FIC - Shipwrecked - Lost... but found (2/3)
Title: Shipwrecked - Lost... but found (2/3)
Author/Artist: Wheelie47
Beta: Valenti1965 - thanks for your support and encouragement, Louise!
Rating: NC17 (eventually)
Disclaimer: Don't own the boys!
Characters/Pairings: Van and Jake (JANSIS)
Word Count: approx 10,500 (in total)
Warnings: A little bit of angst.
Summary: Van and Jake are shipwrecked on a desert island. Told from Jake’s POV.
Author’s Notes: There are no significant others in this fic; Van and Jake are both single.
Link to Master Post and art: Here!
Original Prompt: #12 - "Castaway" inspired. They are shipwrecked on a desert island.
Written for Summerfest 2013 over on nukebigbang
Chapter 2
“I don’t know, Jake,” Van said as he looked out at the boat then back at Jake, a worried expression creasing his handsome face. “I think it’s too risky. Like you said, it could sink at any time.”
“Ah, you worried about me, Van?” Jake tried to joke, curling his lips into a lop-sided grin that faded a little when the blonde didn’t smile back.
“Look, I’ll be fine,” he reassured as he scooted around in the sand to place his hands on Van’s shoulders, trying to ignore the way Van’s skin felt against his palms. “I’ll be back before you know it.”
The other man didn’t look convinced.
Once Van had warmed up a little, they had retreated from the heat of the sun to the shade of a palm tree. As Jake had sat with his back against the trunk, looking out at the boat, he’d decided he would swim out to the ‘Crystal Blue’ to salvage anything that he could.
Van had been less than impressed when Jake had shared his idea.
“It’s too dangerous,” Van replied firmly, staring back at Jake as if he wasn’t going to let him win this discussion.
“Van, there’s stuff on that boat we need - supplies, tools, the radio, not to mention the first aid kit.” Jake nodded toward the wound in Van’s side. “We need to get that cleaned up and dressed. It could get infected.”
“Well, you’re hardly in the best shape yourself,” Van snapped back, gesturing with one hand to the cut on Jake’s forehead.
“I’m in better shape than you.” He tried smiling again. “You know I’m right.”
“I hate it when you’re right,” Van huffed sulkily as he kicked at the sand.
Jake stood and bent to help Van to his feet when the man started to get up too. “If it makes you feel any better, you can be right next time, OK? Unless, of course, if you’re wrong,” he added with a chuckle.
As they walked down to the surf, Jake expected Van to come back with a quick response. Usually, their ‘discussions’ could go on and on, neither man willing to back down.
But, instead, there was just silence.
He looked over at Van and was surprised to see him staring straight ahead with his jaw clenched tightly as they walked.
“Van?”
It wasn’t until they reached the water that Van turned to face Jake, an unreadable expression across his face. “Just don’t do anything… stupid, OK? Don’t try to be a hero.”
Jake didn’t know what to make of this new Van. Normally, the man wore his emotions on his face and in his eyes. But right now Jake had no clue what his friend was thinking. And that kinda freaked him out.
“OK,” he replied simply, not sure what else to say. “I’ll be careful.”
Taking off his shirt and then his tight white T-shirt, Jake handed them both to Van. “I’ve only just got them dry,” he explained with a shrug when Van shot him a surprised look before taking the clothing and turning to look back out to the stranded 32-footer on the reef, a pained expression on his face.
Couldn’t Van even look at him now? A sudden thought hit Jake. Had Van realized that Jake wanted more from their friendship? Was that something Van couldn’t give him? Or didn’t even want? Jake didn’t think he could take that rejection.
He opened his mouth to say something but closed it again. What could he say?
Without another word, Jake started to wade out into the surf. When the water got waist high, he began to swim.
After a few minutes, his muscles started to ache, the saltwater made the cut on his head sting and his breath came in short bursts. The distance to the boat wasn’t that great; he’d swum further before. Perhaps the last few hours had taken more out of him than he’d thought.
There was no turning back now. He had to do this. So he gritted his teeth and swam on, concentrating on controlling his breathing and focusing on the fact that with each stroke he was getting closer to the boat.
“Finally!” Jake gasped when he eventually reached the section of the reef where ‘Crystal Blue’ was stranded.
Hauling himself up onto the coral, he grimaced as the sharp rock dug into his bare feet.
He gingerly made his way to the base of the ladder leading up to the boat’s deck. The angle of the boat meant that the bottom rung was almost out of reach. But he managed to stretch up and grasp the metal with both hands. Jake made a silent promise to thank his parents when he got outta this mess for the genes that made him so freakin’ tall!
Jake tugged on the ladder, testing if it would take his weight.
“Seems OK,” he muttered, more out of a need to reassure himself than anything else.
With a grunt of exertion, Jake managed to heave himself off the coral, his muscles bulging with the effort.
Straining hard and with gritted teeth, he supported all his weight with one hand as he stretched up with the other to grasp the second rung.
As he tried to bring his hand up to meet the other, he almost slipped and only saved himself from falling back onto the coral by hooking his arm around the rung. “Shit!” he grimaced as a jarring pain ripped through his shoulder. He hoped he hadn’t torn a muscle or something.
Blowing out a shaky breath, he paused for a moment or two before carrying on.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Jake managed to reach the top of the ladder and flung himself onto the deck where he lay on his back, gasping for breath.
“Need to lay off that pizza,” Jake groaned as he hauled himself back to his feet.
He stood at the railing and looked back to the island to see that Van had waded out to his knees and was watching him intently, one hand shading his eyes.
“I’m OK!” Jake shouted as he waved… not even certain Van could hear him.
Van waved back and gestured urgently for Jake to hurry.
Jake turned and surveyed the deck. The damage looked even worse close up. The claims adjuster would have a field day.
Picking his way over the debris, Jake carefully moved to the boat’s wrecked cabin.
“Shit!” he groaned when he saw the instrument panel. There wasn’t a single display that looked like it would be working again anytime soon. He flicked the switch back and forth on the radio. Nothing. That wasn’t going to be bringing them any help.
“Whoa!” Jake held his hands out to steady himself as the boat shifted with a lurch. Looking out of one of the cracked portside portholes, he saw that the ‘Crystal Blue’ was precariously balanced right on the edge of the reef with a great expanse of deeper water below.
At the rate she was taking on water, Jake couldn’t risk staying onboard too long. She really could overbalance at any moment.
Moving quickly to the ladder that led below decks to the living quarters, he could see that the bottom two rungs were already underwater and a lot of their possessions and the boat’s fittings were floating on the surface.
He splashed down into the water and looked around to see what was still useful.
“We’ll definitely be needing that.” Jake waded over to the galley and grabbed the first aid kit that was still strapped to the bulkhead. It was still sealed tight but Jake stuffed it into a Ziploc bag from one of the drawers just to be on the safe side.
Hmmm. He still needed to be able to swim back carrying it, though.
Looking around, he spied his backpack floating nearby.
Moving to pick it up, Jake thought he spotted a flash of color and movement off to his left. He spun around, creating a ripple of small waves. But there was nothing; the only movement he could see now was the waves he had created.
“Get a grip, Jake,” he muttered to himself. This place was starting to creep him out. He needed to get out of here, back into the sunshine and back to Van.
Not wasting any more time, Jake grabbed the backpack and emptied it of water before stuffing the first aid kit in.
Next, he moved to un-strap the survival kit from its wall mounting and shoved that in the bag too.
“What the fuck was that?” Jake spun again. Not only had he thought he’d seen something move again, he could’ve sworn he felt something brush against his leg.
Looking down, his heart lurched into his mouth. There, swimming around him in lazy undulating circles, was a snake. It was about 4ft and had a distinctive banded pattern on its grayish-blue skin.
Shit! Bands were bad, right? Bands meant a snake was poisonous, right? Like… really poisonous?
“Easy,” he murmured as he slowly reached for the largest knife off the magnetic strip on the galley bulkhead.
The snake turned another lazy circle toward him, his forked tongue flicking out as if trying to sense what Jake was.
Another flash of color off to the left caught his attention. Trying to keep one eye on the snake in front of him, Jake looked over and saw a second snake slowly moving its way into the boat through the gash in the starboard side.
OK. This was definitely not good! He was outta here!
Moving cautiously and trying to keep an eye on both snakes at the same time, Jake reached behind him to feel the edge of the ladder leading back topside.
His heart pounded so hard in his chest that he thought the snakes must be able to sense his fear as he brought his foot up to step on the nearest rung.
But he lost his footing and fell heavily against the portside, knocking the breath out of his body.
The whole boat shuddered and he felt it lurch further toward the unknown depths of the ocean on the far side of the reef.
Scrambling to his feet, Jake grabbed the backpack and stuffed the knife through a belt loop in his shorts before lunging for the ladder and hauling himself up two rungs at a time. He would risk being bitten by one of the snakes over being entombed down here as the 32-footer tumbled into the abyss.
When Jake reached the deck again and made for the starboard ladder, he saw with horror that the whole section of the reef seemed to be teeming with snakes.
He looked over at the beach to see that Van was waving wildly for him to get off the boat and back to the island. The man looked on the verge of swimming out to the boat to help Jake.
Barely a couple of hours earlier, Jake had been fearful Van was dead and that he would never get to tell the blonde how he felt. Now Jake was worried that he wouldn’t live long enough to tell Van that he… he loved him. That revelation terrified him and made him smile all at once, and he determined to do something about it.
He was not going to die here! “Not happening!”
Jake made for the ladder and practically threw himself down the metal rails.
He gingerly stepped across the reef, avoiding the snakes that seemed to have been drawn out into the sun to feed on the small colorful fish that inhabited the rocks.
Getting close to the edge of the reef, Jake quickly slipped the loops of the backpack over his shoulders before diving into the clear crystal waters just as one of the nearest snakes reared its head up at him.
Despite the extra weight on his back, Jake swam as fast as he could, worrying that he would be bitten as he tried to get away.
“Jake! Hurry!” As Jake came within earshot he could hear the panic in Van’s voice which made him swim even faster.
Before he’d even reached the beach, Jake found himself being awkwardly hauled from the surf to his feet by a frantic Van. “Are you OK?”
He never got a chance to reply as Van suddenly pulled him into a fierce hug; one arm high around his broad shoulders and the other just above his waist. As Van’s arms tightened around him, Jake - shocked by the man’s action - struggled to keep his body from reacting to being held so close and so tightly against Van’s body. He swallowed hard and tried to concentrate on just the feel of the blonde’s arms around him. He felt glad to be alive. His arms automatically came up to rest on Van’s back and he never wanted to let go again.
Just then Van started to talk, his voice muffled and hot against the skin of Jake’s neck. “When I saw the boat start to move, I… I thought you were dead for sure, Jake. I didn’t think I would ever see you again and I never got the chance to…” Before Van could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by a loud creaking and the sound of material tearing.
Both men turned on the spot, just in time to witness the ‘Crystal Blue’ sliding off the reef as gravity and the weight of the water in her hull finally toppled her the rest of the way into the abyss of the deep ocean. The last thing they saw of the boat was the tattered sail being pulled down after her and air bubbles breaking on the surface.
And then it was as if the 32-footer had never existed.
Neither man reacted for several moments, both just staring at the spot where the boat had been.
Suddenly Van turned to face Jake and he was shocked to see a look of wild-eyed anger on the man’s face. He had never seen Van so angry but there was also a real fear in the other man’s eyes. “You fucking idiot!” Van pushed hard against Jake’s chest, unbalancing him and making him fall on his ass in the sand.
“Van?!”
“I told you not to try and be a hero. Just a few minutes more and you would have disappeared along with the boat. What the hell took you so long? What the fuck were you doing?”
“I’m OK, Van. Really,” Jake reassured, holding up both of his hands as if to deflect some of Van’s anger. Van hadn’t mentioned the snakes. Perhaps he hadn’t been able to see them from the beach.
Jake didn’t think it was a good idea to mention them right now.
“Well?!”
Why was Van being like this? Jake may have only realized minutes earlier that he loved the guy, but there was no way he was going to let Van yell at him like that. “If you stop yelling for a minute, I’ll show you.”
He removed the knife from his belt loop and stuck it, blade first, deep into the sand before struggling with the backpack to get it off his shoulders. Dumping it on the sand next to him, Jake untied the fastenings and stuck his hand in to pull out the first aid kit.
He recoiled quickly and scrambled backward in the sand when he felt something move inside the bag.
Jake watched, frozen to the spot, as one of the banded snakes slithered out from inside.
Before the snake had a chance to get near Jake or to rear up and strike, Van moved quicker than Jake had ever seen the blonde move before. He grabbed the knife and, with one fluid motion, he sliced off its head.
Careful to stay away from the severed head, Van dropped to his knees, discarded the knife and grabbed Jake’s hand. “Did it bite you?” he asked anxiously as he turned the hand over and examined the skin for any bite marks.
Satisfied, he sat back on his heels. Staring back at the snake, it suddenly seemed to dawn on him what he had done. “Was it even poisonous?” he asked as he gazed back at Jake, still holding his hand in both of his; seemingly unable to let go.
Jake looked at the dead snake then at their joined hands before he brought his gaze up to the concerned hazel. He opened his mouth a couple of times before replying as he tried to process what had just happened. He nodded and finally found his voice. “Yeah, I… I think so. I think it’s a banded sea krait. I remember watching about them on National Geographic once.” Even now he still refused to abbreviate the channel name.
Van shook his head and let out an incredulous chuckle. “You and your documentaries! Geek!” His smirk faded. “But it didn’t bite you, right?”
Jake shook his head emphatically and squeezed Van’s hand a little. “No, I’m OK.”
“Good, ‘cause I don’t think I could handle any more excitement today.”
“I hear you!” Jake agreed and let Van help him to his feet.
~~~~~
As darkness closed in all around them, both men’s thoughts turned to organizing food and shelter for the night. They were too exhausted to think of trying to get help tonight; that would have to wait until the morning.
They decided to save the meager rations in the survival kit in favor of cooking and eating the snake instead.
Jake handed Van the snake with a look of distaste.
Van chuckled as he looked up at Jake with a smirk. “Oh, so you can act all macho and he-man when it comes to swimming out to the boat and shit. But when it comes down to skinning a snake…”
“Shut up!” Jake rolled his eyes and turned his back on the man’s laughter to concentrate on putting together some kind of shelter from palm fronds and a small square of folded plastic out of the survival kit.
When the snake was cooking over a fire started with matches from the kit and gathered driftwood, Jake turned to Van. “I should take a look at your side now.” He gestured for Van to sit on the sand while he opened the first aid kit.
“Um… maybe it would be easier if you took off your vest,” Jake tried to keep the tremor from his voice as he watched the blonde slowly pull the material over his head and deposit it on the sand next to him.
He’d seen Van bare-chested many times… hell, he’d even seen him in just his boxer-briefs a time or two when their nights out had ended up with one of them sleeping it off on the other’s couch. But this time, as his fingers reached out to gently probe the edges of the cut, he had to resist the urge to let his fingers wander.
Jake gulped, his Adams apple bobbing up and down, as he tried to concentrate. “It… er… looks pretty clean. I should probably use a wipe though. This is gonna hurt a little.” He fumbled an attempt to tear open the wrapping of an antiseptic wipe and resorted to his teeth instead. Jesus! He felt like a teenager who’d just discovered what his dick was for!
“Shit!” Van grimaced in pain and gripped Jake’s knee hard as he applied the wipe.
“Ow!”
“Sorry!” Van apologized through gritted teeth as he rubbed at Jake’s knee.
“There, finished,” Jake soothed as he applied a dressing, smoothing down the adhesive edges.
“Thanks… I think,” Van mumbled, letting out a shaky breath.
When his breathing returned to normal, Van pulled the first aid kit toward him. “Now it’s your turn.”
Jake backed away in the sand a little. “No, it’s OK… I’m OK. It’s fine.”
“Don’t be such a baby, Jake. Hold still.” Van’s hands came up to hold either side of Jake’s face and tilted his head down so he could see the hairline better.
Jake bit his lip at the feel of Van’s warm breath on his skin. He was so close… too close.
He pulled back a little and Van looked up at him, the green-flecked hazel puzzled.
As the flames from the fire danced in Van’s eyes, everything that had happened that day; the near death experiences, being stranded out here, the feel of Van’s hands on his face, the sight of the broad expanse of bare chest and just having the other man so close overwhelmed Jake.
Without even really thinking about his actions, Jake succumbed to his intense feelings and leaned forward to press his lips to Van’s.
Van gasped and stilled immediately. Jake tried to deepen the kiss, pouring everything he had into it, as he brought his hands up to fist in Van’s hair.
Then he became aware of the man’s hands dropping down to his chest, pushing him back.
“Jake, I…” Van murmured as he looked up at him, the total shock plainly evident on his face.
Fuck! What had he done? Van didn’t want this! He was forcing himself on the other man. “Shit, Van… I… I’m sorry…” he stammered as he struggled to his feet.
“Jake, wait!”
But Jake didn’t stop.
Instead, he turned and fled out of the circle of light created by the fire then headed down the darkened beach with Van’s calls echoing in his ears.
Chapter 3
Author/Artist: Wheelie47
Beta: Valenti1965 - thanks for your support and encouragement, Louise!
Rating: NC17 (eventually)
Disclaimer: Don't own the boys!
Characters/Pairings: Van and Jake (JANSIS)
Word Count: approx 10,500 (in total)
Warnings: A little bit of angst.
Summary: Van and Jake are shipwrecked on a desert island. Told from Jake’s POV.
Author’s Notes: There are no significant others in this fic; Van and Jake are both single.
Link to Master Post and art: Here!
Original Prompt: #12 - "Castaway" inspired. They are shipwrecked on a desert island.
Written for Summerfest 2013 over on nukebigbang
Chapter 2
“I don’t know, Jake,” Van said as he looked out at the boat then back at Jake, a worried expression creasing his handsome face. “I think it’s too risky. Like you said, it could sink at any time.”
“Ah, you worried about me, Van?” Jake tried to joke, curling his lips into a lop-sided grin that faded a little when the blonde didn’t smile back.
“Look, I’ll be fine,” he reassured as he scooted around in the sand to place his hands on Van’s shoulders, trying to ignore the way Van’s skin felt against his palms. “I’ll be back before you know it.”
The other man didn’t look convinced.
Once Van had warmed up a little, they had retreated from the heat of the sun to the shade of a palm tree. As Jake had sat with his back against the trunk, looking out at the boat, he’d decided he would swim out to the ‘Crystal Blue’ to salvage anything that he could.
Van had been less than impressed when Jake had shared his idea.
“It’s too dangerous,” Van replied firmly, staring back at Jake as if he wasn’t going to let him win this discussion.
“Van, there’s stuff on that boat we need - supplies, tools, the radio, not to mention the first aid kit.” Jake nodded toward the wound in Van’s side. “We need to get that cleaned up and dressed. It could get infected.”
“Well, you’re hardly in the best shape yourself,” Van snapped back, gesturing with one hand to the cut on Jake’s forehead.
“I’m in better shape than you.” He tried smiling again. “You know I’m right.”
“I hate it when you’re right,” Van huffed sulkily as he kicked at the sand.
Jake stood and bent to help Van to his feet when the man started to get up too. “If it makes you feel any better, you can be right next time, OK? Unless, of course, if you’re wrong,” he added with a chuckle.
As they walked down to the surf, Jake expected Van to come back with a quick response. Usually, their ‘discussions’ could go on and on, neither man willing to back down.
But, instead, there was just silence.
He looked over at Van and was surprised to see him staring straight ahead with his jaw clenched tightly as they walked.
“Van?”
It wasn’t until they reached the water that Van turned to face Jake, an unreadable expression across his face. “Just don’t do anything… stupid, OK? Don’t try to be a hero.”
Jake didn’t know what to make of this new Van. Normally, the man wore his emotions on his face and in his eyes. But right now Jake had no clue what his friend was thinking. And that kinda freaked him out.
“OK,” he replied simply, not sure what else to say. “I’ll be careful.”
Taking off his shirt and then his tight white T-shirt, Jake handed them both to Van. “I’ve only just got them dry,” he explained with a shrug when Van shot him a surprised look before taking the clothing and turning to look back out to the stranded 32-footer on the reef, a pained expression on his face.
Couldn’t Van even look at him now? A sudden thought hit Jake. Had Van realized that Jake wanted more from their friendship? Was that something Van couldn’t give him? Or didn’t even want? Jake didn’t think he could take that rejection.
He opened his mouth to say something but closed it again. What could he say?
Without another word, Jake started to wade out into the surf. When the water got waist high, he began to swim.
After a few minutes, his muscles started to ache, the saltwater made the cut on his head sting and his breath came in short bursts. The distance to the boat wasn’t that great; he’d swum further before. Perhaps the last few hours had taken more out of him than he’d thought.
There was no turning back now. He had to do this. So he gritted his teeth and swam on, concentrating on controlling his breathing and focusing on the fact that with each stroke he was getting closer to the boat.
“Finally!” Jake gasped when he eventually reached the section of the reef where ‘Crystal Blue’ was stranded.
Hauling himself up onto the coral, he grimaced as the sharp rock dug into his bare feet.
He gingerly made his way to the base of the ladder leading up to the boat’s deck. The angle of the boat meant that the bottom rung was almost out of reach. But he managed to stretch up and grasp the metal with both hands. Jake made a silent promise to thank his parents when he got outta this mess for the genes that made him so freakin’ tall!
Jake tugged on the ladder, testing if it would take his weight.
“Seems OK,” he muttered, more out of a need to reassure himself than anything else.
With a grunt of exertion, Jake managed to heave himself off the coral, his muscles bulging with the effort.
Straining hard and with gritted teeth, he supported all his weight with one hand as he stretched up with the other to grasp the second rung.
As he tried to bring his hand up to meet the other, he almost slipped and only saved himself from falling back onto the coral by hooking his arm around the rung. “Shit!” he grimaced as a jarring pain ripped through his shoulder. He hoped he hadn’t torn a muscle or something.
Blowing out a shaky breath, he paused for a moment or two before carrying on.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Jake managed to reach the top of the ladder and flung himself onto the deck where he lay on his back, gasping for breath.
“Need to lay off that pizza,” Jake groaned as he hauled himself back to his feet.
He stood at the railing and looked back to the island to see that Van had waded out to his knees and was watching him intently, one hand shading his eyes.
“I’m OK!” Jake shouted as he waved… not even certain Van could hear him.
Van waved back and gestured urgently for Jake to hurry.
Jake turned and surveyed the deck. The damage looked even worse close up. The claims adjuster would have a field day.
Picking his way over the debris, Jake carefully moved to the boat’s wrecked cabin.
“Shit!” he groaned when he saw the instrument panel. There wasn’t a single display that looked like it would be working again anytime soon. He flicked the switch back and forth on the radio. Nothing. That wasn’t going to be bringing them any help.
“Whoa!” Jake held his hands out to steady himself as the boat shifted with a lurch. Looking out of one of the cracked portside portholes, he saw that the ‘Crystal Blue’ was precariously balanced right on the edge of the reef with a great expanse of deeper water below.
At the rate she was taking on water, Jake couldn’t risk staying onboard too long. She really could overbalance at any moment.
Moving quickly to the ladder that led below decks to the living quarters, he could see that the bottom two rungs were already underwater and a lot of their possessions and the boat’s fittings were floating on the surface.
He splashed down into the water and looked around to see what was still useful.
“We’ll definitely be needing that.” Jake waded over to the galley and grabbed the first aid kit that was still strapped to the bulkhead. It was still sealed tight but Jake stuffed it into a Ziploc bag from one of the drawers just to be on the safe side.
Hmmm. He still needed to be able to swim back carrying it, though.
Looking around, he spied his backpack floating nearby.
Moving to pick it up, Jake thought he spotted a flash of color and movement off to his left. He spun around, creating a ripple of small waves. But there was nothing; the only movement he could see now was the waves he had created.
“Get a grip, Jake,” he muttered to himself. This place was starting to creep him out. He needed to get out of here, back into the sunshine and back to Van.
Not wasting any more time, Jake grabbed the backpack and emptied it of water before stuffing the first aid kit in.
Next, he moved to un-strap the survival kit from its wall mounting and shoved that in the bag too.
“What the fuck was that?” Jake spun again. Not only had he thought he’d seen something move again, he could’ve sworn he felt something brush against his leg.
Looking down, his heart lurched into his mouth. There, swimming around him in lazy undulating circles, was a snake. It was about 4ft and had a distinctive banded pattern on its grayish-blue skin.
Shit! Bands were bad, right? Bands meant a snake was poisonous, right? Like… really poisonous?
“Easy,” he murmured as he slowly reached for the largest knife off the magnetic strip on the galley bulkhead.
The snake turned another lazy circle toward him, his forked tongue flicking out as if trying to sense what Jake was.
Another flash of color off to the left caught his attention. Trying to keep one eye on the snake in front of him, Jake looked over and saw a second snake slowly moving its way into the boat through the gash in the starboard side.
OK. This was definitely not good! He was outta here!
Moving cautiously and trying to keep an eye on both snakes at the same time, Jake reached behind him to feel the edge of the ladder leading back topside.
His heart pounded so hard in his chest that he thought the snakes must be able to sense his fear as he brought his foot up to step on the nearest rung.
But he lost his footing and fell heavily against the portside, knocking the breath out of his body.
The whole boat shuddered and he felt it lurch further toward the unknown depths of the ocean on the far side of the reef.
Scrambling to his feet, Jake grabbed the backpack and stuffed the knife through a belt loop in his shorts before lunging for the ladder and hauling himself up two rungs at a time. He would risk being bitten by one of the snakes over being entombed down here as the 32-footer tumbled into the abyss.
When Jake reached the deck again and made for the starboard ladder, he saw with horror that the whole section of the reef seemed to be teeming with snakes.
He looked over at the beach to see that Van was waving wildly for him to get off the boat and back to the island. The man looked on the verge of swimming out to the boat to help Jake.
Barely a couple of hours earlier, Jake had been fearful Van was dead and that he would never get to tell the blonde how he felt. Now Jake was worried that he wouldn’t live long enough to tell Van that he… he loved him. That revelation terrified him and made him smile all at once, and he determined to do something about it.
He was not going to die here! “Not happening!”
Jake made for the ladder and practically threw himself down the metal rails.
He gingerly stepped across the reef, avoiding the snakes that seemed to have been drawn out into the sun to feed on the small colorful fish that inhabited the rocks.
Getting close to the edge of the reef, Jake quickly slipped the loops of the backpack over his shoulders before diving into the clear crystal waters just as one of the nearest snakes reared its head up at him.
Despite the extra weight on his back, Jake swam as fast as he could, worrying that he would be bitten as he tried to get away.
“Jake! Hurry!” As Jake came within earshot he could hear the panic in Van’s voice which made him swim even faster.
Before he’d even reached the beach, Jake found himself being awkwardly hauled from the surf to his feet by a frantic Van. “Are you OK?”
He never got a chance to reply as Van suddenly pulled him into a fierce hug; one arm high around his broad shoulders and the other just above his waist. As Van’s arms tightened around him, Jake - shocked by the man’s action - struggled to keep his body from reacting to being held so close and so tightly against Van’s body. He swallowed hard and tried to concentrate on just the feel of the blonde’s arms around him. He felt glad to be alive. His arms automatically came up to rest on Van’s back and he never wanted to let go again.
Just then Van started to talk, his voice muffled and hot against the skin of Jake’s neck. “When I saw the boat start to move, I… I thought you were dead for sure, Jake. I didn’t think I would ever see you again and I never got the chance to…” Before Van could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by a loud creaking and the sound of material tearing.
Both men turned on the spot, just in time to witness the ‘Crystal Blue’ sliding off the reef as gravity and the weight of the water in her hull finally toppled her the rest of the way into the abyss of the deep ocean. The last thing they saw of the boat was the tattered sail being pulled down after her and air bubbles breaking on the surface.
And then it was as if the 32-footer had never existed.
Neither man reacted for several moments, both just staring at the spot where the boat had been.
Suddenly Van turned to face Jake and he was shocked to see a look of wild-eyed anger on the man’s face. He had never seen Van so angry but there was also a real fear in the other man’s eyes. “You fucking idiot!” Van pushed hard against Jake’s chest, unbalancing him and making him fall on his ass in the sand.
“Van?!”
“I told you not to try and be a hero. Just a few minutes more and you would have disappeared along with the boat. What the hell took you so long? What the fuck were you doing?”
“I’m OK, Van. Really,” Jake reassured, holding up both of his hands as if to deflect some of Van’s anger. Van hadn’t mentioned the snakes. Perhaps he hadn’t been able to see them from the beach.
Jake didn’t think it was a good idea to mention them right now.
“Well?!”
Why was Van being like this? Jake may have only realized minutes earlier that he loved the guy, but there was no way he was going to let Van yell at him like that. “If you stop yelling for a minute, I’ll show you.”
He removed the knife from his belt loop and stuck it, blade first, deep into the sand before struggling with the backpack to get it off his shoulders. Dumping it on the sand next to him, Jake untied the fastenings and stuck his hand in to pull out the first aid kit.
He recoiled quickly and scrambled backward in the sand when he felt something move inside the bag.
Jake watched, frozen to the spot, as one of the banded snakes slithered out from inside.
Before the snake had a chance to get near Jake or to rear up and strike, Van moved quicker than Jake had ever seen the blonde move before. He grabbed the knife and, with one fluid motion, he sliced off its head.
Careful to stay away from the severed head, Van dropped to his knees, discarded the knife and grabbed Jake’s hand. “Did it bite you?” he asked anxiously as he turned the hand over and examined the skin for any bite marks.
Satisfied, he sat back on his heels. Staring back at the snake, it suddenly seemed to dawn on him what he had done. “Was it even poisonous?” he asked as he gazed back at Jake, still holding his hand in both of his; seemingly unable to let go.
Jake looked at the dead snake then at their joined hands before he brought his gaze up to the concerned hazel. He opened his mouth a couple of times before replying as he tried to process what had just happened. He nodded and finally found his voice. “Yeah, I… I think so. I think it’s a banded sea krait. I remember watching about them on National Geographic once.” Even now he still refused to abbreviate the channel name.
Van shook his head and let out an incredulous chuckle. “You and your documentaries! Geek!” His smirk faded. “But it didn’t bite you, right?”
Jake shook his head emphatically and squeezed Van’s hand a little. “No, I’m OK.”
“Good, ‘cause I don’t think I could handle any more excitement today.”
“I hear you!” Jake agreed and let Van help him to his feet.
~~~~~
As darkness closed in all around them, both men’s thoughts turned to organizing food and shelter for the night. They were too exhausted to think of trying to get help tonight; that would have to wait until the morning.
They decided to save the meager rations in the survival kit in favor of cooking and eating the snake instead.
Jake handed Van the snake with a look of distaste.
Van chuckled as he looked up at Jake with a smirk. “Oh, so you can act all macho and he-man when it comes to swimming out to the boat and shit. But when it comes down to skinning a snake…”
“Shut up!” Jake rolled his eyes and turned his back on the man’s laughter to concentrate on putting together some kind of shelter from palm fronds and a small square of folded plastic out of the survival kit.
When the snake was cooking over a fire started with matches from the kit and gathered driftwood, Jake turned to Van. “I should take a look at your side now.” He gestured for Van to sit on the sand while he opened the first aid kit.
“Um… maybe it would be easier if you took off your vest,” Jake tried to keep the tremor from his voice as he watched the blonde slowly pull the material over his head and deposit it on the sand next to him.
He’d seen Van bare-chested many times… hell, he’d even seen him in just his boxer-briefs a time or two when their nights out had ended up with one of them sleeping it off on the other’s couch. But this time, as his fingers reached out to gently probe the edges of the cut, he had to resist the urge to let his fingers wander.
Jake gulped, his Adams apple bobbing up and down, as he tried to concentrate. “It… er… looks pretty clean. I should probably use a wipe though. This is gonna hurt a little.” He fumbled an attempt to tear open the wrapping of an antiseptic wipe and resorted to his teeth instead. Jesus! He felt like a teenager who’d just discovered what his dick was for!
“Shit!” Van grimaced in pain and gripped Jake’s knee hard as he applied the wipe.
“Ow!”
“Sorry!” Van apologized through gritted teeth as he rubbed at Jake’s knee.
“There, finished,” Jake soothed as he applied a dressing, smoothing down the adhesive edges.
“Thanks… I think,” Van mumbled, letting out a shaky breath.
When his breathing returned to normal, Van pulled the first aid kit toward him. “Now it’s your turn.”
Jake backed away in the sand a little. “No, it’s OK… I’m OK. It’s fine.”
“Don’t be such a baby, Jake. Hold still.” Van’s hands came up to hold either side of Jake’s face and tilted his head down so he could see the hairline better.
Jake bit his lip at the feel of Van’s warm breath on his skin. He was so close… too close.
He pulled back a little and Van looked up at him, the green-flecked hazel puzzled.
As the flames from the fire danced in Van’s eyes, everything that had happened that day; the near death experiences, being stranded out here, the feel of Van’s hands on his face, the sight of the broad expanse of bare chest and just having the other man so close overwhelmed Jake.
Without even really thinking about his actions, Jake succumbed to his intense feelings and leaned forward to press his lips to Van’s.
Van gasped and stilled immediately. Jake tried to deepen the kiss, pouring everything he had into it, as he brought his hands up to fist in Van’s hair.
Then he became aware of the man’s hands dropping down to his chest, pushing him back.
“Jake, I…” Van murmured as he looked up at him, the total shock plainly evident on his face.
Fuck! What had he done? Van didn’t want this! He was forcing himself on the other man. “Shit, Van… I… I’m sorry…” he stammered as he struggled to his feet.
“Jake, wait!”
But Jake didn’t stop.
Instead, he turned and fled out of the circle of light created by the fire then headed down the darkened beach with Van’s calls echoing in his ears.
Chapter 3