He had sat against a tree that morning, on the edge of the jungle. This particular part jutted out onto the beach more, so that he could clearly see everyone else on the beach, giving him a fair warning to walk away or put his defenses up whenever someone came near. Jack had been the first person to come over to him. Sawyer didn't even raise his eyes to look at him from the picture in his hands.

"Can I help you, Doc?" He said bitterly, knowing that he had no intention of helping him if it involved moving, thinking, or good causes.

"Kate. Have you seen her?" He asked desperately. It was obvious that he had been running around, and it gave Sawyer a kick to see him so worried, or at least, it would have done had he not been so emotionally depressed.

"Freckles? Not since yesterday." Sawyer told him.

"What time?" Jack asked.

"I dunno, Jack-ass, my watch stopped working in the water a few weeks back." Sawyer spat back sarcastically. "Sometime in the morning."

Jack rested his hands on his knees, catching his breath.

"What're you getting so worked up for anyway? Ain't she usually trotting along ten feet behind you, tending to your every beck and call?"

Jack shot Sawyer a nasty look before shaking his head. "She went missing yesterday."

Now Sawyer looked up. "Missing?" Jack had known that Sawyer would care about that. He knew that one of the main disputes between him and Sawyer now wasn't hero against villian, it was because Kate had chosen Jack, and not Sawyer. But they all knew that Sawyer still wanted her.

"Went into the jungle to get some fruit, never came back." Jack explained breathlessly.

"Maybe she couldn't find any." Sawyer suggested.

"There's a perfectly good supply ten minutes from the caves." Jack reminded.

Sawyer smirked to himself. "Maybe she got bored with digging in...with being your Eve."

Jack resisted the temptation to hit Sawyer, but knew that he needed to find Kate primarily. "Are you going to help or what?" Jack asked.

Sawyer shook his head. "She'll come back when she's good and ready, Jack-O. Can't push a girl like Freckles."

Jack stalked off and went to find Sayid at Sawyer's guess. When something went wrong, that was what Jack did: went to find Kate, then Sayid, then organised a search party or some kind of little culty team who were in on all the secrets. Seeing as Kate wasn't here, he just assumed that Sayid was next on his list. Sawyer watched Jack disappear into the crowd and returned his eyes to the photograph in his hands.

"You're not the only one looking for someone..." He muttered to himself.

By the time the sun was setting, Jack had given up on everyone's attempts to get him to wait, and Sawyer sat in the same spot, watching him assemble his precious little search team. He would have gone with them, but he knew that with Jack there, she didn't need or want him to rescue her. She only cared about the doctor now. Jack was frantic about Kate spending another night away from camp, with no clue to her whereabouts all day, and it had ended up being Sayid, Locke, Michael and Charlie going with him to try and find her.

Sawyer shook his head. They should have listened to him...Kate would come back when she was ready to, and no sooner.

He turned back to his book, now reading Watership Down for the seventh time, using his photograph as a bookmark, remembering how she liked rabbits. The smallest things were reminding him of her now. It was ridiculous. He had just gotten back into the chapter when a yell caused him to look up.

"KATE!"

It was Jack's voice, and Sawyer lifted his head to see Kate emerging from the trees about twenty feet away from him. Jack still halfway down the beach, and was running full pelt towards her already, but Sawyer's gaze turned to who Kate was with.

There was a little girl in Kate's arms. Little more than a baby. She had whispy blonde hair that was swaying in the wind, and was bawling her eyes out. Why hadn't he heard it before? He probably had, and assumed it was Claire's baby. He struggled to his feet and ran over just as fast as Jack was, but now Jack was already there.

Kate had fallen to the floor, and was on her knees in the sand, crying, traumatised. Sawyer approached slowly, unsure of what to do now. Kate was covered in scratches, blood, bruises, you name it. There was a cut on the little girl's head, and Sawyer was filled with anger. He could hear Jack talking.

"Kate? Kate, I'm here, I'm right next to you. Talk to me, Kate, what's going on."

But she was saying nothing. The kid started crying again, and Sawyer walked past Jack, and took the little girl in his arms, held her close, and then sunk to the ground beside the pair of them, and cried his eyes out.