The morning sun rays pierced my closed eyelids. I could hear the peaceful crashing  of waves. As I slowly open my eyes I saw the light yellow shades of the sky. It took me a good 10 seconds to realise that I was being held in a tight grasp. Panicking I sat up and look over at the person. That is when I remembered. I fell asleep in Merridew's arms.
I accidentally awoken him during my panic, he rubbed his face and glared at me with his icy blue eyes whilst giving me a toothy grin. "Good morning sweetheart" he stared at me in wonder. I was too dazed to say good morning back I was just staring deep into his enchanting features. "You have a little something in your hair" Jack says while gently removing a dead leaf from my hair while tucking the stray strands behind me ear. "Jack we should probably head back now, Ralph will go ballistic if he finds out I'm not there.." I announce to him with worry. "Yeah you're probably right, hey it was a really nice night Franko.. so thank you." Jack replied genuinely whilst giving me a faint smile.
We both travel down the steep rocks, Jack helping me down every now and again. We walked along the shoreline. This was my favourite time of the day , the sun was at its peak , the wind was cool and the music of the island sung a rhythm that fed my ears with delight. We approached the "camp" as you would call it now. Unfortunately Ralph saw us both walking back together which suddenly gave him the urge to interrogate us.
"So where have you two been all this time?" Ralph said while furrowing is eyebrows. He had a very serious demeanour.
"We were on fire watch last night.. accidentally fell asleep while at it." I say in all honesty. Ralph appreciated my honesty but glared an envious stare over to Jack. If he thought I wouldn't notice it then he was definitely wrong. I walked passed the older boys, Roger looked me up and down before smirking and greeting me. I tried to ignore him so I continued walking , still sensing his evil grey eyes lingering on my back.
"Good morning to you too darling." Roger smirked and sniggered. I turn around to face him, I decided to be polite even though he wasn't acting very pleasant.
"Thank you." I reply bluntly, I am on my way to Simon when 3 littleluns Johnny, Peter and Percival all ran up to me in a hurry and practically begged me to play tag with them. I really wasn't in the mood for running around so I told them that I would play with them another time. Their miserable faces melted my heart but I honestly just wasn't feeling the best today. I approached Simon, he greeted me with his usual comforting warm smile. He was playing with the lizard that we named Sankie a few days ago. There was something about Simon, something that made him so different from the others. I could go to Simon for anything and he would understand even if he were never put in a situation like mine. Without being cheesy I would have already described him as a saint like figure. His eyes were like Jack's, except they were more gentle than piercing. I would describe them as a warm ocean blue, not the scary part of the ocean but the part that everyone finds beauty within. Beauty is found everywhere through Simon, he was pure from the inside out he cared for everyone regardless of who they are. This boy saved my life and I don't know how I can ever repay him for that. I moved on towards the twins who were both playing tic-tac-toe in the sand. They both laughed in unison with each other , I don't know why but I found that rather terrifying. Last of all I approached Ralph. He looked at me in wonder and offered me a hand to Stand on the top of the rock with him. "I'm going to call another meeting." Ralph informed me, I nodded in approval before he took a deep breath and blew into the conch. His cheeks puffed while the long roaring sound swept over the island. Boys came in all directions for the meeting. Everyone then gathered around Ralph and piggy did the head count.
"As you all know today is the day we get to work. Jack and his hunters will be out in the Forrest to hunt pigs.. I will assign Sam and Eric to be on fire watch today then later switch out with Bill and Maurice, is that understood?" Ralph instructed to Jacks team. All members agreed and they all set off into the woods following after Jack.
"For the rest of us, you will all carry on in building shelters but Frankie can you go into the forest to collect more fruits?". "Yes of course how many do we need?" I question.
"I'd say around 30 if you can. People are getting hungry." I understood the assignment and made my way through the greenery. I wasn't going to lie this was quite an enjoyable job as beauty surrounded me everywhere I looked. Although I could only manage to carry 10 whole fruits I decided to make 3 trips. I spotted 4 ripened mangos hanging from the tree above me. I began climbing until I felt something on my leg. My face went pale white before I looked down. Blood. This cannot be happening right now. Shit shit shit. The crimson blood was trailing down my leg. I was searching my entire body for any hope to find a source of the bleeding, completely dreading the fact that it could be what I think it is. Out of all times I am stranded on a fucking island with only boys and now I'm on my period with nothing to help me. "Shit shit what am I going to do!? This is going to last for days the boys can't see this it's so embarrassing I don't know what to do." In all panic I run to the lagoon and dive into the cold water. I used this time to think about what in the actual hell I'm going to do. My face was starting to burn up I was on the verge of spilling tears. I looked around me in search to find something that could assist me in this terrible situation. That's when I saw a small tree with large thick leaves. This could be my only hope. I grab a large Chunk of the leaf and used it as my aid. I waited for a good 10 minutes before walking off. When I noticed that it was working. A huge wave of relief swept over me. Still overwhelmed with the fact that I'm on my period I return back to camp with 10 fresh mangos. A sharp pain stabs me  in the right abdomen clenching tight. Fucking cramps. Ralph noticed something was wrong and he approached me subtly. "Is everything okay Frankie?" He asked concerned. "Yeah just.. cramps." I say hoping he'd get over it. "Why would you be feeling cramps have you been eating enough?" I appreciated his concern but I really didn't want him to know.
"Holy shit Frankie!"
"Wha-
I was interrupted when I felt the trail of red running down my leg like a river.
"Fuck." I muttered. I wasn't embarrassed at this point I was just pissed off that this was clearly happening to me. Ralph finally clicked in onto what was going on so he rushed to get a leaf for me. He then tied his blazer around my waist to cover up anything that could be seen. "It's okay Frankie it's completely normal. Don't be embarrassed okay? The same thing happened to my sister once so take all the time you need." Ralph said with a warm smile. His words made me tear up, his genuine act made him even more of a gentleman and I appreciated his presence. I then realised that one leaf wasn't going to be enough so I traveled down to the lagoon to clean myself up and at the same time taking two new leaves and started layering them up. The day went on with no more issues besides the terrible stomach cramps which resulted in me being monitored by Simon while I'm sleeping in my hut. The suns was setting with its final rays reached over the island the colours plastered over the sky. Jack and his hunters finally returned from their long day of hunting.
"Catch anything?" Asked Ralph. "We were close but we will get em next time." Jack. replied. Jack saw Simon sitting out the front of my hut so he walked over with Roger and Maurice following after him. Jack took a sneaky peek inside and saw me sleeping.
"What's up with her is she okay?" Jack asked sternly. I wasn't asleep but I didn't want to move. I could yet again feel the eyes of Roger and Maurice on me. I was praying that Simon wouldn't tell him the truth. It was like he could read my mind because he completely understood what I wanted and what I didn't want.
"She's just feeling really sick. She'll be okay though."
"Oh right. Well when she wakes up can you tell her that I asked if she wanted to go on the next hunt with us tomorrow?" I gave a light smile at the wall hearing the 3 boys walk off to the rest of the group. Simon came in and and shook me lightly. "Are you feeling any better Frankie?" Simon said and I nodded back to him. "Thanks for everything Si, you are honestly the best. I opened my arms out wide and gave him a long tight hug. We stayed there for a while, enjoying the comfort of each other's company. I then notice outside how people were already settling into their huts for another night. I decide to walk out to talk to Ralph.
"Hey.." I say to him quietly he turns around and glares at me. "Hey Frankie are you feeling any better?"
"Heaps better.. look I just wanted to thank you Ralph ..for what you did earlier I honestly can't thank you enoug-
Suddenly Ralph's warm lips clashed against mine lighting fireworks in my stomach. Butterflies fluttered through my chest. This unexpected event lead to such enjoyment in my soul, I grabbed his back and brought him closer towards me. His kiss was gentle but not too gentle. It was until this moment that I knew that I was clearly deprived of human physical affection. This was a wonderful kiss. It felt like all my stress has been cleansed from my body and I felt a long lasting sense of happiness. Although I pulled away first. Both f us were left speechless, not awkward speechless more like "wow" Sort of speechless. So many thoughts rushed through my head , I was so incredibly confused this was so uncalled for. I have a thing for Jack but I also have a thing for Ralph. What would Jack say about this?
Ralph was the one who kissed you Frankie. Although my feelings for Ralph remained so strong I couldn't help but notice I had the same feelings going on for Jack. I also overheard Bill and Harold talking about how Maurice might have a thing for me. As well as Roger, I wouldn't say it's surprising due to the way he has been acting but it is surprising at the same time. Ralph and I were left staring into each other's eyes. I decided to be completely honest with him to save myself the guilt.
"Ralph you are clearly one of my favourite people on this island, you care so much for me and I care so much for you. Don't get me wrong when I say this but I truely appreciate everything you have done for me. But I'm still very confused right now. Ralph just know that this kiss is one that I will never forget." I said to him warmly with a smile. He took it better than I thought.
"Of course Frankie I know you may be confused but just know that I will always be here friend or not. I'm so glad I met you Franks.. you're amazing." Ralph smiled and brought he into a long goodnight hug.
We both went away towards our huts. I took the time to gather all my thoughts.
The kiss. Ralph. Jack. Simon. Maurice. Roger.
As my eyelids got heavier I only thought of one last thing . This island is changing me and I love it.

Authors note! :)
Hope you enjoyed this chapter I loved writing it as I've never read a fanfic where the girl experiences these struggles on the island so I thought it was quite interesting to write. Let me know any suggestions for future chapters. Enjoy!
-Molli <3