A/N: Just another quick thanks to everyone who reviewed or sent messages. I honestly didn't expect my first LOST fanfic to be this well-recieved. :) I apologize for not posting Chapter 3 sooner, but here it is now. Enjoy!
Chapter 3: What Happens In The Hatch...
"Can you come help me with this?" Ana Lucia's deep, harsh voice asked me. In my rush to reach Jack, I overlooked the woman and almost jumped when she asked me the question.
Turning around, I saw the usual glare and lowered eyes staring at me, waiting for an answer. Loaded across her arms were piles of thick bamboo trunks, with there leaves still attached. Her uninviting brown eyes glanced at the weights in her arms, then back at me.
As much as I tried, deep inside I did not like Ana. All the islanders labeled her as a murderer, the killer of Sayid's love. But that wasn't the reason I held a small portion of rage towards her.
She wanted Jack. She swooned and comforted him immediatly upon meeting him. There were nights, after I kissed him, that I wondered if she'd already won over his heart. If she, in fact, would be the bride at the beach wedding Bernard so urgently promised.
Despite my disdain, I walked over and grabbed an end. I figured if there was something inside her Jack could love, maybe I could find it also. Struggling to keep up with Ana's fast pace I called out, "I can't stay for too long...my shift at the hatch is starting soon and I don't want to keep Jack waiting."
"Oh, don't worry, he won't mind," Ana responded without so much as turning her head.
My curiousity wanted to know what Ana meant by that, but my ego didn't want the woman to know I was interested in what she had to say.
Reaching the familiar white sand once more, I dropped my half of the load next to the ongoing stack and released a heavy sigh. The bamboo was, indeed, heavy and it surprised me that Ana had managed to carry it that far.
"Grab that knife and start cutting," Ana demanded, pointing to a fair sized weapon lodged into a piece of wood.
My small eyes widened slightly at the order. Jack hated being told what to do. I remembered his fury towards Zecke the night he forced him to throw down his guns. He was the dictator, not the soldier.
"Did I stutter?" Ana asked with a slightly annoyed tone. My eyes traveled from the knife to her and saw a matching blade in her hand. The point was no more than three feet away and in my direction.
"I told you I had to get to the hatch..."
"And I told you Jack won't care if your late."
"How would you know that? Last time I checked you were out here, with nobody to talk to," I spat back. Calm down, I yelled in my mind. The woman was pushing my anger to a new high and I wasn't sure how much longer I could keep it in check before an all-out cat-fight erupted.
"Listen, Ms. Flirt, I haven't done anything to you. So why are you acting like such a bitch? Is it because of Shannon, were you friends with her?"
I glared. At the time all I wanted to do was see Jack, to hear his voice, but the more the tailie spoke, the more irretible I became with him. How could he see something nice in someone so evil? She had to trick him somehow, and standing in front of her, I was determined to figure out how.
"As a matter of fact, we were all friends on this island. Everybody liked each other and got along with each other...until you came and ruined everything."
A mixture of anger and hurt flashed across Ana's eyes. "You think that I ruined everyone's lives? You think I'm responsible for Charlie going mad and Locke fighting with Jack?" As the words escaped Ana's mouth, I knew I was an idiot for saying something like that. She wasn't the one to blame for it all. She wasn't the person to point fingers at. She just made it so much easier. Killing Shannon, secluding herself, acting like a cop to everyone around, it made it so I could plant her with the reasons for so much mayham. It allowed me to put a face to the unimaginable master of the island.
"In case you've forgotten, I lost almost every single one of my friends. I lost them to the people really responsible for this hell we're living. And if you think, for one moment, that I'm going to sit back, and let you accuse me of being one of those monsters, you're wrong."
Letting out yet another sigh, I ran a hand through my hair, hating the now ever-present feeling of sand and salt water. "Ana, I'm sorry for what I said. I know you're not an Other," I paused for a moment, convincing myself that what I was doing would be what Jack wanted. The good Kate he used to respect. "I just want to stop this madness, and I looked for the easiest person to gear my anger towards."
Ana rubbed her sleeveless arm and contemplated over what I had just said. Her dark complection appeared frazzled for a minute, but just as quickly as I noticed it, she replaced with a cold stare. "You wanna know what I think? I think you might be alittle dissapointed that Shannon died. But I also think you were glad. It gave you another guy you can manipulate and play your games with," I stood speechless. "That's the real reason you don't like me. Don't you think I know? I have nothing better to do all day than watch you people scurry around, trying to make a life in this place. I see you go from guy to guy, smiling and flirting, sometimes giving them a kiss...But then you leave them and go on to the next one. Their like your puppets, you play with them until you get bored, and then you leave them there to untangle themselves until you come back for more."
My entire body was rigid. I feared moving a muscle, for I felt compelled to hit her. How could anyone say that? She knew nothing about me,and to flat out call me a tramp was out of line. Any effort to salvage our relationship was flushed away.
"Jack might be too afraid to say it, but I'm not. He's sick and tired of you using him and leaving. Do you know how many nights he's came and talked to me? About you? Everytime you pull one of your stunts, you leave him in pieces. And let me tell you this. I've waited around for you to realize what a good guy you've got on your hands, and I'm done with it. So you better make a decision, because I'm not waiting any longer."
Emotions I never knew existed rushed through me at that instant. Staring deadly into Ana Lucia's dark pit of a heart, any want to speak was taken away. Minutes I stood there, it seemed, taking in nothing of what was going on around me, just the other islander in too close of a proximity.
"You know," I gulped in the ocean air and paused, letting the breeze cool me down. "There are a million things I could say to you...but I'm not going to." Ana's eyes became thinner. "Because, I've already stepped out of line, and you have a right to think what you want-"
"It's not what I think, it's what I know!" I felt the distance become thinner as Ana's took a half step forward.
"All I'm saying is, don't wait on me. If you and Jack want to be together, go ahead. Don't let my...friendship with him stand in your way." Every inch of my body ached. The pain that seared through my heart was indescribable. My words left a poisinous taste on my lips.
Ana froze, staring at me with the slightest bit of confusion. "Friends, eh?"
"Ana, I can be mean and cruel at times, but never will I stop two people from being together. So, please, go ahead...Jack doesn't like me like that anyways."
Just as easily as I had zoned everything out, Aaron crying, Jin's unkown words, Ecko cutting wood, all the noise came flowing back into my ears once I finished my sentence to Ana. For a moment, I believed Ecko was cutting at my heart, but event that pain would have been lesser than the one I felt then.
"Fine."
Without another word word to me, Ana turned her back to me and began tearing the bamboo apart. I watched her knife sail through the air. Back and forth. Back and forth. To think that I had just given that bitch the one thing that kept me sane on the island was more than I could bear. Head held low, I started my treck to the Hatch.
-----
The sun was low in the sky by the time I reached the Hatch door. On a normal day, the trip would have taken much less time, but after my confrontation with Ana, I needed time to sort through my thoughts before I talked with Jack.
Darting my eyes to the fiery ball standing out against the clear blue sky I smiled softly. The sunset would be beautiful that night, and I silently hoped I'd get the chance to see it.
Eager to get the shifts changed and avoid Jack as much as possible, I pushed open the door. Before I could enter, though, the sounds of fast footsteps filled my ears.
The steps sounded heavy and unorganized. They were the sounds of someone upset and full of anger. Sensing it best to give whomever it was a quick getaway, I jumped behind a set of bushes next to the entrance.
Holding my breath, I kneeled down to where I could only be visible through the spaces inbetween branches and leaves. Not more than ten seconds after moving, Sayid's large body came into view. His hands were rubbing eachother vigourusly and I noticed something dark sticking to them.
As I continued to watch Sayid slip on by, I felt an unbearable urge rise in my body. I hadn't noticed in my hurry to hide myself I'd taken residence next to a very strong smelly flower bush. The scent had seeped into my nose and I realized the need to sneeze was growing more and more.
Holding my fingers tight against my nose, closing the airway, didn't help in the least. Sayid's feet barely passed the tree I was behind before a high-strung "Ah-choo!" escaped me.
The Middle Easterner's muscualr body went stiff and his back rigid as he turned around. Cursing myself, I stood up and walked into view, fearing the worst.
Sayid had dropped his arms and was standing as if he were a statue, frozen and emotionless. His usually full lips were pulled thin and his eyes had a fire in them I'd never known Sayid could master.
"Hi, Sayid," throwing him a small smile, I could see that my run-in with him could not have come at a worser time.
"Kate, what are you doing here?" the now-common accent rang out. Sayid's voice matched his demeanor, only harsher.
"My shift's about to begin. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hide from you that way. I wasn't eavesdropping or anything..."
"How long have you been there?"
"Only since I heard you come this way. I wasn't sure who it was, and it sounded to me like they, you, were mad. I just wanted to avoid another confrontation."
"Is that all?" The question was asked almost immediatly barely a second after I said my last word.
"Yes," I nodded my head. "Hey, by the way, I thought Locke and Jack were on the Hatch. Did you switch off with them or something?"
Sayid chest rose and fell heavily as he stared back into the Hatch. Watching his eyes, I noticed they weren't focused at anything around him, but were lost in his own thoughts and memories. He waited several agonizing seconds before answering my question. "No, I did not switch shifts. Kate, Jack does not need you tonight. Locke and him will do fine. You can go back to the beach."
"What about Hurley? Was he here? Is that why I don't need to do a shift?"
"Hurley? No, I did not see Hurley."
"But he was supposed to take my spot. Has Jack seen him?"
"I do not know," Sayid said impatiently.
My eyes narrowed. It seemed that there was no concern towards Hurley in his emotions as he talked with me. Looking into the Dharma building, I asked, "Is something going on down there?" Suspecious, my gaze traveled to Sayid's hand and I realized what was on his fingers.
Blood. Not a lot. But enough. Enough to scare me. Enough to get my nerves raised. Sayid saw my expression and followed my line of sight. Holding his hands, palm out, in front of him, he caught my full attention.
"I would like to tell you where this blood came from, and who's it belongs to. But I cannot. All I ask of you is that you do not go in the Hatch." My brows knitted, frustrated.
"I promise, if you do this one thing for me, I will tell you why. But right now I need to make sure this is kept as secret as possible."
"But, Sayid, you know I can keep it secret. I swear."
Sayid held up a hand to stop me. "I know. But that is not the reason I am keeping this from you. I am too distraught right now to attempt and talk about it. You must take my word. I promise."
I forced my head in an upwards and downwards motion, although it wanted to to shake the other way. To tell Sayid that it wasn't alright. That my curiousity was almost too much to handle and I needed to know. At that moment I had to know. Right then. But a glance into the man's eyes washed away the urge. I saw sorrow and weariness taking over his soul.
Walking a few steps away from the door, I turned my head back to the Arabic. "Sayid, if you need to, talk, or anything...I'm here for you."
Flashes of us standing on the beach before Sayid had left went through my mind as I walked off, leaving him to his own struggles. That day had seemed years ago. So much had occured since then.
As I moved through the forest I almost wished I was back to talking with Sayid. Back to when Jack could talk to me and Sawyer was nothing but innocent fun. Back before the Hatch was opened and the button had to be pushed. Back before Walt was kidnapped. Back before the tailies found us. Back before Ana Lucia had discovered Jack.