*cough* Extremely late birthday fic for JWood201 *cough*


It was hot.

It was incredibly hot.

It was hot- even for the tropics.

The castaways didn't think they'd ever been this hot. The sun seared their skin and almost set Mr. Howell's straw hat on fire. If it hadn't been for Gilligan throwing pineapple juice all over him, he might have gone up in flames.

"Hundred dollar bills are extremely flammable," the millionaire declared as he stood there with pineapple juice dripping from his nose.

It was so hot that Ginger thought she would melt. She asked the Professor if he could invent cosmetics that didn't slide off her face as soon as she put them on. The Professor was happy to oblige. He took Ginger into his hut and the two of them stayed there for the entire day, mixing lotions and potions like a pair of mad scientists.

The Skipper sat under a coconut tree fanning his sun reddened cheeks with his captain's hat. Two minutes later, one of Gilligan's monkey friends dislodged a bunch of coconuts and one by one they rained down on Skipper's head with a pok, pok, pok. Skipper got up with a loud harrumph and trudged to his hut where he tried to grab forty winks in his hammock, but it was so hot that he couldn't even shut one eye and get twenty winks. He stared up through Gilligan's empty hammock at the palm frond ceiling, feeling as though he might slip into delirium at any minute. If only he had a five inch thick steak and a cold, cold beer.

The only two people that didn't seem bothered by the heat were Gilligan and Mary Ann. They ran like children down to the waterfall and plunged in, shrieking with joy.

"To heck with the laundry and the cooking, cleaning and sewing!"

"Yeah! To heck with chopping wood and digging ditches!"

They splashed each other with the cool water. Mary Ann used both hands to scoop water at Gilligan's chest, then Gilligan sluiced his hand into the water and sent a massive wave right up into her face. She squealed, her hair completely drenched. As Gilligan apologized profusely, she ducked down into the water and grabbed his leg in an attempt to pull him under. He flailed like a stork and fell over backwards, his head completely submerging. Mary Ann broke the surface with a triumphant yell.

Gilligan lunged forward and made a grab for her, but he missed and went face first into the pool. Mary Ann laughed again and dove sideways, arrowing into the depths like one of Esther Williams's synchronized swimmers.

"I wish I never taught you to swim," Gilligan shouted. "You're even better than me, now!"

"I told you I was a fast learner," she shouted back. "I told you you'd be sorry!"

Gilligan swam over to her, blowing water from his lips. He stopped just a little way in front of her, looking at her through the droplets in his eyelashes.

"The one thing I did right, and it still backfired on me," he said, mournfully.

"Oh, Gilligan- I didn't mean it like that."

His pout grew bigger.

"Gilligan, I love swimming. I'm glad you taught me, you're an excellent teacher."

He looked so sad that her heart broke. She swam up to him and reached out to stroke his hair but the minute she was within reach, Gilligan jumped up and shoved her head right underwater.

"Gotcha!" he yelled, whooping like a native.

Mary Ann twisted out of his hands and launched herself at him with an indignant screech.

"William Gilligan, I'll get you for that!"

They fell into the water together, a tangle of sun kissed, shining limbs. When they finally stopped tussling, Mary Ann found that she was in Gilligan's arms.

"Well, here we are," he said, shyly.

"It would appear so," she agreed.

Gilligan tilted his face down and Mary Ann tilted her face up, and their lips touched in a soft, wet kiss.

"You're getting bolder," she teased as a wave of heat went through her.

"It's easy when it's just the two of us," said Gilligan. "You don't judge me. I don't have to pretend to be anyone else... you're kind to me even when I'm clumsy."

"I've always liked you," Mary Ann said with a shy smile. "I had a little crush on you aboard the Minnow, did you know that? You brought me a fruit cocktail and smiled at me and that was it. I was in love."

"From the first?"

She nodded. "From the first. And I've never stopped."

Gilligan grinned broadly. "I think I'm growing up," he declared, puffing out his skinny chest.

"You are growing up, Gilligan. You are definitely growing up." She pressed against him in the water and lowered her eyelids flirtatiously.

Gilligan's eyes widened and he gulped. A second later he attempted to twist away but Mary Ann's arms were wound too tightly around his neck.

"Kiss me, you fool!" she cried, theatrically.

And because he couldn't get away, and because he realized he didn't want to, Gilligan pressed his lips against Mary Ann's and kissed her like a romantic matinee idol.

Two days later the heatwave broke as a storm rumbled in from the north. Giant banks of clouds gathered over the island and dumped four inches of rain on them in one day. They danced outside in the rain, hollering joyfully. Mr. Howell waved soggy wads of money at the heavens while Lovey did a Gene Kelly impression with her parasol. Skipper opened his mouth wide and drank the fresh rain as if it were cold beer. Ginger laughed as her new heat proof makeup turned out not to be waterproof and slid off of her face. She threw her arms around the Professor, pressing their wet bodies together.

"You poor man. You worked so hard!"

"Back to the drawing board!" he sighed, happily.

Gilligan took hold of Mary Ann's hands and the two of them spun around and around in the rain until they both fell over into a mud puddle.

"This is like being back on the farm!" said Mary Ann, looking down at her mud covered gingham shirt and little blue shorts. "Look at me, Gilligan!"

"I'm looking, I'm looking," the young sailor replied, naughtily.

Mary Ann swatted his arm.

"You're as much fun as Skinny Mulligan, with added extras," he grinned.

"You make me feel alive," she said, running a finger over his cheek.

"You make me feel the same way," he confessed, turning his face towards her hand.

Thunder boomed overhead. Lovey Howell screamed and went running for the huts. Mary Ann looked around at the commotion then laughed herself silly at the antics of the other castaways. Neither she nor Gilligan made any attempt to move from the mud puddle. The rain lashed down, bringing trees and plants back to life and quenching the animals' thirst. This was a wild place, a glorious place- and they were young and happy.

"I love you, Gilligan," said Mary Ann.

"I love you too, Mary Ann," said Gilligan.

The rain intensified.

"Should we go back to the huts?" asked Gilligan.

Mary Ann kissed him on the nose. "I don't need to," she said. "I'm already home."