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001.
At least in DHARMA they have supplies Juliet thinks as she leans against a tree and watches James set them up for the night.
"You gonna help, Princess?"
"You volunteered me for this when I could be at home. I'm a mechanic, not a park ranger."
"You wouldn't give me a damn jeep!"
"You won't stop flooding the engines. Pitch the tent, James, I'm tired." She smirks, because she knows he's irritated but she doesn't care.
When he's done and his back is turned, she takes over the tent, closing the flaps.
"Sleep tight. Don't let the smoke monster bite."
002.
Juliet’s on the war path, and James is mostly trying to stay out of her damn way. He’s pretty successful until he hears a string of cursing coming from the kitchen and he wonders how sane he is to actually get up and go see what the problem is.
As soon as she sees him she’s scowling. “You, Jin, and Miles have to go.”
“Me? What the hell’d I do?!”
“I lived here for three years and never had ants because I clean up after myself! You three are slobs.”
He doesn’t even have a comeback as she storms out.
003.
She’s standing in the middle of the living room and he’s staring back at her from the kitchen while the tension hangs heavy in the air. His last comment lingers in the room and he wishes he could take it back, but it’s too late now. No one here needs you to stay so if you wanna go, go Juliet.
He’s an asshole, but when he tries to say something she turns and walks out, slamming the door. If she leaves tomorrow it’s his fault, and he lied to her: he needs Juliet to stay, so he chases after her.
004.
For as much as she’s hated the island in the past, Juliet can’t deny that sunrise is beautiful. Pinks and blues are just starting to swirl in the sky, everyone’s still asleep, and it’s quiet. So, she sits on the porch, leaning against the railing as she closes her eyes and gets lost in her thoughts.
She hears the front door open and the sound of James dropping into a patio chair. He doesn’t say anything, and she’s glad for that. They watch the sunrise together, and when Dharmaville starts to stir they stand, sharing a look before going inside.
005.
She’s having a hard time separating the boy sitting in the gazebo alone from the man who brought her to the island and trapped her here. She’s conflicted because he’s clearly upset, and she shouldn’t be this afraid of a little boy.
She knows his father is hard on him. She knows he hates it here. Juliet can’t help but think that his father has turned his son into the man he is, someone who grasps for power and manipulates until he has it. She closes her eyes for a second before walking forward.
She smiles weakly. “Hey there, Benjamin.”
006.
"I’m fine, James." She’s walking away from him, not wanting him to see how not fine she is after her encounter with the young Ben.
James grabs her arm but doesn’t make her turn. Just stops her from going forward. "You ain’t gotta put on some act around me, Juliet. Okay? It’s me."
She looks at him, her usual passive mask replaced by something he doesn’t really know. "That boy is going to grow up to be a monster. He’s going to trap me here..." She feels like she can’t breathe.
Pulling her against him, James can only hold her.
007.
“That’s it,” Juliet sighs. “We’re not going anywhere. We’ll have to walk back.”
James cusses, hitting the side of the vehicle. “Piece of shit vans…”
“We should sit in the back with the doors open until it’s cooler out and start hiking back just before sunset. We don’t have enough water between us to stay hydrated if we walk now.” She’s already unzipping her hot jumpsuit and stepping out of it to reveal her shorts and t-shirt underneath.
“Always wondered what you wore under there,” he grins.
She rolls her eyes, but when her back is turned, she grins too.
008.
Juliet wrenches her arm out of the Hostile’s grasp only to be grabbed by another, and the machete is dangerously close, glinting in the sun. “I got turned around,” she insists. “I’m new, please, I just got lost.”
It’s a lie, she’s been looking for stolen tools from the motor pool, but they don’t know that. She’s crying, anything to keep them from cutting off her hand.
Finally, Richard Alpert comes into view and they stare at each other for a moment. Does he know her somehow? She’s about to panic.
“Let her go.”
She doesn’t even hesitate to run.
009.
“Where the hell are my keys?” she mutters as they’re trying to leave the house, and he has to smirk because usually it’s roles reversed.
“You check your pockets, Goldilocks?”
“Shut the fuck up, James,” she warns, though he knows the look on her face by now and he just rolls his eyes in amusement.
“Last I saw, you laid ‘em down in the kitchen,” he offers, and when her back is turned, he sneaks them out of his pocket and onto the coffee table before leaning casually against the door.
“Or you’re an asshole.”
He laughs. She always knows.
010.
Juliet’s desk is filled with letters that never get sent. She started writing the day she decided she wasn’t leaving the island. She hasn’t stopped, and already one DHARMA issued notebook is traded for another. But she never shows James what she’s writing. He never asks, and he never snoops. He can’t help but watch her though.
“What?” she asks one day.
“What are you writin’ there, Blondie?”
“Letters.”
“No shit?”
She looks up at him, silent for a minute as she holds his gaze. “To my sister.”
His face softens and he nods, letting her get back to it.
011.
Juliet’s standing between James and Richard in the middle of the barracks. Everyone else is safely indoors, so she has no idea why she’s out here other than she has James’ back. “No one here broke the contract, Richard,” she says calmly.
"How about we let the head of security explain why two of my men are dead."
James looks at Richard straight on. "Your friend Widmore set us up. You might wanna talk to him, Maybelline."
Juliet watches as Richard considers it.
"This isn’t over. I’ll be back with questions."
"We’ll be here," she replies.
He never comes back.
012.
She’s silent as she watches the Hostile camp with James, her eyes sweeping over the people methodically. There’s a moment when she thinks she used to be one of them, an Other, but she shakes it off and breaks her gaze. “We need to go.”
James is backing up with her, and once they’re clear, she looks up at him. “They’re going to kill everyone in DHARMA you know.”
“Yeah, I got that. We’ll be gone before then. Busy buyin’ Microsoft, remember?”
She smiles a little at that. It’s a whimsical plan. “Promise?”
He looks at her, smiling back. “Promise.”
013.
Miles looks around the rec room and all of the Chinese lanterns in complete disbelief. “What…the fuck, Juliet?”
She cringes. “I told the party planning committee that you’d hate it but they insisted.” It’s his birthday, and everyone excluding Juliet thought that it’d be a great idea to go with a full out Asian themed party. “I’m sorry, Miles.”
He looks over at her. “Why are you even in the party planning committee?”
“Amy coerced me. Believe me; I wouldn’t pick something like that voluntarily. Just pretend you like it. Please?”
Miles considers this for a moment. “You owe me.”
014.
Somehow, she and James have been delegated as adult supervision for a group of kids making up a missed nature hike for school. It happened quickly, with one of the teachers talking Juliet into it, and Juliet telling James he had to go.
They set up camp and the kids demand a ghost story, but Juliet’s coming up blank. So, James starts talking, and she zones out until she hears:
“I see dead people.”
The kids go to their tents later, and she looks at James. “Did you just use the plot of the ‘Sixth Sense’ as a ghost story?”
015.
“Come on, LaFleur! Try and hit the ball this time.” Juliet’s egging him on during the motor pool versus security team softball game from her catcher’s position. She knows she’s got him distracted, squatting there in her low cut tank top. She grins innocently from behind her mask when he looks back at her.
He finally connects with the ball and sends it flying, and he takes off. It’s impossibly far out in left field, and she’s yelling as the ball is finally thrown towards her. He rounds third, slides into home and she’s under him with the ball.
“Out.”
016.
It really can’t get any hotter, and Juliet’s pretty sure that she’s going to have a heat stroke before Miles and James fix the air conditioner. She’s laying on the couch in short DHARMA shorts and a tank top, her hair sticking to her neck as she fans herself and reads Carrie.
The tinkering outside stops. The door opens, and footsteps pause in the doorway, not moving. She drags her eyes up and away from her book to find him staring at her. Juliet manages a smirk before going back to her book.
“Take a picture Miles, it’ll last longer.”
017.
She’s wearing some two-toned pink skirt that Amy dug out of her closet for her, and Juliet feels awkward, leaning against the wall of the rec room. She watches James drink a beer with Jin and he looks up, catching her. She gives an awkward wave and suddenly he’s walking toward her.
“Wanna dance, Blondie?”
“I can’t dance…”
“Anyone can dance, c’mon.” He holds his hand out to her and the song switches from fast to slow, and she almost rolls her eyes at the convenience. But then his arms are around her, and she likes the way they feel.
018.
Juliet knows she can choose to walk out of the room, to escape to her bedroom until she’s not buzzed and he’s not looking at her like this but she can’t. Her feet won’t move, and her heart clutches in her chest when James moves into her space. And she has no idea how they got here, to this point, but her breathing picks up and then his mouth is on hers.
She kisses him hungrily, her fingers weaving through his hair, but when his hips press against hers, she presses her hands to his chest. “Not yet,” she whispers.
019.
Juliet’s trying to push the DHARMA jeep under the safety of the overhang in the motor pool, but it’s hard when the rain is blinding and the ground is mud under her feet.
"Need a hand?" she hears over the thunder and pounding of the rain. All she can do is nod because she can’t actually see James, just knows his voice.
Together they push, and finally the jeep is rolling in, and once they’re out of the rain she leans against the vehicle, panting. She’s soaked, he’s drenched, they’re both muddy, and she doesn’t think he’s ever looked better.
020.
She can’t believe she agreed to this, driving all the way down with James to the East Valley when it’s about 110 degrees outside and the DHARMA vans aren’t renowned for their air conditioning. “Why are we doing this again?”
He looks over with a smirk. “Possible fence malfunction, Opie.”
She makes a face at him. “Well, Andy, I’m a car mechanic, not a fence mechanic.”
He tosses her an easy smile. “Ain’t no difference on the island. Just sit back and enjoy the ride.”
Juliet sighs and closes her eyes, but smiles when his free hand seeks out hers.
021.
He’s kissing her so hard that Juliet thinks she’s going to lose her resolve and give in. She’d told him no sex, not yet, not when they were still trying to figure each other out. But his mouth and his lips and tongue. God she wants James. He isn’t making it a secret that he wants her, too.
When her back finally hits the wall she breaks the kiss with a soft gasp, panting softly as she pushes him away gently. “You promised,” she says, and his lips move to her neck.
"Just want you to know what you’re missin’."
022.
Juliet’s sitting on the porch when she notices a lone dandelion and she picks it, studying it delicately in her fingers. It’s a weed; she remembers her father cutting them with a vengeance in their backyard when she was little. She’d protested, thinking that there was no way something you supposedly wished on could be considered ugly.
She remembers the way she and her sister would sit huddled over one, clutching it between them when they were young enough to close their eyes and makes wishes together, blowing the fluff away.
Smiling softly, Juliet closes her eyes, wishes, and blows.
023.
He’s watching her from his spot on the couch while she cuts the tops off of strawberries, stopping every now and then to eat one. And it’s damn hard to miss the way her lips curve over it and the slight sucking sound that follows the action.
He has to stop. Or she has to stop. But she picks up another one, and her lips are kind of red and her tongue is too, he realizes, when it sticks out to lick at the corner of her mouth. And Christ, he can’t.
He gets up so fast it startles her.
024.
She’s digging her toes into the sand, watching it mask the red of her nail polish until the tide comes in and washes it all away. In its wake is a shell, and she picks it up, bringing it to her ear. She knows, scientifically, that the ‘sound of the ocean’ is really her own blood coursing through her veins, but for just a moment, she lets herself imagine that she’s part of the water lapping at her feet.
When she goes home, she carries the shell with her, and pretends that the ocean sounds are the waves in Miami.
025.
Juliet has no idea how to tell him no anymore, she can’t keep denying that she wants him as her fingers push his clothes away and his mouth trails her collarbone. Soon, he’s just as naked as she is and there’s no coming back from this. She knows that, but she doesn’t stop. She leans forward and whispers against his ear that she wants him now, and he groans and thrusts into her.
They move together, slow and sweet until she buries her face against his neck and whimpers for more, and they come together, his name on her lips.
026.
“James, it really doesn’t matter.”
He looks at her, seeming to be more hurt than upset. “Course it does, Juliet. Come on, you gotta let me do somethin’.”
“No, really…”
He cuts her off. “When’s your birthday?” And the way he asks it sounds halfway between defeated and irritated, so finally she sighs.
“April 23rd. Happy?”
“Was that so damn hard? Why didn’t you wanna tell me?”
She stares at him for a minute, then just shakes her head. “I haven’t celebrated a birthday in years, it doesn’t matter.”
He grabs her gently. “I’ll make it matter.”
She believes him.
027.
“James, stop flinching,” Juliet murmurs as she works on a cut near his eye.
“You got a needle and thread workin’ on my face. Excuse me for bein’ a little jumpy.”
She shakes her head. “Stitches are easy, James. But if you move, I could slip.” She pauses. “What were you doing in Hostile territory?”
“Checkin’ somethin’ out.”
“They could have killed you.”
“They didn’t. You worried about me, Blondie?”
“No.”
“You’re a shitty liar, Juliet.” He pulls her close. He considers that he’s never had to worry about anyone else’s feelings when it comes to what he does. “Sorry.”
028.
“Jesus Christ Miles, what are you, twelve?” she yells, backing away from him as he walks forward with a frog in his hands.
“What are you, nine with that reaction? It’s a fucking frog, Juliet.”
“Get it away from me or I swear to God Miles, I’ll hit you.”
“Damn, live on an island much? It’s a frog.”
She glares at him. “I hate frogs, okay?”
“Fine. Fine. Jin wants it anyway. He’s probably gonna cook it. Have you seen what that guy eats? Weird as fuck.”
Miles wanders away, and Juliet scowls at James, who’s laughing his ass off.
029.
Juliet stares at James, mouth opening and closing a little in surprise at his words. “You’re just a con man?” she repeats, and he looks away from her.
Walking up to him, she kisses him fiercely, one hand cupping the side of his face before she speaks again. “You’re the person who made me run on the beach. You’re the person who has my back regardless of whatever’s happening. You’re the one making sure Miles, Jin and I have a cover story while we’re in DHARMA. So don’t tell me you’re just a con man.”
He believes that now. Finally.
030.
“I hate fishing,” she admits, watching him try baiting a hook.
“This is nothin’. Try fishin’ with things made out of plane crash wreckage. Then you’ll hate it’.”
Jin is trying to show James and Juliet what to do, using a mixture of Korean and English when he grabs James’ hook. “Like this,” he mutters, shoving the bait on before handing it back.
Juliet eyes the man appraisingly before looking back at James. “You have to admit, he knows what he’s doing.”
“I can bait a hook,” he mutters, and she has to grin, covering her amusement with her hand.
031.
Juliet’s tongue swirls a random pattern against his neck as her hips rock against his achingly slow. His hands are clutching her hips tightly and she can tell he wants to ask her to speed up but he doesn’t. It’s her day; she can take all the time she wants.
She does arch into him after a while, moving faster and harder against him until she comes and he follows her, fingers tangling in her hair while his lips move down her throat, biting her skin gently. Falling onto her side, she eventually curls up against him.
“Happy birthday, Blondie.”
032.
She can’t believe she’s sitting in a dunk tank in the name of ‘community’. It’s hot as hell out though, so maybe it wouldn’t be so bad getting sent down into the water as soon as one of the kids can do it. They all have horrible aim, though.
“Think I’ll take a turn,” comes James’ voice, and Juliet suddenly pays attention.
“You only have three tries James, good luck,” she teases.
Ball one misses. So does ball two.
“You’re terrible at this.”
“Just wait.”
Ball three connects and she drops into the water with a gasp.
He smirks smugly.
033.
Juliet is a very patient person. James? Is not.
She’s been teasing him for a while but never quite giving him what he wants as her fingers trail his abdomen and her mouth sometimes skirts across his pelvis. And she’s delighting in the way his fists clench and his muscles tense every time her fingers wrap around him. When her hand moves away from him, his eyes open and he finally glares at her. She looks back at him innocently.
Sliding up his body, she knows payback will be a bitch very soon, but for tonight it was worth it.
034.
Juliet’s holding her breath under the water as long as she can, until her chest begs for relief, and she comes up gasping. James swims to her, looking at her in concern. "I’m fine," she says automatically before he can ask, and she’s smiling softly.
"You should come up for air a little more often, Blondie."
She grins a little wider. "My sister and I used to have these stupid contests. I’m pretty sure I could still win every time. She panicked. It’s all about staying calm."
He thinks that if anyone’s the master of staying calm, it’s Juliet Burke.
035.
His mouth is grazing her hip bone, then moves to her inner thigh and back up to her pelvis, and that payback she’s been worried about? This is it. Her heart is pounding, she can feel it, and every time he skirts by where she wants him she whimpers in frustration.
“James…” her voice is breathy, but something about the way she sounds makes him bite her skin gently before making his way over her again, hips against hers as his mouth finds her neck.
“We done teasin’?” he asks.
She nods and he thrusts into her, ending the game.
036.
Juliet’s not planning on getting out of bed today. Not when she and James are both off work on a Sunday morning during rainy season. Despite the fact that it’s nearly ten in the morning it’s dark in their bedroom, the occasional rumble of thunder reminding them why.
“I’m hungry,” she mumbles. “But I’m not getting up.”
“Then I guess we’re both gonna starve,” he says against her neck as his arms tighten around her waist.
She grins a little, her hand moving up and down his bare side as she looks at him. “So, James. Distract me.”
He does.
037.
His fingers are trailing over her skin when he comes across something that’s marring his path; making it less than porcelain smooth under his finger tips. She tenses and he frowns, sitting up a bit. Pushing the sheet away from her body he sees the angry looking brand. “What the hell’s this?”
“Punishment,” she says softly.
“For what?”
“Helping you and Kate escape from the Others.”
James looks at Juliet in disbelief. “They did this to you?”
She reaches out to push a piece of hair behind his ear. “It was this or killing me.”
He sighs, pulling her closer.
038.
She’s lying with him in the North Valley, the sides of their heads touching. Horace made a big deal about the meteor shower and a viewing down in the East Valley, but neither James nor Juliet want to be a part of a crowd.
When the sky starts to light up with streaks she watches intently, wondering if she ever would have seen a sky this bright in Miami.
She’s so quiet that James looks over and he frowns a little when a burst of white reflects in a tear. Reaching over, he brushes it away wordlessly, pulling her closer.
039.
James is pretty sure he’s never seen Juliet completely lose it before and he has no idea what to do once she sinks to the floor and puts her face in her hands. “Juliet,” he whispers, trying to soothe her. “It’s okay.” He kneels next to her, eyes filled with concern. “Talk to me.”
She takes a deep shuddering breath and brings a hand over her chest as she tries to catch her breath and calm down. “Rachel. Rachel, I just…”
He knows some days are worse than others, and today’s just a fucking terrible day, so he holds her.
040.
James doesn’t remember a lot from his childhood. Just that one moment when two gunshots took away everything he ever knew. But he’s watching Juliet help a young Charlotte build a sand castle on the playground, and he remembers going to the beach with his momma once. He had a yellow bucket and they made castles all day long.
He wonders how many sand castles Juliet has ever made in her life, and when she catches him watching, she bends to say something to Charlotte. The little girl looks up and waves, and he smiles a little before looking away.
041.
Juliet’s so pissed off that she can’t even see straight, but her calm exterior keeps her face passive. Her voice is even and she stares at James, picking her words carefully.
"I’m not Kate. Whatever you’re looking for in me that reminds you of her? You won’t find it."
He sneers a little. "Yeah? Well I ain’t the Doc. You can stop pretendin’ I’m some damn leader."
"You are!" she protests. "You got us into the damn DHARMA Initiative. If you could just see yourself the way I see you..."
His face registers surprise, and he realizes: she loves him.
042.
Juliet’s not sure why they celebrate the fourth of July on the island. There are enough people from the states, but this definitely isn’t the U.S. or any of its territories. So it strikes her as a bit odd. She goes to the barbecue with James anyway, and it’s their first ‘official’ outing as a couple. It’s nice to hold his hand and kiss his cheek when she feels like it.
They lie together on a blanket during the fireworks, her head resting on his shoulder. They’re away from everyone else and he kisses her as the sky lights up.
043.
There’s no such thing as vacation when you’re already living on a tropical island. Still, Horace has closed down operations for the holiday weekend which means that she’s kicked Miles and Jin out of the house with strict orders for them to stay gone until Monday morning.
Being naked in her own house is absolutely a vacation.
As she reaches for the peanut butter in the kitchen, she feels strong arms wrap her up, and she grins.
“Wanna make some fireworks in the kitchen?”
Juliet makes a pained face. “That’s the worst thing you’ve ever said to me, James LaFleur.”
044.
Juliet’s never been one to snoop, but when she comes across a piece of paper on his nightstand, she curiously looks at it. She’s expecting notes from work or an incident report, but what she gets is the beginning of a letter to her.
Juliet,
I figured I never said thanks. So thank you. For staying.
She reads it again, even though it’s not much, and she smiles softly before folding it back up and putting the letter back where she found it. Finally, finally she realizes that she loves this man. The letter proves that he loves her back.
045.
Juliet’s watching Jin cut down palm leaves for whatever dinner he’s going to cook, and she just shakes her head, especially when he mutters in Korean and seems frustrated. “Can I help?” she asks, and he waves her off.
James sits down beside her on the fallen tree and smirks. “He even know we ain’t gotta eat shit out of the jungle any more?”
“Stop it. He’s making…something that has to be wrapped in palm leaves while it bakes.”
“Sounds like I’ll hate it then.”
Juliet nudges James. “Be nice.”
He steals a kiss from her. “Only ‘cause you asked.”
046.
Most of the barracks are empty tonight; half the place is on some hippie hike through the North Valley. Something that James and Juliet definitely aren’t into after enough wandering through the jungle to last them years.
Instead, they’re together on the beach watching the sun set. Or, to be more accurate, Juliet is sitting in his lap as they rock together, her hands grasping his shoulders and back, his fingers tangled in her hair. She gasps as she comes apart and he bites her shoulder lightly when he does.
But if anyone asks, they were watching the sun set.
047.
James has rarely seen Juliet this upset, and he holds onto her as she sinks against him in tears.
“I’m never going to see her again. I’m never going to see my sister. I’m never going to meet Julian. And I should…I should be upset, but I’m not. I just want to be happy and have a life here with you.”
He understands; he holds her. She’s given up on ever seeing her sister again, but that means the place that took her away from her family is where she wants to be.
He feels slightly guilty as she cries.
048.
She doesn’t give herself up often. She’s guarded and calculated. Her heart’s been broken too many times by too many people. Her parents, her ex-husband, even Ben when he took away Goodwin.
But as she lays tangled with James, their breathing returning to normal and her heart still pounding, she makes a decision. Looking over at him, her eyes search his while his hand cups her face. "I love you," Juliet says very quietly but never breaking eye contact with him.
His smile is broad, his dimples making her smile. "Well. I love you back."
She knows this is right.
049.
They’re both standing at the kitchen counter, DHRAMA wine slowly dripping from the ceiling and running down her face. It’s stained his jumpsuit and they’re both staring at each other until she giggles a little. The giggle turns into a laugh as she puts the bottle down and reaches for a paper towel.
“Smart move, Blondie sticking a knife into the bottle to try and push the cork down.”
“I didn’t think it would explode!” And then she’s laughing again, falling against him in hysterics.
“You are damn drunk, Juliet.”
“No.”
“Prove it.”
So she pulls him into a kiss.
050.
Juliet’s curled up next to James in bed, her head on his chest in the dark. Her fingers trail up and down his side while his fingers move up and down her back. The silence is comfortable and she doesn’t feel the need to fill it. But he does, apparently. And she can tell he wants to say something, but she doesn’t prod him.
“Hey Jules?”
“Hmm?” She rolls over lazily.
“You know I ain’t very good at this. Relationships. Sentimental shit.”
She hides a soft smile. “I know, James.”
“I love you.”
Juliet kisses his shoulder softly. “I know.”
051.
He has no idea what this shell is doing in the desk drawer he’s looking for a pen in, but he pulls it out and stares at it. Then, he realizes the drawer he’s in exactly. It’s the one with all of Juliet’s notebooks; there are three by now, and he hesitates for a second. Finally, he pulls one out, flipping to a random page.
You would love James, Rachel. He’s smart but plays it down, he’s sexy. He loves me, and I can’t believe it sometimes.
He puts the notebook away. He’s going to make her believe it always.
052.
Juliet and Jin are walking together on the beach while James and Miles are on shift together. Jin’s decided he can cook them all a great seafood feast; he’s dragging a net full of things Juliet’s sure she won’t be able to eat unless she can’t recognize them. He stops for a moment and bends down to pick up something that’s crawling in a shell, then looks out at the ocean, into the distance.
She knows what he’s thinking and she touches his shoulder gently. “She’ll come back, Jin,” she says quietly.
“No,” he says firmly. “I say not to.”
053.
His fingers trace the scar on her back as she lies on her stomach, pretending to sleep. She’s told him the story of how she got the brand, and while she sees it as ugly (“I’m glad I can’t see it.”), he thinks it’s amazing. She’s marked because of him. For him. Kate too, but he’s choosing to forget about her.
Leaning over, he lets his lips drag over the raised skin and she gives herself away by humming softly. "Knew you weren’t asleep."
"I was enjoying what you were doing."
"Wait," he promises, trailing his lips up her spine.
054.
Juliet’s head is pounding, and she groans as James gets up to get ready for his day. “I’m calling in. Will you tell Horace?” she mumbles.
He comes around to her side of the bed and reaches out to feel her forehead. “You’re burnin’ up, Blondie.”
“I’m freezing.”
He walks out of the room, she can hear him make a call in the kitchen, and she shivers a little. She doesn’t open her eyes again until the bed dips and he’s pulling her against him. “You called in?”
“Figured someone better have your back today.”
She smiles faintly before drifting.
055.
Juliet’s shifting on the bed underneath him, trying to get him to move somewhere more fun. He’s stationed at her stomach, mouth and tongue tracing patterns against her skin. It feels amazing, but she wants more, and she whimpers softly.
As he kisses back up her chest, he pauses against one breast, kissing just underneath the rounded curve. “Hey, Blondie,” he says quietly.
“Hmmm?” she manages, somewhat impatiently.
“You got a freckle, right here.” His mouth hovers over it before kissing the spot.
“I never noticed,” she begins, but her voice falters when he takes a nipple between his lips.
056.
Juliet has never eaten this much in her life. And she knows that it’s highly unattractive to eat until you can’t move, but she’s lying against James in bed, and she doesn’t even care.
“You know, fruit ain’t bad when you got more than mangoes and papaya,” James says in a lazy tone as his fingers trail across her side.
The empty carton of strawberries, save for the green tops, is a testament to what he’s said. “How’d you know they’re my favorite?” she asks quietly.
He gives a smug grin. “’Cause I know you.”
She couldn’t love him more.
057.
She loves the way their hands look, the way his feels in hers. He tans easily, his skin a golden color compared to the ivory of hers. She doesn’t understand how she can live on a tropical island and not have more color, but it’s a contrast she enjoys looking at. His fingers are rough against her own, slightly calloused and efficient in making her come undone.
They spend one night touching and exploring, and her hand moves to press their palms together. They both look intently at the way she fits against him, until his fingers lace with hers.
058.
Juliet doesn’t have much on the island, especially not after all of the time traveling. But in the past year and a half she’s collected a few things. Nothing more important to her though, than a small envelope of pictures. There are a couple photos with her and Amy, a few with her piggy-backing on Miles and some with her arms slung around both Jin and Miles.
But none of them are as important to her as the one with James. She’s looking up at him, he’s looking down at her, and it’s a perfect moment. It’s truly, honestly them.
059.
Juliet can’t find James anywhere, not at the security station, not at home, not the rec center. She’s starting to get worried, until she starts walking toward the beach to see if he’s there. Where she finds him, is on the dock. Watching him for a minute, she finally makes her way down and sits beside him, legs dangling off of the edge.
He looks over at her, searching her eyes a little. “You happy here, Blondie?”
She doesn’t break his gaze as she responds without hesitation. “Yes.”
Leaning down, he kisses her softly, her words easing his own doubts.
060.
She’s clinging to him like a life preserver in the water, arms and legs wrapped around him tightly as they kiss. His lips are trailing down her neck and when he latches onto a spot she moans. Rocking her hips forward she sighs his name when he thrusts inside of her and the water moves around them. He moves slowly, driving her crazy as she clutches at his shoulders, and it doesn’t take long for her to come, shuddering around him.
James’ hips stutter out of rhythm before he comes, and he kisses her softly, sighing. “Juliet...”
She loves this.
061.
The food on the grill smells good, and Juliet flips over a burger as arms move around her waist.
“You know, I coulda done that,” he says as he watches her.
“I know, but it’s time to push past those gender based stereotypes,” she teases.
He smirks and drops a kiss to the top of her head. “Suit yourself, Blondie,” he says as he pulls away. “I’m gonna go have a beer.”
“No,” she says without looking up.
“What?”
“You’re going to clean the kitchen.” She looks up innocently. “I’m cooking.”
He realizes he’s been played and shakes his head.
062.
Amy and Horace’s wedding is an event, with Juliet serving as a bride’s maid. Which means she has to wear a god awful purple dress that has no place on her, or the same tropical island she’s living on. She makes do with what she has, fixing her hair and doing her makeup.
James is on the other side, a groomsman, and at least Juliet doesn’t have to wear a suit. He looks miserably hot, but when he looks at her he smiles.
She doesn’t remember leaving the reception, just the way it felt when he took off her dress.
063.
Juliet has a box that she’s keeping things in. Things that she thinks no one else will ever see as important. Every now and then she goes through it just to see what she’s collected. Petals from the first yellow flower that he ever gave her. The lei he put around her neck at the first new recruit party.
The thing she cherishes the most though is a letter he gave to her their second year on the island.
Jules,
Don’t know what I really did to get so lucky. But thanks for staying.
J
She’s in love with him.
064.
It’s too hot outside for teasing, but that’s exactly what Juliet’s doing as lips and tongue swirl over James’ pulse point. She delights in his gasp and the way his hands tighten on her hips. He’s not a passive player, and he turns the tables quickly.
Slipping down her body, her eyes close as his fingers trail fire across her stomach and thighs. She’s not sure it’s possible to want someone the way that she wants him, and she whimpers in the otherwise quiet of the room.
“James…”
“What’s the magic word, Blondie?”
"Now, damnit.”
She can feel his smirk.
065.
Juliet is drunk. And normally he wouldn’t be amused because all the times they’ve gotten drunk in the past are because of plane crash anniversaries and freighter explosions, but this time it’s because she decided to play poker with him and Jin and Miles. And then Miles had to go and declare losers all take shots.
Either she’s a terrible poker player, or she’s losing on purpose, but either way she’s completely gone by the eleventh hand. She’s lost seven times. When she tries to stand, she falls right back over and into James’ lap, smiling up at him brightly.
066.
Juliet’s cleaning house to the tune of Mama Cass, humming along softly as she uses a rag to dust. The music’s up loud and she doesn’t hear the front door open, and she doesn’t notice James until he’s wrapping his arms around her from behind. Smiling, she leans back against him as he sways with her to the music. “Hi,” she says as she finally turns to wrap her arms around his neck.
“Hey yourself,” he says as his hands move to her hips.
Wrapping her arms around him, she pulls him down into a kiss. These moments are perfect.
067.
Since they’ve been together, Juliet has never once done anything like lay out on the beach, so when she announces that’s what she’s going to do, he raises an eyebrow. She’s gone for an hour before he finally makes his way down after her.
Juliet’s in a black bikini; sprawled out on a blanket in the sand, her hair spread out in a damp halo around her head. She’s obviously been in the water, and he sits next to her. “Take a little dip?” he asks with a grin.
Looking up at him, she smiles softly. “I knew you’d come.”
068.
He’s the sick one this time, and she’s pretty sure it’s because he ate the mystery meat in the cafeteria. And honestly, she has no idea why there is a cafeteria or why he was in it when there are plenty of groceries.
She winces at the sound of him throwing up, and he’s stubborn as hell even though she’s a doctor and she does know a thing or two. Juliet listens as he brushes his teeth and when he comes out, she hands him a glass of DHARMA ginger ale.
For the first time, he actually mumbles. "Thanks, Blondie."
069.
“Oh my God. Is that pot?” Juliet asks incredulously when she walks into Miles’ room.
“Yeah, mom. Welcome to the seventies.”
She blinks a little. “James is head of security, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“Who do you think gave it to me? He took it from some kids.” Miles holds out the joint and smirks when she sits on his bed and takes it. “You rebel.”
Thirty minutes later, she’s laughing uncontrollably while he complains that he’s starving, and James walks in.
“You got my girlfriend high?”
She and Miles laugh so hard they can’t breathe.
070.
Juliet’s never really talked about Edmund before, but somehow tonight, as she and James sit on the porch it’s just all coming out. How he was controlling and manipulative. How everyone but Juliet had seen it from the beginning. The divorce was messy, he hadn’t wanted to get cut out of the paycheck for the drugs she’d developed using his pharmaceutical company.
When she goes quiet, he clears his throat. “He ever hit you, Blondie?”
She looks over at James, taking a sip of her beer. “If he had, he wouldn’t have had to worry about a bus hitting him.”
071.
There’s a crash from the bathroom, and he’s not even knocking first before he barges in. “Juliet?” She’s lying in the tub with the shower curtain wrapped around her. He goes to help her, one strong arm pulling her up. “What the hell happened?”
She’s wincing, rubbing her hip. “I slipped. Christ, I forgot I used bath oil last night and I fell as soon as I stepped in. I tried to break my fall with the shower curtain.”
He turns off the water and helps her out, not willing to admit that she scared the shit out of him.
072.
She’s watching him from the tree line, the way he’s standing on the edge of the beach where the waves are just lapping at his feet. His hands are shoved into his jean pockets and he’s just staring, looking out at the horizon. She wonders what he’s thinking today, and who it involves.
She joins him silently, staring with him until he turns to face her, and she meets his gaze.
“Today’s the day, Juliet.”
Her heart breaks for him. Today’s the day his father kills his mother, then himself, while the child James watches helplessly from under his bed.
073.
When James gets home the house is dark and he sighs in disappointment. He knew it’d be quiet, mid shifts always have her in bed before he got home. Taking off his boots, he goes to the bathroom and showers before walking into their bedroom and climbing into bed next to her.
She scoots over immediately, into his side and nuzzles his neck. “You smell good,” she murmurs sleepily as her lips drop to his shoulder.
All he can think is that this is the best way to end the damn night, and he pulls her closer for a kiss.
074.
Juliet’s reading when he comes home, but when she looks up to greet him, her words die in her throat. He looks like he’s just gone ten rounds with someone, and she gets up to help him. “Jesus Christ, James…”
“That bastard…”
“Who?” She’s sitting him down on the couch, trying to assess the damage.
“Your boss, that’s who.
She blinks in surprise. “Conrad?”
“Overheard him sayin’ some things I didn’t find appropriate.”
He doesn’t have to say they were about her. “You look like shit.”
“You should see him,” he tries to reassure her, and she kisses his temple.
075.
It’s taking everything she has in her to not make a sound as James thrusts into her. She can hear the people in the living room as he presses her against the wall of their bedroom, hands clutching at her waist. The monthly DI meeting is at their place and they should be out there, but she’s too busy coming at the moment as he moves faster and harder against her.
When her fingernails scrape along his back he can’t help but groan, hips jerking against hers as he lets go, panting softly.
When they finally come out, everyone smirks.
076.
She’s staring into his eyes as they move, memorizing the way they dilate, the way the green is flecked with hazel. He’s staring right back at her, and he can’t believe her eyes are this blue and deep, and God, he could get lost in them.
Later, when they’re laying together, arms and legs tangled, she whispers softly to him that she loves him, and again her eyes search his. She sees a lot of things when she looks at him, but tonight she finds something she’s never seen before.
Tonight’s the night he decides he’s going to marry her.
077.
James is gone for three days, going over contracts with Richard, a meeting which both pleases Juliet and terrifies her. She can’t understand why Horace doesn’t go, but this is a task that falls to the designated man in charge of security. When he doesn’t come back right when she’s expecting him she paces, but then she hears the jeep and she relaxes.
Walking down the porch to greet him, he looks weary but fine and gives her a tired flash of a smile. “Well hey there, Blondie. Miss me?”
She wraps her arms around him tightly and kisses him.
078.
Jin’s trying to tear up the DHARMA jeep requisition form, and Juliet’s trying to stop him, attempting to snatch it away. Finally, she takes a step back and tries to level with him. “Jin, I need that. You can’t take a jeep out until I have it.”
“Get another sheet,” he says. “Use different pen next time.”
She looks baffled. “A different pen?”
He holds up the form which shows her signature in red ink. “Singing in red bad luck. It means you will die.”
Juliet scoffs and grabs the form, shaking her head. She doesn’t have time for superstitions.
079.
Juliet can’t move. It’s too hot, and it takes too much energy. Her head is in James’ lap while they lie together on the couch absolutely still. The air conditioner can’t keep up with the hottest days of summer on the island, and she swears she can see the heat rising in the middle of the floor.
"Cold shower, Blondie. You an’ me. What do you say?"
"We have to walk there?" she mumbles, not opening her eyes.
He stands, picking her up and carrying her to the bathroom.
They take off their clothes. Summer has some benefits after all.
080.
Juliet’s absolutely not jumping off the dock into the ocean, no matter how much James eggs her on from her side. “Come on, Blondie. I’m jumpin’ in right next to you.”
She looks unsure. “The water’s probably freezing.”
“So? It’ll wake you up.” He takes her hand. “C’mon.”
She takes a deep breath and tries not to think about how cold it’s going to be. Jumping in, her hand leaves his and she comes up as fast as she can. Before she can panic, his arms are around her waist.
“It’s okay. I got you.”
The water’s not so bad.
081.
It’s hot as hell, but that’s nothing new as Juliet sits with Amy on the porch drinking iced tea.
“We should make our men fan us,” Amy decides.
Juliet snorts. “Good luck. Well, Horace would do it.”
“James would if you asked him.”
“No he wouldn’t, he’d look at me like I’d just asked him to grow another eye in the middle of his forehead.”
“Here he comes. I dare you to ask.”
James saunters up, and Juliet looks at him. “Would you stand here and fan me?”
He stares at her. “No way, Cleopatra.”
Juliet smirks at Amy. “See?”
082.
She knows that he’s bought a ring because Amy can’t keep a secret. The day it’s in on the sub, she comes to see Juliet with a grin. “Guess what just came in?”
Juliet shrugs a little, pushing her goggles up. “No clue.”
“An engagement ring.”
“Who’s getting engaged?”
Amy looks at Juliet like she’s been struck dumb. “The only couple on this island that isn’t already married?”
Juliet blinks a little at that before realizing. “You think…”
“It’s his name on the order form,” Amy confirms.
She has no idea why her heart starts pounding. He’s going to propose.
083.
There’s a picture hanging in their bedroom above her dresser. She’s dancing with him outside, a lei around her neck and a knowing smile on her face as he bends down to whisper against her ear. He’s wearing his jumpsuit, she’s wearing shorts and a tank top, and neither one of them had any idea the picture’s being taken. Amy gave it to her later.
In the living room they read quietly together when a shattering noise comes from the back of the house. Investigating finds that the picture has fallen off of the wall, broken glass over their faces.
084.
She remembers a time when she would have given anything for a boat to sail right off of this island. Now, as she looks out across the barracks at kids playing tag and other people sitting on their porches, she realizes she feels at home. Her eyes catch a familiar khaki colored jump suit, and she smiles.
This is why she loves it here, and as James steps up onto the porch and bends down to kiss her, Juliet knows that she doesn’t want to leave the island, not until they have to. She’s finally happy right where she is.
085.
Juliet Carlson was eleven years old and she hated her new step mother. She didn’t know how to make chocolate chip cookies right, the clothes she picked out at the mall for Juliet were all wrong, and the worst part was, Rachel loved her. They got along perfect.
Her step mother had a small collection of decorative glass bowls, and one day while she was home alone, Juliet inspected them all carefully. Picking one up, she let her fingers glide along the rim of it, feeling the smooth glass under her fingertips.
And then, she dropped it on the floor.
086.
“When I was seven, my dad took me on my first Ferris Wheel. I was so scared.” She smiles at the memory, lying sideways with her head on James’ stomach. His fingers are moving lazily through her hair and she closes her eyes.
“When it stopped at the top he told me to open my eyes but I wouldn’t. I was too scared. Then he told me he could see our house and I fell for it. That was the last time I remember all of us being together.”
She goes quiet and he reaches for her hand, squeezing gently.
087.
Juliet’s running through the jungle, legs pumping as hard as they can away from the sound of the smoke monster. Her heart’s pounding as she wonders why her, why today? What has she done?
She hits a clearing and can almost see the barracks when a woman is clearly standing in front of her and she stops.
“Juliet.”
She can’t speak for a minute, can’t even hear over her own blood pounding in her ears. And she knows it isn’t real, it can’t be real, but for a moment she has to believe it.
“Rachel?”
And then she’s running again.
088.
She can hear him pacing in the living room while she talks to one of the island doctors on the phone. As soon as she hangs up, she goes to the bedroom without saying anything and as she expected, he follows.
"Well?"
"I’m not pregnant, James."
He looks at Juliet, realizing the disappointment in her voice. He remembers a time when Kate told him the same thing and he celebrated. But this is Juliet, and she’s different; they’re different. All she’s wanted is a damn kid. Pulling her into his arms, he lets her be disappointed. "There’s always next time."
089.
For a minute, Juliet wonders if they’re flashing through time again as something bright lights up the sky and she shields her eyes. She’s not ready to leave this behind, she has no idea where James is, and there’s a moment of panic.
And then she’s bolting upright in bed, yelling for him, still wrapped up in her dream. He’s awake instantly, reaching for her in the dark. “It’s okay Juliet, I got you,” he says, taking note that this is the third time in as many weeks she’s woken up terrified.
He has no idea how to fix it.
090.
Juliet’s grasping at his shoulders, her hands moving up and down his arms as her back arches. He’s driving her crazy; moving just enough but not the way she wants him too, and she knows he’s doing it on purpose. She knows what he wants to hear.
“James…”
His mouth lowers over a breast as he waits.
She gasps and a hand moves through his hair. “More. Please, more.”
He doesn’t waste time then, his hands moving to her hips as he moves faster and harder, pulling her close to his body.
She always wants more. He always gives it.
091.
Juliet’s still sitting on their bed when James leaves to make sure there’s a cover story for Jack, Kate, and Hurley. It feels like someone’s poured ice water over her head, and she listens to the silence of their house, moments and memories cascading over one another while one heart crushing thought stays at the forefront:
This is all over. Everything they had, the life they were trying to have. It was all ruined with one phone call. And she’s glad he never proposed. She’s glad she wasn’t pregnant.
He’s gone to help them. Help Kate.
And Juliet sits alone.
092.
A part of her knows that being this jealous of Kate is absolutely ridiculous, and she spends the morning trying to shake herself out of it. James loves her; they’ve been together longer than he was ever with Kate, so what was she worrying about?
They all gather together at her house, and Juliet’s silent, listening to plans happening around her.
Then, he calls her Freckles. He looks at her the way he’s looked at her before, back when Juliet watched on fuzzy black and white monitors.
She knows it’s over so she gives up information.
He called her Freckles.
093.
When she’s falling, she feels a little like she’s floating and her mind drifts to a time when she was eight years old. It’s one of the last times she can really remember her family being together. It’s at a park and her father got her a red balloon.
“Don’t let it go, Julie. Hold onto it tight. Don’t let go.”
She hadn’t meant to, but she’d seen something that surprised her and her fingers came unclenched from the string, and the balloon floated into the sky. She wasn’t sad, she didn’t ask for another one.
It just floated away.
094.
She wakes up in the middle of the night, sheets tangled around her and she reaches for him, tries to ground herself with his reassuring presence. When she comes up with nothing but sheets, she looks over in confusion before she finally remembers: Jack left.
Getting up, Juliet slips on a robe and makes her way down the hallway in the darkness, checking first to make sure David’s alright. He’s asleep, she’s not sure what else she expected, and she continues to the kitchen.
Somehow, sitting alone in the dark seems familiar, and she keeps expecting someone to join her.
095.
Juliet doesn’t usually go to the café by the hospital, it’s over-run by med students and she knows Jack still goes there. But, she’s running late after dropping David off at school and she has a meeting soon. Standing in line, she sighs, rolling her neck and catching a glimpse of someone in a leather jacket and hair that’s maybe a little too long.
When he turns he glances at her and tosses her a little smile, but it’s the Chinese man next to him that does a double take, blinking in confusion. And then she’s gone with her coffee.
096.
She’s sitting with Jack in the hospital cafeteria, and she rubs her forehead. “I just…need you to take him for a weekend, please. One weekend, Jack.”
“You know I’m working. That’s why you have primary custody.”
“You act like I don’t work here too, Jack. And I have primary custody while you…work things out.”
He gives a soft laugh of self deprecation. “And then we go back to the lawyers? You know David doesn’t want…” He trails off and looks down.
Juliet reaches out and squeezes his hand gently. “You’ll be okay.” She stands, wondering if she really believes that.
097.
Miles has no idea why he’s doing this, why he even bothered to figure out where the chick from the hospital café was from. But something was familiar about her and ever since then he’d been thinking about weird blue vans and giving her shit about being dirty all the time.
When she gets to the restaurant he stands, and through the whole meal he just can’t figure out where he knows her from. And she keeps looking at him, too. “Do we know each other from somewhere?”
She blinks in surprise. “…No.”
Fucking weird, and he shakes his head.
098.
Juliet’s sitting in her office, going over her patient’s file. She likes her name, Sun, and still tries to figure out how that baby survived. How the bullet didn’t do enough damage to kill them. Shaking her head in awe, she hears a faint sound coming from down the hall. She ignores it until the banging gets louder, and then she stands.
Following the noise to the doctor’s lounge, she walks in and stands near the door, staring at a man with his hand inside the vending machine. It’s one of the guys from the café.
“Can I help you?”
099.
She knows that they’re in a church, and she knows that everyone’s there, but she can’t stop touching him. James doesn’t seem to mind, encouraging her by leaning closer and nuzzling against her neck. Nothing has ever felt more real than this moment, and she kisses him again as a door opens behind them.
Standing with his hand in hers, she walks with him into the light, behind Desmond and Penny. Elation isn’t the right word to describe the feeling as his hand tightens in hers, and they both know that for the first time, nothing can take this away.
100.
When they’re tangled in bed together again, trying to catch their breath, Juliet realizes that it’s all still the same. It’s like time hasn’t passed at all, and they’re in their little yellow house where everything was perfect for a moment in their lives.
It’s perfect again, and she kisses him deeply, the weight of her ring already a familiar feeling. He pulls her on top of him and she grins, tucking his hair behind his ear. “Ready for more, Mr. LaFleur?”
He reciprocates her gesture and grins, his dimples coming out in full force.