Chapter Four

"Cojack, I can't be stuck here! I have things to do, people to see, I have to go to work, I have to take care of Mark, I have to take care of my animals, and I can't stay here. Jackson, this is bad…this is scary," Jo said frantically. Jackson gave her a look of sorrow.

"I'm so sorry, Johanna, but I can't possibly fix this without the right tools. You're leaking fuel… that's a big problem," he explained. She looked at him with a sense of fear.

"I know… I know all that stuff… that's why I'm freaking out. What are we going to do? How are we going to be able to get home?" she asked. She was panicked, yes, but she made it funny somehow. Jackson laughed slightly and held out his arms. She walked over and hugged him, hoping to find comfort in him.

"It will be okay," he replied. "We'll get off this island… and in the meantime, I'm not going to let anything happen to you." They stood there for a few moments, not even noticing that Melissa was watching with flaming green eyes.

"He was hugging her!" Melissa said angrily, stomping back into camp. She knew she had to prepare for trouble when the helicopter's fuel line broke. Jo was stuck here… stuck with her… stuck with Jackson. No way was Melissa going to let Jackson get away from her again. It wasn't fair… she liked him first… before anyone. And now some stranger was trying to pry him away, all his interest wrapped up in Jo.

Jo followed Jackson back to his big tree in the jungle, where they climbed up and looked out over the beach and over the camp. "I'm really scared," she whispered to him. "I've never been away from home except for that time when you and I went over to Logan's house and stayed the night. That was nothing compared to this though. It didn't involve foraging for food and boiling water. Remind me again why you boil water?" she asked. Jackson smirked slightly.

"Oh, trust me… boiled water is better. No bacteria… no viruses… no puking… no diarrhea…" he trailed off and Jo gave him a weird look.

"Is it better if I don't ask?" Jackson nodded.

"Way better," he replied. She laughed with him some and they both watched the waves splash onto the beach, rolling in and out.

"You know… I realized after you left… that you were the one that held us together. You kept our family from falling apart. It was those little things you did that really made the difference and I want to thank you for it," Jo said. Jackson laughed slightly.

"That wasn't me, Jo," he told her.

"Yes it was. After you were taken away, we did noting but go downhill from there. Besides, you made a real impact on Mark and me too. I used to beat anybody that called me other than Johanna. When you called me Jo, it made me feel special. That's why I hardly ever go by anything else now." Jackson smiled.

"Kind of like Cojack… only it was backwards for me because you were the only one I wanted to call me that. If I couldn't hear you say it, no one could say it," he said, realizing later how mushy that sounded.

"Aww." She put her arms around him and squeezed him tightly. "Cojack missed me," she said like she was speaking to a baby or something. Jackson couldn't help but burst out laughing at her.

"Slightly," he replied with a goofy smile.

"Jackson," someone's voice called out. They looked down and saw Melissa standing at the bottom of the tree.

"That's another person who's found my tree," Jackson mumbled to himself. "Hey, Melissa. What's going on?" She crossed her arms, a pout-like scowl planted firmly on her face.

"I need to talk to you," she said. Jackson nodded.

"All right, we'll talk tonight, at dinner then."

"No, I need to talk to you now," Melissa said, cutting him off slightly. Jackson and Jo shot each other a look.

"Okay," Jackson said uneasily, jumping down off the tree branch. He followed Melissa out of the brush and onto the trail they had worn in the jungle. "What's up?" he asked, concerned with the way she was acting. Melissa shook her head with anger.

"Look, I could see your thing with Abby. I could understand one crush. Then, you had this thing with Taylor, which was understandable too because you two became friends. I got over both of them, but now this thing with that Jo girl who I don't even know? Jackson, you're just a genuine man whore if you ask me. At first, you made me feel upset, but now I feel just plain stupid and used. If you want to know now, we are no longer friends," she said in a rather threatening tone. She turned around and started storming off towards camp. Jackson stood there with his mouth hung wide open.

"Wait, Melissa, what? No, it's not like that! Melissa, come back! Melissa!" It was no use. She was stomping back towards camp. Jackson knew this had to be some kind of misunderstanding. He raced through the brush until he caught up with her on the beach.

"What do you think is going on?" Jackson asked Melissa. She gave an angry sigh, turning from him and walking back in another direction. Jackson huffed and ran back after her again. "It's not what you think, Melissa. This has to be a big misunderstanding. Let me explain myself," Jackson said. Melissa turned around quickly to face him.

"I'm not interested in a word you say because honestly, I don't care to listen to your lies. I know what's going on. You're the biggest man whore I ever met and you just want to get into another girl's pants!" she yelled at the conclusion of her sentence. Jackson was floored.

"Is that what you think happened between me and Taylor?" he snapped back. Melissa just kept walking and ignored him.

"It's not what I think happened, it's what I know happened," she said once before leaving Jackson with himself. He stood there, speechless and not quite sure if this was all real.

Melissa started racing across the beach until she reached a peaceful place where she could quietly think and cry to herself. This had all seemed so surreal, but it was happening. It was all real.