Broken Road

Rating: PG-13 (changed because this is horrible)

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters or anything, just the plot. This song belongs to Simple Plan

Summary: CharlieClaire fluff. How does being separated affect Charlie and Claire? And now that they are reunited, how long until torn apart once more?

A/n: I said that I would finish this up, and the ending isn't very nice, and it was super hard to write, but I think I have it… I skipped a little bit, and this picks up right before Charlie is killed… OOPS!

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"Meet You There"

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"Claire… listen to me…" his voice was shaky, yet so determined. "I have a feeling that the saying 'third time's a charm' is coming into play here. Just do whatever… whatever you can to get out of her. I lost you once. I can't lose you again."

Tears fell. I couldn't stop them. He was giving up. He couldn't give up. This was like some sort of nightmare come true, some loony version of the Twilight Zone. I nodded, but I knew that it was a lie. I could barely move.

"Awwww how sweet," Ethan said, causing my attention to shift over towards him. I stared at him with the utmost hatred on my face. He had already taken my baby, and put me through hell. If he did anything more I would kill him with my… bare hands. Yet there was the issue that I was in so much pain that I couldn't move.

"Now that Stanley has gotten his exercise in, it is my turn. Say goodbye to your little girlfriend Charlie."

My eyes flashed over at Charlie who looked terrifiedly at me. Our eyes connected, and a slight bit of relief washed over me, but it didn't last long. I went back to looking at Ethan, was he really going to kill me? Why else would he say that? The panic had returned.

Immediately, my eyes closed, not wanting to see my impending doom, but curiosity took over me and I opened them. My heart nearly stopped.

He had a knife, and he wasn't heading towards me. He was heading for Charlie.

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"Now you're gone,
I wonder why
You left me here,
I think about it on, and on,
and on, and on, and on, again.
I know you're never coming back,
I hope that you can hear me,
I'm waiting to hear from you.."

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"Ethan…" I said, pleading with him. I hoped that it would work, but a part of me began doubting from the get go. "Ethan, what are you doing? Wh…why… Why are you doing this?"

Nothing was working. Ethan didn't even look at me. He was out for blood. "Ethan… don't do this. What are you going to get out of it… NOTHING ETHAN…"

I was cut off by Charlie screaming. My eyes had automatically followed Ethan over to Charlie, and they immediately closed when I realized what he as doing. But I couldn't get the picture out of my head. He was trying to kill him, in the most painful possible way ever.

I couldn't block it out. Charlie's screams made everything worse. Even with my eyes closed, my mind still painted a vibrantly horrid picture in my head. Why was Ethan doing this?

It didn't seem to stop. Charlie's screaming never ceased, it echoed seamlessly through the room and through me. I began sobbing, trying to concentrate more on that than anything else. The picture never erased itself, the screaming never stopped.

"STOP!!!" I shouted through my sobs into the rock hard thing I was laying on. "STOP!!!"

More shouting added in when suddenly the room became quiet except for Charlie's unsteady and shallow breathing along with the sobs coming from me. Had he listened to me?

Had my trying to block it all out actually worked? Had I mentally transferred myself to another place? I wish I could have, but I didn't. Someone else was there.

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"Until I do,
You're gone away,
I'm left alone,
A part of me is gone,
And I'm not moving on,
So wait for me,
I know the day will come.."

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My body was shaking something horribly, but a hand on my shoulder stopped it all. It wasn't rough, it wasn't forceful. It seemed to be there as more of a comfort than anything. "Stop…" I whispered, still sobbing.

The hand moved and slowly turned me over. I looked right into Jack's face. "Claire…" he said, sitting me up. "Claire… what happened…"

He may have said something more, but I didn't hear him. My eyes were locked on Charlie. He was bleeding, a lot, and he looked… he looked like he was dead. Not caring that every muscle in me ached as I moved, I moved past Jack straight towards Charlie.

I shook him. "Charlie," I said simply, my throat sore from screaming. I didn't get much of a response. His eyes opened a tiny bit before they closed again. He was giving up. I wouldn't let him.

I shook him some more. "Charlie!"

This time I got nothing. I tried again.

"CHARLIE!! STOP IT!! WAKE UP!!!" I said, before breaking down. He couldn't have been… I couldn't even think about it.

I felt someone lift me up onto my feet, but it wasn't Jack. Jack was kneeled down next to Charlie. I spun around and saw Michael, who seemed to be holding back the tears too. My attention turned back to Jack, who was doing something and shaking his head.

NO! Jack was giving up too. I couldn't take it anymore. Had they lost all faith?

The next thing I knew Jack was standing up and pacing. What was going on? "Jack?" I asked. He looked at me, and I could see it in his eyes.

"No!" I said angrily, trying to get closer to Charlie. "You can't give up on him! He isn't…" I couldn't bring myself to say it.

I was on my knees next to Charlie. Ethan was gone. Stanley was gone. I felt so alone. Jack and Michael were there, but Charlie was… he was really dead. Wasn't he?

Grabbing onto Charlie's hand, I felt Jack move. It was so cold, I squeezed it. Nothing. "Damn it Charlie…" I cursed. I squeezed it again, and I could have sworn I felt him squeeze back. A small smile appeared on my face.

"He's not dead…" I said quietly.

I felt Jack try to lift me up off of the ground. "He's gone Claire…" Jack was so funny. Charlie wasn't gone. He had just squeezed my hand.

In response, I simply shook my head. I felt my hand break away from Charlie's as I was lifted up. Jack turned me around so I was looking straight at him. "He's gone Claire… Charlie's dead…"

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"I'll meet you there,
No matter where life takes me to,
I'll meet you there,
And even if I need you here,
I'll meet you there."

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I didn't want to believe him. I refused to believe him. There was no way that Charlie was dead. He was just knocked out. That was all. Jack looked completely heartbroken; I could see it in his face. But… but…

It hit me like a train. Charlie was dead. Never coming back. It sent me into more sobs as I broke down in Jack's arms. He kept me standing up, but gravity wanted to pull me down. It was so much harder this time, because I could have… I should have done something to stop it. He was right there, and I was right here, when he died, and I should have done something.

But I didn't.

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"I wish I could have told you,
The things I kept inside,
But now I guess its just too late.
So many things remind me of you,
I hope that you can hear me,
I miss you,
This is goodbye,
One last time.."

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I had no clue how long it was until Jack said that we had to leave. I didn't need to leave. Charlie… I shook my head.

"Claire," he said, "You're being irrational."

No I wasn't. I wasn't being irrational. I was being perfectly… maybe he was right, but I couldn't leave. Not without Charlie. I shook my head.

"Claire. Charlie's… Charlie's dead. I can't do anything. Maybe if I had fancy lab equipment, but I don't Claire. We're in a jungle… we have nothing."

He was right. There was nothing he could do, but I should have done something. Anything. But I didn't. I felt paralyzed, I could barley move when my gaze passed over Charlie. He looked so peaceful, like he was sleeping. But I knew the truth. He wasn't.

"Claire. We need to get out of here, before we all get hurt… like Charlie." More tears fell. I couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to die, like I should have. If it wasn't for Charlie coming… they would have killed me.

If it wasn't for Jack and Michael coming, he probably would have killed me next. It would have been better than having Charlie dead.

"Claire. We have to go… the others are gonna be worried."

Painfully, I nodded.

"Good." he said, smiling genuinely. He helped me up and Michael helped me through the jungle area. I was still a mess, but I couldn't look back. If I would have, I would've realized what Jack had done.

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"You're gone away,
I'm left alone,
A part of me is gone,
And I'm not moving on,
So wait for me,
I know the day will come.."

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We made it back to camp, and I collapsed on the beach, totally not caring at all. I just wanted to be left alone. I had been stripped of everything in… a few hours. Everything. Everything except my life, and now that felt like a heavy burden I didn't want to carry anymore.

If it wasn't for me, Charlie wouldn't be dead. Charlie would just be… Charlie.

The thought brought a small smile to my face, but it slowly faded away, just like everything else. Everything seemed so fuzzy. It was a disbelief that the happenings of the past few days had actually happened. It seemed so nightmareish. I didn't want it to have happened. I wanted to just wake up from it all.

But I couldn't. It had been real. Every little bit of it. I had been stripped of all I held dear on this bloody island. Everything.

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"I'll meet you there,
No matter where life takes me to,
I'll meet you there,
And even if I need you here,
I'll meet you there,
No matter where life takes me to,
I'll meet you there,
And even if I need you here,
I'll meet you there."

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I didn't even know that my eyes had closed, but I fell into a dreamless slumber. I dreamed of nothing. I just woke up to find Sayid shaking me awake.

"Kate wants you Claire…" he said, also looking grief-stricken.

I nodded simply and slowly got up. The rest seemed to have done me some good. Sniffling slightly, I walked over to where I could make out Kate by the fire. She must have spotted me through the darkness, because she came rushing over.

Before I knew it, I was being wrapped up in a tight hug. I never thought of Kate as being a hugging person. I hugged her back.

When we broke away, I saw that she was crying. I didn't know that she had been there when they had found Charlie hanging from the tree. I didn't know anything of what had happened between when Ethan hung him from the tree and when I woke up to see Charlie right there.

The conversation was silent. There was no need to talk. The silence was comforting enough. It seemed to last for a long time before she broke it.

"We're going to have a memorial service for Charlie…" she said, her voice pained. "We… we wanted to know if you would say something."

I simply shook my head. She understood. I knew that she understood.

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"I'll meet you there....

And where I go you'll be there with me,
Forever you'll be right here with me..

I'll meet you there,
No matter where life takes me to,
I'll meet you there,
And even if I need you here,
I'll meet you there,"

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The day was long. Longer than any that I had ever been through before. Time seemed to be moving so slowly. It just never moved. I know that I was over reacting, but why shouldn't I be?

No one talked to me. I sat there alone, staring off into blankness. Trapped completely in my thoughts. As much as I wanted to be left alone, I wished that someone would have noticed my existence, instead of just ignoring me.

Jack probably told them to. Told them that I had gone through one of those… traumatic experiences and didn't want to talk about it. He was partially right.

It wasn't until mid-afternoon (I guessed) that Shannon came over. I had never really talked to the girl, but I knew who she was.

"Hey," she said quietly.

"Hi…" I responded, turning my head to look at her. My neck was awfully stiff from sitting in one position for such a long time.

"How… how are you holding up?" she asked. I tired to read her, because the Shannon that I had observed never seemed to be that way.

I shrugged in response, going back to staring off into space. I just found it funny that of all people to come over and talk to me, it was Shannon, the stuck up little rich snot.

"You could talk to me, ya know…" she said, sounding a bit annoyed. "We're kinda in the same boat here."

"Excuse me?" I said almost immediately, turning to look at her. She hadn't lost her best friend or her baby. She shouldn't be saying that she was in the same boat as me that was for sure.

"My brother," she said simply.

I looked at her, feeling bewildered.

"He disappeared… so did Locke. When you were kidnapped. They went out looking for you with Kate and Jack. Only they… they never came back," she said, the girl fighting back tears.

Suddenly, I felt extremely sick. Why was I so important? Because of me… Charlie was dead. Locke and Boone were missing… and Charlie was dead. How could I have caused so many things to happen?

"I'm… I'm sorry…" I managed to choke out. I felt my empty stomach begin to turn. I shouldn't have even listened to that physic. If I hadn't, I wouldn't be on the island, and I wouldn't have messed up so many people's lives. Shannon was a direct example about that.

Tears began to fall as I felt the little contents in my stomach coming up.

"It isn't your fault you know…" Shannon said. I shook my head as the contents reached my mouth.

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"No matter where life takes me..
I'll meet you there,
And even if I need you..
I'll meet you there..."

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Shannon stayed for a while. We didn't talk. Nobody seemed to talk too much anyways. At least not around me. The sick feeling stayed, but nothing happened because of it.

It became dark quickly, and there was a fire. Everyone was there. Even some of the people from the beach. "We're having some sort of memorial service for Charlie," Shannon said, her voice dry from not talking for so long. "You should come, ya know, get some closure or something…"

I shook my head once more. I couldn't go. It was too soon.

"No…" she said, trying to pull me up off the ground. "You need to come."

Stubbornly, I stayed where I was. She didn't get it. I couldn't go. I wouldn't go.

She ended up giving up and leaving me alone once more. I couldn't hear what was going on, but I'm sure that it was wonderful. I just knew that I wouldn't have been able to handle it. I didn't want to be a blubbering mess in front of everyone.

In the span of a few hours, my life had been changed drastically. One person had taken everything away from me. One person left me with nothing.

My baby was gone.

Charlie was gone.

All because of him. And if I run into him, ever, anywhere, I will kill him. I didn't care what it took. I would kill him. He stripped me of everything I had held dear… and if I could do anything about it, he was going to pay.

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"I'll meet you there...
I'll meet you there.."

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Fin.

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A/n: Well, that is all. I have finished it. I don't like the way I ended it per say, but hey… I did something I have never succeeded at doing before, so I am just a little but proud of myself for that. Damnit… I set myself up for a sequel… which may never be written… haha.

orange-tide – Haha. That was our entire conversation the other night. I ramble more than you do…

rah rah replica – awwww…well, I hope that part IV lived up to expectations. I hated writing it… but I did it.

Harper's Pixie – I have issues killing my favorite characters, but I did, and it was hard. I'm sorry that I made you sob… and… it was pretty intense to write (ask Ali) haha… the outcome was the same, and this was just as heart-wrenching to write.

Hradyzfreak – That movie was really predictable… but I couldn't have Charlie live because of the line "If it would have happened to anyone else, they would be dead" or something like that… but thanks for liking my story.

suspencer – that could be a sequel… but I don't know…

The Pirate Illusionist – Awwww… thanks so much…

Okay… I did some thinking while writing this… and I will write a sequel (possibly titled "My Guardian Angel" I will probably not use songs because it was hard, and a lot of time may have passed.

I still can't believe that I killed Charlie, but hey… I needed to prove to myself that I could.

Thanks for reading my fic, and I really hoped that you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

That was really cheesy.

If you actually read this part please type GOAT in your reply… gracias…

Rockin' FluteTrumpet (aka. Kim)