Hey guys. Thanks a lot for the reviews. Hope you guys are enjoying it, I'm having a great time writing (especially the Jate :D). And I just wanna thank my sister, without whom this chapter would not exist; she managed to fix my chaotic chapter into something decent.

Chapter: 7

Their walk to the hatch was very quiet. Neither one of them said a word. Neither one wanted to say a word. Kate kept close to Jack, who occasionally put a hand on her back or shoulder when the noises in the jungle came closer to them. Every whisper or rustle would have them looking over their shoulders in fear, disbelief, and anticipation, but it was always the wind and the trees.

They both let out drawn sighs of relief as the hatch door came into view, and, walking in, they were surprised to hear laughter coming from the computer room. They stepped into the computer room and were shocked further to see it was Locke and Libby. Locke laughs, they both unintentionally thought, an odd sensation of mockery quickly vanishing and leaving their old feelings.

"Jack, what are you doing here?" asked Locke in his usual somber tone when he noticed the two drenched figures looming in the doorway.

Jack was not in the mood for one of Locke's moments.

"You should be at the caves. They need their leader, Jack," added Locke.

Jack managed to only stare at Locke in anger and annoyance, and then walked on to find some dry clothes.

Before Locke could shoot another comment at Jack, Kate jumped in.

"Not now, John, not now," she said, shaking her head pointedly, following Jack into the bedroom.

Kate walked in to the room, moving towards the closet where jack's dark form stood, slightly hunched over. As he became clearer in the light, she stopped abruptly. Jack was leaning over, his left hand clutching a shelf while the other held his head, rubbing it slowly. What held Kate in her place was jack's wet bare back, muscles clenched tightly, droplets of water running over the tension from the weight of everything that had happened. Though she had seen Jack shirtless before, something about the scene made Kate blush, but she shook herself out of it instantly.

"Jack, are you okay?" she asked, realizing the absurdity of the question as soon as it had left her mouth.

Jack jumped slightly and straightened, having not heard Kate walk in amidst the screaming in his mind. He lifted his head and looked at her, managing a small smile and saying, " Yeah, fine. Just looking for something to wear." He viewed her for a moment before adding, "You should change into something dry and warm up too."

Kate smiled the way she did every time Jack said or did something that showed he was thinking of her.

"Anything in there in 'small'?"

Jack rummaged through the clothes and pulled something out.

"No, no way, Jack, come on. I'm not going to wear that," objected Kate, looking at what he was holding out: the beige Dharma overalls.

"Kate, it's not a fashion show," said Jack in half-humor, half-dead-seriousness.

Mumbling slightly in objection, Kate grabbed the overalls and left to change as Jack pulled on a white t-shirt.

Jack walked into the room with the couches a few minutes later, only to find Kate curled up on one of the couches, her droopy eyes showing she was half asleep, the Dharma overalls hanging loosely, still a few sizes too large. When she saw Jack walk in, she sat up, expecting to discuss what had happened in the jungle. Jack, however, did not give her a chance to start.

"Kate, we'll talk about it in the morning. You should get some sleep."

"But, Jack-" she began, but he cut her off.

"Kate, there's nothing we can do about it now. Get some rest, you need it, and we'll talk in the morning. Okay?"

Kate nodded, too tired to argue, and lay her head back on the armrest.

As Jack sat there, watching Kate doze off, a nagging, desperate, and exhausted cycle of thoughts took him as the daily report began to process in his mind. He and Kate still had not said a word to each other about what had happened that afternoon. And now this. Though the events were not of equal importance, they seemed to have the same heavy effect on Jack's already rattled mind. How could so much happen in one day? he thought, rubbing his forehead. Some days on the island seemed to last a lot longer than twenty-four hours. His mind still could not grasp the idea that Ethan was alive, that he had seen him; the image of the entire moment, which seemed much longer, felt more like a dream than something that had happened less than an hour ago. How, he couldn't help thinking, how could this happen? No, what was happening? Everything was beyond reality, beyond reason, beyond explanation. But jack was a doctor, he wanted answers, he wanted to understand. This was too much. He had thought polar bears and monsters were odd, but this was absurd. Dead people do not come to life! He had seen Charlie kill Ethan. But, he said to himself, the bullet holes were still there. Jack held his head in frustration. He knew what he was avoiding, the one thought he should contemplate. The problem was that now was not the time for how or why. He had to ask himself what questions. What was his next move? What was he supposed to do now? He knew people would be depending on him for safety measures. A sudden flash of memory erupted in his mind. He had forgotten all about it in the past hour: the beach was flooded. Jack could feel the weight increase as the pressure of finding a solution for that as well came into his mind.

Jack had never felt this helpless and desperate. He could not think clearly. For a few seconds, he couldn't understand or remember anything, but he then tried to sort everything out. In the morning, he would have to find a solution for everything. Morning. Jack's concept of time was growing messier as he slept less and less, thogh he had thought working as a surgeon would have prepared him. But my patients are either alive or dead, never somewhere in between, he thought bitterly.

What had happened at the beach was probably just a natural phenomenon- or not. Rain was even different on this God-forsaken island. He was just relieved everyone was safe- for now. The state in the caves could only be temporary, everything about it screamed temporary. They couldn't live like that, cramped and unsettled. But only a few would go back to the beach, the rest would gladly leave spotting a plane or ship to someone else. They would probably need to look for another shelter. Jack moaned inwardly. But now, after the talies' story and Ethan coming back no one would venture to go farther into the jungle. Maybe after everyone had calmed down a little they would start going back. Perhaps for now it would be better to leave things as they were and think of what to do about the bigger problem.

Jack's eyes traveled back to Kate. No, Jack, Ethan. Ethan is the bigger problem. What did he want this time? Jack was not worried about Claire for now. Ethan had walked into the jungle with an air of finality.

He would have to follow him the next day. But the voice in the back of his mind kept whispering what he already knew. He could not do it without Kate. But… there was too much tension between them. Jack let his mind go back to that afternoon, not stopping it this time. He needed to deal with it before anything else. It would be the only way to deal with anything else. It would be the only way his mind would clear and focus.

Jack looked at Kate again. He knew that the way he was acting showed otherwise, but he didn't hate Kate. How could he? Yes, he was angry, but the bigger part of him was hurt. Hurt because of what she had done, but more because of why and what it was doing to him. Kate was, well, Kate. She was the only one he trusted, the only one he had been able to talk to. She was what kept him sane, the only one who knew how to pick up the pieces and put them back.

She was the only one who made him smile.

He knew, sadly, that if he wanted to rationalize what had happened, he could, but it would only make it worse, deepen the hole. It would be more painful to make sense of it, best keep it blurry.

Jack also knew it was slightly his fault as well, provoking her when she was obviously emotional and vulnerable.

It dawned on him. He knew he wasn't mad, only hurt, but how worse would it be if he kept acting like this. He still needed her. It had been painful to see her run and see her with Sawyer, but it would hurt more not to see her at all.

Jack came out of his reverie to find his eyes had been resting on Kate the whole time. Her breathing had become steady- she was asleep. A sudden comprehension came to him: it was the first time she had slept in five days. He got up, got a blanket, and covered Kate, a small smile on his face. Walking back to the couch, the weight on his shoulders a little lighter, he fell asleep as soon as he put his head down.