Fic: All the While it Was You - Part Seven (Charlie/Claire)
Title: All the While it Was You - Part Seven
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Jack had been having such a lousy day. Some days he hated working in the same hospital as his father more than others; today was one of those days.
Disclaimer: I do not own Lost. At all. I wish but alas...
Author's Note: This is AU based on Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop by Landon Pigg. Claire is a barista at a coffee shop and Charlie is a musician who plays there. This is a Charlie/Claire story, but it's gonna take a bit to get there, so bear with me. There are also some other pairings sprinkled through here as well.
Previous Parts: Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five | Part Six
Jack had been having such a lousy day. Some days he hated working in the same hospital as his father more days than others; today was one of those days. At this point, he was just trying to keep his head down until his shift ended, but the day got a bit more complicated when he spotted Claire heading toward the exit.
“Claire?”
She jumped and turned around, obviously startled.
“Hi,” she said. Jack immediately became concerned. She hadn’t told him she was going to be dropping by the hospital today. Come to think of it, she had been gone before he and Kate had got up in the morning.
“What’re you doing here?” he asked. “Are you alright?”
She nodded, quickly. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied, crossing her arms over her chest in a gesture of discomfort. “I just came by to see Dad.” Jack nodded. Well. That explained a lot.
“Did he say something to upset you?” Jack asked. He wouldn’t be surprised. Then again, with Claire, Christian had always seemed to put in an effort. He tried, sometimes too hard, to be a good father and give her allowances in a way he had never given Jack. It was like he was trying to make up for the father he’d been to Jack through Claire.
Claire shook her head. “No, it’s nothing like that,” she assured. “We were talking about my Mum, and he was just giving me the number of a specialist he knows.” She pulled a piece of yellow paper out of her pocket and showed it to him.
“Oh, well, okay,” Jack answered. As much as he loved Claire, he tried not to think about his father’s affair. He was sure there had been more than one, but it was still an unpleasant road to go down.
“So, I guess I’ll see you at home?” she said. Jack nodded. He was sure she had to get to work, and he was sure there was some work he should be doing, so he didn’t need to keep her any longer.
“Yeah,” he answered. “I’ll see you.”
She left for the door, and he set out down the hall and toward the elevator, intent on returning to his office. Then he saw something that stopped him in his tracks.
It was Charlie. He was inside the room immediately to Jack’s left and he looked like death warmed over. He was asleep. Jack took a few cautious steps toward his room. He didn’t have any visible scrapes or cuts, and it didn’t appear as though he had any broken bones, so he hadn’t been in an accident.
Concerned, he reached for Charlie’s chart. He quickly caught sight of the two words that both told him everything he needed to know and caused him to stop breathing.
Heroin overdose.
*
Jack came home that night with a black cloud over his head. He hadn’t thought, when he had left Christian’s office, that his day could have been any worse. It had been.
“Hey,” Kate greeted, when he walked in the door. She smiled at him, but it faded immediately when she saw the look on his face. He hung up his coat on one of the hooks by the door and sighed. “What happened?” she asked. He sat down at the dining room table heavily. “Was it your Dad again?”
Jack shook his head and leaned forward with his elbows on the table. Kate walked over and ran her hand along the back of his neck, trying to ease the tension. “Is Claire home yet?” he asked.
“No,” Kate answered. Jack nodded, but he didn’t say anything. “Okay, you’re really freaking me out,” she told him, rounding the table and sitting in the chair directly in front of him. She put her hands on his knees and leaned down, pretty much forcing him to look at her.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
He looked up. He wanted to tell her, but he didn’t know if he should. It was none of his business and he had literally just met Charlie yesterday. Claire seemed to think highly of him, but Jack had serious misgivings about his sister spending time with a drug addict.
But how did he know that’s what Charlie was? He didn’t know anything about him. Except this, which might have been the one thing that really mattered.
“If I tell you this, you can’t tell anyone,” he said.
“Okay,” she answered, nodding.
“I’m serious. No one.”
“No one,” she repeated.
“Charlie, Claire’s friend…I saw him in the hospital today.”
“Is he okay?” Kate asked.
“He overdosed on heroin this morning.”
Kate went still. She didn’t move, and she had an expression of utter disbelief on her face. “Oh my god,” she whispered. “Does Claire know?”
“No,” Jack answered. “And I can’t tell her. I probably shouldn’t have even told you, but I couldn’t not tell you.” He sighed, looking down again. His head was throbbing.
“There’s nothing you can do about this, Jack,” Kate assured him. Most of him knew that, but the rest… “We don’t know Charlie, and it’s not our business-”
“Claire is my sister, and he-”
“She’s a big girl, Jack.” Jack shook his head. “Look, I know you. And I know you wanna try to fix this, or warn Claire, or whatever, but you can’t.”
“So I’m supposed to just…what? Forget this happened? Act like I don’t know anything when she brings him around?”
“You could talk to his friends,” she suggested. “Maybe they know what’s going on. Maybe they can tell you more. But other than that…yeah. This isn’t one of those things you can control. I thought you were working on spotting those.”
He was. Or, he should be.
“I just can’t get my head around the idea that there isn’t something I can do.”
“You never can.”
He closed his eyes. He felt like bricks just kept falling on his head. His father was on his case, he had a big secret on his back that could easily blow apart his sister’s life, and he was being forced to deal with unpleasant truths about himself all at the same time.
“This day sucked.”
Kate kissed the top of his head and rubbed his shoulder with her hand. “I know.”
They heard the click of a key in the lock and Jack sat upright. He had to force everything that had happened off of him. Kate was right. He couldn’t tell Claire and he couldn’t let her see him, because she would know something was wrong.
So he stood up and headed for the bedroom. Kate’s hand fell from his shoulder and even though he couldn’t see it, he knew that she understood.
Claire set her purse on the kitchen counter. “Hey,” she greeted Kate. Kate forced herself to smile. She was much better than Jack at pretending things were alright when they were far from it.
“Hey,” she answered.
Kate sat back down in the chair Jack had vacated. She watched Claire take a bottle of water from the fridge and she sighed. When this came out - things like this always did - it was going to be a mess, and Claire was going to be in the middle of it.
“Jack isn’t home yet?” Claire asked.
“He went to bed,” Kate answered, simply, turning to look at the closed door of their bedroom. She let out a silent sigh. “He had a long day.”
Part Eight
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Jack had been having such a lousy day. Some days he hated working in the same hospital as his father more than others; today was one of those days.
Disclaimer: I do not own Lost. At all. I wish but alas...
Author's Note: This is AU based on Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop by Landon Pigg. Claire is a barista at a coffee shop and Charlie is a musician who plays there. This is a Charlie/Claire story, but it's gonna take a bit to get there, so bear with me. There are also some other pairings sprinkled through here as well.
Previous Parts: Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five | Part Six
Jack had been having such a lousy day. Some days he hated working in the same hospital as his father more days than others; today was one of those days. At this point, he was just trying to keep his head down until his shift ended, but the day got a bit more complicated when he spotted Claire heading toward the exit.
“Claire?”
She jumped and turned around, obviously startled.
“Hi,” she said. Jack immediately became concerned. She hadn’t told him she was going to be dropping by the hospital today. Come to think of it, she had been gone before he and Kate had got up in the morning.
“What’re you doing here?” he asked. “Are you alright?”
She nodded, quickly. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied, crossing her arms over her chest in a gesture of discomfort. “I just came by to see Dad.” Jack nodded. Well. That explained a lot.
“Did he say something to upset you?” Jack asked. He wouldn’t be surprised. Then again, with Claire, Christian had always seemed to put in an effort. He tried, sometimes too hard, to be a good father and give her allowances in a way he had never given Jack. It was like he was trying to make up for the father he’d been to Jack through Claire.
Claire shook her head. “No, it’s nothing like that,” she assured. “We were talking about my Mum, and he was just giving me the number of a specialist he knows.” She pulled a piece of yellow paper out of her pocket and showed it to him.
“Oh, well, okay,” Jack answered. As much as he loved Claire, he tried not to think about his father’s affair. He was sure there had been more than one, but it was still an unpleasant road to go down.
“So, I guess I’ll see you at home?” she said. Jack nodded. He was sure she had to get to work, and he was sure there was some work he should be doing, so he didn’t need to keep her any longer.
“Yeah,” he answered. “I’ll see you.”
She left for the door, and he set out down the hall and toward the elevator, intent on returning to his office. Then he saw something that stopped him in his tracks.
It was Charlie. He was inside the room immediately to Jack’s left and he looked like death warmed over. He was asleep. Jack took a few cautious steps toward his room. He didn’t have any visible scrapes or cuts, and it didn’t appear as though he had any broken bones, so he hadn’t been in an accident.
Concerned, he reached for Charlie’s chart. He quickly caught sight of the two words that both told him everything he needed to know and caused him to stop breathing.
Heroin overdose.
*
Jack came home that night with a black cloud over his head. He hadn’t thought, when he had left Christian’s office, that his day could have been any worse. It had been.
“Hey,” Kate greeted, when he walked in the door. She smiled at him, but it faded immediately when she saw the look on his face. He hung up his coat on one of the hooks by the door and sighed. “What happened?” she asked. He sat down at the dining room table heavily. “Was it your Dad again?”
Jack shook his head and leaned forward with his elbows on the table. Kate walked over and ran her hand along the back of his neck, trying to ease the tension. “Is Claire home yet?” he asked.
“No,” Kate answered. Jack nodded, but he didn’t say anything. “Okay, you’re really freaking me out,” she told him, rounding the table and sitting in the chair directly in front of him. She put her hands on his knees and leaned down, pretty much forcing him to look at her.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
He looked up. He wanted to tell her, but he didn’t know if he should. It was none of his business and he had literally just met Charlie yesterday. Claire seemed to think highly of him, but Jack had serious misgivings about his sister spending time with a drug addict.
But how did he know that’s what Charlie was? He didn’t know anything about him. Except this, which might have been the one thing that really mattered.
“If I tell you this, you can’t tell anyone,” he said.
“Okay,” she answered, nodding.
“I’m serious. No one.”
“No one,” she repeated.
“Charlie, Claire’s friend…I saw him in the hospital today.”
“Is he okay?” Kate asked.
“He overdosed on heroin this morning.”
Kate went still. She didn’t move, and she had an expression of utter disbelief on her face. “Oh my god,” she whispered. “Does Claire know?”
“No,” Jack answered. “And I can’t tell her. I probably shouldn’t have even told you, but I couldn’t not tell you.” He sighed, looking down again. His head was throbbing.
“There’s nothing you can do about this, Jack,” Kate assured him. Most of him knew that, but the rest… “We don’t know Charlie, and it’s not our business-”
“Claire is my sister, and he-”
“She’s a big girl, Jack.” Jack shook his head. “Look, I know you. And I know you wanna try to fix this, or warn Claire, or whatever, but you can’t.”
“So I’m supposed to just…what? Forget this happened? Act like I don’t know anything when she brings him around?”
“You could talk to his friends,” she suggested. “Maybe they know what’s going on. Maybe they can tell you more. But other than that…yeah. This isn’t one of those things you can control. I thought you were working on spotting those.”
He was. Or, he should be.
“I just can’t get my head around the idea that there isn’t something I can do.”
“You never can.”
He closed his eyes. He felt like bricks just kept falling on his head. His father was on his case, he had a big secret on his back that could easily blow apart his sister’s life, and he was being forced to deal with unpleasant truths about himself all at the same time.
“This day sucked.”
Kate kissed the top of his head and rubbed his shoulder with her hand. “I know.”
They heard the click of a key in the lock and Jack sat upright. He had to force everything that had happened off of him. Kate was right. He couldn’t tell Claire and he couldn’t let her see him, because she would know something was wrong.
So he stood up and headed for the bedroom. Kate’s hand fell from his shoulder and even though he couldn’t see it, he knew that she understood.
Claire set her purse on the kitchen counter. “Hey,” she greeted Kate. Kate forced herself to smile. She was much better than Jack at pretending things were alright when they were far from it.
“Hey,” she answered.
Kate sat back down in the chair Jack had vacated. She watched Claire take a bottle of water from the fridge and she sighed. When this came out - things like this always did - it was going to be a mess, and Claire was going to be in the middle of it.
“Jack isn’t home yet?” Claire asked.
“He went to bed,” Kate answered, simply, turning to look at the closed door of their bedroom. She let out a silent sigh. “He had a long day.”
Part Eight