Chapter 11: Why?
Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.
A/N: Here is some Jateish fluff/angst. There's gonna be major fluff coming up in the next couple of chapters. Thanks for being so patient while I was gone.
The bed felt so good. It was so comfortable. She didn't want to wake up. She knew her problems would all start again as soon as she opened her eyes. She sighed and pulled the blanket over her head. Wait, this blanket just felt different. She couldn't put her finder on it. She breathed deeply. Jack. She smiled. He must've draped it over her. She opened her eyes half expecting Jack to be standing over her. He wasn't. She should have known but she still felt disappointed. Kate reluctantly got up and saw that she was alone in the room. She walked to the other room just as Locke was talking.
"Well you know, he always puts others before himself. He needs to start taking better care of himself." Locke said.
Locke looked up. "Hi Kate. Sleep well?"
"Huh? Yeah…" Kate looked very disgruntled. Her hair was all over, her clothes were wrinkly, and she had black and blue bruises here and there.
"What time is it?" Kate asked.
"Middle of the night. More near morning now." Sayid said. Sayid and Locke were both sitting at the kitchen counter.
"Really? Well I've got to, I've got to" Kate looked a little frantic. She went around looking for her bag, which was sitting by the couch.
"Where are you going Kate?" Locke asked.
"Did Jack rest?" Kate asked.
"Jack?" Sayid asked. "Jack left here about a half hour ago. Yes he got a lot of sleep."
"Ok good. Did he seem like he was rested?" Kate asked.
Locke shot Sayid a quick glance.
"Um…Yeah a little. He was sort of troubled when he left. I'm pretty sure it had something to do with you." Locke said.
"What!" Kate exclaimed. "Where did he go?"
"We don't know but you probably do." Locke said, smiling knowingly.
Kate stared at nothing for a couple of seconds, thinking, then she ran. She ran fast.
"You're good." Sayid grinned at Locke.
"Well you worked well with Jack so I figured it was my turn." Locke said.
"Do you think she'll find him?" Sayid nodded in Kate's direction.
"Oh yeah. Whether they'll talk is a different story. " Locke said.
"They'll talk. It might turn out bad, but they'll talk." Sayid said,
Kate ran to the beach where they used to always meet. She looked all around. He wasn't there. She saw someone walking out of his or her tent. Kate walked closer to the person. It was Sun.
"Hi." Kate said.
"Kate. You scared me." Sun said with a hand on her stomach.
"How are you feeling Sun?" Sun was almost due for the baby.
"Oh ok. I thought some fresh air would od me good." Sun smiled.
"Did you by any chance see Jack out here?" Kate asked.
Sun smiled. "Lucky for you, I was out here about twenty minutes ago and I saw him out here but then he turned and went back in the jungle."
"What direction did he go in?" Kate didn't care about what Sun thought. She wanted to talk to Jack while she still had the courage.
Sun pointed and Kate ran. Kate couldn't think of why he would go this way. She saw some familiar trees and slowed down a bit. Suddenly, she knew where he was. He was in the spot where they had kissed. She just knew it. She quickened her pace. This time, Kate was running to someone not from someone.
After Jack had left the hatch he walked. As he walked, he thought about a lot of things. Since Sarah, Jack had been scared to start another relationship. He loved Sarah so much. She was just gone like that.
It had taken Jack a long time to get over Sarah. He had let himself be whisked away by Kate. He hadn't meant to. He tried not to. But slowly, he found himself letting go, breaking free. He was enjoying himself, then, she ran. It changed everything.
Now Jack had reached the beach. He looked around for a couple of minutes, and then he went back into the jungle. He let himself be carried away. He didn't care where he ended up, he couldn't see where he was anyways. His vision was partly blocked by darkness and partly blocked by a mist, a mist of tears.
Why had Kate ran? The question that had been running through his head the past eight months. Why hadn't he acted sooner? Because he was afraid. Why did he have this fear, this fear of rejection? But he had already been rejected, by Sarah, and in a way, Kate.
Jack plopped onto a log. It was all so much for him. His father, the crash, the monster, the hatch, the Others, but most important, and most hurtful, was Kate. Why did she run? Did she not feel the same way he did? He didn't' want to bottle up his feelings anymore. He needed to tell her. If she ran again—no. He wasn't going to let her. She would listen. But what if she didn't love him back? He would have to just live with it. He couldn't imagine life without Kate. He was shaken from his thoughts when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
A/N: Can you guess what is coming up next? I can, and I can't wait to write it!