dimples, james "sawyer" ford

fifty two

as the group pushed through the dense jungle, the atmosphere was heavy with tension and the humid air clung to their skin. lana was walking near the back of the group, her eyes focused on sawyer who was now a few steps ahead. that was when juliet appeared at her side, walking quietly for a few moments before speaking.

"lana," juliet said softly, "i wanted to thank you. for saving daniel and me back there, when that woman had the gun on us."

lana didn't look at her, her jaw tight. she just gave a brief nod. "yeah, well... no problem."

there was a pause, and juliet continued, sensing the unresolved tension between them. "i know you don't like me. i get it. what i did—what the others did to you—it wasn't right."

lana finally glanced at her, her eyes sharp. the memories were still fresh. juliet had been the one who captured her, told her sawyer was dead, and watched her as a prisoner without much sympathy. there had been a lot of anger between them, and a lot of mistrust. but now, with time literally jumping around them, things felt different. weirdly enough, the situation had a way of blurring the lines.

after a long silence, lana sighed, her voice quiet but steady. "sorry for fighting you. and for hitting you back then." she smirked slightly. "not that you didn't deserve it at the time."

juliet smiled, a little surprised by lana's shift in tone. "yeah. that's okay."

lana's expression softened a bit. "and... i guess, thanks for all the sandwiches when i was there, at the barracks. you didn't have to do that."

juliet smiled and let out a small laugh, a rare moment of humour between them. "you're welcome."

as they continued walking, the moment between the women passed, and the group refocused on their goal. they were heading for their old camp, hoping to use the zodiac boat to reach the orchid quickly. but when they arrived, the camp was a mess. it was clear they weren't alone on the island anymore.

sawyer crouched near one of the outrigger canoes, his hand closing around a strange item. "ajira airways?" he muttered, holding up the water bottle with a frown. "who the hell's been here?"

the camp had been ransacked, and the zodiac boat was gone. everything felt wrong. they didn't have time to linger, though. whoever owned the canoes might come back at any second, and they couldn't afford to wait.

"we're taking one of these outriggers," sawyer said decisively, motioning for everyone to climb aboard.

the group scrambled to get into the canoe, paddling quickly out into the water. but before they could make much distance, they were interrupted by the sound of voices—and gunfire. a second outrigger appeared, chasing after them with people onboard who clearly weren't interested in a friendly chat.

"paddle faster!" sawyer barked, his eyes darting back to the pursuing boat. bullets whizzed past their heads, splashing into the water around them.

just when it seemed like they were about to be overtaken, there was another blinding flash of light—a time shift. the other boat disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared, leaving the group in the middle of the water, disoriented.

the sky had darkened, and rain started pouring down in heavy sheets. they paddled quickly toward the shore, the adrenaline still pumping through their veins.

lana, now next to sawyer on the sand and catching her breath, grabbed onto the man's arm. "you okay?" she asked, her voice barely audible over the rain.

sawyer grunted in response. "been worse." he paused, throwing down the oar and looking back to her. "what about you?"

lana frowned, wiping her face to wipe away the rain beads that streamed down her face, but when her hand came away, it was stained with blood. her nose was bleeding.

sawyer's eyes widened with concern. "lana, your nose..."

she blinked, only now noticing the faint trickle of blood running down her face. she opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything, charlotte let out a gasp from a few feet away.

"hey, look at this!" charlotte called out, standing near the shore where the group had just landed. scattered across the beach were bits of wreckage, and what looked like pieces of a ship.

"what the hell is that?" sawyer muttered, getting to his feet and moving over to inspect the debris.

lana followed, her hand still wiping at her nose as she tried to make sense of what they were seeing. the wreckage looked recent, like it hadn't been there long. but how could that be possible? time was playing tricks on them again, and they couldn't tell what was real anymore.

as they stood there, rain pouring down around them, sawyer glanced back at lana, worry flickering in his eyes. "we gotta figure this out before it gets worse," he said, his voice low but serious. "i'm not losin' you, not to this."

lana nodded, her resolve just as strong.