"I didn't sign up for this, Des" Kali announced, around twenty minutes after they had started their trek down the beach.
She could see how he tensed for a moment, a guilty expression flashing over his features. Had she figured out the reason for their impromptu camping trip? Or that he had spoken to her brother again? Just as Desmond opened his mouth to justify his actions, Kali began to laugh, patting his shoulder.
"I mean seriously...why are you letting Charlie bring his guitar along? I thought this was supposed to be fun!" Kali exclaimed, earning a few sniggers from the rest of the group.
"Oi! It's not my fault if your tone deaf!" Charlie complained.
"I wouldn't be surprised if you sleep with the bloody thing" Kali teased, making Charlie purse his lips.
"...It's more comfortable than you think, alright-" Charlie began, as Kali burst out laughing, soon joined by Hurley.
"야!" Jin exclaimed, kicking something with his foot, as the group surrounded him.
"Way to go, dude" Hurley grinned, as he leaned down to pick up a long cable that led from the sea all the way into the jungle.
Kali and Sawyer both turned to Desmond, crossing their arms simultaneously and waited for an explanation. They had both known the other man was up to something, but clearly, they were the only ones who had been kept in the dark.
"Someone's coming" Desmond informed them.
"Someone?" Kali pushed, quirking an eyebrow.
"I had a vision. I saw someone come to the island. A rescue" Desmond clarified, as Sawyer's eyes widened a fraction.
"Well, why the hell didn't you say that, Scotty?" Sawyer huffed.
"I couldn't risk changing anything. We have to do everything as I saw" Desmond told them.
"Ah, hence bringing Charlie's shitty guitar" Kali nodded, turning to see Charlie raise his middle finger in the air, making her grin.
"Just one thing, last time I followed this wire into the jungle, I almost got kebabbed by one of Rousseau's spiky death-trap things" Hurley explained.
"We're not going in the jungle, well, not yet. It's getting late, so we'll camp here the night" Desmond suggested, as Jin nodded.
"Camp" He agreed, pulling off his rucksack.
"We'll set up our tent a bit further up" Kali stated, as Hurley gave them a frown when he saw the pack Sawyer was holding in his hands.
"Hold up. Since when do you two have a proper tent?" He gaped.
"We took it from the barracks" Kali shrugged.
"Well, can't we share then?" Hurley pointed out, as Kali gave him an amused look.
"Not tonight, Hurley" Kali insisted, quirking an eyebrow, as the man remained clueless.
"She can get pretty loud" Sawyer teased, slinging his arm over Kali's shoulder, as she elbowed him in the stomach.
Realisation slowly dawned on Hurley's face, as he turned to the others with a grimace, earning a snort of laughter from Desmond. With a skip in their step, the couple walked further up the beach, looking forward to when the sun went down that evening. Desmond watched as they went, feeling guilt creeping into him, knowing their night wasn't going to go as they expected.
A few hours later, the group surrounded a campfire, toasting marshmallows over the flames. Hurley had suggested they tell each other ghost stories, something which Jin had been able to understand, as he began telling his own horror tale. Kali had a rough idea that the story was about a little girl and a man with a hooked hand, but apart from that, Jin holding his flashlight underneath his chin had to set the mood. She nudged Sawyer, gesturing to where Hurley was listening intently, looking like he was seconds from pissing himself. Suddenly, Jin thrust his hand in the air, covered by his shirt, giving the appearance he had no hand. Hurley let out a scream, almost jumping back in fright as they all laughed.
"Dude, I loved the part about the bird...there was a bird, right?" Hurley inquired, as Kali shook her head fondly.
"Good?" Jin asked, turning to Kali.
"Joh-eun" Kali nodded, as a smile spread over Jin's face.
"Deo na-eun" Jin replied, giving her a thumb's up.
"Since when do you speak Korean?" Sawyer questioned.
"Jin's been teaching me a few words" Kali confessed, with a shrug.
Sawyer leaned down to whisper something in her ear, making Kali's grin grow wider, a giggle leaving her lips. Charlie and Hurley shared a look, partly disgusted by the couple's antics, but also finding it weirdly heart-warming. They had become so used to Kali and Sawyer refusing to admit their feelings for each other.
"So, you two seem...close?" Hurley stated, not noticing how Charlie stood up and walked over to Desmond, who had been staying away from the group.
"Well, someone finally pulled his head out of his arse" Kali teased, making Sawyer roll his eyes.
"Wait. Are you two dating?!" Hurley gaped, as the pair simply shrugged.
"Don't make a big deal out of it, Hugo-" Sawyer began, but was quickly cut off by Hurley's excited cry.
"Dudes!" Hurley exclaimed, rushing over to the pair.
Kali laughed as he was suddenly lunging at them, pulling the pair into a tight hug, his frizzy hair making them both choke as they were crushed against his shoulder. Hurley's happiness seemed to be infectious as she heard even Sawyer huff out a laugh, patting the other man on the back a few times. Neither of them needed a blessing for their relationship but still, it was...nice.
"You got that out of your system now?" Sawyer mumbled, as Hurley reluctantly pulled away.
"Never thought I'd see this day, man. I thought for sure you were gonna' blow it" Hurley admitted, as Sawyer gave him an indignant look.
"You're not the only one" Kali grinned.
In response, Sawyer wrapped his arms around Kali's waist, pulling her off her feet, as she started laughing. She didn't resist as he began dragging her towards their tent, a mischievous look on his face.
"Don't wait up!" He called to Hurley, before picking Kali up properly.
She let out an excited cry as he pulled her up bridal style, with little effort. She slung her arms around his neck, giggling at his ridiculous behaviour. She waved back to the others, knowing they wouldn't be seeing them until the morning. It was dark in their tent as they entered, the only light coming from a flickering lamp in the corner, as Sawyer placed her back on the sand. All of a sudden, he was pressing his lips to hers, a hand coming up to caress her cheek, fingers trailing over her jaw. As Kali wrapped her arms around Sawyer's shoulders to pull him closer, their kisses became more feverish, and she felt her heart beat quicker in her chest. Pulling away a little, Sawyer began to trail his lips down her neck, kissing and nipping at the sensitive skin with his teeth. Kali couldn't stop the soft moan that left her lips, goosebumps rising over her entire body. Wanting to be able to touch him, she reached out for his shirt, ripping it open as buttons went flying across the sand.
"Someone's eager" Sawyer grinned, shrugging the shirt off his back.
Kali bit her lip, eyes trailing down his tanned chest, before raking her nails over his abdomen, stopping at the waistband of his jeans to tug him closer. Their lips crashed together, Sawyer's tongue darting out to lick her bottom lip, hands tangling into her hair, tugging just a little.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Sawyer mumbled, against her lips.
With a slight smirk, Kali responded by pulling her shirt over her head, watching Sawyer's eyes flicker down to her bra, subconsciously licking his lips. A blush grew over her cheeks as Sawyer continued staring at her for a few more seconds, speechless for once. Slowly, he approached her, leaning forward to press open-mouthed kisses down her throat, nipping at her collarbone and proceeding to go lower. The blood was rushing to Kali's ears as he kneeled down in front of her, kissing in between the valley of her breasts and coming to rest his lips above her hip bone. A sharp gasp left her lips as he suddenly tugged her jeans down her legs, which she quickly kicked off, leaving her in just her underwear.
"I want to kiss every square inch of your body tonight" Sawyer exclaimed, leaning down to press his lips to her inner thigh, as butterflies erupted in Kali's abdomen.
Just as she opened her mouth to reply, she heard a strange whirring sound, turning her head towards the camp. It was strange, it almost sounded like a...
"Do you hear that?" Kali questioned, as Sawyer shook his head.
"There's only one sound I'm gonna' be hearing tonight, baby" Sawyer grinned, grabbing her by the waist and tugging her down towards the sand.
Biting her lip, with her attention solely back on Sawyer, she reached behind her to unhook her bra, throwing it to the side. Sawyer's mouth went slack as she moved to straddle his waist, hands going to the buttons on his jeans, her intentions clear. Sawyer started trailing his hands over her hips, reaching up to cup one of her breasts with his large hand, hearing Kali's breathing stutter. A second later, he was grabbing her by the waist and flipping them over, but he hadn't accounted for how small the tent was. Suddenly, the flimsy shelter began to topple over, the poles inside breaking apart as the plastic material fell on top of them in a heap. The pair were silent for a second, their limbs tangled together, barely able to see as the lamp had been covered. Simultaneously they began to laugh, laying on their backs beside each other for a moment.
"Now who's eager" Kali sniggered, as Sawyer shook his head, fondly.
"What can I say? You drive me crazy, blue eyes" Sawyer grinned in the darkness.
"C'mon, let's get this tent back up and then you can show me just how crazy" Kali teased, pushing herself up into a sitting position and feeling around for the lamp.
"I'm happy where I am" Sawyer exclaimed, reaching out to pull her onto his lap, the tent falling against her back.
"I can tell" Kali giggled, feeling his erection pressing against her thigh.
Her smile quickly fell away when she heard the strange whirring sound again, realising it was closer this time. She could hear shouting from further down the camp, as if they were calling out to someone. It took a few more seconds for her to realise what the sound was.
"Is that a helicopter?" Kali frowned, as Sawyer huffed out a laugh.
"Well, I ain't heard that line before-" Sawyer began, but she was quick to shush him.
"I'm serious! Listen!" She insisted, as he did as he was told.
"Son of a bitch" Sawyer hissed, as he grabbed at the material of the tent, pulling it back so he could look out the entrance.
"Can you see anything?" Kali questioned, hands reaching out to find her clothes.
"No, but there's definitely something out at sea" Sawyer told her, as Kali's hands landed on her bra, quickly putting it on.
"I'm gonna' get rescued in my damn underwear" Kali complained, trying to get her jeans back on.
"C'mon!" Sawyer pleaded, all but dragging her out of the tent once she had pulled her jeans over her hips.
The pair rushed towards the campfire, as Kali's panic grew with every passing second. She had never expected a rescue to come so quickly. She wasn't ready to lose Sawyer or her friends. Would she ever be? She cursed the tears that begin to well in her eyes, the reality of the situation beginning to hit her. She rubbed at her eyes with the back of her hand as they approached the others, all eyes on the waterfront.
"Uh, is that how a helicopter's supposed to sound?" Hurley questioned.
His words were followed by a loud explosion in the distance and a splashing sound a second later. Kali and Sawyer shared a look, knowing they might have just heard their only hope at a rescue go down. Desmond appeared devastated, running a hand through his hair, looking as if he was seconds from dropping to his knees.
"We've got to go out there" Hurley suggested, making Kali scoff.
"Sure, let's all go for a little midnight swim in freezing waters in the pitch black!" Kali exclaimed, as they all turned to her.
"Ah! You're naked!" Hurley gaped, covering his eyes with his hand, as Kali looked down to realise she was still just in a bra and jeans.
"Not really the most important thing right now, Hurley" Kali rolled her eyes.
"Ugh, gross. Cover up" Charlie told her, taking off his hoodie and throwing it towards her.
"They're just tits, people. Get over it" Kali complained, but pulled the hoodie over her shoulders, nonetheless.
"I certainly wasn't complaining" Sawyer grinned at her.
"Look-" Jin began, looking towards the jungle, not having taken any notice of their interaction.
"We need to do something. Right, Desmond?" Hurley stated, turning towards the bearded man, who barely seemed to hear him.
Despite himself, Desmond hadn't been able to take his eyes off Kali, jaw clenched. He couldn't deny he still felt a strange bond towards the girl, something that pulled him towards her. An attraction that he knew he could never act on. Would never act on.
"Uh...yeah. Right, yeah..." Desmond stuttered, having been rendered speechless for a moment, pulling his eyes away from Kali who zipped up her hoodie.
"Looks like Des wasn't complaining either" Charlie sniggered, as Desmond glared at him.
"Is that so, mate?" Sawyer retorted, crossing his arms over his chest, spitting out the last word, watching Desmond gulp.
"Look!" Jin shouted, pointing towards the jungle, finally getting their attention.
They all looked in astonishment as a red flashing beacon slowly fell towards the jungle, realising what that could mean. At the very least, something new had come to the island. Was it possible it was really a person?
"Oh my God" Desmond gaped, a hopeful tone to his voice, racing off to begin packing up his bag.
"Uh, what do you think you're doing?" Kali asked.
"Going after her...them. Come on, let's go" Desmond insisted, as Kali shook her head.
"Des, it's too dangerous. We need to wait until morning-" Kali suggested, but he cut her off instantly.
"She can't wait!" Desmond shouted, making Kali flinch.
"...They could be hurt" Desmond added, with a guilty expression.
"And so we will if we go trudging off into the jungle in the middle of the night. It'll be light in two hours. We go then" Charlie explained, as Desmond pursed his lips.
"Fine. We'll leave at first light then. Together" Desmond muttered.
"Terrific" Charlie huffed, crossing his arms.
As promised, the moment the sun rose that morning, the group began their journey into the jungle, with Desmond leading the way. The others could barely keep up with the way he was sprinting through the trees, but they all came to a stop when a bag was found in the trees an hour away from the beach. As Desmond poured the contents out onto the forest floor, Kali's eyes widened when she spotted a satellite phone, grabbing it quickly and turning it on.
"Holy shit" She murmured, as the screen flashed on and off within a few seconds.
"Crap, it's dead" Hurley sighed.
"Shocker" Charlie scoffed, as Kali shook her head.
"It just needs new batteries. If we go back to the barracks, we might be able to find something" Kali advised.
"We could call for help" Sawyer realised, an excited expression growing on his face.
"Is that you?" Hurley's voice interjected as they all turned to see Desmond flickering through a book found in the bag.
Kali's jaw dropped open when she saw a photo had been stuffed inside the book. A photo of Desmond and Penny. His hand flew to his mouth, looking like he was close to tears.
"She's here" He murmured, eyes darting around the jungle.
"Just because there's a picture of you-" Kali began, but he cut her off once again.
"No. She's found me. I know she has" Desmond retorted, clutching the book to his chest and racing off.
"...He's losing it" Sawyer stated, as they began following him.
"And if it was the other way round? If you thought I'd come to the island to get you?" Kali pointed out, as he mulled over it for a second.
"I wouldn't let anything get in my way of seeing you again" Sawyer exclaimed.
"That's what I'm worried about" Kali sighed.
Much to her annoyance, it started pouring down with rain not long after, drenching the group from head to toe. Kali grimaced as she began to shiver, pushing back her hair that was sticking to her forehead. Sawyer seemed to notice she was getting cold, and placed his arm over her shoulder, bringing her close to his body. She smiled up at him gratefully, trying to push down the guilt she was feeling. If Desmond's girl really was about to rescue them, what would she do?
"What do you think, Kali? Superman or the Flash?" Charlie asked, bringing her out of her thoughts.
"Definitely Superman" Kali answered, as Charlie grinned, quirking an eyebrow at Hurley.
"Her vote doesn't count" Hurley retorted.
"And why's that?" Kali asked, unimpressed.
"Well, you're a...girl?" Hurley replied.
"Nothing gets past you, huh?" Kali rolled her eyes, making Sawyer snort.
"Besides, why would Superman agree to a sodding foot race..." Charlie trailed off, as he stepped on a wire that had been hidden by leaves.
"What the hell?" He frowned, stepping off the wire instinctively.
"Charlie, duck!" Desmond shouted, lunging towards the blond and pushing them both to the ground.
Kali gasped as an arrow suddenly whizzed through the air, landing just inches from Charlie's head. The man in question, glared up at Desmond, the sickening realisation of what had just happened hitting him. Desmond knew. He knew Charlie would set off the trap...and he hadn't said a thing.
"You selfish bastard...you knew, even before we set off, didn't you?" Charlie yelled, shoving Desmond away from him.
"...Aye" Desmond admitted, as Charlie pushed himself to his feet.
"Then why didn't you say anything?" Charlie exclaimed.
"Because if I'd told you the truth, you wouldn't have come!" Desmond insisted, enraging Charlie further.
"Oh, and you needed me to come. 'Cause I was part of your vision. You thought that the only way you could get your girl back was if I took an arrow in the head. You would have sacrificed me!" Charlie accused.
"It doesn't bloody matter anymore! It's pointless. I keep saving your life, and what good has it done? It's just gonna keep happening again and again, maybe that's the point, eh? Maybe it's a test. Like God testing Abraham, except I failed, because I changed what I saw-" Desmond was suddenly cut off, as Kali lunged forward and slapped him across the face, causing the older man to stumble backwards.
"Have you fucking listened to yourself? You were gonna' let your friend die because of some stupid vision? Who the hell do you think you are?" Kali yelled, as Desmond flinched from her harsh words.
"...I just want my girl back" Desmond sighed, running a hand through his wet hair.
"And what would she think, huh? If she knew you sacrificed a man's life to see her again?" Kali went on.
"I...I'm sorry, Charlie. I shouldn't have said that" Desmond murmured, eyes downcast.
"It's alright. Just...stop keeping us in the dark, yeah?" Charlie replied, getting a sharp nod in response.
"Did you have to slap me that hard?" Desmond complained to Kali, rubbing at his stinging cheek.
"It worked, didn't it?" Kali shrugged, innocently.
They were beginning to lose hope when they arrived at a clearing and spotted a parachute close by. Kali gaped as she spotted a figure dangling in the air, the ropes from the parachute tied up above them. They were broken branches all around them, whoever it was must have taken a hard hit. They weren't moving. The flashing red beacon was still attached to their jacket, flickering on and off.
"I'm sorry, Penny" Desmond sobbed, as Kali grabbed his shoulder.
"Hey, don't. We need to get them down. Help me" Kali insisted, as the pair rushed forward.
First, Desmond cut down the parachute and the rest of the group unwrapped the fabric, hoping to use it to catch the mysterious figure. Wasting no time, Desmond cut the ropes that kept them hanging in the air, as they flopped to the ground and were easily caught. They lowered the person to the ground, surprised when they let out a moan of pain. Just as Desmond jumped down from the tree, Kali pulled the person's helmet off, frowning when they saw who was underneath. A stranger.
Desmond dropped to his knees beside her, clearly devastated at seeing it wasn't his girlfriend. But still it left them with the question, why did this mystery woman have a picture of Desmond and Penny?
"Hey, can you hear me?" Kali asked, shaking the woman's shoulder lightly.
"D-desmond?" The woman stuttered, before her eyes fluttered shut.
Kali wiped some of the woman's sweaty hair away from her face, leaning down to listen to the woman's chest. She seemed to be wheezing. Never a good sign, Kali thought to herself.
"Who is she?" Hurley inquired.
"I've no idea" Desmond admitted, as Kali pushed herself to her feet, grabbing her pack and the first aid kit.
"he seems to know you, dude, she just said your name" Hurley pointed out.
"I've never seen her before in my life" Desmond insisted, as the woman let out a choking sound.
"Estoy muriendo, estoy muriendo..." She trailed off, with a grimace.
"She's speaking Spanish. She...she's saying she's dying" Hurley told them, as they all shared a look.
"We should give her some water. Help me get her up" Desmond suggested, as Kali shook her head.
"No, let me check her over first" Kali replied, as she unzipped the woman's jacket, frowning when she found her fingertips became coated with blood.
"Oh my God" Charlie gaped, as they found a branch had been impaled in the woman's abdomen.
"Shit" Kali mummured, before jumping into action, opening the first aid kit and grabbing a wad of gauze.
"Put pressure on the wound" Kali advised, passing the gauze to Desmond who began packing the wound.
"What if this is a rescue? Is she gonna' be okay? We can't let her..." Hurley stuttered, in a panic.
"Kali, how're we looking?" Sawyer questioned, as Kali took a closer look at the wound.
"Not good. It's deep. It's a miracle she's survived this long" Kali sighed.
"Jack" Jin exclaimed, as Charlie nodded.
"Right. We need Jack. We need to take her back to camp" Charlie stated.
"No. If we move her, we'll make it worse" Kali advised.
"We can't just do nothing!" Charlie retorted, as Kali began looking through the first aid kit for something to clean the wound with.
"We bring Jack here then" Desmond announced, pushing himself to his feet.
"It's an eight-hour walk, one way!" Charlie pointed out, in disbelief.
"There's no point. She'll be dead before you even get back to camp" Kali muttered.
"Then what the bloody hell should we do?" Desmond insisted, as Kali pursed her lips.
"...I don't know" Kali gulped.
A second later, the mysetery woman let out another violent cough, blood coating her lips now. Kali's eyes widened as she realised what this meant, and placed her ear to the woman's chest, cursing under her breath. It was worse than she had first feared.
"What's wrong?" Hurley asked, as Kali ran a hand through her hair.
"The branch has punctured her lung. It's filling with blood. She's...basically drowning" Kali grimaced.
"Can't you do something?" Desmond suggested, as Kali bit her lip.
"We need to ventilate her lung, or she's going to die" Kali responded.
"Well, do it then" Desmond pointed out, as Kali shook her head.
"No, I can't...I've never even seen it done! It's not exactly something done by nurses, alright? I stitch up wounds, give antibiotics, I don't pull out branches from people's chests!" Kali exclaimed, beginning to panic.
"We can't let her die! You have to do something!" Desmond pleaded.
"I can't, okay?! Something will go wrong, I-I'll screw up-" Kali began, but she was cut off when Sawyer placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, look at me" Sawyer exclaimed, cupping her face with his hands.
"You can do this. You can. I believe in you, Kali. Always have" Sawyer told her, watching her eyes soften.
"...I'll need your help. Both of you" She exclaimed, looking up at Desmond, who nodded quickly.
Kali began rifling through the first aid kit a moment later, gathering the supplies she needed. She frowned when she could find no pain relief, only some lidocaine which she quickly drew up in a syrine. She used the sharp scissors in the pack to cut the woman's shirt open, which was steadily being drenched with blood. Using the peroxide bottle, she drenched the woman's chest and her own hands in the liquid, knowing it would do little good. Opening a pack of sterile gloves, she ushered Sawyer and Desmond to sit beside her. Wasting no time, she injected the local anaesthetic into the area she was about to cut, making the woman hiss.
"I need you both to hold her down. She's gonna' be agony, and I need her still, alright?" Kali ordered as they held one arm down each.
"What're you gonna' do?" Charlie asked, as she donned the gloves.
"Inserting a chest tube" Kali mummured, grabbing a nearby scalpel.
"Like...actually into her chest?" Hurley gaped, earning an eye roll.
"Everyone ready?" Kali announced, as Desmond and Sawyer shared a look, before nodding.
With a shaky hand, Kali pressed the scalpel to the woman's skin, blinking rapidly. Her eyes flickered up to Sawyer's once last time, as he gave her a small smile, appearing far more confident than she was. Taking a deep breath, Kali cut into the woman's skin, in between her ribs, hearing gagging sounds from around her, as blood started to leak from the wound. The woman began thrashing around, letting out a cry as Desmond and Sawyer struggled to keep her down. Digging her finger into the wound, Kali successfully opened it up and used some gauze to wipe away the excess blood. Grabbing the chest tube, she slowly and carefully began to insert it, finding more resistance than she expected. The woman let out a scream, as Kali finally managed to push it all the way in, as blood spurted out of the tube, followed by a horrible gurgling sound.
"Is...is that normal?" Desmond mumbled, as the woman let out a loud gasp.
"I think so" Kali responded, before packing the area around the tube with gauze.
"Now for the really fun part..." Kali trailed off, placing her hand around the branch.
"You're not gonna-?" Hurley's words were cut off, as Kali gave a hard tug and ripped the branch out of the woman's stomach, who screeched in pain.
She was thankful that blood only started to seep out of the wound and not spurt, hopeful the branch had punctured anything too important. A sharp thud from behind her had Kali whipping around to see Hurley had fainted, face planting onto the forest floor. Letting out a snort, she began taping gauze to the wound, ensuring it would stem the blood flow but also allowing the wound to breathe.
"You did it" Desmond gaped, with wide eyes.
"Of course, she did" Sawyer grinned, as Kali shared his expression.
"...I saved her" Kali mumbled, in shock.
Suddenly, Desmond's hands began to shake, his eyes becoming unfocused. A second later, he was falling onto his side, a tremor going down his whole body, as Kali rushed to his side. Just as she went to place her hand on his shoulder, the man sat bolt upright, his breaths coming out in short gasps. His gaze remained on the unconscious woman by his feet, mouth hanging open in horror.
"What did you see, Des?" Kali asked, as he slowly turned to her.
"I think I made a terrible mistake bringing us here" Desmond sobbed, in a shaky tone.
Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Thank you for the responses to my question on the last update, I'll take them all into consideration when writing the following chapters. Please leave a review:)