"Well, if you two are planning the wedding, I think I'm what the French call de trop."
"But, Mr. Howell, you'll need to step in as father of the bride and give Mary Ann away."
"Me? I'm hardly old enough to be the girl's big brother! Not to mention that means I'd have to pay for this farce of a ceremony."
"I think you'd be a very debonair father of the bride."
"Well, that's true. And you'll make a lovely bridesmaid."
"Will you two please stop?" Mary Ann was getting tired of people coming into her hut and turning her life upside-down. First she was told that she would be in a canoe with Gilligan, trying to get them all rescued, and then she was being expected to marry Gilligan. And now Ginger and Mr. Howell were doing that thing they did that wasn't quite flirting but was a bantering that they allowed themselves and that Mrs. Howell tolerated. Mary Ann took marriage much more seriously, too seriously to marry on a whim, even someone she was as fond of as Gilligan.
"I'm sorry, Honey. I think you're right, Mr. Howell. It's time for some girl-talk."
"And I think I need to talk to the boy responsible for this fiasco."
Mary Ann assumed that he meant the Professor, since it was the Professor's idea for her and Gilligan to be the canoe crew, but after Mr. Howell left, Ginger said, "I hope he's not too hard on Gilligan. After all, he didn't mean to cause all these complications when he found the canoe."
"No, I guess he didn't."
"So, Mary Ann, what do you think of all this?"
"Well, I'm not going to marry Gilligan just because Mrs. Howell thinks I should."
"But would you marry him if he wanted to marry you? And not just to get off the island?"
Mary Ann blushed at the direct question. She and Ginger had of course talked about the three eligible bachelors on the island. How could they not? But the question of marriage had never seriously come up. How could it when none of the men had ever seriously courted them? If anything, she and Ginger had done more of the pursuing, although Mary Ann had always been shy and lady-like about her pursuit of Gilligan. She'd sometimes thought a more aggressive approach would be more successful, but it never seemed to work for Ginger, and it wasn't Mary Ann's style anyway.
"You like him, don't you?" Ginger continued.
"Well, yes."
"As more than a friend?"
"Yes. But I sometimes think Gilligan isn't ready for more than friendship."
"Not even alone at sea with you?"
"No, not even then."
"Hm. Well, let's say you go ahead and get married, to please Mrs. Howell. Where's the harm? You make her happy. You two go off in the canoe, so we're all happy. And maybe you two will be happy."
"Ginger!" Mary Ann was shocked. "I just told you—"
"No, Honey, I mean, you enjoy each other's company. You can have fun without 'having fun.' And if nothing happens, well, you can get it annulled."
"Ginger, I'm a lot more old-fashioned than you. I take marriage very seriously. If and when I get married, I'd want it to be real and forever."
To her surprise, Ginger said, "That's what I'd want, too."
"Really?"
"Really. My old roommate Debbie Dawson has gone through three marriages since we've been on this island, but I never wanted that kind of Hollywood lifestyle. If I ever got married, it would be for keeps."
"I'm sorry, Ginger, I didn't mean to offend you."
"It's all right. As for you and Gilligan, well, it's just possible that marriage may be the nudge he needs to realize he loves you."
Now Mary Ann blushed like a tropical sunset. "Ginger!"
"Do you love him?"
"Why are you asking me all these embarrassing questions?"
"Because you're like my kid sister. And once we get rescued, we'll probably go our separate ways and I'll never have the chance to ask you these things."
"Well, in that case, 'Sis,' let me ask you something."
"What?"
Before she could choose from the many questions she had about men and love and related matters, Mrs. Howell burst in. Mary Ann sighed. Everyone had been to see her that day. They were all apparently running all over the island, talking to each other, while she just sat there, wishing she could get back to her sewing. The one person who hadn't yet visited her was the one she was most eager and yet most dreading to speak with: Gilligan.
"Hello, Girls, I have something to discuss with you."
"If it's about the wedding, your husband already beat you to it," Ginger said.
"Oh, good, that will save me time explaining. Now I'm afraid we have a couple complications."
"Complications?" Mary Ann repeated.
"Just minor ones. First of all, the Skipper will of course be performing the ceremony, but unfortunately the only vessel we have at the moment is the canoe, and I'm afraid it's going to be too small for the wedding party."
"That is a problem." Ginger looked as if she was trying not to laugh.
"But I'm sure that the men can build a craft that can float in the lagoon long enough for the ceremony, and we can leave them to sort that out."
"What's the second complication?" Mary Ann asked, deciding not to ask why the men didn't just build a vessel big enough for all of them and usable beyond the lagoon.
"Well, it's Gilligan."
"That is a problem," Ginger said again.
"Yes, but I mean specifically that he's too shy to propose."
"Does Gilligan even want to marry me?" Mary Ann had to ask.
"Of course he does. Why wouldn't he?"
"You are quite a catch," Ginger gently teased.
"I thought it would help if I could tell him that you'll say yes."
Mary Ann was a little annoyed by the assumption, but she realized that it was true. If Gilligan asked her to marry him, even if it was only so they could pilot the canoe together, well, she wouldn't have the heart to turn him down. She sighed. "Yes, go ahead and tell him."
Both of the other women squealed with delight. Then Mrs. Howell left, presumably to tell the good news to Gilligan.
"You're doing the right thing," Ginger said.
"I certainly hope so."
"My, my, the two of you having your honeymoon in a canoe!"
"Ginger, please don't tease me about this."
"I can't help it." Then the redhead laughed. "I just thought of something."
Mary Ann was almost afraid to ask but did. "What?"
"What about your curse?"
"My curse?"
"Yes, you two may be gone for weeks. What are you going to do about your curse?"
Mary Ann felt utterly embarrassed again. She and Ginger had managed that time of the month for years, with none of the men realizing anything about their cycles. (Mrs. Howell had gone through The Change before the shipwreck.) Sharing a hut, Mary Ann and Ginger had soon synced up their cycles, just like real sisters would've. But the next time Mary Ann's Aunt Flo came for a visit, her roommate would be Gilligan!