It had been two years since Total Drama World Tour. Two years since I had been humiliated and had made a fool of myself on international television. After TDWT I went off the media radar, I 'disappeared' per say, there were theories that I had had a nervous breakdown or I had gone to rehab when in fact all I did was change everything about me: I stopped dressing like a teenage business woman in the summer, I stopped lightening my hair and I grew it out, I changed my whole personality back to the old me, before the whole total drama mess I was a nice, funny, 'normal' person I guess the only people who really got to see the 'real' me was Bridgette and to a certain extent Duncan. I was a mess and I needed to change, I couldn't stay CIT Courtney; I had to be just Courtney. Turns out when I wasn't neurotic all the time my voice was less screechy and high pitched also I found out I had a killer singing voice, when it wasn't all strained from shouting. It was just when I was getting my life back on track and was finally starting to be happy again; to be honest the nervous breakdown rumours were half true, when the offer came. And for some stupid reason unbeknownst to me and has EVERYTHING to do with Bridgette, I accepted. Didn't even read the terms and conditions.
I turned to Bridgette "I cannot believe you managed to convince me to do this!"
We were on a stupid boat on our way to god knows where the season of Total Drama was. I was not happy. She started to laugh "It's not funny!" I exclaimed, she nodded
"Yes it is! The look on your face!" she calmed down and took one of my shaking hands "Calm down, breathe and we both know that you need to do this, there were rumours that you were DEAD. Okay, I'm not having people believe that on my watch." I grinned
"Cool! Have I changed that much that people don't recognise me!" Bridgette shook her head laughing, "First of all, you really should not be that happy that people thought you were dead, ok? And secondly, yes, you've changed so much; in a good way and yet your still you." I rolled my eyes "Whatever, let's just get this over with so I can win my money!" Bridgette hit me in the face with something.
"Whoa I was just kidding!" we both started laughing, "Maybe this time you can stay a bit longer so I have some moral support?" I said to her raising my eyebrows, She laughed
"I'll try but the last I heard no one is talking to either who shall not be named." I scoffed, shaking my head,
"You don't have to call them that anymore you know." I frowned,
"So not even Geoff is talking to Duncan? But I thought they were all 'bros before hoes'? Bridgette smiled "I'm pretty sure he still sneaks off to see him, Jesus I swear it's like he's having an affair. With Duncan." To this I laughed so hard I fell of the nonexistent seats of the boat. Then Chef or "Captain Hatchet" said or barked that we had arrived. Shit. Maybe this wasn't such a great idea.
Turned out Bridgette and myself were not the first to arrive: Noah, Leshawna, Geoff and Dj were already there. Bridgette managed to say hey to everyone before she went into major make out mode with Geoff. Meanwhile nobody had guessed who I was, surely I couldn't have changed THAT much. It was Noah who eventually worked it out. "Hello Courtney." He said with a small smile, Leshawna's jaw dropped,
"Courtney baby?! My you're looking fine girl!" I smiled and blushed
"I've changed a little bit." To this Dj raised his eyebrows
"A little bit? I must admit though you're looking good. Happy." I looked out to the ocean and saw another boat coming in,
"Well I'm pretty sure that's all about to change." And it did a little bit. I saw Izzy was crazy as ever, as she jumped off the boat to land on the pier and she did, just about, she walked past me and yelling
"HEY COURTNEY!" I grinned and said "Hi Izzy." She was followed off the boat by Owen, Trent, Heather, Alejandro, Harold, Lindsay, Beth, Tyler and Katie and Sadie. Please let that be everyone please let him not be doing this or better yet please let her not be doing this but alas my prayers fell on deaf ears as a last boat pulled into dock. I immediately grabbed Bridgette and almost had a panic attack.
"Bridgette I can't do this, why are you making me do this!?" I whisper screamed, she grabbed my arms
"Calm the hell down, you are so ready for this it's been TWO YEARS!" She replied at the same level of volume
"Okay," I said once I started to breathe normally again "But can we just please have a conversation so I don't have to say hello?" She rolled her eyes but nodded.
"You have to be strong you know." I nodded
"I know but I have spent the last two years being strong and trying to forget so forgive me for having a moment of weakness." We both smiled and proceeded to talk about random things that made us laugh. It was then he strolled over to me.
Duncan's POV
I stepped off the boat and went over to my man Geoff. "Hey man how you been?" He asked "Alright man, I guess. You?" But Geoff seemingly wasn't listening anymore he kept glancing over at this chick who was talking to Bridgette.
"Geoff? Dude?" and then I heard that laugh, her laugh. I looked over to where Geoff kept glancing and studied the girl who wasn't Bridgette: Her mocha skin, her deep, dark brown almost onyx eyes, her smirk, those freckles. It was Courtney. I'd know those fourteen freckles anywhere and her laugh; I would never forget her laugh. Her hair was longer and darker, she was dressed way differently, but she was Courtney. I went to walk towards her when Geoff grabbed my arm, he shook his head but I shook him off.
"Courtney?" I asked, she whipped her head towards me and gave me a civil smile
"Duncan." The pain in her eyes was obvious to me although she did a pretty good job of trying to hide it,
"How are you?" she said fake happiness evident in her voice
"I'm good, you?" She smiled
"I'm good, you've changed though." I nodded
"Yeah," I no longer sported my famous Mohawk and now had a side swept just got out of bed perfectly messy hairstyle with a green streak down the middle, I didn't have a monobrow either. The only thing that had stayed the same was the way I dressed. Yep I guess I had changed or at least Gwen had changed me. "I could say the same about you." She smiled and murmured something but before I got a chance to ask what she had said Chris called out through his megaphone "Attention Campers!" And she turned away from me.
Courtney's POV
Thank you Chris. He carried on "Alrighty well we better get you into your teams!" Pretty much everyone groaned at this, getting into teams was always followed by a stupid life risking challenge. "This season we have decided to go back to Total Drama's roots that's why you're all gonna be back in your original teams: Killer Bass and The Screaming Gophers!" Wait who was on my team back then: Bridgette, Geoff, shit. He was, like I could forget. Again Chris carried on "And we decided that your first challenge is going to be the first one you did years ago!" Bridgette turned to me then back to Chris "THE CLIFF ONE!" He smiled "Yep, but this time there's a twist: you have to do it in your underwear. Oh and you know the drill when it comes to chickening out." He smiled
"Perv." Bridgette murmured so only I could hear and I started laughing which then made her laugh,
"Girls!" Chris shouted and we tried to stop laughing but failed "Anyway, go get changed, girls your cabin's the one on the right, boys the left." We stumbled to our cabin still laughing; Bridgette sat on a bed and asked
"So are you gonna jump this time?" I grinned "Yep." I started to get undressed; I didn't really care about the whole underwear part, I mean it's just like wearing a bikini. Kinda. I grabbed the first pair of shorts I saw to cover my pants for the moment and threw them on, by then all the other girls had joined us in the cabin. Bridgette grabbed my arm and whispered
"You got into his pants!" I frowned "What?" She looked down at my shorts and so did I. I was wearing a pair of black boxers with a white skull on edge and on the waistband in green sharpie was a single letter. D.
"It's not like that!" I whispered hastily, blushing and with raised eyebrows she nodded
"Are you still gonna wear them?" I shrugged "Yeah why not? Gwen has no right to get upset. I forgot they were even his." She nodded again "I guess, let me get changed I'll see you there." I smiled and nodded throwing on some sneakers, I passed a mirror and decided to check myself out: I still looked good, my eyeliner was still perfect with a flick and all, my flat stomach, and my now past shoulder length hair was loose. With a smug smile I strolled outside and tripped right into Duncan. Nice going Court.
No one's POV
Courtney tripped and Duncan caught her, they remained like that for a few awkward seconds until she cleared her throat, he released her then stood scratching the back of his neck. "Hey, sorry about that." She said nervously,
"It's cool," he said and then he took in what she was wearing, now he knew she was hot but he didn't remember her being that hot. He saw she was wearing the boxer shorts he had given her after 'that night' and smirked, secretly he still loved the way she wore them low on her hips. "I see you still have them." He said pointing to her shorts, she smirked
"Don't flatter yourself I forgot they were even yours, just make sure your girlfriend doesn't get upset when she sees me wearing them."
He nodded "Look Princess, I know you probably don't wanna talk to me but I'm sor-" He said stepping close to Courtney and snapping the waistband of the boxers trying to distract her from the words he was saying. "You know what Duncan? Save it for someone who cares." She said turning away from him. It was then Duncan made a realisation,
"Wait you're jumping this time?" She looked at him square in the eyes
"Yes, I am." She turned strolling away with a "And don't call me Princess" leaving him to only follow her with his eyes.
Duncan's POV
As I watched her walk away, all the kisses we had ever shared flashed through my mind, and damn I really wanted to grab Courtney's arm and beg her to forgive me and I don't do that type of thing but then again everything changed when it came to Courtney. It always had. To be honest, it was just too easy with Gwen, literally. There's none of the atmosphere of a challenge that I felt with Courtney. I let Gwen change and mould me into what she wanted me to be; what a hypocrite I was (yes I'm a delinquent but I'm smart.) Courtney had tried to change me and I said she was a psycho and cheated on her yet I gave into Gwen and we were still together. Well barely, I've lost interest and I know I'm a complete jackass for it but as soon as I saw Princess I had a feeling that me and Gwen wouldn't last, I mean Courtney is Courtney and Gwen is just too easy, we're too alike in a boring way.
I followed Courtney up to the cliff top where Chris was waiting for us with a sadistic smile on his face.
"Well you know the drill: thousand feet drop, I think, safety zone but this time it's further away from the beach so you can either choose to walk across some dodgy stepping stones to the shore and win your team two points," He said holding up two fingers,
"Or you can be a chicken and take a boat back to shore and only get one point." He shrugged "Killer Bass you're up first." Bridgette grinned at this and walked to the edge turned to face us, saluted then dived off the edge. Courtney ran to the edge to see if Bridgette then turned and grinned,
"That's our girl, she made it." Geoff whooped and pumped his fist in the air. It was the Screaming Gophers now and Gwen had decided to jump first for their team. As she passed by me she smile seductively and jumped off the edge, I was torn; as her boyfriend I should probably see if she's alright but then I was on a different team to her by the time I had made up my mind Chris announced,
"That's one all folks!" On it went; Justin and Noah had chickened out along with Dj. Now it was just me and Courtney left.
Courtney's POV
"I'll go." I said and walked to the edge. Taking off his boxers that were covering my pants, I looked back over my shoulder at Duncan, smiled and saluted, and then I jumped. The water was cool and surprisingly refreshing. I went up for air and to see whether I was in the safety zone. As I pushed my hair back off my face I grinned seeing that I was, when Chris shouted down "Alright Courtney are you gonna try the stepping stones or be a chicken?" I grinned,
"You know what I'll try my hand at the stepping stones." I shouted back up to him. He nodded in approval,
"Brave girl. I am seriously digging the new you!" I nodded back and headed for the seriously dodgy looking stones. They weren't that hard to get across; it was all physics and forces when you think about it. I got across easily and got two points for Killer Bass. When I got to shore Bridgette nearly squashed me with her hug.
"Oh my god, thank god you're alive!" I laughed at her reaction "Of course I'm alive; I'm Courtney I've been through worse." Bridgette laughed
"Okay, I know but I still worry." I rolled my eyes,
"Who are you? My mother?" She shoved me and turned back to face the cliff, "Look he's jumping." I know who she was referring to,
"I would say that I want him to break his neck but then we would be down quite a valuable player." Bridgette sighed and nodded in agreement. I looked towards where she was facing just in time to see him land safely in the water. Part of me was relieved, the same part that had butterflies when he held me and called me Princess earlier, this was the one part of the old Courtney I couldn't get rid of: the part that was still in love with Duncan.
He ended up getting two points for our team so we won. Chris had decided that he couldn't be assed to get us to make hot tubs and just wanted to watch the 'drama' play out instead, so there we were back at camp left to only celebrate our victory.