One morning, Ginger woke up and started sneezing.

"Ginger, what's wrong?" Mary Ann asked.

"I think I have a cold."

"Are you sure it's not an allergy? Like the one to Gilligan's hair oil."

"Well, you were allergic to that, too." She sneezed again. "But, no, I don't think it's an allergy."

Mary Ann got out of bed and started getting dressed. "I'll bring you some juice. You rest."
"Thanks, Honey."

Mary Ann really was sweet, like a kid sister, only much nicer than Ginger's own sister.

When Mary Ann gave her the guava juice, Ginger sipped it carefully, since her throat was sore.

"Better?"
"A little. But I don't know if I'll be able to do the laundry today."

Mary Ann sighed. "I'll do it."

"Oh, thanks! You're a doll."

"You're welcome." Mary Ann sounded a little irritated, but she didn't have to offer to do the laundry. Ginger thought about telling her that, but Mary Ann said goodbye and left.

Ginger set the glass on her night stand and dozed off. She woke to the Professor saying, "Ginger?"

She opened her eyes and smiled. "Hello." Then she sneezed.

"Gesundheit. Mary Ann said you weren't feeling well."

"Yes, I have a little cold."

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Was he asking as a friend or as the closest they had to a doctor on the island?

"Well, it's about Mary Ann."

"Oh, that's sweet of you to worry about her."

"No, I'm not that swee—"

"It is possible that she may catch your cold."

"Oh, yes, it's too bad we have to share a hut right now." She decided not to explain that it was about the laundry.

"Yes, it's too bad she doesn't share my immune system."

Ginger thought but of course didn't say that the Professor was far too immune for her liking.

Then he continued, "Perhaps you could stay in my hut till you're well."

"Professor!" she gasped.

"I'll check with the Skipper to see if I can stay with him and Gilligan for the time being."

She should've known better. It would be quite out of character for the aloof Professor to offer to "live in sin," even for a few days. And she could just imagine what the others would say!

"Thank you."
"Not at all."

After he left, she got dressed and packed. She wasn't sure how long she could stay at the Professor's. She didn't feel terribly sick, just sick enough. She looked in the mirror. She didn't look too awful, just weak and delicate, which was perfect.

She'd been trying to capture his attention all this time, with little success. Maybe this was her golden opportunity. She just hoped she wouldn't go through a phase with a red, blotchy face.

"It's all arranged," he said when he returned.

"Wonderful," she said in a hoarse but not too hoarse voice.

"Would you like me to carry your case?"

"Thank you." She wondered if she could also lean on him as they made their way to his hut, but that might be pushing things. She also wondered if she should leave a note for Mary Ann, but she couldn't think how to phrase it. The two girls sometimes teased each other about their "love interests," but this was the first time either of them had ended up in her dream man's hut and presumably bed.

When she and the Professor arrived at his place, he put the case on top of his dresser and she pretended to swoon a little. Nothing too dramatic, just a little swaying. It helped that she was feeling a little light-headed and dizzy.

"Ginger, are you all right?" The Professor rushed back to her side.

"I, I feel a little dizzy."
"Here, let me get you into bed."
"Thank you, Professor."

She leaned on him and he put his arm around her waist. He escorted her to his bed and helped her in.

"You're so kind," she murmured.

"Not at all. Will you be all right if I leave you for a couple hours?"

"Leave me?"

"Yes, there are some plants I'm collecting in the jungle and today is the optimum time to gather them."

She thought of acting even more helpless, but she didn't want to push this. "I'll be fine. I think I'll just nap. Your bed is so comfortable." She stretched out like a cat.

"Yes, sleep is the best thing for you."

She waited till after he left before she punched his pillow. This was so frustrating! Would he ever notice her?

Then she realized that she had a little problem. She couldn't sleep in her beige evening gown and she hadn't thought to pack a nightgown, because she didn't own one. She usually slept in the nude, wrapping a blanket around herself if she had to get up at night. But that probably wouldn't work too well here. Well, it might get the Professor's attention, but that was playing too unfair.

She got out of bed and found a clean shirt. After all, Mary Ann slept in an old shirt of the Professor's. Why shouldn't Ginger? She knew she should've asked first, but she didn't think he'd mind. She peeled off her gown and slipped on the sensible, buttoned white shirt. It hung higher on her than it would've on Mary Ann, showing off her panties. Well, she'd be in bed most of the time, so it wasn't like she would be seen below the waist. And after all, Little Miss Wholesome walked around with her bottom almost hanging out, like with that blue & white checked number she was wearing that day, the one she called a "dress."

The cattiness of the thought surprised Ginger, and she felt guilty. Well, she was sick and allowed to be grumpy. And it wasn't like she'd voiced the thought.

She finished buttoning the Professor's shirt and got into bed. She drifted off for awhile.

She must've slept longer than she thought, because it was afternoon when she woke to Mary Ann exclaiming, "Ginger, what are you doing here?"

Mary Ann must've noticed what Ginger was wearing, although she didn't say anything about it in front of Gilligan, who seemed to be helping her with the laundry. Mary Ann had to have been aware that if Ginger got out of bed so that Mary Ann could change the sheets, then Gilligan would see her legs. And Ginger felt funny about that, despite her flirtatious reputation. She liked to control how much of herself a man saw or experienced.

Then the Professor returned and, when she said she was too weak and tired to get out of bed, he decided to be helpful and hold her while the other two remade his bed. She was surprised but didn't want to show it. It felt too wonderful in his arms, his sweetness and his strength sinking into her skin.

Yet she was not unaware of a certain changed chemistry between Gilligan and Mary Ann. She noticed little glances between them, and the way their hands met "accidentally" on the Professor's bed. So when Mary Ann got catty with her, she gave it back, although in a way too subtle for the men to notice. She was still playing sick and helpless. It reminded Ginger of the gentle battles of wits she used to engage in with her sister.

After Mary Ann and Gilligan left, Ginger was alone with the Professor again. "I hope you don't mind that I borrowed your shirt."

"Oh, no, not at all. It, it looks good on you."
"Oh, I'm sure I look a sight."

"You could never not look beaut—Like Ginger Grant."

She blushed a little and hoped he would think her cheeks were just pink from the cold. "Thank you. So, uh, is it all set with the Skipper for you to stay in their hut tonight?"

"Yes, I'll sleep there. But I think I'll need to devote as many of my daytime hours to you as I can, till you feel good again."

"That's very kind of you. But what about your botany research?"

"It's finished. And I'll use it to make medicine for you."

She smiled. "With you taking care of me, I'm sure I'll feel better in no time."

"And so will I," he said and to her great surprise, he leaned over the bed and kissed her on the mouth.

"Professor! Aren't you worried about my germs?"

"I told you. I'm not particularly susceptible."

"Well, I'm probably not that contagious," she admitted.

"Let's see if we can further build up my immunity."

"All right." She gently pulled his head towards hers and he buried his nose in her neck.

"You wear perfume even when you're sick?"

"I'm not wearing perfume. I can't smell anything right now."

"Then you don't know how good you smell."

She laughed and kissed him, for a very long time, until they both sneezed.