Blaine scrambled out of the lifeboat, trying in vain to haul it above the high-tide marks on the beach. He was exhausted from trying to keep afloat for so many hours and the lack of food and water wasnt helping, either. He looked at Kurt and could see the same was true of him, and the worry set in. Being a doctor, Blaines biggest fault – which was also his biggest asset – was that he cared too much about people. Hed been reprimanded for being too close to his patients, for caring too much. He had been so angry and so disappointed when that happened. He believed that caring about people was why he became a doctor. He shook his head, once again focusing on the problem in front of him.

“Hey, can you lend a hand? I cant haul the boat up by myself,” Blaine asked Kurt, who turned and put his hands in front of him.

“Where?” was all he said and Blaine helped him out of the lifeboat, then took his arm and led him to where he could pull on the rope. Together they pulled it up on shore and then walked to the edge of the palm trees, Blaine leading Kurt and trying to keep him from stepping on anything that might trip him or cut his feet. About halfway up the beach, something reached out and yanked Kurts ankle – tripping him as he fell hard on the rocks skinning his knees and hands and cutting his cheek open on a jagged stone.

“Kurt!” Blaine yelled, trying to stop him from tumbling, but he was too late. He had somehow missed seeing the rope tied to Kurts ankle.

Kurt moved his head as though he was lost in the dark, which he was. Blaine came to try and help him up, but Kurt lashed out at him - terrified. He was dizzy and his head hurt and now he was having a little bit of trouble breathing. This was all too much.

“Leave me alone...Blair or whatever you said your name was. Where are we? All I want is to be back with my dad in Charlotte Amalie,” Kurt said, putting his head down on his knees and hugging his arms around his legs. He was terrified. The storm scared him, he didnt understand why he couldnt see. He thought it must have been from the debris that hit him when the boat broke up. Kurt was worried about the skipper of that boat...Capt. Grumby, and the crew. Were they all right? Had they found their way to the other lifeboat? But most of all, Kurt just wanted his dad. Was his heart okay? Would he go home without Kurt, thinking his son was dead? Tears pooled in Kurts eyes, but he didnt let them fall.

Blaine was close enough to see the cut on Kurts face was probably painful, but not dangerous. However, it would need to be cleaned and the skinned knees would have to be tended to.

“I saw a few of the duffel bags are still in the boat. Ill go back and check them to see if theres anything to eat,” Blaine said, moving close to Kurt but not touching him. “Will you be okay to stay here while I go back?”

“I will be fine. Just leave me alone,” Kurt said, lying his head down so his uninjured cheek was on his knee. He tried to understand how blind he was, but try as he might there was nothing he could see, not even the direct sunlight.

“Kurt, dont look at the sun. Youll damage your eyes,” Blaine said softly. He could tell Kurt was on the edge of panic and there was no valium or anything else here to bring him out of it if he went into a full anxiety attack. He remembered Kurt from the emergency room. Blaine had been the one to hold him until the drugs did their job. He didnt think Kurt remembered him, though.

“Whats the difference now?” Kurt said, dejected. “Im blind. Why would it matter?” he asked, but it was meant to be rhetorical.

“You might have a temporary condition. If something can be done to restore your vision, you dont want the nerves in your eyes to be burned out by the sun, do you?” Blaine asked.

“I guess not. Go see whats in the boat. Ill wait here,” Kurt said. He was so angry at what happened, he didnt want anyone near him right now. Kurt had learned as a child not to show his emotions. It wasnt something his dad taught him -not Burt, the most loving and caring father on Earth; but when Kurt cried about missing his mother, Burt would cry, too, and it hurt Kurt to think hed made his dad sad so he stuffed his feelings down inside of himself.

Blaine walked back to the little life boat. There were three duffel bags in the bottom of the boat, all soaked by the rain and the ocean water that came in waves to try and sink them. No use saving that water, it was salty and not drinkable. Connected securely to the inside of the boat was a wooden box. Blaine opened it to find a first aid kit, some flares, a bag of drinking water, and some dried rations. There was a coil of rope and two knives, and a map of the Caribbean – although this last find was waterlogged and unreadable. Blaine reached into his pocket and withdrew his cell phone, but it was dead. He held it up and water ran out of it. He sighed.

Blaine decided to leave the duffel bags to open later, the first aid kit was a good one and sealed in a water-proof case, so he took the drinking water and the case back to Kurt.

“Hey, how are you doing?” Blaine asked. Kurt turned his face towards the sound of Blaines voice.

“Im lost. I want my dad. My head hurts. And I cant fucking see. How do you think Im doing?” Kurt snapped. Even though he couldnt see Blaine, he was giving him his best ice-bitch glare and it kind of unnerved Blaine.

“I took all the duffel bags off the boat and brought them past the high tide mark, then I found the first aid kit and some water to drink. We need to be conservative with the water, but Ill get you some right now,” Blaine said. He opened the first aid kit and found a small cup which he filled half full of water. Kurt was trembling, probably due to the shock of finding himself blind and shipwrecked, so Blaine tried to put an arm around him to steady him before giving him the cup. Kurt jerked away from the touch.

“Hey, you spilled the water! I was just trying to steady you, Kurt. Now, Im going to touch you – just so you can swallow the water. Ready?” he asked and Kurt nodded. Blaine gently placed an arm around Kurts shoulders and touched the cup to his lips. Kurt took a small sip and tipped the cup back up straight.

“How much water do we have, and did you drink any?” he asked.

“There is about a gallon. No, I havent had any yet,” he answered in his soft voice. Kurt listened intently to it. He thought it sounded familiar, but Blaines name wasnt and Kurts head hurt so bad he couldnt concentrate.

Blaine gave Kurt the rest of the water in the cup and then poured a little less for himself.

He looked through the first aid kit, wondering if he could give something to Kurt for his headache. Hed mentioned it once, but he kept rubbing his temples and he looked as if he were in pain. There were vials of morphine, some antibiotics in tablet form with saline and syringes in the kit. There were bandages and a first-aid manual, several bottles of malaria pills, and some aspirin.

“You dont have any allergies, do you, Kurt?” he asked.

“Nope. Well, to rhubarb, but I doubt that is going to be of any concern here,” he said, turning his face up to speak, then back down to rest on his knees.

“You dont have asthma, do you?”

“No. Why would you ask me that?” Kurt wondered.

“Im going to give you some aspirin, but you shouldnt take aspirin if youre asthmatic. It might help with that headache, okay?” Blaine asked.

“Thank you,” Kurt said and took the aspirin he was given with a tiny sip of water.

“Now, if you dont mind, Id like to take you back under the trees. Its hot out here and I bet you burn easily. I took the rope off from your ankle so just grab my hand and Ill help you get there,” Blaine offered. After careful consideration Kurt put out a hand. Blaine helped him up and guided him to the shade under the palm trees. Blaine was surprised at how soft Kurts hands were and he looked closer at the boy, seeing him clearly for the first time. He was thin, but had muscle. He must do something physical every day to be in such good shape at his age. It couldnt be manual labor given the softness of his hands, though. Maybe he was a runner? Blaine forced himself to stop looking at Kurt in that manner, the boy was ten years younger than Blaine.

“Lets see that gash now,” he told Kurt and took cotton and a bit of the water to clean it up, applying three butterfly closures and covering it with antiseptic cream. “Do you hurt anywhere else?” Blaine asked.

“Yes, but it isnt too bad. Ill be fine. Do you have any idea where we are?” Kurt asked in that melodic voice that Blaine was starting to really like.

“Not much of one. I was just in the Virgin Islands as a favor to a friend. I was headed back home on Friday. I was knocked off the ferry by a wave early yesterday afternoon I think. We did fall asleep, so Im not sure how long we slept.”

“Ferry?”

“The one from St John to St Thomas. They were arguing about whether it was safe, but the skipper said the wind was not that bad. I was in a hurry I guess. Id been visiting a pal on St John and was due back for my next shift at work that night on St Thomas, so I volunteered to take the ferry, even with the warning. I should have listened to my friends, they told me not to go,” Blaine said, stopping for a breath. It was very hot and he was thirsty.

“Did the ferry capsize?” Kurt asked, wondering how many people were thrown into the sea by the storm. Maybe some would come to this...wherever they were...and he could get back to his dad.

“No, as far as I know it didnt. I was on the deck and a wave hit. I helped a woman get her daughters lifejacket on, which took time because the little girl was scared. I had been trying to get my own lifejacket on when I got swept off my feet. I was trying to hold on, but the deck was slick. I fell in and someone threw me one of those floating rings, but I missed it. I went under and the next thing I knew I was holding that piece of wood to keep my head out of the water. I cant swim,” he said quietly, as if it were something to be ashamed of.

Kurt just sat there in the shade where Blaine had helped him. He was hot, too, but didnt want to ask for any more water.

“Thanks for pulling me out of the sea, Kurt. Not many people would have risked their life for a stranger,” Blaine said, looking at Kurt for signs of shock. He wasnt trembling and his skin hadnt seemed clammy when Blaine took his arm earlier. He watched carefully and noted his breathing was calm. No, he was probably just hot and tired. And dehydrated.

“Kurt, Im going to look for something to drink or eat. Are you going to be okay if I leave you here for a few minutes? I wont go far and I think youll be able to call me if you need me,” Blaine said.

“Im not a child. I will be just fine, okay?” Kurt snapped.

“Okay, sorry,” Blaine said, wondering if Kurt was always grumpy or if something was going on with his head injury. He made the mental note to watch Kurt more closely.

Walking through the sand was hard, it was very soft sand and Blaine sank down in it a bit with each step. After a few hundred yards his back and calves started to hurt, but he kept going – keeping the tall palm tree that Kurt was near in his sight. He came across some trees and discovered most of them were coconuts. He picked up a few that had dried before finding one that sloshed when he shook it. He climbed one short palm tree to get a few nuts before he realized that if he fell and broke a leg or something hed be alone and probably die.

Walking down to the beach once again, he turned back to see Kurt. The boy had dug a hole in the hot sand to find cool sand underneath and buried his feet in the cooler sand, then laid back on the shallow trench hed dug. Blaine tried to recall how old Kurt was from the chart in the hospital, he thought he was about 16, but his memory wasnt as good as he wished it was.

Looking around, he saw a crab scuttle past him and he grabbed a bamboo stick hed found on the ground under some of the trees. Armed with the stick, he chased the crab and hit it out of the tree it was..climbing? Did crabs climb trees? He struck the animal a few more times and then picked it up to take back with him.

Blaine walked back to the trees where Kurt was still resting. He jumped as Blaine approached but settled down as Blaine began to speak.

“Oh, sorry...didnt mean to startle you. I found some coconuts and a coconut crab. Ill need to get a fire going. Hey, are you feeling okay?” Blaine asked, seeing that Kurt was now lying down with his head in his hands.

“Its just a headache. Itll pass,” Kurt said, but winced when he turned his face to try to find Blaine. It had only been about two hours since Blaine had given him the aspirin, so he didnt want to give him any more and morphine was a bit drastic.

“Here, I found some young coconuts. Ill get some water out of one and you can have something to drink. I think you might be dehydrated. That can cause a headache,” Blaine said and moved to cup Kurts cheek with his hand to comfort him. As a doctor, Blaine knew touch could be very useful in healing – or just to calm an anxious person.

As soon as his hand touched Kurts face he flinched and jumped back, letting out a small shriek.

“Hey...dont touch me. Thats not all right,” Kurt grumbled, holding his arms around his chest and bringing up his knees.

“Im sorry, Kurt. I was just seeing if you had a temperature. I didnt think...” Blaine started to explain, but Kurt interrupted him.

“No, you obviously didnt think. Im not used to having people paw me when I dont know whats coming at me...so dont do that again, okay?” he said, looking past Blaines shoulder with a cold, icy stare.

“Sure, Kurt. Ill remember that.”

Blaine looked through the first aid/survival kit and found a tool that looked like an ice pick. He used pressure to poke it through the eyes of the first coconut, then the second. He tried one and the water inside the nut was a little sweet and so cool and good it was hard to stop and see to Kurt. Blaine knew Kurt was probably just frightened, so he kept his personal feelings in check as he came close and spoke in a soft voice, careful not to sound condescending.

“I have the coconut ready. There are three holes poked in the end, one to drink from and two for air. I will help you to begin with if you dont mind, we need to conserve as much as possible, but you should drink as much of this as you can. I cant help you much if you get too dehydrated. Now, are you ready?”

“Yes,” Kurt said, relaxing a little even if he did shiver when Blaines arm brushed against him.

“Okay, put this here and seal your lips around the hole, then well tip it back so you can drink,” Blaine explained, placing the coconut. Kurt pursed his pink lips a bit and Blaine guided the coconut to them, holding it steady. Kurts hands covered Blaines on the coconut as he drank as much as he could, sucking at the hole to try and drink faster. Blaine tipped the nut back after about five swallows.

“Oh....is that all there was?” Kurt sounded sad but resigned.

“No, theres a lot more, but I think its best if you take it slowly. Its been a long time since you had anything to drink. I dont know how long we were asleep when we washed up here, so lets drink slowly. Are you ready for a little more?”

Kurt nodded and put his hands in the same position, letting Blaine help him to get more to drink.

“Are you drinking, too?” Kurt asked, suddenly concerned that Blaine was giving everything to him.

“Yes. I just set yours down so I could drink a bit. Dont worry, were going to be fine,” Blaine assured Kurt, although from what he could see they might not be fine. He didnt want to worry Kurt when he could so easily go into shock.

“Did you check the duffel bags yet?” Kurt asked.

“No, I was going to walk around a little more to find some wood to burn, then get a fire started,” Blaine said.

“Can I help?” Kurt asked, feeling useless.

“Not right now. Lets let that gash on your head stop bleeding for a while, then you and I can look for more wood later. Okay?”

“Yes, mother,” Kurt snarked and turned his back, once again bringing his knees up to his chin and resting his head on them.

Blaine got a fire going with the matches in the first aid kit and found a metal container in a duffel bag. He put a bit of the water in the container and set the crab in to make a sort of steamed dish. Kurt seemed to be asleep, but when the scent of cooking crab meat began to waft through the air he woke up.

“I found some seaweed and cooked that, and theres crab if youre hungry, Kurt,” Blaine offered. The preferred food of a coconut crab is, of course, coconuts so the meat is sweet and juicy.

“Id appreciate that, Blaine. Thank you,” Kurt said. He tried to be careful, but it was hard to feed yourself when you cant see the plate and your head is dizzy, so Kurt ended up with food all over his face and chest. He was embarrassed because he could feel where it had spilled and even though hed done his best to clean up as he went along he knew he was a mess.

“That was wonderful, Blaine...I have never had a better seafood dinner in my life.”

Blaine grinned, but realized it was lost on Kurt.

“Well, hunger is the best appetizer as the poets say, but youre welcome. I think we need to get some sort of shelter for the night. The clouds are gathering and I think were in for another storm tonight.”

~#~#~#~#~#~

“Okay, I have a makeshift shelter started. I just used some pieces of driftwood to make an arch with two palm trees, then added long palm leaves and tied them on with the thin rope I found in the survival kit. There was a canvas tarp and I covered it all with that to keep out the rain,” Blaine reported as he sat down next to Kurt by the fire.

“Can you lead me there? Im getting really chilled,” Kurt asked. Blaine took Kurts hand and walked slowly to the log hed set in front of the shelter, helping him to a comfortable seat. He set rocks in a ring and gathered driftwood to make a fireplace of sorts. Bringing a lit stick with him from the first fire, he lit the new fire, hoping it was warm enough to take away Kurts chill.

“It feels like the wind is picking up. What does the sky look like?” Kurt asked, afraid Blaine was right and they might be in for another storm.

“It feels cooler to me, too. The sky is gray with big black thunderclouds, but theyre not directly overhead. With this wind, they might just blow by us. At least thats what Im hoping,” Blaine said. “Im going down to the shore to see if I can drag the duffel bags up here. Im hoping their might be blankets or something. If there are, I need to get them dry as soon as possible, theyre soaked in seawater. I have a feeling were going to need them tonight,” Blaine said, hoping Kurt would show some sign of friendliness.

“Okay. I think if you could help me into the shelter I need to lie down. My head hurts and now my stomach is queasy,” Kurt said, holding out his hand. Blaine moved quickly to help him.

“Try not to vomit if you can help it, that will dehydrate you even more,” a concerned Blaine warned.

“Its not as if I want to or that I enjoy it, I might not be able to help myself. Dont worry, Ill clean it up myself,” Kurt said with venom in his voice and turned around so he was facing the back of the shelter before lying down, curled into a fetal position.

“Kurt, I didnt mean it like that. I was just worried about you. Tell me if you think youre going to be sick and I can try to help,” he said, but got no response. He finally gave up and walked back to the shore, dragging the heavy duffel bags up by the shelter.

Opening the first one produced a couple of blankets, stinking of the odor of wet wool. Blaine smiled – even wet, wool was able to keep its warmth. There were some clothes in the bag, shirts and pants that looked to belong to one of the crew members. Then there were a few toiletries: toothpaste, a comb, shaving supplies, soap. There was a small metal box, but it was shut with a lock, so Blaine just set it aside, thinking there probably wasnt anything inside to help in survival.

He threw the blankets and clothes over the brush in hopes the wind would dry them by morning and went on to the next bag. It, too, had some clothes: jeans and shirts but in a smaller size. There were cans of food in this one and a leather wrapped bundle that contained a sharp machete.

Draping these things over more brush, Blaine left the third one for later and went into the shelter to check on Kurt. He was still in the same position and a quiet inquiry didnt get a response, so Blaine went over to look closer. Kurt was asleep, curled in on himself, and shaking. Blaine felt his forehead and found he was very hot. There wasnt a thermometer in the first aid kit, but Blaine estimated it to be around 102. Maybe a littler higher. It had been four hours, so as soon as he woke up, Blaine planned to give him more aspirin.

Drinking water was at a premium, so he went to a place nearby to pick up ripe coconuts so he could try to get Kurt to drink some more. Coconuts seemed to be all over the place they had landed, so Blaine was more willing to drink the coconut water and not be as conservative as he was with the water. Besides, coconuts contain electrolytes and if Kurt was dehydrated it would help him regain what hed lost. Blaine also thought he himself might be dehydrated and so he planned to drink more coconut water, too.

Finding several on the ground that seemed promising, he poked holes in them and drained the resulting water into a plastic container hed found in the survival kit. It had a lid that screwed on, which was lucky in this heat and would also keep it from contamination.

Going back to check on Kurt, he found the wound from the debris to be red and swollen. He wasnt sure what had hit Kurt until he was examining it closely and saw splinters embedded in the skin. That had to be what was causing the fever – an infection. He pressed gently and pus burst out of the dried scabs.

“Kurt, wake up. I need to wash this wound and get some antibiotics in you. Can you wake up for me?” Blaine asked in a soft voice. He stroked Kurts cheek to try and wake him, but got a swat with Kurts hand in return.

“Dont touch me!” he squealed, curling up tighter and placing one arm over his head.

“Hey, Im just trying to help. You have a fever and your wound is infected. I wanted you to take some aspirin,” Blaine defended himself. Kurts snapping and grouchy demeanor were beginning to wear on his nerves.

“I was sleeping...that should be enough,” Kurt said, starting to roll over on his other side when the pain in his head hit. He grabbed at his head, holding it in his arms and moaned.

“Let me see. I can tell its infected – Im going to have to remove those splinters. What hit you?” Blaine asked, determined to get the wound seen to whether Kurt liked it or not.

“Okay, but be careful, it hurts like fuck,” Kurt said, slowly moving his hands away. Blaine guided him into the sunlight and sat him back on the log, then went to get the first aid kit. He found tweezers, antibiotic ointment, and gauze pads.

“Lie back with your head in my lap, Kurt, just like this....” he helped Kurt to get into a position that he could see the wound clearly. “Now, this might hurt, so let me know if you need me to stop,” he said and began by pulling the tweezers out of the small cup of alcohol he had them soaking in. He was as gentle as he could be, removing slivers of the wood that had apparently fallen and somehow hit Kurts head. The wood was rotten, so it was both difficult and time consuming to keep pulling the tiny pieces from the gaping wound.

“The good news is that although this is a pretty deep cut, it didnt crack your skull. I dont see any pieces of bone,” Blaine said, dabbing some iodine on the edge where he was done pulling splinters.

“It hurts,” Kurt said. “How long do you think were going to be on this...whatever. Is this an island?”

“I think so. This part of the Caribbean is filled with little islands and atolls. From what I could see, this is either a small island or its a tiny peninsula, but I didnt see any larger piece of land where it might be connected. I think we should go and look in the morning to see if its connected to something. Its too late tonight to really go anywhere. Are you thirsty?” Blaine asked, worried that Kurt might be getting dehydrated in the wind and heat.

“A little. The coconut water was good, though. Thank you,” Kurt said. He was emotional, distraught, and angry at everything but his manners were still there.

“I think we can open one of these canned rations for tonight, the sun is setting and I dont think its safe to go looking for food right now,” Blaine sad, finding the can opener and wondering what was in the can marked simply “Ration for Survival #72”. He hoped that wasnt the year it was canned.

Inside he found peanut butter. Well, it could be worse. There were some dry hard tack in the sealed survival kit.

“Peanut butter?” Kurt asked, his head turning towards the open can, sniffing the air.

“Yeah...I thought we could eat it on these dry crackers. Theyre kind of hard to chew....”

“Maybe if we soak them in the coconut water? We could have some sort of..mush?” Kurt suggested.

“Sounds like a plan. Ill open a few more coconuts,” Blaine offered.

“How many do we have left?” Kurt sounded anxious, and Blaine couldnt blame him. He put himself in Kurts shoes – his father with heart problems, washed ashore on a deserted island, couldnt see. He would be in a panic. Kurt was made of much stronger stuff, Blaine concluded. He admired a man with that kind of guts, not to mention Kurt was one beautiful specimen with his pale clear skin and those ocean-blue eyes with tiny flecks of golden sunshine....Blaine shook his head. It was hardly the time to be crushing on the boy he was in this trouble with. He got back to fixing dinner for them.

Kurt had read that coconuts would crack open easier if they were heated, so he suggested this to Blaine. In about twenty minutes they were eating dinner: hard tack soaked in coconut water, pieces of the coconut which had been sort of toasted in the fire, and a few spoonfuls of peanut butter. For dessert, they both had a half cup of the water.

“Is it night now? Im colder than I was a while ago, so Im guessing the sun is lower?” Kurt asked, curbing his impulse to cling to Blaines arm.

“Yeah, it just set a few minutes ago. Here, the wool blankets are dry. Do you feel like going to sleep? I can make up some type of bed for us,” Blaine offered.

“Im pretty sleepy. I still dont feel very well – the headache is still there, but at least the nausea is gone,” Kurt murmured and Blaine had to lean close in the wind to hear him.

Blaine dug a shallow trench in the soft soil and laid down some palm fronds, then put the thinnest blanket over it. He went back to lead Kurt to the bed and helped him lie down, covering him with the two heavier blankets. They may be in the tropics, but with the storm coming and the winds it could be cold during the night.

Blaine piled a lot more wood on the fire, hoping it would burn most of the night under the sheltering trees. Then he went into the shelter, feeling tired to the bone, and started to climb into the make-shift bed.

“Hey! You dont think youre sleeping here, do you?” Kurt said, sounding both scared and angry.

“Ah, well, yeah. We both have our clothes on. There isnt anywhere else to sleep. The shelter is only big enough for the one bed and....” Blaine said, confused.

“I dont even know you, what makes you think Id allow you to sleep with me?” Kurt said, bitterness seeping through every syllable. “I dont know what you might do.”

“Kurt, I promise I wont lay a hand on you. Just because Im gay does not mean Im on the prowl for conquests or recruits on deserted islands in a fucking storm. I just thought it would keep us warmer and Im still worried about your headaches. If you dont trust me, youre welcome to sleep elsewhere. Now, Im going to lie down in the bed I made and get some much-needed sleep. Stay or go, I dont care,” Blaine snapped back, reaching the end of his patience.

He had tried his best all day long to make it safe and comfortable for Kurt in this crisis and he didnt appreciate being accused of something that hadnt even crossed his mind. Yes, he appreciated Kurt for his good looks and the way he loved his father, but other than that the boy had been rude and selfish. Blaine had had enough and he rolled over with one of the blankets after having tossed the other one at Kurts face.