Lost Fic: Memory
Theme: 21:00 Comprehension of universal truth.
Title: Memory
Fandom: Lost
Character/Pairing: Richard/Alex
Category: Romance
Rating: R
Warnings: spoilers through the entire series
Summary: Alex and Richard, in between the sideways flashes.
Words: 1,467
Alex sighed as she stepped out into the bright sunlight. The parking lot was crammed with cars; the sound of honking horns and good-natured shrieks and jibes filled the air. One car, though, was instantly recognisable, and Alex resettled her backpack over her shoulder with a look of determination.
"Mom's late again?" she asked, leaning in through the open window. The interior of the car was plush, the air cool.
The driver, one of Alex's neighbours, barely glanced up from the steering wheel. His eyes were shaded behind a pair of dark sunglasses. "Mm hmm," he murmured, noncommittally. “Hop in. I’ll drop you off.”
“You don’t need to,” Alex informed him. “I can take the bus.”
Finally, he slipped off the glasses. His dark eyes were smoky, almost pleading. Alex could swear she had never seen emotion on that face before.
“I don’t mind,” he told her. “I don’t want you to have to ride the bus home to an empty house every night.”
“Look, this isn’t necessary. You work halfway across town - next time she’s running late, I’ll get a friend to drop me off.” Alex glanced over towards the parking lot. She could see Dr Linus picking his obscure way through the crowds, his faded khaki suit invisible under the bright California sun. Though usually the sight of meek Dr Linus was endearing, Alex felt an abrupt sensation of anger. “You don’t need to worry about me being home along, either. I’m going off to college in the fall. I’m old enough to take care of myself.”
The man stared back at her, impassive, and Alex bit her lip.
“I’m sorry, Mr Alpert,” she said, using the formal title. They hadn’t been neighbours for long. “Just -”
“Get in,” he instructed, switching on his turn signal. The command implied her refusal would not be accepted, so Alex wrenched open the door, and settled herself inside. “And it’s Richard,” her neighbour added, unsmiling. “I’ve told you that before.”
Richard...
For an instant, the heat intensified and changed, going from stultifying to sultry. Wind rustled through the trees, and Alex felt the brush of scarred mangrove and tall palm against her skin. She could see - see, but not see - Richard closing in, one hand reaching for hers, a shared look of mutual understand. Los Angeles faded into a dream, and Alex felt herself soaring. Higher, higher, echoed a voice in her mind, and then she was older, standing on a dock, the sun-warmed wood burning the bottoms of her feet, a gun in hand. Richard, in another vision, looking different than the man steering their car out into the dense city traffic. His hair a little longer, his eyes a bit more feral, jaw just as tight, clothes ragged. Alex watched as she walked to him, smiling, lost in conversation. Alex...
“ - Alex?”
“I’m sorry, what?” Alex asked, widening her eyes.
Richard eyed her. “Put on your seatbelt,” he instructed.
She complied, with trembling fingers.
“Are you all right?” he asked. It didn’t seem like he cared to know the answer, or at least that was Alex’s understanding. He didn’t even look at her, just kept his eyes on the road, his jaw set, hands white-knuckled. His suit was neatly pressed, as always. She couldn’t imagine him in a jungle, dressed in torn scraps.
“Fine,” Alex answered. She rubbed her head, feeling the slightest press of a headache. “Too much studying,” she surmised, more to herself than him. “Too much stress. I haven’t been getting enough sleep.”
Richard nodded. They slowed at a red light, and he waited, hands folded in his lap. “There’s aspirin in the glove compartment,” he offered.
“No. Thanks.”
“Water?” He held out the bottle, shaking it slightly as though it might tempt her more. “Or if it’s a lack of caffeine headache, I can stop off at Starbucks, get you something.”
Alex offered a faint smile. “No, water’s great,” she said, reaching for the bottle. Her fingers...
Her fingers brushed against his sides, and Richard felt himself tense. He drew his stomach in, flinched at the slight tickling sensation of her hands caressing his sides, his ribs. She cradled his face in her hands, ran her fingers through his hair.
“We need to hurry,” Alex spoke - but it was not Danielle’s Alex, not the girl frowning, clutching her backpack, eyeing him with suspicion. This girl was half-dressed, urgent, all snapping teeth and eager lips. Richard felt himself shudder with sudden wanting.
They made love in the narrow bed. The windows were open, allowing their cries and whimpers to escape, bringing in cool salt air from the beach, tainted with the fragrance of island flora. Gathered, the sheets were hot, sweaty, tangled. Richard settled his hands on Alex’s sweat-slicked hips, guiding them into rhythm. They would need to hurry, Ben would be back soon. There would be dire consequences of they were found out, but even as Richard considered this, he knew he would gladly pay the price for their illicit relationship. It was Alex he was worried about, Alex who had already aroused the ire of their people. They would need to watch out -
“ - watch out!” Alex shrieked.
Richard snapped back from his reverie just in time to steer the car onto the median. The tires gouged black earth, throwing up cropped clods of grass and dying flowers. Miles of steel shone in the distance; the traffic jam.
“Were you even watching where you were going?” Alex demanded hotly as Richard gaped at her. There was no queen of the jungle now, no girl in too-tight jeans with a gun at her waist, barefoot in the sand. Richard rubbed his forehead, his brain feeling cloudy and bemused.
“Sorry,” he offered, by way of apology.
Alex nodded and crossed her arms. “Yeah.”
They drove in fits and starts, as was customary for the place and time of day. Finally, Richard veered off down the exit.
“Sorry,” he said again.
Alex softened, shrugged her shoulders. “It’s okay.” She gestured toward the window, which was still open. “You’re letting all the cold air out. Maybe the heat -”
The heat was blissful, blinding. In the depths of the jungle the island was more scent than substance: loamy earth, bittersweet flowers, sharp poison, acrid smoke. Sun-dappled, the leaves barely quivered as they passed, trailing sticky sap down Alex’s bare arm. Richard’s bare feet made no impression on the dirt.
“You wanted this.” Richard’s voice, faintly teasing. The sounds of screaming birds, lunging vines, Alex’s clothes being dropped in the mud.
“I did - I do -” came Alex’s response. Her voice trembled, but her eyes shone with determination. She would get the best of all of them, let them see if they could catch her. Heat flickered in her midsection, and she allowed Richard to pull her into a kiss.
Smoke screamed from deeper in the jungle, a roaring freight train of violent sound, but the lovers paid no notice. Alex’s legs were slick, sticky, spread across Richard’s hips. His palm lingered on her cheek, his lips grazed her breasts.
“I love -” he began, but it was drowned out as Alex pressed her mouth to his. Silent, unspoken, her thoughts: I know.
“I know,” Richard said, shifting the car into park. He narrowed his eyes, trying to capture the vision enough to explain it to Alex, but words eluded him. However, when he turned, he saw the shell-shocked, mystified expression on Alex’s face, and explanations became unnecessary. “I know you,” he spoke weightily. His brown eyes shone as he reached for Alex’s hand. She let him take it, and squeezed back, a sudden press of muscle and bone. “Alex...”
Troubled, she stared back at him. Wind from the open window lifted the tendrils of her hair; it smelled of coconuts, tropical greens. Her eyes were liquid. “Did we - are you -”
“I think so,” Richard confirmed. “Do you remember -”
Memories. They press hard, and Alex squeezes her hand tighter, nails digging into Richard’s palm.
Kissing on the beach at high tide, water sweeping over their thighs. Alex, splayed on the sand, her hair damp and coiled, Richard smiling. Flaming torches surrounding a night-time perimeter, their gazes meeting cautiously, carrying tension in a single glance. Tents and caverns hiding their secrets, Alex stealing out at night to join Richard on the lookout; love, and the scent of anthuriums. Musk rising from their joined bodies, secret kisses captured behind the bunkers.
“I think, maybe, you should come inside,” Richard suggested, reaching for Alex’s hand. “We have a lot to talk about.”
But his words are cut off abruptly as Alex flings her arms around his neck, welcoming him with a kiss and his name on her lips.
Title: Memory
Fandom: Lost
Character/Pairing: Richard/Alex
Category: Romance
Rating: R
Warnings: spoilers through the entire series
Summary: Alex and Richard, in between the sideways flashes.
Words: 1,467
Alex sighed as she stepped out into the bright sunlight. The parking lot was crammed with cars; the sound of honking horns and good-natured shrieks and jibes filled the air. One car, though, was instantly recognisable, and Alex resettled her backpack over her shoulder with a look of determination.
"Mom's late again?" she asked, leaning in through the open window. The interior of the car was plush, the air cool.
The driver, one of Alex's neighbours, barely glanced up from the steering wheel. His eyes were shaded behind a pair of dark sunglasses. "Mm hmm," he murmured, noncommittally. “Hop in. I’ll drop you off.”
“You don’t need to,” Alex informed him. “I can take the bus.”
Finally, he slipped off the glasses. His dark eyes were smoky, almost pleading. Alex could swear she had never seen emotion on that face before.
“I don’t mind,” he told her. “I don’t want you to have to ride the bus home to an empty house every night.”
“Look, this isn’t necessary. You work halfway across town - next time she’s running late, I’ll get a friend to drop me off.” Alex glanced over towards the parking lot. She could see Dr Linus picking his obscure way through the crowds, his faded khaki suit invisible under the bright California sun. Though usually the sight of meek Dr Linus was endearing, Alex felt an abrupt sensation of anger. “You don’t need to worry about me being home along, either. I’m going off to college in the fall. I’m old enough to take care of myself.”
The man stared back at her, impassive, and Alex bit her lip.
“I’m sorry, Mr Alpert,” she said, using the formal title. They hadn’t been neighbours for long. “Just -”
“Get in,” he instructed, switching on his turn signal. The command implied her refusal would not be accepted, so Alex wrenched open the door, and settled herself inside. “And it’s Richard,” her neighbour added, unsmiling. “I’ve told you that before.”
Richard...
For an instant, the heat intensified and changed, going from stultifying to sultry. Wind rustled through the trees, and Alex felt the brush of scarred mangrove and tall palm against her skin. She could see - see, but not see - Richard closing in, one hand reaching for hers, a shared look of mutual understand. Los Angeles faded into a dream, and Alex felt herself soaring. Higher, higher, echoed a voice in her mind, and then she was older, standing on a dock, the sun-warmed wood burning the bottoms of her feet, a gun in hand. Richard, in another vision, looking different than the man steering their car out into the dense city traffic. His hair a little longer, his eyes a bit more feral, jaw just as tight, clothes ragged. Alex watched as she walked to him, smiling, lost in conversation. Alex...
“ - Alex?”
“I’m sorry, what?” Alex asked, widening her eyes.
Richard eyed her. “Put on your seatbelt,” he instructed.
She complied, with trembling fingers.
“Are you all right?” he asked. It didn’t seem like he cared to know the answer, or at least that was Alex’s understanding. He didn’t even look at her, just kept his eyes on the road, his jaw set, hands white-knuckled. His suit was neatly pressed, as always. She couldn’t imagine him in a jungle, dressed in torn scraps.
“Fine,” Alex answered. She rubbed her head, feeling the slightest press of a headache. “Too much studying,” she surmised, more to herself than him. “Too much stress. I haven’t been getting enough sleep.”
Richard nodded. They slowed at a red light, and he waited, hands folded in his lap. “There’s aspirin in the glove compartment,” he offered.
“No. Thanks.”
“Water?” He held out the bottle, shaking it slightly as though it might tempt her more. “Or if it’s a lack of caffeine headache, I can stop off at Starbucks, get you something.”
Alex offered a faint smile. “No, water’s great,” she said, reaching for the bottle. Her fingers...
Her fingers brushed against his sides, and Richard felt himself tense. He drew his stomach in, flinched at the slight tickling sensation of her hands caressing his sides, his ribs. She cradled his face in her hands, ran her fingers through his hair.
“We need to hurry,” Alex spoke - but it was not Danielle’s Alex, not the girl frowning, clutching her backpack, eyeing him with suspicion. This girl was half-dressed, urgent, all snapping teeth and eager lips. Richard felt himself shudder with sudden wanting.
They made love in the narrow bed. The windows were open, allowing their cries and whimpers to escape, bringing in cool salt air from the beach, tainted with the fragrance of island flora. Gathered, the sheets were hot, sweaty, tangled. Richard settled his hands on Alex’s sweat-slicked hips, guiding them into rhythm. They would need to hurry, Ben would be back soon. There would be dire consequences of they were found out, but even as Richard considered this, he knew he would gladly pay the price for their illicit relationship. It was Alex he was worried about, Alex who had already aroused the ire of their people. They would need to watch out -
“ - watch out!” Alex shrieked.
Richard snapped back from his reverie just in time to steer the car onto the median. The tires gouged black earth, throwing up cropped clods of grass and dying flowers. Miles of steel shone in the distance; the traffic jam.
“Were you even watching where you were going?” Alex demanded hotly as Richard gaped at her. There was no queen of the jungle now, no girl in too-tight jeans with a gun at her waist, barefoot in the sand. Richard rubbed his forehead, his brain feeling cloudy and bemused.
“Sorry,” he offered, by way of apology.
Alex nodded and crossed her arms. “Yeah.”
They drove in fits and starts, as was customary for the place and time of day. Finally, Richard veered off down the exit.
“Sorry,” he said again.
Alex softened, shrugged her shoulders. “It’s okay.” She gestured toward the window, which was still open. “You’re letting all the cold air out. Maybe the heat -”
The heat was blissful, blinding. In the depths of the jungle the island was more scent than substance: loamy earth, bittersweet flowers, sharp poison, acrid smoke. Sun-dappled, the leaves barely quivered as they passed, trailing sticky sap down Alex’s bare arm. Richard’s bare feet made no impression on the dirt.
“You wanted this.” Richard’s voice, faintly teasing. The sounds of screaming birds, lunging vines, Alex’s clothes being dropped in the mud.
“I did - I do -” came Alex’s response. Her voice trembled, but her eyes shone with determination. She would get the best of all of them, let them see if they could catch her. Heat flickered in her midsection, and she allowed Richard to pull her into a kiss.
Smoke screamed from deeper in the jungle, a roaring freight train of violent sound, but the lovers paid no notice. Alex’s legs were slick, sticky, spread across Richard’s hips. His palm lingered on her cheek, his lips grazed her breasts.
“I love -” he began, but it was drowned out as Alex pressed her mouth to his. Silent, unspoken, her thoughts: I know.
“I know,” Richard said, shifting the car into park. He narrowed his eyes, trying to capture the vision enough to explain it to Alex, but words eluded him. However, when he turned, he saw the shell-shocked, mystified expression on Alex’s face, and explanations became unnecessary. “I know you,” he spoke weightily. His brown eyes shone as he reached for Alex’s hand. She let him take it, and squeezed back, a sudden press of muscle and bone. “Alex...”
Troubled, she stared back at him. Wind from the open window lifted the tendrils of her hair; it smelled of coconuts, tropical greens. Her eyes were liquid. “Did we - are you -”
“I think so,” Richard confirmed. “Do you remember -”
Memories. They press hard, and Alex squeezes her hand tighter, nails digging into Richard’s palm.
Kissing on the beach at high tide, water sweeping over their thighs. Alex, splayed on the sand, her hair damp and coiled, Richard smiling. Flaming torches surrounding a night-time perimeter, their gazes meeting cautiously, carrying tension in a single glance. Tents and caverns hiding their secrets, Alex stealing out at night to join Richard on the lookout; love, and the scent of anthuriums. Musk rising from their joined bodies, secret kisses captured behind the bunkers.
“I think, maybe, you should come inside,” Richard suggested, reaching for Alex’s hand. “We have a lot to talk about.”
But his words are cut off abruptly as Alex flings her arms around his neck, welcoming him with a kiss and his name on her lips.