One of the hardest things about being on the island was the boredom. It took time to gather food and firewood, and go fishing two or three times a day, but we still had too many hours left over. We explored and we swam, but we also talked and it didn’t take long before I felt almost as comfortable with Jennie as I did with my friends; she listened to what I had to say.

She asked how I was doing emotionally. Guys are supposed to be tough, and Jihoon and I sure as hell never sat around talking about how we felt, but I admitted to Jennie that I got a weird feeling in my stomach whenever I thought about whether they’d ever find us. I told her I got scared sometimes. I said I didn’t always sleep well. She said she didn’t either.

I liked sharing a bed with Jennie, though. Sometimes she curled up right next to me, with her head on my shoulder, and once when I slept on my side, she pressed her chest against my back and tucked her knees into the space behind mine. She did it in her sleep, and it didn’t mean anything, but it felt good. I’d never spent the whole night with a girl before. Seolhyun and I had only slept together for a few hours and that was mostly because she was so sick.
I liked Jennie. A lot. Without her, the island would have really .
 

No one rescued us, so I missed my follow-up appointment with the oncologist at the end of August. Jennie mentioned it at breakfast one morning.

“I’m worried about you not being able to go to the doctor,” she said, handing me a piece of cooked fish. “Careful, it’s hot.”
 
“I feel fine,” I told her, blowing on the fish to cool it before putting it in my mouth.

“Yes, but you were pretty sick, right?” 

“Yeah.”

She handed