Friendship From Nothing - Lost - Gen (Shannon)
Title: Friendship From Nothing
Characters: Shannon, Ethan
Word Count: 1250
Rating: PG
A/N: Written with writing_rainbow's "Jade" prompt for lostfichallenge's "Friendship" round, but… I still have no idea where this actually came from.
Summary: "It's a nice smile, soft and gentle and always a little surprised: every time he smiles, she thinks, it reminds her of how her father used to look before Sabrina came screeching into their lives."
She breathes. Her heart beats. Blood pumps. Nails grow.
She's alive.
They're alive.
And, yeah, she knows that's some kind of miracle. She should be praising the Lord and thanking her lucky stars and all that bullshit. It's not every day that forty-odd people survive a crash like that, is it?
Yeah. And it's not every day that you wind up stuck on an island with your obsessive stepbrother who you've had sex with. That's kind of the very definition of 'awkward'.
"Excuse me," someone says, crouching down beside her. She looks at him - goofy-looking, he seems a little too earnest for her. She's ready to sneer at him: she's already learned that earnest-looking people are a hazard to be around. She grew up with Boone, after all. "Hi. I'm Ethan."
She waits for a second to see what he wants, but his smile doesn't waver. He blinks at her - once, twice - and it seems that that's it. That's all. An introduction. Seems quaint. "I'm Shannon," she tells him.
"Nice to meet you, Shannon. I thought I'd better come and introduce myself. Looks like we might be here a while."
She rolls her eyes and looks away, looks out to the dark horizon. "They're coming," she insists. "They are coming."
"Right…" Ethan agrees. He nods slowly. "You're right. They'll be here soon."
"Yep." She rests her chin on her knee. "Is there something you want?"
"Not really," he admits. "Do you want me to leave you alone?"
She turns her head to look at him, blue eyes thoughtful before she shrugs. "I don't care," she says.
And he stays.
And she smiles.
*
Undo the zip. Flip open the top. Check through the items in each bag: clothes to the pile on her left, other items to the right, and anything she wants to keep for herself gets placed into the bag in her lap.
But it's not like she's settling in or anything, alright? There are some nice clothes in these cases. She's only helping herself for when the rescue planes get here. The news reporters will be lined up; she'll want to look her best.
Beside her, Ethan hums as he goes through a different suitcase, going through the same motions as her though he doesn't have a pile of anything he's keeping for himself. "Oh," he says, looking up at her. "Do you want this? I don't think anyone would mind if you took it."
He takes a black jewellery box out of the case he's sorting through and holds it out for her. She snaps it open - listens to the creak of the hinges, the heavy sound she's always loved - and brushes her fingers over the jade necklace that rests inside. The chain is delicate and looks as if the slightest pressure would snap it. It's pretty, and expensive, and looks like a relic from a life she had to put behind her years ago.
"Go on," Ethan urges. "Put it on."
It feels good around her neck, barely any weight at all.
That night when Boone asks her where she got it, Shannon smiles and doesn't answer: and the laced irritation on his face feels even sweeter than any precious necklace ever could.
*
"So where are you going to end up?" Shannon asks him, one eye cracking open to look at him. She doesn't know how she knew it was him, how she could tell by the depth of his shadow. Ethan, for all his blandness, is a more distinctive figure than she would have guessed.
"Hmm?"
"The beach or the caves?" she asks, sitting up. "Hasn't Arzt been 'round to recruit you yet?"
He smiles, looking down at the sand by his feet. It's a nice smile, soft and gentle and always a little surprised: every time he smiles, she thinks, it reminds her of how her father used to look before Sabrina came screeching into their lives. The jade pendant still hangs on its expensive chain around her neck.
"Not yet," Ethan says. "What about you?"
"Rescue is coming," Shannon repeats, though it's not like she believes that any more. "There's no way I'm going to miss the boats when they come. Jack and Kate can go and play 'happy families' all they want."
She thinks they're probably happy that they crashed here. They've been acting like a married couple the whole goddamn time anyway.
Ethan looks inland. "It'll be safer going in," he says. "More secure. More sheltered."
Shannon rolls her eyes. "Whatever. Just promise you'll come visit me."
When he smiles this time, the corners of his eyes wrinkle in delight. "I promise."
"Good," she snips.
It's been a long time since she had a friend - a real friend, not someone to use like a disposable razor. She's not willing to let this one slip away into the island's claws just because a doctor thinks that it's a good idea.
"See you around, then," she suggests, lying back down.
Ethan shuffles away again, off to do god knows what, and Shannon relaxes, reminding herself of his promise to come back.
*
"Are you checking her out?"
Incredulity, disgust or surprise - it's hard to gauge what her reaction is when she catches sight of Ethan watching Claire and Charlie longingly.
He looks towards her with the speed of light, eyebrows raised. "Me?" he asks.
"What, not your type?" Shannon suggests, letting one corner of her mouth curl upwards. "Are you checking him out?"
Ethan glances towards Charlie, pauses for a moment, then shakes his head, chuckling. "It's nothing like that, Shannon. I was just thinking."
"About what?"
"Claire's going to be giving birth pretty soon."
"Yeah," Shannon agrees. "She looks like she's going to burst any second."
She places her hand on her smooth, bare stomach and wonders if she could ever cope with watching her body distort like that - if she'd be able to put up with that sacrifice for a child. Her fingers feel cold on her sun-warmed skin.
"It'll be hard for her out here," Ethan murmurs. "There are no supplies. No painkillers. No way of helping the child if it survives."
"God, that's morbid." Shannon glances towards Claire - smiling and disgustingly happy as she walks with Charlie - before her gaze returns to Ethan. "Lighten up a little."
He blinks as if trying to startle himself from a daze. "Of course, sorry. I was just thinking out loud."
"No problem," Shannon says, ignoring the shiver that runs down her spine.
*
"I like him," she says to Boone, shrugging, when he demands to know why she's spending so much time with someone like Ethan.
She doesn't tell him that it's because Ethan smiles like her dad or because he doesn't treat her like a superficial princess or because he knows there's more to her than manicures and sunbathing.
She doesn't tell Boone anything at all.
"It's nothing to do with you anyway, Boone," she snaps - and the annoyed pain in his expression is as sweet as chocolate.
"Just be careful, Shan," he warns. "We don't know these people."
"I know him," she insists, hand wrapping tightly around the necklace Ethan allowed her to keep.
Less than a week later, she's pulling it from around her neck with an angry tug that leaves a red, inflamed line on her skin.
Less than a week later, she's desperately wishing that she'd listened to Boone all along.
Less than a week later, she thinks she should have remembered that nothing good ever came from forced 'friendships' in the first place.
Characters: Shannon, Ethan
Word Count: 1250
Rating: PG
A/N: Written with writing_rainbow's "Jade" prompt for lostfichallenge's "Friendship" round, but… I still have no idea where this actually came from.
Summary: "It's a nice smile, soft and gentle and always a little surprised: every time he smiles, she thinks, it reminds her of how her father used to look before Sabrina came screeching into their lives."
She breathes. Her heart beats. Blood pumps. Nails grow.
She's alive.
They're alive.
And, yeah, she knows that's some kind of miracle. She should be praising the Lord and thanking her lucky stars and all that bullshit. It's not every day that forty-odd people survive a crash like that, is it?
Yeah. And it's not every day that you wind up stuck on an island with your obsessive stepbrother who you've had sex with. That's kind of the very definition of 'awkward'.
"Excuse me," someone says, crouching down beside her. She looks at him - goofy-looking, he seems a little too earnest for her. She's ready to sneer at him: she's already learned that earnest-looking people are a hazard to be around. She grew up with Boone, after all. "Hi. I'm Ethan."
She waits for a second to see what he wants, but his smile doesn't waver. He blinks at her - once, twice - and it seems that that's it. That's all. An introduction. Seems quaint. "I'm Shannon," she tells him.
"Nice to meet you, Shannon. I thought I'd better come and introduce myself. Looks like we might be here a while."
She rolls her eyes and looks away, looks out to the dark horizon. "They're coming," she insists. "They are coming."
"Right…" Ethan agrees. He nods slowly. "You're right. They'll be here soon."
"Yep." She rests her chin on her knee. "Is there something you want?"
"Not really," he admits. "Do you want me to leave you alone?"
She turns her head to look at him, blue eyes thoughtful before she shrugs. "I don't care," she says.
And he stays.
And she smiles.
*
Undo the zip. Flip open the top. Check through the items in each bag: clothes to the pile on her left, other items to the right, and anything she wants to keep for herself gets placed into the bag in her lap.
But it's not like she's settling in or anything, alright? There are some nice clothes in these cases. She's only helping herself for when the rescue planes get here. The news reporters will be lined up; she'll want to look her best.
Beside her, Ethan hums as he goes through a different suitcase, going through the same motions as her though he doesn't have a pile of anything he's keeping for himself. "Oh," he says, looking up at her. "Do you want this? I don't think anyone would mind if you took it."
He takes a black jewellery box out of the case he's sorting through and holds it out for her. She snaps it open - listens to the creak of the hinges, the heavy sound she's always loved - and brushes her fingers over the jade necklace that rests inside. The chain is delicate and looks as if the slightest pressure would snap it. It's pretty, and expensive, and looks like a relic from a life she had to put behind her years ago.
"Go on," Ethan urges. "Put it on."
It feels good around her neck, barely any weight at all.
That night when Boone asks her where she got it, Shannon smiles and doesn't answer: and the laced irritation on his face feels even sweeter than any precious necklace ever could.
*
"So where are you going to end up?" Shannon asks him, one eye cracking open to look at him. She doesn't know how she knew it was him, how she could tell by the depth of his shadow. Ethan, for all his blandness, is a more distinctive figure than she would have guessed.
"Hmm?"
"The beach or the caves?" she asks, sitting up. "Hasn't Arzt been 'round to recruit you yet?"
He smiles, looking down at the sand by his feet. It's a nice smile, soft and gentle and always a little surprised: every time he smiles, she thinks, it reminds her of how her father used to look before Sabrina came screeching into their lives. The jade pendant still hangs on its expensive chain around her neck.
"Not yet," Ethan says. "What about you?"
"Rescue is coming," Shannon repeats, though it's not like she believes that any more. "There's no way I'm going to miss the boats when they come. Jack and Kate can go and play 'happy families' all they want."
She thinks they're probably happy that they crashed here. They've been acting like a married couple the whole goddamn time anyway.
Ethan looks inland. "It'll be safer going in," he says. "More secure. More sheltered."
Shannon rolls her eyes. "Whatever. Just promise you'll come visit me."
When he smiles this time, the corners of his eyes wrinkle in delight. "I promise."
"Good," she snips.
It's been a long time since she had a friend - a real friend, not someone to use like a disposable razor. She's not willing to let this one slip away into the island's claws just because a doctor thinks that it's a good idea.
"See you around, then," she suggests, lying back down.
Ethan shuffles away again, off to do god knows what, and Shannon relaxes, reminding herself of his promise to come back.
*
"Are you checking her out?"
Incredulity, disgust or surprise - it's hard to gauge what her reaction is when she catches sight of Ethan watching Claire and Charlie longingly.
He looks towards her with the speed of light, eyebrows raised. "Me?" he asks.
"What, not your type?" Shannon suggests, letting one corner of her mouth curl upwards. "Are you checking him out?"
Ethan glances towards Charlie, pauses for a moment, then shakes his head, chuckling. "It's nothing like that, Shannon. I was just thinking."
"About what?"
"Claire's going to be giving birth pretty soon."
"Yeah," Shannon agrees. "She looks like she's going to burst any second."
She places her hand on her smooth, bare stomach and wonders if she could ever cope with watching her body distort like that - if she'd be able to put up with that sacrifice for a child. Her fingers feel cold on her sun-warmed skin.
"It'll be hard for her out here," Ethan murmurs. "There are no supplies. No painkillers. No way of helping the child if it survives."
"God, that's morbid." Shannon glances towards Claire - smiling and disgustingly happy as she walks with Charlie - before her gaze returns to Ethan. "Lighten up a little."
He blinks as if trying to startle himself from a daze. "Of course, sorry. I was just thinking out loud."
"No problem," Shannon says, ignoring the shiver that runs down her spine.
*
"I like him," she says to Boone, shrugging, when he demands to know why she's spending so much time with someone like Ethan.
She doesn't tell him that it's because Ethan smiles like her dad or because he doesn't treat her like a superficial princess or because he knows there's more to her than manicures and sunbathing.
She doesn't tell Boone anything at all.
"It's nothing to do with you anyway, Boone," she snaps - and the annoyed pain in his expression is as sweet as chocolate.
"Just be careful, Shan," he warns. "We don't know these people."
"I know him," she insists, hand wrapping tightly around the necklace Ethan allowed her to keep.
Less than a week later, she's pulling it from around her neck with an angry tug that leaves a red, inflamed line on her skin.
Less than a week later, she's desperately wishing that she'd listened to Boone all along.
Less than a week later, she thinks she should have remembered that nothing good ever came from forced 'friendships' in the first place.