"Ow!' The Skipper exclaimed as he was accidentally stuck by a straight pin.

"Skipper," Mary Ann whined, "please try to hold still. If you don't, the seam's going to be crooked."

"I'm trying, but my feet are falling asleep and my arms are getting sore. I don't know how much longer I can hold them up like this," he said in a somewhat cranky tone.

"I'm sorry Skipper. It shouldn't be much longer, I promise. I have to get this sleeve just right. You know, sometimes I forget you're still building your strength up from the affects of that hornet's venom," Mary Ann explained.

"Just don't make him anymore goodies between now and the wedding and his suit will fit like a glove," Gilligan said, annoying his best friend.

"Gilligan, I'm warning you... one more fat joke and I'm gonna tear into you the minute Mary Ann's finished with me," he said with a scowl.

"Come on Skipper," Gilligan said, "I was only kidding. You tease me. You call me lamebrain and klutz sometimes. Deep down, you got a lot of faith in me, don't ya?"

"What makes you think that?" The Skipper said, rolling his eyes.

"Well, because you're still my big buddy, and you still try to help me, and I know you've told others you're proud of me," Gilligan said, with a grin.

"Gilligan, I am proud of you. No matter what, you try your best, and if you don't know how to do something you are always willing to learn," the Skipper said sincerely.

"Thank you." Gilligan was truly touched.

"Now, with that being said, could you please lay off the weight jokes before I choke you?" The Skipper said, giving Gilligan an evil look. Just then Mary Ann announced that she was done.

"Oh Skipper," she exclaimed, "you look very handsome. Here, take a look." Mary Ann directed him in the direction of her full length mirror. The Skipper looked at himself. The grey suit fit him nicely, and the deep blue tie he planned to wear with it would make it look even better. A smile spread across his face. Six days and counting to the most important day of his life. He couldn't wait to put this on again and hoped that Doris would find him appealing in the outfit.

"Not bad, not bad at all," he said, tugging at the lapel with his fingers.

"Ok Skipper," Mary Ann instructed, "be very careful getting that suit off. I don't want you to get stuck with any pins. I'll work on sewing some of it tonight after dinner."

"Thank you," he said, kissing her cheek, "I know you're an awfully busy mama. I appreciate you helping me out."

"It's no problem. I'm thrilled to be of assistance. Besides, I have plenty of others to help me with Grace. Also, since Ginger and Doris are working on her dress, I figured it only fitting that I let your suit out for you," Mary Ann said.

"Do you think Doris will like it?" The Skipper asked with anticipation.

"Skipper, what a silly question!" Mary Ann said with surprise. "Doris thinks you're handsome no matter what."

"I know... I just want to please her. If she hadn't come into my life the way she did, I would probably spend the rest of my life alone. I mean, just when I was at my loneliest point in my life, "POOF" she shows up. I couldn't have asked for a better woman if I had picked her myself," the Skipper said, "she's so beautiful, and smart, and fun, and flirtatious, and sassy, and independent, and humorous... I could just go on."

Mary Ann and Gilligan smiled at each other. Seeing their friend, the Skipper, so over the moon was a wonderful sight to behold.

...

"Oh Ginger!" Doris exclaimed, holding up a plain, sleeveless, white satin evening gown. "This is beautiful! Are you sure I can use this to make a wedding gown with?"

"Of course you can. I don't even wear that one anymore. I have at least a half a dozen or more that are my husband's "preferred favorites". It seems I'm wearing the same few dresses all the time," Ginger said with a grin. Just about that time, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in, Mrs. Howell!" Ginger called.

"Never fear, Lovey is here... with accessories" she said, as she laid a pile of lace, pearls, and diamonds onto Ginger's sewing table.

"Oh my, look at this," Doris said, with a smile, "we can cut this piece of lace and sew it over the bodice of the dress... and maybe incorporate a few pears?"

"This is so exciting!" Mrs. Howell exclaimed, "I've never designed a wedding dress before,"

"It has to be just perfect," Doris said, "when I come marching down to the lagoon, I want Jonas' jaw to drop." She giggled as she said this.

"Easy there girl," Ginger teased, "you look too good it's going to go from "I do" straight to the Honeymoon Hut."

"Are you... um... nervous? You know... about your wedding night?" Mrs. Howell had asked. "I myself was terrified! I spent half the night locked in the bathroom of our honeymoon suite... crying my eyes out. I unlocked the door long enough for Thurston to hand me the phone so I could call and talk to mummy."

"Oh she's not nervous! Are you Doris? I'm sure you've probably..." Ginger stopped what she was about to say when she saw Doris glancing to the ground.

"No, we haven't," Doris admitted.

"Of course not! You're not even married yet," Mrs. Howell interjected.

"Eunice, I'm not... I'm not a virgin. That man I was engaged to... he didn't force me to sleep with him, but he sure had a way of nagging and making one feel guilty. I've not had sex in nearly twenty years... so yes, I am a little nervous. It's a good kind of nervous, kind of like when you come to the top of the roller coaster and your gut is anticipating the big drop. Not to get graphic... but yes, Jonas and I have come close, but I guess it's that nervousness that held me back. So, in a way I am nervous, but yet I'm looking very forward to it. It's another progression in our relationship... it's exciting." Doris told her best friend with a smile.

"Hey, you tigress! Less yapping and more sewing. You're fiance wants this wedding to happen in six days. I'm not sure a fairy godmother could pull this together in six days," Ginger said, giving the bride to be a hard time.

"Come on now Ginger," Doris said, "I have three fairy godmothers and three fairy godfathers who are gonna make damn sure that I'm united with my prince at one o'clock sharp come Saturday." Mrs. Howells eyes widened at the swearing, but then it turned into a smile and all three women burst with laughter.

It felt good to be with these women. They were like family. From the first day Doris arrived on the island, all of them took her in and accepted her as one of them. She felt as if she had two sisters, two brothers, and in Mary Ann and Gilligan, she felt she had the daughter and son she'd never had. As for little Grace, she loved her as if she were her own grandchild. Then there was Jonas... the man she knew once upon a time as Big Teddy. For some reason God saw fit to bring them back together. Sure, he was stubborn and proud at times, but overall she had never met a man that was so kind, so gentle, and so content, given the situation he was in. Aside from getting aggravated at Gilligan from time to time, or the differences of opinion with Mr. Howell, Jonas was most agreeable and easy to get along with. However, she wondered... what will it be like once we are rescued? There are millions of people in the United States, and only nine here. People can be so rude, unfair, dishonest. Will he be so patient when it comes to going back to the daily grind? She knew she had her days, being on her feet for twelve hours, family members of patients expecting her and the other nurses to be miracle workers, doctors who would jump down your throat if their instructions weren't followed to a tee. Doris was a kind person herself, but she had been know to snap at a waitress or two when she was completely done in and had no patience left. Would she treat her husband the same way when she came in from a long, hard day?

Then there was the matter of other women. She was fairly certain that Jonas loved her with all of his heart and would never hurt her on purpose. Still, she couldn't help but realize that she was the only single woman on the island. There would be millions of women back home. Jonas had more than his fair share of female companionship back in the day. With his reputation as being a sailor, and his bright blue eyes and charming smile, it wouldn't be hard for some woman to fall for him. Doris shook her head, as she pinned the dress in front of her. Ginger and Mrs. Howell were chatting about something silly Gilligan had done a few years before... dressing up as a White Goddess, or something like that. She hadn't really been paying attention.

Stop your worrying, Doris. True, you and Jonas have barely been together five months, but you have been by his side every single day of that. You've seen him get angry, you've seen him when he's sad, you've seen him be the most soft hearted and sentimental man you've ever met. Trust yourself... he's not Greg. Don't let your concerns get in the way of what you know is meant to be.

...

Later that evening, after everyone had retired for the evening, Doris and the Skipper were sitting down by the lagoon and gazing at the stars. The Skipper had both his arms wrapped around Doris and she snuggled up against him. They had talked some about how they were so excited for the day of the wedding and what song Ginger was going to sing and how the Professor was going to make up "contracts" for them to sign, stating their intentions. Although not legal in the least, it would still be a written reminder of their promises. They talked about the day they had, as the Skipper reported on how he had to be a mannequin most of the morning and his arms were still sore from all the standing.

"You poor dear. Turn around and I'll massage those arms and that back for you," Doris offered. The Skipper did as she asked, and she immediately maneuvered her fingers into his arm and back muscles. She could feel him relax under her touch, and the muscles were already starting to soften up a bit.

"You're amazing, you know that?"

"Well, thank you for saying so, but it's only a massage."

"No, I mean everything." The Skipper said and turned to face her. "You're loyal and loving. You forgave me and gave me another chance after I got drunk and acted like such a fool that one night. You saved my life and nursed me back to health... and you never once complained."

"Jonas, it was a miracle that you survived. Your recovery was completely out of my hands. Besides that, it was the Professor that figured out what stung you and how to treat it. All of us took care of you, and they didn't complain either."

"I know, and I appreciate all of it. I love all of them dearly. However, you were at my side almost every second. You were with me the most and did all the hard jobs. You slept at my bedside and held my hand most of the time. I will never, ever forget that."

"Jonas, I love you. I was glad to be by your side. I'm going to be your wife soon. Don't be surprised if you get more of the same treatment in the years to come."

"Are you nervous about the wedding?"

"Maybe a little, are you?"

"Yeah... I hope I'm a good husband and can give you what you need. It's not hard here. We just make due the best we can. Back home it is different. Life gets so busy. People tend to put themselves first, want their own way. There are too many choices and too many temptations."

"Do you mean... you are afraid of falling for someone else?"

"No! I'm done with all that. I told you that. I'm worried that some good looking fella will catch your eye and then it will be "so long Jonas"."

"Never. You're stuck with me mister."

"That's good to hear."

"I was worried that you might find someone else more appealing if we dd get rescued. There are women a lot prettier than me."

"Doris, I can assure you that if I were in a room with a hundred beautiful and single women, I would still pick you. My heart is all yours, Sweetie." He said, kissing the top of her head.

"My heart is all yours as well. You'll never have a reason to be suspicious of me. Even if you are jealous of my gay best friend," Doris added as she broke into laughter.

"I'm not jealous of Dwight... you better stop laughing."

"Or else what."

"Or else I'll ... tickle your feet." The Skipper grabbed her left leg, took off her shoe and began to mercilessly run his fingers over the arch of her foot.

"Stop!... Don't!... Uncle! UNCLE!... Oh stop, I"m sorry!" Doris shouted through her laughter. The Skipper was ready to quit, but not before Doris' leg jerked and kicked him in the stomach.

"OOF!" He said holding his stomach. "Well, I guess I had that coming. You've warned me before that you don't like tickling."

"No, I like kissing much better," she said, wrapping her arms around him and kissing his lips.

Well this chapter is just some filler, but it will get better soon... I promise. I thought it would be nice for Doris and Skipper to voice their concerns. If you can, please read and review. I don't get much time to write, so when I do... I honestly put everything into it. I know I focus a lot on sex and marriage, but those are things important to me. I take both subjects seriously and hold both as sacred and special milestones that a couple should reach when they're ready for it. Hope this story will stay intriguing and you all will keep reading . Thank you.