You risk it and jump

You’re at a crossroad. Even if the edge of the Caron is only one foot away, you know that as soon as you will try to jump, the lifeboat will swing and move further away from the edge.

You try to close the gap to simply climb in but with one able arm you only manage to make the small skiff swing away from the edge. The summer sun of the Caribbean is hitting you hard and dehydration isn’t far away.

As soon as the swinging stops you walk to the end of the boat. The gap here is wider but you should be able to control the oscillations of the lifeboat. You stand. You get ready and you jump.

Is it miscalculation or cheer weakness due to your injuries? It is hard to tell but instead of landing safely on the boat, you fall, belly first, against the guardrail. The **** of the fall empties your lungs. You can feel yourself painfully sliding along the beam of the cruiser. You lose consciousness when you hit the water.

***

When you come to your senses you’re lying on a white sand beach. Night has fallen. Your arm is still killing you, your belly is on fire and your face feels like it has been polished with sandpaper but you are alive.You have a hard time believing how lucky you are. Twice you cheated certain **** in the last… You wonder how long you have been out.

You look around. In the distance, in front of you, you can see the Cruise ship glowing from its thousand bulbs, to your left only sand and coconut trees and to your right what looks like a small resort village composed of a dozen of bungalows and one larger building in the middle.

The village has a landing stage with a couple of boats moored to it. You don’t know what time it is but it must be late as you cannot see any lights in the village.

A gust of wind makes you shiver. You shake and stand. You have to get back on the boat or at least find some place warmer to pass the night.