… cuddling by the fireside thing." Claire snorted.
"And you are?" She asked, giggling.
"Well, yeah, I guess I am." Kate replied seriously, and Claire stopped laughing.
"Well, maybe he's not," She reasoned. "But I'll bet he'd be more open to it than, say, Sawyer."
"Funny you should mention him." Kate said sheepishly. Claire's eyes grew wide.
"No way!" She gasped, shifting Aaron onto her other arm. "You're not seriously into Sawyer?" Kate sighed.
"I don't know." She said. "I want to be treated well, like I'm the only other person in the world. I want him to sing 'Isn't she lovely' to me on the beach at sunset and give me white roses." She stopped, blushing as she realized what she was saying. "Whoever 'he' is." She mumbled.
"Wow." Claire exclaimed. "Are we seeing a different side to Kate?"
"Maybe." She replied, smiling at the image her descriptions had stirred up in her mind, but that smile vanished almost instantly. "But it doesn't matter, because it's not like Sawyer would ever do that."
"Hey, you never know." Claire encouraged.
"Please." Kate said as they pushed out of the bushes and stepped into the intense heat which was the price of being a beach-dweller. She couldn't help her eyes from flickering over in the direction of Sawyer's tent. Not for long enough to really see anything, just long enough to confirm to her satisfaction that it was still there, and see its colors one more time. "I don't think so."
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It was getting dark, and everyone was settled back into their tents at the beach. Even the cave-dwellers were staying with a friend on the sandy shore; the cave had gotten too much over the past week or so. The sound of contented chatter rose from the campsite. Everyone was happy again, or as happy as possible considering the circumstances.
And somewhere, crashing through the jungle, someone was looking to change that.