do you know what it's like?

To be unmade?

[awadewithme]

THE NEXT FEW DAYS…

    had been the absolute worst. Patrick couldn’t catch a break. It was day three, and all hope was seemingly lost. The two princess blondes were arguing back and forth, Patrick –in particular– felt like his head was going to explode from the stress. He felt responsible, protective… like it was his duty to call for help. They tried everything, from the classic ‘sos’, to tossing messages in a beer bottle into the ocean. ‘Maybe the mermaids will help’. There was no sign of life, no sign of hope— and Patrick was loosing it. Still, he tried his best to balance their emotions. When Lily was freaking out, he had to stay calm– and when she stayed calm, he freaked out. It was harmonic, really. Yesterday, Patrick managed to find fresh water a mile or two from shore— a source he was particularly thankful for. He was in dire need of a shower. “Lils, it’s time to head out,” he called, getting his backpack ready for the hike.

[lilyxandrews]

Lily was exhausted. Physically, emotionally, mentally...just drained. When they’d first really gotten a chance to process their situation, she had rationalized that there were much worse people to be stuck with, but she was starting to doubt that. Their personalities were far more similar than she’d originally anticipated, which was a joke since Lily felt that she’d known Patrick well enough before now. 

Apparently, you don’t really know someone until you’re trapped on an island with them.

It wasn’t all bad, though. When they weren’t fighting, they worked pretty well together. As they approached the lake, though, Lily could feel the dread building up in the pit of her stomach. "What's wrong with the ocean, again?" She asked, eyeing the water wearily. This was her first time seeing it -- she wasn't even sure how Patrick found it. Being automatically suspicious of anything unfamiliar wasn't such a problem back home, but it was a huge problem here. They'd already gotten into it quite a few times because of her unwillingness to step out her comfort zone, so in the spirit of keeping the peace, Lily kept her mouth shut as she cautiously dipped her right foot in the water. Thankfully, modesty wasn't an issue for her. She had no problem stripping down in front of Patrick, knowing it wasn't anything he hadn't seen in the past, before slowly making her way into the water.

[lilyxandrews]

As Patrick went on, and on, and on about Alice and her many fascinating attributes, Lily found herself completely regretting her decision to be supportive. This wasn’t fun, at all, and though the conversation had originally been helping her ease her nerves about the darkness of night surrounding them, at this point Lily felt like she’d rather be doing almost anything else. It didn’t help that Patrick didn’t seem to sense her discomfort. What was wrong with him anyway, didn’t he know this was weird? Lily complained to herself. As soon as it seemed like he was winding down, she immediately jumped at the chance to put herself out of her misery. “Right. Well, I don’t have a watch but it seems like it’s getting pretty late.” She couldn’t tell if her voice sounded as cold out loud as it did in her head. As she turned away from him, she immediately felt a pang of guilt. It wasn’t his fault; she’d been the one who’d asked. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t justify the intense need she felt to choke him just so he’d stop rambling on about another girl. It’s a good thing it was too dark for him to see her face, because it’d most definitely betray her thoughts. “It’s really dark.” Lily mumbled absentmindedly, mostly to herself. “You tired?” She asked, a little louder.

[awadewithme]

He jumped slightly, at Lily’s enthusiasm to change the subject. He cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck and let it go— maybe he wasn’t looking into things, and it was inappropriate? “—-Right,” he managed to get out, settling into the darkness caving in. It had happened so fast, Patrick didn’t even see it coming. He took note, that a couple of hours before this time would be perfect to settle in. He sighed, wiggling himself into a comfortable position. Lily laid beside him, feeling her body radiate heat. Looking at the night sky, he blinked a bit, letting his eyes adjust to the night. “A little bit,” he answered. “Look,” he nudged her with his elbow. “There’s your nightlight.” He nodded towards the blanket of stars hovering over them, a soft smile forming on his lips. “I know you’re scared of the dark, Lils,” he confessed, a light chuckle escaping him. “I’m here, I’m not going anywhere— not like I can, but still… I’m here.”

[lilyxandrews]

She couldn’t help but smile as he pointed out that the stars were like a nightlight. “I’m n-” Lily started, about to deny her fear. Realizing there was no point, though, she only shrugged. “I’ll get over it. I don’t have much choice, right?” As they lay there in silence, she wondered if he was thinking the same thing she was -- how long they were going to be stuck out here. After a few minutes of wondering, and worrying, Lily could feel her eyes start to grow heavier and heavier. “Thanks for being here.” She mumbled, unsure if Patrick was even awake enough to hear. “Figuratively and literally.”

[lilyxandrews]

“Yeah, trust me, we all know.” Lily shook her head, aware that her bafflement as to how Patrick could be into her was probably showing. Sure, Alice was nice – but she was also pretty much the opposite of everyone else he had dated. “Or maybe not.” She thought to herself. Lily hadn’t known Giselle well, if at all, before she transformed into the wild, party girl everyone knew her as now, but from what she’d heard, it seemed like Alice’s personality matched up pretty well with the Giselle that Patrick had dated. She tended to stay out of anything involving Giselle or Patrick, though. She found it too weird of a situation to intervene in, and she doubt Giselle would be happy with anything she had to say on the matter. It just wasn’t her place. Still, though, Lily shrugged as Patrick continued detailing his fears. “Well you’re right, you don’t mean to.” She gave him a half smile, wondering if he could tell that part of her brain was trying to convince her to tell him to forget about Alice and quit trying to pursue her. It wasn’t often that Lily surprised herself, but this time, she definitely did. Discouraging a clearly vulnerable person was immoral at best, evil at worst. And if Patrick saw through it…she’d never hear the end of it. So to punish herself, Lily forced a smile and put on her best fake-genuine voice. “What is it you like about her, again?”

[awadewithme]

There was this weird, aura, surrounding them after Patrick had mentioned Alice— as though it was the last thing Lily wanted to talk about. Patrick wasn’t the type to read into details, so he eventually shook it off, finding himself grow into an embarrassed smile. “What I like?” he echoed, exhaling as the very image of Alice popped into his head. He took a moment before answering, because he wanted to lay out all the details. No one ever asked him, he realized, why he liked her so much. “—She’s cute,” he started, realizing how simple that was. “And I know that’s, like, really blatant… but she’s not just cute. She’s, like… really cute. The kind that’s hard to stop thinking about, the kind you’d hate to ever not see again. —Not only that, but she’s smart. She keeps me on my toes, always saying the weirdest shit.” He tried his best to not smile so much, biting his lip every now and again to help suppress it. “She’s like a fresh start. I don’t wanna screw things up with her, and I feel bad that I’ve been flirting with her nonstop and basically make no moves to back up what I dish out. But it’s all I can do at this point, for God know’s how long.”

[lilyxandrews]

As Patrick went on, and on, and on about Alice and her many fascinating attributes, Lily found herself completely regretting her decision to be supportive. This wasn't fun, at all, and though the conversation had originally been helping her ease her nerves about the darkness of night surrounding them, at this point Lily felt like she'd rather be doing almost anything else. It didn't help that Patrick didn't seem to sense her discomfort. What was wrong with him anyway, didn't he know this was weird? Lily complained to herself. As soon as it seemed like he was winding down, she immediately jumped at the chance to put herself out of her misery. "Right. Well, I don't have a watch but it seems like it's getting pretty late." She couldn't tell if her voice sounded as cold out loud as it did in her head. As she turned away from him, she immediately felt a pang of guilt. It wasn't his fault; she'd been the one who'd asked. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't justify the intense need she felt to choke him just so he'd stop rambling on about another girl. It's a good thing it was too dark for him to see her face, because it'd most definitely betray her thoughts. "It's really dark." Lily mumbled absentmindedly, mostly to herself. "You tired?" She asked, a little louder.

[lilyxandrews]

Lily raised an eyebrow at his answer. “Not going? That’s my response whenever my dad asks how my studying is going.” She smirked, then, amused at his mini interrogation. “Oh man, I haven’t heard a tone that intense since the last time I got arrested.” Lily laughed. “Relax, really, all I’ve heard is that you have quite a few notches in your bed post, if you know what I mean.” Even as she joked about it, she couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed by that. She ignored everything that got around to her, for the most part, but it was still hard. And Lily, being as self confident as she was, took a small hit to her self esteem when she realized Patrick wasn’t exactly pining after her as she’d expected him to. It was unfair, she knew that; but she half expected that he’d just always be available, and it was a little disappointing to to find out otherwise.

[awadewithme]

He chuckled a bit, shrugging. “Yeah, not going… it’s complicated,” he started, sighing. “Giselle’s…. she kinda ruined things for me. I mean, I don’t think she’s actively trying to keep me single, but it sure feels like it.” Patrick knew that blaming Giselle was only part of it. He wronged her, that was a fact. It was just easier to blame all of it on another person, at least.. for now. “I’m into Alice— you know that, I know that… the whole world knows that. I just… I can’t do anything about it because I’m afraid Giselle’s gonna rip her head off and… I don’t want to hurt her, you know?” It was odd, talking about Alice to Lily. Not because it was inappropriate, but because Patrick never imagined himself talking about other girls to her. It was so out of mind, that he got chills soon after. “Giselle’s made it pretty clear that I do that kind of thing without really thinking about it— I hurt girls, and I don’t mean to… I just, I don’t know.”

[lilyxandrews]

"Yeah, trust me, we all know." Lily shook her head, aware that her bafflement as to how Patrick could be into her was probably showing. Sure, Alice was nice -- but she was also pretty much the opposite of everyone else he had dated. "Or maybe not." She thought to herself. Lily hadn't known Giselle well, if at all, before she transformed into the wild, party girl everyone knew her as now, but from what she'd heard, it seemed like Alice's personality matched up pretty well with the Giselle that Patrick had dated. She tended to stay out of anything involving Giselle or Patrick, though. She found it too weird of a situation to intervene in, and she doubt Giselle would be happy with anything she had to say on the matter. It just wasn't her place. Still, though, Lily shrugged as Patrick continued detailing his fears. "Well you're right, you don't mean to." She gave him a half smile, wondering if he could tell that part of her brain was trying to convince her to tell him to forget about Alice and quit trying to pursue her. It wasn't often that Lily surprised herself, but this time, she definitely did. Discouraging a clearly vulnerable person was immoral at best, evil at worst. And if Patrick saw through it...she'd never hear the end of it. So to punish herself, Lily forced a smile and put on her best fake-genuine voice. "What is it you like about her, again?"

[lilyxandrews]

Lily wasn’t surprised that he chose to remain silent on the subject of their relationship. It was probably smart, to avoid the discussion. Better than bringing up buried, unresolved emotions. “They’re fine. Good.” She smiled at the mention of her boyfriend, realizing now that it was the first time since they’d been here that she’d really given him any thought. By now, he had to know she and Patrick were missing. Whether he knew if they were together…that was another story, and she knew he wouldn’t be happy about it. Patrick had never been his favorite person, much less now. “We have our issues. Just, you know…we keep them private.” Lily lowered her eyes then, toying absentmindedly with the sparse grass beneath her, pulling it out by the roots. “It definitely feels like everyone is pretty much rooting against us anyway. The last thing they need is encouragement.” Propping her head up on her elbow, she looked back up thoughtfully at Patrick. “What about you? All I’ve been hearing is a lot of rumors, nothing concrete. How are things on the dating front?”

[awadewithme]

He arched a brow, “Really?” Patrick wasn’t aware of any ‘James and Lily’ drama– he was oblivious to most if it didn’t include him. The blonde had always been cautious about James– it was like walking on a bed of nails, to be honest. Patrick wasn’t his favorite person, he knew that. First, it was Lily, and then mostly Giselle. “I can assure you, I don’t know anything about that.” Patrick was dead curious. Who would root against them? They didn’t mean harm, at least, to his knowledge. “Me?” he chuckled, shaking his head, already feeling a headache on it’s way. His dating life was so unnecessarily complicated, it was too much. “They’re not going, is how they’re going. What do you know? What have you heard?”

[lilyxandrews]

Lily raised an eyebrow at his answer. "Not going? That's my response whenever my dad asks how my studying is going." She smirked, then, amused at his mini interrogation. "Oh man, I haven't heard a tone that intense since the last time I got arrested." Lily laughed. "Relax, really, all I've heard is that you have quite a few notches in your bed post, if you know what I mean." Even as she joked about it, she couldn't help but feel a little annoyed by that. She ignored everything that got around to her, for the most part, but it was still hard. And Lily, being as self confident as she was, took a small hit to her self esteem when she realized Patrick wasn't exactly pining after her as she'd expected him to. It was unfair, she knew that; but she half expected that he'd just always be available, and it was a little disappointing to to find out otherwise.

[lilyxandrews]

Lily could feel her face heating up, turning a flushed shade of red at his response. “God. You’re the worst.” She shook her head, tempted to duck back underneath the sweater. She was saved, though, by Patrick switching the subject back to her remarks about his sweater. “I would’ve given them back.” She shrugged, opting to ignore any mention of her step sister. “But we didn’t exactly have a formal break up. I didn’t even get to cry, or yell, or stomp out dramatically, or throw your stuff out the window.” Lily went on, rattling off whatever came to mind at this point. It was a joke, for the most part, but it was true too – they’d never had an “official” break up. It was reminiscent of married couples who never legally filed for divorce, yet remained separated. They’d never even discussed it, which had really angered Lily at first, but was something she was grateful for now. No awkward “have a nice life”’s; and they were on pretty civil terms now. At least, they seemed to be. “You want them back?”

[awadewithme]

He remained silent, playing with his lip ring with his teeth as she continued on. She’s right, they didn’t have a formal break up. At the time, thinking wasn’t exactly something Patrick practiced. He left, because family matters called and it was a difficult time. When he came back, he expected things to stay the same but he could never reprimand Lily for moving on. Besides, she was happy, and he moved on too. It was a thing of the past, and for the most part, he was happy about it. They weren’t bitter, and they hardly fought. Patrick couldn’t even pin point the last time Lily was legitimately mad at him. He was thankful for that— mostly because Giselle was bitter enough to combined all the exes he’s ever had. “Nah,” he replied, turning to her with a gentle smile. “You can keep them— they look better on you anyway.” After a moment of silence, he cleared his throat, heaving a sigh. “How’s, uh, things with James? You guys never seem to have issues,” she chuckled, curious.

[lilyxandrews]

Lily wasn't surprised that he chose to remain silent on the subject of their relationship. It was probably smart, to avoid the discussion. Better than bringing up buried, unresolved emotions. "They're fine. Good." She smiled at the mention of her boyfriend, realizing now that it was the first time since they'd been here that she'd really given him any thought. By now, he had to know she and Patrick were missing. Whether he knew if they were together...that was another story, and she knew he wouldn't be happy about it. Patrick had never been his favorite person, much less now. "We have our issues. Just, you know...we keep them private." Lily lowered her eyes then, toying absentmindedly with the sparse grass beneath her, pulling it out by the roots. "It definitely feels like everyone is pretty much rooting against us anyway. The last thing they need is encouragement." Propping her head up on her elbow, she looked back up thoughtfully at Patrick. "What about you? All I've been hearing is a lot of rumors, nothing concrete. How are things on the dating front?"

[awadewithme]

He smiled widely at her shriek, laughing. He turned his head, smiling at her adoringly when she covered her ears, forgetting where they were for a second. “I don’t need to get any ideas, they’re already ideas,” he joked. Leaning an inch closer, he licked his lips, voice low, “For the record, I’d be the teacher.” He moved back, pleased with himself. Patrick was such a shameless flirt, but he did so lightheartedly that the only person that found it appalling was his recent ex, Giselle— rightfully so. At her appreciation, he gave her a simple nod, like it was no problem. “—Yeah, you and Giselle have that in common. I don’t know why it’s a thing, to take our belongings. I mean, thank god I worked at Hollister at the time, you know? The discount saved me.”

[lilyxandrews]

Lily could feel her face heating up, turning a flushed shade of red at his response. “God. You’re the worst.” She shook her head, tempted to duck back underneath the sweater. She was saved, though, by Patrick switching the subject back to her remarks about his sweater. “I would’ve given them back.” She shrugged, opting to ignore any mention of her step sister. :But we didn’t exactly have a formal break up. I didn’t even get to cry, or yell, or stomp out dramatically, or throw your stuff out the window.” Lily went on, rattling off whatever came to mind at this point. It was a joke, for the most part, but it was true too -- they’d never had an “official” break up. It was reminiscent of married couples who never legally filed for divorce, yet remained separated. They’d never even discussed it, which had really angered Lily at first, but was something she was grateful for now. No awkward “have a nice life”’s; and they were on pretty civil terms now. At least, they seemed to be. “You want them back?”

[awadewithme]

Patrick scoffed playfully, making a face as he continued to set up their sleeping arrangement. He flinched at her punch, laughing. Taking the sweater, he covered her with it, leaving himself exposed. He was okay, for now. He noted that if it got colder, he’d just have to bare it and deal. The corner of his lip raised into a sly smirk, as he brought his arms above and behind his head. The sun was setting in, and the sky painted a beautiful transition from day to night. “Oh man, so many,” he went on, annoyingly. “There was the nurse one, and the teacher one… —and my favorite, the one where we do it in one of the classrooms skipping class, mostly because it’s the most realistic. Ugh, love that one.”

[lilyxandrews]

Lily shrieked as he went on, making a show out of covering her ears and turning away. “God make it stop, please” she laughed. “Wait..” She glanced back at him. “Was I the teacher or were you the teacher?” Immediately, the look he gave her had her laughing out loud again. “I’m totally kidding, forget that. Don’t get any ideas.” She covered her face momentarily with the sweater gifted to her by Patrick before lowering it an inch. “Thanks for this, by the way.” Lily smiled, though she wasn’t sure if he could tell, since half her face was still hidden. “For the sweater, I mean. It’s pretty warm. And reminds me of home, since I may or may not still have one or two of your old ones.”

[awadewithme]

He pulled his head back in disbelief— utter shock. “Uhuh,” he wagged his finger, head moving along with it. “I am, the most humble. Like, honestly… if we had a category for most humble, I’d win the vote. Though, best personality… I can work with that.” He smiled widely at her question, unable to contain a laugh or two. He patted the sweater, making it comfortable to be used as makeshift pillow for the night. It was going to be cold, he knew that. Crap, screw the sweater... He placed in backpack in place instead, pulling the sweater back. “Key word is had, Lils. Your mom’s like, super hot— I mean, you didn’t get your looks from no where. Besides, I imagined a three some once upon a time while I was drinking with Matt. He thought it was gross, but he gave that ‘it’s lowkey gross but she’s hot so i’d bang’ nod.”

[lilyxandrews]

Lily scoffed at his claims of humility, letting him know just how ridiculous she thought that sounded. “You, mister, are the exact opposite of humble. In fact, thesauruses’ everywhere have your name written under its antonym.” She laughed, moving from her position against the tree then to imitate Patrick’s motions. Even as she followed his lead though, using whatever was most convenient as a pillow, she could tell she was going to be in for a very long, and extremely uncomfortable night. At least she was close enough now that she could punch his arm as he confessed his fantasies. “Oh, very charming. Very classy.” Lily made a face. “That’s.... disgusting. Not to mention disturbing as fuck. I don’t even want to know what other wet dreams I’ve starred in.”

[awadewithme]

“Ow,” he laughed, flinching from the kick. He smiled at her, looking over Lily’s features. God, she was hot. There was no mistake there. “You already got a big head, Lils. Don’t need to make it bigger, you know what I mean?” he teased, quickly moving himself so she wouldn’t hit him again. Patrick raised his brows, feeling surprised yet ego filled at the mention of her mother. “Julianna? God, that woman can’t get enough of me,” he smirked, taking out a thick sweater from his backpack.

[lilyxandrews]

“I do not have a big head.” She retorted defensively, crossing her arms over her chest. “And I find it very hypocritical of you to say otherwise.” Lily smiled back at him, though, when he flashed one her way. It was hard not to feel natural joking around with him, despite their rocky history. Her eyes stayed fixed on his for what felt like a long time but was probably only a few seconds, before finally tearing her gaze away and turning her attention to the darkening horizon. “You guys having an affair or something?” 

[lilyxandrews]

Glancing away almost immediately after they’d made eye contact, Lily shrugged. “I’m fine.” She tried her best to make her reply sound nonchalant, as she backed up against a nearby tree and slid down so she could sit and rest against it, but it didn’t sound convincing, even to her. “Just, you know… This whole situation.” She shook her head, gesturing around the island. It wasn’t a complete lie;  their situation was certainly one of distress. He looked so genuinely worried, though, when Lily finally got around to glancing back up at him, that she felt compelled to lighten the mood again. “Are you gonna keep standing there and staring at me until the sun goes down?” She asked jokingly, cracking a small half smile. 

[awadewithme]

Patrick sighed, shaking his head with a smile as he continued preparing their shelter. “If you don’t mind,” he replied. “’S not a bad sight to look at— especially at a time like this.” The blonde smirked to himself, fiddling with his back pack. It was shameful, really, to be flirting at this moment.. but Patrick had hope— the highest hope that they’d be rescued. “Anyhow, please tell me you brought some clothes and my need for being prepared isn’t abnormal.”

[lilyxandrews]

Although truthfully, Lily didn't mind his flirtatious nature, she rolled her eyes anyway, kicking his ankle with her outstretched foot playfully. "Not a bad sight? That's the most I get?" Their banter was the best distraction; it allowed her to somewhat forget, or at least ignore, the darkness of night that was coming on quickly, despite the tree bark pressing into her back and the sandy ground underneath her legs that insisted on reminding her otherwise. "I packed extra stuff too." She shrugged, not bothering to mention that it probably wasn't for the same reason he had. Lily hadn't been thinking about the possibility of getting stranded when she'd stuffed her bag with as many clothes as she could carry. She'd only been thinking about how many different outfits she could show off in one trip. "I always overpack, I get it from my mom." She smiled then, as the thought of her mom came to her. "She asked about you recently. Wanted to know how you were doing."

[awadewithme]

At her comment, Patrick rose a brow, breaking out into a smile. “—What, you scared of the dark or somethin’?” he chuckled, trudging his way through the sand. He didn’t really think about her statement, due to his complete focus on creating shelter. Lily and the dark…. there was something nagging him about it, but at this moment, it was the least of his worries. Dragging the lifeboat by a rope, he pulled it closer to him, as they made their way to what Patrick deemed to be a ‘safe spot’ from the rising tide. “This should be a good spot for now,” he sighed, dropping his backpack in the sand. Taking hold of lifeboat, he pulled it closer to the trees, but not too close— he had this very current fear of a snake laying on his chest when he woke up. “I’ll look for one of those big leaf things for shelter tomorrow,” he said, more so to himself. “—Uhm,” he started, eyes peering out to the sunsetting. “It looks like we have a couple of hours.” He smiled, pulling up his wrist with his (thank god) water-resistant watch. “Mostly because it says 4pm on my watch. I think it gets dark around 6, or last time I checked…” Trailing off, his blue hues finally landed on hers, furrowing his brows. “—Hey, you okay?”

[lilyxandrews]

Glancing away almost immediately after they’d made eye contact, Lily shrugged. “I’m fine.” She tried her best to make her reply sound nonchalant, as she backed up against a nearby tree and slid down so she could sit and rest against it, but it didn’t sound convincing, even to her. “Just, you know... This whole situation.” She shook her head, gesturing around the island. It wasn’t a complete lie;  their situation was certainly one of distress. He looked so genuinely worried, though, when Lily finally got around to glancing back up at him, that she felt compelled to lighten the mood again. “Are you gonna keep standing there and staring at me until the sun goes down?” She asked jokingly, cracking a small half smile. 

[lilyxandrews]

Lily rolled her eyes, “You’re unbelievable.” She chided, amazed at how he could be focused on the quality of his snacks. It took away from the severity of their situation; made it seem more normal, somehow, which Lily had to admit she was grateful for. It’s what prompted her to climb in the lifeboat, to sit down and allow her full body weight to be supported by Patrick as she leaned against him. The boat was wet, but she didn’t care – the coolness of it felt good against her legs, which had endured several long hours of full on contact with the scalding sand. With her head on his shoulder she playfully reached out and pretended to try and smack the chips out of his hand. “Will you stop? We’re going to run out of food if you keep that up, and I don’t trust your foraging skills. I vaguely recall that you joining the Boy Scouts did not end well.”

[awadewithme]

Patrick scoffed, “You know what, you’re gonna thank me when those boy scout skills come in handy in a—” he paused, turning to look out towards the sea. “—Shoot.” He patted her thigh, signaling for her to stand up. “Okay, if my two years in boy scouts taught me anything— and my binge watching of Naked and Afraid, we have to set up shelter or we’re gonna be shit out of luck.” Throwing his bag over her shoulder, he took hold of Lily’s belongings, handing it to her. “Sun’s going down.” Nodding over to the sunset. “I’ll grab the lifeboat, we can stay near the beach for tonight. Then tomorrow, look for some fresh water in case we run out before…” he trailed, clearing his throat as he stepped out of the life boat. “–Anyway, we should get going.”

[lilyxandrews]

Reluctantly, Lily took her bag from him and slung it over her shoulder, following his lead as he climbed out of the boat and started heading back towards where they'd first been. It dawned on her suddenly that they'd have to spend the night here, and it was going to get really dark really fast. "Islands don't have night lights." Lily thought to herself, wondering how she was going to deal with her fear of the dark. It should've been the least of her concerns, but she wondered if Patrick remembered. It was definitely the least of his concerns. He looked incredibly focused on his mission of finding shelter. Not that Lily wasn't, but they automatically fell into these roles; he lead, she followed. Under normal circumstances, she would never have allowed for herself to assume anything other than the leadership position, but this was far from normal. Patrick was clearly better equipped to handle this, or at least, that's what Lily was telling herself to make trusting him easier. So she couldn't help letting her mind wander to other, more trivial, less helpful places as she walked alongside him. "How much time do you think we have until it gets completely dark?"

[lilyxandrews]

“I’m –” Lily paused, distracted, momentarily, by the sudden physical contact. She hadn’t even thought about how she might’ve been affected. Though it seemed more likely that he may have just been using this as an excuse to touch her, she glanced down anyway, quickly scanning her own body for any obvious injuries. A few bruises, maybe one or two scratches; but nothing serious. Nothing big enough to warrant a first aid kit. Still though, Lily decided to humor him. “There’s sand in my hair.” She complained jokingly. “And I’m, like, 90% sure I broke a nail, so if you wanna go grab the nail file out of my bag, you’d be my hero.” 

[awadewithme]

Patrick rolled his eyes, shoving her playfully as he headed towards the lifeboat. “Lifeboat it is!” he called, sarcastically. Heading over, the blonde shrugged. The last person he’d want to be stuck on an island with was probably… well, that’d be a tie for James and Giselle. Lily isn’t so bad, he thought, searching through his belongings. At least they could have fun— with either of those two, it’d be like survivor. In the midst of it all, he had to admit, Alice crossed his mind more than once since he had woken up. He wondered if she was in a state of extreme panic, being that he was missing —wait, is that narcissistic? “Lils, can you believe this shit is dry?!” he called out, excited, munching on chips. “Like, nothing got wet. It’s a freaking miracle.”

[lilyxandrews]

Lily rolled her eyes, "You're unbelievable." She chided, amazed at how he could be focused on the quality of his snacks. It took away from the severity of their situation; made it seem more normal, somehow, which Lily had to admit she was grateful for. It's what prompted her to climb in the lifeboat, to sit down and allow her full body weight to be supported by Patrick as she leaned against him. The boat was wet, but she didn't care -- the coolness of it felt good against her legs, which had endured several long hours of full on contact with the scalding sand. With her head on his shoulder she playfully reached out and pretended to try and smack the chips out of his hand. "Will you stop? We're going to run out of food if you keep that up, and I don't trust your foraging skills. I vaguely recall that you joining the Boy Scouts did not end well."

[awadewithme]

He exhaled, placing his hands firmly on his hips. “I think,” he started, taking a moment to think. There were many options, but the two weren’t fortunate enough to be stranded with more people. He had seen the first few episodes of Lost. Some ventured out to the island, look for fresh water, other’s raided the airplane for goods, and the rest tended to injuries (from what he could recall). He knew enough, to know where to start. “Well first… are you okay?” he asked, inching towards her. Their relationship didn’t exactly call for needing ‘personal space’, even after their break up, so he didn’t give her any type of look for consent as he reached over to take hold of her arm. Gently, he examined her exposed skin, observing her legs. “I gotta know if you’re feeling okay, because if you’re injured… dehydrated.. then we’ll start looking through our things. You know, get the first aid from the life boat and patch you up.” He wasn’t even thinking about it, as he grazed his thumb over her upper shoulder, drawing circles. “I packed a lot of food,” he chuckled, slightly ashamed. “I got really hungry, and I know they didn’t allow snacks but who cares, you know?”

[lilyxandrews]

“I’m --” Lily paused, distracted, momentarily, by the sudden physical contact. She hadn’t even thought about how she might’ve been affected. Though it seemed more likely that he may have just been using this as an excuse to touch her, she glanced down anyway, quickly scanning her own body for any obvious injuries. A few bruises, maybe one or two scratches; but nothing serious. Nothing big enough to warrant a first aid kit. Still though, Lily decided to humor him. “There’s sand in my hair.” She complained jokingly. “And I’m, like, 90% sure I broke a nail, so if you wanna go grab the nail file out of my bag, you’d be my hero.” 

[awadewithme]

He sighed, preparing himself for a breakdown of sorts. Patrick knew how to adapt— at least, he believed he can. Although the blonde could very much claim for Lily to be the princess in their situation, Patrick knew he was a ‘princess’ in his own way too. He mentioned it before, but his fear of snakes was unreal, and being on a island was no secure way of protection. He also needed the means of maintenance, because Patrick was unbelievably spot on with his appearance. As far as he was concerned, the very fact that a bathroom was out of the question, bothered the shit out of him. “Four hours, since I woke up.” The storm had claimed their boat at nighttime, and to Patrick’s calculations, he knew very well that it had probably been an entire day since then. Clenching his abdomen, his ocean blue hues glossed over her. “Our stuff— our backpacks… they’re in the lifeboat. So, we have some means to survive… I just.. I don’t know how long it’ll last us.”

[lilyxandrews]

Lily had yet to make any type of full on eye contact with Patrick. Doing so, in her mind, would force her to come to terms with just how real their situation was. Even now, as he talked, answering her questions, she stared despondently out upon the ocean. They could get back in the lifeboat, take their chances out on the see. Or... She glanced back, towards the mass of overgrown trees that looked to be about a hundred feet or so from where they stood on the sand. Not moving wasn’t an option. They’d been lucky to have survived out here exposed to the elements while both were knocked out for god knows how long. 

“Okay.”  She inhaled deeply, trying to steady her breathing in an attempt to calm herself down. Panicking wasn’t going to do her -- or Patrick, any good. He probably wouldn’t have known how to calm her down anyway. He’d yell at her, and she’d yell right back, which would only lead to a fight. The last thing either of them needed was an argument. She needed to stay relaxed, she knew that. She had to remember that.

Tearing her eyes away from the crashing waves long enough to finally face him, she asked, “What do you think we should do?”

[awadewithme]

“Look around you Lils,” he shot, seemingly done with the situation. “There’s not a single soul on this fucking island. Believe me, after I pulled your ass out of that life boat and dragged you to the sand, I searched as far as I could for another living being.” The blonde stood along with her, gesturing out to the palm trees behind them. “There isn’t— just.. bugs, insects, and fucking snakes. I fucking hate snakes.”

[lilyxandrews]

Him using the nickname he’d used throughout the duration of their relationship, which now seemed like years and years ago, simultaneously caught her off guard and got her attention. She’d been about to ignore him and go off searching the entire island herself out of spite, but in the back of her mind she knew it was pointless. Slowly, the realization sank in that he was right. There was quiet all around them. If anyone was here, they’d definitely have heard all the noise they were making by now. 

After a few minutes of resigned silence on her part, Lily let out a sigh. “How...long have we been here?” It wasn’t a question she was sure she wanted the answer to, but she was smart enough to know that the longer they were here, the less likely they’re chances were of leaving.