9. A Stroll on the Beach

Larry sat on the log beside his cousin, a small fire flickering before them, enjoying the satisfaction of a full stomach. The fish had been excellent, but considering he hadn't eaten in two days anything would have tasted good.

He stared out to sea, willing a boat or an airplane to appear and come to rescue them. There was another island, a small blotch of green on the edge of the horizon. It looked just like a photo from one of those travel magazines he picked up now and then at the dentist's office. He suddenly sat up straight as a thought hit him. He turned abruptly to his cousin. "BALKI!"

The Mypiot started at the volume and suddenness of Larry's exclamation and nearly fell off the log. "What's wrong?"

"What if we're not alone here?" Larry's eyes were wide and his eyebrows rose to touch the stray curls on his forehead, the very picture of hopeful excitement.

Balki took a couple of deep breaths, trying to dampen the adrenaline rush. "You're here. I'm here. We're not alone."

"No, no. What if there are other people on this island. I mean look at this place!" He made a wild gesture encompassing their surroundings. "It's perfect for an island resort. For all we know there could be bungalows right through those trees."

"Bungalows are nice." Balki nodded thoughtfully. "But I prefer steel drums, myself."

"No, not bongos! Bungalows, bungalows."

Balki dipped his head a bit, watching Larry's mouth closely as he repeated the word. "What that is?"

"Bungalows, they're…" He shook his head in frustration. "It doesn't matter. What I'm trying to say is that maybe there are other people here and all we have to do is scout around a bit to find them."

Balki took in a gasp of excitement. "Then we could be rescued and finish our cruise! You know I never did get to see the arcade."

Larry began to tell Balki that if they were rescued he doubted they would be able to continue the cruise and even if they could he wouldn't want to. But he decided it wasn't worth pursuing. He stood and dusted off his pants.

Balki rose as well. "Well, come on. What are we waiting for?" He took one step and turned to his cousin, obviously eager to get started with their mission.

Larry looked over their makeshift campsite feeling as if he should somehow prepare for this excursion. But there was really nothing he could do. With a shrug and a sigh he started after his cousin.

They walked along in silence for a while, just taking in their surroundings. But pretty soon Balki began humming and before long he was singing happily and kicking up the sand in a kind of skipping dance. "Island girl. She make me happy. Island girl. She kind of sassy…"

Larry watched silently, perplexed by his cousin's behavior. Didn't he understand the trouble they were in? Was he as oblivious to their danger as he appeared to be? No, he realized. Balki understood what was going on. He was just choosing not to be upset about it. Larry shook his head slightly and a hint of a smile played on the corner of his mouth. He would never understand how Balki could be so calm in a crisis.

They were complete opposites in many ways. That's why they needed each other.

"Oh, Cousin, look!" Balki stopped and pointed ahead on the shore where a huge flock of seagulls mingled about on the beach. He grabbed Larry by the hand and took off in a dead run, dragging his cousin along.

"What are you doing?!" Larry shouted indignantly, trying to keep up.

"This is fun!" Balki kept running straight toward the birds.

The seagulls seemed unperturbed by their presence until they were practically among them. Then the entire flock burst into flight. The sound of beating wings and white, feathered bodies exploded around them.

Balki laughed and Larry covered his head to shield himself from any unpleasantness that might drop on him from above.

"It's more fun with pigeons." Balki remarked as he watched the seagulls fly a ways before landing on the beach ahead. "Have you ever went to the park when they're…"

Ignoring his cousin's rambling, Larry continued purposefully onward. He had convinced himself that there were other people here and all they had to do was find them. He had grasped that one little thread of hope and held on for dear life. The possibility that they were truly alone was just too dire for his fragile emotions to handle. "We don't have time to play." His voice was serious and resolute. "Once we're rescued you can chase the birds all you want. I don't know about you but I want to get back to civilization."

"I want go home too." Balki sobered as he easily kept pace with his shorter friend. "You think they send our luggage back? Dimitri still is on the ship. I bet he's lonesome all by himself."

Larry sighed and shook his head. All the trouble they were in and Balki was worried about his stuffed sheep! Oh, well. He was certain that any moment they would turn a corner and find a fancy resort hotel, complete with running water and waitresses dressed in hula skirts. The hope that help was just around the bend, kept him moving at a steady pace.

Balki, however, kept a less-than-urgent attitude about their trek. He stopped every now and then to pick up an interesting shell or stone but then would have to hurry to catch up with his cousin who stubbornly refused to stop for him.

"Look this one!" Balki held a shell up in his outstretched hand. Probably the twentieth one he had brought over for his cousin's inspection in the last half hour.

Larry gave it a quick indifferent glance. "Nice."

Balki put his hand to his side and rattled his pocket that was now full of shells. "I think I got enough to make a necklace. I give it to Mary Anne when we get back"

"She'll like that." Somewhere in the back of his mind said: If we ever get back. He shook his head, trying to make the thought go away. Being a naturally pessimistic person he had to fight the impulse to give up and say 'we're doomed'. He had to keep reminding himself that there was hope. There are people here. I know it. There has to be!

Several hours passed as the sandy shore gave way to black stone riddled with tide pools. So far there had been no sign of human occupation, not so much as a candy wrapper.

Balki had watched as his cousin's face gradually changed from hopeful and determined to exhausted and discouraged. He knew all too well that Larry and the outdoors did not get along well. He also noticed that his cousin's pale face was beginning to burn. They had been walking nonstop all day, and Larry had insisted upon quite a brisk pace most of the way, and Balki could tell that his friend could not take much more.

He was about to suggest that they take a break when Larry simply toppled forward. Weather he tripped or simply collapsed Balki wasn't sure but he managed to grab his arm before he fell on his face. But he wasn't quite quick enough to prevent him from scraping a knee on the dark rocks.

"Are you okay?" Balki asked as he helped his cousin regain his footing.

Larry gazed down at the tear in his pants and the bloodied cut underneath. It stung a bit but was not anything serious. "I'm fine."

Before he could start walking again Balki put a firm hand on his shoulder. "Cousin we need to stop."

"Balki, I'm not a little kid. I can handle a skinned knee." There should have been sarcasm to accompany the comment but only fatigue was evident in his voice.

"Cousin, you're exhausted. We need to rest, we need to eat and we need to get out of the sun because you're turning as red as a rubber ball."

Larry managed to straighten his shoulders in a display of determination. "We can't stop. Help could be just around that palm grove." Besides, he was so tired that if he stopped he was afraid he might not be able to start again.

"Well then they won't mind if we stop for a little while and drop our loads off." Balki took him by the hand and began to lead him toward the tree line.

Larry shook his head and made a halfhearted attempt to pull away. "We can't. Balki, what if…"

"Cousin, if you don't get off your feet you're gonna fall on your face. And with that sunburn you got, it would hurt!"

"I'm fine." He protested. They couldn't stop! They had to find help. They had to go home. Once they were home he would crawl into his nice warm bed and never come out again. But until then they had to keep going. "And I don't have a sunburn." He added as an afterthought.

Balki released his cousin's hand and put both hands on his hips. "Is that so is that?"

"Yes."

Balki reached up and gave Larry's cheek a small poke.

"Ow!" His hand shot up to grab the side of his face, then yelped again as he realized it hurt just as much for him to touch it as it did Balki. He sighed in defeat. "Okay, you win. We'll take a short rest. But then we've got to start looking again."

The rocky beach gave way to sand as they entered the palm grove. Coconuts and palm fronds littered the ground, while patchy shadows cast by the treetops gave the forest the look of a tropical quilt. In the cool of the shade they both sat, side by side, leaning against a wide tree trunk.

Larry stared out at the beach, listening to the whisper of the waves, rustling of a gentle breeze in the trees and the twittering of unseen birds. To his surprise he found himself thinking what a soothing sound it was. He was so tired. The unbelievable stress of their predicament, nearly drowning twice, their strenuous trek along the beach and lack of coffee had taken it's toll on him. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to close his eyes just for a moment.

"Wake up, Sleeping Birdie."

At the sound of Balki's voice Larry's eyes snapped open, instantly realizing that he had fallen asleep.

"Feel better?" Balki asked as he sat down beside him. He had taken off his shirt and tied it around his waist, but he still wore his colorful vest. Next to where they both sat was a small pile of prickly, purple balls.

"A little." He was more alert but he still would have given his life savings for one cup of coffee. "What are those?" He asked, pointing to the purple things.

Balki picked lifted one from the pile and held it up. "Street urchins."

"That's sea urchins. And I what I meant is, 'why did you collect them'?"

"Well, it's about…" Balki glanced appraisingly at the sun. "three o'clock. I don't know about you but I think it past time for lunch."

Larry stared at the pile of spiny and completely unappetizing-looking things. "You have got to be kidding."

"No. Here, I show you." He pulled his pocket knife out, wedged it against the urchin he held in his hand and cracked the top off like an egg. "You eat the orange part." Balki presented the half shell. Inside were tiny fingers of a gelatinous substance that could have passed for neon orange tapioca amidst brown goo.

Larry clamped a hand over his mouth to suppress a gag. "There is no way I'm eating that!"

Balki frowned at his cousin's finickiness. "Oh, come on, Cousin. You just reach in and…" He demonstrated by scooping out some of the orange stuff with a finger and presented it to Larry. It had the wet smell of day old fish.

He waved the offer away vigorously with both hands. "Balki, I would rather starve to death than put that in my mouth."

"Oh, pookch!" Balki jerked his head slightly to one side, as if literally spitting the word. "Is no that bad."

"Sure." Larry said with a sarcastic nod. "I suppose it tastes like chicken."

"Of course not, don' be ridiculous. Is kind of like raw fish. Mr. Pong down the street use it to make suzuki."

"That's 'sushi'. And I hate sushi."

"But you should eat something before we start walking again." Again he tried to hand it to him and again Larry waved him away.

"Forget it. There is nothing you could possibly say or do that would induce me to eat something that looks and smells like that."

Balki let out a small, irritated snort. Sometimes his cousin could be so stubborn, generally to his own detriment. Oh well, he would eat when he got hungry enough.

"Besides. How do you know all about fishing and…" He gestured toward the small pile of sea urchins. "…stuff. I thought you were a shepherd."

Much to Larry's revulsion, Balki popped some of the orange stuff in his mouth before answering. "I was a sheepherder. But my uncle Philo is a fisher. And every year since I am ten years old Mama send me to the west side of Mypos for two months for the fast season, because he got no sons to help him when there is so much work. When I am there he teach me everything about the ocean. When work is over we would take long walks on the beach and he point at something and saying 'Balki, what that?'. And I have to tell him a name and what is good for." A soft smile played on his mouth and he sighed, obviously reveling in the memories. Then he straightened a bit, shaking of the nostalgia. "Of course, not everything the same is here." He made a small gesture indicating their surroundings. "But some things are." Balki picked up another urchin and popped the top of the shell off. "Are you sure you don' want…"

"No."

"But you should eat something." Balki reached over grabbed a fallen coconut from the sand and tossed it to his cousin.

Larry turned the thing over in his hands and shook his head. "You need a machete to get the husk off of these things. And I don't think your pocket knife would do the trick."

Balki looked at coconut thoughtfully. "I bet if you banged it on a rock long enough you might could get it off."

"Well, I don't have time to sit around banging a nut on a rock." With that he tossed it over his shoulder where it landed with a soft 'thunk' in the sand. "Now, come on. We need to get going." He pushed himself to his feet and winced. His entire body was stiff and sore. The nap had given all those little aches and pains he'd given himself, from swimming for his life that morning and marching all day long, time to assert themselves. He stretched, trying to make them go away, but that just seemed to make them worse. Larry gave a small sigh, after he and Balki's experience at the gym this was nothing!

Balki stood as well. "But you don't eat anything yet."

Larry started down the beach, knowing his cousin would follow. "Balki, I went without lunch from fourth grade clear into high school. I think I can manage."

The Mypiot glanced at the pile of uneaten sea urchins, wishing there was something he could carry them in. It seemed like a waste. With a small shrug of resignation he hurried after Larry. "Why you did go without lunch? Don't your mama make it for you?"

"Sure she did. Mom was a great cook and that was part of the problem."

Balki cocked his head questioningly.

"Every mourning, like clockwork, Tim Russ, Russell Johnson and Frank Sutton would catch me at my locker, shove me in it and take my lunch. If it wasn't for the janitor I would have spent my entire childhood in that dumb locker." He smiled a bit and gave a small chuckle. "You know that's one of the few times I was grateful I wasn't tall."

"Oh, Cousin! That was so nice of you to share with those who are less fortunate than you."

One side of Larry's face pinched slightly. It annoyed him that Balki would take pity on his tormenters. "No. They didn't do it because they were poor or hungry. Their parents gave them money to buy lunch. They did it because they were bigger and meaner than me and apparently I was fun to pick on."

Balki frowned. "Well, that's not nice at all! Why you didn't tell your parents? Maybe they could make you two lunches."

Larry gave a small scoffing laugh. "Tell my dad? He would have thought I was the biggest wuss on the planet and he would have told me that I was an Appleton and I should be able handle it myself."

Balki's forehead creased in a thoughtful frown as he mulled the whole thing over. He just couldn't understand how anybody could think it was fun to be mean to someone else. It just didn't compute. After a long moment he turned to Larry. "Question."

"Yes?"

"What is a 'wuss'?"

Around about evening they were still walking although neither had been able to keep the hurried pace Larry had set when they started. Their conversation had wandered around everything from shepherding techniques to why women wear heels and finally descended into an exchange of jokes.

"…and so the chicken says to the carrot farmer 'I'll see you at the bridge'!" After delivering the punch line Balki burst into laughter. He got to laughing so hard he nearly fell over and put an arm around his cousin's shoulders for balance.

Larry just watched him with an amused grin. He had discovered that all Myposian jokes involved some kind of barnyard animal and that none of them were even remotely funny. He wondered if Mypiots just had a strange sense of humor or the jokes simply didn't translate well.

After Balki had regained his composure, still wiping a tear of mirth from his eye, he turned to Larry. "Your turn."

He thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. There was a blonde, a brunette and a redhead and they were…"

"Hey Cousin." Balki stopped abruptly, his eyes riveted on the jungle to their left.

"What?"

"I got an idea. See that tree? See how it's higher than the rest?"

Larry turned and followed Balki's gaze inland. One large palm rose far above its peers, it's top standing alone against the clear blue sky. "Yeah. What about it?"

"I bet from up there we could see how big the island is and if there are any people."

"That is a great idea, buddy!" He gave Balki a brisk slap on the back and started into the palm grove. When they reached the tree in question Larry couldn't help but be awed at the actual size of the thing. It had to be at least fifty feet tall. Just thinking about being up that high made him a bit dizzy. He gave his cousin a gentle shove. "Okay, Balki, up you go."

As Balki looked up at the task before him he wondered if he should have kept his mouth shut. "Why you don't go?" He asked, more for the sake of argument than anything.

"Because I'm afraid of heights and the last time I climbed a tree I fell out and broke my arm. Now come on. The sooner you get up there the sooner we can get home."

Balki handed Larry his shoes and without another word he started up the tree. Balki had climbed many a tree in his lifetime, but all of the trees on Mypos had branches of some sort and never grew so tall.

Larry watched as Balki shimmied up the trunk, at first thinking what a great lookout it was. He could surely see something from up there. But as his cousin rose higher, thirty, forty feet, he started to get a little nervous. A fall from that height could… "Balki, be careful!"

"I am." Came Balki's reply right before his grip weakened and he nearly fell backwards.

Larry gasped as he felt his heart jump. "Are you okay?!" He called up to Balki who had slid down a few feet before catching himself and was now clinging to the trunk with a death grip.

"I…think so. Aside from fiction burns on my thighs."

"I told you to be careful!" Larry shouted, his fear suddenly turning to irritation.

"I was being careful until you detracted me!"

"I'm sorry." Larry sighed. "Balki, this is too dangerous. Come on down!"

"Who are you, Bob Barker?" Balki let out a sharp laugh. "Where do I come up—"

Larry's eyes widened in horror, knowing all too well the hands-to-heaven gesture that always came with that phrase. "BALKI, DON'T LET GO!!"

His cousin's sharp order barely stopped him from making a potentially fatal mistake. Balki took in a sharp breath and hugged the tree tighter, realizing what he had nearly done.

Larry ran a hand through his hair, trying to slow his breathing down. He looked up and thought that Balki looked awful small way up there. He didn't dare imagine what it was like looking down. "Balki, come down, now."

Balki looked up to the crown of the tree that was no more than ten feet above his head. "But I'm so close!" Sure he was a bit scared but he hated to quit when he was so near his goal.

"No. That's enough. It's too high. You're gonna fall."

Despite Larry's demand Balki inched a little ways higher. "I'm almost there. I got only just a little ways more."

Larry wrung his hands anxiously. "This was a bad idea. If you get hurt we can't-"

"Cousin, I'm fine." He was moving slower and more deliberately. "I'm being careful."

"That's what you said a minute ago!"

"No. Really. I'm okay." Just as he said that he reached the base of the crown. He grabbed a big handful of palm fronds and hauled himself onto the very top of the tree. A couple of coconuts, knocked free by Balki's foot sailed down to land with a hard 'thunk' a little too close for Larry's comfort.

"Watch it!"

"Wwoww!" He could barely hear Balki exclaim from his tall perch.

"What can you see?"

"Everything. I can see the whole island from up here! Is no very big. Maybe three miles across."

"Can you see any people or buildings?"

"No."

"What about a dock? Or maybe a boat?"

"No I don't….Wait! I see something!"

Larry felt a surge of hope rise up inside him. "What? What is it?!"

"Something orange just a little ways up the beach. I think it's a couple of life jackets. They must have wash up from the life boat."

"I don't care about our life jackets. Do you see any signs of civilization. Anything?" Larry could feel the panic coming again. He had been so sure they would find help.

"Nothing. Just trees and sand and water."

"Are you sure? Look harder!"

"Cousin, I tell you 'that's it'!"

Larry sighed in defeat and leaned his head up against the palm tree. This couldn't be happening. "Alright. Climb down before you fall down."

Balki took one last look around him. It was such a beautiful view. He wouldn't mind just sitting there for a while, enjoying the scenery and letting the soft breeze blow through his hair. But with a touch of melancholy he started down. Once again he grabbed several secure fronds to lower himself down to the trunk, but as he did so he knocked another coconut loose. There was a sharp rustling that he couldn't account for and then a:

'klunk'

"Aaah!"

Balki tried to see what had happened but he couldn't quite turn his head far enough to see directly below. "Cousin? Was that you?" The only answer he received was a weak moan. Sliding down was much easier than climbing up and in moments Balki was at the base of the tree.

He found Larry was sitting in the sand, his upper body bent forward with his head cradled in both hands. Both eyes were squeezed shut and his mouth held a tight grimace.

Balki put a gentle hand on his friend's back. "Are you okay?"

"No!" Larry hissed, not bothering to look up.

"Oh, Cousin." Balki kneeled down beside him and spoke softly. "I know you're upset, but we'll—"

"Balki, you hit me in the head with this!!" Larry grabbed the coconut laying beside him and shoved it into Balki's arms so hard it nearly knocked the wind out of him. Had his cousin been any further away he would have threw it at him. He blinked hard, trying to make all the little flashing lights go away.

Balki looked at the object skeptically. "Cousin, it's just a coconut."

Larry glared at him, his eyes wide and disbelieving . " 'Just a coconut'? 'Just a coconut'?! Balki, that thing weighs at least five pounds! I feel like my head's going to explode."

Balki frowned a bit, looking more perplexed than worried. "But I watch Gilligan's Island every week and they never hurt the Skipper."

"Balki, when are you going to get it through your head? We are not on Gilligan's Island! Any object falling from that height is going to hurt. I'm lucky I don't have a concussion. In fact if it hadn't hit that other palm tree first it probably would have killed me!"

Balki flinched slightly at that last statement. "I'm sorry."

The pain faded and Larry lowered his hands. "It's okay. You didn't mean to."

"It really hurts that bad?" Balki reached over and touched the top of his cousin's head.

"Ow!" Larry instantly slapped his hand away. "Yes, yes it hurts that bad!"

"I'm sorry." Balki said again, dipping his head slightly. After a long moment of silence he spoke up again. "So, what we are going do now?

With a small grunt of effort Larry rose to his feet. He wobbled for a brief moment. The bonk on his head had left him a bit lightheaded. He determinedly shook it off. "We keep walking."

Balki didn't move. "Why?"

"We've got to keep looking. There still might be people here."

The young immigrant frowned deeply. "But I tell you I don' see anything."

Larry shrugged and started walking. "You could have missed something."

Balki got up and trailed his friend. "Cousin, my vision is in it's twenties. I didn't miss anything."

Larry stopped, and faced Balki. "Are you absolutely, positively, one hundred percent, beyond a shadow of a doubt sure that you didn't miss anything?"

Balki blinked rapidly for a moment before replying. "I'm not even that sure my name is Balki. But I'm as sure as humanely possible."

"That's what I thought. Now let's go."

--

The sun was getting low in the sky and Balki was beginning to wonder if they would ever stop walking. He carried the two lifejackets they had found, slung over his shoulder. He thought they might be able to use them for something. As they trudged on he let his mind wander. He thought of home, of their friends. He wondered if anybody had told Jennifer and Mary Anne they were missing yet. He hoped they didn't worry.

"Balki! Look!"

Larry's sudden shout brought him back to the present. He followed his cousin's gesture to the beach ahead. Right next to a fallen palm tree was a noticeable black patch in the sand.

Larry broke into a run with Balki following close behind. "Somebody's built a fire! See, Balki? I told you there was people here!"

Balki's momentary surge of excitement drained and he slowed as he came closer.

Larry knelt beside the charred remains, elation on his round face. "It's still warm. It's not that old."

Balki let out a deep sigh and his whole body sagged. "Cousin…"

"All we have to do is wait for who ever built this to come back and then…"

"Cousin, listen to me." The grave tone in the Mypiot's voice caught Larry's attention.

He looked up. "What?"

"Cousin…" He paused for a long moment, barely able to say it. "Cousin, that's our fire."

Larry's dark eyebrows came together, his mouth dropped slightly and his eyes widened. Had he heard right? "What?"

"That's our fire." He repeated. "Look." He pointed to the small stream that trickled out of the jungle a few feet away, then to the fallen palm tree and finally to the two sets of fish bones that lay beside the old fire.

"What?" This time the word was more an exclamation of disbelief than an actual question.

Balki lowered himself into the sand, leaning against the log.

"B-but that means that we circled the entire island."

"Yep."

"And we didn't find anything. Nobody."

"Nope."

Larry brought a shaky hand up to his face. "Ow!"

"What?"

"My sunburn still hurts. Balki, what are going to do?" He threw both hands out imploringly.

The young Mypiot shrugged helplessly. "Just wait, I guess."

"We can't just wait! Every minute we're in danger of exposure, heat stroke, and who knows what kind of diseases these bugs carry." He swatted at one of the insects in question. "We're gonna die out here."

"Don't say that!" Balki put a firm hand on his friend's shoulder. "You know what Captain Taggert always says:" He lowered his voice and gave it a bit of a gruff edge to match that of the starship captain. " 'Never give up. Never surrender!'"

Larry gave him a sharp glare. "Balki, quoting cheap tv isn't going to help us get rescued."

"Well, moping around ain't gonna help either. Remember the rescue party?"

"Get real, Balki. I mean, think about it. We drifted for two days. We could be a couple hundred miles from where we fell overboard! What are the chances?"

Balki pushed himself to his feet and dusted himself off. "Well, I don't know, Cousin. But I'm not going to sit here like a steak in the mud. I'm going to go catch some fish for dinner while you…" He reached into his pocket, pulled out the lighter and tossed it to Larry. "…make a fire." With that he started toward the water.

Larry stared at the lighter in his hands for a long time. Finally his fingers tightened around it. Balki was right. They couldn't give up. There had to be a way. They needed a plan! The momentary optimism, however, was quickly diluted by that ever-present doubt that churned his stomach.

No, he thought. What I really need is some antacid.