Enduring the Storm

Chapter 13 Makeshift Camp

Brooke's POV

I have a lot to take care of in a small period of time, so let's get this going. I kneel down on the soft sand as I use my hands to dig a hole into the sand in my now dedicated spot. I pull the dried sticks together, figuring out how many I have.. I don't want to use all of them at once, but I need just enough to get the fire started. So I pick out the driest ones along with dried leaves and bushes, to be the kindling as I place them into the hole, making a little stack of the branches inside of it.

I flip my backpack off and onto the ground right next to me. Searching through the items to find the specific one I need.. My lighter... I'm hoping it might still work. It is not what I would call waterproof, but it is made to withstand the wind and rain while still being lit.. That's why I bought it because I knew I would come across a lot of wind and water being on a boat and all.. So I am just keeping my fingers crossed that it still works.

I unzip the little pocket within my backpack as I pull the little lighter out. I flip it open just to flick the flint wheel.. but no response. I give it a couple more flicks and nothing. I feel the frustration shooting through me, but I won't give up. I flick many more times, getting a spark at the tip, which gives me a false hope that something good might come of this effort. I keep flicking with anticipation as I finally see a tiny flame.. It's not as big as I was hoping for, but that is good enough for me. I use the dried kindling to put over the flame. It takes only a second before the dried out plants catch on fire, so I have to put it under the little mound of sticks I have created.

I flip my lighter shut, putting it into my pocket that is on me and right next to my knife as I lean down and lightly blow on the flame to try to help it grow. The flame quickly builds as it starts to climb onto the other pieces over the top of it, making this weight I never even knew I was holding, lift off of me. I feel slightly better about this hard situation. I stand up as I take a look around.. I now need food and water since I have the fire. I look high up to see that there are fruit in the trees.. maybe mangos.. I'm not sure. They are about the same size and shape, not the same color but close.. so I would assume so.

I walk to the bottom of the tree, staring up.. It's taller than me, but I might be able to get to it. It's close enough that I feel the fruit teasing me because it's only a little taller than me. I could reach it.. right? We will see. I tighten my gloves, trying to make sure that I won't get hurt by this. I try to grab onto the tree and climb, but even with my boots to help, I find my feet slipping down the barked sides, not catching much at all.. I look around and see more branches on the ground as I grab them and start swiping at the fruit. I hit the bottom of them, making it jiggle as I try again and again until after much longer than I would like to admit.. I finally get two of these fruits to fall down to me.

I grab them, walking over to the fire to put them down.. but I know that I now need water.. I have the fire to purify it, but I know I can't drink the salt water. The salt water will help heal my wounds but won't help with my thirst. So I kneel down, peeling the fruit of its shell that is quite thin but thick enough that it almost looks like a bowl, which is what I was hoping for. I place the exposed fruit onto a couple of leaves before putting them into my backpack so it is protected from anything that might smell it. I take the makeshift bowl and wander into the trees once again, but this time, I am looking for a water source.

The bugs hum out as the birds chirp and squak, letting me know they are there. I can hear some howling by the little monkeys as they swing by grabbing my attention every time they move, but other than that I haven't seen any other signs of life which is probably good but at the same time, knowing I might just be stuck on this island alone is terrifying and probably some sort of nightmare.. I am used to being on my own, but that doesn't mean that's how I want to live the rest of my life until I die.

I always imagined myself having a husband and family and growing old together.. but with how things have taken a turn for the worst, I don't know if that is going to be possible. I try to stay remotely positive so I don't give up all hope as my head, which is practically on a swivel as my eyes pan all around me looking for any movement. In my search for water, I can finally hear the sounds of splashing, not from the sea but from the sounds of crashing as if there is constant flowing water.. maybe a river or waterfall.

I stay silent, trying to hear anything that would say water to my drier than ever mouth. I can't hear it much anymore.. but I decided to get another approach on things, following the animals, hoping they would lead me to a water source.. they wouldn't be able to survive here without one. I quietly stalk the monkeys and birds.. but I think they saw me long before I saw them. I keep stalking until I see a frog that looks wet. I curiously watch him as he hops along the way, making it through the dropped branches, I silently step over every little bit, watching him wander through the forestry.

That is until he heads straight for the most silent little stream I have ever seen, not knowing where the splashing was coming from.. maybe a bigger source of water that I can search for tomorrow. I feel myself getting excited as my feet take over, taking me through the wilderness and straight to the source of my relief. I take a look around, but nothing stays here. They are just running by or just using it for a short moment.

I see birds fluttering their wings as they wash themselves and drink the water, then flying away as the frogs jump from the water to the ground and out of sight. But nothing is telling me that the water is bad since I always know to drink water where the animals do because at least you know it's safe.

I take the 'bowl', filling it to the brim as I silently thank the little frog before making my way right back to the fire. It takes a little bit of time, but I was able to put together a little way to hold the water just above the fire that is getting hot but not burning the holder.. I let out a deep breath feeling good about this turn, but I can see now that hours have passed that it will be getting dark soon enough.. I need to get a move on.

I strip all of my layers off except for the bra and thong. I need to go for a swim to see if I can get actual protein for myself or if I will just have to do with the fruit. I hang up every last layer of clothes that I have, draping it over and around the fire to get dried so I don't catch a cold. I bend down, taking a long stick I found and shaving one end of it down to a sharp point. I hopefully can get some food. I stand up, walking towards the water as I keep looking all around to make sure that nothing is around still.. good or bad.

I don't see much at all, so I slowly walk into the water while still gazing around me, too afraid to take my eyes off of the scenery because something might come out. But once again, when I see it's just me, I take in a large breath before slowly sinking into the water to try to be as stealthy as possible. I swim around, but I'm not really seeing anything except for little minnows. Those won't sustain me, so I need to keep searching.

My eyes stay peeled as I keep looking and finally seeing a little caved area that has fish in it. I go back to the surface, getting another deep breath before plundging in as I try to get closer to the fish and hopefully get one. I see a couple of them before shooting my arm out that is holding the stake, but I miss the fish.. I attempt this again and miss it. I keep trying, but going up for air and then attempting the staking of fish once more.

I guess you can only have so much luck because I can't seem to get any fish. I am great at a lot of things, but I guess spear fishing is not one of them.. But the good part about this is that I have an idea where the fish meander about, and I can always try that again tomorrow. I get out of the water, ringing my hair out as I wander back over to the fire that is still ablaze with all of my things hanging around it.

I touch my clothing, feeling most of it is dry, but I flip them all around to help get the rest dry as I take care of all else that I need to. I plop down on the ground before pulling the vines over to me just to braid them together, weaving the vines in and out over and over again that by the time I am done with this make shift bed.. it is almost dark. I pull on it, making sure it is secure before turning to the trees that are hanging right over my spot.

It takes me probably more attempts than I would like to admit since the hanging of this bed felt like it took longer to hang up than make.. but I finally got it hanging up on its own and staying even with my weight on it.. So I move on to the next task at hand, keeping the fire going so I can get my clothes the rest of the way dried, drink some water, and eat some food. I put a couple more branches on the fire as I see that the water is boiling.. there is not as much water in the 'bowl' since I am assuming some had evaporated, but any water is better than no water. So I take little sips of the water here and there to make sure I don't chug it all at once.

I take the fruit out, peeling the leaves off that I kept wrapped around it, before taking a bite of the tangy and incredibly sweet fruit. It is amazing, making my mouth water, but I can tell that it is not mango.. I have had many mangos, and this is not it.. But it is something I have never tried before, and I'm happy I gave it a shot. This is great.. It's moments like this that make me wish I had someone to share stuff like this with. But I can't change things, and at least I got to try this for myself.

I'm not sure what it is, but it's very good. I give into the hunger from not having any food in my system, so I eat it very quickly from not having anything in my stomach all day, that I instantly peel the other and eating it just as fast. I am not full or even remotely close after the food is gone, but I at least have something in my system.. I drink more of the water I have purified as I sit back against the tree and try to relax in the darkness.. trying not to let this place absolutely terrify me.. but that is easier said than done.