Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter forty of "Dark Desire." This chapter has plenty of Tommy/Kim. Tommy's teaching Kim to live off the land resumes in this one. It's been while in coming, but it is well worth it. Stay tuned for chapter forty-one.
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Chapter 40: Coconut Hunt
A scarlet macaw flew over the beach in the late morning. It landed on a branch just above the middle of a tree. It grabbed a nut off the edge of the branch. It held the nut in its foot with a soft squawk. It picked a piece off with its beak and gobbled it down. It repeated its actions until the entire nut was gone. It bobbed its head before spreading its wings apart. It folded them against its back.
The macaw spotted Tommy and Kim coming its way. It observed them passing underneath the branch. He adjusted his belt before touching his axe and knife. They touched the straps of their backpacks. He grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. She squeezed his just as gently. They swung them back and forth five times. He pulled her to him, letting go of her hand to put his arm around her. She slipped her arms around his neck.
Tommy and Kim hugged each other tightly. They teleported back to their hut right after collecting another bunch of bananas and six more passion fruits. They decided to eat some of both due to being a little hungry. He went to the first waterfall pool and washed eight fruits there while she counted how many bananas they found. He returned and prepared them for eating. They ate four fruits and two bananas each.
The couple listened to music on their CD players for a little bit. They talked about the ups and downs of living off the land, including facing predators, looking for food, gathering firewood, and dealing with tropical cyclones. They ended up kissing passionately. They made love three times over the course of forty-five minutes. After the final lovemaking session, they decided to go hunting for coconuts.
Tommy and Kim hugged once more. She planted a kiss to his cheek, getting one from him on hers in return. They looked toward the ocean, seeing two bottlenose dolphins do front flips in the surf. The dolphins landed on their backs in which they created big splashes. They swam upside down. They performed backflips and hit the water on their stomachs. They surfaced with air coming from their blowholes. They opened their mouths very wide as they emitted a series of clicks and whistles.
Tommy and Kim observed the dolphins going underwater. The dolphins leapt out of the water, reentering it just as fast. They performed a series of jumps before they disappeared beneath the surface. All of a sudden, they shot straight up in which they spun in midair. The first dolphin hit the water on its side. The second dolphin followed suit on its back. They created huge splashes.
The couple laughed in delight as the dolphins zipped through the water. The dolphins jumped in unison. They went underwater with excited squeals. They broke the surface and performed backflips. They landed on their stomachs. Tommy and Kim cheered at the dolphins' repeating their actions. They observed them heading out to sea. The dolphins headed underwater, slapping their tails on the surface.
"Now, those were some playful dolphins," she said.
"Yep," he agreed and tickled her cheek. They resumed walking. "When I first came to this beach, I saw some bottlenose dolphins perform acrobats. It reminded of the beach walk my parents and I took during our first official Saturday in Angel Grove. We observed some dolphins doing the same."
"It's cool you got to see dolphins during your first walk on an Angel Grove beach," Kim said, taking his hand into hers. "In fact, it's not every day you see dolphins playing in the surf during a walk on any beach."
"Well, we played with an orca yesterday. We just watched dolphins do acrobats in the surf. I say we are the luckiest couple in the universe right now," Tommy said with much pride.
"Whoa. What pride you have there!" Kim teased and pinched his cheek.
He smacked her hand away. "If you pinch my cheek again, you will be eating your fingers along with the coconuts we find."
She acted as if she were scared. "Oh, I am shaking."
Tommy ruffled his girlfriend's hair. She pressed a fist to his cheek before tickling it. He reached behind her to give her butt a hard pinch. She smacked him on the shoulder as they came to a stop.
"Keep your hands to yourself, you pervert!" Kim yelled in mock anger.
"I will until next time!" Tommy yelled and pinched her butt again. He did another pinch, this time being harder. "I guess you better tie my hands up, so I can't go after your butt again."
"You bet I will," Kim said very playfully. "In fact, I will tie them behind your back."
"That is a good place for my hands to be. Then again, I can always grab at you with my feet," Tommy commented, wiggling his eyebrows.
"I don't think so," Kim said, shaking her head.
"I do think so," Tommy said with a rapid nod.
"No," Kim commented, smacking him in the back of his head.
"Yes," Tommy responded, giving her a kiss on the tip of her nose.
The lovebirds resumed walking. He put his arm around her shoulder with a soft sigh. He smiled at her slipping her arms around his neck. He kissed her temple before rubbing it.
"In Return to the Blue Lagoon, Richard and Lilli walked along the beach after the Tradewind departed. They were holding each other like how we are," Tommy said, smiling.
"It was like their blissful life had never been interrupted," Kim said in sweetness. "I can't help but wonder if we will ever get any visitors, especially from other worlds."
"It is possible," Tommy admitted, suppressing a yawn. They looked toward some trees, but they didn't see any coconuts. "No coconuts yet."
"That's okay. We haven't been searching for coconuts long at all," Kim assured in gentleness.
"We've probably been searching for only five minutes," Tommy suggested. "Then again, we really can't tell."
"I have to say it is very nice to be able to walk on a beach every day," Kim whispered in much excitement. "The coastal Native Americans had a similar luxury."
"In Free Willy, Randolph told Jesse there were so many fish in the water that his people had to spend only one day a week gathering food. He said everyone ate like kings," Tommy explained.
"His tribe was called the Haida. I speculate Randolph was a commercial fisherman at one point. He must've quit the business due to his heart no longer being in it and began working at Northwest Adventure Park. He became Willy's caregiver," Kim pointed out.
"It is likely this area has so many fish that it won't take long for us to catch many with the net back at the hut," Tommy said truthfully.
"You still plan on showing me how to catch fish on a line first, right?" Kim asked, raising her eyebrows.
Tommy nodded. "Right. It is best to start off simple. Then we can move up to more complicated stuff."
"In The Blue Lagoon, I recall how disgusted Emmeline looked while she watched Paddy clean out a fish. I don't blame her because she was brought up in a city," Kim commented with a soft laugh.
"Emmeline became used to fishing, hunting animals, and gathering fruit and coconuts. She wanted to stay on the island when the ship appeared. She didn't light the signal fire. Richard wanted to leave and was angry when he found she hadn't done that," Tommy answered and babbled.
"He tried four times to leave. Every single boat he built sunk like a stone," Kim said, snickering under her breath.
"Emmeline told him he didn't even know where San Francisco was. In their case, they said San Frisco. Because they were stranded on the island at a young age, their vocabulary wasn't as developed," Tommy murmured.
"Despite that, they managed to figure things out," Kim said with much warmth.
"Oh, yes," Tommy agreed with a smile. "If we were in the same position as they were, I believe we would've figured things out too."
Kim giggled. "Me too."
Tommy and Kim turned, stopping in their tracks at what they saw. Five trees containing coconuts stood a short distance away. They were in a straight line. The first and second ones leaned more forward than the other three did. Tommy and Kim let go of each other, laughing in much joy.
"All right! We found coconuts!" he yelled in excitement.
"They don't look too high off the ground," she replied as they approached the first tree. They looked up at the coconuts. "It is interesting they are filled with a lot of calories and fat, despite they are rather small."
"It takes several months for coconuts to ripen," Tommy pointed out matter-of-factly. He took his backpack off his back, setting it on the sand. He touched his axe. "I am going to climb up there and pick the coconuts. You put them in your backpack after I throw them down, okay?"
"Sure," Kim said eagerly while removing her backpack from her back and laying it next to his. "Just be careful, all right?"
"Yes, Mother," Tommy commented, his voice showing much sarcasm. He let out a small snicker. "Of course, I will."
He approached the base of the trunk. He walked along the horizontal part until he got to the vertical part. He wrapped his arms around it and began climbing it slowly. She unzipped her backpack and opened it. She looked up and swallowed hard while clasping her hands together. She breathed at a slow yet steady pace.
"That tree appears to be a long way up, Tommy," Kim said honestly.
"I've climbed trees taller than this one, Kim," Tommy admitted proudly. "It's not very hard at all, especially if it is a small tree."
"The redwoods in California are among the tallest trees on Earth. It would take a lot of equipment to climb one," Kim said, her face showing much awe.
"You can't wrap your arms around a redwood's trunk. It is too thick," Tommy said, going past the halfway point. "It would take a large group of people to make a circle around one."
She unclasped her hands. "At least you don't have that much further to go."
"Nope," Tommy agreed, grunting as he lifted his leg. He placed his hands above his head and pushed himself upward. He repeated his actions three times. He managed to reach the top of the tree. "Now, here I am at the top!"
"Nice work, Tommy," Kim cheered in delight. "Now, get to picking those coconuts."
"Yes, ma'am," Tommy said, saluting her. He pulled a coconut off and tossed it down to the sand. He did his actions four more times. He watched her pick up and place each one in her backpack. "How about you toss a coconut at me?"
"No, thank you," Kim replied with a shake of her head.
"What's wrong, Kim? Are you chicken?" Tommy taunted and made clucking sounds.
"You're the chicken around here," Kim yelled.
He shook his head. "No way."
"Yes way," Kim said, nodding fast.
"If you keep nodding, I will grab a coconut and throw it at you," Tommy threatened in much playfulness.
"Do it. I dare you," Kim responded with a smirk.
Tommy chuckled. "Nah. I am coming down."
He climbed down the tree steadily. He reached the base of the horizontal part and let go of it. He walked down it, getting to the end. She clapped three times as he walked up to her. She touched his arms, giving him a kiss on the cheek.
"You did such a great job picking those coconuts," Kim complimented.
"Thank you," Tommy said, standing tall and proud. "All those years of climbing trees served me well."
"I think I am going to try to pick some coconuts," Kim said in eagerness.
"Go for it," Tommy said, slapping her on the back. "Just don't think of flying off the tree."
She elbowed him in the arm. She went to the base of the second tree and looked up at the top. She shifted her attention back to the bottom. She walked across the horizontal part, getting to the vertical part. She wrapped her arms around it and proceeded to climb in a slow manner. He unzipped his backpack, opening it. He put his hand over his eyes as he gazed toward her.
"You are doing great, Kim!" he called.
"Thanks," she said happily. She lifted her leg and moved her hands above her. She pushed herself upward. She repeated her actions twice. "This is pretty easy."
"The best thing about palm trees is they have groves that make climbing very easy," Tommy pointed out.
"I read that it is best to climb palm trees barefoot because shoes can injure them and make them vulnerable to disease," Kim whispered nervously.
"I read that too," Tommy said, clasping his hands together. "No one likes a diseased tree. It can't grow anything, not even leaves."
"However, diseased trees are good for animals that rely on them for raising their young," Kim said and cleared her throat.
"Oh, yes," Tommy agreed. "Those trees we found the bird eggs in may not have been diseased, but they would've been good for other animals if they were."
"Yep," Kim said, giggling. She lifted her leg before moving her hands above her. She made another push upward. She repeated her actions three times. She managed to reach the top. "I am at the top now!"
"Great," Tommy yelled joyfully and clapped three times. "Now, get some coconuts down here!"
Kim gave her boyfriend a thumbs-up. She picked a coconut and threw it down to the sand. She did her actions four times. He picked up and put each one in his backpack. She climbed down the tree carefully. She let go of it after getting to the horizontal part. She walked down it in which she reached the end. She headed over him. He kissed her on the lips.
"Nice work at picking coconuts," Tommy said warmly.
"Why, thank you," Kim responded, winking at him. "What do you say we head back to the hut and cook these coconuts?"
He laughed. "I say let's do it."
The lovebirds closed their backpacks, zipping them shut. They picked them up and placed them over their shoulders. They held hands as they headed down the beach. They listened to the squawking of parrots.