"What do you think of this dress Ginger?" Mary Ann asked as she stood in the spacious living room in the luxurious home of the movie star and the professor. There were several dresses scattered about the room. The farm girl had wanted to make sure she looked her absolute best when she saw Gilligan again. Something that made her completely irresistible to the sailorman.
"Nice." Ginger replied.
Mary Ann sighed. "You said that about every dress!" She exclaimed. "What is with you? I…" Her voice trailed off as she saw that the reason Ginger was giving non specific answers was due to the fact she was busy studying her husband while he was putting together a piece of baby furniture on the other side of the room. Mary Ann shook her head. "Ginger could you focus on helping me decide what dress to wear and not your husband." She chided.
"Nice." Ginger repeated again still staring at her husband as if he was the sexiest specimen to ever grace the Earth.
The brunette laughed. "Ginger!" She said snapping her fingers in front of the redhead's face. "Earth to Ginger…"
"Huh? What?" The starlet said breaking out of her revere. "You say something?"
"Nothing." Mary Ann said with a smile. "Just wanted your expert opinion on a dress. I see you are busy being intrigued with someone else."
"Oh." Ginger said blushing a bit. "I…I'm sorry…What did you want?"
"I wanted to know what you thought of this dress?" She said holding up the blue dress. "What do you think? You think this is a good one?"
The redhead stood up from the sofa. She looked over the garment and frowned. "No No." She said shaking her head. "No this will not do."
"What's wrong with it?" Mary Ann asked. "I think it's pretty."
"It is pretty." Ginger said taking the dress out of the girl's hands. "If you are twelve."
"What?"
"Mary Ann you are grown up. It's time you stopped wearing those little girl dresses and showed off what you got."
"I….I don't know..that's not really me…I mean I don't…I'm not…"
"Relax." Ginger said with a smile. "I don't mean you have to wear a tiny mini dress".
The Professor, who had finished up what he was doing, approached his wife and said softly. "You could wear a tiny mini dress."
Ginger giggled as he gently kissed her neck. "Roy…" She said smiling at him as she kissed his lips. "I love you."
He returned her kiss and left the two women to their task.
The starlet sighed happily. "Isn't he wonderful…"
Mary Ann shook her head. "Ginger…you were saying."
"Oh right." Ginger said. "Your dress…." She picked up light blue one with sequins. "No too flashy…" She then found a red one. "No…not right…Oh I got it!" She lifted up a black cocktail dress. "This is perfect! Elegant, classy…yes this is perfect for you."
Mary Ann took the dress looking it over. It was certainly more grown up than she was used to. Low cut and off the shoulder. "You think so?"
"I know so." The actress assured. "Trust me. This is the one. Try it on."
"Alright." The farm girl said as she walked out of the living room and to the guest powder room. She opened the door and stepped inside. For a powder room it certainly had plenty of room. It was bigger than what a normal one would be. It was done in peach and orange colors which Mary Ann thought were very pretty. She pulled off her pink shirt and unzipped her demin shorts. Carefully placing them on a small table, she removed the dress from the hanger and stepped into it. Pulling it up she zipped the back smoothing it out. There was a full length mirror on the door and Mary Ann studied her reflection. She had to admit it was a spectacular dress. She did feel more grown up. The farm girl wondered what Gilligan would think of her in the dress. Oh to see his reaction! Surely he would think her beautiful and then sweep her into his arms and say…I love you Mary Ann! I was foolish to ever think we should be apart! He would then bring his lips to hers. It sent a shiver up her spine thinking about it.
Mary Ann opened the door to the powder room and headed back to the living room to ask Ginger what she thought. She paused when she arrived to see her friend locked in a passionate kiss with her husband. "A-hem!" She said with a smile.
The couple broke apart and Ginger looked over at the brunette with the expression of a teenager who had got caught making out by her parents. "Um…we were just um.."
"I was going to ask what you thought of the dress. But if you are busy.." Mary Ann teased.
"Funny." Ginger said sticking her tongue out. She turned to the Professor. "Darling could you give us a minute."
"Certainly my love." He said as he placed a kiss on her lips before leaving to two alone.
"Well?" Mary Ann said. "What do you think?"
The movie star inspected the farm girl. Checking every detail. "It's good but not good enough."
"What do you mean? What else do I need?"
"You need to wear your hair up. And you need a necklace. A gold chain necklace. And earrings. Yes earrings would definitely add something to this."
"Okay." Mary Ann said. "If you say so."
"Trust me." Ginger said. "I know what I'm talking about. How do you think I got Roy's attention?"
"Uh you kissed him for like an hour for the movie?" Mary Ann joked.
"It was more than just that. And it wasn't an hour. It was a minute. Okay maybe longer but still…that wasn't the only way I got his attention."
"Oh yes I forgot your perfume." The farm girl said slyly. "I recall you telling me about a certain perfume that drives men wild. If I recall it did work cause he came rushing in to nuzzle your neck.."
Ginger picked up a pillow and whacked Mary Ann with it. "Be serious." She said annoyed. "Roy loved me for more than just my kisses and my perfume."
"I know I know." The Kansas girl said. "I'm kidding. You are a good person Ginger. A wonderful person. You helped a lot on that island. The Professor fell in love with your big heart."
"And Gilligan fell in love with yours." Ginger stated.
"Yeah but then he…"
"Yes he did." The movie star said. "But you are not going to let him get away with that. You will make him see how ridiculous he was to say those things. I still can't believe he did that."
Mary Ann had called Ginger at two in the morning from her hotel room in Kansas after having a horrible nightmare that Gilligan said he didn't love her anymore and it was over for good. She poured out the entire story to the redhead who calmed her down telling her it would be okay don't worry she will help her.
"I don't either. So what if I live in Kansas and he lives in California? I wouldn't mind moving out here. Sure it will be hard to leave Kansas but I do like it out here. Plus I could be close to you. I have missed you a lot."
"You are sweet." Ginger smiled. "I would love for you to move out here too. You can be there to help me with this little bundle." She said placing her hand on her baby bump.
"You are so lucky Ginger." Mary Ann gushed. "You have a husband who loves you and a baby on the way! I wish I had that!"
"You will. " The movie star assured. "Trust me. It will happen. And if Gilligan is stupid to turn you down you always have that hunky Marine to fall back on."
Mary Ann rolled her eyes with a smile. "Forget it Ginger. Scott is a friend. Nothing more. I have no feelings for him. I never did. He's like a brother to me. I told you that."
"I know I know." The starlet said. "Not to worry I'm not looking to push you to him. Even if you were interested I would do everything in my power to ensure that you forgot all about him and went with Gilligan. Even if I had to do something drastic like send you and that sailorman back to the island. You and Gilligan are meant to be."
"I hope I can convince him of that." Mary Ann sighed. "I really hope I can."
Gilligan's Boat
The sailor flipped through his comic book Swamp Monster vs Godzilla and threw it aside. The brunette girl in the story reminded him of Mary Ann. She wore the same type of shorts and had the same hairdo. Everything reminded him of Mary Ann. He could not escape her. Especially at night. His dreams were filled with visions of that farm girl. They would be back on the island butterfly hunting or hanging laundry. Somehow someway they would end up in a loving embrace. He would wake up to find he was hugging his pillow.
This was killing him. Absolutely killing him. What made it worse was that he was going to be forced to face her again at the anniversary party. How was he going to do that? It wasn't like there would be a lot of people. Just the seven of them. He couldn't try to distract himself by talking to Ginger and the Professor. No they would probably be making out the whole time. They could never keep their hands off one another. Skipper? Could he just hang with Skipper? Maybe he could just do that. Yeah talk about how they went out on the raft and they got stuck in the cave and how Mary Ann looked hot in those shorts…Stop it! If he thought of that farm girl once more….
He had to get out. Get out of there. Go someplace. Where could he go? Was Skipper doing anything? Maybe they could go bowling. He liked bowling. Even though the sea captain was better at it still…he was not too shabby himself. He did beat him the last two times. Yes it was the perfect way to get his mind off of Mary Ann. Mary Ann….sweet Mary Ann. Pretty Mary Ann with warm chocolate eyes…No No…call Skipper! Gilligan picked up his phone and dialed. He waited while the other line rang. "Skipper…Skipper it's me…Gilligan."
"Gilligan? What's wrong? You okay?"
"I'm fine. I…You want to go bowling?"
"You are calling me to ask me if I want to go bowling?"
"Please Skipper. It will be fun. Will you please? I promise I'll let you win this time!"
The sea captain let out a sigh on the other end. "Alright Gilligan. I'll meet you at the bowling ally in say twenty minutes."
"Okay thanks Skipper!' Gilligan said as he then hung up the phone. He hurried to his closet and found his red bowling shirt with the name "Gilligan." embroidered on the front. A set of bowling pins were on the back. He pulled it on and then found his shoes and his bowling ball.
The sailor grabbed his keys and headed up the stairs. He rushed over to his car and got it heading off to the ally. Yes this was what he needed. A night out with Skipper. Just like they used to in the past. Boy the adventures they had! Especially that one time at a bar where the Skipper hustled a guy in a game of pool. Boy was that guy mad! Owed the sea captain $500! After he won, two girls came up to them. A blonde and a brunette. They were both pretty and of course the Skipper enjoyed the attention. The blonde was taken with the sea captain. The brunette showed interest in Gilligan but he was so timid that she got annoyed with him. Mary Ann never got annoyed with him. No she was…"Stop thinking about her!" He shouted to himself. "Forget Mary Ann! You are single and free! Be happy!"
The bowling ally came to view and he pulled into the lot. He turned the engine off and hurried inside to find an open lane The Skipper arrived a minute later carrying his worn out bowling bag in his hand. Gilligan looked up and smiled. "Hey Skipper! Over here! This lane is free!"
The captain lumbered over and sat down on a plastic orange chair. He placed his bag down beside him.
"Skipper want to make a wager?" Gilligan asked. "It will be fun!"
"Gilligan." Skipper said standing up approached the skinny sailor who was sitting at the score table. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. I'm ready to bowl! You want to go first?"
Jonas shook his head. He knew that Gilligan was hiding something. "No you are not fine. I know something is bothering you. Tell me. What is it?"
"Nothing." Gilligan said. "Nothing is wrong. I just thought it this would be fun. Come on let's get started!" He picked up his blue bowling ball and approached the lane. He stared straight ahead and was about ready to throw the ball when out of the corner of his eye, he saw a brunette with pigtails stroll by. He ended up dropping the ball on the floor and it gave a loud clatter.
Skipper shook his head. "Nothing huh?" He said. "You just dropped your ball because that girl reminded you of Mary Ann."
"She didn't…"
"Yes she did." Jonas said. "Gilligan I don't know why you are putting yourself through this. You love her. Tell her that!"
"Skipper I can't do that." Gilligan said. "I can't…I don't want this long distance. I know that Mary Ann is not going to leave Kansas. I don't want her to leave Kansas. It's her home. Her farm is everything to her. I'm not going to let her give that up."
"Well why don't you move to Kansas?" asked Skipper.
"I can't live in Kansas." The sailor said. "I like being out here in California. I like my job with Mr. Howell and I like being near you. You are my best buddy in the world."
Jonas smiled. "Gilligan I appreciate that I do but maybe it would be time to…let go."
"Let go? What do you mean?"
"I mean Gilligan that you will always be my little buddy. Nothing will change that but I think it's time you went out on your own. You don't need me around. You are more than capable of taking care of yourself. You need to be your own man. It's time that you did that."
"I am my own man." Gilligan insisted. "I have a good job with Mr. Howell…I live on a houseboat…"
"Yes Yes I know that Gilligan. But maybe it would be time for you to do something by yourself. No Mr. Howell. No me. Just you."
"I…I don't know if I can…I can't do that Skipper. I've never…"
"Tell me. Is that why you think you can't be with Mary Ann? You don't think you will be good enough for her? You don't think you can take care of her?"
Gilligan set his bowling ball down and sat on the plastic seat. "I'm scared Skipper. I know that I made it into the Navy but when you are in the Navy you are part of a team and you have someone telling you what to do. I…don't know if I'm ready for the responsibility of ...you know. I mean if Mary Ann and I…got married…she would want kids and I like kids and all but I don't know if I would be any good at it and the added responsibility. I would be responsible for their well being. Everything would be on my shoulders. I don't know if I can handle that.
"Little Buddy." Skipper said. "Is that the real reason you pushed Mary Ann away? You are scared?"
"I suppose. Maybe it was."
"Gilligan you don't have to marry her right away. You can take all the time you need."
He stood up and shook his head. "No Mary Ann is going to want a ring. She wants what Ginger has with the Professor. I saw her at their wedding. She had that look of envy in her eyes. I could tell she wanted to have the same special day. I can't give her that. She doesn't want to wait. She wants marriage now and I'm not able to give that to her."
"Has she told you this?"
"No but I know she's thinking that. She is going to want to get married right away. She wants kids. House, picket fence. There's no way I can give that to her."
"Gilligan I think you are being ridiculous. Mary Ann is not going to pressure you into anything you are not ready for. She wouldn't do that."
"She may not pressure but she will drop hints. I'm telling you Skipper that's what she wants and she wants it now."
California
Mary Ann was in a guest room of Ginger's home. She had wanted to stay at a hotel but the redhead would not hear of it. She told her she was staying with them and she would not hear any argument about it. The brunette was actually grateful as the guest room was way more luxurious than any hotel room she could afford. Her black cocktail dress was hanging up in the closet. She was going shopping tomorrow with the movie star for the perfect accessories. Right now her mind was on Gilligan.
She went through it over and over and could not come up with one reason why he would push her away. It made no sense. There had to be more than what he said. She living in Kansas and he in California. Well whatever it was she was going to make him see that it was just silly. She smiled at the thought of being in his arms again. How wonderful it felt to be there. Her mind thought back to that balloon monster. How she ran straight to him. No hesitation. She knew that the only one who would ever make her feel safe was Gilligan. He was strong and brave. She saw it time and time again on that island. Facing down that headhunter who kidnapped them. That Japanese sailor. Even that horrible Jonathan Kincaid. That lowlife was still in a mental institution. Too good of a place for him. He belonged in jail. Although that may be too good for him too. Well Gilligan sure outsmarted him.
Mary Ann also thought of the storm on the Minnow. He had so much courage. Keeping her spirits up and assuring her they would be okay. He took control of the ship with Skipper and kept them all alive. She was forever grateful that Gilligan was there. She had no intention of living without him. He wasn't getting away form her.
Make him hers again she would. No question about it.