Pairings in this chapter:
a little Juliet/Richard
hints of Charlotte/Daniel
implied past Sawyer/Kate
implied past/wishful future Sawyer/Juliet
& more hints of Kate/Jack
friendships:
Sawyer/Hurley
Kate/Claire, Kate/Sawyer
Charlotte/Miles/Daniel
Richard was just lighting a second candle when he heard a soft knock on the cabin door. He said a quick and silent prayer that it would be who he hoped, checked the table one last time to make sure everything was in its proper place, and then went to answer the door. His prayer was answered when he found Juliet on the other side, smiling softly. She looked a little nervous, but she was there.
Juliet hadn't felt her nerves until the door was opened. Am I really doing this? she wondered. The look on Richard's face when he saw her was reassuring, but she was more afraid of hurting him than she was of him hurting her. What if I don't live up to his fantasy? Oh, maybe I'm getting a little ahead of myself...
"Hi." said Juliet, since Richard was just standing there, smiling. "...Can I come in?"
"Please." he said abruptly, snapping out of the trance she always seemed to put him in. She smiled again, and stepped inside. She saw the candles, the simple but beautiful place settings, and her nerves gave way to cautious excitement.
"I apologize," said Richard. "It's only from the cafeteria. But," he continued, walking to his desk and picking up a bottle with a white and black label. "I do have wine."
"It's wonderful." Juliet assured him.
"Go ahead, sit down." Richard urged, pausing politely as she did so. "How was your first day back?" he asked.
"Surprisingly easy." Juliet answered, pleased to see the wine bottle had already been opened, giving it time to breathe before her arrival. She smiled as Richard poured her a glass. "The kids even seemed happy to see me."
Richard's smile was tempered with a gently furrowed brow. "Why would that be a surprise?" he asked her, implying that everyone on the island should be happy to see her return. Juliet looked down as she smiled, hoping her long hair would cover her cheeks if she blushed.
Ten minutes later, the mess hall became a madhouse. Everyone had dinner at the same time, and whether the kids were returning from sports or classes, they were all starving and excited to see each other. Everyone, of course, except for Benjamin Linus.
"Chicken and rice again." he grumbled as he took a plastic tray and got in line to be served. "Oh joy."
"Come on, Ben." said Walt, the only kid that could stand to spend any time with the moody pre-teen. "How can you complain when they got pudding for dessert?" Ben's only response was a shrug. "Well, what do you want to eat?" Walt asked him. "I bet if you ask, they could make it. Yo, Mr. Hurley!"
"What's up?" Hurley replied.
"Are you ever going to fix us pizza and chicken wings?"
"Dude. That's an awesome idea. I'll take it up with management."
Walt grinned. "Thanks, Mr. Hurley."
"No problemo. Hey, don't forget your vegetables."
"See?" Walt squawked under his breath. "All you have to do is ask." Ben almost smiled; one side of his mouth turned up, and he nodded gratefully.
"Hey, Ben." said Hurley. "Did you ever ask Annie to the dance?"
With a great big huff, Ben took his tray, with only half his dinner served, and left the line.
"Whoa. Touchy subject?" Hurley asked Walt.
"That's one way to put it." Walt replied wryly. Hurley smiled, and handed him two pudding cups so Walt could bring one to Ben.
The line was starting to die down. Hurley peered around the mess hall at all the kids, counselors, teachers and administrators. He could sense someone was missing, and it took him a moment to realize who.
"Hey, Sawyer."
Sawyer grunted in response, in the middle of wolfing down his dinner.
"I thought Juliet was supposed to be here today?" Hurley asked. He could tell, if Sawyer hadn't had his mouth full, that he would have sighed in response. Instead, the rougher and gruffer of the two cooks swallowed down the last bite and took a discreet sip of beer from an unmarked can.
"Oh, she's here, Hugo. She's who that other dinner was for."
"What other dinner?"
"The one I took to Alpert."
"Ohhh." said Hurley, as it slowly came together in his mind. "Oh man, she's having dinner with Mr. Alpert?"
"Yeah." Sawyer said, looking at Hurley with his brow furrowed as a warning. "So?"
"Come on, dude. I know you like her."
"We screwed a few times, it was no big deal."
"Wow. That's...romantic." Hurley remarked sarcastically. "No wonder she's having dinner with Mr. Alpert."
"Maybe she wants a raise." Sawyer joked darkly. He felt like an asshole for even thinking of a joke like that involving Juliet, but he had too much pride to admit it. Hurley laughed, but it wasn't at Sawyer's joke, it was at Sawyer himself.
"You are so jealous." Hurley told him, as if Sawyer didn't know.
"Yeah? At least I had my time with her, how's that epic romance with Libby going?"
"You can't hurt me with your low blows, dude. I'm just happy to know you really do have a heart in there somewhere."
"What are you on about now, Hugo?"
"You obviously have feelings for Juliet, if you're getting this bent out of shape over her having one date with Mr. Alpert."
Sawyer tried to ignore his friend. He was busy struggling with the pudding cup lid that refused to come off, until he realized that if he had a shred of dignity left, it would not be kept by eating a cup of pudding designed for children. He sighed harshly, tossing the pudding cup over his shoulder and onto the counter behind him.
"Alright. Fine. I'm jealous."
"Hoo hoo," Hurley laughed. "This is almost as delicious as your chicken and rice. The Don Juan d'Sawyer, taken out by a Latin lover. My people," Hurley went on, trying to do a Spanish accent. "They are...how do you say..."
"Hairy?" Sawyer offered, snorting at his own joke.
"Yes, hairy, because they are so much more manly than your blonde-a white trash."
Sawyer shook his head and laughed, because Hurley's Spanish accent had somehow turned Italian. "You better keep your day job, Hugo."
"Oh, Juliet-a." Hurley kept going, now sounding a bit French. "Run your hands-a through my dark, eh-Spanish hair..."
"Come on, I don't need that mental image." Sawyer complained.
"Kiss me, and I will show you the REC en mis pantalones!"
"Aw, jeez!" Sawyer almost shouted, as he stood and escaped Hurley's horrible impression. Hurley laughed heartily, watching Sawyer leave through the back door, probably to have a cigarette.
Outside, Sawyer kept trying his lighter but it would only spark. "God dammit..." he grumbled, finally giving up and lifting his head. The hand that held his cigarette dropped to his side, and he happened to look over and see one of the counselors standing in the shadows behind the mess hall. It was Shannon, the leggy blonde. He could see the glow of her cigarette as she took a long drag. She was ignoring him, but he knew she must have been watching and listening to him the whole time he'd been trying to light his cigarette.
"Hey." he greeted her, keeping his voice low, thinking it was oh-so-sexy. "You got a light?"
Shannon didn't answer right away. The ember glowed again, before she dropped the butt of her half-smoked cigarette on the ground, putting it out with her sandal. Then Shannon emerged from the shadows, walking toward Sawyer with a smirk.
"Not for you." she said smugly, walking right past him and back into the mess hall. It took him by surprise, but when he realized what had probably happened he couldn't help but have a chuckle.
Kate. he thought to himself, knowing she must have spread the word about his womanizing ways to the rest of the girls at the camp. Sawyer shook his head and chuckled again before heading back inside himself. This was going to be a long summer.
Charlotte was resting her chin in her hand, staring across the room at the kitchen area when Sawyer came back in. She saw him give Hurley a look, like he didn't want to hear anything smart coming out of the larger man's mouth. Across from her, Miles glanced up from shoveling food in his face to look at Charlotte, then at Sawyer and Hurley, before glancing to Charlotte again and returning to his food.
"Eat your vegetables." Miles said, his tone as flat as an uncaring parent.
"No." Charlotte said petulantly. She turned her eyes to him, using her fork to flick a piece of mushy, over-cooked carrot at his face. Miles closed his eyes as it hit him on the forehead and he sighed when it bounced off and fell on his plate.
"Oops." said Charlotte, his tone as dry as the rice. Then she smiled.
"So," said Miles, recovering from the indignity quickly. "Are you finally going to take pity on Danny-boy and hook up with him after the dance?"
"Miles." Charlotte calmly scolded her college friend, sitting up straight and pushing her tray aside. She leaned forward on her forearms and looked Miles in the eye. "I thought we agreed you weren't going to tease me about Dan anymore."
"No, you ordered me to stop. I only said 'maybe'."
"Well, first answer me this: are you going to help me with what I asked?"
"Sure. Fine. Whatever."
"Oh come on, don't act blasé, I know you're as intrigued by this island as I am."
"Um, no, you've got this whole girlish excitement thing going that I could only hope to imitate. I'm not even sure what it is you're looking for here."
"Evidence of past civilizations!" Charlotte exclaimed in a hushed tone, as if it should be obvious. She got even quieter as she continued. "Don't you wonder why Widmore doesn't allow the campers to explore beyond those bizarre, invisible fences? There are areas of this island that are not on his cute little children's maps."
"I think you need to stop reading The Da Vinci Code before bed, Char." said Miles.
"Okay, fine, you think my theories are silly. But what about Walt's ghosts?"
Miles pressed his lips together and stared at her for a moment. "Yeah, that's different." he admitted. "That intrigues me."
"Well, I'm fairly certain it's related to what interests me. Help me look for sites and artifacts, and I'll help you with the ghost stuff. Deal?"
"What if I don't need your help with the 'ghost stuff'?"
Charlotte scoffed, and was about to go into another pitch when Daniel appeared beside them.
"Hi. Guys." he said haltingly. "Sorry I'm late, my class...I assigned homework..."
Charlotte looked up at Daniel, smiling softly. He was being adorably vague and confusing as always, yet she knew exactly what he meant to say.
"Don't apologize, Jello-brain." she teased him affectionately. "Go grab some food before the munchkins eat it all. You're going to need your strength for the dance competition tonight."
Daniel's eyebrows furrowed as he stopped to ponder that. "There's a competition?" he wondered aloud, not understanding that Charlotte was only joking. She didn't make it easy, deadpanning the way she did.
Miles stifled a laugh, looking up at Daniel and smirking, though Miles' reaction was also an affectionate one. Daniel, it seemed sometimes, was hopeless.
"Use your fork!" Kate gently scolded one of her kids for the zillionth time. Letting a child grab a handful of vegetables was an invitation to food fight, and after last week's epic battle she was not eager to let it happen again.
"Miss Austen!" the little girl grunted in response, sounding a lot like one of Mr. Locke's boars. Kate looked over at Claire, who sat across from her, and they both burst into laughter.
"I'm so glad I have the older group this year." Claire said, shaking her head at the ruffians Kate was in charge of.
"Oh. I was hoping you would say the opposite." Kate said dryly, rolling her eyes good-naturedly. Last year's 5-8-year-old group had been bigger, and she and Claire had shared responsibilities. Now that Claire had graduated to the 9-12 group, they both worked alone, but Claire still ate dinner with Kate at the little kids' table. Kate took another bite of dry chicken, and looked around to see if Shannon was back in the mess hall yet. She was sitting a few tables away with her own little brood, the 13-17-year-old group, having just come back from her smoke break. Kate watched her, a bit jealous, as the kids fawned over her. She was so popular, and all the boys - young and old - always stared...
Kate was so busy watching Shannon that she didn't see Sawyer sit down on her blind side, and didn't notice him staring at her until he cleared his throat. She turned to him, hoping she didn't look startled.
"Hey, Freckles." he said, saccharine sweet. She raised an eyebrow at his sarcastic looking smile.
"What?" Kate asked, regarding him with suspicion. Claire looked on with equally suspicious curiosity.
"Would you care to tell me why I can't even get Princess Shannon to give the time of day, much less light a cigarette for a desperate man when his lighter's out of fluid?"
At that, Kate chuckled smugly, pleased with herself for once. "I don't know, Sawyer. Why would a girl like Shannon suddenly turn her back on a charmer like you?"
"You told her about last year, didn'tcha?"
"Maybe."
"Yeah. Ya did." said Sawyer, dropping the sweet smile and looking around the cafeteria. He wasn't angry at Kate. Alright, maybe a little, but he was more upset at himself, that he let what happened happen.
He thought he'd planned it perfectly. Hook up with Juliet in the evenings, and do the friends-with-benefits thing with Kate any other time he could find, usually in the middle of the night when her little troop was asleep. It was easy at first, since both women wanted to keep their relationship with Sawyer - or lack thereof - a secret from everyone else. That worked out wonderfully for Sawyer, whose only concern was keeping his relationship - or lack thereof - with each woman a secret from the other. Alas, not even Sawyer was indefatigable, and they both happened to approach him on the same day, within the same hour. Suspicions grew, until Kate asked Sawyer if he was seeing someone else. Since she was his friend above all else...Sawyer lied at first, but she eventually got the truth from him. She immediately went to tell Juliet, for her safety and to preserve their dignity. They were both fiercely independent women, and couldn't stand the thought of being taken advantage of by a guy like Sawyer, who always thought he had everyone fooled. Juliet had appreciated Kate's honesty, but it made a friendship between them impossible, the jealousy of what the other had with Sawyer too great to ignore. As much as they thought women should stick together, they still had feelings for him, feelings he'd crushed when he tried to date both of them at once.
Poor Sawyer. At least he still had Kate's friendship. She had been angry at first, and given him the silent treatment - more on Juliet's behalf than on her own - but she'd forgiven him, as she always did, because aside from his mistakes where the bedroom was concerned, he was one of her best friends at the camp. They understood each other, even better now that Kate had cut off his benefits, but if she was going around telling the other women at the camp about his exploits, then he wondered if it didn't still bug her deep inside...
"Didn't realize it pissed you off so much." he said, sounding more concerned now.
"I'm over it." Kate assured him, as if it should be obvious. "But Shannon asked, and I wasn't going to lie about it. You made your bed, now you gotta-"
"I gotta lay in it, sure." Sawyer finished the old saying for her. "Alone." he added, sighing deeply.
"Come on, it won't be that bad." Claire said, smiling in a lovingly smug way along with Kate. "You could read bedtime stories to the kids instead."
Sawyer hmph'd, turning back to Kate. "So how's it goin' with Dr. Giggles? Set a date yet? I'm pretty sure he's savin' it for marriage, that one..." He waited for Kate to respond, expecting her to get all bugaboo for getting teased about her crush on the good doctor, but Jack had just walked into the mess hall with Widmore, Penny and Charlie. Kate was staring in that direction, so she probably wasn't even listening to what he was saying anymore.
"Look at her," Sawyer playfully exclaimed to Claire, pointing a thumb at Kate. "I can see the hearts in her eyes."
"I think it's sweet." Claire said, smiling in Kate's direction. Kate looked back at them, finally realizing they were talking about her, and tried not to blush. Sawyer chuckled most mischievously, and grinned at her.
"Is Jackie gonna get lucky tonight?"
"Shut up, Sawyer." Kate said immediately, trying very hard not to smile.
"Hoo, boy!" Sawyer hooted. "Is he even gonna know what to do with you?"
"James!" Kate scolded him, widening her eyes so he'd stop talking about it in front of the kids. Sawyer chuckled again. "You can tell me all about it later, Freckles." he said as he stood. "You owe me at least that much for turning all these chicks against me."
"Go help Hurley." Kate told him, shaking her head as if to say I'm not telling you a thing.
"I'm goin', I'm goin'."
Sawyer walked back to the counter, since there were kids lining up for seconds already, along with Daniel, Jack and the Widmores. He thought about Kate and the doc, allowing himself a jealous moment now that he knew Jack was going to be getting all her attention from now on. In the end, he felt happy for her, since it was obvious to him and anyone else that saw them together that Jack was just as enamored of her as she was with him.
This thing with Juliet and Richard, on the other hand...now that had to stop, he thought. Maybe it's because they weren't close, like he and Kate were. Maybe it was the fact that Juliet now only spoke to him to be polite that bothered him so much. She'd been the one to break things off, and besides his pride, somehow his feelings had gotten hurt. What did Uptight Alpert have that he didn't?
Your girl, for one thing. Sawyer thought, before he pushed all that pathetic love stuff to the side. "Didn't you piggies get enough the first time around?" he asked the line of children. Some laughed, used to Sawyer's fake snarling as a joke, and others cowered. "Come on, gimme yer plates..."
