Disclaimer: I don't own Lost or any of its characters.
Chapter 1
Claire approached Desmond slowly, a little unsure of what to say. He appeared to be deep in thought as he stared toward the ground. As she stepped closer to him, she realized he was looking at a worn photograph of himself and a lovely woman with long, brown hair.
"She's beautiful" Claire said in a whimsical tone, as he looked up to meet her gaze.
"Hi. Thanks." He quickly folded the picture along its familiar crease and tucked it deep into his palm.
Reluctantly Claire sat down next to him on the sand, surprised that her heart was pounding a little faster than normal. She thought she had calmed down after her near death experience that morning. "What's her name?"
"Penny…Penelope." His gaze met hers for a brief moment. Claire felt her cheeks grow warm and quickly looked toward the ocean. Before today, she had never been in such close proximity to him. His eyes sought hers out as she turned to see a look of sincere concern cross his face. "How you feeling?"
"Still a little shaken up. I go swimming almost every day. The undertow just grabbed me, I mean, if you hadn't…"
"Claire?" Claire and Desmond turned simultaneously to see Charlie standing directly behind them holding Aaron. "I thought you were only going to be five minutes. Aaron's starving."
"Yeah, um, sorry," she said with a hint of agitation in her voice.
Desmond's brow furrowed as his gaze met Charlie's but his face instantly softened as he looked at Claire once again.
With flushed cheeks, she looked him straight in the eye. "Well, anyway, I just wanted to say 'thank you'…thank you so much for being there."
Although his eyes looked tired, the corners of his mouth curved to form a subtle grin. "It was my pleasure." Claire slowly rose from the ground and dusted the sand from her pants. As he watched her walk away, Charlie glared at him once again, holding Aaron protectively to his chest.
The feeling he had when he was near her was inexplicable. She had the face of an angel and this exuberant warmth that surrounded her. He didn't know a thing about her aside from the fact that she was very young and had been left alone to raise her son. Maybe that was the reason she stayed with Charlie even though it was obvious that his over protectiveness and sometimes inappropriate antics annoyed her.
He had been away from civilization for three, long years and single even longer so he was certainly no expert when it came to matters involving the fairer sex. He still remembered Penny's comment about good men being hard to come by. He wondered to himself if that was why Claire even bothered with Charlie. He didn't know any of the details surrounding Claire's relationship with Aaron's father but figured she had been quite jaded by the ordeal. He could tell it was a sore subject by the tone of her voice when she had replied "He was doing what was best for him," after he had drunkenly approached her on the beach and inquired about the presence of Aaron's father on the island. Her eyes had gone from soft and inviting to hard as steel in a matter of seconds.
It was blatantly clear that Charlie cared a great deal about her no matter how unhealthy their relationship might be. It was as if she felt she needed someone reliable in her life that she could depend on but would not let her guard down for fear of being hurt. She seemed so strong and unreachable to him…until today.
The look on her face when he revived her…the confused and scared look on her face as she clung to him and gasped for breath would forever be etched into his memory. He had cradled her head and reassured her that she was going to be okay. His instincts had taken over when Charlie reached for her possessively while continuously repeating her name as if trying to prove the moot point of his presence. All that mattered to him was her safety and getting her out of sight of the curious eyes that would surely overwhelm her in her moment of weakness. She needed privacy to regain her composure so he focused on getting her away from the gawking onlookers that surrounded her. He scooped her into his arms and headed toward her tent. As he carried her farther away from the frenzy of people and Charlie's maddening inquisitiveness, he felt her relax against his chest and rest her damp cheek against his bare shoulder.
When they reached her tent, Locke who had went ahead to grab a damp cloth and a couple of towels was waiting for them. The color had returned to her face and her breathing had slowed a bit. He sat her gently on the makeshift mattress and knelt down in front of her, lightly brushing a loose, sopping wet lock of hair from her face.
"You're okay?" His words came out more in the form of a question than a statement as he had meant.
She nodded in response, still looking very shocked and confused, avoiding his eyes.
"Here Claire," Locke said kindly as he knelt beside Desmond, "I brought you some towels and a washcloth so you can dry off and get the sand off your face. You'll probably want to bathe and wash your hair once you've rested for a while."
She shivered and continued to nod, as Desmond pulled a blanket that was thrown across the bed around her shoulders. "I should probably get out of these wet clothes if you don't mind."
"Sure," said Desmond, as he slowly rose from the ground and turned to leave.
"I'll be right over here if you need anything," said Locke as he followed Desmond from the tent. "That was a close call," he said to Desmond in a hushed tone once they were out of earshot from Claire.
"Too close, but luckily she's okay."
"Thanks to you," Locke said, as he gave Desmond an approving pat on the shoulder.
"I'd better go dry off myself, brother."
He rose from the spot where Claire had left him moments earlier. The sun began to set, over the crashing waves and cast incredible tones of orange, pink and purple across the horizon. As he headed down the beach alone to build a fire and settle in for the night, he thought to himself what a beautiful evening it was and wished to himself that he had someone to share it with.