I cheered silently as Jendan and Sunnie stepped up to the throwing line, scarfing another donut and washing it down with orange juice. I wanted them to win…but a small, selfish part of me wanted them to lose. If they lost, Jendan would still need my help to make fire, but that was a terrible reason to wish a loss on them. I shoved that thought down with another donut. At my side, Kip was pushing entire donuts into his mouth, his cheeks bulging as he chewed. His gluttony made me eat a little daintier. I didn’t want to look like that on camera.
As we ate, the challenge wore on. The sugar I’d devoured made me nauseated quickly, and I switched to sipping orange juice as I watched players alternately knock coconuts down or try to match them. Alys quickly cleaned up. She got to go last and had no partner, so she just swiped coconuts as others knocked them down. She was the first to ten, then Summer and Polly, and then Jendan and Sunnie squeaked into third.
When they won, Jendan’s face lit up into a jubilant smile that made my heart pound…and Sunnie flung herself at him and wrapped her arms around his neck, which made me considerably less happy. The clump of donuts in my stomach churned uncomfortably as I watched him hug her back.
I didn’t know why I was jealous. She was his partner. I wasn’t in this game to hook up with anyone so it didn’t matter if he was attracted to her or not.
But I didn’t want him to be attracted to her. I wanted him to be attracted to me, which was all kinds of stupid and wrong.
I wouldn’t win the game of Endurance Island by hooking up. I already knew that particular strategy was a failure.
Chapter Eight
“I…almost didn’t want to win those fire-making implements. Almost.” — Jendan Abercrombie, Day 6, Endurance Island: Power Players
“Tell us why you’re heading out into the jungle today.”
I hugged my legs and faced the camera, adjusting my body so that my knees covered my tits and my feet blocked any uncomfortable views of my girly parts. Confessionals were a nice break-up in the day. It felt a lot like my own personal diary, and I could rant and rave to my heart’s content and know that no one would ever hear it…until it aired, of course. So you still had to be careful what you said.
“There are a ton of reasons why I’m heading out into the jungle today. I boiled water this morning, so my canteen is full.” I patted it at my side. “I want to check out that waterfall for myself, because my hair feels grungy and sea water isn’t helping. And I want to look for that tree. I need Pandora’s Box. Badly.”
I didn’t mention Jendan. I didn’t know if he’d be out there today, to be honest. He had fire. There was no reason to come meet me again, not really. Not unless he just wanted my company.
“Tell us about your partner.”
I grimaced. “Kip is frustrating. I can’t explain it more plainly than that. He doesn’t do a thing around camp. I have to feed him. I have to fill his canteen. He steals into my shelter if I don’t get there before he does. At least he’s not staring at my br**sts any longer. But he’s a liability I have to put up with until I figure out what’s in Pandora’s Box. Then, if it’s something I can use to get rid of him, I’m going to at the first opportunity available.”
“Do you think it’ll make you vulnerable to get rid of Kip?”
“I honestly don’t care. Getting rid of Kip is the biggest goal I have in this game. I want to make him pay for how he treated me last time. If I win, great. If I don’t and Kip doesn’t either? Great. But being his partner is what makes things tricky. I need to somehow get rid of him without kicking myself out of the game first.”
“What about what he wrote on your back in the last Judgment challenge?”
I smiled tightly. “I’m trying not to think about that.”
~~ *** ~~
Once the interview was done, I took my canteen and headed out into the jungle along the same route I’d taken yesterday. There was no path, but with nothing but time on my hands, I had time to explore a bit. If I went the wrong way, it was no big deal, really. We were on a small island; I couldn’t get that lost.
Eventually, I heard the familiar sound of falling water and followed it to a sparkling shallow pool. There, like a glorious shower of Mother Nature, was the trickling waterfall. It tumbled off of a rocky cliff above, a sight for sore eyes if there ever was one. I stood beside the pool, hesitating. It felt weird to not have to undress to get in, but I shucked off my shoes, dropped my canteen and stepped into the flow, giving a little moan of pleasure at how good it felt. Sure, it was cold water and there wasn’t a ton of water pressure, but it was clean and crisp and not sticky with salt. In short: it was amazing. I stood under it for what felt like forever, rubbing my sandy, sweaty, salt-crusted limbs clean, and then just rinsed my hair over and over again. Man, I’d be here daily, because this waterfall was amazing.
By the time I stepped out and wrung my hair out, Jendan still hadn’t showed. I felt a little twinge of sadness that he hadn’t bothered to show up. I shouldn’t have been surprised, though. He had fire; he didn’t need me for help. I slung my canteen back over my shoulder and started to head away to look for the forked tree. This was water, so maybe the tree where Pandora’s Box was buried would be somewhere nearby.
My shoes were dirty and I hated the thought of putting them on my nice clean feet. Going barefoot through the jungle seemed like a more appealing option than putting on grubby sneakers, so I took my shoes in hand. I’d walked a few steps, picking my way across the terrain, when I nearly ran into Jendan’s na**d chest.
“Oh!” That was what I got for staring down as I walked.
“Hey.” He grabbed my arm to keep me from stumbling. “You all right?”
“Just focused on my feet. Didn’t see you there.” God, I sounded all breathless. “I didn’t think you were coming.” I looked down and his thumb was mere inches away from one of my wet br**sts.
Which made me all the more intensely aware of his na**d body so close to mine.
“Not coming?” He laughed. “It’s not like my schedule’s full.”
“Actually I think we’re due to have a Judgment challenge today. It’s still early, though.” His hand was so warm on my arm, distracting me. “Um. How’re things at camp?”
“Much better now that we have drinking water instead of just coconuts.” He smiled at me, teeth white in his tanned face, and I felt my heart give another little flip.