Sawyer caught up with them as they were making their way to the heart of the island.

"I didn't see Desmond in the well, but that's good news, right?" he asked, walking along them. "It means he got out. But I met Locke. He wants to destroy this place."

"Well, we can't let that happen," Hugo just said. "How far, Jack?" he turned to the doctor.

"Don't worry. We'll get there soon enough."

"Hey, what about Desmond? Shouldn't we look for him some more?" James asked, not sure if he should go with them.

"It doesn't matter if we find Desmond," Jack told him. "We're all going to the same place."

"You're so sure about that? And then what?"

"Then it ends," Jack answered and looked at Alice whose hand he was still holding. = "And hopefully, we can go home." He didn't forget that being pregnant was a death sentence on the island and right now his priority was to just get his wife home. Only he couldn't do that without Locke being dead as the guy posed a serious threat to everything.

They were very close to the bamboo forest when somebody walked out of the bushes on their right. Kate was already raising her gun, preparing herself to shoot when Richard raised his hands in surrender and yelled, "Wow! Wait! It's just me!"

"What are you doing here?" Alice asked in surprise as Kate lowered the gun.

"I came to tell you that Miles and I found Lapidus and right now he's working on the plane. I'm getting you all out of here."

"So you no longer want to destroy it?" Jack made sure.

"What's the point in destroying it if we can just fly away in it, leaving Locke behind?" Richard asked.

"That's actually a great plan, dude," Hugo said, "but we have to kill Locke, not just leave him behind."

"And how are you planning on doing that?" Richard got interested when joining the group.

"You'll see," Jack only told him mysteriously.

"The plane should be ready in an hour," Richard then added.

"First things first."

Barely had they entered the bamboo forest, they met with Locke who was dragging Desmond and Ben with him.

"So, you're the new Jacob?" Locke asked Jack since he was the one currently leading. Yet, little did he know how wrong he actually was.

Alice was already opening her mouth to say something when Jack squeezed her hand gently and almost imperceptibly shook his head when she looked at him. They had the advantage of surprise if Locke thought Jack was the replacement. While he was watching him, Hugo would have a free hand to act.

"Let's go," Jack just said, glad that this time Hugo wasn't so fast to spill the beans.

Then he jumped when Kate suddenly opened fire, shooting Locke. To their shock, the man was still standing, having no scratch on him.

"Have you finished?" he just asked stunned Kate and then turned to Jack with warning in his voice, "Whatever you think you'll do, you're wrong."

"Really? I'm going to destroy you."

"No, you're going to destroy this island," the man corrected him.

"We'll just have to wait and see who's right, then," Jack cut the conversation short.

They finally reached the heart of the island and for a moment, they all stood still, mesmerized by the simple and natural beauty of the light in the cave they saw the entrance to. There was a small stream disappearing inside, water going down and carrying the light. Locke was the only one who seemed not to waste his time when producing a rope and tying it around Desmond's waist. Hugo helped him and they slowly lowered Desmond into the pit. Then they waited.

Alice could tell Jack was buzzing with anticipation, ready to act, ready to kill Locke as soon as he would have the chance. And then it happened - Alice felt sick, but this feeling wasn't particularly strong. With Jacob's death, her ability must've been fading.

"I guess you were wrong, Jack," Locke said and next thing Alice knew, Jack jumped to him and tackled him to the ground, then he hit him in the face and to their astonishment, the man actually bled.

"You were wrong, too," Jack said with satisfaction.

Locke then took him by surprise when striking him upside the head and running away quickly.

James tried to stop him, but he met with the same fate Jack had, just dropping flat on the ground.

Kate opened fire again, but she missed.

"I'm going to kill that bastard!" she screamed and followed the Man in Black. In the meantime, Hugo was calling Desmond's name by the pit, hoping to get him out in time.

"Jack!" Alice didn't care about anything and anyone at the moment but getting to her husband and making sure he was all right. "Jack, wake up!" She squatted right by him and cupped his face, trying to gently shake him awake. "Jack?"

To her relief, he opened his eyes. He was disoriented for a moment, but then she saw understanding and recognition in his eyes and he slowly sat up, massaging his head. She helped him to stand up and almost immediately bent over, struck with a particularly strong attack.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked. "What's happening? Is the baby all right?"

"Yeah... it's... Jack, something's terribly wrong. I think Kate's in trouble," Alice informed with a gasp.

"I'm on it," Jack just said and was already gone, running after Locke and Kate.

"Jack! Wait!" Alice tried to stop him, but it was too late.

"I don't know how to help Desmond!" she then heard Hugo calling, but somehow she had a feeling that Desmond would be just fine.

"I can do it," Richard offered to her surprise and she was torn between running after her husband and trying to persuade Richard from doing something stupid. Eventually, she decided that Jack could handle himself and she turned to her friend.

"Richard, you don't know what will happen to you once you get down there," she protested, making her way to him.

"I know. I'll die," he simply answered.

"But... you can't..." she came to a sudden stop as she realized that if she was slowly being freed from her ability, Richard must've been becoming mortal again.

"I have to put whatever Desmond pulled out, back in," Richard explained. "Once you kill Locke, this has to be done. Otherwise the island will crumble and land at the bottom of the ocean and we both know that we cannot let that happen, Alice. Not after everything we've done trying to protect this place."

"All I ever wanted to protect was my husband," she just said.

"Exactly," he admitted sadly. "You belong with him because you love him. The problem is that I am in love with you, too."

She was already opening her mouth to say something, but then she closed it. What could she tell Richard that wouldn't be a lie and would make him feel better? That she cared about him? That he was just a dear friend to her? He knew the first and the second was unnecessary.

"You already have a life you always wanted and needed, Alice," Richard continued when cupping her face and looking her in the eye. "I can't be around you. It wouldn't be right for the both of us."

"So you'll just die?" she asked with pain in her voice, her eyes already filling up with tears. She was hurting because she'd never really had any feelings for him, but he had for her. She felt so sorry for this poor and broken man who'd never been really happy in his life.

She had no words to say to Richard as she was looking into his brown and warm eyes that were so good. She could do something for him, though and it wouldn't feel like cheating because she would be just comforting her friend in the time of need. And he needed and deserved it. She pressed her lips against his, kissing him, giving him what he wanted and then she stepped backwards, letting him do what he had to do. Letting him go. He cast her one last look, nodding at her and then turning to Hurley to say, "Lower me down there."

Ben came over to help Hugo and Alice was just watching Richard till she still could. Only then she found she didn't have the time since she suddenly felt horrible, clenching onto her stomach and bending over as nausea hit her and something else, too. Something she'd never felt before. Something nearly clouding her whole mind, making it impossible for her to see or feel anything but this paralyzing fear. Her ability had never been screaming at her so badly before and somehow she knew that it wasn't because it was disappearing, that it wasn't one last time. Or maybe it was, but it was more serious than anything she'd been warned about before. It felt so bad that she was afraid she'd lose control and just faint. She'd fainted once before, after the freighter exploded and their chopper crashed. It was when the island disappeared. Still, this time it seemed even worse than that. It was beyond anything, it made her want to lie down on the ground and crawl in pain, to just die, to stop everything so she could have some respite.

She was losing her fight, she knew that, she soon would just black out and then, through her already clouded and sore brain, she remembered something – And one day, Alice, it may help you save the life of someone you love.

It took everything she had, all her willpower, all of her love for Jack and their unborn child to stand up, to get to her feet and move. To just move towards the place Locke, Kate and Jack had disappeared to, to reach them.

Run, Alice, run! She screamed at herself in her mind as she moved, faster and faster, as she fought through the pain and the nausea and she just sped. Run! Run for your life! And she was. Quite literally, too. She wanted nothing more than to just stop and to collapse and pass out, but she couldn't because Jack was in a mortal danger and she couldn't do it without him. She could not do anything without him. Not now. Not ever.

Jack could hear Kate screaming in pain and then screaming for help as he was speeding through the jungle to help her. He hoped her wasn't too late, but once he finally found himself on the cliff, he saw her lying on the hard rock surface in a pool of blood.

He immediately got to his knees, checking her pulse. She was breathing, but barely. He looked at her wounds and discovered that she had been stabbed multiple times. It was a miracle that she was still breathing, but for how long? He wondered.

"Behind you," he suddenly heard her warning him in a weak and wheezing voice. It took him quite some time to decipher what she said and once he finally did, it was already too late since there was a knife pressed against his throat.

Jack stilled, his heart beating even faster. He was terrified of what would happen next. Locke would kill him. He would simply slit his throat and there was nothing Jack could do to escape the blade. There was also no one to help him. Kate was already dying. Soon, he would join her, he thought and closed his eyes shut, thinking of how stupid he was to get himself stuck in this trap. Then he thought of Alice and all the things he promised her. He wasn't going to hurt her again and what he was doing right now? This would be the last straw. This would not only kill him, but her, too. And what if she'd lose the baby once she found out?

"Finally, the new Jacob," Locke then said and in that moment, an idea sprouted in Jack's head. Only would Locke even believe him? Jack wondered. He had to try anyway.

"You're wrong," he said carefully and nearly hissed as the blade cut some skin on the side of his neck. It was pressed too tightly. "I'm not the new Jacob. Hugo is. And you're never going to kill him now."

Even if it didn't save his life, it gave him some time, he thought. His neck was bleeding, but the cut was only skin deep, nothing damaged so far. He started looking for something, anything, a weapon to use during that moment of hesitation before Locke would kill him anyway, but he failed.

There was just nothing. Kate's gun was probably discarded somewhere else.

And just then, when he closed his eyes and prayed to God and thought of Alice, a shot went out and the knife was dropped, releasing him from its painful vise. Jack took a deep breath, thanking the heavens for whoever just saved his life and then he stood up and turned around. He was stunned to see Alice standing there with a still smoking gun in her hands. She was shaking, barely standing on her feet as though she was going to collapse.

"I guess the shooting lessons really came in handy," she then told him before she dropped the gun and her knees hit the ground.

Jack was by her side in a second, holding her in his arms as she sobbed, her tears mixing with the blood that was still on his neck. She was clenching onto him desperately, couldn't believe she made it on time, couldn't really believe she was strong enough to push through and save him. And now she couldn't let him go, reveling in the feel of his strong arms around her, his heart beating so widely in his chest.

"Let's get out of here," she finally said when moving away a little, but only to cup his face and look him deeply in the eye. "I can't do this anymore. I need us home and save." Then she pressed her lips desperately against him, kissing him hard on the mouth. And he reciprocated.

Only then they heard a scream coming from Sawyer who must've just arrived. He'd probably followed them the moment he'd regained consciousness.

"No... no... no... Kate! Kate, wake up!" His knees hit the ground as he found Kate, desperately trying to shake her awake.

"Oh, no," Alice gasped, her hands covering her mouth. She started crying all over again as she got to her feet, reaching Kate.

"Don't," Jack stopped her when placing his hands on her shoulders. "Just... don't. She's gone."

He wanted to spare her the sight from up close. He didn't want her to see the terrible cuts in Kate's body that Locke had caused. He just wanted to shield her from everything. He didn't want her to think that if she'd gotten to the cliff a second later, he could've looked quite similar himself. That then she would've been crying over his body just like James was now doing it over Kate's.

"We need to go," Jack said. "Locke has a boat. We need to get to the Hydra island and catch that plane. Alice!" He raised his voice when she just stood there in a deep shock. "Alice!" he cupped her face and forced her to look him in the eye. "The baby! We can't stay here!" he reminded her.

"Right... right..." She finally woke up when thinking about her pregnancy. If she was still pregnant. Something calmed her down, though as some strange warmth was ignited in her heart and then it spread to all the parts of her body. She was sure the baby was fine. She also seemed to know that Richard was dying.

And then she knew that her ability was gone. She knew it all with such a surety and clarity that she didn't even waste her time questioning it.

Finally, she stilled herself and the shaking stopped as she walked towards James and placed her hand on his shoulder. "She's gone, James. I'm so sorry, but she is. We need to leave. Now."

Jack wasn't sure how whatever Alice said worked so quickly, but it did. Sawyer stood up, met her eyes and then he just nodded. Maybe it was the tone of her voice, maybe something else, but soon enough, they jumped off a cliff, straight into the water, swimming towards the boat.

Once they finally got to the beach on Hydra, they were met with a surprise. Claire was just sitting there, nervously playing with her fingers. Alice's heart reached out to her when seeing the state the blonde was in. It was hopelessness, abandonment, lack of belonging. She herself had once felt that way and Jack had helped her.

Alice wanted to go to Claire, but Jack stopped her. "It has to be me," he just said and made his way to his sister. Alice felt that, too. It had to be him. He needed to fix this one last person. He needed to make them all family.

"Claire?" he asked. "Claire, there's a plane leaving this island very soon and we can be there. We can get the hell out of here."

She didn't move or say anything for a moment, but then she slowly raised her head and met his eyes.

"I'm not going. I can't."

"Why not?" he asked when squatting right in front of her, looking at her face. "Don't you want to see your son? Don't you want to see Aaron?"

"Look at me!" Claire suddenly raised her voice. "I can't let him see me like this!"

"Nothing is irreversible, Claire," Jack continued in the same calming and steady voice. He needed to do this. He needed to reunite a mother with her son. He needed to do this for Kate, for Aaron, for himself. Kate died because of this and he wouldn't leave this island without making it right, without honoring what she wanted to do, what she came back for. "Claire, listen, I know I wasn't the best brother. I didn't know that we were related when I left this island, but then when I finally came back and met you again, I didn't care. I didn't care enough and I'm sorry for this. Just let me fix this now, ok? Let me be the big brother you deserve to have. Let me take you to your son. Kate..." he stopped, hesitating, but then he said it anyway in a changed voice. Now it was heavy and full of both guilt and pain. "Kate is gone. You're the only mother Aaron has now. You have to come with us. I will help you. Alice will help you. We'll be a family. What do you say?"

In that moment, Alice and James came closer and Alice reached her hand to Claire. Jack did the same as he stood up, waiting for the blonde to decide to go with them.

Eventually, she grabbed both their hands and they helped her out and together they ran towards the plane.

Lapidus was already leaving, but he stopped, seeing Sawyer running out in front of the plane, waving his arms and then soon enough, three other people joining.

"Looks like we got some latecomers!" the pilot informed happily and Miles opened the door, helping all of them in.

They quickly took their seats and Lapidus started all over again, praying that they'd manage to leave before the ground crumbled underneath them.

Jack directed Claire towards the window seat and then he took the one beside her and finally, the third seat was taken by Alice. They held hands again, just being together, trying to believe they were actually leaving, trying to deal with what and whom they left behind and what would await them back home. Alice looked at Jack's throat worryingly, but he assured her it was just a scratch, so she rested her head on his shoulder, still holding onto him, still needing a proof that he was there and he was alive and he was real. Then she looked at the seat across from her and saw James there. Poor, lonely, grieving James who'd in the matter of one week somehow lost two women he'd cared about. She reached her free hand towards him and took his. He looked her in the eye for a moment, appreciating that she was there for him, that at least she managed to stay alive. And then, they left the island, the plane raising up into the air.

The key scraped the metal of the lock when Jack opened the door to his and Alice's apartment and let them in. It felt more strange and surreal the second time around when they came back from the island. Maybe because this time there were no people from Oceanic waiting for them, no press conference; they also weren't welcomed by their families and friends. It was just a quiet landing somewhere in Mexico and a lot of money paid for them to go unregistered. The plane was soon found by Ajira, but no one could tell how it actually got there.

It had been a very long and exhausting day, Alice decided when following Jack into their apartment. She'd rather not think when was the last time he'd been there. On their way back to LA, Alice made sure Claire looked more presentable. She'd taken her to a hairdresser – who thought it was a joke, actually – and shopping and they'd also been talking a lot. Alice and Jack had been telling Claire about Aaron, preparing her for their meeting and the first thing they'd done when finding themselves back in LA, was to take Claire to her mother who, luckily, was still in town. She could afford it after the settlement from Oceanic and she didn't want to move in case her daughter would come back. There Claire had been left and James had gone to see his own daughter, Clementine. That left both Alice and Jack alone.

And now they were back home, back to their old lives, having trouble believing it and missing all the people they'd met and lost during their second trip to the island. Missing Richard. Missing Kate. Juliet. Hugo who stayed behind, protecting the island.

Alice took Jack's hand and led him to the bathroom. None of them said anything. They didn't have to, really, both tired and overwhelmed. Once in the room, Alice took off all her clothes and got into the shower, turning on the hot water. Jack soon followed her example, joining her. They'd taken showers in the motel rooms on their way home, but it wasn't the same. This was. This was their cleaning, their coming back. Alice touched the freshly scarred cut on Jack's neck. It was actually deeper than he claimed it to be, but nothing was damaged. Then her hands moved to his back an\d to his side, touching the very scar she herself made when stitching him up. She felt like she needed to re-acquaint herself with his body again, to remember it and to get to know everything that seemed new like the small, almost imperceptible scar on his neck. His hands were all over her body and then he reached for the shower gel and the shampoo. She could feel him everywhere, his lips on her neck, kissing, sucking, caressing, his hands covering her breasts, then lowering to her stomach to rest there for a moment. Soon enough it would grow bigger and then they would have a child.

Once they were clean, they just held each other, breathing one another in, letting go of everything except them. Alice felt the evidence of Jack's desperate arousal against her body for quite some time now and she herself wanted him so badly it ached. Finally, she moved and captured his lips and they kissed as they got out of the shower and then they went to bed to lie there and become one. She opened her legs for him immediately, not able to stand another second without him inside her and there he was, sliding in with a groan and she responded with the same. They moved as one, kissed and kept on holding on.

"I'm never going to leave you," he said, speaking for the first time since they stepped into their apartment. "I promise you."

Nine months later James pushed the door open as he entered the maternity ward, carrying a stuffed animal and a few blue balloons tied up to the bear's hand. He'd never before welcomed a new child to this world and it was quite stressful for him, especially when the parents requested him to be the godfather. How was he supposed to be any good at it when all the experience he had was the last few months he'd spent getting to know his daughter. He truly love that girl. He loved her more than anything in this world and was determined to stay in her life forever. Well, at least until he died, he thought, hating that one day he would have to leave her. Only Clem was a girl and now he would have to be a part of a boy's life and he wasn't sure he was a good example of a man after everything he'd done. Still, he would do his damn best because Alice and Jack deserved it. He finally found the right room and entered it, steadying his footsteps in case he was in any danger of waking the baby up.

He saw Alice half-lying in a bed with a small bundle in her arms, resting against Jack's chest. James was pretty sure that husbands' presence in beds along their wives in a hospital after giving birth was against the rules, but everyone knew and liked doctor Shephard here, so he got away with it.

Claire was sitting in a chair right next to the bed, her hair almost the same length now as James remembered it from the times before she'd gone cuckoo. Aaron was playing in the corner.

"I see the family's complete," James said when coming closer to the bed and looking at the small boy in his best friend's arms. He still couldn't believe children could be so small and defenseless after they were born.

"Now it is." Alice sent him a happy smile. "James, meet your godson, David."