A/N: Wow...I'm loving the reviews. A bunch of stuff happens in this chapter, so it's pretty long...hope y'all don't mind. It includes several different 'ships (PB&J, SAna, and Shayid)-But is basically Jate-centric. The source of the Goodnight Syndrome starts to come to light-and well, I won't say much other than that...R&R, please...enjoy!

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Sleep-a process that takes us from night to morning. In many ways, it is looked upon as a source of renewal- a place where we are recharged for the next day. It is in this so called 'state' of sleep that we dream. We dream of a better time and a better place. When Jack slept, he dreamed. He dreamed that everything was the way it was before-before the sickness. Before the storm. But when he woke up-he realized he had something to do. Something that couldn't wait.

Jack awoke the next morning, feeling more rested than he had in days. He felt a warmth, the kind of warmth that could only come from another person.

That's when he realized where he was- and why he was there. His arm was slightly numb after being stuck underneath Kate's head. Reaching an arm out, he brushed the hair out of her face.

"You're going to be okay."He said, more to himself than Kate.

She stirred a bit, but did not awaken. That was when he heard a cough coming from across the room, reminding him that they were not alone.

Forcing himself into a sitting position, he saw Sun sitting in a chair close to Shannon's bed. "Sun?"

She turned her head towards him questioningly. "Yes, Jack?"

Jack felt slightly embarassed to ask such a question, but he felt the need. "How long was I asleep?"

Sun dipped a washcloth in a small pale of water. Squeezing the excess water off, she spoke. "About seven hours.Sayid came in and told me I was not to bother you. He said you needed the sleep."

He sighed, knowing Sayid was right. "Thanks...is she okay?"

"Shannon woke up a few hours ago, complaining of a headache. She managed to stay awake long enough to let it go away."Sun said, placing the cloth on Shannon's forehead.

"Jack?"

"Yes?''

"Could I..."Sun said, somewhat nervous. "Would it be okay with you if I were to go outside for a little while later?I spoke with Hurley and he told me Jin was looking for me."

Jack smiled, indicating that she could go. Afterall, he was beginning to get a dose of cabin fever himself. "Sure.Do you know what time it is?"

Sun stared at the pale glow of one of the few remaining clocks, and told him that it was six-forty five.

"So I...slept all night."Jack said, staring down at a sleeping Kate.

"Yes. Would it be alright?"

Rubbing his tired eyes, Jack cleared his throat. "Yes.Oh, and Sun?"

She stopped in the doorway. "If you see Locke...could you tell him that I'm looking for him?"

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(Kate's Dream)

She heard screaming. Turning around, she saw Shannon, leaning against a tree. "What happened?"

"He...The man...he cut my..."

She removed her hand from her arm, revealing a fair-sized cut. From it, a river of blood seemed to flow. Wincing from the pain, Shannon closed her eyes.

"I thought I heard somebody out here...Let me take you back to Jack."Kate said. Originally she had gone further out into the jungle to be alone. But now it was clear that someone else needed her help.

"No."Shannon protested. "I mean there's a...a little spring not too far from here...I went out walking, and that's how I found it.That would be closer."

Kate nodded in approval. "Who did this?"

She looked around for any sign of someone else.

"One of the others...I stumbled upon a camp."Shannon said, spewing the rain water out of her mouth.

"I just wanted to be alone...and he insisted I was listening in."Shannon said, trying to speak above the pounding rain.

Lighting erupted the sky, sending down another sheet of water. The ground was nothing but a mesh of mud, twigs and puddles as the two headed towards the so called 'spring' that Shannon had discovered.

Along the way, the path was covered with numerous tree roots and shrubbery. Climbing over one, Kate's ankle was caught. "Mmph...Ow."Kate cried, her ankle finally breaking free, but not before the root caused a scar to form on her ankle.

Thunder clapped above, causing the both to jump.

(End Dream)

Kate awoke to find Jack staring down at her. "Good morning."

She furrowed her brow, clearly in thought.

"Is something wrong?"Jack asked.

"No...I..."

"You had another dream, didn't you?"

"Yeah...only this time it was real."Kate said, somewhat worried.

"What do you mean?"Jack asked, growing concerned.

Kate sighed, closing her eyes. "The other day...before that big storm started...I headed out to be alone. When the storm started, I looked for cover. That's when I heard Shannon screaming...she found another camp...one of the others, I guess...he tried to attack her but she...she got away."

Jack seemed worried by this. Why hadn't he found out? "Then what happened?"

"I tried to take her to you...she had this huge cut on her arm...but she told me about a spring she found not too far from where we were. Along the way I fell...I didn't think much about it then but-"

"That's why you limped around for a while...does it feel alright now?"

Kate nodded, wetting her lips. It was then that Jack relaxed, propping himself up on his elbow.

Kate reached up, gingerly brushing his face with her hand. She could feel the slight stubble that etched itself along his jawline. Wether she wanted to admit it or not, Jack had been a great comfort to her during all of this.

Her thumb barely grazed his lips, causing Jack to retract a little.

"How...How are you feeling?"

Kate let her hand fall, the moment clearly gone. "I've been better...how are they?"

"Claire walked a little yesterday...well...she wobbled, but it's progress."

"What about Shannon?"Kate asked, worried.

"She's trying."Jack said, getting up to put on his shoes.

Walking over, Jack decided to check on Shannon before he left. It was supposed to be his shift, but he felt that he couldn't wait any longer. He had to find the source of the sickness before it spread.

She opened her eyes, staring up at him. "Am I going to be okay?"

Jack looked up from Shannon's chart, raising an eyebrow. "You're starting to improve...Do you feel any specific pains?..."

"No."She lied, knowing that he'd probably find out soon enough. The last thing Shannon wanted to do was make anyone worry. But before long, a blanket of sleep overcame her, giving Jack time to see what Kate had meant.

Lifting Shannon's shirt sleeve, he saw a deep cut that stopped just inches away from where her sleeve did. Grabbing another cloth, he tried his best to clean it.

Checking on a sleeping Claire, he headed back to Kate. "Listen...I'm going to head out for a while.

"Are you going to be okay with Charlie coming in to watch you?"

"Sure."Kate said, groggily.

Smiling, he leaned in, kissing her forehead. Strangely enough, it seemed more out of habit than anything.

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Sawyer sat on the beach, staring out at the water. In a sense, it made him feel bad. But with his arm in a sling, there wasn't much that he could do.

He did find the time to tighten security a bit on his tent after the incident with Ana. How she managed to take the medicine, he still had no idea.

Laughing to himself, he saw her coming. "Hiya."

"Whatcha doin'?"She asked.

"Not much I can do with this thing on my arm, is there?"Saywer replied sarcastically.

"You wanna go for a walk?"Ana asked him.

Sawyer tilted his head towards her quizzically. "Do what?"

Ana laughed, her hand on her hip. "Look-okay...There ain't much else to do...everyone else out here is busy."

"Jack sent ya didn't he?Ya think he'd get tired of dealin' with me..."

''This ain't got nothin to do with Jack...what's your problem with him, anyway?"

He stared out at the water. It may have been early morning, but the heat started to seep in already.

"It's Kate, idn't it?"Ana asked.

"What?"

"Oh, come on-it's obvious...she likes him...you...well...don't like him."

"This ain't high school.I'm capable of being mature about things."He said, somewhat amused by the conversation.

"Coulda fooled me."

"So-we gonna go on that walk or not?"

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Jack stumbled upon Locke working on a form of a fishing pole near the caves. "You got a minute?"

"Ah...Jack.Sun mentioned that you were looking for me.Something I can do?"He said, setting down his tools.

"I need your help."Jack said, sitting on a log.

"With what?"

"I've been thinking...about this sickness lately.Where it came from..."

"How do you figure we'll find out?"Locke asked him.

Jack sighed, feeling defeated. He wanted to find the source of the syndrome and defeat it, and he knew it had to be fast.

"I'm not sure.Kate told me something earlier and well...I think that maybe it could..."Jack let his sentence dangle, seeing Hurley headed towards them, looking somewhat lost.

"Hurley?"

"I don't wanna talk about it, dude...I'll be fine."He insisted.

He trudged into the caves not saying another word.

"Libby apparently fell ill...and based on past experience..."Locke said, explaining it to Jack.

"So what happened with Kate?"

"The storm that happened like a week ago...I guess she left to be alone and ran into Shannon, she had been hurt.They went to some spring and..."Jack rubbed his eyes, tired of thinking about it. He just wanted a cure, and he wanted it fast.

"I don't know, okay?I don't know how to fight this thing...if anyone else gets hurt...or if they get worse..."

Locke seemed intrigued by Jack sudden breakdown. All this time he had been known as leader, as the strong one. That moment proved that even the strong ones grow weak at times.

"Jack-this spring...do you know where it's at?"He asked.

"No.What's that have to do with anything?"

"Well, it could have alot to do with it...just calm down, Jack...being around Kate, Claire and everyone else can't be good for them if you're like this."Locke insisted.

Staring up at the sky, Jack sighed. "I don't know what to do...One minute, she's fine..the next she's dancing on the edge of delirium...how do I make it stop?"

"Ever hear of believing?You gotta have hope if you want anything to happen."

Jack laughed, digging his heel into the muddy dirt. He had had hope. But look where that got him-sitting defeated on a log in the middle of a jungle that he still had little knowledge of. Standing up, he brushed off his pants. "Thanks...I'll um...see ya later."

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He needed to see her. He wanted to see her. It sounded strange, but the same thought ran through his mind on the way back to the hatch. He was tired, out of breath by the time he arrived.

Sayid looked up from something he was building, staring at him. "Where were you?"

"Out...talking to Locke."He said, taking a sip from a bottle of water. "Not that it did any good...is everything alright?"

"As far as I know...yes.Why?"

Jack shook his head, going back into the sick room.

Charlie sat at the foot of Claire's bed, speaking with her while Shannon was seemingly asleep.

Kate laid awake, staring at the ceiling. "You're back."She said, not even looking at him.

"Is something wrong?"He asked, worried.

"No.Well-"Kate locked eyes with him as he pulled a chair to he bedside.

"What is it?If something's wrong with you...as your doctor, I need to know."

Kate raised an eyebrow. "So...you're just my doctor?Not my...friend?"

He smiled, grabbing her hand. "I was speaking you know...medical wise."

"Ohhh..."Kate said, drawing it out.

An awkward silence fell upon them, filled with more questions than answers.

"So...Are you hungry?"

"Not really."

"You seemed like something was wrong...when you walked in...are you okay?"Jack asked.

She sighed, closing her eyes. "It's my ankle...I thought it'd be fine by now but it still hurts."

Jack went to her ankle, touching it gingerly with his fingers. She flinched a little, causing him to smile.

The area that he assumed was scratched by the root had formed a puss like area, with a bruise around it.

"Does it hurt when I touch it?"

Kate tried to keep herself calm, tightening her calf muscle. "Not...really."

"That's good...Kate?"

She stared at him, almost afraid of the look on his face.

"Are you okay...really?"

"What?"

"Physically...you're healing.But mentally...are you..I mean-"Jack realized how awkward the question seemed.

Kate smiled. "I'll be fine. Jack...was what you said true?I mean...did you really give blood for me?"

''I had to, Kate.I l-"Jack stopped, looking away from her.

"You what, Jack?"Kate asked, wondering what he would have said. "Jack?"

"I care about you.So...you need your rest.I'll be back to check on you later."

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I chose the title...I don't really know why-it just came to me...Jateness ahead...lol...just a warning.Thanks for the read!