winkity wink wink
Title: Who We Aren't
Fandom: Lost
Characters: Jack/Kate
Summary: Jack and Kate finally find that coffee bar. (flashforward)
Kate listened to the third bus pass as she ran her hands through her hair… again. The honking of cars and the distant wail of a police siren shouldn’t make her nervous, but it still did, even months after her trial had ended. She sighed, fingers tracing the edge of the half soaked napkin her water sat on as a young waitress passed her, giving her a sympathetic look before moving on. The girl, no older than twenty, thought Kate was being stood up. Kate might agree, if she didn’t know the man coming to meet her.
His eyes caught hers before she could signal for him and they shared a smile at the awkward summersaults their stomachs did when they saw one another. Jack walked with confidence, his smile making him look, somehow, younger than he had on the island. He cocked his head slightly to the right as he reached the table and pulled back the chair.
“Found a coffee bar,” Kate told him, her hands rising slightly, with a hint of amusement in her voice.
He laughed, his head falling back as his lips came together in a grin and his hand reached into the right pocket of his dark grey slacks. Leaning against the table, he gave her a nod. “Hold out your hand.”
She did, grinning as he placed a packet of guava seeds in her hand before stepping up into the high chair, his fingers slipping away. Kate laughed. “And you didn’t even have to dig for ‘em.” She looked up at him, remembering that day that seemed like forever ago.
“Compliments of the local nursery.”
She smiled. “It’s actually been a while since I’ve had guava, or mangoes.” The waitress approached, her dark eyes scanning Jack up and down before smirking at Kate. “Mocha Latte and a blueberry muffin.”
Jack folded his hands on the table. “Same’s good for me.” They watched the girl walk away, occasionally trying to glance back over her shoulder. “She’ll probably want our autograph later.”
Raising a finger, Kate sighed, “Already got mine.”
Jack shook his head, shifting back slightly as Kate laid the packet of seeds down on the small wood table between them. “It’s weird, having people ask for your autograph. All we did was crash.”
“We survived,” she corrected, “That’s why they want our autograph.”
He eyed her a moment and she knew what he was thinking. On top of being one of the ‘Oceanic 6’, Kate had also been on trial for the murder of her father and had walked away with a slap on the wrist. He cleared his throat, “Still weird.”
Kate gave him an appreciative nod. “I heard about Hurley.”
Jack lowered his eyes to the table. “I went to visit him.”
They sat silent as the waitress brought their orders and walked away sensing the tension there. Kate watched the way his eyes searched the table, as though somewhere there were written just the right words to tell her. As though he thought she needed assurance. “That’s not the reason I asked you to meet me.” He raised his head, his eyes questioning her. “I just wanted to know how you were doing. We haven’t talked in a while.”
He laughed then, quick and nervous, but relieved. “How I’m doing,” he repeated, nodding in the direction of the traffic on the street just beyond the sidewalk and parking meters. “Doing great, seeing patients again.”
“I heard you got a new place,” she watched him study her. “I’m a celebrity, people tell me things.”
“You spoken to Sun?”
Kate grinned widely and moved to pull her wallet from her purse, opening it so she could show Jack a picture of the baby she’d received in the mail only the week before. She watched him reach forward and his hand gripped the wallet, his fingers holding hers in place as he smiled at the photograph of the chubby faced little girl before glancing up at Kate. He clenched his jaw, his hand moving away as he turned to look at the muffin in front of him.
Jack sipped at the coffee and made a face.
“I didn’t say it was a good coffee bar,” Kate informed him, closing the wallet and shoving it back into her purse before drinking her own and grimacing. “She says she’ll come visit, but, I don’t think she will.”
“Sun?” Jack questioned, picking off a chunk of muffin and shoving it into his mouth. She smiled when crumbs stuck to his bottom lip.
She reached forward, brushing her thumb against his lip softly before slowly easing back into her chair as he stared at her the way he used to back on the island when she did something unexpected. “Guess this is the downside of returning, everyone goes back to life as usual.”
Jack shook his head and took a breath, his eyes never leaving hers. “Except that it’ll never be.”
“No,” Kate agreed, her vision dropping to the table between them. “It won’t.”
She used a knife to slice her muffin into squares and ate one, feeling it stick to the back of her throat when she swallowed. Kate sighed and looked up to catch him still watching, but he didn’t turn away, just continued to stare, concerned now - a look she knew all too well. “Are you alright?”
Shrugging, she stabbed at one of the muffin pieces. “Sometimes I find myself trying to choose which life was easier - the one on the island, or the one I have now.”
Jack’s head gave a small shake and he looked down at his coffee, picking it up and telling her, “The one we have now,” before taking another drink. She could hear the denial in his voice; could hear that he struggled with the same question sometimes, but before she could push him, he asked, “You working yet?”
Kate shook her head. “I think it’ll take some time to get used to the idea of getting a job.” She shrugged, poking at the muffin with her fork. “I don’t even know what kind of a job I would want.”
“I read your book,” Jack told her absently, then raised his head to give her a grin as she turned red.
“I didn’t write that,” she corrected him, “not really. Some guy interviewed me for a couple days and he got a little loose with the details.”
Jack’s lips pressed together. “Tall, handsome doctor,” he said the words as he looked at the sky between the buildings and then looked back at her to see her laughing to herself.
“He didn’t get loose with all the details,” she teased. She could see he was holding a laugh just before he took another drink of his coffee, this time more at ease with its sharp taste. “You doin’ alright?”
He looked up at her and instantly she knew something was off. She’d sensed it before, somewhere in her gut, and when he swallowed and nodded, taking another bite of the muffin, she frowned and he avoided her eyes. “I actually don’t have much time, gotta head back to the hospital.”
“We’re gonna play this game here too, Jack?” She challenged, watching when his jaw tensed and she waited for him to look at her. “You don’t have to hide from me, I’m not them,” she tilted her head towards the people on the sidewalk oblivious to them. “I’m keeping the same secrets for us.”
“This isn’t about that place, or that time.”
“Jack,” Kate said softly, her hand reaching out to cover his. “Jack, it’s me. If you can’t talk to me…”
“Not here.” He looked up at her and this time his eyes were sad, desperate. “Here can we just be Jack and Kate? Just two regular people having a regular lunch date at a lousy coffee bar?”
She searched him a moment and it was only then that she could see the dark circles underneath his eyes and she wondered what troubled him in his sleep. Closing her eyes a moment, she nodded, and she felt his other hand cover her own. She finally sighed and asked, “Any interesting surgeries lately?”
They shared a nervous laugh and when she opened her eyes, she could feel the tears she was holding back as she sniffled lightly and stared down at their hands. He slid away and nodded slowly. “It’s spinal surgery, Kate; it’s all pretty interesting to me.”
She took another bite of her muffin and listened to him detail a surgery he’d done the day before. On an older man who’d had partial paralysis and was now able to walk. Miracle worker, she’d teasingly called him and she told him about choosing a house and making the drapes. With the use of a sewing machine, he’d muttered as an insult - but they’d laughed.
It almost felt normal, except that Kate knew it wasn’t. Nothing was normal now to her. Not the clothes they were wearing or the makeup she had in her bag, nor the smell of mousse in her hair. Jack’s suit wasn’t normal and her blouse and skirt wasn’t normal, and her high heels were most definitely not normal.
They pretended it was normal. They lied because they wanted it to be normal. But it wasn’t.
And when they left and started to part ways in the parking garage around the corner, Jack pulling her back and whispering urgently into her ear, “We need to meet away from the public, somewhere we can talk,” sent a shiver of familiarity down her spine.
“Airport, there’s an abandoned parking lot just beyond the runway. You think you can find it?”
“Yeah,” he told her with a short nod, “Yeah, I know the place.”
-=-=-=-=-=-
Finis
Fandom: Lost
Characters: Jack/Kate
Summary: Jack and Kate finally find that coffee bar. (flashforward)
Kate listened to the third bus pass as she ran her hands through her hair… again. The honking of cars and the distant wail of a police siren shouldn’t make her nervous, but it still did, even months after her trial had ended. She sighed, fingers tracing the edge of the half soaked napkin her water sat on as a young waitress passed her, giving her a sympathetic look before moving on. The girl, no older than twenty, thought Kate was being stood up. Kate might agree, if she didn’t know the man coming to meet her.
His eyes caught hers before she could signal for him and they shared a smile at the awkward summersaults their stomachs did when they saw one another. Jack walked with confidence, his smile making him look, somehow, younger than he had on the island. He cocked his head slightly to the right as he reached the table and pulled back the chair.
“Found a coffee bar,” Kate told him, her hands rising slightly, with a hint of amusement in her voice.
He laughed, his head falling back as his lips came together in a grin and his hand reached into the right pocket of his dark grey slacks. Leaning against the table, he gave her a nod. “Hold out your hand.”
She did, grinning as he placed a packet of guava seeds in her hand before stepping up into the high chair, his fingers slipping away. Kate laughed. “And you didn’t even have to dig for ‘em.” She looked up at him, remembering that day that seemed like forever ago.
“Compliments of the local nursery.”
She smiled. “It’s actually been a while since I’ve had guava, or mangoes.” The waitress approached, her dark eyes scanning Jack up and down before smirking at Kate. “Mocha Latte and a blueberry muffin.”
Jack folded his hands on the table. “Same’s good for me.” They watched the girl walk away, occasionally trying to glance back over her shoulder. “She’ll probably want our autograph later.”
Raising a finger, Kate sighed, “Already got mine.”
Jack shook his head, shifting back slightly as Kate laid the packet of seeds down on the small wood table between them. “It’s weird, having people ask for your autograph. All we did was crash.”
“We survived,” she corrected, “That’s why they want our autograph.”
He eyed her a moment and she knew what he was thinking. On top of being one of the ‘Oceanic 6’, Kate had also been on trial for the murder of her father and had walked away with a slap on the wrist. He cleared his throat, “Still weird.”
Kate gave him an appreciative nod. “I heard about Hurley.”
Jack lowered his eyes to the table. “I went to visit him.”
They sat silent as the waitress brought their orders and walked away sensing the tension there. Kate watched the way his eyes searched the table, as though somewhere there were written just the right words to tell her. As though he thought she needed assurance. “That’s not the reason I asked you to meet me.” He raised his head, his eyes questioning her. “I just wanted to know how you were doing. We haven’t talked in a while.”
He laughed then, quick and nervous, but relieved. “How I’m doing,” he repeated, nodding in the direction of the traffic on the street just beyond the sidewalk and parking meters. “Doing great, seeing patients again.”
“I heard you got a new place,” she watched him study her. “I’m a celebrity, people tell me things.”
“You spoken to Sun?”
Kate grinned widely and moved to pull her wallet from her purse, opening it so she could show Jack a picture of the baby she’d received in the mail only the week before. She watched him reach forward and his hand gripped the wallet, his fingers holding hers in place as he smiled at the photograph of the chubby faced little girl before glancing up at Kate. He clenched his jaw, his hand moving away as he turned to look at the muffin in front of him.
Jack sipped at the coffee and made a face.
“I didn’t say it was a good coffee bar,” Kate informed him, closing the wallet and shoving it back into her purse before drinking her own and grimacing. “She says she’ll come visit, but, I don’t think she will.”
“Sun?” Jack questioned, picking off a chunk of muffin and shoving it into his mouth. She smiled when crumbs stuck to his bottom lip.
She reached forward, brushing her thumb against his lip softly before slowly easing back into her chair as he stared at her the way he used to back on the island when she did something unexpected. “Guess this is the downside of returning, everyone goes back to life as usual.”
Jack shook his head and took a breath, his eyes never leaving hers. “Except that it’ll never be.”
“No,” Kate agreed, her vision dropping to the table between them. “It won’t.”
She used a knife to slice her muffin into squares and ate one, feeling it stick to the back of her throat when she swallowed. Kate sighed and looked up to catch him still watching, but he didn’t turn away, just continued to stare, concerned now - a look she knew all too well. “Are you alright?”
Shrugging, she stabbed at one of the muffin pieces. “Sometimes I find myself trying to choose which life was easier - the one on the island, or the one I have now.”
Jack’s head gave a small shake and he looked down at his coffee, picking it up and telling her, “The one we have now,” before taking another drink. She could hear the denial in his voice; could hear that he struggled with the same question sometimes, but before she could push him, he asked, “You working yet?”
Kate shook her head. “I think it’ll take some time to get used to the idea of getting a job.” She shrugged, poking at the muffin with her fork. “I don’t even know what kind of a job I would want.”
“I read your book,” Jack told her absently, then raised his head to give her a grin as she turned red.
“I didn’t write that,” she corrected him, “not really. Some guy interviewed me for a couple days and he got a little loose with the details.”
Jack’s lips pressed together. “Tall, handsome doctor,” he said the words as he looked at the sky between the buildings and then looked back at her to see her laughing to herself.
“He didn’t get loose with all the details,” she teased. She could see he was holding a laugh just before he took another drink of his coffee, this time more at ease with its sharp taste. “You doin’ alright?”
He looked up at her and instantly she knew something was off. She’d sensed it before, somewhere in her gut, and when he swallowed and nodded, taking another bite of the muffin, she frowned and he avoided her eyes. “I actually don’t have much time, gotta head back to the hospital.”
“We’re gonna play this game here too, Jack?” She challenged, watching when his jaw tensed and she waited for him to look at her. “You don’t have to hide from me, I’m not them,” she tilted her head towards the people on the sidewalk oblivious to them. “I’m keeping the same secrets for us.”
“This isn’t about that place, or that time.”
“Jack,” Kate said softly, her hand reaching out to cover his. “Jack, it’s me. If you can’t talk to me…”
“Not here.” He looked up at her and this time his eyes were sad, desperate. “Here can we just be Jack and Kate? Just two regular people having a regular lunch date at a lousy coffee bar?”
She searched him a moment and it was only then that she could see the dark circles underneath his eyes and she wondered what troubled him in his sleep. Closing her eyes a moment, she nodded, and she felt his other hand cover her own. She finally sighed and asked, “Any interesting surgeries lately?”
They shared a nervous laugh and when she opened her eyes, she could feel the tears she was holding back as she sniffled lightly and stared down at their hands. He slid away and nodded slowly. “It’s spinal surgery, Kate; it’s all pretty interesting to me.”
She took another bite of her muffin and listened to him detail a surgery he’d done the day before. On an older man who’d had partial paralysis and was now able to walk. Miracle worker, she’d teasingly called him and she told him about choosing a house and making the drapes. With the use of a sewing machine, he’d muttered as an insult - but they’d laughed.
It almost felt normal, except that Kate knew it wasn’t. Nothing was normal now to her. Not the clothes they were wearing or the makeup she had in her bag, nor the smell of mousse in her hair. Jack’s suit wasn’t normal and her blouse and skirt wasn’t normal, and her high heels were most definitely not normal.
They pretended it was normal. They lied because they wanted it to be normal. But it wasn’t.
And when they left and started to part ways in the parking garage around the corner, Jack pulling her back and whispering urgently into her ear, “We need to meet away from the public, somewhere we can talk,” sent a shiver of familiarity down her spine.
“Airport, there’s an abandoned parking lot just beyond the runway. You think you can find it?”
“Yeah,” he told her with a short nod, “Yeah, I know the place.”
-=-=-=-=-=-
Finis