“I think you like it.” Liam glanced at me, a twinkle in his eye.
“You are also presumptuous.”
But he was right. I did like it. A lot.
“Hmm…Are you hungry, by the way?” he asked.
“Starving.”
“This is a good place to rest.” He gestured to the clearing we’d just entered.
I took a seat on the soft ground, pillowed by mosses and leaves. The boughs of the trees were high above, a group of small primates chattering to each other as they swung from the branches. A black snake slithered by, disappearing into the dense ferns, chasing an insect for its own meal.
“Well, shit. We’re out of food,” Liam said.
I whipped my head to him as he sat across from me, digging through his pack. “I thought we had enough for at least another day or two.”
“Apparently not.”
No food? What were we going to do? I rubbed my hands along my thighs as I tried not to panic. “I haven’t seen any fruit that’s safe to eat so far.”
“Great. Do you know how to hunt?”
I gasped. “You mean brutally kill and eat an animal? Of course I don’t know how to hunt. Do you?”
“No. But we need to do something…”
“Do you think we’re getting close to our camp at all?” I asked softly.
He tried to hide the worry on his face, but I saw right through it. “I have no idea to be honest. I fear we may have gotten turned around at some point.”
I put my head in my hands. “Oh no. We really are going to be lost in the jungle forever.”
“No we’re not. We’ll find our way out or someone will find us. I bet they have a search party combing the terrain everywhere.”
“I hope you’re right.”
Silence descended upon us, only interrupted by the sounds of the rainforest. I couldn’t stop thinking about us starving out here. How were we supposed to find sustenance? How much longer could we last?
“Do you hear that?” Liam asked suddenly.
My heart leaped in my chest. “Hear what? What’s wrong?”
“Water. There’s a river or stream nearby.”
“So?”
He gave me a grin. “Let’s go fishing.”
He stood, holding out his hand. I took it and let him pull me up.
“You know how to fish?” I asked, hopeful.
“Of course I don’t. But it can’t be that hard. I’ll figure it out.”
“Right…”
We pushed through the understory, climbing over dense brush and more fallen trees. The sound of water grew louder and we emerged from the forest, stopping before a stream. Crystal clear water flowed gently over colorful pebbles. A small waterfall flowed off a rocky outcropping and moss covered the surrounding riverbanks, interspersed with dainty pink flowers.
