“Thanks Ryder.” I hear Zach call out.
I just smile and shake my head. “You will be fine. I promise.”
“Next up is Sandra and Ari.” Chris calls out.
TEN
Ari
“Capture the flag? What are we? In middle school again?”
Ryder Holt
Looking at the challenge in front of me, is freaking me out. It’s a hand on, physical, show of strength. Let me tell you, I have no doubt that I will lose. I have no strength and I certainly don’t fight. Never have and never will. The thought of this challenge makes me feel physically sick. I hate the thought of potentially hurting someone or getting hurt myself.
But as I stand next to my white flag, I feel even more scared. First team to two, wins the challenge. But I am scared. Why? Because our comfort items from home are on the line. But still a part of me doesn’t want to do this challenge. A part of me is worried about losing the challenge. What if I do lose? I don’t get my comfort item. Ryder doesn’t get his either.
I shouldn’t be worried about this, but part of me is worried about it. I mean, if I lose, I lose. If I win, I will surely be shocked and happy, but I will also have to know that I won, and Caleb didn’t.
I shake my head; I need my head in this game. Not on the what ifs, and certainly not on the fact that I will most certainly lose. I need to focus on this challenge and the person in front of me.
I see Chris raise his arm in the air, the signal that the round is about to start, and I quickly look at my opponent and try to figure out what I am going to do.
“Ready… Go.” Chris calls.
I stand at the flag, waiting to see what Sandra is going to do. I wait to see if she is going to come to me or wait for me to go to her. But she doesn’t move. I don’t move. We are in a standoff. But one of us has to move. One of us needs to start this brawl. I take a few steps forward and watch her drop down into a fighting stance. I have to take a few deep breaths before rushing forward.
I race forward, swerve away at the last second, and grab her flag. It is when I am turning back toward my starting area, that she collides with my body. I fall to the ground with a thump. The wind is knocked out of me, but I can’t stop fighting. I need to get back to my area. I need to get this flag back to my area. She rolls me over and kneels down hard, on my back. Almost like she is trying to make it so I can’t move. But I see her running toward my flag. Without thinking, I get up and race after her. I still have her flag in my hand as I race toward the post. Even though she has her hands on my flag, I have her flag as I touch my post.
“Winner of this round is Green. I am sorry Sandra, but you are out of the running for the reward.” Chris calls. “Green is moving onto the second heat.”
I make my way back to Ryder, who is smiling from ear to ear. I surprised myself. I didn’t think I was going to win. I thought because she was stronger and more fit than me that she was going to win. But I outsmarted her. I don’t know if she hadn’t realized that I had her flag or not. It doesn’t matter, I won anyways.
Ryder hugs me tightly and does a small spin as he lifts my feet off the air. I don’t have it in me to tell him that my back hurts. He is happy we are in the running for our reward. I don’t know what is going to happen when he goes against the winner of Purple and Red. I do know that I won this round. I won and I am happy.
Once Ryder lets me go, I look around for Caleb. I see him frowning toward me. Why is he frowning? I don’t know if he’s frowning because I won, and he may have to go against Ryder or because of something different. I just wish I could talk to him and figure it out.
Then the thought hits me.
Why are you frowning? I mouth to him.
We aren’t supposed to be talking to other teams right now, but I don’t care. I am not watching the match that is going on in front of me. I honestly don’t care who wins, Ryder is going against them anyways.
Are you sleeping with him? He mouths back.
Am I sleeping with Ryder? I frown. Of course, I am sleeping with him. I am sharing a shelter with him. He is my partner, and he is the one person at my camp that I can sleep next to. Then it hits me. Caleb is asking if I am having sex with Ryder.
I shake my head no, at him. I see Caleb sigh in relief. What would if matter to Caleb if I am having sex with Ryder? We are both single, both adults, and both capable of making decisions about our sex lives without Caleb or anyone telling us what to do.
“Purple wins this round. Red is out of the running.” Chris calls. “Last heat of the challenge. Purple against Green. Caleb and Ryder take your places.”
I watch as both men make their way toward their spots. I find myself torn. I want Ryder to win, because I want to win the reward, but Caleb wants to win the reward as well. It will suck just as much to lose against him.
My eyes are glued to the arena as the match starts. Ryder and Caleb take off running to the posts where the flags are. Neither of them seeming to care about the other getting the flag. I watch as Caleb takes the white flag, I look to Ryder who is grabbing the black flag. They both have a flag. What is the goal here?
Just as I am about to call out about Caleb having our flag, Caleb tackles Ryder. Ryder doesn’t think twice as he rolls so that Caleb is face down on the ground. I watch as Ryder gets to his feet and starts running back. I can’t take my eyes off the action. Caleb trips Ryder, who falls and pulls Caleb down with him. They are all out fighting in the middle of the arena, each trying to claw their way to their posts but neither one of them want to let the other go.
“Are you sleeping with her?” I hear Caleb ask.
I gasp. Is he really doing this now? Asking Ryder if he is sleeping with me? Didn’t I already answer that question? Does Caleb not trust my answer? What is his angle here? Is he trying to trip Ryder up so he can win?
“Not yet.” Ryder says.
I could just die of mortification. Not only are the other teams hearing this, but the cameras are getting this. The people who watch the show will get to hear it. I won’t be able to watch knowing that the whole world is going to know that Ryder and I may end up having sex on the show.
“Not yet? She isn’t someone you can hump and dump. Keep your hands off my sister.” Caleb growls before standing and taking off running down the arena.
He doesn’t get far because Ryder tackles him to the ground. I have to turn my back on the competition because I can feel every single pair of eyes from the other teams and the production team looking at me. I can’t look at them. I can’t stand here and listen to what is being said between Ryder and my brother. I can’t listen. I plug my ears and sink to the ground. I keep my ears covered and put my forehead on my knees. This is so embarrassing.
I don’t know how long I sit like this, but I feel a warm hand on my shoulder, I look up to see Ryder. He has a cut on his cheek, a bit of dried blood under his nose, and dirt covering his face. I frown up at him, how bad was their round.
“We lost because your brother fights dirty.” He whispers to me.
I look away from him and stand and watch as my brother and Rachel are presented with their comfort item from home. Caleb brought a necklace my mother bought him for his high school graduation. I watch as he slips it on and looks me in the face and smiles. Like he is gloating to me. I try to stop the flow of tears, as they start to sting my eyes, but they fall anyways.
I want my necklace. The one with the locket that my grandmother gave me when I turned thirteen. It has a photo of my grandparents, and my parents in it. I really hoped to have that with me on the show. Now Caleb is gloating to me he won.
The tears just fall and fall. I can’t stop them. I just turn my face into Ryders chest and cry. Cry because I have been humiliated. Cry because I am embarrassed. Cry because for once in my life I wish that Caleb wasn’t good at fighting. Cry because for once in my life I resent my brother. And I don’t know why.
ELEVEN
Ryder
“I never in a million years thought tha
t what happened yesterday would ever happen. Let alone to me, in front of everyone. I never thought that Caleb would do something like that… Why did he do that do me?”
Ari Harper
Day eleven interview
Day Eleven
Have you ever done something you regret? Well I have. Lots of times. But this time, it’s different. I hate that I engaged with Caleb during the last reward challenge. I hate that it was all caught on camera. I hate that because of that we lost that reward. Because of that Ari hasn’t talked to me since.
I have tried everything. Taking over cooking, trying to cuddle her, she just pushes me off of her. I have tried asking how her day is going, how she feels, what she thinks of the game so far. All I get is nothing. I hate it. I want to shake her to make her talk to me. I want to make her realize that I am sorry.
No matter how many times I apologize to her. No matter how many times I beg her to talk to me, I get nothing. She won’t speak to me. She won’t even tell me to fuck off. At this point, that’s what I want. I just want to hear her voice telling me to at least fuck off. I want to hear her say something. Anything.
I probably sound like a little girl. I probably sound like a punk. But I don’t care. I only care about the fact that I want her. I have wanted her since the beginning. But I can’t fix this. If I was at home, my mother and Rachel would tell me to pull my head out of my ass and buy her something to make up for what I did wrong. They would tell me to do something to get her attention and keep it. They would tell me to win her attention back.
But Ari is different. She isn’t like most of the women I have ever seen or dealt with. She doesn’t come across as a materialistic sort of woman. She doesn’t come off as demanding or controlling. She doesn’t come across as a woman after me for her own gain. Because trust me when I say that this is something I haven’t dealt with.
Ari is different. She is unique. She has captured my attention and I can’t take my mind off of her.
“Mail.” She calls out as she comes back into camp.
I can’t help but smile. She just spoke to me. That’s better than she did after the incident with her brother. I can’t believe that she just spoke to me.
“Tied together you must make your way. Tied together you must make your way.” She reads. “What was that? A poor attempt at a clue is what it is.”
She hands me the clue before turning toward the pot of boiling water. She removes it from the fire and sets it aside. She sits beside it and doesn’t say anything else. I wish I knew how to make her talk to me. But clearly that is all I am going to get today.
That sucks, I hate it, but it is more words to me than in the last two days.
***
Walking into the challenge clearing, I inwardly want to groan. It’s an obstacle course. The courses look exactly the same, unlike ones in the past. There are five sections beside each other. I see the same colored mats, that we use every challenge. But laying on them are belts made of colored fabric, they are chained together. As we get closer to our mat, I get a better look. The chain holding the belts together is only about two inches long. The belts are just strips, of fabric, covering the chains. We will be tied together.
I can work with that. Maybe if the two of us are working together, we can get the win and she will be talking to me again. But right now, she isn’t even looking at me, not standing as close as normal. I can already see the cameras zooming in on us.
The other teams file in, my eyes zero in on the purple team. I look to Rachel first, who just smiles at me, but the smile quickly fades into a frown. Her eyes dart between me and Ari. She is wondering what is going on.
When I lift my eyes again, I see Caleb looking at Ari. He seems concerned. I look down at her and she doesn’t seem to be looking at him either. I look back to him and he meets my gaze. I can see the worry in his eyes.
What is wrong with her? He asks me.
I shrug. She won’t talk to me.
I can see his eyes grow big. He must be shocked about that because he doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t do anything either. Well mostly because Chris comes up and stands in front of us.
“Welcome to today’s reward challenge.” He calls. “Today you will be tied together and forced to make your way through an obstacle course.”
He walks over to one of the courses behind us and leans against it.
“You will have to work fast to get through this course, because the first two teams through gets the reward.” He says. “The reward for today’s challenge is a personalized picnic. Meaning, you will meet with someone on production and tell them what you want in your picnic and we will have it delivered to your camp tonight.”
I look at the course behind him. It looks doable but I don’t know if it will be with two people. I could easily do this on my own. I could easily make it through first if it was just me. But tied to Ari, that will make it a challenge. Because the pairs are not made of equal strength.
At least not that I know of. Not saying that Ari is weak or anything, just that I think I am faster.
“As Meredith was eliminated at the last challenge, that means her partner, Zach, has a decision.” Chris says while looking at Zach. “Well, you can either do the challenge by yourself, or you can sit out and not have a chance at winning the challenge.”
Zach seems to think about it a few minutes before saying, “I want to play this one, Chris.”
Instantly my mind goes to the knowledge that he will get the top spot. Then it really will be a challenge between the remaining four teams. Whoever wins will most likely be hated by the others. I know that Zach playing puts a target on his back from me. Because he was willing to play against teams of two who would be at a disadvantage because they would have two people and he would have one. I will know from now on to keep my eye on him.
“Alright, let’s get you all to the start, and strapped to each other.” Chris calls out.
Ari and I are the first ones to our start point, meaning we are the first ones strapped to each other. I watch as the others are strapped to each other. I don’t know what comes over me, but I find myself grabbing Ari’s face and forcing her to look up at me. Before I even know what, I am doing, I am kissing her. The only thing that crosses my mind is that I just had to kiss her. Just this once.
“On my go.” Chris calls out.
I quickly pull back, wink at Ari and turn toward the course. I wait for the go, and when Chris gives in, both Ari and I race into the course. The first obstacle is a rope ladder to a slide. I climb as fast as I can. Ari seems to be moving a little slow, but that’s fine. Once we are over the ladder, we slide down and start the over and under logs that are the second part of our course. The over and under part is hard, because I am first over and there isn’t a lot of room between each of the logs. I have to go under before she is fully over. That makes it hard for both of us because it feels like I am rushing her. A balance beam is next. I am up first and stabilize myself, before helping Ari up and I hold onto her hand as we work our way slowly across the beam.
I find myself wanting to look around at the other teams, but I don’t. I don’t want to look around and stumble or slow down any. I really want to win this one. Not just because of the reward but because I just want to win. I want to win because I want to show Ari that I am in this for the two of us. I just have to win.
Before I know what is happening, I hear Chris call out. “Zach is through his course. He is the first of the two teams to win the reward. Who will be next?”
That must give Ari a push to move faster, because we race through the last of the course and are climbing the rock wall at the end. I don’t look around because I don’t want to psych myself out or anything else. We are at the top and sliding down the other side. One we land on our feet we race forward to our mat and Chris smiles at us.
“Final team winning the picnic reward, Green team.” Chris says.
I can’t believe it. but we won. I can’t believe that we actually won. One of the product
ion assistants comes forward and asks us to write down what we want at our picnic. I write down what I want. Ari does as well. I can’t wait until we get to have the food.
TWELVE
Ari
“I can’t believe it. I can’t believe we won. I won for Ari. I actually won.”
Ryder Holt
I leave the challenge more confused than I was when I came into the challenge. For the first time in my entire life, I wanted to stay angry. I wanted to be mad at Ryder. I wanted to make him sweat it out a bit more. I wanted to make him pay for what he did. But then he goes and kisses me. How am I supposed to stay mad at him after that? How am I supposed to hold onto my anger? That kiss not only did things to my body, but it has my mind in a jumble.
The challenge made me even more confused because Caleb and Ryder had that big scene a few days ago and I am sure that painted a target on my back, one I may have not had if that wouldn’t have happened. But more so because Ryder kissed me. He kissed me before today’s challenge, and I don’t know what to think.
Caleb seemed to hate the idea at the last reward challenge, but today, after Ryder kissed me, he seemed indifferent. What changed? Why did he suddenly change?
So now, after the challenge, we are at camp, tending the fire, boiling water, and waiting for our picnic to arrive. I assume because we probably ordered a ton of food, it will take a while. But I have purposely not eaten anything since the challenge, because I know my luck, if I eat anything the picnic will be delivered, and I won’t get to enjoy the food while it is fresh.
Its times like this that I wish I knew this game. Its times like this when I wish I knew what was coming next. Part of me wants to know when to expect this merge, that Ryder has told me about. I don’t know anything. I wish I knew. I wish I was allowed to research.
In the distance I hear footsteps. More than just our camera men and Lacey. I frown, is that the picnic. As the footsteps close in on the entrance to our camp, I smile. There are three assistants carrying baskets full of food. Another assistant is carrying one of drinks, and one more is carrying in a table. They set it all up and leave the camp. We aren’t allowed to eat right away. The camera man needs to get all the angles on the food and the set up. Then we have to act surprised for the camera as we finally get to eat the food. I take one of the plates and pile it high with a cheeseburger, fries, a bit of fruit, and grab a bottle of the Pepsi Zero I asked for.
Playing For Keeps (Romancing The Games Book 1) Page 7