Desperately Seeking Claire (Leah, Jack, Open)

[tom]

Thomas' expression immediatly grew concerned when the man mentioned Claire getting some rest. "What about my- the kid? Who has the kid?" He asked hurridly looking once again with desperation at the man. He was glad to hear that Claire was safe, but he wasn't told anything about Aaron.

"Is there anything I can do to help... Claire feel better?" There had to be something he could do about the situation. Or at least try to take care of his own baby.

[Jack Shephard]

"Aaron's fine."

And it was the truth. Jack had checked on him earlier in the day and he was perfectly fine with Sun, who Jack swore to secrecy. She didn't agree with it, but Jack told her truthfully that what was done was done. They couldn't go back on it now.

"And I'm sorry, but right now, I think seeing anyone right now would further agrivate Claire's situation." It was so easy to slip into doctor-mode, something he hadn't used in a while. "Once Claire is willing to see people, I'll let her know that you stopped by. But until then, we've all been through a traumatic experience. We just need some time alone to get situated back into normal life."

[tom]

Something was off about this. Thomas had just flown all the way from Brisbane to see Claire and his kid and now he was getting the brush off by this guy he didn't even know? He wanted to see Claire himself, if he was going to be shafted for leaving her it was going to have to be through her and not through another channel.

"Look, mate" Thomas said, trying to stay as friendly as possible, "but I'm sure Claire would be wanting to get back to her old friends and home in Australia as soon as possible, if it's still the Claire I know."

Thomas frowned. Technically if Claire was in any trouble, he could claim his parenting rights, couldn't he? Thomas decided to level with the man, as he seemed friendly enough. "I just want to see my son. I came all this way... and if I can't see Claire, I just want to see the kid."

[Jack Shephard]

"Our plane crashed on an island and we were stuck there for three months. People died, people that we loved and cared for died. Do you really think any of us are going to be the same people we were before we left?"

Jack couldn't help the tone. After everything that happened on the Island, he sure the hell wasn't the same person. Of course, this kid in front of him didn't know anything about what had happened on the Island. How could he?

A sigh escaped his lips as he brought a hand to his head. He had neither the time or patience to deal with this right now. "Fine. Ten minutes." Jack told the younger man, moving back to the elevator.

[leandra]

Leah had remained in the background while Jack was speaking to Thomas, taking in everything Jack was saying. She wasn't convinced he was telling the truth about where Claire was, but she wasn't about to question it. Jack was good to her on the Island, and if there was a reason why he was holding back, it was because he was protecting Claire, and Leah couldn't stand in the way of that.

She was glad when he agreed that Thomas could see Aaron, even if it was only for ten minutes. She made sure that Jack was in her view and she smiled at him and mouthed "Thanks" to him for his help. She turned to Thomas, "Do you want me to come with you?" if he didn't she would go back to her room and Thomas could contact her on her cell phone again.

[tom]

Who was he to tell him when he could and couldn't see Claire? Thomas wondered but grinned a grim smile, muttered a "thanks" and moved to the elevator with him. "What about the ki-Aaron? I can see my son can't I?" He asked with just a trace of suspicion to why Claire was seperated from him.

Thomas cast a look at Jack when Leandra asked to come with him, but something was telling me that if he was to see Claire at all he'd have to do it alone. "It's OK" he told her softly, "I'll call you." He gave her a light squeeze on the arm to say goodbye and turned once again to Jack.

[leandra]

When Thomas said it was okay and he was happy to go along with Jack alone, she smiled. When he touched her arm and gave it a gentle squeeze, she touched his own arm in return with a smile.

"Okay, bye Thomas"

She then looked back at Jack and gave him a small smile, "Thanks again Jack" and walked away from them both back to her own room. She just hoped that whatever happened between Jack and Thomas, whether he got to see Claire as well as Aaron, or both, that Jack would remain calm and treat Thomas as nice as he could.

[Jack Shephard]

As the elevator opened, Jack stepped in, waiting for Thomas to enter. He pressed the floor number and was silent. He remembered what Charlie had told him once about Thomas, what Claire had told Charlie, and it sounded simply like they had both been young. Jack had never had children, but on the Island, Aaron had been everyone's child. Every single survivor called that baby theirs in some way or another. He was the miracle that had came before their eyes in the face of chaos.

In any other situation, if the shoe had been on the other foot, Jack would have been furious if he had been lied to...but this guy, one who Charlie had mentioned hadn't been in Claire's life, hadn't cared about the baby growing inside of her...he just thought he could come in, armor shining, and swoop Claire off of her feet? Jack knew that there was only one person that would be able to do that, and he had died for all of them.

"If he's not sleeping, you can see him." Sun would alert him if Aaron was sleeping, and if he was, then Thomas would be out of luck. "I have to take him to Saint Sebastian's tomarrow for a check-up."

[tom]

Thomas followed the man into the elevator but froze when he mentioned Saint Sebastian's. "He's OK isn't he?" Thomas started to ramble out questions, "I mean there was no complications with the birth, right? And he's healthy? He's not sick, right?" Something still terrified him, even more than fatherhood in general, and that was having a child that would need special care. It freaked him out to think that the slightest thing could be wrong, but then again, he felt some sense of longing for there to be something wrong with the child so he could back out again and go running back to Australia with a perfect excuse why he didn't have enough balls to go through with it this time.

"Leandra told me, that you were all like Aaron's family on the island. Is that who is taking care of the baby now? One of you?" He asked again, letting his minor panic attack about the state of the kid subside as the elevator stopped moving.

[Jack Shephard]

"He's fine. He just needs a check up. He's been on an Island for three months. He's going to nee his shots, make sure he's growing at a healthy weight, things like that." It was instant, Jack knew, that Thomas was one of those 'new fathers' that didn't have a clue. Charlie had been like that, always bring Aaron to Jack, wondering if every cry meant that he was having some life changing pains. Usually Jack just told him he needed a diper change. The thought made Jack smile sadly, until Thomas' words broke him from his thoughts.

"Yeah. One of the survivors, Sun, is watching him right now. We're alternating shifts. She was one of three people besides Claire that took care of Aaron the most. Kate was the one that was there when Aaron was born. Kate, Sun's husband Jin, and Charlie."

The elevator open, and Jack stepped out and into the hallway towards Sun's room. He saw Jin in the hallway.

"Hey, Jin. Where's Sun?"

Jin eyed Thomas, and then he looked at Jack. Jack shook his head slightly. "This is Aaron's father."

"Father." Jin repeated. Jack knew it wasn't a secret why Claire had been on the plane, how she was going to give Aaron up. Jin spoke Korean, motioning towards the hotel room. Jack nodded. "Thanks." he told Jin and moved to the hotel room, looking back to see that Thomas was following. He pushed the door open, seeing Sun with Aaron in her arms as she was feeding him.

"Hello, Jack." She said with a slight smile, until she noticed the man behind him. Her brows furrowed slightly and she looked to Jack for an explination.

"This is Thomas. Aaron's father."

[tom]

[ooc: I was going to leave the NPCing Sun to you, but I decided to join in on the Sun fun!]

Thomas breathed a sigh of relief when Jack told him that the boy was fine. He suddenly assumed that Jack must have been the doctor who crashed with them, because of the way he mentioned specific check-ups.

They went down the hallway and passed an Asian man, who gave them each a look, evidently wanting to see what was happening. It made Thomas' head spin. All these people that were a part of his son's life and he was looked at under a microscope just to see the boy.

Thomas gave him a polite nod as he went by, as he didn't seem to speak much English. Then Jack opened the door and light shone through the windows, as if it was a miraculous, almost religious experience seeing his son for the first time, but Thomas had to remember it was just due to the fact that there was no natural light in the hallway.

A pregnant Asian woman that he slightly recognized from those same news broadcasts was sitting there, with a baby in her arms. Thomas froze. He was tempted to run again and thought it a good thing that Claire wasn't there to see his reaction. She'd probably be disappointed already if his face didn't turn to one of love. Instead at that moment, if one looked closely, instead of love they could probably see the stark fear in Thomas' eyes.

He felt the need to introduce himself but he was completely speechless. This was his child.... and it was normal... and it scared the life out of him. He probably stood with his eyes bulging for a full five minutes before he was prodded into action. He took careful steps across the room and came over to the woman with the child who was smiling at him. His hands trembled slightly. "Erm... Thomas." He stated his name again for the woman and gave a nervous nod.

He gaped at the baby which looked so helpless there in her arms and he reached to rub it gently on it's forearm, the tiny skin without any hairs. Thomas gave a hasty glance to the exit of the room, but sucked it up and addressed the baby nervously. "Hey little joey. It's nice to finally meet you."

The baby made a noise and the woman in the chair offered him to Thomas, whose face blanched at the thought. When she handed him over some of the fear subsided. He could do this. He could hold the baby. Tears stung his eyes as he looked down at it. "I-I..." his words were caught in his throat. The baby smiled at him and Thomas struggled to smile back, not being able to help himself.

"I want to take him back to Australia" he said, his voice barely above a whisper, as if talking more to the child than anyone else.

[Jack Shephard]

"What are you going to do about this, Jack?"

Jack looked over at Sun, her voice a whisper as she watched the scene in front of her. "Do about what, Sun?"

"The baby. His father. And Claire."

Jack's teeth grit out of habit as he looked over at the asian woman. "I don't know. I don't know what I'm going to do. Don't make me out ot be the patron saint of liars by any means."

Jack heard Thomas whisper the he was going to take him back to Australia, and for a second, Jack's brows narrowed. "He's staying here." Jack told the man, leaving nothing up to discussion.

"Is it true that Claire said she saw Charlie?" Sun asked Jack after a moment, her voice a slight whisper again. "Perhaps--"

"Perhaps what? She's telling the truth and that Charlie's just--just wandering around Los Angeles? I don't want to discuss it right now."

[tom]

Thomas was taken from the child in his arms when Jack snapped at him that he was staying. "Excuse me, mate" Thomas told him as politely as he could, "but I think it's bloody well up to the mother of the child where he goes to and doesn't."
He couldn't believe how quickly it took him to get defensive of the little bundle, but certaintly it was Claire's choice whether or not she wanted him in Aaron's life.
When he heard the two of them talk about someone named Charlie, Thomas' eyebrows drew together. "So who's Charlie?" He asked matter-of-factly, the kid still bumping up and down in his arms softly.

[Jack Shephard]

Jack narrowed his eyes slightly at Thomas' words. How could this kid seriously have the gaul to leave Claire (for reasons Jack knew he didn't know, but the fact still remained) and then come back three months later and proclaim that he was now the father of Aaron and was going to take him back to Australia? Where the hell did the kid get the nerve?

"You know," Jack said, watching Aaron and Thomas with a slight frown. "I didn't see you on that plane. I didn't see you there when Claire gave birth to Aaron; she told me that you had left her because you were scared. And now that she's alive, now that Aaron's alive and well, you're just going to swoop in here and take the daddy role?" He scoffed slightly, shaking his head. "You're right, it IS Claire's choice. But she's not here right now." Jack wanted to mention what happened to the poor sap that had kidnapped Claire and Aaron the last time, but he stopped himself short of mentioning Ethan.

Thomas mentioned Charlie, and the frown slowly got deeper. "He's someone who would have told you to mind your own buisness."

[tom]

"Well take me to Claire then" Thomas said, cowering slightly at his words. Jack was right... where did he get off trying to dictate where Aaron went. "I just think that after it all, it would be easier to raise the kid right... in Australia... where it was meant to be done..."

He didn't know who they were talking about with Charlie, and nor did he care. He just wanted to get to Claire and get this sorted. He looked down at the baby he was cradling and gave him back over to the Asian woman, giving it somewhat of a reluctant glance as he did so. The sooner he could figure out if he was to be in Claire's life or not, the sooner he could know if he was to put this all behind him and just be the kind of dad that sent the kid football jersey's in the mail from time to time.