fic: even i have forgotten her name; lost; jack/claire; pg13

[krickets]

even i have forgotten her name
lost, jack/claire, pg13, 375-ish
prompt, ghost town, HERE!!! (← click that link -- NO REALLY CLICK IT.) at the lostsquee fic battle
also for my fc_smorgasbord table



He walks -- spends his days traveling the same curves and hills, over grass and stone, the limited scope of the island that once seemed so endless. A thousand times he walks. A thousand days.

And he is alone.

Trapped in time.

-

Jack isn't sure what he once expected by coming back here. But he remembers finding her in the dark, after everyone else somehow finds their way home. What he finds, is her. And that's when he knows why he is here.

(But before that moment? How did he get here? Why? Who can say? Do you ever really know what it is that you need until it lands at your feet?)

She is marked with dirt, eyes cast down, quiet, lips chapped, eyes welling with tears that won't fall. Jack takes her to a clear pool and washes her skin. Takes off his shirt and wets it with the cool water, brushes it over her arms, her collarbone, her neck.

She shivers, knelt in the water, calls him brother, kisses him like he's something else.

He pulls her down, down, down. He calls her by name.

Claire.

In truth, he had almost forgotten. And even now, when he opens his mouth and raises his head to the sky, nothing comes. Her name is a silent prayer upon his lips, in the back of his throat, thrumming in his heart and in his head, but never said aloud.

-

There is a day when they wake in the shelters at the beach, empty now, save for the two of them. She is naked at his side. They are almost always naked. At some point, clothes stopped seeming important. Claire's golden hair is bound in dreadlocks, and Jack is bearded, feeling older, but never really getting older. (And they've both stopped wondering why.)

I have to go, she says that morning, or a morning something like it.

Where? he asks. But he knows.

Aaron is waiting. She doesn't say this part out loud, only, You know.

Jack pushes his lips into the palm of her hand. To hold on to, he tells her. And really, it is the only possession he has left.

-

So now, he walks.

And waits for his turn to go home.

~fin

Comments

[kmousie.livejournal.com]

You're so brilliant, love. ♥

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Aw, well thank you! ♥!

Hope there's not too many mistakes! Hee! It was originally comment fic but I thought I'd move it over here before I forgot.

[workswithwords.livejournal.com]

KC, you cease to amaze me in the way you have with words. This is heartbreakingly good, so many little details that make love it so much, and then I read it again and I love it even more.

Thank you so much for sharing this!

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Well thanks, I'm glad you like it! I was really hoping to write something today, start the fic battle off with a bang, so I was pleased I was able to come up with something. Also, it's just been too damn long since I wrote these two beautiful creatures. ;)

[gigglemonster.livejournal.com]

as;dlfkjghas OMFG. This is seriously like the most breathtaking thing ever dude! It's just so poetic and melancholy and seriously beautiful!

Her name is a silent prayer upon his lips, in the back of his throat, thrumming in his heart and in his head, but never said aloud.

GAH! *wibble* That may be like my new favorite line ever. And the end with the kiss on her palm, his only possession left, you're killing me! (But in the best possible way). You managed to pack such a huge wonderful punch into these 300-some words. Amazing <33

[crickets.livejournal.com]

You know, I'm not even really sure where this came from. I need to write these two more. Or at least some Jawyercita. Thanks for reading!

[daybreak777.livejournal.com]

They are so ephemeral when you write them. Like fine white sand slipping through one's fingers. One day I hope you write a long, long piece on them though I've grown quite used to the tiny glimpses. :-)

Ah, Claire. I hope we see her soon.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

I really should try to write something more substantial. I think the biggest I get is somewhere near the 2,000 word mark.

Thank you so much for your awesome feedback. It always makes me feel all warm and happy. Hehe.

Fine white sand slipping through one's fingers... hehe, that should be in a fic itself!