Jack felt nervous waiting for Kate to arrive to the memorial. He had hoped Aaron would want to spend time with him again but didn't want to push the child; he'd rather wait until Aaron came to him. When he hadn't, Jack got the message loud and clear.
Kate arrived, her arm wrapped around her latest date. The man was double Kate's size, his biceps bulging from underneath his shirt. Kate looked beautiful as ever in a navy blue halter dress; the dress had a slit at her lower thigh that fell to her heels. She had her hair pulled back into an updo; she was without a doubt the most beautiful and exquisite woman in the party. When she met eyes with him she started to smile but stopped herself and looked down.
Why did she react that way? Did he upset Aaron when he visited? Did he offend Kate somehow?
Kate could barely look at Jack. She wanted to know why he asked to enter Aaron's life if he were just going to walk out. He hadn't made any attempts to get in touch with them.
"Hi," Jack finally said. He had followed Kate to the bar, forcing himself to break the ice.
"Hello," she said, turning away from the bar with a drink in hand.
"Kate, let's cut to the chase, I hate this tension—"
"Let's not get into this." Her voice was cold. "You made your choice and it is what it is."
"What are you talking about?" He pushed. "I've been waiting all week for you to get ahold of me."
"Why would I get ahold of you? It's your choice whether to see Aaron or not; you chose not to see him again."
"Is that what you think?" He reached over, grabbing her empty hand. "I was waiting to see if Aaron wanted to see me again. I didn't want to force myself into his life." After a moment, he spoke again. "And you seemed a little uncomfortable…"
"No, no I'm fine. And Aaron is crazy about you. He's asked about you. You're welcome to visit anytime, he'd love spending time with you."
Jack tried to hide his disappointment. He had hoped she would have used we instead of he. He had hoped she was crazy about him. He hoped she loved spending time with him, too.
As much as she'd wanted Jack to be in Aaron's life, it also hit her hard. When she'd revealed her feelings to him he rejected her because he wasn't ready to have a relationship with Aaron. Yet he did want a relationship with Aaron. She wanted to know why he didn't want to be with her. What had she done? He had told her that he loved her on the island; what changed?
A few days later Jack showed up at Kate's house.
Hey," Kate said when she opened the door. "He's in his room."
Jack was a little taken back by how short she was and her guarded tone.
"How have you been?" Jack tried.
"Fine." Kate didn't bother asking Jack the same. She simply turned and continued on with tidying up the kitchen.
"What do you say to pizza tonight? I thought I could—"
"We can't tonight," she lied.
"Some other night?" He offered.
"I don't like pizza," she scoffed. "You and Aaron are welcome to go out for pizza whenever."
Jack knew Kate had liked pizza; she'd mentioned it once when they listed all the things they missed. Feeling defeated, he headed down the hallway towards Aaron's room. On the way, he pulled out his cell phone and snapped pictures of various photos hanging on the walls.
A few hours later, he emerged from Aaron's room.
"He's completely out," Jack said softly. "He didn't even stay awake long enough to pick out a book," he chuckled.
"I'm sure you wore him out," Kate spoke without glancing up.
"Kate, what's going on?"
"I could ask you the same question," she fired back.
"I'm just spending time with Aaron!"
"You didn't want to. What's changed? What is your endgame?"
"I was wrong!" Jack struggled not to raise his voice. "Is that what you're upset about? I apologize! I made a mistake, Kate. I regret not staying in contact with Aaron from the start."
Kate felt the sting of him regretting how he'd rejected Aaron; Jack had made no mention of regretting turning Kate down. She hated herself for being so vulnerable; she hated how she clung to Jack's every word, desperate for him to want her again.
"Okay, look… how about we just have communication on when you want to visit Aaron?" She offered.
"Yeah, it shouldn't be a problem. We both want the same thing. Don't we?"
"I just want the best for Aaron," she snapped.
"I… I'll call you to set up another visit…" Jack spoke in a daze. What had he done? Why was Kate so angry with him? He had been trying to make amends for how he had handled things when they'd first come home.
How could he make it up to Kate if she wouldn't tell him what he was making up for?