The next week passed with no more revelations and Julie and Desmond were glad to actually finally be able to settle down. The next step for them was to figure out what they would do with their lives. Eventually, they both wanted to find a job and as it should be easy for Julie who was freshly out of college and now quite popular when being one of the Oceanic Seven, it was hard for Desmond. Not only was he Scottish, he also hadn't been in the United States for years.
"I think I know what I want to do," Julie announced one morning when they were having breakfast and coffee by the kitchen table. Desmond was just looking through a morning paper, trying to find a job. It was something he did every morning, but so far, he had no luck.
"What is it?" he asked her then and folded the paper. One more thing she loved about him was that whenever she said something, wanted to talk or simply wanted his attention, he just dropped everything he was doing and focused completely on her. Even now, when she could tell he began to seriously worry about ever finding a job and as much as she didn't mind having him there all day long, she knew it was a blow to his pride as he was a man and couldn't afford his own living.
"I think I could write a book," she said in a serious tone, yet she was kind of afraid he would laugh at her. Of course, he did not do such a thing.
"Honey, you know I support you in everything you want to do, but I don't think you can write about what really happened to us," he told her gently.
"I won't," she assured him. "I always liked to write and I'm planning on writing fiction," she informed. "I have a lot of great ideas after everything I've seen on the island, that's true, but don't worry, I won't tell the real story. I'll just borrow a few things and twist them around to fit my vision."
"Actually, that's a very good idea," he voiced his opinion when thinking about it some more. " And I am sure that you'll be great at it."
"Thank you." Julie smiled to him and then raised from her seat and situated herself on Desmond's laps, winding her arms around his neck and kissing him deeply. "I love you. Did you know that?"
"Well, maybe I did, but feel free to remind me every now and then." He smiled against her lips. "I love you, too." They kissed for a moment and then Desmond's cell rang. "Eh, no sense of time," he complained when pulling away from Julie and reaching to his pocket. Normally he wouldn't pick up a phone when making out with his fiancée, but now he had to stay vigilant in case someone called to offer him a job he so desperately needed. "It's Sun," he informed Julie when looking at the caller id. "Hi, Sun," he said when accepting the call and pressing the phone to his ear.
Julie frowned, trying to figure out why the woman was calling him. She was never close to Sun, not to mention Desmond. If she had to put a label on their relations, she would simply say that they'd been on the same island. Although Julie had once contributed to saving Sun's husband's life, so maybe the Korean did owe her. Only then again, Jin was left behind.
"Wait, say it again," Desmond asked the woman. He seemed pleasantly surprised and Julie wondered what Sun might be telling him about. "Well, of course, I would love to, but quite frankly, I'm just not sure that I'm up for this… Really? Well, then thank you, Sun, we have a deal… Sure, I'll be there. See you in Friday." He hang up, looking slightly dazed.
"Desmond?" Julie asked when trying to read his face, but she came up with no explanation to what Sun might want from him. "Des? What is it?" She visibly tensed when still sitting in his laps and finally, he looked her in the eye.
"Sun took over her father's company in Korea," he informed, "and she wants a trusted man to run the subsidiary here, in America."
"And she thought of you?" Julie asked, bracing herself for what he would say next. She didn't want to squeal with joy and start kissing him again just yet in case Sun didn't really offer him that position.
"Yes," he admitted when still not believing it himself. "She wants me to run it and I told her that I might not have enough of qualifications for the job, but she said I could learn and that after everything that happened, she needs someone she can talk freely to, someone she can trust. She told me she lost that trust in her father and her real family is the one who stood by her on the island. The one who helped her get up after what happened to Jin."
"But we didn't really do that much," Julie protested as now she was the one to be left in shock.
"Oh, really? You want to tell me that you didn't save Jin's life when the others invaded the camp?" Desmond asked.
"Well, all right, maybe I did, but what I was really trying to do was to get to you," she explained.
"It doesn't matter. You still saved him. And you're with me now."
"Wow, let me tell you something, honey, you need to go out there and buy yourself some suits. You're gonna need them," Julie just said and he smiled at her.
"You have no idea how much this job offer means to me," he confessed when stroking her arm with his hand that rested there. "I know I haven't earned it, but…"
"Are you kidding me?!" Julie raised her voice, surprising him completely. "Of course you've earned it! If anyone deserves the best kind of life, it's you, Desmond. You've been through so much whereas you're such a good man."
"Ok, stop it," he said, feeling awkward when hearing so many compliments coming from her.
"I mean it. Maybe you didn't work hard to get this job, but I am sure you will do everything you can to prove to Sun that you can do this, that you can be good at it."
"Well, that I will definitely do, of course," he admitted and kissed her.
"I think that this calls for a celebration," she said when eventually pulling away to take a breath. "What do say we move this party to the bedroom?" she hinted when sliding her hand down his chest.
"Or we can just stay here and enjoy this nice oak table," he suggested and she discovered that she liked that idea very much.
Desmond officially accepted Sun's offer and while the branch in America was still being created, he started taking business classes to help him perform his job better. The grand opening was in three months and then he would have to start. Julie helped him with everything as much as she could, being the supportive fiancée. They were actually hoping to change that title right after Kate's trial. Provided Kate would go free, they would elope to finally tie the knot with only her and Jack present as their witnesses. It pained Julie that she couldn't ask Claire, but there was nothing she could do for the blonde now besides taking a good care of Aaron. The boy was officially living with Kate, but during the trial, Julie and Desmond took him in. Julie was actually surprised when she fell completely in love with the little boy and started catching herself on wondering what her and Desmond's child would look like. She always wanted a son, but she wasn't sure she was ready for a such a big step just yet. She still felt insecure and scared when it came to a possible pregnancy and was very grateful to Desmond for not pushing her or broaching the subject just yet. She did see the way he looked at Aaron and she appreciated that much more that he hadn't asked her the obvious question yet. She actually wouldn't be surprised if he just hinted at it since he was so much older than she was and she loved him even more for not saying anything. Sometimes she felt like her heart would burst from her affection towards the man. He was truly wonderful when taking care of her and being careful with all the touchy subjects. In such moments she wanted nothing more than to make all of his dreams come true, but it just didn't work that way. She knew that he wouldn't want her to do something for him while not being sure she was ready for it herself. He took what she gave him and it was enough for now. Besides, right now with planning to elope, with Kate's trial, taking care of Aaron, Desmond's classes and his preparations for his future job, there wasn't even time to think about having kids of their own. Yet, somehow Julie trusted that the future would solve everything.
In the final day of Kate's trial, the three of them: Jack, Desmond and Julie were called to testify. They were all under oath, so technically their lying was a serious and punishable offence, but it wasn't really worse than what they'd already done when lying to the whole world about the plane crash. The brutal truth was that the court of justice didn't care that even though Kate had caused her stepfather's death, she'd saved and helped so many of the survivors on the island. The court didn't care what they'd all really been through, what they'd all really done in order to get home. They didn't care that Kate didn't deserve to go to prison, that she'd paid for all she'd done already by going through hell. They were supposed to find her guilty for the crime she'd committed years ago. And she would've been found guilty if it hadn't been for the three consistent testimonies, saying that she was one of the best people the witnesses had ever met and that she'd saved many lives right after the crash. Half of that was plain fiction, but the jury bought it, showing mercy to the woman who'd given birth on the island and yet, managed to do so much good out there. According to Jack, without Kate, they might've never survived long enough in order to make it out.
And just like that, Kate was free to go. Just like that, Desmond and Julie could release their breaths, knowing that Kate would be the mother Aaron had already gotten used to and that she would be a witness on their wedding. They were happy that the nightmare was finally over.
After the trial, Kate thanked Desmond and Julie and then she hugged them, so happy and relieved that she was finally free. Aaron was at daycare at the moment and she wanted to pick him up as soon as possible.
"Thank you again," Kate repeated. "And text me the details about your wedding!" she told them when finally making her way to the parking garage to get her car.
Julie saw the way Jack looked at Kate as she was walking away from them and she advised, "Go after her."
"What? But we haven't…" Jack started, but Julie just interrupted him, exasperated with him and Kate eternally dancing around each other.
"Seriously, Jack, she's not in love with Saywer and everyone with eyes can see that! Now, go after her before she disappears on you again."
Jack shifted his eyes to Desmond like he was looking for some support in his friend, but Desmond just said, "Don't look at me, brotha, she's right." He pulled his arm around Julie. "Take it from us. There's no time to waste when it comes to love."
"Eh… all right!" Jack agreed, annoyed by the way both Julie and Desmond were looking at him. "All right!" he repeated and went after Kate.
"Do you think there's a chance they'll be a couple on our wedding?" Julie asked Desmond when they directed themselves to the exit door.
"Knowing how stubborn they can be?" Desmond shook his head. "No, not a chance."
Yet, Desmond was wrong.
While he, dressed up in a cream suit, and Julie, wearing a simple white dress, were exchanging their vowels, Kate and Jack just started dating. The wedding ceremony was truly beautiful, taking its place on a beach in LA. Some might think that it only reminded the couple of all the bad things that had happened on the island, but for Desmond and Julie the sand and the water splashing on the shore had a very important meaning. They'd met on the beach and made all their best memories there. They'd fallen in love there, they'd shared their deepest and darkest secrets and also their bravest dreams. It was only suiting.
"Do you, Desmond Hume, take Julia Stanley to be your lawfully wedded wife?"
"I do," was all Desmond needed and wanted to say, feeling like he was drowning in Julie's glassy eyes.
"Do you, Julie Stanley, take Desmond Hume to be your lawfully wedded husband?"
"I do."
"By the power invested in me by the state of California, I pronounce you husband and wife."
And just like that, they shared their first kiss as a husband and wife, Kate snapping a picture to preserve the moment.
Things only escalated from there. Desmond had learnt a lot from his classes and finally started the job Sun had offered. The Korean flew to America for the grand opening and then spent a weekend there, catching up with her friends. In the period of the next few months, Desmond settled himself in his office comfortably and was actually doing a great job at running the branch of Sun's company. What was more, his employees really liked him as he was a friendly boss. Julie was writing her debut novel and Desmond meticulously read everything she gave him and in exchange, he gave her an honest opinion. Mostly he liked her story and her characters and was sure that once her book was finished, her future publisher would love it, too. Jack and Kate actually got engaged and started living together and raising Aaron. Both the couples usually spent Saturdays together as they'd become very close friends. The memories of what had happened on the island still haunted them sometimes at nights, more often they haunted Desmond, but as long as they all had each other to talk to, they seemed to be managing just fine.
Yet, they didn't know that dark clouds were once again gathering on the horizon. It started with Kate keeping secrets from Jack. Secrets which involved Saywer, the man who always seemed to cause Jack to feel insecure when it came to the brunette. Jack himself wasn't in his best state of mind as he'd started overusing drugs. At first, no one had truly noticed any difference and then it was just too late. Still, Julie and Desmond hadn't known that Jack and Kate split up and one night Julie gave Desmond the final chapter of her book. Once he got to the very end of it, he read: Do you think we should start a family? He then raised his eyes from the copy and looked at her in awe.
"Are you sure?" he finally managed to say. "Are you sure you're ready for this? I would never push you to do it. You know that, right?"
"I know and that is why I'm sure," she told him when cupping his face. "I love you, Desmond Hume, and I want to have a baby with you. I'm still scared and I'm pretty sure that at some point I'll start freaking out and it'll be your job to calm me down, but I'm in."
Desmond smiled to her with affection, touched by what he just heard. "I love you so much, honey," he said. "Of course I will help you. I will be there every step of the way and I will support you in every decision. We'll do it your way. I don't care if you want to give birth naturally or choose to have a c section. Anything to make you feel comfortable and safe."
"Hey, don't get yourself carried away! I'm not pregnant yet!"
"Then we better start working on that." He smiled to her and she kissed him with all her might.
"Wait, wait…" She then pulled away. "You do realize that we're still protected, right? We can't get pregnant just because we made the decision. I need to go see my doctor and get this IUD out of me."
"So?" he asked when kissing her neck and then sucking on her pulse. "We can practice anyway."
"Not so fast buddy!" She playfully swatted his hand when he tried to slid it under her skirt. "First, tell me what you thought of my book!" she demanded.
"I loved it."
"I want an honest answer," she emphasized, not really buying it as she knew Desmond wanted to have sex. She wanted it, too. Very much. But she needed to hear his honest opinion first.
"I really loved it," he then said when raising his head and looking her in the eye. "I mean it."
"All right. Then I guess we can have s… oh, yeah…"