Juliet woke up early the next morning out of habit. She rubbed her eyes, a very vivid dream still prominent in her mind. She was up pretty late the night before, thinking about why exactly she chose to stay on the island.
She couldn't quite tell if it was the convincing charm of Sawyer, or if what he told her actually made sense to her. There really was nothing for her to go back to. It was 1974 and anything she hoped to return to didn't exist.
Making her way into the bathroom she realized Amy's door was closed, but her bedroom light seeped through the crack under the door. She could hear faint sobs coming from inside the room. Not wanting to intrude she continued towards the bathroom.
Juliet took a quick shower and changed into the outfit Amy lent to her the night before. She looked at herself in the mirror. She was wearing a very seventies, long sleeved, baggy white shirt with blue stitching as accents, and long boot-cut jeans. She couldn't help but laugh at herself.
When Juliet exited her bedroom she noticed Amy's door was open but she wasn't inside. She walked down the hallway into the kitchen and she saw a very exhausted looking Amy sitting at the kitchen table sipping a cup of coffee.
"Morning." Amy said in a groggy voice and set her mug on the kitchen table. She looked miserable and Juliet wondered if she had gotten any sleep the night before.
"Morning." Juliet replied sweetly.
"They're serving breakfast at the mess hall now if you want to head over there."
Juliet glanced at the clock next to the door it was eight fifteen. She looked outside the window and saw people in Dharma jumpsuits making their way towards the mess hall. She noticed Amy was still in her pajamas, clearly not going anywhere soon. Which was understandable. She assumed Amy was given the day off considering the circumstances. Again, understandable.
"I guess I'll head over there." Juliet said with a smile. "You want me to bring you anything?" She offered before opening the front door.
Amy shook her head and rubbed her eyes. "I'm not very hungry."
Juliet nodded and decided not to prod. She opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch. The sound of laughter and chatter from others around her filled the air as she shut the door behind her. It was a beautiful day. She was reminded of her days back in these houses as an other. Juliet often used the term other humorously to describe herself. Considering she never really identified herself with Ben's group.
As she made her way to the mess hall she wondered if the boys were already over there, or if they were even awake. First night sleeping in a bed for months, Juliet understood it could be difficult to leave.
Juliet began to think about the dream she had the night before as she walked. It was about Sawyer, well not just Sawyer, the guys were there too, but she distinctly remembered Sawyer. They were all in Dharma jumpsuits, herself included, and they all had jobs. Although, that wasn't even the strangest part, what really caught Juliet's attention she seemed to be in a relationship with Sawyer and they were living together. She couldn't get the dream out of her mind, the idea of her and Sawyer actually together was almost unreal.
"Mornin Blondie!"
Juliet spun around and saw Sawyer approaching her, Miles, Daniel and Jin following closely behind. Dimples molded on his face, and for a split second Juliet was weak in the knees.
"I thought I'd catch you over here." Sawyer continued towards her until they were face to face. She studied his features, unable to shake herself from the love-struck trance she seemed to be in. He was wearing a paisley shirt with light jeans. She assumed Horace found some clothes for them, Sawyer's outfit was definitely the most humorous to her. "I hear the pancakes are to die for here." He winked at her as he opened the door to the mess hall and waited for her to enter.
Juliet's dream worked its way back into her mind as they ate their breakfast. She couldn't seem to shake it, and she was sure James noticed her long stares here and there. Which embarrassed her slightly. Although, she couldn't help but notice it didn't entirely feel like a dream, more like a memory. A very distinct memory.
"So what's the plan boss?" Miles asked with a mouthful of food.
Sawyer cleared his throat slightly before answering. "The plan," he paused for a moment, probably to gather his thoughts. "Is to convince 'em we're looking for our crew." He stated very matter-of-factly.
"How exactly do you suggest we do that?" Juliet asked, wondering how Sawyer planned to pull all of this off.
Sawyer sipped his orange juice and then set his cup down on the table. "We go out in the jungle in groups for a few hours. Look for signs of Locke and the others." He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. "And if we find them before the two weeks are up we convince Horace they are part of our crew."
"That's it?" Miles sounded slightly disappointed. "That's your plan?"
"You got a better one?" Sawyer snapped back.
"What happens when they do come back?" Miles leaned forward in his chair. "Everything magically goes back to normal?" He raised his eyebrows waiting for a response.
"Well, to be honest I was hoping Locke know what to do from that point." Sawyer said flatly.
"It's the best we've got." Juliet defended Sawyer before Miles could say anything else.
They finished their food in silence before Miles spoke up again. "When do we head out?"
"The sooner the better." Sawyer shrugged his shoulders and glanced at the clock above the door. "We're loosin' daylight." He looked back at them.
Juliet watched Daniel he seemed better this morning. Knowing him, Juliet assumed he had an opinion on what exactly they should all be doing. "What do you think we should do Daniel?"
He looked up at her with wide eyes and cleared his throat softly. "I think what Sawyer has planned it great." He nodded. "Our best chance is waiting for Locke, keep our heads down and try not to get involved."
Juliet's eyes flashed to Sawyer and she raised her eyebrows, "We better get going then."
They all stood up from the table and cleared the area, making their way back outside. Sawyer opened the door for Juliet, a charming smile painted on his face as he did so, his dimples etched into his cheeks yet again. Juliet smiled at him as she followed the rest of the group through the door.
Miles took a few steps before spinning around and looking to Sawyer for direction on what to do next.
"Alright!" Sawyer clapped his hands together and then rubbed them against each other before letting them fall to his sides again. "Jin, Dan, and Miles you three head down to the South side of the beach." Juliet grinned softly to herself, knowing what he was doing. He intentionally put the three of them together so he could have her all to himself. She wasn't angry, she just wished he had been a little subtler about trying to get with her.
"And you two just sit here? Enjoying one another's company?" Miles raised his eyebrows, obvious sarcasm leaking through his lips.
"Juliet and I will head up north." Sawyer snapped back. "We'll all meet up in the middle."
Juliet watched Miles roll his eyes slightly at Sawyer. Pretending she didn't see it she pointed out the obvious. "How do we get through the barracks?"
"Horace." Sawyer answered. "He should be somewhere around here." He looked around behind him and through groups of people who passed by. "You all take a load off. I'll see if I can track him down and get those fences turned off." He gave Juliet one more quick glance before he headed off back towards the houses, obviously going towards Horace's.
After a few minutes Juliet headed back to Amy's, planning to grab a few waters for everyone and a pack for herself to carry. As she walked she thought of Sawyer, they were both fully aware of what was happening between the two of them, her only curiosity was when Sawyer was going to make a move. Then she began to think about the sub that was leaving at the end of this next coming week. Her chance to finally get off this island was thirteen days away. Her thoughts continued to race as she opened the front door to the house, completely taken aback when she saw Horace sitting on the couch with Amy. He had his arm around her, her face was buried in his chest.
"Juliet!" Horace sounded a little shocked. Amy lifted her head, her face was stained with tears and her eyes were puffy and red.
Juliet cleared her throat awkwardly and pointed in the direction of the fences. "We uhhh … we were wondering if it would be possible if you could turn off the fences." Her gaze went back to Amy, who was frantically wiping her face. "So we can start looking for the rest of our people."
"Oh, right!" Horace took his arm off of Amy and stood up from the couch slowly, "Of course." He smiled slightly and headed towards the door, opening it for Juliet. Juliet saw Horace hold up one finger at Amy, indicating he would only be a moment. Juliet quickly went into the back room to grab a couple packs and shoved water bottles into them before she stepped outside.
"James went back to your house to see if you were there." Juliet informed Horace. "The rest are over here waiting." She took him under the tree the group was waiting at.
"Where's Jim?" Miles asked Juliet the second she was within earshot.
"Probably still looking for Horace." Juliet handed him one of the packs and strapped the other over her shoulders. "He'll be back as soon as he realizes he's not at his house."
The group stood in silence for a few moments, the chatter of Dharma folk echoed around them. Juliet began to get lost in her own thoughts again. Glancing around the group she watched Miles anxiously rub his shoe in the dirt, Horace's presence always seemed to make him uncomfortable.
"I expect you all back by nightfall." Horace folded his arms and looked at Juliet. She nodded, letting him know she understood. "I'll give Jim a walkie so you can let me know where you guys are and when you get back." Juliet nodded again. Horace looked at each one of them individually. "And do not, under any circumstances, cross the boarder between us and them." He pointed in the direction of Richards people. They all nodded slowly. "If you aren't back in time, we'll send a search party after you."
"You can trust us, Horace." Juliet reassured him. "We're not looking to get ourselves into any more trouble."
Miles scoffed as he leaned up against the tree, folding his arms as he scanned the courtyard for Sawyer. "Where the Hell is he?" Juliet heard him mumble.
She tuned her head and placed her hand over to eyes to shield them from the sun. Juliet didn't blame Miles for growing impatient, they needed to get out of here. The less time they spent in Dharmaville the less chance they had of screwing up their identities.
Just then Horace's walkie sputtered to life and a man's voice demanded his attention. He quickly grabbed the walkie and took a few steps away from them before he answered, the voice on the other side barely giving Horace a chance to process what was going on. "Daniel." Juliet said quietly and motioned for him to come towards her, to avoid Horace from listening in. Daniel obeyed Juliet's request and stepped slowly towards her, a puzzled look on his face.
"What's up?" He asked softly, Juliet saw Miles and Jin glance towards the both of them in curiosity.
Juliet immediately lead into her question. "What happens if we leave?" She asked.
"Leave?" Daniel repeated. "The island?"
Juliet nodded, "On that sub in two weeks. If we leave what happens to us?" She asked again.
Daniel stood in silence before giving an answer. "Nothing." His eyes met Juliet's. "Nothing will happen. We will continue on with our lives." Juliet noticed Horace glance over at them for a second but his attention was pulled back to his conversation to whoever was on the other end of that walkie. "Anything that happens to us now is our present." Daniel looked at Miles and Jin, "Are you planning on leaving Juliet?" He looked back at her.
Horace shoved his walkie into his pocket and walked back over to them, giving Juliet no time to answer Daniel. "Jim should be back any second." He said, which resulted in a lot of confused looks from the group. Juliet wondered who exactly he was just talking to and how he knew Sawyer would be returning in a few seconds.
"There he is now." Miles pushed himself off the tree and nodded in the direction he was looking. Juliet turned around and saw James walking towards them, a rifle slung over his shoulder while holding another in his hand.
"Howdy!" Sawyer greeted them all with the cheekiest smile Juliet ever saw on a man.
"Jim." Horace responded and waited for Sawyer to reach them, fishing around in his pocket for the walkie he promised. "I hear you had an encounter with Phil." He said pulling the extra walkie out of his other pocket.
"That I did." Sawyer continued to smile and handed Jin the other gun rifle he was carrying. "Didn't think it would be safe for us to be wandering around in the big bad jungle without any protection." He smirked and Juliet noticed him glance at the walkie Horace was holding.
"No, not very safe at all." Horace sounded like he hated to agree. "Take this." He handed James the walkie. "For you to tell us where you are and when you return so we can let you back in safely." The two of them not breaking eye contact for a second.
Sawyer took the walkie and turned it on, "thanks boss." He strapped it to his belt and winked at Juliet. "Shall we head out?" He asked impatiently.
"Right this way." Horace spun around and began leading them to the edge of the barracks.
When they reached the fences Horace typed in the code and invited for them to step to the other side. Sawyer confidently stepped across the boarder, motioning for everyone to follow. Miles glanced at Juliet before following, doubt plastered on his face. Once everyone had crossed to the other side Horace powered the fences back up and gave them a single nod before heading back up the hill.
"Why does Jin get the gun?" Miles threw at Sawyer once Horace was out of earshot. Juliet rolled her eyes, she was wondering when Miles was going to throw another tantrum. He was due for another.
"Because I trust him." Sawyer stated simply as he turned and began walking north. Juliet raised her eyebrows at Miles and tightened her lips before following.
"Whatever." They heard Miles say under his breath.
They were off, not exactly sure what they were supposed to be looking for but they were looking for it nonetheless. Sawyer and Juliet had covered some ground before they took a break by the river. Juliet filled up the water bottles and Sawyer washed his face with a handful of water. She watched him, his firm yet gentle hands rubbing the back of his neck. He looked up and she quickly looked down at the bottle she was filling up.
Sawyer chuckled and brushed his hair out of his face. "I told ya all it would take to win you over was two weeks." A grin worked its way onto his lips. "Hell, you didn't even last two days." He stood up and strapped the gun back over his shoulder.
Juliet smiled and put the cap on the bottle that was now full. "I never said I was staying, James." She slipped the waters into her pack. Damn. Juliet thought to herself. Now that he was onto her he would never let up.
A tree branch snapped loudly behind Juliet. She rose to her feet and spun around to see what was following them. All she saw was branches and leaves, her heart began to race.
"Whose there?" Sawyer growled, gun pointed out in front of him.