Chapter 14 – back to Jate! Relief for me... and some of you guys I'm guessing, though I don't mind writing the SAna!

mozu the dark angel– did she now? Well, there's something I'm gonna need to talk to her about…

To everyone else –pls review! I love them sooo much!

xXx Tiana

'You wanna know what he did? You wanna know?' Kate was getting angry. She didn't know why, but she was.

Jack didn't say or do anything. He knew that she was trying to make it easier for herself, and he let her do it her own way. He just kept his hands as they were, still stroking Kate's shoulder and leg.

'Nothing.' She barely whispered. Jack wouldn't have been able to hear her if she wasn't sitting so close, nor if there wasn't a pin drop silence in the hatch.

Jack didn't know what to feel. Sure he was relived that he hadn't done anything to Kate, but something inside of him was disappointed. If he had done nothing then why is she like this? It couldn't be just because of her mother? Could it?

Kate fell silent for a while. Jack left her to recollect her thoughts. But after a little longer, Jack persisted to keep the story going.

'Kate…' he trailed off.

'All those years, I hated him. But there never was a reason, you know? He never touched me, never knew I was there. Then when I found out, I went mad. It was as if I was always supposed to hate him. Before I really knew who he was.'

'How did you find out?' Jack asked, whispering.

'A picture. Of my father. Who I thought was my father. The date on the back of it was wrong. It didn't fit with my birth date. So it wasn't hard to figure what had happened.'

Kate paused. She had thought about that moment so many times before, but right now, it seemed unreal, like it was a moment out of a movie.

'Then I decided to do something. He use to come home real late. Drunk, and as Mom was working, I'd have to make sure he got in right and everything. But one night, I just got really pissed off.' She explained. She wanted to explain it right, so that Jack wouldn't end up hating her at the end of it.

'So I left the gas on inside the house. He came home and I did everything the same. Took him in, took him up, put him in bed. Like a kid.' Kate took a breath. ' I didn't know if I was gonna be able to do it. I had the lighter, but it was too much. But then I thought about it. About him. And I knew I would. The longer he lived, the longer he would be a part of me. I know it doesn't make sense but - ' she broke off. Kate was no longer able to keep it all in. The tears had now started to fall.

Jack leaned in closer and took Kate into his arms. She turned into his shoulder. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to help her but I didn't want to hurt her.

'Shh. It's ok Kate.' it was the only thing he could ay. He was still processing the information through his head. It'll take time to get through it all.

After a while, Kate lifted her head up off of Jack shoulder, but didn't let go of him. She asked the one thing that was racking her mind the whole time since she finished the story. It had racked her before, before when no one knew. But know was the only time to ask him.

'Jack. Do you hate me? For what I did?' she whispered, not looking at him, rather at her lap.

Jack was startled. He couldn't belie what he was hearing. Hate her? That was to far for what I'm feeling for her!

'Hey, no! No way. I don't hate you, I can't hate you- ' he started to explain.

'But I killed him!' she interrupted, in a voice which sounded like pleading.

Does she want me to hate her? Jack thought. Then it came to him. It was what she was used to. Everyone who knew turned away from her. She's scared. Jack had never seen Kate so vulnerable before.

'Kate. I don't hate. I love you, 'k?' it was only after he had said it that Jack realised what he had said. He grinned a bit when he saw that Kate had also realised what he had said. She had now turned to look at him. All of the tears had fallen, and her face was dry. If he hadn't known, he would never have guessed that Kate had just been crying.

'You sure?' Jack nodded his head at this.

'Good. Cos I don't want you to hate me.' Kate smiled to herself. The only other person she could think of who didn't hate her after they had found out about what she had done was Tom. As soon as she thought of it, Kate's smile faded. She contemplated whether to tell Jack about him or not.

'What is it?' Jack asked when he saw Kate's face fall. He now had his arm on her shoulders, while her head was leaned back upon it and her face turned towards him.

'Nothing. Just… you.' She had decided to tell him about Tom. She might as well. I've told him everything else.

'You're the only person who hasn't turned when I've told them the truth. The only one except for… for… Tom.' She finally got his name out, which was hard. She had been so angry when Ana Lucia was going to say it, but she didn't know how hard it would be.

'Tom? Who's T-' Jack broke off. He remembered the scene at the waterfalls. When Ana Lucia was going to say something, but Kate had yelled at her. 'Oh. Kate, its 'k. you don't have to tell me.' He said comfortably. He didn't want to put her out, and make her reveal more that she wanted to.

'Nah. I wanna. Tom was my best friend. Since, like, as long as I could remember. He became a doctor.' Kate smiled at the coincidence. 'We did everything together. I went to see him just once when I went on the run. I phoned him a couple of times. He wanted to make sure I was ok. But I didn't want to hurt him. Get him caught up in my mess, you know. He stuck by me, even after he found out what I did'

Kate paused. She was trying her best not to let the emotion come back to her. Every time she felt liked it was, she reminded herself that Jack was sitting right next to her, holding onto her. It helped like hell.

'I went to see him when my Mom was in hospital. She was dying. I wanted to see her, but of course, I wouldn't be allowed. So Tom snuck me in. unfortunately, Mom didn't want me there.' Kate smiled in disappointment at the memory.

Jack knew there was more to the story. He didn't persist this time. He didn't mind if she didn't complete this story. It was Kate who wanted to tell it, not him who wanted to know.

'Some guards came in when some doctor saw me there. He thought I was an intruder, not the fugitive I was. So I ran, with Tom. He got into the car with me. I was heading out of the car park. He wouldn't get out. I yelled at him to. He had a family; wife, kids. But he wasn't moving so I drove forward, through the gates.' Kate took a breath. She was relieving it. Every time before, she would stop the memories, thinking about something else. But this time, she couldn't.

'As I drove the car through the gate, the cops shot. The bullets went straight through the windscreen. I didn't realise that it had hit Tom until after we were out and halfway down the road. I stopped to look at him, but it was too late. He was dead. The cops were right behind. So I bolted. The only person who stuck by me, and I got him killed.' Kate shook her head. There were tears in her eyes but she refused to let them fall again.

Jack couldn't believe what he had heard. It was obvious that Kate felt guilty for his death. It was an accident Jack told himself.

'It wasn't your fault Kate. What happened happened. You couldn't have stopped it. Just thank God that you weren't shot as well.'

Kate shook her head. 'If it meant that Tom were alive, then -'

'No. Don't even think about that. Don't ever finish that sentence, ok? If you had been shot, then you wouldn't be here. And then I wouldn't have fallen in love with you. It was his time. But not yours.'

Kate smiled. She liked it how Jack could make her fell better all of a sudden.

'Thanks Jack.' She said, as she leaned in to kiss him. But almost as soon as their lips had touched, the alarm went off. Jack reluctantly backed off, getting up to enter the numbers.

'Where you going? We've got 4 minutes.' Kate said, seductively.

Jack laughed. 'If I enter the numbers now, we'll get more time later.' He smiled back, almost halfway towards the computer.

Kate got up and headed the other way. 'Because of that, you'll have to wait. I'm gonna have a shower, 'k?'

Jack finished typing in the numbers and turned to face her. 'Don't take long, yeah?'

'I'll see. Depends, you know.'

'No, not really.' He replied. As soon as he had said that, the door to the hatch was being turned to open. He could hear two people coming, who were both in mid-conversation.

'At least you'll have company.' Kate said teasingly. It was good to see her back as her normal self.

As she walked off she whispered over her should 'Oh, and Jack, I love you too.'

Jack smiled as he watched her go into the other corridor where the bathroom was. Almost as soon as Kate had gone, Locke and Libby had appeared.

'- do with Sawyer?' Libby had finished the sentence she had started looking at Jack. Obviously he wasn't supposed to have heard that.

'We'll talk about it later.' Locke had simply commented.

Jack had never trusted Locke. Not since Boone had died. he now watched the two of them, who were in turn watching him.

'What's going on, John?'

Ooooh! So what's Locke planning? And why is Sawyer needed?

What about that Jate?

What will happen when Jack and/or Kate face Ana Lucia again?

R&R PLS!

Lolz. xXx Tiana