HOW DO I LOATHE YOU? A LOST ANTI-CHARLOTTE FANFICTION

More Juliet was inevitable; you know it, I know it.

Chapter Four: Lifeline

'The sun's almost set,' announced Juliet to Sun and Jin. She knew full well that they could see this for themselves, but she felt it needed to be said, since the three of them had long ago run out of conversation topics and had since been trudging along in relative silence. Not that the blonde had made too much effort; she was far too worried about Jack, and the consequences of his recklessness, to discuss the warm stretch of weather they'd been having recently. Well, warm up until the abrupt rainstorm of ten minutes ago. Thanks to that, the ex-Other and the two Koreans were sopping wet, freezing cold and utterly miserable, and on top of that, the rain had washed away the majority of Jack's trail. The I-can't-deal-with-this-crap-itis was beginning to flare up again.

Sun, who was walking steadily beside her husband as Juliet led the way, asked the question that the other woman had been rather dreading having to answer: 'Can you still see Jack's footprints in all this mud?'

It was fortunate that she couldn't see Juliet's face, plastered as it was with rare awkwardness and frustration. There was a slight pause before she answered. 'A little. Probably enough.' Immediately, she knew she shouldn't have said 'probably'.

Raising her eyebrows, Sun turned to Jin and there was a brief exchange in Korean - although Juliet didn't need to be a linguist to venture a guess at what they were discussing. She allowed herself an internal wince and spared one area of thought that wasn't busy worrying or being frustrated to recall the old adage: it's lonely at the top. While you're trying to lead them, all your subordinates are muttering away to each other and planning to usurp you.

There was a lull in the hushed discussion between Jin and his wife, and so Sun finally asked: 'What does that mean, "probably enough"?'

Juliet tried, as most new leaders do when having their leadership questioned, to mask uncertainty with false confidence. 'Don't worry, Sun,' se said in what she thought was a reassuring tone. 'I can see bits and pieces. I know where he's going; just leave it to me, okay?'

She could tell by the look on the other woman's face that her tone hadn't been reassuring in the least.

--

They were still going. He couldn't believe it.

Daniel had never met two people who loved to oppose one another as much as Charlotte and Bernard. It had only been ten minutes, sure, but it'd felt to him like an eternity; his two companions seemed not to have ceased fighting even to draw breath the entire time. One of them couldn't begin a statement without immediate interruption by the other, and Faraday was beginning to hope that Jack would hear the noise and come running, to save them all the trouble of having to walk together any more.

The sun was now a deep orange, and was barely visible through the trees and stalks of bamboo as it sunk slowly beneath the horizon. The entire eastern half of the sky was turning darker and darker shades of blue, and it was quickly spreading to the rest. Impending nightfall was making Charlotte edgy - and unfortunately, when Charlotte got edgy, so did everyone else. At least it wasn't raining now. At least Daniel could find solace in that.

'See that sky?' fumed the redhead, pointing to it in case either of the men walking behind her didn't know where the sky was. 'See how dark it's gotten? It's nightfall! We need to go back!'

'We still haven't found Jack,' Bernard replied irritably. Daniel simply shook his head halfheartedly; it was always the same disagreement, replaying over and over again.

Charlotte whipped her head round to face the older man, her hair flying in its wake like an inextinguishable blaze. 'I don't give a rat's ass about your precious doctor!' she snapped, glaring in a mad and intimidatingly blue way at the dentist. 'Who knows what could be lurking in this jungle! I'm - '

Suddenly, they all stopped dead as a deafening, terrible howl split the air. It sounded very much unlike any animal call Daniel had ever heard. It was more like a machine...

'Oh no,' breathed Bernard, a cold sweat breaking out on his face. 'We need to run. Now.' His tone was insistent, to put it lightly.

'Why?' Charlotte asked him, not taking her eyes off the direction from which the noise had come; they could now see a clear path being forged by the thing, as whatever it was uprooted plants, entire trees. And the occasional large rock. 'What is that?'

She was jerked sharply in the opposite direction to that of the creature by Bernard, who had grabbed her arm and Daniel's and bolted for the shelter of a nearby bamboo thicket.

'It's the damned monster!' he hissed.

--

The blood had stopped oozing from Jack's open wound, for the most part, but Kate knew that there was probably some kind of internal damage as well. And she couldn't keep pressing down on the torn stitches with the doctor's hastily-removed, bundled-up shirt forever. She needed for someone to come. Anyone. At this point, even Vincent would be a help.

Vincent; the dog's name had been stuck in her head since a few minutes ago, when she'd asked a barely conscious Jack the reason he'd been stupid enough to run through the jungle alone so soon after his operation. The reply had been barely audible, and somewhat slurred, but Kate was positive she'd heard right. He had ripped his damn sutures and was going to bleed out because he wanted to find a lost dog. It was completely reckless, completely idiotic, completely suicidal...and completely Jack. She sighed, removing one of her hands from his side to wipe the rapidly beading sweat from her forehead. This left a smear of blood on her face.

Jack was lying down now, on the same broken-off section of airline seating that he'd lain a near-dead Boone out on, forever ago. There were still a few weathered red stains on the blue cushions; and now, thanks to the doctor's wound, there were a few more. Apart from the seats, some more airplane debris and some junk left behind when the castaways had abandoned the caves - and of course, the bodies of Adam and Eve, nestled in their little alcoves - the place was empty. Kate glanced desperately around for what seemed the hundredth time, straining to see whether anyone was emerging from the darkening jungle to help her at last. But still, there was no one. She'd tried to restrain herself, to stop herself from screaming for assistance lest someone - or something - dangerous hear her, but she couldn't hold it in any longer.

'Help!' cried Kate, her voice breaking slightly with the stress. Clearing her throat, she tried again. 'Hey! Someone! I need help! Uh - ' She cast out for a name, and with it a solid thought, a lifeline. ' - Juliet! Juliet, are you out there?'

Several seconds passed in tense silence, save Jack's delirious mutterings about misbehaving dogs. Then Kate's heart leapt halfway up her esophagus as there was a distant rustling noise, and the distinct sound of rapid footfalls. A great 'Ha!' of relief escaped the woman's lips as the figures of Juliet, Sun and Jin came bursting from the underbrush.

'Oh God, Jack!' exclaimed the blonde, dashing over to the man and removing her pack, swinging it up onto the seat beside his leg. 'Kate, how long ago did you find him here?' she demanded. When Kate did nothing but simply stare exhaustedly at the bag, Juliet repeated: 'Kate! How long?'

'Oh! Uh, I don't know, about fifteen minutes?'

'Fifteen minutes,' she murmured. 'Dammit, Jack.' The ex-Other removed some bandages and spare sutures from her pack, along with a syringe and a vial of what was most likely Lidocaine or some other painkiller, laying them out carefully alongside her. She placed a hand gently but firmly on Kate's arm. 'You can take the pressure off now. I'm going to sew him up.'

Kate obeyed dazedly, sitting back and wiping her bloody hands absently on the legs of her jeans. Sun knelt down next to her and draped a comforting arm around her shoulders. 'He'll be fine now,' she told the brunette, who nodded mutely.

Watched by the other two women, and by Jin, Juliet slid her hands into a pair of rubber gloves and set to work.

To be continued...

Fourth chapter down! And it took me long enough, huh? If you've just read this, please try and spare a second to write a review, as it does wonders for my self-esteem! And a big thank you to the following people who have done so already: Jesus.Lives, Da Phoenix 13 and Dark Duchess and Shadow Queen. I appreciate it!