Beth crouched down at the edge of the sinkhole. She eyed the man sprawled out on his back in the center of the basin. Although she couldn't make out the exact details of his face from her distance, she recognized Todd without a doubt.

  "Hey!" Beth called out, her yell echoed through the jungle.

  No response. The man didn't even stir.

  She waited a few moments before trying again.

  Still nothing.

  She frowned and crossed her arms, thinking for a moment. A puddle had formed not far from where the man was laying in the sinkhole. It wasn't clear if recent rain had pooled up, or if groundwater had leaked in. The surrounding area was littered with broken branches, and small stones poking out of the dirt.

  Beth yanked a stone out of the dirt, aiming it at the puddle. She tossed the stone into the pit with a long, slow arc. The large splash from the rock soaked Todd's unconscious body. He twitched, tensing up from the sudden shock of cold water.

  I'm awake! Jeez, it's too early for this shit." He croaked, still coming to.

  As his eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight, he looked around at the root-filled walls of the pit he found himself in.

  "What…? Where the hell am I?" He asked no one.

  "Todd? It's me, Beth!" She called out from above.

  Todd looked around for the source of the voice, spotting Beth high above him on the edge of the sinkhole.

  "Beth! I'm glad I'm not alone down here after all. Got a way to get me out of here?"

  Beth shook her head, pointing at her leg. "Not with this broken leg, sorry."

  Todd frowned, crossing his arms, contemplating the situation. While waiting for him to think, Beth searched the area for her own solution. A spark of an idea struck her when her gaze landed on a particular nearby tree. Another tree had scraped away a chunk of bark when it had fallen against it. Long, twisted fibers poked out from the damaged trunk.

  She crawled over to the tree, and grabbed a small, sharp stone she found on the way over. The stone made easy work of the bark surrounding the damaged spot, and gentle scrapes against the back side of the bark loosened the fibers to be harvested. She began twisting the fibers in her fingers, the way her grandmother taught her as a little girl. The makeshift fiber rope was stronger than she expected, an experimental hard tug confirming her observation.

  Upon realizing what she was doing, Todd smiled, intrigued by her ingenuity.

  "Good thinking, Beth! Guess Ian picked right for once!"

  Beth winced at the comment, distracted from her work. She thought back to the argument the night before. There hadn't been much time for her to think about it since waking up, survival was far greater of a priority than her silly boy drama. She pushed the thoughts out of her mind.

  Todd hadn't noticed her reaction and turned to search the basin of the sinkhole for anything useful. He hated how useless and powerless he felt, in his mind, he should be the one doing the work to save himself. Aimlessly searching the ground was his best defense against falling into pointless rumination. In the back of his mind, he knew it was a losing battle.

  Although the rope was growing at a reasonable pace, it was clear that Beth would need a lot more fiber for her plan to work.

  "Hey, Todd! Do you know how to make rope?"

  Todd looked up to where she was sitting, shifting uneasily.

  "It's been a long time, I haven't had to since I was in Boy Scouts."

  "Grab a sharp rock and any fallen trees, and start peeling. I'm sure it'll come back to you in no time!"

  Todd shrugged, and did as he was told. He found a flat, sharp rock, and went over to the broken trunk of a tree that had fallen into the sinkhole when it formed. Beth walked him through the process from above while she continued her own work. Not long after, both of them were sat down, tying makeshift rope from tree fiber. They worked in silence for a while, the quiet, eerie air of the jungle made it feel longer than it was. Only the sound of occasional scraping and bark breaking disturbed it.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  After several minutes of silence, Todd broke the ice.

  "What do you think that weird constellation was, last night on the ship?"

  "I don't know, it felt like a dream. But then, I woke up to something even stranger."

  "I feel the same way, it defies all logic. This place feels wrong, like it's not supposed to be here." Todd laughed to himself, under his breath. "I've never heard of a jungle being this quiet. Every documentary featuring them makes a point to emphasize the loud insects and birds. The ground should be crawling with wildlife and the sky filled with birds."

  Beth said nothing, unsure of how to respond.

  Todd continued. "After what happened at dinner, did you and Ian get things sorted out?"

  Beth winced again, Todd noticed this time.

  "I guess not. Sorry to bring up a sore subject."

  "It's fine. We were in the middle of an argument when the weird eye thing zapped us away. We didn't get a chance to finish talking about it."

  Todd waited a few moments before responding. "You must miss him. I worry about 'Em, out there in the jungle somewhere."

  Beth said nothing, only nodding her head in acknowledgement.

  Todd may not know her well, but he could tell something was wrong. Being married for a decade had taught him to recognize the signs. "It seems like something is bothering you, more than just the argument ending abruptly. I won't pry, as it's not of my business. I know Ian well enough that it's highly likely he said something stupid and hurtful."

  There were several long minutes of silence. As Todd tied his rope, he noticed a glint of a reflective surface in the corner of his eye. He was about to get up to investigate, when Beth finally spoke up. Her voice was soft and hesitant, the words trembled out.

  "I don't think Ian really loves me."

  The words hung heavy in the thick, humid jungle air.

  "What makes you feel that way?"

  "I asked Ian to leave the military, and move far away to start fresh. He went cold and got mad at me."

  Todd sighed, setting down his rope. "Then he dumped you for trying to change who he is, I take it?"

  "Not quite, we hadn't got to that point yet. I fear that would've happened if we hadn't been interrupted." Beth wanted to cry, but she held back the tears.

  Todd resumed weaving his rope, deep in thought. The pair worked in silence for a while, the heavy conversation lingering. Todd chose his next words carefully, doing his best to comfort her, while not provoking her defenses.

  "What do you think you should do next? When you see him, of course."

  "I don't know. I want to burst into tears and slap him, but that wouldn't help anything. I don't know if I even wanted to see him again." She bit her lip, anxious at the thought of not seeing him again. "I do still want to see him."

  Setting down his rope, Todd stood up to stretch. "I think you'll know what to do when you see him." He flashed her a warm smile.

  She returned his smile, her mood brightening a bit. "Yeah, I think I will. Thank you."

  "How much more rope do you think we'll need? I've got a few feet down here, not just the ones I'm standing on either." He waited for the inevitable groan that was sure to come.

  Beth did exactly that and rolled her eyes. "You are such a dad. This should be enough." She held out a long length of rope, much longer than Todd's.

  Todd looked dumbfounded at the impressive creation. "Damn, you're fast."

  She grinned, proud of her work. "Maybe you're just out of practice. Throw your piece up to me, and I'll add it on to mine."

  Todd did as instructed, grabbing the end of the rope as it was fed down to him. Beth secured her end to a nearby tree with a strong, thick trunk. Todd tied the rope around his waist, then began the long climb up the steep wall. The slick mud made his footing unsteady, requiring careful placement of his feet. One wrong step could send him sliding back down into the pit.

  Up and up he climbed, the rope flexing and creaking from his weight. Small fibers snapping and falling out as he neared the top. When he got close enough to pull himself up, he collapsed on the ground with heaving breaths. Beth raised an eyebrow at the sight, but kept silent. She was just as exhausted as him from hobbling through the jungle.

  "What now?" Beth asked, staring down at the man still laying on his back.

  Todd held up a finger, catching his breath.

  She waited, impatience replacing the fading adrenaline. She could feel the lingering pain from her leg creeping back up to her awareness.

  "Todd—"

  Another finger.

  "Fine." Beth crossed her arms, exhaling a huff of a dissatisfied sigh.

  After several long minutes of recovery, Todd picked himself up off the ground. Joints pop and crack, and his muscles stretch.

  "That out of shape, are you?" Beth asked, impatience and sarcasm obvious in her tone.

  "I'm a scholar, not an athlete. Besides, who has time for a morning run with all those assignments to grade?"

  Beth shakes her head, standing up from the rock she was sitting on in waiting. As she stands, pain shoots up from her leg, causing her to cry out and fall back down.

  "There it is, it was only a matter of time until the pain came back."

  Todd shifted in place in discomfort, he knew there is no way he would be able to carry her, but he had no idea how to help her.

  "How can I help?" He asked, reaching a hand out for her to grab.

  She took his hand, using his assistance to stand up, shifting the weight off her bad leg.

  "We need to find water. A stream preferably, but a beach will do if we can make fire."

  "Got any idea which way to go? You've explored more of the area than I have."

  "Hardly. I say we move downhill, we should find something eventually."

  Todd nods his head in approval.

  "Sounds like a plan to me."

  The pair set off down the hillside, Todd supporting Beth as they walk together through the mud and undergrowth.