Patagonia

The Cut

~Abby~

Three months came and went. The air was dropping fast by late September. We had been trapped out here for over ninety days.

I had lost so much weight that my clothes now hung baggy on me. I had to keep my shorts tied around my waist with one of Jasper's belts. He also had lost an incredible amount of weight. His hair was also to his shoulders and the beard he was sporting made him look like a wild man.

He hardly wore a shirt anymore, opting just to walk around all day in his gymn shorts. Although his frame had decreased, his muscles had only defined, his tanned skin always chiseled. I had a difficult time not stealing glances at him, to my shame.

I realized after the second month that I was deeply attracted to him. Not only physically, but also emotionally. He was the biggest source of comfort I had. We began talking and sharing stories about our lives, what kind of food we would be eating once we were rescued. He told me stories about when he and Luke were kids.

Luke...

In the beginning, he was all I thought about, when had that changed...now all I could think about was how much I needed Jasper with me, to help keep me going. I couldn't imagine being here, living this way with literally anyone else. I didn't understand my change of heart. It hurt...but the pain was simply another reminder that at least we were both still alive.

Our shelter had been completed after the first month and we had been sharing a single bed to stay warm during the nights. Also, I think because we both needed the comfort, to feel less alone in this barren part of the world.

One day I walked down to the lake to check our gilly nets for more fish when my foot suddenly slipped out from underneath me, slicing against a wet, razor-sharp rock.

I cried out in pain as I collapsed to the ground.

"Abby!" Jasper shouted, running down from the woods to help me, "Are you hurt, let me see, what's the damage?" He asked quickly, lifting me up and turning my foot. I cried out again from the subtle movement, causing a hiss to escape his lips.

His hand came away from my foot covered in blood. My blood.

"Okay, darlin, I'm gonna need you to hold onto my neck, alright? Hold tight because this is going to hurt like fire." He murmured to me gently before scooping me against him. My arms encircled his neck as I buried my face against his chest.

"Aahhh!" I moaned out as he easily lifted me in his arms.

"I know, baby, I know." He cooed gently as he carried me back to our shelter.

Baby?...

At first startled by his endearment, I found myself soaking it up like a puppy that needed to be scratched behind it's ears. I pressed closer against him, feeling protected, cherished...warm inside and out.

When he lowered me onto our makeshift bed, he used one of his old ripped shirts that he had from his overnight bag on the plane. Gently, he cleaned away the blood off my foot and ankle so that the deep gash was visable.

A large, dark cut snaked across the side of my foot, feeling like simmering fire spreading up my leg. Jasper tore some of the shirt into cloth strips before grabbing up a cluster of herbs we kept on hand. He had once told me the herbs were a natural antibacterial. Meshing the plants into a makeshift poultice, he spread the green substance over the cut before wrapping my foot in the cloth strips.

Easing me back, he said,

"You're gonna be fine. You trust me? Look at me, Abby."

My eyes lifted to his. My breath subtly inhaled while my heart beat quickened. He was so close to me, but it felt so right.

"You trust me?" He asked again, softer this time. I nodded faintly.

"You know I do." I whispered. His lashes lowered, looking at my lips briefly before he moved away, standing to his feet. My body protested in the absence of his closeness.

"I'll be right back, don't get up and go jogging." He said with a last look in my eyes. When he exited the shelter, I closed my eyes and swallowed down the beating of my heart. I couldn't think of him this way. He was my fiance's brother.