Unfortunately I don't own Lost nor the beautiful song Don't Speak, but the song inspired me to write this fic.

The story is dedicated to my beloved sister, who did let go.

Rest in Peace Evie

You and me

We used to be together

Everyday together always

I really feel

That I'm losing my best friend

I can't believe

This could be the end

It looks as though you're letting go

And if it's real

Well I don't want to know

Letting Go

Jack felt dead. He couldn't move a muscle, nor could he open his eyes. He felt cold and numb. Maybe he was dead?

Trying desperately to open his eyes, Jack concentrated on the muscles in his eyelids. He could feel himself take a deep breath, inhaling dusty but at the same time sweet air. Finally getting his eyes open, Jack was met by complete darkness. Feeling his head starting to spin, he closed his eyes again, disappointed that the effort of opening them had given him nothing.

He had a feeling that he had been drugged, he couldn't actually remember them injecting him with anything, but he felt groggy, hung-over almost.

Feeling a sharp pain across his back, Jack let out a small groan. At least whatever they had given him was wearing off, Jack thought to himself.

The odd and disturbing feeling of numbness had disappeared, leaving him more aware of his surroundings. He was lying on his stomach, resting heavily on something that was definitely not the cold cement floor he had been on earlier.

Whatever it was, it unexpectedly moved underneath him. The motion startled him, making him regain more control of his body as he forcefully moved back attempting to get into a sitting position.

Jack didn't get more than a few inches until the back of his head crashed into something hard, forcing him back down. Placing his hand on the flat surface to the left while his right shoulder brushed against the solid wall on the opposite side. Realizing that he was trapped, Jack felt his heartbeat speeding up.

Turning his attention back down, he immediately realized what it was he was lying on top of. Kate.

Checking her pulse, Jack let out a relieved breath when he felt the faint rhythm under his fingers. She was alive. They had probably given her whatever it was they had injected him with. If the had given her the same dose, it was logical that it would take her smaller body longer to wear off the effects.

Jack had propped himself up on his elbows, trying desperately not to squeeze Kate's body with his own. He could feel his arms instantly starting to shake from the effort of holding his body in a hovering position. His breathing picked up pace within seconds and his head once more started spinning.

"Kate…" Jack said softly in an attempt to wake up the unconscious brunette. He felt his nose brush against hers as he tried to ease his weight over to the left arm instead of the right.

"Jack?" His name left her lips as a breathless whisper.

"Yeah it's me. Are you okay?" He was gazing down at her, hoping that his eyes would adjust to the darkness enough for him to be able to see her face.

When no answer came, he let out a defeated sigh.

Jack's arms started to get numb, forcing him to give in to his exhaustion and ease his weight down, once more resting on Kate.

He could feel her move restively underneath him. "Jack? What's going on?" Her voice was faint, sounding dazed with sleep. He could tell she had trouble breathing, each breath making it more irregular.

"It's okay. Just relax." Jack said softly as he made a new attempt to balance himself on his elbows. He instantly realized that there was no chance that he was strong enough to keep himself up on his arms more than a minute. Feeling like his head would explode any second, Jack came up with a new plan.

"Kate…" He started gently, hoping to get her attention. "I want you to wrap your arms around me"

"What?" She sounded confused, and if possible even more dazed than before.

"Just do it" Jack said more firmly as he let out a sigh.

He felt one of Kate's hands lazily being placed on his back. Waiting a few seconds for a second one, Jack told himself that she was still under the effect of the drug and probably not able to move as she wished.

Accepting the fact that only one of her arms were around him, Jack used all his energy to flip them over. He could feel his back scrape against the ceiling of whatever they were trapped in. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea after all. He had been unsure if there was enough space for them actually switch places, but he had come to the conclusion that it was worth a shot. Kate let out a painful moan just as Jack felt his back rest down flat on the floor.

He let his head fall down to the cold bottom, thankful that he had managed switch position with her. She was now resting heavily on his chest, her head buried in his neck, much like he had been seconds earlier. He felt bad for causing her more pain than she had already been in, but the fact that she was no longer being squeezed by his 180 pounds heavy body made it worth it.

Staring into the darkness, Jack reached up and let his hands trace over the hard partition above them that was keeping them confined from the outside world. He could tell that it was wood, which was also the only thing he could make out in the dark. That, and that it was solid, he couldn't budge it a millimeter. Trying the walls on his side, Jack got them same results.

Letting one of his arms fall to his side, Jack gently placed his right hand on Kate's back, soothingly tracing small circles on her tank top. Feeling her breathe against his neck, Jack felt a lot better knowing for sure that she was still alive. It worried him that she was completely groggy, acting as if she had drunk several bottles of alcohol. Not that he knew what Kate would be like drunk but he had a feeling she would be the dozy kind of drunk, not the giggling one dancing on tables. Not that he wouldn't want to see a giggling, half naked Kate, dancing on a bar counter.

Feeling his fingers getting sticky, Jack stopped moving them. Gently rubbing his thumb and index finger together behind Kate's back, Jack got a pretty good idea what the warm substance on his fingers was.

"Kate…" Jack said stressed, fear evident in his voice. "Are you hurt? Are you in any pain?"

Letting his hand move up to her face, Jack tried to get her attention by stroking her cheek. "Kate?"

"I'm cold" A faint voice whispered back.

Jack let out a soft sigh, hoping that her low temperature was not an ffect from losing a large amount of blood. "Kate, do you know if you're hurt?"

The only answer he got was a faint whimper, which sent chills through his body.

Once more moving his hands to her back, Jack went into his doctor mode, mechanically letting his hands run over her body, instinctively looking for signs of any kind of injury. Tracing his hands down her arms, shoulders and down her back, Jack was unable to find what he had been looking for.

Kate let out a small gasp as Jack's hands moved down her backside to her thighs, still methodically looking for an open wound. "Jack? What are you doing?" Sounding more alert than before, Kate moved slightly trying to get away from his touch.

"I think you're hurt. I have blood on my fingers I just can't find where it's coming from." Jack let out suppressed sob. He had a hard time focusing, knowing that Kate might be badly injured.

"Are you in any pain?" He tried again, now hoping to get an answer since she had sounded more alert than before.

"A bit" Kate answered jadedly.

Jack could feel his heart starting to beat fast. "Where?"

"Everywhere" There was a light chuckle hidden in her voice.

Jack understood what she meant. He had the same feeling in his body, like he had been hit by a truck and then dragged behind it for several blocks.

Kate shifted slightly on him, moving her head to his other shoulder. "Jack, where are we?"

"I don't know" From what he had managed to take in of their surroundings, Jack was actually quite sure of where they were. Maybe not geographically, but he had a pretty good idea of what they were in. He just didn't want to say his suspicions out loud, knowing it would frighten Kate.

He could hear her swallow a sob, which made it feel like something inside him broke. "We're in a coffin aren't we?"

Jack let out a defeated sigh. "Yeah I think so."

"Oh God" Kate sounded like she was having a panic attack as she started to move around frenetically.

"Kate, please stay calm. Try not to move too much." Jack said pleadingly, wrapping both his arms around her back.

Kate gasped for air, her breathing very uneven, sobs disturbing the vague rhythm that it had. "Do you think we're under ground?"

Jack hadn't really thought about it, he had kind of taken for granted that they hadn't been. Once more opening his eyes, Jack realized it was probably more logical that they were indeed under ground, surrounded by several layers of soil. That would explain the absolute darkness. They coffin was not a bought, expensive casket with silky fabrics on the inside and a perfect fitting lid. From what Jack had managed to detect with the help of his hands was that whatever it was they were in were just boards nailed together, meaning that at least a stripe of light should have been visible.

"I don't know Kate" Jack finally answered quietly once again not wanting to frighten her.

He could feel Kate's body trembling, her lips uttering small whimpers every now and then. It was driving him crazy but there was nothing he could do about it. He knew she was scared, he was too, but her anxiety bothered him a lot more than his own.

"Ssh, it's going to be okay" Jack tried quietly, in an attempt to calm her down.

He could feel Kate shaking her head against him causing small wet drops of tears to brush off against his neck. Kate nuzzled her head closer to his as a shaky hand grabbed a fistful of his shirt. "Jack… I can't breathe…"

"Of course you can." Jack said calmly gently rubbing her back with one of his hands. "Try to focus on my breathing, ok?"

He could hear Kate gasping softly, trying to breathe with his rhythm. She was soon breathing calmly and Jack felt her loosen the tight grip she had held on his shirt.

Tilting his head, Jack placed his lips against her temple, letting them linger there for a minute as he gently stroked her back with one hand whilst the other one was lost in her dark curls.

"I'm not very good with confined spaces" Kate divulged.

"It's okay, just try to relax. Everything is going to be okay" Jack said soothingly.

Several minutes past, Jack started to wonder if Kate might have fallen asleep when she broke the silence. "How long, Jack?" She asked bluntly in a strange voice, not sounding like herself at all.

"How long?" Jack asked back confused. "How long, until what?"

"We die…" Jack could tell that she was trying to sound nonchalant instead of scared, which wasn't working very well.

The question still took Jack off guard, not sure what he should respond. "What? We're not going to die Kate" He answered wearily.

"How long is it going to take until we run out of air?" Kate said, no longer bothering trying to sound strong or brave.

Jack sighed. "I don't know Kate"

A few minutes passed by, in silence. Jack registered every breath Kate took, the soft regular sound calming him down slightly. Unfortunately Kate's question had stuck in his head. For how long would the air in the coffin keep them alive? Statistically one person would most likely survive an hour on the air the casket supplied, but for the two of them probably more like half an hour, hopeful a little more.

But how long had he been unconscious? Jack felt alarmed. He could easily been out for half an hour, maybe even more.

Jack had never really been particularly claustrophobic, but right now it felt like the walls were closing in on him, walls he couldn't even see. He knew it was all in his head and tried his best to ignore it but failed, the feeling of confinement unexpectedly starting to affect his lungs. Gasping for air, Jack tightened his grip around Kate's body, feeling more helpless than he ever had before.

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