Chapter 5

Jack was still holding his hand out to Kate to lead her wherever it was they were going to go. She hesitated only an instant before taking it and following him. She tried to think where he might be taking her, but all she could think about was the look on Sawyer's face when she'd called him a jackass...

As he lead her away from the clearing where she and Sawyer had just been, Jack held her hand tightly. He loved the feeling of her hand in his. It sent chills up his spine. But he couldn't help wondering what had happened before he showed up. And soon he couldn't stand it anymore, "What happened back there?" he asked quietly.

Startled kate looked up at him. "What?"

"Back there. What was going on?"

"Oh. I...I'm not sure...really." Her voice trailed off as she seemed to become lost in thought. Her eyes moved to the ground but didn't see it.

"It's just..." Jack began, "When I walked up I saw you practically staggering away from Sawyer like...like he had...hit...you." Jacks anger flared once again. "Did he hit you?" he said through clenched teeth.

Kate looked up at him sharply, "No. Sawyer hasn't ever...layed a hand on me. Why?" She suddenly became curious as to why he was so concerned about it.

He looked away in relief, trying not to let it show on his face. "Uh. No reason. I just...I couldn't let some guy just hit yo- a woman...it's not right. You know." He kept his face turned away like he was concentrating on where he was going as they weaved in and out of the trees. But she still saw the slight blush that rose to his cheeks.

This made her smile. She gently squeezed his hand. It seemed to sort of startle him that she did this, and he glanced back at her in suprise. He saw her smile and it made him blush even more. But he just kept on moving through the trees.

After a few minutes of comfortable silence Kates curiosity got the better of her. "So where are we going, exactly?"

This made Jack's smile widen. "Um. I just... found...something. I thought you might like it. It's not far." And with that he pulled her along a bit faster, but her curiosity would not be quelled. She had just opened her mouth to ask more questions when they came through a break in the trees and into a large clearing. Kate's eyes widened in surprise at the sight. In front of her and spread throughout the clearing was a large pool, backed by a magnificent waterfall.

Jack just watched her face, to see how she would react. He had wanted to surprise her, and it seemed to have worked. But then a funny look came over her face, and he couldn't quite tell what it was. "Is something wrong?" he asked, concerned.

She smiled up at him, "No, nothing is wrong. It's beautiful." Her expression became thoughtful. "But...why did you bring me here?"she asked looking mischieviously like she'd found something out that she wasn't supposed to.

Trying to look innocent, Jack looked around him with a slight shrug, "Umm. No reason. I just thought maybe, you'd like it." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye trying to hide a smile that was slowly creeping onto his lips.

Kate laughed, and so did Jack. After a few seconds their laughter died and both just stood there admiring the beauty of the place. Kate noticed that Jack hadn't let go of her hand this whole time, and squeezed his to see if he had noticed this too. He glanced down at their hands, the fingers lightly entertwined as if they belonged where they were. He shyly looked up at Kate and grinned, shrugging once again. But he didn't let go. Neither did Kate.

After a while of standing there, Kate was beginning to wonder how long this was going to continue. "So...thanks...for bringing me here. It's nice." She didn't really know what to say but tried to fill the silence. "I-" She was totally caught off guard when Jack suddenly let go of her hand and reached down, picking her up in one swift motion. Screeching slightly, Kate wrapped her arms around his neck to keep him from throwing her in the water. But to her surprise, he didn't even try to. He just held her for a minute, looking deep into her eyes, and smiling. And before she knew what was happening, she felt cold water rushing over her whole body, and she beat her legs, getting out of Jack's grip and coming to the surface with a gasp.

She turned in the water just as Jack was coming up. She let his head pop out of the water just long enough to get a breath before she reached out and dunked him. But he grabbed her legs, and pulled her down with him. Under the water she struggled playfully to get away from him, but he was too strong of a swimmer. They came to the top once more. Both thrashing about trying to splash and push one another under the water. Most of the time Kate was only successful at splashing him once or twice before he would get a hold of her and take her down.

When they were both tired out from swimming and playing they crawled out of the water to dry themselves on the rocks. Kate lay on her back, breathing hard and still giggling from the exsertion (sp?) of the last hour. Jack rolled onto his side and propped his head up on his hand. He watched her laying there, giggling, and couldn't help but smile himself. They were close together and he reached out, and gently wiped some hair out of her face. She smiled, and rolled onto her side so she could look at him the same as he was looking at her. Looking at his smiling eyes she sighed, "What are you thinking about right now?"

Without even the slightest hesitation he replied, "How beautiful you are." Then, suddenly realising what he said, a slight look of alarm came over him. Kate just laughed, and it made him smile and relax. "What are you thinking about?" he asked in a sort of mocking voice.

Kate's face became serious, and their eyes met. "I was thinking about what a wonderful time we just had. I haven't had that much fun in a looong time." She smiled, "Thank you."

Jack couldn't take his eyes off of her face. He had meant what he had said about her being beautiful. Her eyes shined with playful joy. Again he reached out to her, but this time simply caressed her cheek with his thumb.