Claire blushed a deep red as the two women sitting on the ground clutched at their stomachs in mutual fits of laughter.

It just wasn’t fair, Claire thought.

“Thanks, Claire. I needed that. I haven’t laughed like that in a long time.”

Claire glared at Shannon as she adjusted her skirt, that semi-permanent smirk of hers taking hold of her mouth.

“Oh, you are most welcome. Is there anything else I can do to help you guys out? Hop on one foot? Make animal noises? What else can I do to make you guys laugh your fool heads off?”

“Now, Claire, sarcasm doesn’t look good on you. We’re just trying to point out the truth to you, since you’ve conveniently decided to weasel out of telling us what’s going on with you and Charlie.”

Claire thought of all the reasons it would be a bad idea to strangle Kate, and then just as quickly discarded them and thought about how lovely it would be to throttle her anyway.

“Nothing is going on with Charlie and I. We’re friends, that’s all, and that’s all we’ll ever be. Okay? That’s it. So stop pestering me!”

Claire was breathing a bit on the heavy side and she absentmindedly rubbed her stomach in response to the stress. She still did this out of habit, even after the birth of her son.

At the thought of her son and how he had come into this world, Claire physically flinched. She turned her head so the other women wouldn’t see her burgeoning tears.

The memories flooded in and Claire was helpless to stop them. Images of Ethan, with those cold, dark eyes and sharp knife in his hand, made her want to retch. Claire remembered the look of impatience on his face, as he waited for her to give birth. He didn’t care about her, she had realized, it had always been about her baby. Claire still didn’t understand why her son was so important to Ethan and his group of followers. And now that she was safe, Claire decided that maybe it was best not to know the reasons why. The important thing was that she was out of Ethan’s clutches and that her baby boy was safe.

As Kate and Shannon giggled amongst themselves, Claire noticed that Sun sat by herself, doing something with her hands in an intent manner. Claire wondered about her, what her past was like and what she thought of their situation, here on the island. But it was difficult when Sun didn’t speak any English and Claire knew absolutely no other languages to even fake a conversation. Watching Sun methodically work at her project and the aura of sereneness that floated around her, Claire began to relax.

Standing up, Claire brushed the dirt off of her pants and walked over to where Sun was working. Claire could feel Kate’s and Shannon’s stares upon her back, and she almost felt guilty for leaving so suddenly, but the prospect of experiencing even a few peaceful moments outweighed any guilt she may have felt.

“Hello. What is that you’re working on?” Claire asked Sun as she approached the shaded area in which Sun sat.

Sun stopped her work to look up at Claire, and upon seeing who it was, gave Claire a soft smile and directed Claire to sit down. Claire was a little surprised, but didn’t think twice and found a comfortable position next to Sun.

Sun gave Claire one more quick smile before picking up her work again. Claire was curious enough that she didn’t say anything and just watched Sun work for a few minutes. After awhile, Claire started to figure out what Sun was doing. She had taken a series of palm fronds and cut them into long, thin strips. She was then tying them together and placing them at the bottom of a crude bamboo construction. Claire couldn’t figure out what or why Sun was making this, but she felt a sense of calm wash over her nonetheless.

Claire leaned back on her hands and let the wind brush over her face. She lost track of time, sitting in the shade, watching Sun meticulously piece that contraption together. As the sun started its descent, and the shadows were getting longer and much cooler, Sun finished her work. She wiped her forehead and glanced at Claire, a look of trepidation upon her face. Claire couldn’t figure out what Sun was so afraid of and she wished that the language barrier between them could be breached.

Did I do something to offend her, Claire worriedly thought.

Sun motioned for Claire to sit closer and started to demonstrate what her contraption was for. Peering through the deepening gloom, Claire gave a quick gasp and pressed her hands to her mouth.

She finally understood what Sun had been making all afternoon.

A cradle. For Claire’s newborn son.

Sun pushed the makeshift cradle and it rocked back and forth in a perfect rhythm. Sun smiled at the expression on Claire’s face and took her reaction to be a positive one. She pushed the cradle toward Claire and waited for her to take it.

Claire was frozen in place and didn’t know what to do or think. Why would Sun do this for her? How could she have known that this was what Claire wanted for her baby?

Noticing that Claire still hadn’t touched the newly crafted cradle, Sun gingerly touched her. She took hold of Claire’s arm and placed her hand on top of the cradle. Pushing it, Sun waited for Claire to break out of her surprised stupor. Eventually, Claire brought both her hands to the cradle, pushing it slightly and smiling through the tears.

“Thank you. Thank you so much, Sun.”

Sun nodded and both women sat in silence as the cradle moved softly in the island breeze.

**

Claire woke from her nightmare with a half-hearted scream and tears coursing down her face.

Would it ever end? Was she destined to relive the whole horrible experience over and over again?

Claire took a few deep breaths and once she regained her composure, she reached over to pick up her baby. She needed to hold him close, feel his warmth. It was the only thing that would help keep her demons at bay.

A wave of terror washed over her as she touched the cold, empty blanket.

Where was he? Where was her baby?

Claire jumped up and frantically searched the cave for her son. Throwing blankets and clothes aside, Claire realized her fears were coming true.

They had come back and taken her son.

Abandoning her search, Claire ran to the entrance of the cave. Before she could take a few steps though, Claire heard a voice nearby. It sounded like Charlie and Claire hurried over to ask for his help.

Upon reaching the area where Charlie usually slept, Claire was shocked to find what Charlie was doing.

He was bouncing her son on his knee, while singing bits and pieces of nonsensical songs to him. The sound of his rough voice sparked something in Claire’s heart, but she tamped down any soft feelings she might have. The fact was that Charlie had taken her son without her permission and anger was the only emotion she wanted to feel at the moment.

Claire stomped up to Charlie and her son, her hands on her hips, a fixed glare upon her face. Charlie looked up at the sound of her arrival, the smile on his face fading when he saw Claire’s cloudy expression.

“Is something wrong, Claire? Did something happen to you?”

The worried tone in Charlie’s voice caught Claire off guard and she momentarily wavered in regards to her angry stance. But she soon recovered and stooped to snatch her son out of Charlie’s arms.

“No, I’m fine Charlie. If you don’t count the fact that you took my son while I was sleeping! I would appreciate, if in the future, you asked first before taking my son and playing with him in the dead of night.”

Charlie stood up and faced Claire, a look of hurt and burgeoning anger on his face.

“I didn’t steal Dylan, if that’s what you’re implying Claire. I would never do anything to hurt you or your baby. I overheard him start to cry and I thought you probably needed the rest, so I picked him up and took him out here. I was only singing to him. You needn’t worry.”

Claire clutched her baby to her chest and tried to control her breathing, which was starting to become erratic. She didn’t know why she was still panicking or even why she still felt so angry. Looking back up at Charlie, she noticed the fading bruises and scars around his neck. She had never asked Charlie what had happened to him, while she was with Ethan, and a part of her was afraid to do so.

Charlie noticed the direction of Claire’s gaze and self-consciously rubbed his hand behind his neck. Claire felt embarrassed that she had drawn attention to his injuries and she turned and started her journey back to the safety of her cave.

“Claire! Wait. Please? Is there something else bothering you? Did you have another bad dream?”

Claire turned around and saw that Charlie had moved too close, his body taking up her personal space. She could only imagine how she looked to Charlie. Tense muscles, dark circles under her eyes, that constant frantic look that defined who she was now. She hated it. All of it. And Claire wished that she could go back to who she was before.

After a few seconds of silence, in which Charlie tentatively reached out a hand to Claire, that she rejected, Claire asked him what she had been wondering for two days now.

“Why Dylan?”

Charlie looked confused at first and then understanding dawned upon his face.

“My mum used to have this book of baby names that she got when I was born. Even years later, she would look through the book and tell me what certain names meant and why they were important. I was thinking about my mum and that book the other day and I thought that Dylan seemed like an appropriate name for him.”

Claire swallowed the lump that had risen in her throat and asked,

“Why is it an appropriate name for him, Charlie?”

Charlie coughed, and it almost looked like he blushed, before he answered Claire’s question.

“Dylan is a Welsh name and it means several things, but it all comes back to the sea. The meaning I like most is ‘born from the ocean, son of the sea’. I thought it worked with our situation on the island here and it fits him somehow. I don’t why, but it does. So I’ve been calling him that, since you haven’t, well, you know.”

Claire would’ve laughed at Charlie’s nervousness except she knew that he was right. She still hadn’t named her son yet. It had been almost a month since his birth, but Claire couldn’t bring herself to do it.

“I’m sorry I snapped at you earlier Charlie. I know you wouldn’t hurt my baby. I just…”

Suddenly Claire didn’t know what to say, how to put into words all of her fears and worries. She could only ponder as to what Charlie thought of her now. But Charlie just nodded his head and reached out to give her arm a soft squeeze.

“It’s okay, Claire. I understand. Why don’t you go back to the cave and try and get some sleep, okay? I’ll be right behind you to make sure that you get there safe and sound.”

Claire noticed the impish grin on Charlie’s face and gave a small smile in return. Walking back to the cave, Claire felt that sense of calm wash over her that she felt when Sun gave her the new cradle. The fact that it was due to Charlie’s presence gave Claire pause, but she pushed those thoughts far to the back of her mind.

They reached the entrance of the cave and Claire thanked Charlie for the walk back.

“It’s no problem. Good night Claire.”

Charlie turned to leave, but stopped and then Claire heard his lowered voice lift above the night breeze.

“If you give him a name, they won’t suddenly swoop down and take him Claire. I think if you give him a name, then you’ll give him a sense of power. Because, no matter what, that name will be his. They can never change that. I promise you that.”

And with that, Charlie walked into the gloom, and left Claire standing there, a million thoughts rolling around in her head.

**

“Kate? Can I ask you a question?”

Kate and Shannon had been washing their clothes that morning and Claire had decided to help the two of them hang the clothes to dry. Her baby lay in his homemade cradle nearby, kicking his feet and making soft gurgling noises.

“What is it, Claire?”

Kate looked at Claire expectantly and Claire’s throat suddenly closed up on her. She couldn’t get the words out, but after clearing her throat, a few times, she managed to choke out her question.

“What happened to Charlie while I was being held by Ethan? What really happened to his neck?”

Shannon paused in the process of hanging a dress to dry and Claire noticed how pale she suddenly got. Kate had turned away, but not before Claire saw the sheen of tears in her eyes.

“Kate?”

Kate appeared to brace herself for a horrible task and then turned back to Claire.

“Claire, is it really necessary to know what happened? Isn’t the important thing that both you and Charlie are safe now?”

Claire looked at both Shannon’s wide-eyed look of feigned innocence and Kate’s poor attempts at a smile and she suddenly knew.

“They tried to kill him, didn’t they?”

Shannon blanched and hastily threw her remaining pieces of clothing on the line before grabbing her bag and mumbling something about meeting up with Boone for some reason. Kate finished putting up one of the few shirts she still had, taking the time to carefully work out all the creases.

“Why do you want to know Claire? What good does it do now?”

Claire stared at Kate, the anger slowly building up inside of her.

“What gives you the right to keep something like this from me? I was the one they wanted. I’m the one who was with Charlie. I’m the reason they hurt him. I deserve to know what really happened to him. Dammit, Kate, tell me!”

The only indication that Kate gave that she was surprised by Claire’s outburst was a slight widening of her eyes. But a look of resolve soon passed over her face and Claire knew that Kate would tell her what happened to Charlie that day.

And after hearing the whole story, Claire sat down on the sandy beach, holding her baby, and sobbing until there were no tears left.

**

“So what does Charlie mean then?”

Charlie looked up from gathering fresh water and took in the appearance of Claire, bedraggled and with reddened eyes, and wondered what had happened.

“Are you okay, Claire? Is it the baby?”

Claire slowly approached Charlie, her eyes never leaving his face.

“I asked you a question, Charlie. What does your name mean?”

Charlie, surprised by Claire’s question, took a few seconds to think of the answer.

“Well, according to my mum’s book, it’s a variation of Charles and it means ‘manly’ or ‘farmer’. I never understood the last meaning and why the name meant that. Either way, I’ve never been particularly manly or interested in farming, so I think my mum had the wrong idea when she named me.”

Claire smiled at Charlie’s babbling and moved a little bit closer. She was almost within reach when she asked her next question.

“What does Claire mean then? Something to do with farming as well?”

Charlie chuckled and couldn’t help but notice that Claire was quickly invading his personal space.

“Um, no. Claire is French and it means ‘clear or bright’. It fits you, I think.”

Charlie hadn’t meant to say that last part and hastily tried to return to filling up the water bottles. But Claire had reached him by then and she grabbed his arm. Pulling him back around to face her, Charlie felt Claire’s stare and wished that he had bothered to wash his shirt that morning like he had originally planned.

He felt Claire tense up when she looked at his neck. He tried to cover it up with his other hand, but Claire stopped him.

“Don’t. Please.”

Her voice cracked and Charlie noticed her eyes filling up with tears.

“Oh Claire, don’t do that.”

And then her lips were pressed against the side of his neck.

“That’s for standing by me.”

Another kiss toward the middle of his neck.

“That’s for believing in me.”

A soft kiss near his jaw line.

“That’s for never giving up.”

And then Claire reached up and touched Charlie’s lips with the softest of kisses.

“And that’s,” Claire said, choking back the tears, “for dying for me.”

Charlie closed his eyes against the onslaught of emotion. He didn’t want to cry again, but the tears still threatened to fall.

Wrapping his arms around Claire, he pulled her in for hug. She pressed her face against his shoulder, sobbing quietly and clutching Charlie as tightly as she could.

Finally, Claire pulled away, running her hand across her wet eyes. Charlie decided that there wasn’t anything as beautiful as Claire, right at that moment.

“You’re welcome.”

Claire laughed at his remark and Charlie realized that he had missed hearing her sun-filled laughter.

“Could you do me a favor, Charlie?”

“Anything, Claire. Anything.”

Smiling through her tears, Claire took Charlie’s hand and they started walking back to her humble cave.

Charlie was surprised to find Shannon sitting on Claire’s blankets, playing with the baby. But Claire just smiled at Shannon, thanked her, and once Shannon left, directed Charlie to take a seat.

“What favor did you need from me, Claire?

Claire picked up her son and balanced him against her shoulder.

“I was just wondering what other names you know from that book your mum had. Because I think Dylan should have a middle name, don’t you?”

At the appearance of Charlie’s smile, Claire knew that she had done the right thing.

There was still a long road ahead, but Claire felt confident that with Charlie by her side, she could make it.