Stranded (Patreon)

Note: This is a story-prompt for Absolus.

$20 Patreon Directory

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Gina awoke coughing harder than she’d ever coughed in her life. Her trembling hands cradled her pregnant belly. She blinked around the terribly bright environment, finding herself sprawled on the beach, the tide lapping at her thighs. She felt the stinging itchiness in her skin that instantly told her she had gotten sunburned. Groaning, she crawled her way up the beach, finding her limbs incredibly weak. She wondered how long she had been asleep there. No, not asleep. Unconscious.

There was no one else around. The beach was deserted, the shore lined with palm trees and forestry, with no sign of civilization. She wanted to think that the whole thing was a dream. The unexpected storm, the tidal wave, the way her cruise ship had toppled and cracked like papier-mâché...

Now she was alone. Likely, this island was deserted. Gina shivered as she made her way to the edge of the forest, stumbling to the shade where she sunk down and sat against the warm earth.

Her skin was so dry. Her mouth tasted like salt, and her throat was burning. She didn’t know how long she had been lying there in the sun, but she could tell that she was severely dehydrated. Her hands continued to rub circles into her rounded belly. She was six months along. How could this be happening to her?

The sun was setting. Gina couldn’t will herself to move. So she sat perched there, flinching at the shrieks of birds, as the sky grew progressively darker and the island cooled. Her belly grumbled as her breathing thinned. She was so, so thirsty. And cold, and exhausted, and frightened. Mosquitoes started to bite her relentlessly and she didn’t get his wink of sleep. By sunrise, she knew she couldn’t survive another day of inactivity, no matter how weary she was. She was tired, yes, but she was only going to get weaker if she didn’t act.

She walked along the island, exploring, trying to find anything that might be useful to her survival. There were a few caves that she was too frightened to explore. She found a stream and tasted the water, though it was salty. Seawater. She saw some bananas and coconuts, but they were too high in their trees for her to reach them. There were also some spotted mushrooms, but they seemed like the least safe of things she could deliberate consuming, and she resisted the urge to pick any.

Most auspiciously, Gina found a bush packed with fruit. Perhaps a giant berry of some sort? It was bright red, and soft, and almost resembled a tomato, only it was larger, and softer, and the flesh was white when she cracked it. Juicy but pale, like an apple.

She knew it was risky to consume an unidentified fruit, but that day she had been assaulted with several waves of dizziness, while her belly had started to cramp up and ache. She didn’t know how much longer she and her unborn child could go without water. Days? Hours? It was worth the risk because the alternative was bleak.

So she gathered her nerves and took a large bite. Chewed, even swallowed it.

The juices gushed into her mouth.

It was delicious.

-

Gina was constantly adapting.

It had taken her days to get a fire started, but she’d managed.

She had summoned some courage and started taking shelter in one of the caves, finding it to be damp but suitable. She had even managed to write out the word “HELP” in big letters across the beach with some branches.

She didn’t know how much time had passed, but she suspected it was weeks.

She tried to stay in good spirits even though she was suffering unusual medical issues. The fruit continued to make up 100% of her diet, and she suspected that it was the cause of her developments.

“Nrgghhh…guhhhhh…” It was happening again. Gina had awoken from her nap to a spike of pressure in her abdomen, her belly shuddering and giving odd twitches, even bulging out in places, the movements jerky and atypical.

Her belly was huge. She looked past the nine month mark. She looked like she was carrying several children, not one. Her belly was bigger than the rest of her, resembling a bolder against her slim form. And it was active, constantly lurching, throbbing, or changing shape. At present, it was taking the shape of a torpedo, flushing an angry red color as she groaned and fidgeted, sweat pouring down her temple. She arched her back and cried out as her belly swelled visibly, rising like dough, taking up more space that she couldn’t afford to lose.

She gasped for breath as it settled down. She looked at the cave entrance, feeling daunted. The night before when she had entered, her belly had scraped either side. She was truly worried that she wouldn’t be able to fit out of it. What if she was stuck?

For the moment, at least, Gina tried to calm down. “Hahhhh…hahhhh…” she struggled to catch her breath.

Her growth now occurred in frequent, forceful episodes, during which she could physically see herself expanding. The previously calm kicks and nudges of her baby were now furious, squirming movements in all directions with various limbs, as though her fetus had somehow been multiplied.

Nothing about this felt typical anymore. The thing inside of her no longer really felt like a baby, if that made sense.

She was scared. She was alone here, experiencing a massive, unusual, and unpredictable, pregnancy. And she had nothing but the strange fruit to continue to survive on. With each one she ate, her condition was exacerbated. It proved difficult to keep a level head.

Any day now, she would tell herself.

A plane would pass, her sign would be spotted, she would be rescued, then she would figure things out from there. Any day.