Description: Sun and Jack sneak onto a tourist ferry with the help of some local teenagers in an attempt to cross the Panama Canal undetected.

Chapter 5: Infinity

Even though he was tall, Sun could tell that he was no more than eighteen. He was all confidence and spoke English well, though it was laden with a heavy accent. His name was Chepe, and he was originally from El Salvador. He was their ticket onto the tourist ferry that would take them to Gatun.

They could have bought their way on easily and taken the car with them, but they couldn't be seen with the spectacle of tourists. They needed a place to hide. As the son of one of the boat's many deckhands, Chepe could get them on board early and under cover for a few hundred bucks and a modest amount of their drugs.

Sun and Jack stood in an alley beside a restaurant, speaking with the kid and at least a half a dozen of his friends, whose dirty mouths began to water at the sight of the meds. They dressed all the same, decidedly North American – like all teenagers, aching to separate themselves from their parents, yet fading into one another like bricks in a wall. There was only one who stood out, looking tidy and out of place, hands shoved deeply into his pockets, eyeing the ground in front of him.

The trip was about a half a day, a cheap money maker to enthrall tourists with the marvel of twentieth-century engineering that was the Panama Canal. From what Jack could make out, Chepe – who refused to speak in his native Spanish – explained that they would be stowing away on one of the lower levels – a small storage room of some kind.

Sun spotted the better-dressed one gawking at her and then exchanging knowing looks with the ringleader, Chepe. Was he bargaining for her? She glanced anxiously at Jack as he discussed the deal with the teenager. Jack caught her eye and knitted his brows, nodding his head slightly – a move mostly imperceptible to the boys. He stepped forward, instinctively shielding her from them with his tall frame.

"Look, Chepe, maybe this would be easier if we did this without your friends here?" Jack shrugged, pocketing the drugs and the money to let him know he was serious.

Chepe looked confused for a moment and then laughed, looking between his diminutive friend and Sun. "Jai?" He nodded towards the boy at his side. "Can't help he likes what he sees."

It was a statement that prompted Jack to grab the youngster by the collar. Sun flinched as he did. The teenagers tensed up, their jaws tightening visibly, mostly in fear, as each of them took several steps backwards. He growled a threat in Spanish that Sun could not understand. She looked at the one he called Jai, a flash of embarrassed crimson rising in his cheeks as he averted her gaze awkwardly.

Chepe held up his hands. "Fuck! Okay, okay," he said, his El Salvadorian accent still thick with amusement. He wrenched back towards his friends, still caught in Jack's tight grip. He shouted something in Spanish and the boys ran off. He looked back to Jack and peeled out of his grasp.

Jack eyed the now-humbled boy, who suddenly looked much younger than he actually was. "So when do we do this?"

It was hours yet until sunrise when Jack met Chepe at the docks. He was already on the boat, and he wasn't alone. "Chepe. Jai," Jack said as the two teens hopped easily from the deck to the wooden planks where Sun and Jack stood.

"Jack," Sun whispered as she tugged on his sleeve, noticing two small pistols which were tucked behind each of their belts. "They have guns."

"Why the artillery?" Jack asked Chepe, who was helping Jai lower the entrance walkway.

"I could ask you the same thing," Chepe responded simply, referring to Jack's nine-millimeter.

Jack looked at Sun, her face nervous and uneasy, and then back to Chepe. "Fair enough."

Chepe turned and held out his hand. "My payment?"

Jack pulled out a small brown bag and tossed it to Chepe, who caught it easily. "That's half," he said. "You get the rest when we arrive in Gatun."

"You don't trust me?" Chepe asked, a smirk creeping onto his face.

"I don't trust anybody," Jack answered stonily.

"Fair enough," said Chepe. "Come on. We don't have much time. The crew will be here soon."

The room Chepe led them to was even smaller than Sun could have imagined. They entered the tiny room; once they were both in, they barely had enough room to turn around, let alone sit. On one side of the room were stacks of large boxes, and on the other side were shelves filled with cleaning supplies. The light bulb above them was busted; Chepe gave them a small lantern and a rusting metal bucket.

"What's the bucket for?" Sun asked, without thinking.

"You'll figure it out," Chepe answered, grinning widely.

"Oh," Sun said, blushing a bit. Jack laughed, and she flashed him an angry look.

Jack silenced his amusement and turned to Chepe. "So about how long will we be down here?"

"The tour doesn't start for a few more hours," Chepe said. "After that, it'll be about a half a day and perhaps another hour for the tourists and crew to clean out. They all go to dinner in Gatun. That's when we'll extract you."

Jack nodded. "And until then?"

"We will bring you some food later," Chepe explained, standing in the doorway. "Water too. No matter what happens, don't leave this room. We'll come for you. Even if you think the ship is sinking, don't leave the room. Unless it fills with water, then you can leave. And even then, only when it gets too deep. And even then…"

"Chepe!" Jai elbowed him, rolling his eyes. "He watches too many American movies." He shook his head and chuckled, looking once again at Sun, who was surprised at his humor and his impeccable English. She remembered his predatory stare in the alley and couldn't bring herself to smile at his joke. His grin fell when he noticed her apprehension. "We'll be back soon with the food. No one will come down here. There's a store room on one of the upper levels. Fully stocked. You'll be okay here," he said and pushed Chepe into the darkness of the quiet corridor, shutting the door behind them.

Jack scanned the room, holding up the lantern, which seemed to provide even less light now that the door was closed. "Well..." he said.

"Well," Sun echoed.

"Maybe if we move some of these boxes," he gestured. "We can probably figure out a way to make this place a little more comfortable – maybe make a place to sit or lie down."

"It feels damp in here, Jack," Sun said abruptly. She moved closer, breaching the short distance between them. She leaned in and grabbed the lantern from his outstretched arm. "Let me see that."

Jack relinquished the lantern, suddenly drunk with the feeling of her warm body pressed against him. She pulled up his sleeve, examining his sutures. The gash was still healing. He dropped his other arm, letting it rest gently on her side.

"Should we wrap this again?" Sun asked after setting the lantern on the shelf behind them. She raised her eyes to meet his and found them curiously wide. "We don't know how long we'll be down here or what kind of germs are floating around. We don't want to risk infection."

Jack only nodded, not bothering to stop the flood of thoughts filling his mind. She was so close, her hair pulled back messily, softly brushing her neck.

"Jack? Are you all right?" Sun reached up, touching his rough cheek, pulling him out of his trance.

"Yeah, fine," he said, nodding his head suddenly, awkwardly.

"You're not claustrophobic, are you?" Sun asked, though she knew the answer was no. She suddenly became aware of his hand at her waist and his hip pressing into her stomach. She pulled back slightly, dropping her hands from his face and arm.

"No." He shook his head. "Just a little tired," he lied.

"Well let's re-arrange these boxes, and maybe we can get some sleep," she said. "I'll wrap that arm later."

The canal was calm, like a sound, and the boat moved smoothly through it. Jack had arranged the boxes so that both he and Sun could sit somewhat comfortably on top of a pair of large sturdy crates, while Sun had fruitlessly searched the room for a new bulb. The small lantern's dim yellow light was all they had to see by, and their eyes quickly grew accustomed to the level of darkness. Chepe had made good on his promise and brought them a basket of food, mostly bread, and a jug of water.

The boat had been on the move for only a couple of hours, so it was still mid-morning. Sun pulled her legs to her chest and leaned back into the wall behind her crate. Jack took a sip of water from the jug and handed it to her.

"Thirsty?"

"No." She shook her head. "I'm all right."

"Awfully quiet over there," he said. He stood and moved onto her crate, sitting next to her with her knees pressing against his good shoulder. "Thinking too much?"

"Maybe too little," she answered monotonously.

"You're a bad liar." He smiled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Something's got you restless."

She sighed then, a deep and defeated sigh. "What do you think we're going to find in Santa Catalina, Jack? Do we even know what to look for?"

"There's a monastery," he said after a moment. He hadn't mentioned it before, not for any particular reason, just hadn't. "Locke's message said, 'Go to God.' I don't know if it has anything to do with it. Maybe it doesn't. Hell, Locke's never very easy to understand even when you're face to face with him. But it's a start."

"Do you think he's safe?" Sun sat up, crossing her legs in front of her.

"He's alive, isn't he?" He turned to face her.

"We're alive and we've never been safe, Jack," she said honestly. "I don't feel like there's such a thing as safe anymore. I stopped believing in that a long time ago." She lowered her head, feeling the sting of tears dangerously close, and swallowed hard to keep them at bay.

Jack reached over and pulled her to him. She nearly collapsed into his lap, her arms wrapping desperately around his steely frame. "Look at me," he said after a moment, cupping her chin with his hand. She looked up at him, face glistening with salty tears. "I promise I'll keep us safe, okay?"

She looked away from him then, at her shoes, her scuffed pant leg, the dirty floor, trying to push away the thought of the bloodshed of forgotten friends. She knew the folly of his statement – how truly impossible it was for him to promise her something like that. And she hated him for saying it, despite wanting him to comfort her. That wasn't what she had truly wanted. What she had really wanted was for the reassurances to be true. And now those empty words of comfort ate away at her, spread doubt through her like a drop of blood in a bucket of water. "You can't promise me that, Jack."

"Why not?" His voice was hollow, giving away his own disbelief.

"You just can't." She felt the tears on her face harden as they dried.

"I know," he said and pulled her in closer. "I know."

They sat together like that for a long time, her arms around his abdomen and her head resting on his shoulder. After a moment, she sat up fully but kept herself locked to him. She felt the rush of air between their bodies and sucked in a sharp breath before snuggling close to him again. She closed her eyes and, for a moment, she did feel safe, with his strong arms wrapped around her and those tight walls enclosing them. It was fleeting – a transient yet entirely real feeling.

And then came the footsteps.

When Jai grabbed her by the arm and yanked her from Jack's grasp, Sun shouted. She hadn't spoken Korean in longer than she could remember, but they don't have English translations for words like that.

She could feel Jack behind her, reaching for his gun, his warmth still so connected with hers. But it was too late. Chepe, coming in from behind Jai, already had his at the ready. "Be cool! Be cool!" Sun heard him say, but her thoughts were moving so quickly she couldn't be sure.

"Let her go!" Jack reached for her.

"Would you shut the fuck up?" Chepe hissed at Jack. "She's going with him now, all right? If you shout again, someone's gonna come down here and find us. I don't know who you're running from, but I'm guessing that being arrested might make it easier for them to find you."

"No! No!" Sun screamed. Chepe moved to hit her, to shut her up, but Jai pulled her out of his reach.

"Quiet!" Chepe shouted, the corners of his mouth wet with spit.

"Idiot! Put it away!" Jai growled and pushed Chepe's arms down, glaring at him until he relented and stuck the gun back into his belt. Jack advanced, taking a step toward him now that he was disarmed. Jai glared at Chepe and then back to Jack, "Don't be stupid, man. Just put it down."

"Not until you let her go," Jack said.

Jai looked at Sun now and loosened his grip on her arm. "Sun? Is that your name? Sun?" She nodded but didn't look up at him. "I need you to come with me, Sun," he said. "Please, just look at me."

"Sun, you stay right here." Jack interrupted.

Sun took in a shaky breath and lifted her gaze to Jai. He had stopped the other one from hitting her. He didn't have to do that. So now she looked at him.

"I promise you, I mean no harm," he said. "Please? Please come?"

Sun stared and blinked hard, to be sure she could tell what she was seeing. Deep within his dark brown eyes and that desperate voice was a nugget of truth. He was earnest, and at that moment she had made up her mind. There wasn't a question. It was knowledge she felt. She was going to be okay this time. She nodded, and Jai smiled, not a triumphant smile, but one of gratitude.

"Jack," Sun turned slightly, looking back at him. "I'm going with him."

"What?" Jack lowered his gun. "No," he said. "You're not. You're staying right here."

"Jack, listen to me," she said. "Trust me. I'm going to be fine."

Jack narrowed his eyes and loosened his grip on the gun in his hands. He slipped it behind him begrudgingly.

"I'm going to be fine," she said again as she stepped out of the room with Jai and Chepe. "I'm going to be fine, Jack. Trust me… I'm…" Her words were cut off by the heavy metal door slamming shut after them, followed by the soft click of the lock from outside.

Jack swallowed hard and kicked the door violently. "Fuck!"