Author's Note: Thank you EVERYONE for all your sweet comments! They mean so much to me. Here is Chapter Two! I think it's a bit boring, but it's needed to set up the story! Please, once again, read and respond! I'm open to any suggestions.


Chapter Two

Kate smiled a little awkwardly, and sat the stethoscope down. She hopped down off his desk, and glanced around the office. "It's a nice little office you have here, Jack. I was really hoping I had the right Jack Shephard. Well, it wasn't really that hard. You've been in the papers, you know."

She laughed, and studied him carefully, waiting for a reaction. Maybe this had all been a bad idea. What had she been thinking looking Jack up, deciding to come to him? She pulled her jacket tighter around her, and glanced at the floor. Shaking her head, Kate headed towards his office door.

Jack stopped her, placing a hand on each of her shoulders. He couldn't come up with anything to say, nothing seemed quite right. He just kept glancing down at her, moving his eyes up and down her body. Kate was standing in front of him. It just didn't seem real. His raised his hand to her hair, and softly touched a curl.

Yup, she was real. This wasn't a hallucination. Upon this knowledge he finally choked out, "Kate."

That was all Kate needed to know she had made the right decision. Letting out a quick sigh of relief, she nodded, "It's nice to know you remember my name, Jack. I was worried I'd just be some distant memory by now. . ."

Jack opened his mouth, and then closed it. He rubbed his neck, and almost laughed. "What are you doing here, Kate? How'd you get here? Where have you been these past two months? Do you have money?" It was as if now that he had finally found and turned on the invisible faucet that controlled his words, he didn't remember how to shut it off. "Where did you get clothes from? Have you been staying with someone? Are you alright? No one's spotted you, have they? The authorities, they still think you're dead, right?"

Kate laughed lightly, tucking a curl behind one ear. "Slow down, Jack. One question at a time, okay?" She glanced around his office, darting her eyes from place to place. He thought she looked a bit nervous. "Let's talk, but not here. Can we go to your house?"

Jack was a bit taken aback by the question at first. Quickly recovering he nodded, "Yeah, it's about ten minutes from here. My shift just ended, so, uh. . . we could leave now. I can drive us. Unless. . . unless you have car. Do you have a car, Kate?"

Rolling her eyes, Kate laughed again, this time more energetically. "Yeah, Jack. Brand new one. Claimed a bunch of inheritance when I got off the raft. . . you know everyone in the family wanted to leave everything to the escaped convict."

Jack rolled his eyes, but smiled. "How exactly are we supposed to get you out of here?" He highly doubted anyone would recognize who she was. It wasn't like her picture was being displayed on the evening news. They thought she was dead. But still, at least someone would think it was weird to see him leaving with a girl no one had seen before. They'd start talking.

Kate shrugged, "I just walked right in. Came up the back stairs, actually. I can't believe you don't lock your office, Jack. Anyone can just walk in. I would have thought you to be much more careful than that. . ." Her voice trailed off, and she smiled at him, her eyes dancing with amusement.

As hard as he tried, Jack couldn't stop smiling. Kate was standing in front of him. He didn't know why she was at his office, what she needed, or if anything was wrong, but at the moment that wasn't what mattered. What mattered was that, no matter the reason, she was there with him.

An idea dawned on him, and he laughed out loud just thinking about it. Kate gave him a curious look, but before she could speak Jack made his way over to his desk, picking up the stethoscope she'd been fiddling with.

Kate shook her head, placing her hands on her hips. "You're not giving me a physical. I'm perfectly fine, besides I don't think this is the time or place. And I'm not taking off my clothes. . ." She smiled, and winked.

Jack laughed, finding it funnier than it probably actually was. He mentally lectured himself. He needed to keep it together, he couldn't tell her how happy he was she was there. "I'm not going to use it on you, Kate." He placed it around her neck, and then picked up an extra lab coat. "Here, put this on."

Kate took it, finally realizing what Jack's idea was. "I dressed up as a doctor for Halloween once. Scrubs and all. . ." She quickly put on the jacket, and posed as though she was modeling for Jack. "What do you think? I did deliver Claire's baby, after all. . ."

Jack nodded, "I think it's a little big for you." Opening a drawer, he handed her a mask. "To finish the ensemble."

"Are you serious?" Kate demanded. "That's taking it a little too far. . ." She held up the green doctor's mask, and stared at it, almost in disdain. Shaking her head, she attempted to hang it back to Jack.

Jack laughed, amused by her expression. "Come on, Kate. Put it on. You don't want people to see your face, do you? Let's not risk it. There's cameras all over this place. You never know who could be looking at one. . ."

Kate relented. There had always been something about Jack, something that she thought felt the need to protect her. In the time they'd spent together on the island she hadn't been able to figure out what exactly inspired this feeling on him. When something dangerous would happen in the jungle, he had always grabbed her by the waist, protecting her. Well, she had felt protected. Who knows what good Jack's arm would have done had they been faced with real danger, but he had always made her feel safe. And needed. And. . .

"Kate!" Jack's voice broke through her thoughts, and she glanced at him, getting the feeling it wasn't the first time he'd tried to get her attention.

Her suspicious were confirmed when he spoke. "Deep in thought?"

She shook her head, now glad she had the mask on to hide her reddening cheeks. "Just thinking it was weird to see you in a real room," she lied. "We'd better get going. It's getting late." Kate knew she sounded ridiculously lame, but she didn't know what else to say.

Jack nodded, "Follow me, but not too closely. Look like you know where you're going okay?" He opened his office without waiting for a response, and headed out, towards the backstairs. He quickly made his way to the parking garage, trying not to glance over his shoulder to make sure she was still there. Finally arriving at his car, he looked behind him.

Kate was standing there, the mask removed. She made her way around the car to the passenger side. "Nice car. How do you breathe behind those things, anyway?"

Pressing the button to unlock his door, he gave her a confused stare, "Excuse me?"

"The masks," Kate rolled her eyes. "I think I'd suffocate if I had to perform a whole surgery behind one." She got in and buckled her seatbelt. Giving him a sweet smile, she asked, "Would you like me to duck down in the backseat."

Jack didn't dignify her comments with a response, just put the car in reverse, and slowly exited the parking garage. An uncomfortable silence fell between them. It had been so long, and the circumstances they were in were so different. There was no one for Kate to be scared of there, and no consequences for Jack for being with her. The tension was palpable on the ride home, as if they were both letting this knowledge seep in.

Whatever awkwardness had formed, weakened when Kate saw Jack's house. "Wow! I don't think I've ever seen a place this big, let alone been inside. . ." She glanced at him, almost in awe. "How much do they pay you?"

"Too much," Jack responded with a grin. "And if you think this is big, you should see my parent's place." He pulled the car into the garage and quickly got out. Before Kate even had her seatbelt undone, he was around to her door, opening it for her.

Kate smiled her thanks, then followed him into the house. Glancing around at the decorations, she was a bit disappointed. She had expected it to be more ornate. The couches looked comfortable, and his TV was huge. A few family photos decorated the wall, and three weeks worth of TV Guides lay on the coffee table next to a pizza box. "Not exactly tidy, are we?"

"I've been working a lot," Jack replied, shrugging. "A whole lot since I got home. I just didn't want to have to think about everything that went on. Plus," he motioned to his answering machine that blinked the number '23', "I've been getting dozens of calls every day from someone wanting an interview. I've changed my number three times already."

Kate nodded, slightly bemused. She pulled her hand to her cheek, resting against it softly. It was nice to be back with Jack. More than nice, but she didn't have the energy to process everything it made her feel. There'd be time for that later, hopefully. She yawned, quickly covering her mouth.

Jack was getting ready to start questioning her again, when he saw her yawn. He stared at her, momentarily captivated by the small, every-day gesture. "Tired?" he asked softly.

Kate nodded, "Do you mind if I stay? Your couch looks comfortable. . ." She didn't know what she'd do if he said no, this moment had been on her mind for the past two months. She had carefully gone over every scenario possible, and she had always found she couldn't finish the ones where he told her to leave.

"I have something better than a couch for you," Jack told her. He motioned for her to follow, and led her upstairs. He opened a wooden door to a furnished pale yellow room. "How's this?"

"This rooms beautiful, Jack," Kate said softly, glancing around it. All the furniture was oak, and the quilt and curtains both appeared to be hand-made. She lightly ran her hand over the quilt, it was so soft. How long had it been since she'd slept in a real bed?

"Make your self comfortable," Jack told her nodding. "The bathroom's through that door, I'll be back in a few minutes to see if you need anything." He smiled softly, and left the room, slowly shutting the door behind him.

Quickly, Jack headed to his bedroom, washing his face and changing out of his work clothes. He grabbed his terry-cloth robe off his bed, and made his way back towards her room. He knocked softly on the bedroom door, and when Kate didn't answer, he opened it peaking in. He couldn't help but smile at what he found.

Kate was already cuddled under the covers, fast asleep.

Laying the dark blue robe in the chair next to his bed, Jack stood, just staring at her. Somewhere from the back of his mind a thought that he could probably do that all night appeared. Deciding that might not be for the best, he leaned over and placed a light kiss on her forehead.

"Good-night, Kate," he whispered, before shutting the door and returning to his own bedroom, wondering if he'd be able to get any sleep.