In the End

Chapter Ten

Author's Notes: Richard's(the blonde guy) name is now Christopher because as I was reading the story Lady Luck I realized that he was too much like the OC in that story for my liking, even down to the name, which was very unintentional. So now his name is changed and hopefully he isn't too similar. I advise you to go read Lady Luck by TheGirlNextDoor. It's an awesome story, I love it:D Also, I know nothing about getting arrested in Australia, so I just wrote it like it was in America. Please forgive, and if you're Australian, please correct!

Disclaimer: The chapter title comes from the Dead Zone two parters "Descend" and "Ascend" where the two main character guys search for these lost kids in this mine. One of the guys goes into a coma and..well, it's confusing. But it was two of the best episodes on the show, in my opinion. Do the episodes have anything to do with this story? Mayybbeee:p Oh, and "We Can Work It Out" is by the Beatles, of course. A Lennon/McCartney hit, right? Watch that be a George one now..

Chapter Ten: Descend, Ascend

"I don't believe this," the marshal muttered behind Kate as she threw open the curtains to reveal a bright but barren back lot. "And close that damn curtain!"

"You could use some sunshine in your life," Kate said under her breath.

"I heard that!"

Kate sighed.

Two miles down the road from the marshal's staled car they found an old motel with broken shutters and a half lit sign that read: Motell Ate. No wonder the guy never got business. Not a single room was taken, which was fine by Kate, who talked a reluctant marshal into staying for the night. She figured this way she had a better chance of escaping rather then the two of them walking down the road all night.

"Dammit!"

The marshal cried, and something smashed against the wall beside Kate. Kate turned towards him, and raised an eyebrow.

"No damn cellphone service," he explained bitterly.

Kate chuckled.

"You're enjoyin' this, aren't you?"

Kate just smiled. The marshal looked around the room, and was just now noticing that it only had one bed.

"Sleep on the floor," the marshal instructed Kate with a sigh.

Rolling her eyes, Kate instead opened the room's bathroom door and peered in. Her hand immediately flew to her nose at the rancid smell, and Kate thought twice before flipping on the bathroom light with her free hand.

Just as she thought, the room wasn't exactly a five-star. It might not've even made two-star. The toilet seat was down and rusted, and Kate was afraid to lift it for the fear of rats crawling out. A single seat beside the toilet was rusted as well, and the mirror above it cracked.

Seven years of bad luck, Kate thought to herself.

The shower didn't have a curtain, and Kate was certain that if she tried turning the water on, it'd be cold if she was lucky enough for the water to be clean and clear. Disgusted, Kate turned her back from the bathroom, and shut the door tight on the way out of the room. On his bed, the marshal had already taken off his shoes, and was unbuttoning his dress shirt as Kate sank into a rocking chair that was in the corner. Her eyes closed slowly, and Kate welcomed herself to sleep.

Two hours later Kate awoke to find the back lot of the motel dark, and the marshal sleeping soundly in his bed, snoring likely. This was her chance. Thinking quickly, Kate tried to decide on the best way to escape the room. The door would be easiest, but the owner might still be out there. The window was another simple way, and it was large enough for her small frame to crawl through, but if there was a breeze outside, Kate couldn't take the chance that the Marshal would feel it.

Glancing between the door and window, Kate finally made up her mind, and tiptoed across the room, heading for the door. Catching a glimpse of the Marshal's briefcase beside the door, Kate grabbed it, praying that for some reason there would be cash in there. The Marshal didn't talk about the case or what was inside it, so Kate just assumed it was something he normally carried around. She took one last glance back at the Marshal's bed, and satisfied, reached for the doorknob.

"Hold it right there."

Kate froze. In a perfect world she would've thrust open the door and fled the building, but the Marshal's cold voice had frozen Kate's muscles, and she couldn't make herself move.

"Drop the case," the Marshal said slowly.

Standing stiff, Kate found herself unable to do so. Her mind was in a rush, contemplating what to do. In her hand the case began digging into her skin, making her palms red and sweaty.

"I said drop the case!" The Marshal demanded with a force that magically sent the case crashing to the floor. "Good, now turn around."

This time, Kate was able to keep her mind, and refused. Instead of receiving the command twice, Kate was grabbed, and she gasp as her breathing was suddenly cut short. The Marshal's arm was wrapped tight around her neck, and Kate was unable to move. At last the Marshal released her, throwing her to the floor beside the bed. Moving quickly, the Marshal dug into his pocket and pull out a pair of handcuffs. Kate's eyes widened at the sight of them, and when the Marshal bent down to cuff her, her foot landed on his chest, kicking him back. Kate pushed herself off the floor, and was ready to defend as a fist stretched out for her. Grabbing the Marshall's arm, she used every ounce of strength she could muster, and flipped him over. The Marshal landed hard on the floor, and Kate left him to groan in pain as she leapt over him, grabbed the case, and flew out of the room.

Once in the hallway, Kate fought to remember which way they had come in. A dark hall light flicked on and off, and Kate waited impatiently for it to turn on again, nervously looking back towards the door. At the last minute she closed the motel room door, locking it from the inside, and dashed towards the half burnt out exit sign as the light flashed over it.

The night's air blew over her in a wave of coolness, and it was then that Kate realized that not only did she have no clue where she was, she wa also in the middle of nowhere, where there was most likely no town for miles. She wouldn't be able to escape the country for hours and maybe even days, but Kate's worry was soon proven useless. Out of the darkness came flashing lights, one after another, and Kate found herself surrounded by squad cars. Doors flew open and the moonlight landed on her, as if purposefully putting her in the spotlight. More guns were pointed at her than she could count. They were big but Kate couldn't tell what they were.

The scene that she had been having nightmares about so many times before in her life played out like a movie, and Kate was only vaguely aware of what was happening. A voice came over what sounded like an intercom, and arguing was heard to the side. The motel's owner had discovered what was happening. Her instincts told her to run the other way, as fast as she could and never turn back, but the shock of what was happening left Kate frozen for the second time that night, and she didn't even bother resisting as she felt the cold handcuffs clamp down against her wrist. For the first time in her life Kate felt trapped, her freedom stripped from her in an unfair struggle that she knew she couldn't win.

4 months later

Sitting with Jack in the caves, Kate felt that same sense of entrapment. On the island she still had her freedom for what it was worth, but at the same time the universe seemed to have made up its mind on her fate. All morning she was barely able to face Jack, let alone approach him- even if he was unconscious- but now Kate couldn't move from her spot beside him. Jack's hand was bound with hers, with Kate's fingers rubbing back and forth against the rough skin. Jack was so close to waking up that Kate could feel it in her bones, yet he still remained silent, eyes closed in deep sleep.

Down the Hatch

"No offense, but I figured you'd find me sooner than that," Boone commented.

"I ran into Sawyer," Sayid explained.

"What was he doing in the jungle?"

Descending lower into the hatch, Sayid realized that Boone most likely knew nothing of Jack and Kate's breakup.

"He was looking for someone," Sayid replied, feeling it was a safe answer.

"Who?" Boone wanted to know.

"He wouldn't say," Sayid said, he himself still wondering about the supposed missing girl, "but I think I heard him shout 'Rebecca'."

"You don't sound very sympathetic," Boone complimented.

"There was something odd about it," Sayid said.

"Really?" Boone said, curious. "Odd how?"

"He just didn't seem..normal," Sayid said, "the whole situation was very odd."

"So what," Boone said, "do you think he was making it up?"

"It's possible."

Sayid considered the theory. Jack had beat him up pretty badly, and Sawyer was left in the jungle on top of that. It was very possible that Sawyer was simply delusional and didn't know it.

"Like an imaginary friend?" Boone inquired, skipping the ladder's broken step.

"Maybe."

That was another possibility.

"You've got to be kidding me," Boone said, now sounding amused, "I mean, the guy has to be at least what, thirty something? People that old don't have imaginary friends."

"It may be different than your typical imaginary friend," Sayid said, determined to defend himself, "it could be a psychological thing."

"I'm sure," Boone said sarcastically, jumping down to the floor of the hatch.

As Sayid followed, spotting the hatch's computer(now laying horizontal and upside down), a thought occured to him.

"Do you remember ever seeing the name 'Rebecca' on the hatch?" He asked Boone.

Boone looked like he was trying to recall.

"No," he admitted finally.

Sayid and Boone stared at each other for a moment, both thinking the same thing. If the name wasn't on the computer, than she wasn't on the island.

"What did you want to show me?" Sayid asked, breaking the silence.

"Oh," Boone said, stepping aside, "this."

He glanced towards Boone, who was showing him something on the wall. At first he saw nothing but thick blackness, but as his eyes adjusted to the dark, Sayid realized what he was looking at, and wondered how that was because it just wasn't possible. What he was staring at in the light of Boone's flashlight, was a long, dark, tunnel.

At the Beach

Charlie and Claire were enjoying the bright sun on the long strip of the island's sandy beach. Well, at least Claire was enjoying the beach, but she couldn't be sure about Charlie. With Jin dead and Locke missing, there was no one left with any hunting experience except Hurley, who could catch a fish in a net if luck let him. Because of this Charlie had taken it upon himself to find food for himself and Claire. After spending nearly all morning trying to catch a single fish, Charlie had finally succeeded and was now trying to clean the fish. Claire giggled to herself when Charlie cursed as he was drenched when he made a wrong move with the knife.

Charlie had been great with all the recent island drama. Though Claire new he had to be afraid(or at least paranoid), Charlie didn't seem to show it. She knew he was hiding to protect Claire, and personally she thought it was cute.

All at once Charlie's attention was drawn from the fish, and Claire watched with interested as she picked up something from the sand, and looked at it. Claire couldn't see what it was from where she sat, but as Charlie ran to her she saw it was a bottle, like the kind they served with beer.

"Look at this," Charlie said, handing her the bottle, "washed up on shore."

Claire took the bottle and examined it. Running her index finger across the bottom, Claire brushed the sand off, revealing some inscribed writing. Shielding the sun with her hand, Claire saw that it was a set of numbers: 6 43 45 91 82 63.

At the Caves:

Kate heaved a sigh as she stood, letting go of Jack's hand for the first time in hours. His skin was now tinted red, and Kate began to feel guilty, knowing his hand would be sore for quiet some time. Her foot was asleep, and no matter how long or hard she wiggled her foot, it wouldn't wake up. Standing in defeat, Kate took a careful step, wincing as she felt her weight fall on her foot. Just as she was starting to head towards the cave opening for some fresh air, a groan caught her attention and the jungle air and sleeping foot was forgotten as Kate rushed to Jack: he was awake. As Kate reached for a bottle of water, she realized he was trying to say something.

"Sh.." she told him as she uncapped the water.

"I only hit my head," Jack was saying to himself, struggling to speak clearly.

"I know," Kate said, anxious to keep him quiet, "here, drink this."

Holding the bottle to Jack's chin, she tipped it forward slightly, letting the water slowly drain into Jack's mouth. Jack only coughed the water back up, soaking Kate's hand. She ignored it, and had to act quick to stop Jack from trying to sit up.

"You've been out for awhile," she advised, "that might not be a good idea."

She looked at Jack sympathetically as he sat back down.

"How long was I out?" Jack asked her, now able to talk a little better, though there was still a rasp in his voice.

"All day," Kate replied, hardly able to believe it herself.

Though it had all happened in under twenty-four hours, the day had still seemed like weeks to Kate. Weeks of sitting at a hospital, growing so used to the beeping of heart monitors that she'd begin to hear it in her sleep. Except the hospital was the caves, and the doctors were really inexperienced amateurs taking care of the surgeon. The scene was like a really bad reality show.

"I only hit my head," Jack said again, and was obviously confused.

"I know," Kate repeated quietly.

Kate let Jack rest as they sat in silence, though he never closed his eyes. Jack seemed in deep thought, as Kate herself was. There were a million things that she wanted to say to him, but now that she had her chance she was unsure of where to start.

"Kate, back in the jungle-" Jack began, but Kate cut him off.

"Don't."

Jack looked slightly taken aback.

"You should rest," she advised, covering up her interruption.

"I might have a concussion," Jack protested.

"Right," Kate said, hating herself for not thinking of this earlier, "how would I know if you do?"

Jack began muttering a guideline, but was interrupted by rushing footsteps. Turning around and ready to curse at whoever the intruder was, Kate stopped when she saw Claire with Charlie. Charlie looked excited about something, and Kate saw that Claire was holding something that looked like a glass bottle in her hands.

"What's that?" Kate asked, frowning and crossing her arms as she stood.

Below her, Jack stretched his neck to see, Kate stepped back beside Jack.

"Washed up on shore," Charlie explained, practically hoping up in down.

In all the new excitement of the caves, their other patient woke up from his own long map, though he didn't seem as in pain as Jack was.

"What's going on?" The blonde man asked to no one imparticular.

"Found a bottle," Charlie said excitedly.

He handed the man the bottle, seeming to have forgotten about Jack and Kate. Claire didn't, however, and when she saw that Jack was awake, she smiled at both him and Kate.

"Let me see that," the man said, reaching for the bottle.

Charlie gave it to him, and the man immediately turned the bottle over, looking for something. Kate's eyebrows furrowed as she watched the blonde's facial expression change as his eyes landed on something on the bottle.

"Where did you find this?" He asked Charlie, looking up at him.

Charlie seemed stunned by the abruptness of this demand.

"Where did you find this?" He asked again louder, making everyone in the room wince.

Jack groaned suddenly, and Kate put a hand on his shoulder to stop him from trying to sit up again, and as your everyday comforting gesture.

"At-at the beach," Charlie stuttered, the excitement in his voice gone.

"Take me there," the man said, getting to his feet.

He didn't seem to be in pain at all, and Kate could've sworn jealousy flashed over Jack's face.

"Okay," Charlie said, seeming captivated by the man's sudden demanding voice.

Claire and Charlie were out of the caves as soon as they had entered, taking the blonde with them and leaving only Jack and Kate. The man's quick recovery seemed to have inspired Jack, who put his hands on the side of the cot to stand.

"What was that all about?" He asked.

Kate bit her lip as she watched Jack struggle to stand, only to fall back down again.

"They found him in the jungle," Kate explained, "we don't know who he is."

She decided it was best not to tell him about Alex yet.

"His leg was really beat up," she added.

"He looked fine," Jack commented.

"I..had to bandage him up," Kate admitted shyly.

"Looks like you did a good job," Jack commented, smiling up at her.

Kate felt herself melt, and forced a small grin as she wondered how she could've ever hurt Jack like she had. Taking a deep breath, Kate decided it was now or never.

"Back there in the jungle-" Kate began.

"Don't," Jack said, echoing their previous argument, "I was listening to what you were saying."

Biting her lip, Kate looked down to avoid Jack's gaze as he remained sitting on the cot.

"I want back what we had before," Jack said after a short pause.

Kate heard herself sigh and relief, and quickly turned red in embarrassment. Feeling her knees grow weak, Kate lowered herself to an empty spot on the cot beside Jack. He turned towards her, and Kate's eyes made their way towards the wound on Jack's head. Out of the corner of her eye Kate saw that Jack had caught her gaze, and she quickly turned back towards him, meeting his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Jack continued, this time his voice softer, "for what I did."

Jack reached up with his hand, gently brushing the skin where the palm of his hand smacked against it. Kate winced slightly at the touch, but the tension loosened when her eyes met Jack's again.

"I don't know what else to say," Jack finished apologetically.

"I-"

"Hey, guys-"

Jack and Kate broke apart quickly and Hurley stopped in his tracks at the entrance of the caves.

"Oh, sorry.." Hurley's cheeks reddening, as did Jack's, who quickly looked down at the floor, "I didn't know you were awake."

"It's fine," Kate said, in a hurry for Hurley to leave.

"So are you guys back together now?" Hurley inquired with a hint of excitement.

"Getting there," Jack replied, offering Hurley a smile.

"Thank God," Hurley said, "at least something's turning back to normal. I'll let you two get back to your back-togetherness. I'll see you two dudes later."

Hurley chuckled as he turned around, and Jack and Kate couldn't face each other again for a few moments.

"So what, are we like the couple of hope or something here?" Jack finally spoke up.

Kate let out an uneasy laugh.

"Looks like it," she gazed back into Jack's eyes, which looked full of hope themselves, if not pleading, "we're being depended on."

"Yeah," Jack said, looking away.

It was like his eyes couldn't decide on what they wanted to see.

"There's no justifying what I did," Jack went on, "I don't even think you should forgive me, but at the same time-" Jack stopped, his eyes meeting Kate's once more, "I want you to."

Kate's chest felt heavy. She had to remind herself to breath every few seconds, determined not to pass out on Jack.

"I want me to too," Kate finally admitted, "but I don't know what to think."

Jack didn't respond. There was a look of desperation in Kate's eyes that made her heart sink, and as much as she wanted to forgive him, she knew that if Jack was capable of hitting her once, he could do it again. Kate honestly didn't think he would, and it wasn't that she was afraid of them, it was that she didn't want to be the one to make Jack sink down to that level. She couldn't be sure that piecing their relationship back together would be enough to cure that.

"My turn," Kate said at last, suddenly feeling uncomfortable under Jack's gaze, "there's no justifying what I did either. The only thing I can say is that I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I wasn't thinking..I was being selfish. I don't even think you should forgive me, but at the same time..I want you too."

The tips of Jack's lips curled up slightly, breaking into a small smile.

"You stole my line," he accused.

"Caught me," Kate said, returning the smile.

A silence hung over them, and the tension between them made Kate feel as if she were on a game show, and winning door was standing right in front of her, waiting to be opened. An inner sigh of relief swam through Kate when it was Jack that made the first move.

"So maybe instead of forgiving each other right away," Jack said, breaking the silence, "we could just start over, and go from there."

Kate smiled.

"I'd like that."

Before she knew what she was doing, Kate felt herself leaning in towards Jack. She didn't know what she was doing or why, but Jack certainly wasn't backing out. While they were apart and while Jack was unconscious she had missed him, truly missed him, even after what he did. Kate couldn't imagine ever having a conversation like this with Sawyer. She couldn't even dream up how it would begin. Most likely it would've gone something like Kate trying to apologize or get an answer out of Sawyer, and Sawyer kissing her, and letting the resolution stand at that. They would avoid their problems, leaving them abandoned. Kate would become like a puppy a child received for Christmas. For the first few hours it was all fun and games, but once a mess was made, it was sent back to the pound. At the last moment Kate realized that starting over was the same thing as avoiding, and found herself disturbed, if not frightened, at the thought of her relationship with Jack turning out like one with Sawyer. As harsh as it sounded, Kate knew that she and Jack could do better than that.

"Wait," Kate said, pulling back quickly.

Jack's face sank in disappointment, and Kate bit back a laugh, thinking it was cute.

"Something wrong?" Jack asked.

"We can't do this," Kate said, "we can't just start over every time one of us screws up, and from what it looks like, it's going to happen a lot."

She let out an unnecessary chuckle to cover up the silence she received from Jack.

"We need to learn to forgive each other," she continued.

"But Kate, this isn't like you left the water running or shrunk something in the laundry," Jack argued, "this is on the level of..crashing the car or forgetting to pay the electric bills."

"I know," Kate said, hiding her amusement of the thought of Jack pulling out a three-sizes-too-small scrub top out of the dryer, "but we should do this."

Jack sighed.

"It's gonna take some time," he confessed, speaking for himself.

Kate nodded in agreement.

"But we can work it out," Kate said, "and in the meantime..we can still be the couple of hope."

Jack chuckled.

"I think we're going to make Charlie and Claire jealous," he said.

They laughed until the comic-relief died out, and Jack glanced towards the cave entrance.

"So should we go ahead and walk out holding hands?" Jack joked.

"I think we're supposed to wait for the heavenly light," Kate said with another laugh.

Placing his hands on the cot beside him, Jack lifted himself up, but a wave of dizziness prevent him from going anywhere. Kate quickly moved to help him sit back down.

"I still don't get it," Jack said in frustration, "I only hit my head. I shouldn't of been out that long. I can't think of a single medical explanation for this."

"Maybe we shouldn't be looking for a medical explanation," Kate said quietly.

Their eyes met each other's again, and a shiver went up Kate's spine.

"I don't like this island," Jack confessed.

"You're just now realizing this?" Kate said with a snort.

Jack ignored her reply.

"We're not safe here," he went on, looking around the cave as if he had never been in there before.

"Well we can't just pack up and leave," Kate said.

"There has to be another way," Jack was thinking quickly.

Kate seemed to be able to read his mind.

"Another raft?" She said in disbelief. "That would be raft number what, three, four? Jack, someone doesn't want us off the island. We're not going anywhere."

"But we can learn more about where we are," Jack said, "maybe something like this happened before. If only we could ask Danielle.."

"Hey-" Kate said, desperate to get Jack to calm down, "hey!-" she grabbed Jack's hands to stop him from waving them around anymore.

She made sure she had his attention, and met his eyes. Kate was becoming amazed at how many emotions one's face could sustain in such a short amount of time.

"We're going to be okay," Kate said in a calm, comforting tone.

Kate knew it was Jack's nature to worry, and that he couldn't return her hope, but reassurance seemed like something Jack needed right now.

"Maybe you should lay back down," Kate advised.

Jack sighed and agreed reluctantly, letting Kate lower him down onto the cot.

"You mentioned a concussion?" Kate said, remembering the earlier parts of their conversation. "How would I know?"

Jack walked Kate through the process, and in the end they both concluded that Jack was concussion-free, though neither could come up with a diagnoses. Even though Kate insisted that he'd get some rest, Jack claimed that he wasn't tired, and the two finally agreed that they could catch up for awhile before she'd leave Jack to rest. Kate told Jack everything that had happened that day, still leaving out Alex's attack on the blonde, though telling him about her venturing off with Sawyer. At this Jack's face once again contorted with jealousy, though Jack didn't say anything.

They talked a bit about the bottle and where it could've come from, and even why the monster didn't bother to go ahead and eat them whole. Their conversation ended with Jack telling Kate about a dream he just now was remembering from this morning, something about a sunburnt penguin, but Kate couldn't be sure.

Though she laughed along with Jack's attempts at jokes(though a couple of them were actually humorous), Kate found her mind slipping away and began thinking about their earlier talk of forgiveness and starting over. Could they really make this work? There was no doubt in Kate's mind that Jack wasn't trustful about wanting to try, but in the end, no one could really know. Kate heard Jack mutter something incoherent about shrimp and fish before dozing off into sleep. Smiling, Kate couldn't help but to think 'I told you so', and remembered something Jack had told her before: "I'm not big on rubbing it in". Still smiling Kate stood up, brushing her hand against Jack's arm before finally going out for that breath of air.

Try to see it my way,

Do I have to keep on talking till I can't go on?

While you see it your way,

Run the risk of knowing that our love may soon be gone.

We can work it out,

We can work it out.

Think of what you're saying.

You can get it wrong and still you think that it's alright.

Think of what I'm saying,

We can work it out and get it straight, or say good night.

We can work it out,

We can work it out.

Life is very short, and there's no time

For fussing and fighting, my friend.

I have always thought that it's a crime,

So I will ask you once again.

Try to see it my way,

Only time will tell if I am right or I am wrong.

While you see it your way

There's a chance that we may fall apart before too long.

We can work it out,

We can work it out.

Life is very short, and there's no time

For fussing and fighting, my friend.

I have always thought that it's a crime,

So I will ask you once again.

Try to see it my way,

Only time will tell if I am right or I am wrong.

While you see it your way

There's a chance that we may fall apart before too long.

We can work it out,

We can work it out

Author's Note: I wanted to do a song ending with Jack and Kate in that, but I didn't want to break up the few paragraphs, so really you should've been playing that song in your head while reading that. Apologies for the longness of it at the end. Sorry this took so long, wild week. Wild week, wild weather, wild colds. Stupid winter colds. So the Jate's finally back, and I just realized a few days ago that I made you guys wait ten chapters for it. I'm sooo incredibly sorry! I can't believe I was actually able to go that long without writing Jate! Apologies once again:) Thank so much for all the reviews! I can't believe you guys are still sticking with me! You have no idea what that means to me:D You guys rock!

Whirld-wind2005: Smart you are! At one point I considered making Rebecca a figment of Sawyer's imagination, but whether or not I went with that plot, that's for me to know and you to find out:p

Coming up next, on "In the End":

I loved it when what's-their-names hosted America's Funniest Home Videos, so let's play good news/bad news. The good news: major Jateness coming up, or at least what I think of as major Jateness. The bad news: someone else is dying- a major character- and it's not who you think. Or maybe it is. Who knows. But it's going to be unexpected, and I'm not sure if it's going to happen next chapter or not.

Thanks again!

Until next time..

October Sky