Jackson prided himself on his ability to stay calm in any situation but his panic was rising with every minute that passed. Mel had gone into the forest hours ago to find food and she had yet to reappear. He knew that it could take some time to locate food, gather it, and then carry it all back to camp but the sun was starting to get lower in the sky and she still wasn't back.

Jackson found the nearest member of their group and forced his voice into a more neutral tone, "Hey, Lex, have you seen Mel?"

Lex's head looked up from the gadget he was examining, "No. She isn't back yet? It's been a while."

Looking around the beach in case he'd missed her the first time, Jackson sighed, "I know. Come on, let's go find the others."

The two of them went from person to person asking if anyone had seen Mel but they were met with the same response each time. They all quickly gathered around the fire and Jackson saw the concern on everyone's faces. It wasn't like Mel to just not come back or do something without letting one of the others know.

"Let's split up and look for her," Jackson said. "Everyone pair up and take a flashlight. Try not to get lost. If it gets too dark then come back to camp. Daley, why don't you take Lex with you. Eric, you go with Taylor, and Nathan and I will look together." Everyone nodded their heads and Jackson knew that Eric and Taylor were more freaked out than they were letting on since neither one complained of exploring the forest in the dark.

They all went to their bags and threw on some warmer clothes before breaking into their groups. As they were walking in different directions, Lex called out to them, "Wait!"

Before explaining anything, Lex ran to the plane wreck and grabbed something before coming back. His hand was clenched around a bunch of strings with something shiny on the end. "I found these the other day in one of the storage compartments under the seats. When we find Mel, we can use them to let the others know."

Jackson looked at the silver metal whistle in his hand and gave a small smile, "Nice work, Lex."

Looping the whistle around his neck, Jackson clapped his hand on Nathan's shoulder and started into the trees on the same path Mel had used that morning. Both boys were quiet as they searched and Jackson was glad. He was using the quiet to mentally beat himself up over letting Mel go off on her own. He should have stopped what he was doing and insisted he go with her. Now she was probably wandering around the island alone and scared, not to mention the fact that she had been dressed for the hot weather in shorts and a tank top. The nights on the island were the complete opposite of the scorching heat of the day and tonight was no exception. They'd only been looking for half an hour and Jackson could already feel the cold seeping into his hands and feet.

The longer they searched the more Jackson felt his inner turmoil coming to the surface. The sun had set long ago and the sky was completely dark with the only light coming from the scattered stars and his and Nathan's flashlights. He could hear the ocean in the distance and felt the cool night breeze reaching his skin through his thick sweatshirt. The others must have gone back to camp by now but Jackson knew he couldn't follow his own rule as he kept scanning the land in front of him. One scenario after another flashed through his mind about what could have happened to Mel, each one worse than the last. Jackson jumped slightly when he felt a hand come down on his shoulder.

"I don't think we're looking in the right places," Nathan said as he rubbed his hands together to keep warm.

The anxiety Jackson had built up on the inside came pouring out of his mouth, "Where is she then? We have no idea how big this island is. She could have broken a leg or been attacked by an animal. Do you know where all of the cliffs are on this island because I don't. What if she fell 'cause it was too dark to see?"

"Mel's smart, she wouldn't have gone too far. And if she's not on this path then she looked somewhere else for food but she would've left something behind so she could find her way back."

Jackson took some deep breaths and let Nathan's words sink in before he nodded his head, "Yeah. Yeah, you're right. Why don't you go back to camp to get warm with the others and I'll keep looking."

"Are you serious? I'm not leaving you alone in the forest at night. We'll just end up having to find you, too. Besides, Mel's my friend and I'm not stopping until we find her."

Nathan had more resolve and determination on his face than Jackson had ever seen before. A feeling of relief spread through him, too, at the thought that he'd have someone else with him when they found Mel. But as the night wore on, Jackson could feel his hope falling and the sick feeling in his stomach grew bigger. They had to have been searching most of the night by now with no sign of Mel anywhere. It was freezing out by this point and to make matters worse it had started to rain.

Nathan's voice broke into Jackson's tortured thoughts when he called out, "Look!" Jackson ran over to where Nathan was standing, his hand wrapped around the branch of a tree and a strip of fabric resting on his palm.

"It looks like it's part of a bandana or something. Maybe it's Mels?" Nathan said as he looked at the red cloth.

Jackson flashed back to the morning before when he'd talked with Mel before she went into the forest and his eyes widened as he remembered the square of red that had been stuffed into the pocket of her shorts, "It is Mel's. She had that in her pocket when she left."

Smiling at their first sign of Mel, Jackson pushed past Nathan into a part of the forest they hadn't gone to yet. The boys scanned the trees and bushes in front of them for more of the red pieces of fabric, careful to aim their flashlights at the ground first in case there were any sudden drop-offs. After a few more minutes they were soaked to the skin but they'd found several more red strips. They stood still in the area they'd found the last piece in and searched for more signs but couldn't find any.

"She has to be around here somewhere," Jackson said. Nathan nodded his agreement and walked off to look behind the trees and rocks scattered around the spot.

Jackson's desperation had reached its peak when Nathan shouted, "I found her!"

Stumbling over smaller rocks in his haste, Jackson sprinted to where Nathan was crouched. When he looked over Nathan's shoulder, his heart stopped beating. Mel was slumped sideways against a tree, her normally tanned skin completely drained of color and holding a slightly bluish hue. She had a cut on the left side of her head that had dripped blood down her face. Before Jackson could even move, Nathan sprang to his feet and grabbed for the whistle that hung around his neck, the shrill sound piercing the quiet of the island.

Jackson scooped Mel up and cradled her in his arms, another shot of fear going down his spine at how cold she was. He moved quickly, Nathan using both of their flashlights to guide their way back to the beach and blowing on the whistle every few feet. The rain made it harder to see where they were but the quiet sound of more whistles in the distance urged them on. The noise grew louder as Jackson and Nathan practically ran through the forest, both feeling relief when they recognized the familiar trail leading back to the beach. After a few more minutes they broke through the last of the trees and walked into their camp.

Taylor's eyes grew wide as she saw Mel, "Oh my God." Jackson couldn't pay attention to anything being said. Mel's small frame had stayed limp and her head rolled against his shoulder with every step he took.

"Bring her over here," Daley walked ahead to the tent and pushed back the flap to allow him in. "Put her down and get out. Taylor, come help me get her out of these wet clothes!"

Jackson did as he was told, silently thanking Daley for her bossy and controlling ways. He watched as Taylor scurried into the tent and zipped it shut. He felt something being pushed into his arms and saw that Eric had handed him and Nathan dry clothes. Nodding his thanks, Jackson hurriedly changed, feeling immediate relief from the cold and gratitude that the rain had finally stopped. When the girls remained in the tent, he started pacing in front of the door.

"She'll be okay, Jackson," Lex came to stand next to him but stayed out of his way so he could continue to pace.

"You don't know that, Lex," Jackson spoke quietly.

The sound of a zipper drew their attention back to the tent as Daley poked her head out, "We're done."

Jackson practically threw himself inside and crawled over to Mel. Her wet clothes had been exchanged for sweatpants and a thick sweater while several pairs of socks had been applied to her feet. Her mass of hair had been brushed out and dried off with a towel and the blood had been cleaned off of her face, revealing a cut surrounded by a large purple bruise. He turned his head to look at the others, "What now?"

"We use the book. It's all we've got," Lex said as he opened the first-aid book to two separate sections. "This says head wounds bleed a lot even if they're small so that explains why there was so much blood." Jackson felt some comfort at that but it was overpowered by Lex's next statement, "She was out there a long time, so she probably has hypothermia."

"Well, let's put her next to the fire," Eric suggested.

Lex shook his head, "No, we can't. It could cause burns."

"Then what do we do?" Nathan said with exasperation. As soon as the words left his mouth, every head whipped around to watch Mel, who had started convulsing. Her entire body shook with barely any time in between the tremors.

"What's happening? Is she having a seizure?" Jackson could hear the panic in his own voice.

"This says that severe shivering can be one of the symptoms," Lex flipped a page.

"But she wasn't doing that before," Taylor said.

"Maybe it's because she's warmed up a little?" Daley looked at Mel with uncertainty.

"The book says that she has to be warmed up slowly and not to try rubbing her feet and hands 'cause it could make it worse."

"How do we warm her up then if we can't use the fire?" Taylor looked down at Lex.

"The best way is to use body heat."

"Well, I could sleep on one side of her and Taylor could go on the other," Daley looked to Taylor who vigorously nodded her head in agreement.

"That could work but it'd be better if one of them did it," Lex gestured towards Jackson, Eric, and Nathan. "Guys give off more body heat than girls," Lex explained after seeing the curious looks from the group.

Jackson took a deep breath as he looked between Eric and Nathan, rage flaring in his chest as he thought about one of them wrapping their arms around Mel and staying that way. He saw the hesitation on the other's faces and spoke before they were able to, "I'll do it. What else?"

"That's it. We just have to wait until morning to see if it worked," Lex said with a sad frown. "But it might help that we'll all be in there. You know, more body heat and stuff," Lex tried to provide more reassurance.

"Alright. My sleeping bag is the biggest so let's move her there," Jackson crawled to his side of the tent and unzipped his sleeping bag. He watched as Nathan and Eric lifted Mel and placed her next to him.

"Once you're zipped in we can cover you with more stuff to help keep the heat in," Lex said.

Jackson carefully slid into the sleeping bag beside Mel and zipped it while the others rummaged around their things. By the time everything was settled, you could barely see Jackson or Mel through all of the clothes, towels, and extra blankets that were piled on around them. Jackson could hear the others as they got ready for bed and then silence filled the small space. He willed his heart to slow down as he wrapped his arms around Mel and hugged her to him. He moved her hands up to rest against his chest so they'd warm up faster and he tucked her head into his shoulder. After a couple of minutes, her shivering stopped and Jackson sighed with relief as he felt himself relax for the first time in hours.

Despite his exhaustion, Jackson couldn't fall asleep and instead listened to the even breaths coming from Mel. She didn't feel as cold as she had before and he hoped it wasn't just wishful thinking on his part. He tightened his hold on her, loving the way she fit perfectly in his arms. He slowly bent his head and brushed a kiss to her temple, closing his eyes and praying with everything he had that he'd get his second chance to tell her how he felt when the morning came.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Mel had been cold before but she'd never experienced anything like she had in the forest. It had crept up slowly and she hadn't paid it any attention. Then it had invaded everything and seemed to bury itself in her bones. She didn't realize how much the cold could hurt. Now, though, she didn't feel cold, she felt warm and she couldn't understand it. She tried to move but something was holding her in place and she slowly forced her eyes open. Her vision was blurry and she blinked a few times until things cleared and she found herself staring at a familiar sweatshirt. She dragged her gaze up until she found herself looking into the sleeping face of Jackson. Her brain was still foggy and she couldn't fully comprehend what was going on or what she was doing as she worked her arm free and slowly reached up to place her hand against the side of his face.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Jackson couldn't remember the last time he'd slept so well. He could never seem to find that peace that everyone else did that allowed them to relax while they slept. Usually he'd listen to music but having Mel so close and keeping his arms around her had lulled him to sleep better than any song. That's why he got so annoyed when he felt someone trying to wake him. He reached up to shove the person away but when his fingers closed around a small hand, his eyes shot open.

The hand drifted away and he looked down to see Mel slowly opening her eyes, "Jackssson?" Her words were slurred as she tried to talk.

"It's alright Mel, you can go back to sleep," Jackson spoke quietly so he didn't wake the others.

Mel nodded her head sluggishly before her eyes slid closed. She pulled her arm in close to her again and burrowed deeper into the sleeping bag. Jackson automatically put his arms around her again and hugged her to him, easily falling back to sleep.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Jackson...Jackson...Jackson!" Jackson felt his shoulder being shaken violently as he registered that someone had been loudly whispering his name. He turned his head to see a mass of blonde curls.

"Taylor, what are you doing?"

"It's morning, everyone's already up and eating breakfast. You should come get something, too."

"I don't want to wake Mel up," Jackson also didn't want to let her go and he had a feeling this would be the first and last time that he'd be able to hold her like this.

"Taylor rolled her eyes, "Lex said she'll probably sleep for hours so I don't think you'll wake her. You haven't eaten since lunch yesterday." At Jackson's hesitation, Taylor added on, "You won't be able to help Mel if you pass out from hunger. But I guess Eric can fill in for you."

Jackson glared at Taylor who just smirked, knowing that the thought of Eric laying next to Mel the way Jackson was would drive him crazy. Jackson quietly unzipped the sleeping bag and crawled out, careful not to jostle Mel. He tucked the covers back around her and left the tent to eat, feeling a deep emptiness consume him as he walked away from Mel.

He sat next to Lex and reached for a bottle of water and some fruit, "Do you think she's gonna be okay, Lex?" Jackson spoke quietly, just needing some reassurance about Mel. He never thought he'd be going to a twelve-year-old for his opinions on medical emergencies but here he was. The thought almost made him smile.

Lex nodded his head, "I think so, she wasn't as pale this morning. Now we just have to wait for her to wake up so we know how bad her head wound is."

Jackson thought he might be sick, "What do you mean? It was just a small cut and you said those bleed the most."

"Well, they do but I don't know how hard she hit her head. She could have a concussion." Lex said it simply but Jackson lost any appetite he might've had. So they'd fixed one problem only to have another. What would they do if Mel was really hurt? They didn't have a doctor who could help her. Jackson only barely listened when Daley gave everyone their job for the day. Jackson was assigned laundry duty which meant he could stay close to the tent and he gave Daley a small smile, thanking her.

After forcing himself to finish eating, Jackson gathered the stuff he'd need to do the laundry. He looked into the tent to check on Mel and after seeing that she was still sleeping, he moved a few feet away and started to clean the group's clothes. It took a little longer than it normally did because he stopped every five or ten minutes to check on Mel. He finally finished and found some other things to do around the campsite that kept him near the tent. Lunch had come and gone and it was nearing time for dinner which meant they could stop working.

Jackson had his back to the tent as he put more wood on the fire, thinking about how Mel should've woken up by now. He'd made up his mind to try to wake her when he heard someone cry out behind him. His eyes widened when he saw Mel trying to push herself up on all fours in the sand and he ran to her, dropping down by her side.

"Mel! Mel, are you okay?"

Mel nodded her head before gripping it with both hands, "Uh..why does my head hurt?"

"I think you fell and hit your head on something in the forest. Can you stand?"

Mel started to nod her head again but seemed to think better of it. Jackson helped her to her feet and she stumbled. Jackson lurched forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, catching her before she fell again.

"Do you want to go back in the tent?"

"No, I'm okay. Thanks," Mel took a small step and put some weight on her leg, testing to see if she could hold her own weight. After a few more steps, Mel asked Jackson to stay where he was so she could walk on her own. Reluctantly, he let her go but was ready to catch her if she needed him to.

Mel felt like she was walking on land for the first time after being on a boat for weeks. Her legs didn't feel like they belonged to her but she supposed that could be because she'd been asleep for awhile. How long she'd been sleeping she wasn't sure, yet. Not to mention the fact that her head was killing her. By the time she reached the campfire she had regained control of her balance and she carefully sat down in the sand.

Jackson soon followed her, taking the spot to her right. "Here," He handed her a bottle of water and she drank it eagerly.

"Mel, you're up!" Nathan jogged over and sat down.

Before she could answer, she heard a much younger voice calling out, "Mel!" Lex wrapped his arms around her shoulders and gave her a quick hug. Mel ignored the sharp pain that went through her head and hugged him back. Before sitting down, Lex turned and cupped his hands around his mouth, "Hey, guys! Mel's awake!"

Mel let out a small laugh at Lex's enthusiasm, watching as the others came into view. Nathan smiled widely at her, "You had us pretty worried for a while." Despite the smile, Mel knew that Nathan was telling the truth and that they'd all been scared.

"Do you remember what happened?" Daley scrunched her eyebrows together.

Mel thought for a second, "I went to look for food and I stayed on the normal trail we use but I couldn't find anything so I left the path. I thought I saw some fruit in one of the trees and I went towards it but I tripped and must have hit my head." Mel frowned and Jackson wanted to tell her she didn't need to finish but she kept talking, "It was getting dark out when I woke up again but my head hurt and I was so cold, I guess I passed out again. The next thing I remember was waking up in the tent a little while ago. How did you find me?" She looked curiously around the group, hoping they'd fill in the blanks for her.

"Jackson said he hadn't seen you since you left to find food. We all talked and realized none of us had seen you either so we started looking," Nathan said.

"Nathan and Jackson found you and carried you back," Daley continued. "You were soaked from the rain so Taylor and I got you in dry clothes."

Mel sent an appreciative look at the two girls, "Thanks, guys. But how did you know where to look for me? I didn't stay on the trail."

"We found the clues you left behind," Nathan smirked as he held up one of the strips she'd torn from her handkerchief and Mel let out a small smile, she'd forgotten about using the fabric as a way to trace her steps back to the path.

"I forgot about that. The only other thing I can remember is hearing this horrible noise. It was really loud and sharp sounding."

Jackson had remained silent the whole time they sat around the fire, but he spoke up when Mel mentioned the noise she heard, "That would be Lex's idea. He gave everyone a whistle to use to alert the others if they found you." Jackson shot a smile at Lex.

Mel grinned at the boy and then turned to face everyone, "Thank you guys for taking care of me."

They all just nodded in response and then Daley spoke again, "Come on, guys, let's get dinner. We'll grab some for you, Mel." Daley added on as she saw Mel trying to stand to join them. Nathan, Eric, and Lex joined her which left Jackson and Taylor to sit with Mel who was replaying things in her mind. There was something that kept nagging at her and she didn't quite understand why it stuck out to her.

"Hey, guys?"

"Yeah?" Taylor looked at her.

"When I woke up, why wasn't I in my own sleeping bag?" Mel thought her question was a reasonable one but the way Taylor's eyes shot from hers to Jackson and then back again, Mel realized it must have been anything but reasonable.

"That was Lex's idea, too. You were too cold and he said the best way to warm you up again would be to use body heat," Taylor seemed to be taking an exceptional amount of pleasure in telling her this but didn't elaborate. Instead, she got up and went to get food with the others.

Mel started to work things out in her head. She had been sleeping in the bag closest to the side of the tent that faced the ocean, which meant that...Oh no. Her gaze shot to Jackson who refused to look at her. Mel felt her face burn as she realized that Jackson had shared his sleeping bag with her. Don't get carried away, Mel. You were frozen and they had to warm you up. Jackson must have been chosen at random. It's not like he has feelings for you or anything, Mel rationalized to herself. Forcing the blush from her cheeks and the disappointment from her heart, Mel turned to face Jackson.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Jackson was going to kill Taylor. She knew exactly what she was doing when she told Mel that Jackson had been the one to share his sleeping bag with her. He knew she would've found out eventually, but it was the way Taylor had told her. She'd had a huge grin on her face and laughter was shining in her eyes. Then she'd gotten up and left him alone with Mel and the hurricane she'd created. Jackson couldn't look at Mel so he busied himself with breaking up sticks into smaller pieces and adding them to the fire.

"Jackson?"

He heard Mel's quiet voice and reluctantly turned to look at her, "Yeah?"

"Um...thank you...for uh, well, you know," Mel couldn't seem to get the words out.

"No problem," he said quickly. He quietly sighed with relief when the others came back with their food. Nathan tossed him some fruit while Daley handed some to Mel. Taylor sat down and raised her eyebrows at him, looking as if she was waiting to hear one of them say they were now a couple, but Jackson just glared at her and Mel remained silent. Yep, I'm definitely gonna kill Taylor.