Author's Notes: Took me a little longer than expected, but here is the next chapter of There You'll Be. I really hope you enjoy and continue to review! I do take the time to read and reply to every review, so drop me a line, please!

---

Kate stared into the bathroom mirror, into a face that she no longer recognized. The woman in the mirror looked fragile, like a pale china doll, and she was crying. The woman in the mirror stared back at her with empty eyes full of fearful tears, her lips parted slightly eliciting small gasps as she tried to catch her breath. The woman in the mirror looked weak, barely keeping it together.

The woman in the mirror was her.

As much as she refused to accept it, gone were the youthful days of peaceful relaxation, replaced by the bitter reality of the world. As the world had changed, Kate realized so had she. Where once there was a strong, charismatic woman now stood a weak, broken one. Kate had tried to give the appearance of stability, but as the years progressed, she had begun to crack ever so slightly--until her father disappeared, shattering her last anchor to the world.

Leaning on the counter for support, Kate tried to steady her breathing, and regain her composure. Jack would wonder where she was if she didn't reemerge soon. He was calling Bill Buchanan with information about the phone call, much to Kate's distress. Marie had clearly stated that she wasn't to involve CTU, but Jack had assured her that Marie didn't need to know, and wouldn't find out. Kate had believed him.

Brushing away the last vestiges of tears, she tried smiling. Her attempt at a smile failed miserably, as she was attacked by another powerful sob. It felt as if her world was spiraling down around her, and she was helpless to stop it. She'd lived in a seemingly perfect world for so long, with the fake smiles and painted on happiness, that she'd forgotten how cruel it was.

Her sister--her own flesh and blood--had kidnapped their father, their only living parent. It was utterly inconceivable, but Kate had to remind herself that Marie was no longer her sister...but a different person altogether. The Marie now was no longer a little girl who liked to play with Barbie, but a dangerous terrorist with intents too dark to mention. And to top it all off, she had kidnapped their father and was doing who knows what to him. No, Marie was no longer her sister...but her enemy.

And yet, she still loved her.

Abruptly, breaking Kate out of her thoughts, a knock sounded on the door. "Kate?"

"Give me a moment, Jack," she replied in a hoarse voice.

If there was one thing she dreaded, it was looking weak in front of Jack Bauer. He had always been this sort of larger-than-life man who could do the seemingly impossible; despite any sacrifice to himself he had to make to accomplish the task. While Kate held no hero-worship for him, she did hold and incredible amount of respect for Jack. He had saved her numerous occasions, and had been there for her a lot...before their breakup, anyway.

If there was anyone who would understand how she was feeling, it would be Jack. He had always understood her to a certain degree, but that time had long since passed...and it was a fact she had accepted. Regardless, she knew she could seek comfort from him...but refused to. Jack had plenty of his own troubles to deal with without her adding to the list. No, she would not look weak in front of Jack.

She quickly reapplied some makeup, and forced the best smile she could muster, looking once into the mirror at the woman who, frighteningly, she had become.

Then she opened the door. "Hi, Jack. Any news?"

Jack looked at Kate, noticing the subtle differences about her since he'd left her last. Her eyes were tainted red...from crying? Her expression was arranged in a way that made Jack think that she was holding something back from him. "Nothing, unfortunately. Bill hasn't heard anything about Marie Warner breaking out of prison, or making any phone calls."

Kate's eyes widened. "What? But that's not possible--I just talked to her!"

"I know," Jack agreed. "I told Bill that, and he has some of his best people working on it now."

Kate studied Jack's face and eyes for a moment, before replying, "You're lying."

Jack deadpanned. "What?"

"You're lying," she insisted. "I can see it in your face."

Jack bowed his head for a moment, eliciting a small sigh. He should have known better than to lie to Kate; she knew him too well...even after all this time. That, or Jack was just a lousy liar.

"Why?" Kate demanded in a hard tone. "Why are you lying to me? What aren't you telling me, Jack?"

He looked back up at her, matching her inquisitive gaze. "Bill doesn't believe you, Kate."

"What?"

"He thinks you imagined hearing Marie's voice," Jack told her slowly, gauging her reaction.

"And what do you think?" Kate asked him, the hope hiding within the depths of her blue-gray eyes.

"I think..." he said hesitantly, "that Bill might be right."

Kate's expression fell, along with her heart. "Oh."

"Kate..."

She shook her head vehemently, withdrawing away from him and back into the bathroom. "No, Jack, you're probably right. I probably just imagined it. I mean, I am under a lot of stress lately...and that's probably exactly what Bill Buchanan told you, isn't it?"

Jack reached out to her instinctively, but it only served to push her farther away, and his hand fell limply to his side. "Yes, that's what he told me."

She felt those dreaded tears rising up again, and that made Kate angry. She didn't want to cry in front of him; she didn't want to look weak. "I'm sorry for wasting your time, Jack."

It was said with such icy bitterness that Jack nearly winced. "Kate, you aren't wasting my time."

"So you say, Jack, but that's obviously not the way you feel--"

"How do you know how I feel?" he bit out quickly, unable to help himself. Kate visibly winced at his statement, and he immediately felt horrible. "Kate, I'm sorry--"

She looked away from him, unable to hold his gaze. "I know you are, Jack. You always are..."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Nothing."

This time Jack reached out, and grabbed her by both of her forearms, forcing her to look at him. "Talk to me, Kate."

When she refused to look at him, biting her lower lip to keep from crying, Jack continued. "I know how you're feeling, Kate. Trust me, I do. But pushing everyone away is not going to help. It never does. When I lost Teri, I thought that I'd never recover...but I did, with time, and with the help of those who cared about me. You were there for me when I was at one of my lowest points, and now I'm here for you."

That was the breaking point for Kate Warner, and the tears began to roll down her cheeks, unbidden and unwelcome...but quite relieving. Without hesitating or thinking about it, Jack slowly took Kate into his arms, letting her cry into his shoulder as he stroked her blonde hair tenderly.

"I'm sorry, Jack," she sobbed. "I just--just..."

"I know," he cooed in an uncharacteristically soft voice. "But it's not your fault, despite what you may think, none of this is your fault."

After a few moments, Kate was brought back to reality, and slowly, albeit a bit reluctantly, moved away from Jack's comforting embrace, her eyes still full of unshed tears. "Thank you, Jack."

He nodded, shaking the fog from his head. Kate's presence had an almost mind-numbing affect on him, an affect that he had forgotten.

A few seconds of awkward silence passed, before Jack said, "earlier, when I said I thought Bill might be right... "

"It's fine, Jack," Kate interrupted quickly.

"It's not what I believe," Jack finished.

Kate looked utterly confused. "What? But--"

"I think Bill may be right...but it's not what I believe," Jack told her. "I believe you heard Marie's voice. And I believe that she has your father and that he's alive."

"Why, Jack?"

"Because I believe," he looked directly into her pretty features, "in you."

---

A/N: Please review! The more reviews I get, the faster I update! It's a win-win situation!