Title: Secrets Untold

Author: Jayma

Disclaimer: Lost is not mine!

Author's Note: IMPORTANT -Do not read this story if you have not read "Once Upon a Tree." It would be best to read that one first and then come back to this one. Have fun!

Summary: Shannon is acting weird and Boone figures out why.

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The crash of the white waves onto the shore was Shannon's wake up call the next day. She attempted to ignore the thunderous sound by sleeping belly-side down, grabbing the poncho she wore the night before and covering her head as if the piece of clothing was a pillow. She gave up the fight between the sleep that beckoned and the alarm sound of the beach.

She pushed herself up and moaned in protest for not having enough sleep. The part of the previous sentence that we must focus on is the word "enough." In that context the word means "having non stop dreams about the night before and the kiss that left an imprint on her mind." She sat down on her mat and smiled at just thinking about it. Her thoughts, however, were rudely interrupted when her step-brother, Boone, started talking.

"This is the earliest you've ever gotten up," he stated as he passed by, drinking from a water bottle.

Shannon ignored his statement and held her tongue by not snapping a rude comment in return. She told herself that in order to have a potential relationship with Sayid meant spending less time whining and more time helping around, "Well I have to eat, so I plan to fetch some fruit, do you want some?" That sounded pretty weird, she thought to herself.

She got up and dusted the sand off her clothes, "Are you serious? You are going to fetch food and you plan to share with others," said Boone with an incredulous expression on his face.

Shannon walked to where her black sneakers were gently placed upon the sand. She patted the sand off her feet and slipped her feet into her shoes as she spoke to Boone, "Yes, Boone, I am serious, now do you want fruit or not?" She walked past him, brushing shoulders violently.

"Shannon, wait!" he said and held her back by holding onto her upper arm, "It's him isn't?" he asked with suspicious eyes, "You're being nice because of him."

Shannon pulled away from his grasp and looked at him with discord shooting from her eyes, "I'll get fruit for myself," and with that she walked away. Boone, however, has the trait of persistence coursing through his veins. He gained speed after her retreating figure and reappeared in front of her trying to get her to talk.

"You like him don't you. So all the flirting remarks and moves finally got to you," he said blocking her way, aggravating her.

"That is none of your business," she confessed as she pressed her finger against his chest, "Boone, don't you see that I'm trying to change here, trying to be something that other people could appreciate," she added.

Boone didn't reply to what she said and then both were startled when Sayid appeared from the bushes nearby, "What is going on?" he asked observing the two beings that were obviously arguing.

At that same moment, Boone responded to the call of Locke down the beach and before he left he took a good look at Shannon and then glared at Sayid. Locke called out again and Boone jogged towards his new companion.

"What was that about?" Sayid asked when he came closer to Shannon and touched her arm. She snapped back to reality and whispered to him, "Meet me at the tree," and she walked on without saying another word.

Shannon returned to her small shelter and as she packed away her belongings she lost her appetite for fruit. She gave Sayid a few minutes to get to the tree and surreptitiously she walked occasionally waving hello at people she barely knew.

Once she got there she looked around, but Sayid was nowhere in sight. She started to panic and rushed to the tree. She called out for him, going a bit deeper into the jungle. She started to walk backwards out of the jungle and then felt large arms encircle her waist from behind. Her spine shivered in fear, but when she looked down, she recognized the dark complexion of the man who held her.

She placed her hands upon his and sighed at the thought of relief. Sayid brushed her hair away from her neck and lovingly kissed the nape of her neck. She pleasurably closed her eyes, but then thought about how scared she was a couple of minutes ago, panicking at his missing figure. She snapped back and pinched his arm.

"Ow, is that how you return my fluttering kisses?" he replied as she turned around in his embrace. She kissed him briefly on the lips and grabbed his hand, "We need to talk." She pulled his to the trunk of the tree and there they sat down facing each other.

"It's about your brother isn't it?" he asked holding onto her hand a bit tighter, a way to ensure her that all would be fine.

"He suspects that I like you," Sayid was about to say something but she placed a finger on his lips, "The reason he suspects is because I was actually going to do something useful this morning. He says that I'm doing this because of you."

"And are you?" he was finally allowed to say something.

"Sayid you have to understand that when I'm around you or even when I think of you, I feel…great. I woke up this morning with the train of the thought that I had to change if I want to be with you," she said as she gently brushed her fingers past his curly hair, "I mean look at me, I've never acted this way before. There are people who I know who would be totally shocked to see me act this way, one of them being Boone."

"So what do you want to do? Do you like the way you are acting now?" he asked and there was a silent pause, "Shannon, when I said that I wanted to be with you, there were no connotations of changing who you are."

"I'm glad that I seem different, that I feel different. I actually said hi to people who I don't even know, to people that I made fun of in my head. What I'm trying to say is I've known people to change when they fall in love. I guess I'm the victim now," she said laughing as she shrugged her shoulders.

Sayid caressed her cheek and pulled her near him to place a gentle and brisk kiss on her lips, "We all become victims in this game called love," he said as he brushed her hair and placed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Do you always charm girls with your fancy metaphors and love-sick lines?" she asked in a playful tone and slapped his arm in a teasing manner.

They sat together for the rest of the morning and enjoyed each others presence. She laughed at his comments and he was mesmerized when her lips moved to produce the sound of her voice, not realizing that there were unwanted eyes gazing upon them.

To be continued….