"Mary Ann, I think you're really neat. I mean in the groovy sense, although you are very tidy, too. I would be honored if you'd marry me and be my oar-mate. No, that's not right. Paddle-mate?"
"Gilligan, are you talking to yourself?"
"Oh, hi, Mrs. Howell. No, I was trying to figure out what to say for my proposal."
"Whatever you say, Dear Boy, I'm sure she'll say yes."
"Really?" He wondered what made Mrs. Howell so sure. Did Mary Ann like him as more than a friend? Or was she just desperate to get married after so long on the island? Or maybe she just wanted to leave the island. He wasn't sure what he was feeling. But marrying Mary Ann seemed to be the right thing to do, for a lot of reasons.
"Yes, go to her, Gilligan. Strike while the iron is hot."
"I could never hit a woman! Especially Mary Ann. And if she's ironing, maybe I should wait."
"A figure of speech. The time is right."
"OK, if you say so." It was Gilligan's habit to agree with whoever he spoke with. And everybody he spoke with seemed to want this. Well, he hadn't talked to the Skipper about it, but if the Skipper was going to perform the ceremony, then he must think it was the right thing to do.
Gilligan left Mrs. Howell and headed towards the girls' hut. He was about to knock, when he heard the girls talking. He knew it was wrong to eavesdrop, but he wondered if they were talking about him. They probably were, if Mary Ann was expecting him to propose. So he listened, hoping it would give him a clue what to say.
And that was how he found out that Mary Ann was cursed! Wow, and she'd never said anything! She must be real brave! He felt sorry for her, but then he realized that if she was cursed, she shouldn't be going on this canoe trip. He had enough bad luck of his own. If it was combined with her curse, the voyage was doomed from the start.
He wondered who else knew about the curse. Obviously not the Professor, but he probably would've just said it was silly superstition. Maybe Ginger was the only one Mary Ann had told. The girls shared a lot of secrets, since they were like sisters, different though they were from each other.
Gilligan decided he had better talk to the Skipper, who knew all about things like that. Maybe there was a way to remove the curse, some kind of voodoo ceremony.
He returned to his hut and found the Skipper.
"Gilligan, what are you doing here? I told you to watch the canoe."
"Oh, yeah, sorry. I got distracted."
To his surprise, the Skipper chuckled. "Well, I guess that's understandable under the circumstances." He shook his head. "All this with Mary Ann."
"You know?"
"Yeah, Mrs. Howell told me."
"She knows?"
"Of course she knows. If you're referring to the ceremony for—"
"Yeah, Skipper, I am! What should I do?"
"Uh, during the ceremony? Or after?"
"Oh, I'm not worried about after." He knew how to paddle a canoe after all.
"You do?"
"Of course, Skipper. I was in the Navy."
"Well, yes, but we never did have the birds and the bees talk."
"There are birds and bees in the ceremony?" He hoped he wouldn't have to get stung! Well, he'd do it for Mary Ann, but he wouldn't like it.
"Well, no, but the ceremony lets the birds and bees, well, fly and buzz."
"Oh." Gilligan was still confused.
"But only if you two want them to."
"All right." That didn't sound too bad.
"Do you want to go through with the ceremony, Little Buddy?"
"Well, yeah, I really care about Mary Ann and I want her to be happy."
"But is this what you want?"
"Well, I think it's what everybody wants. Me included." After all, they all wanted to get off the island, and they couldn't do it if Mary Ann was cursed.
"In that case, I'll go through with it."
"You know how to perform the ceremony?"
"Of course I do! It's hardly my first one."
It would be OK then. The Skipper would take care of everything.
"What should I do?"
"Gilligan, I think the most important thing for you to do is show up."
"I can do that."
The Skipper chuckled. "Good."
He was about to ask the Skipper if they should perform the voodoo ceremony before or after the wedding, when Mary Ann showed up. Gilligan blushed, thinking about the canoe and the wedding and the curse and everything.
"Um, hi, I just wanted to tell you—"
"Yeah, Mary Ann?" he asked shyly.
"Um, dinner will be a little late tonight."
"Oh, that's OK. I'm sure it's worth waiting for."
"Thank you, Gilligan."
"Excuse me, I think I'm what wagoneers call a fifth-wheel," the Skipper said and exited the hut.
This was even more awkward than the time the Howells invited him and Mary Ann both to dinner and then left the room. He'd wondered later if Mrs. Howell was trying to matchmake him and Mary Ann. At that point, they'd done some smooching, taking turns sitting on each other's lap, to make Duke Williams the surfer jealous, but Gilligan actually thought back then that Ginger was the one with a crush on him. She was always backing him up against trees and hut-posts, although usually she wanted something from him, and not just smooches.
"So, Gilligan," Mary Ann said, and she seemed as shy and nervous as he was, "you found a canoe."
"Yeah. Uh, do you want to go on a voyage with me? I don't know how long it'll be, but I can't think of any mate I'd rather have." This was true. She'd be much less likely than the Skipper to hit him with her hat. Also, she'd eat less of the provisions.
"Oh, Gilligan! I'd love to!" Suddenly she was throwing her arms around him and kissing all over his face.
For a moment, he hoped that her curse wasn't contagious, and then he decided that this felt so good that it was worth the risk.
