Scripted Reality: Formerly I Wanna Get Laid by Kade

by Ashton Johns

  “I don’t understand,” I gasped. “How...?”

  “What the hell do you think I do all day? I ain’t driving Kade around, that’s for sure. I’m part of the production team, too.”

  “You are? I had no idea.”

  “Well, if I said, ‘Tell me what you think of Kade, Daisy?’ what would you think?”

  “Oh, my goodness,” I gasped. “You’re the voice who asks the questions for the monologues.”

  Clint nodded and gave me a teeth-baring smile. “That’s me. I also do the voiceover for the show, so I get to see all the dailies, not just that shit Meredith puts out.”

  “Wow, you must be really busy. No wonder you’re eating your supper at almost midnight. And I’m keeping you from it.”

  “Take no mind, I’ve told you it’s fine. Yep, I have busy days. Meredith sure does like her pound of flesh.”

  I looked at his kindly, round face and a small sense of calm wrapped over me. I’d just found another friend in this hell hole.

  “I don’t know what to do, Clint,” I whispered, reaching down to pet Brody. “I need this job. I need the money that Meredith has promised me. Well, I don’t need it like Kade does, but I need to help my folks.”

  “Don’t ever tell her that. She’ll hold it against you. Damn bitch,” he growled. “Listen, you want my advice, Daisy?”

  I nodded.

  “Stick it out, sweetheart. That boy cares a lot for you. I see it. Now, he’ll do what he has to do, but remember even if you have to be apart for the six months, he’s contracted to date the winner, it don’t mean you have to be apart forever.”

  I’d almost forgotten the six month ‘dating’ clause, what with Jess being holed up in Kade’s room at that very moment.

  “What if he falls for her? What if he’s doing things with Jess at this very minute, and he ends up liking her? He might decide to distance himself from me, and then the next six weeks in here will be hideous.”

  “Well,” Clint said, taking a deep breath. “I’m not sure that will happen, but if it does then he ain’t the guy for you. Just try to remember one thing, and you should know this working in TV: What you see ain’t always the truth. Okay?”

  He squeezed my hands again and looked at me expectantly.

  “Okay,” I breathed out.

  “Good, now go grab a bowl and help me finish this spaghetti and meatballs. I think the cook thinks I need building up. She left me enough to feed an army.”

  Feeling a little better, I went and got myself a bowl, and as we tucked into our food, I tried not to think of Kade and Jess upstairs.

  Thirty

  Kade Sutton

  Leading Jess out of my bedroom, I took a deep breath, wondering what shit storm would be about to meet us. Gripping her hand tightly, I paused outside my door and pulled her to me, kissing her gently on the forehead.

  “Thanks,” I whispered. “I had a great night.”

  Jess giggled and rolled up on her tippy toes to kiss my lips. “No, thank you.”

  She let go of my hand, and walked away, giving me a sweet smile over her shoulder. Once she had disappeared out of view, I blew out a breath and dragged a hand through my already unruly hair. Now it was time to face everyone. If I was honest, I had no fucks to give about what the girls or the crew thought of me, but facing Daisy was a different proposition. I really didn’t want to hurt her. I fucking cared about her. She brightened up my day with just a small smile for God’s sake, but I had to do what I had to do to get through this next six weeks. To get us both through this.

  I made my way down the stairs, and hearing noise from the dining room, guessed that breakfast was already in progress. Pushing open the door, I was surprised at how many of the girls were in there. A quick head count told me there were eight of them. Knowing Jess was upstairs, that meant all the girls were there.

  My eyes sought out Daisy, and there she was, sitting with her head down, looking at her cereal. My heart lurched as I saw the stoop of her shoulders and the way she was playing around with her breakfast, stirring her spoon around and not eating any of it. I needed to talk to her. Damn it, I needed to touch her.

  Taking a determined step towards her, I felt myself suddenly pulled back by my arm.

  “Kade!” a voice shrieked. “Come sit with us. Tell us all about your night with Jess.”

  Everyone’s head shot up or swiveled around to face me. Everyone, that is, except for Daisy. She carried on creating a whirlpool of milk with her spoon.

  I turned to see a girl called Suki had a grip on my arm. She was beautiful, with coffee colored skin and an amazing bleached blonde Afro, but she’d already proven herself to be a bitch. She seemed to have tagged on to Honey and Vanessa’s little group, and last night I’d seen her put her foot out to try and trip Jess after I’d announced that she would be my date.

  “I’m good thanks, Suki,” I said, gently pulling my arm from her stealth grip. “I need some fresh air so I’m going to sit over there.”

  I nodded towards the open patio doors that, coincidentally, Daisy was sitting in front of. Suki’s lip curl quickly morphed into a smile.

  “Sure, maybe we’ll catch up later.” Her long fingernail ran down my forearm as she moved away.

  “Suki!” I heard Honey hiss. “You were supposed to get him over here. God, if you want a job doing properly, do it yourself.”

  So, Honey was the head mean girl then. With a shake of my head, I quickly moved towards the buffet, put some fruit and a cereal bar onto my plate and then moved with speed towards the empty seat next to Daisy.

  “Morning,” I said, as I flopped into the chair.

  Daisy looked up at me and I wanted to pull her into my arms. Her eyes were red and puffy, her cheeks were blotchy, and her beautiful plump lips were determinedly downturned.

  “Hi,” she whispered, and then went back to her cereal.

  “Daisy,” I pleaded. “Please look at me.”

  She looked up at me, but there was nothing behind her eyes. The welcoming twinkle I was used to was gone and there was no sweet little smile, absolutely nothing.

  “You know I have to do this,” I whispered, leaning a little closer.

  “I do, Kade. So, don’t worry about it.”

  Her bottom lip trembled slightly, and it took everything in me not to reach over and caress it. She was so damn beautiful and being here was making her miserable. I should never have asked her to do it. It was totally selfish of me.

  “I do worry, though,” I said. “I know what you think about me spending the night with Jess, and I know it’s hurt you.”

  Her eyes took on a steely glare. “Why would it hurt me?”

  I inhaled deeply, wondering if I’d got this totally wrong. I could be about to make a huge dick of myself, but somehow, I didn’t think so.

  “Because I know you like me.”

  There, I’d said it, and she wasn’t laughing. I had to be right, unless I’d totally misread all the signs. The things she’d done for me, the way she looked at me. The way she looked now, which was killing me. I’d really hurt her.

  “Yeah, you know I do. You’re my friend,” she snapped, turning back to her breakfast that was fast becoming mush.

  “You know it’s more than that, for both of us.”

  My hand went to her knee under the table, startling her.

  “Please, Daisy,” I pleaded as she looked back up at me.

  “What, Kade? What do you want me to say? You’re in a game show where you have to spend the night with different girls. I understand. I knew the deal.”

  “But you’re so hurt, I can tell. That’s the last thing I wanted. You know I had to do it.”

  She gave me a short nod. “Yep, I do. But just one thing.”

  Her eyes narrowed and her grip on her spoon tightened.

  “What?” I asked, my pulse quickening as she licked her lips.

  “Did you say or do something to get Jess into the top two?”

  “I’m not sure I know what yo
u mean,” I replied, wishing she’d asked me anything but that. I couldn’t lie to her, but Carson had sworn me to secrecy or Daisy got the push.

  “I think you do. Jess is a great girl, but she’s not exactly lit the show on fire, so I have a theory that the viewers took notice of her for another reason. She got into the top two for another reason, and I’m wondering whether you had something to do with it.” She flashed me a smile, one that barely moved her lips. “Just curious is all.”

  My eyes went to the untouched breakfast in front of me and suddenly, I really wasn’t hungry.

  “Well?”

  Looking back up at Daisy, I nodded. “Yeah, I think the viewers voted for her because I said I liked her. And I do, but not like I like you; I swear.”

  Daisy pushed back her chair. “It’s okay, Kade. I really do understand. You like her, and spending the night with someone you like is good. I want you to be comfortable doing this so it’s fine.”

  “Where are you going?” I asked as she stood up to leave.

  “I have a migraine coming on. I’m going to ask Carson if I can duck out of filming today.”

  “Daisy…”

  “It’s fine, Kade. You have fun with the girls.”

  With that, she was gone, pushing past some of the girls at the buffet. I wanted to rush after her and tell her I was sorry, but for what? I was just doing what I was told, and unfortunately, she was getting caught in the crossfire.

  Thirty-One

  Kade Sutton

  Each step I took around the mansion I could feel my morals being drained from me. Pretending to be someone I wasn’t, was exhausting. I mean, look around me. The place was full of freak women who thought this was the way to meet a husband. As if that wasn’t bad enough, they were prepared to do it in front of millions of viewers. The only one who was seriously struggling with it was Daisy, and although part of that was because she was being forced to live a lie, a bigger part of it was due to her disappointment in me.

  The longer the day went on, the more I could see how affected she was by it. Little things were starting to concern me—what if she never spoke to me again after my night with Jess? What if the cameras were picking up on all of this and she was hated on the outside? Daisy helped so many people at the shelter, and now I was worried that she would never be able to go back to the place. Another frightening thought I couldn’t shake off was what would happen if her parents were watching and she disappointed them.

  All because of me.

  I decided to engineer some way I could get her alone. I needed her to go back to acting and faking it, praying that eventually, I’d be able to undo all the damage I was doing right now. If she gave me the chance when this was over, and we were back on the outside.

  After lunch, I went over to sit with her, Natalie and Jess. A few of the blondes were following me around like lost puppies, and the minute I sat anywhere near Jess, they spotted the threat and came to intervene, just to remind me they still existed. It was pathetic, and as I sat and listened to the conversation, I knew Daisy was struggling to be civil with Jess. It was obvious to me, and I’m fairly sure Jess too, but like a trooper, she carried on. When more blonde leeches joined our party, it tipped Daisy and the other brunettes over the edge. Trying to concentrate on more than one person’s chatter meant I missed my chance to speak to her again, but as she rose to leave, Brody, my fucking amazingly intuitive friend followed her.

  “Ladies, I must go and make sure my dog isn’t being a nuisance. Keep my seat warm,” I crooned and leapt up, timing my attack perfectly. As she was walking past a bathroom door, I crowded her back and pushed her inside.

  “What the fudge?” she protested.

  “I thought you weren’t filming today?”

  “Carson pulled rank and threatened me, so yeah, I’m having a ball watching you and your harem.”

  There was an edge to her that I’d never seen before, and it worried me that I was having this effect on her.

  “Daisy, please, you just need to hold it together for a few more weeks,” I pleaded.

  I watched as she dropped her head back and looked at the ceiling, desperately trying to find some divine intervention. When she righted her posture and faced me again, I knew she was doing her best to maintain her composure.

  “I won’t ruin this for you.”

  I took a step forward. “I’m not bothered about that. You’re my friend-” I halted, seeing what those words did to her and the tenuous grip she had on her control.

  “I know I’m just your friend. Thanks for pointing it out.”

  I took another step forward and pushed a loose, curly lock of hair behind her ear, feeling her shiver as I made the tiniest bit of contact with her. The zing of emotion coming from her was undeniable. As her lips parted, I saw the briefest glimpse of her tongue up close and leant in, desperate to find out what she tasted like.

  Our eyes were open and our faces close, and she didn’t push me away, so I tilted her chin towards me until her lips were ready for me to move in. When her eyes drifted shut in contentment, the rest of the madness outside the bathroom door ceased to exist. Daisy didn’t change her stance, and I knew if I let go of her chin, the spell she was under would snap and disappear. With her lips barely a hair’s breadth away, I whispered, “I’m sorry.”

  That admission was enough to bring her back to the here and now.

  “You’re breaking me, Kade. I’m not this girl. Have you forgotten who you were with less than twelve hours ago?”

  A quick kiss and heart to heart in the bathroom was never going to be enough to get her to forgive me for spending the night with Jess.

  “I’m only doing what’s necessary, Daisy. Can’t you see that?”

  “I can. It doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  With a gentle shove, she pushed past me and left the bathroom, leaving me alone with a reflection in the mirror that I didn’t recognize. It wasn’t just the change in appearance and haircut; it was the sins I could see in the back of my eyes.

  I heard the bathroom door close. “Daisy, I…”

  When I turned to talk to her again, I was faced with Carson, and the displeased look on his face told me he knew who I’d been in here with.

  “You know the deal, Kade. Meredith will not be pleased.”

  His words were like pieces of broken glass teasing open an already bleeding wound, and in an effort to maintain my control and not punch the fuck out of his smug, overweight, bad-breathed face, I gripped the edge of the sink.

  “She’s my friend and this process is hurting her.”

  “If I’m to believe Meredith, that’s your fault. You insisted she be in here.”

  “Believe me, I’m regretting it.”

  “Great job with Jess by the way. The footage from outside your bedroom door is excellent.”

  Having him remind me of that only jabbed the open wound more.

  “I need you to make sure Daisy is in the top two tonight. I have to put things right with her.”

  “Not happening,” he laughed. “The public votes how the public votes, and Meredith will kill me.” It was unbelievable how all of sudden he seemed to forget the previous night’s vote rigging.

  I had to get some alone time with Daisy and put our friendship back on track. Another night in my room with one of the other girls and it would be beyond tenable.

  “It wasn’t a request, Carson. Make it happen.”

  I watched as he folded his arms over his chest, trying to suck in the beer belly he’d acquired over the years. The sleeves on today’s pick from his never ending tasteless Hawaiian shirt collection were straining, just like the tiny grip I had on my nerves.

  “I’ll repeat. It wasn’t a request. You don’t do this for me and I walk, and the first thing I do is get an interview with NVTV.”

  His eyes squinted at me at the mention of the TV network’s biggest rival.

  “I’ll tell them how you engineered this whole shit trip to make those beauty queens out there look
bad. Then I’ll go back to my cardboard carton outside the building and remind Meredith publically how she fucked this up.”

  “Don’t push her, Kade.”

  “Do this and no one is pushing anyone.”

  We were squared off, facing one another, and I wasn’t going to back down. “You think money is keeping me in here then you’ve underestimated me. With the behind the scenes stories about this lot, I could make as much in interviews.”

  “Not with the contract you’ve signed.” Carson smiled smugly.

  I finally dropped the eye contact and burst out laughing. “Really? And where will you send the lawsuit? 1027 Cardboard Carton Avenue on the corner of homeless and don’t give a fuck? You people with everything seem to forget, I came in with nothing and I can go back out with nothing.” I continued chuckling as he thought my threat through. After what felt like forever, he turned and stormed off. “I’ll wait to hear from you then,” I called after him.

  Hours later, when it was getting dangerously close to recording the date selection and eviction part of the show, I was outside throwing a ball for Brody, giving him the chance to enjoy the space and freedom before it was no longer available to him. My time here had taught me a few things, and one of them was that my buddy needed to roam free. When we were back to normal and we had the chance, I’d spend more time at the park with him. He was a dog and that meant running around and playing fetch. I’d been selfish all these years, keeping him next to me at my begging post.

  The girls were long gone, getting themselves spruced up and packing their things ready for the big reveal. The production team was busy setting up the scenery; it looked like we had a medieval theme tonight. Sconces and flags like those carried in front of Kings and Queens on horseback were being set up.

  “Kade,” I heard, after launching the ball as far as I could for Brody. I knew it was Carson, and this could be the moment it all came to an end. “I can’t get hold of Meredith, so I’ve made an executive decision. Do it. Put Daisy in the top two with Honey. In return, you’ll evict Vanessa.”