Dec rested his head on Ants shoulder as the two of them appreciated the calmness and tranquility of the sun setting over the horizon,neither of them wishing to move from that spot as darkness fell and the ocean was gently lit up by shimmering moonlight.

"So peaceful" Ant whispered.

"Yeah" Dec agreed "it's beautiful"

Ant nodded silently as he stared out to sea.

He always secretly loved it when Dec rested his head on his shoulder like this,it made him feel the bond between the two of them so strongly and he knew that Dec felt the same way.

It was such a simple gesture,but it signified a close,unbreakable bond that they'd always shared and knew they always would,no matter what life threw at them.

"Love ya Decs" Ant smiled,turning his head slightly to plant a small,sweet kiss on Decs forehead.

"Right back at ya" Dec sighed contentedly.

Ant suddenly sat bolt upright,causing Dec to fall backwards onto the sand.

"Hey" he complained "I was comfortable there"

"Dec look" Ant ordered "I saw something"

Ant stood up and hurriedly made his way to the edge of the sea,peering out intently.

Dec followed him,trying desperately to ignore how tired he was.

"What?" Dec yawned,as he stood beside Ant,not sure what he was supposed to be looking at.

"I KNEW IT" Ant suddenly shouted "I BLOODY WELL KNEW I SAW SOMETHING"

"What?" Dec repeated.

"THERE" Ant stated loudly,pointing out into the darkness "look Dec,there's a light"

Dec screwed his eyes up,trying desperately to see what Ant was looking at.

"I SEE IT" he stated excitedly "Ant I can see it,what is it?is it a boat?a ship?"

"It must be" Ant grinned "it won't be a bloody spaceship"

"HELP,HELP" Dec shouted,while waving his arms furiously in the air.

"They're not going to hear you from here are they?" Ant pointed out "quick...the flares"

The boys ran over to the shelter to retrieve the flares they'd had little opportunity to use over the last few weeks.

"Set it off" Dec ordered,as they returned to the beach.

"What do you think I'm trying to do?" Ant muttered as he fumbled with the piece of equipment that might just be their saviour.

The light out to sea was getting more and more distant,but it was still there and that was all that mattered.

Ant soon managed to let off the flare and he and Dec stared into the sky as it was lit up like a firework display on the fourth of July.

"Are they coming back?" Dec asked as he stared,hardly blinking,out at the spot where the light had been seen.

"Give them a chance" Ant laughed "it's literally been about thirty seconds since I set off the flare"

"Do you think they saw it?" Dec asked.

"Of course they did" Ant answered confidently.

Ant and Dec sat down on the beach,watching carefully for any sign of their potential rescuers.

They waited...

And waited...

And waited.

"They're not coming back are they?" Dec said sadly "they couldn't have seen the flare"

"DECLAN" Ant scolded "don't you dare give up hope already,it's more likely that they've gone back inland to report what they saw,so a proper search and rescue party can be sent out to get us"

"I hope you're right" Dec sighed.

"Of course I am" Ant smiled "why don't you go and have a rest in the shelter and I'll stay here and look out for them,you're obviously worn out"

"Don't think I could sleep" Dec frowned "not if help is on its way as we speak"

"Well,you're bound to hear them when they arrive" Ant pointed out "helicopters are pretty noisy if they're going to use them"

"Yeah,that's true" Dec yawned "I might go and have a lie down then,but you wake me up,the minute you see or hear anything...anything at all, right?"

"Yeah,of course I will" Ant smiled "it could be hours yet anyway by the time they get here"

Dec doubted he'd sleep at all,as he made his way to the shelter,the thought of being rescued,taken back to civilisation and seeing his loved ones again,was just too overwhelming,but he could at least relax until they got there.

What Dec wasn't expecting was to be out like a light the minute he laid down and when he awoke,hours later,even though it only felt like minutes,he was surprised that it was daylight and Ant hadn't come to get him when the search party arrived.

"Why are you always staring at me?" Dec frowned,as he noticed Piccolo standing,watching him "do you know something I don't know Piccolo?"

The Quokka continued to stare unfalteringly at Dec.

"Maybe you're a reincarnation of someone I've lost?" Dec giggled "is that it?is that why you can't take your eyes off me?"

Piccolo hopped towards Decs bedside,laying down beside him.

"Dad?" Dec grinned as he stroked the animal "nah,he'd probably come back as a cat,with all his minions pandering to his every whim"

"Are they here?" He asked the uninterested creature,quickly jumping to his feet and rushing to the beach to find Ant.

He was probably just talking to some of the boat or helicopter crew,Dec decided,that's why no one had come to get him yet and it probably had taken them a few hours to get there,like Ant had said.

But Dec stopped dead in his tracks as he reached the beach.

Where was the helicopter?where was the boat?where were the crew who had been sent to find them?

There was nothing or nobody there.

Except for a sleeping Ant,who had obviously crashed out on the sand as he kept a look out.

Dec felt like his whole world had ended,as he sat down despondently next to Ant.

The flare couldn't have been seen,there was no rescue party,there was no going home,there was nothing...except this stupid island,all hope he had felt just a few hours earlier was gone.

The tears started to flow uncontrollably as he thought how he may never see his beloved daughter again,or his wife,his family and friends.

He now doubted that he'd ever set foot in England ever again.

Or watch Newcastle United play at St James Park.

Never eat a chinese takeaway or steak and chips again.

Or work at the career he loved so much.

The steady flow of tears soon turned into sobs of despair,with painful realisation in every desperate drop.

"I want to die" he mumbled sadly to himself.

His sobbing soon roused Ant from his uncomfortable slumber.

"Decs?" He whispered,not quite registering what the nearby sound was.

"Decs?" He repeated and stared confused at his friend,until Decs crying suddenly alerted his still half asleep brain.

"Oh God Decs" Ant sat upright "what is it?what's wrong?"

Ant stared at his distraught friend as he cried uncontrollably.

"What do you think is wrong?" Dec sobbed "they didn't come,no one did,they didn't see us"

Ant stared out to sea,now recalling exactly why he had woken up on the beach,instead of in the shelter.

"I must have fallen asleep" he sighed "I waited and waited,but..."

"But they didn't come" Dec interrupted.

"No,they didn't" Ant whispered,with a heavy heart "they didn't"

"That's it then" Dec sobbed "we're going to be here forever aren't we?"

"NO,WE'RE NOT" Ant stated boldly "that was just one boat Declan,there'll be more"

"Will there?" Dec asked sarcastically "WILL THERE?...it's been weeks and that's the first one we've seen"

"Yeah,there will" Ant nodded.

He was doing his best to keep Decs spirits up,but the truth was,he was just as devastated as Dec by this outcome.

He wanted to go home as much as Dec did,but as usual,he put his own wants and needs aside and took on the caring role when Dec was upset.

Ant attempted to place an arm around Dec,but Dec just shrugged it away,getting to his feet and making his way back to the shelter without uttering another word.

Ant thought it probably best to leave him be at the moment,at least until he was a bit less emotional.

So,Ant decided to go about his normal day...fishing,making sure there was plenty of wood for the fire and collecting mangoes and water as if they'd never even spotted that damned light.

Dec stayed in the shelter all day,refusing to budge from his bed.

He didn't eat,he didn't drink,he didn't talk...he just lay there and all Ant could do was hope he would snap out of it soon.

"Decs,you need to eat something" Ant encouraged gently that evening.

Dec rolled over on his filthy bed and turned his back on Ant.

"Please Declan" Ant begged "you need to keep your strength up,here...have just a little bit"

Ant held up some mango near Decs head,where he promptly rolled over and knocked it roughly out of Ants hand,landing with a messy splat on the side of the shelter.

"Was that necessary?" Ant sighed,as he started to clean up.

"KEEP MY STRENGTH UP FOR WHAT EXACTLY ANT?" Dec shouted "we're obviously gonna die on this island,so why delay the inevitable?"

"Don't be ridiculous" Ant sighed "we're not gonna die here,we'll survive until we're rescued,like we have done the last few weeks"

"RESCUED?" Dec retorted "that bloody ship or boat or whatever it was didn't even notice us,even though it was close enough for us to see its lights"

"There'll be other boats" Ant insisted "we just need to be patient"

"Patient?" Dec laughed sarcastically "I've been nothing but patient,I've had enough of it...I'm sick of it...sick of mangoes,sick of fish,sick of water...I want a bloody pint,sick of sleeping on the ground,sick of this annoying beard...I want a shave,sick of bloody sand and sea and sick of these same stupid clothes"

With that,dec got up and ripped the remaining couple of buttons and button holes on his checked shirt apart and carried on ripping...pulling at every scruffy hole that had formed in it,until it was totally in shreds and he stood there in nothing but his black shorts,his skinny,still surprisingly pale frame now exposed to the intense sun.

Ant was shocked at just how much weight Dec had lost,obviously they both had,but seeing Dec standing there topless in front of him,only brought home just how serious this situation was.

Decs ribs were visible and Ant vowed he would just have to make sure he caught even more fish and collected more mangoes,he couldn't just watch Dec waste away in front of him,not if he could help it.Even though they weren't high calorie foods,that was all he could do under the circumstances.

Ant watched bemused as Dec threw what was left of the item of clothing to the ground and stamped on it repeatedly.

"Feel better now do you?" Ant sighed.

"NO" Dec snapped and laid back down,turning his back to Ant once again "I'm done"

"What do you mean you're done?" Ant frowned.

"Exactly that" Dec muttered "I'm done with it all...I don't want to be here anymore and if there's not going to be any rescue,then there's only one thing for it"

"What?" Ant asked concerned.

The next words to come out of Decs mouth took Ants breath away,like a heavy punch to the stomach.

"I'm going on hunger strike!"