Message in a Bottle

Aaron hears back from Megan Pace and Charlie Hume

Messages in a Bottle

Ji Yeon was waiting for him in the lobby of the hotel when he arrived. Aaron showed her the notes he'd made and explained what he'd discovered the night before. She had heard of the Oceanic Six but couldn't remember who all was included in that list. What she didn't know was that Juliet Burke had been on the island and that her nephew was now Aaron's roommate.

“Hey, if Julian had class today, shouldn't you as well?” Ji Yeon asked.

“I do have a class today, but not until 2pm. I thought we could hang out together until then.”

“Why don't you take me to UCLA and show me around?” she suggested.

“Okay,” Aaron smiled.

They left the lobby of the hotel and drove back to campus. He showed her where all the various buildings were and they had coffee at the Coffee House along with some coffee cakes. Aaron took the time to check his email on his phone and found that both Charlie and Megan had replied to his late night messages.

Aaron read the messages aloud to Ji Yeon as she sipped her coffee, “Dear Aaron, I am sorry that I do not know who you are, but I am happy to hear that you knew my Uncle Charlie,” Megan wrote. “Dad looked up to Charlie and thought he was so much more talented than he was. His death was a terrible blow for us all, though I was too little to remember it well. I did not know he and your mother were close. They told us that Charlie had died when the plane crashed, but it does not surprise me that they lied about that. There was something off about the Oceanic Six's story from day one. I just didn't know why they would lie. Anyway, I would love to know more about you and your Mum. Keep in touch. Megan.”

Aaron looked up from his phone and said, “It is a shame that she never knew her Uncle died a hero. I think that her family should have been able to take comfort in the fact Charlie didn't die for nothing.”

Ji Yeon put her head down and said quietly, “You mean like my parents.”

“No, I didn't mean that,” Aaron said. He reached out and touched her hand. “I am sure there was a reason for their deaths even if we don't know what that was. Mom was fond of muttering that the island had its reasons.”

“The island had its reasons? As if the island could be a living, breathing conscious being!”

Aaron laughed, “I know it seems ridiculous, but Mom, Kate and Sawyer all have said similar things. The island is special somehow, but they never could explain exactly how or why.”

“Maybe they didn't know how or why themselves.”

“Maybe not. Let me read the one from Charlie Hume now,” Aaron said. He withdrew his hand and scrolled through the message as he read. “Dear Aaron, I did not recognize your name, but I am glad you found me. Yes, my father and mother remember your mom Claire as well as Kate and Sawyer. I can't say that I know a whole lot more than you do. I was born during the three years between visits to the island like your friend Ji Yeon.”

“No one is sure how my Grandfather came to be on that island, but he was. He came and went many times before being exiled. After his exile he spent many years trying to find the island, which apparently drifts through time and space. Crazy huh? I know. But my parents swear it is the truth. Dad came to the island by chance or fate, he isn't sure which. He spent 3 years in some underground bunker pushing some stupid button for reasons unknown. Grandpa then sent a boat load of people to kill everyone, but Dad escaped. Then grandpa kidnapped him and drug him back to the island so that he could somehow aid in the destruction of some evil force. Again, it sounds crazy. I know. Dad saved the day not once, but twice before returning safely home to me and mum.”

“I've been told repeatedly that this is something we do not talk about in public, but I figured since my Dad and Mum knew your Mum, it would be okay to talk about it with you. It is rather nice not to have to lie to you, as I've had to lie to everyone about Mum and Dad's past for so many years. Love to hear more stories from you and know what you think about what happened. Charlie.”

Aaron looked up to see what Ji Yeon's reaction was.

She tilted her head thoughtfully and said, “I had no idea all that happened. I don't think my grandmother knew any of that either.”

“Probably not. I mean, come on, how many people would believe such a wild story? And if they did, wouldn't they all want to flock to the island and explore its so-called powers?”

“Yes, they would,” Ji Yeon agreed. She was silent for a moment before she added, “But don't you want to go there and see what all the fuss is about? Don't you want to have your own adventure to tell your kids about?”

“Of course I do, but I've been told not to even try and find it. You heard Kate and Sawyer, they want me to focus on my life here and my career.”

“I think we should talk to Julian. And I think we should meet up with Megan and Charlie and all try to find the island together. If we all pull our resources and knowledge about it, perhaps we stand a chance of locating it.”

“Hell,” Aaron laughed, “Maybe if we all just got on a plane and flew over the South Pacific we'd crash there like our parents! Wouldn't that be something!”

“If what we here about the island is to be believed, that could very well work. We all connections to the island and if anyone were going to find it, it would be us. Right?”

“I suppose so,” he admitted. Aaron paused and checked his phone for the time. It was 1:42. “I need to head on over to class. Are you coming with me then?”

“Yeah,” Ji Yeon smiled.

The two of them drank the last of their coffee and headed across campus for Aaron's Philosophy Class. At the beginning of the semester they'd covered Plato and Aristotle. They touched on Augustine before moving to the main part of the course�"the Enlightenment. Locke, Rousseau, Hume, Newton, Voltaire, Beccaria, Herder and Kant. Aaron found the philosophy was something he excelled at. He'd gotten straight A's in the class thus far.

His teacher was Dr. Linus and he seemed to favor Aaron over the others, at least that is what Aaron's classmates told him. He had no idea why. He didn't recall meeting ever meeting Mr. Linus before, though there was something familiar about him. Aaron just assumed that his classmates were jealous that he understood most of Dr. Linus was talking about. From what he could tell, Aaron thought that perhaps a good 40% of the class was failing. The other 50% were barely hanging on with C's. He and a couple of other students made up the remaining 10% that were getting A's and B's. Though just an introductory class, it was demanding.

Author's Note

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