This story is based off Season 11 of the US version of Big Brother. For those of you in the UK, you should know that the US version of the TV show is vastly different from the one we see on our own screens. Thus, the rules of the game will be explained as we go along in the story. I also recommend, if anyone's planning on following the story, to attempt to watch the Season it's based off, seeing as a good number of the challenges will be the same. It'll be easier for you to visualise. That said, it isn't going to be identical. Now, I'm not stupid enough to directly link you, however if you search the series somewhere sensible, you'll be able to find it fairly easily.
I thoroughly enjoyed writing this, it's so much fun to have the characters all in one place. The actual series is very fun to watch too, and (for those of you that have watched in already) Jeff and Jordan were definitely my favourites. This is my first Merthur story that I've uploaded, but I have a few more coming for anyone that's interested.
In addition, though most of the series is already planned, the winner of the competition has not been picked yet. Thus, I would like to ask anyone who enjoyed to story to vote on who they'd like to win. Not necessarily based on this chapter alone, just keep it in mind as the series progresses.
Finally, anyone wondering why 'Love From, Anonymous' has been deleted, should be pleased to know that a re-vamped version of the series will be uploaded in due course.
I hope you enjoy the first chapter of Big Brother!
He was quivering with excitement, the prospect of what was about to happen killing him inside, as he stood there impatiently. He couldn't wait any longer, why couldn't this all be over already? He shivered, it was dark, but he knew that any second now everything would be happening at once. Really, he should be relishing this moment of peace for, in the weeks to come; peace would be a rare thing to come by. Still, he couldn't help find himself wishing they'd get the cameras rolling already.
He looked slyly to his left and then right, squinting his eyes to see through the convenient poor lighting. 'So this is my competition.' He thought with a smirk for a split second.
And then his vision was flooded with light and he was being pushed by various technicians through a corridor which he knew could only lead to one place. Following behind the rest of the contestants, he clutched his suitcase tightly and entered onto the stage.
"Welcome houseguests!" The presenter called to them as they formed a row of lines. She was a short blonde thing, with pale blue eyes and painfully obvious fake breasts. She smiled sweetly with her big, red, silicon-filled lips. "Take a look around you!"
Truthfully, Merlin probably should've looked at the other contestants first, but instead he found himself checking out the set he'd just walked onto. He'd entered through a side door with the rest of his competition and they were now standing on a semi-circular stage facing a large audience, sitting on tiered seats. There were at least three cameras dotted around the set, probably a few more that he couldn't see too. However, he soon scolded himself and turned to check out the people around him as he was supposed to.
It was the first time they'd seen each other in proper lighting, and so the rest of them had happily taken the perky presenter's offer to judge each other. They looked around at each other, not bothering to be subtle about it, with some smirking and giggling thrown in the mix too. The live audience was getting pretty loud too, wolf whistling and yelling out at some of the more attractive players. Among them was a dark haired young man with a little too much facial hair for his age, who was winking and waving at the girls in the crowd rather than checking out his rivals. Merlin, on the other hand, was now scrutinising every figure standing next to him before turning his attention to the large door behind them leading to their new house. He grinned, this was too exciting.
"Had a good look?" The perky presenter shouted. "'Cause these are the people you'll be living with for the next nine weeks!"
The crowd gave a big cheer to that statement. 'God,' Merlin thought. 'So this is what it feel like to be a zoo animal.'
"Okay, okay!" The blonde calmed the crowd. "The first four people entering the Big Brother house are..."
Merlin sighed inwardly as they started the drum roll; he knew they'd do this. Having them go in separate groups, letting others pick their beds before the rest of them, it was sure to cause some drama. He'd be lying if he said he didn't want to go first, but he didn't want a target on his back before they'd even gone into the house, he certainly wasn't looking to get on anyone's bad side. On the other hand, all he really needed was a bed and, if he needed to, he'd probably be able to take someone else's bed after they'd been eliminated. Really, it wasn't that big of a deal.
"Percival, Lancelot, Gwen and Merlin, you may now enter the big brother house."
The wash of relief he felt at the sound of his name was soon replaced by nerves, as he eagerly followed his three opponents up the tall staircase that led into their new home.
There wasn't much time to take everything in but, as soon as they entered, he heard many squeals of delight and victorious 'yes's being yelled all over the place by his fellow roommates. They crossed a large open-plan kitchen-living room with a circular dining table almost as soon as they came in and every one of them grinned gleefully as their eyes quickly washed over it all.
Everything was so huge and, had he been given the time, Merlin would have spent another ten minutes just trying to take in the fact that this was his. He got to live here for nine weeks, if everything went to plan that is. Instead, knowing that soon enough another four would be following them, he rushed through a door, into what seemed to be one of the bedrooms.
It was a fairly big room, painted red with velvet drapes and a fluffy carpet. There were three beds and he decided quickly, without hesitation, that it would be good enough. If he ran off to see what else there was it might get taken, besides it was a nicer room than what he had at home. Plopping his suitcase and bags on one of the beds, he wandered off to see the other rooms, still quaking with anticipation.
There were two other rooms, each with four beds in them. One bedroom was done up like a toilet almost, the floors and walls were tiled and the beds all had frames made of steel with plastic mattresses that had to be pumped with air. There were cute blow up animals and soaps strewn around the room too, but it was cold and Merlin knew immediately that he'd made the right decision. The other room was nicer, with creamy patterned walls, wooden floor boards and four low futon-like beds. When he walked in he found that one of the contestants, a large man with very little hair, had already taken a bed in that room. They exchanged quick smiles, unable to hide their excitement, before Merlin slipped out again to check his room.
When he went back to his own room, he found that the other two beds had also been taken. On the bed next to his, a girl with coffee-coloured skin and a massive smile was sat, taking in her new surroundings.
"Hello," he said, pleasantly. It was impossible not to be in a good mood now; he might as well start making connections while everyone else felt good too! "I'm Merlin."
She stood up from her bed and shook his hand. "Gwen, it's nice to meet you."
"You too," He grinned. Turning around to the other bed, a tanned man with dark curly hair was depositing his bags. He smiled at Merlin.
"I'm Lancelot."
Merlin nodded as they shook hands, but there was no more time to exchange any further niceties; they'd have to do that on camera in a minute. The producers rushed them back to the living room to sit and wait for the next four houseguests. The excitement didn't seem to settle down though; somehow the knowledge that his every move was being filmed was creating an unfamiliar buzz in Merlin's head.
A few seconds later, four more contestants walked in, rushed to find a room and then sat down with them. With each new four they swapped quick pleasantries and hugs as they jumped up and down in their glee. The final four followed soon after and eventually they were all sat on two long red couches, parallel to one another. Surprisingly, there was very little drama over the bedroom situation. There were only eleven beds and twelve houseguests, but (unfortunately for the producers) two of the girls agreed to share one of the double beds together, though not without some interesting eyebrow wagging from some of the males in the house.
Merlin reclined back on the sofa. On their right, a TV screen and microphone were set up so they communicate with the presenter when needed. For now, they were told to introduce themselves one by one, as they drank the champagne they were supplied with.
"Ah, well I guess I'll start." said a blonde woman sitting at the end of the couch on the left. She had dark eyes like a hawk and every time Merlin felt her gaze it was as if she could see straight through him. She didn't seem like the kind of person you wanted to have an argument with. Nevertheless, she smiled sweetly and continued. "I'm Morgause, I'm 27 and I work at a bank."
'Figures,' Merlin thought, but he couldn't help but think how harmless she looked in that little red dress.
'Don't be stupid, Merlin,' He scolded himself. 'No one here is harmless and no one's your friend. You're here to get that money, now listen hard and suss out the competition.'
Sitting next to her was Gwen, the young lady he was now sharing a room with.
"H-hello," She stuttered, eyes flicking from each of her roommates to the floor. She seemed a little timid, but managed to push through her shyness. "My name's Gwen, I'm 28 and I work for a home cleaning service."
He heard her sigh gently in relief as Lancelot took his turn. "Hey guys," he said pleasantly, you couldn't help but smile straight back at him, it was infectious. "I'm Lancelot, I'm 26 and I'm a football coach."
Some of the other guys nodded appreciatively at this. Merlin had never been a huge fan of football, wasn't it just a bunch of over-paid buffoons kicking around a ball? Still, he smiled at Lancelot; he had a feeling he'd still be able to get on with this guy.
Next to Lancelot sat a girl who looked equally as shy as Gwen. She smiled weakly to the rest of the group.
"Hi everyone," Her voice was very quiet, and Merlin sensed how everyone leaned in slightly that they might be able to hear her. "My name's Freya, I'm 20 and I'm a university student."
No one seemed to think much of her; to be fair she seemed like a pretty weak competitor. She was pale, unnaturally so, and her bony figure didn't suggest that she'd be much competition when it came to physical challenges. Then again, Merlin was exactly the same.
"I guess it's my turn," the next man started, clapping his hands together confidently. "I'm Leon, I'm 32, but don't kick me out 'cause I'm old," Everyone laughed at that. "And I work in computing."
Then they came to the last person on that couch: a pretty blonde girl with wide eyes and a pouty mouth. She smiled behind her make-up and perfect hair.
"My name's Vivian, I'm 24. Oh! And I'm single if anyone's looking." She giggled and batted her eyelashes at Lancelot and another blonde male on the same couch as Merlin.
"Okay, me." Merlin recognised the man speaking now as the guy who'd been flirting with the crowd outside. Merlin raised his eyebrows as the other man grinned. "I'm Gwaine, weird name I know; I'm 29 and currently unemployed. So if anyone's got any jobs going..." He looked playfully at his competition as they laughed.
"Hey guys, I'm Elyan. Some of you might have guessed, but I'm actually Gwen's brother." He nodded towards his blushing sister. "I'm 30 and I work as a primary school teacher."
Merlin felt his heart jump as Elyan finished, realising that everyone was suddenly looking to him, his cheeks reddened. It was his turn.
"My name's Merlin, I'm 22 and I'm an artist."
It was over before it had barely begun and now, it was someone else's turn. With a few more deep breaths to calm him down, Merlin turned to the dark-haired woman beside him.
"Bonjour," The woman said jokingly, smiling widely, not hesitating to laugh at her own joke. "I'm Morgana, I'm 26 and I don't work."
There were a few raised eyebrows at that, but they carried on smoothly to the man beside her.
"I'm Percival, I'm 31 and I'm a retired wrestler."
That revelation wasn't exactly surprising; it was obvious from his stature alone if anything. He was tall and broad shouldered, with biceps practically bulging out of his thin shirt. Merlin made a mental note to keep an eye on him; he was going to be one to watch.
Finally they turned to the blonde man at the end of the couch. He had a build much like Percival, but was shorter with less prominent muscles. What really stood out about him, however, were his bright blue eyes. They pierced through each the contestants as he smirked at them and, after just a few moments, Merlin heard Vivian release a dreamy sigh behind him.
"My name's Arthur, I'm 26 and I'm in line to inherit my father's law firm." He purposefully redirected his gaze to the carpeted floor for a few moments; obviously aware of what he was doing to the women of the group judging by the expression on his face. "It's nice to meet you all."
As if on cue, the short silence that followed was broken as the large television screen finally jumped to life.
"Hello houseguests!" The presenter called happily, well, that was what she was paid to do, right?
"Hey!" They shouted back with half her enthusiasm, if that. It still felt quite unnatural to be so permanently perky. Merlin smirked to himself.
'I'm sure we'll discover some hot tempers while we're in here.'
"Is everyone getting on with their new housemates?" The woman on screen asked, raising an eyebrow.
Shouts of 'oh yeah' and 'sure' were heard along with many other sounds of approval, Merlin grinned. If anyone had taken a disliking to someone they obviously weren't saying anything about it. At least, not yet.
"Well, I have some news for you."
There were a few side glances, if only for a split second, and Merlin, upon catching Gwen's eye for a moment, smiled reassuringly. They'd all expected this; this summer was going to be full of surprises. In the end though, it should all be worth it.
"As you well know, the motto of this show is 'expect the unexpected'," Merlin heard a few grimaces and groans at the presenter's statement, but he just kept his eyes focused on the TV screen.
"I am sure that already you've been judging your peers," There were more than a couple of people who looked guilty at that point, but again Merlin ignored it. "While others of you will have been trying desperately to fit in."
"Not quite unlike being back in school, right?"
There was an almighty groan from the entire group. Various curses flew around as many people frowned and scowled, while others smirked approvingly. Still, the presenter continued with little care for their mainly negative reaction.
"Whether you've been out of school for ten years, or just two," She paused here, perhaps for dramatic effect. "One thing remains the same."
"Cliques rule the school."
At this point, Merlin held his head in his hands. If this was how they were playing then he was screwed, royally fucked if you will. School had been hell on earth for him and that was not an exaggeration of any kind. He thought he'd escaped all that. Sure, cliques still ruled society, but the cliques that ruled society weren't as stupid as the ones that had ruled school!
He almost felt like crying, he'd come here for a reason. He needed that money, really and truly needed it. Probably for a cause more worthy than the rest of the people there, at the very least. He took a deep breath.
'It's okay, Merlin,' He told himself, lifting his head once again. 'Calm down, the game's not over yet. Don't give up until there's no hope left.'
"And this summer," She added. " They're going to rule the game."
'Well if that's not a death sentence,' Merlin thought, with weak smile on his face. 'I don't know what is.'
"That's right!" That presenter was far too perky for her own good. "Each of you will be playing the game as part of a familiar clique."
People were shaking their heads and scoffing and shivering and groaning, it seemed that plenty of the others felt similarly to Merlin. He leaned further back into his seat, this truly was a nightmare.
"Now remember, though you may be playing as part of a group, you're all still individuals in the game." She continued. "You will still be nominated and evicted as individuals. However," She paused again.
"It's never been more important to be part of the 'in' crowd." She smiled. "That's because, if one of your team become Head of Household, your entire clique is safe from eviction."
More 'ooh's and 'ah's emitted from the group, but the majority stayed silent, Merlin included. Sure, that was a pretty cool advantage to this sort of set up, but how would that help if he was in a team of lousy contestant that never won HOH?
"Want to know what the cliques are?"
"Yes!" They all sounded much more enthusiastic now, that's for sure. Even now, he still felt a foolish rush of excitement for what was to come. Besides, he was going to be here for at least a week, right?
"Okay, you will all be placed in one of these four groups: the populars, the athletes, the brains or the offbeats." She paused with a playful smirk on her face. "Want to know where you fit in?"
"Yes!"
"Well, you'll have to wait then." Her answer was met by many a moan and groan. "I'll see you guys later!"
Merlin grimaced as the TV switched off and the houseguests burst into conversation.
"Well they didn't put that in the contract," The blonde, who he then recalled was called Arthur, stated bluntly.
Vivian giggled. "Maybe it won't be so bad; after all, if this is anything like school it should be a blast."
"Ugh," Gwen groaned. "Not for me, school was horrible. Everything was based on appearance, plus I wasn't that smart. I can guarantee you right now that I'll be in the 'offbeat' clique."
"Same," Merlin said, beginning to feel a little more comfortable as he realised that he wasn't alone in his disappointment. "What kind of lanky artist is an athlete?"
They laughed appreciatively at his self-deprecating humour.
"Hey Morgana," Leon piped up. "Which clique do you think you'll be in?"
"Well," She smiled dangerously. "I do have a first from Cambridge in history, so I'm betting on the Brains."
There were definitely a few 'wow's at that, though many wondered if it was appropriate to be telling everyone that. Better to hide your smarts, then stun 'em, right? Morgana obviously didn't think so. Despite her questionable strategy, Merlin felt attracted to her brash personality.
"Well it's pretty obvious that Percival will be an athlete, right?" Lancelot chipped in, grinning. "How about you, Elyan, do you play any sports?"
"I played football in school; I do a lot of coaching in my spare time too." He shrugged, on the outside he didn't seem that bothered by this new revelation of the game.
"You'll probably be with us then," Percival said gruffly.
"Yeah, maybe."
"Hello houseguests!" And back came the perky blonde, obviously the director had decided they'd collected enough reaction footage for now. They'd probably be called into the diary room soon enough for some comments on the day so far. Merlin shuddered at the thought, he wasn't looking forward to that part.
"Hello!" They shouted back, mustering all the energy left in them.
"Are you ready to find out which clique you belong to?"
"Yes!" Suddenly everyone seemed to sit a little straighter.
"Well, then please make your way out to the back garden, find your name and say hello to your new clique-mates." The smile on her face wasn't genuine or sincere; it was cocky and mockingly superior. She knew something that the rest of them didn't and it was bothering Merlin more with every second that passed. Well, at least now they would find out who they're ready-made friends were. Whoever his clique mates were, Merlin thought, all they'd have was each other for now.
They all rushed to run out into the garden, which they'd been forbidden to enter previously, as they'd obviously been setting it up for something. That something being whatever they were about to do now.
Upon going outside, there was a stereotypical American high school gym set-up. On the right there was a sort of stage set up to look like a gym, but at each of the four corners a tall metal tower stood. They looked like telephone lines almost and together they held up a similar tower lying horizontally, around eight feet above the stage. From the way it looked, Merlin figured as he looked at it for the first time, it was as if this horizontal bar could be lifted up and down too.
On the horizontal structure, all four cliques were labelled with what seemed to be their team colours. In addition, attached to this metal frame were twelve toilet seats hanging a few feet lower than the bar itself, if you wanted you could have held onto them with your feet still on the ground. Each of the toilet seats also had a name labelled in a bold black font. Under these, lying on the stage, were shirts labelling your name and clique. The Populars were a pinky-red colour, the Athletes were blue, the Brains were green and the Offbeats were yellow.
There were many gasps and exclamations of surprise as they entered the garden, to say the least. They'd expected some cool challenges but nothing on this level. The attention to detail was amazing, fantastic even. The whole thing must have costs thousands of pounds to set up and this was just the first one!
Merlin spotted his name fairly quickly, he'd been right in thinking he'd be part of the offbeat clique. Well, it wasn't exactly a surprise. But now he felt a little bit more at ease about it, the people seemed nice enough, enough so to bear potentially nine weeks with them at least and he was happy to see Gwen's name next to his own toilet seat. He waved to her and he quickly slipped on his bright top over his clothes.
"Guess we're working together now, huh?" He said as she approached.
She grinned. "Yeah, let's do this."
He nodded as they high-fived each other.
"Who's our other clique-mate?" She asked, and they both peered at the other toilet seat. The name 'Freya' was written in bold black letters.
He shrugged. "She seemed nice, plus she's in university."
"So?"
"She's probably pretty smart." Gwen laughed at that.
Freya came to join them a few moments later and they exchanged a few reassuring hugs and high fives before checking out the other teams.
On the Popular team were Vivian, Arthur and Lancelot. This came as a bit of a surprise at first, seeing as Lancelot was a football coach, then again he did seem like a popular kind of guy too. On the Athlete's team was Percival, Elyan and Gwaine, no real surprises there, apart from Gwaine, but there would probably be an explanation for than later. On the Brains were Morgana, Morgause and Leon. Which left the Offbeats with Merlin, Gwen and Freya.
To be honest, though their team wasn't made of the strongest or the smartest contestants, Merlin felt pretty good about his group. Neither of the two girls seems brazen or rude, which meant that hopefully they could just fly under the radar for a while and let others make fools of themselves. After all, that was Merlin's only tactic: lay low. Let other people fight over the stupid stuff, stay out of it and just try and win as much as possible. You never know, maybe Gwen and Freya might just manage to surprise him.
"Hello houseguests!" Another television in the corner of the garden greeted them. "It is time for the first Head of Household competition. So let me explain what this means."
"At the beginning of every week, we will conduct a competition to determine a Head of Household or HOH. The HOH gets to live in a premium bedroom with their own bathroom for the week, as well as being completely safe from eviction. In addition, the HOH gets to nominate two people for eviction half way through the week."
All these rules had been explained to the contestants when they'd signed their contracts; this was purely for the public's benefit. Though it did serve to make them think a little more about just who would be seeing this. Merlin wondered for a fleeting moment if his mother might see it, but brushed away the thought quickly.
'I have to concentrate if I want to think this.' He thought determinedly, turning his focus to the presenter once again.
"Of course, these nominations can be challenged later in the week, but we'll come to that later. All you need to know for now is that the HOH rules and to stay in the game, you want that power. But don't forget! If someone in your team wins the HOH, all of you are safe from eviction."
Looking at the two girls either side of him, Merlin grinned. They could do this; there were three of them now, three chances of surviving. They could do this!
"So let me explain this week's HOH competition." The presenter continued. "Some of the most embarrassing moments in school take place in the changing rooms and that's exactly where you are right now. So please, step into your underwear-"
"What?" Many outcries were exchanged at this, what on earth was she talking about? Just a moment later, a pair of large white underwear dropped from above for each of them. There were a few squeals and groans, as many of the pairs fells right onto the heads of the contestants. Merlin was one of the lucky ones, whose quick reflexes served him as he managed to dodge his pair. He laughed as he spotted a rather unhappy looking blonde on the popular team grimace, as he realised exactly what had just dropped onto his spoilt head.
"When you're ready," The presenter's voice broke through the loud reactions of the houseguests. "Please put on your underwear and hold onto your toilet seats.
Gwen and Merlin looked at each other wide-eyed for a second. This was going to be bad, but they still couldn't keep the smiles off their faces. The underwear the presenter spoke of was now elevated by about three feet, thanks to the hands metal bar above them. It seemed that Merlin's calculations had been correct. The girls or, more specifically, Vivian released a high pitched squeal as she stepped into her over-sized white underwear. Merlin rolled his eyes before clutching onto his toilet seat with the rest of the contestants. At this point, at least, their feet were still on the ground, though they really had to stretch to keep a hold onto that shiny white plastic seat.
"Houseguests!" Back came the presenter. "This competition is called 'Big Brother's Welcome Wedgie."
Many of the contestants exchanged glances at this statement, their fate was sealed now. A few of them laughed, but their laughs held no substance and sounded more like cries for help than anything.
" Okay, here's how it works:" She continued. "You better hold onto your toilet seat for dear life! 'Cause, if you let go of it, you are out of the competition. The last houseguest holding on will be the winner and Big Brother UK's first ever Head of Household! Are you ready?"
"Yes!" They answered with the little energy they had left.
"The competition starts... now."
Half a moment later, Merlin felt himself being pulled into the air as his large underwear suddenly weren't so large. This was the first time he'd ever had a wedgie, looking around it was probably the first time any of them had a wedgie. It was such an American thing, very stereotypical, though that was probably why they used it after all.
With every second they were being pulled higher into the air, and every second the bottom half of his clothing was reaching further up his behind. His arms were struggling already to hold his weight, but he held on for dear life. It felt like he was being stretched and an uncomfortable stitch was already growing in his side, but he knew he couldn't let go. He heard Gwen hiss a few times at the painful sensation, but Freya was still staying mostly silent. On the other hand, Vivian seemed to be making a huge fuss. Her whimpers and groans could be heard on the other side of the house probably and they'd only been up for a few minutes.
"You okay?" He whispered to Gwen.
"Y-yeah," She managed, smiling weakly to reassure him. Unfortunately, she wasn't so convincing. "I'm fine, we can do this. We've got to do this."
He turned to his left and hurriedly whispered the same to Freya.
She nodded silently and kept holding on as if it were the easiest thing in the world, turning her head back to the centre to stare intently at the grass.
He peered at the competition; the Brains (apart from Leon) didn't seem to be doing too well either, but the Athletes seemed alright. No one would dare say that it was pleasant, but the Athletes could probably hold on a lot longer than he could. Merlin took a few more deep breaths, if this underwear tried to take him any higher he'd probably be split in two. It was rubbing and chaffing and just generally going in places you don't want underwear to go.
"I'm gonna' have some marks after this..." He said quietly and Gwen giggled appreciatively, as much as she could at least, but Vivian's, seemingly constant, whining carried over the faint sound.
"Ar-thur~" Vivian moaned, twisting and turning where she hung. "I can't take this."
"It's only been five minutes, Vivian." Arthur replied soundly, his patience for the girl was surprising.
"But it hurts~" She added, her glossed lips pouting to her now silent clique mate.
"She sounds like a child," Gwen whispered back to Merlin.
Merlin chuckled, trying to concentrate on the picture he had dreamt of the other night, and how he might paint in, rather than concentrating on the pain he was feeling. It hurt, yes, but he was still fairly light and so he had less to hold up than some of the others. If he could just keep gripping onto his seat, he might make it through.
'But if it looks like you're not going to make it,' He thought. 'Drop, because you don't want a target on your back this early in the game. Second place isn't worth a thing.'
He looked around again, it had been nearly twenty minutes now, but no one had dropped yet. Vivian and Morgause looked like they were ready to and the athletes were still taking it with silence, but it seemed that no one wanted to be the first to go down. Gwen seemed to be feeling the pain a little more, but Freya was showing no signs of any emotion at all. Maybe at least she'd be able to hold on if he dropped and, if not, being able to hide her feelings that well was sure to come in handy later on.
"Ar-thur~" Merlin's thought process was interrupted by Vivian's complaining yet again. But this time, Arthur wasn't answering. She seemed to be attempting to readjust where her hands were holding the toilet seat and suddenly, with a high pitched scream, he heard her body slam against the well-placed mat beneath them.
"Oh~ Vivian!" The presenter cooed. "You're out of the game."
Vivian scowled at the TV screen and removed herself from the underwear, rubbing her tender hips. She stepped down from the gym set up and went to sit down on the bench they'd supplied for the losers. She lasted only half an hour and yet she got to sit there and watch the rest of them writhe in pain as she drank her lovely cool water. Merlin felt burning jealousy stem in the bottom of his stomach.
He closed his eyes. 'Stay calm, Merlin. The prize you're going for is much greater than anything she could comprehend.'
She spent a while cheering on her clique, but got bored after five minutes and decided to go have a shower and change instead, though she was required to keep her team shirt on afterwards until the competition was over. Just to keep us appearances for the cameras of course. By the time she came back, Morgause was down too.
When forty minutes had passed, the TV turned on again.
"Hello houseguests!"
A few mumbles and mono-syllabic answers greeted her but nothing more.
"Most of you have survived our wedgie." She grinned. "But do you think you can survive the super-wedgie?"
Merlin groaned, in too much pain to attempt to hide his true feelings any more. It was absolute torture.
"From now on, at any time you could be subjected to one of Big Brother's super-wedgies, so watch out, houseguests!"
As she finished, Merlin and the rest of the contestants were yanked up a few more feet then down and then up again. All sorts of noises were released during that thirty second pain-fest as their wedgies somehow managed to dig deeper. But just as it was over, Gwen looked at Merlin and managed a weak smile.
"I can't do anymore."
He nodded, a little disappointed. "Okay, we'll hold up a little longer, right Freya?"
Freya nodded.
Gwen smiled appreciatively at the two of them before she dropped and went to join Morgause and Vivian on the bench.
I shan't subject you to the entire competition as the whole thing stretched over two hours and, really, the end is the only important part. Nevertheless, you may as well know in which order the contestants dropped so that you may make your own judgements on the strength of the contestants.
Around twenty minutes after Gwen, Leon dropped, followed closely by Freya who seemed to have been in more pain than she let on. Elyan, who was merely adjusting his position at the time, fell after an hour and ten minutes, much to his displeasure. Morgana, being the last of the brains, dropped just a few moments after Elyan and Merlin a few minutes after that. The two of them had surpassed many people's expectations, especially their own but, despite their great efforts, they just couldn't match the others. In the end, only Lancelot, Gwaine, Arthur and Percival were left: two from the popular clique, two from the athlete clique.
After another super wedgie, this one lasting sixty seconds instead of thirty, Lancelot fell after two hours of non-stop pain, followed by Gwaine. At two hours and twenty minutes, Arthur and Percival were still fighting it out, both determined to win. It was obviously to the rest of the contestants that they were hurting though and a small mistake on Arthur's part caused him to fall eventually. Thus, Percival became the first Head of household!
The tired houseguests, having been forced to stay and watch the majority of the competition, all congratulated their new HOH. It had been fairly obvious who the real competitors would be from the start and Percival, with his big muscles and strong build, was (not surprisingly) going to be a good physical contender.
Arthur didn't seem to take the loss well though, but quickly sobered up when Percival congratulated him on his impressive stamina. He forced a smile.
"Nah, I didn't do that well." He brushed it off effortlessly, bringing a bit of charm back into the game. "But you! I mean, wow. That's some strength you got!"
The pair went off laughing and chatting eagerly about sport and working out. As Merlin watched them walk back into the house together he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"You did well, Merlin." Gwen smiled sympathetically. "Really well."
He grinned. "Yeah well, I guess Physical challenges were never going to be our thing anyway."
"I guess not."
With Freya in tow, they went back into the house. Everyone was buzzing with chatter, all eager to make friends with the new jock in power. The Athletes celebrated in the living room with Arthur as the alcohol flowed, while Merlin, Gwen, Morgana and Lancelot sat in the kitchen together.
Just as Merlin sat down, a loud voice spoke over the speakers.
"Would Merlin please come to the diary room."
Merlin groaned and hit his head on the kitchen counter. The others smiled sympathetically to him as he made his way to the formerly locked room, labelled as the 'diary room'.
'Really, it's just my luck to be called first.' He grimaced.
Opening the door, he quickly made his way down a small corridor: eager to get this over and done with, until he entered the actual room. It was small, no walls, just mirrors, a big swivel chair and a rather intimidating-looking camera.
He bit back his reservations and sat in the chair, recalling the contract he'd signed just a few weeks ago.
'You will be required to go to a 'diary room' to record your feelings on the days' events and answer questions whenever you are called. Contestants who fail to meet this requirement will be immediately expelled and removed from the Big Brother house.'
"Hello Merlin," He recognised the voice that spoke to him over the speakers, perhaps it was the producer that had interviewed him?
"Hello." He replied, though his answer sounded more like a question than an answer, this was definitely one of the worst parts of the competition. Unfortunately, it really was an obligation.
"We'll make this quick, it's obvious that you're pretty tired, so we'll keep it short and sweet."
He nodded and smiled weakly.
"All we need you to do is give us a quick opinion on your new housemates in general and the HOH competition. Please be honest and remember: none of the others will see this. At least, not until they've been eliminated from the game."
"Okay." He said, fidgeting in his seat. It wasn't exactly comfortable to be seated right in front of a camera. "Well... I guess everyone seems pretty nice right now, but I sort of expected that."
"I'm sharing a room with Gwen and Lancelot, and they both seem genuine enough. Gwen is one of my clique mates too, but I'm fairly sure we would've been friends anyway." He grinned. "Everything's going pretty well."
"As to the HOH competition, I never really should've expected to win. I mean, look at people like Arthur, look at Percival! They were made to win challenges like that. Still, I'm pretty proud of how I did; I think I did better than I thought I would."
There was a short silence as he wondered if he should say any more before the voice rang out over speaker again. "That's fine Merlin, thank you very much."
He let out a deep sigh of relief before he got up from the chair and left the room.
"I'm so tired." Merlin exclaimed, slumping back onto the kitchen table where the others were still waiting for him. "I had to wake up at three this morning just to make sure I got here on time."
"Egh, that's gotta' suck." Gwen said sympathetically, frowning at the very thought of having to get up so early.
"Maybe we'll have a day off tomorrow." Morgana suggested, sipping her mug of tea.
"I don't think so," Lancelot cut in. "I think they'll be going all out this week. Y'know, for ratings and stuff."
Suddenly loud chattering filled the kitchen as those in the living room came to join the rest of the house in the kitchen, with Percival leading the way. In their hands were glasses and cups of various types of alcohol, Percival specifically looked as if he might have had a little too much already, as his buddies Elyan and Gwaine held him up with difficulty.
"H-hey," He hiccupped. "H-how about Mer-Merlin?"
Merlin looked up from the floor, he smiled weakly. He really wasn't awake enough to be thrust into the limelight that he saw Percival threatening him with, but if he was going to be dragged in, he had to be pleasant about it. Percival didn't seem like the most stable guy and Merlin was having trouble figuring out how he was going to manage to stay on his good side. They were almost polar opposites but that just wasn't going to cut it in this competition. If he wanted to survive he had to find something.
"I-I didn't think you had it in you." Percival slurred, as he grinned back at Merlin.
"Yeah, well," He replied from his seat at the kitchen counter. "I didn't really have much to hold up."
"Y-you look like a-an anorexic t-t-teenage girl." He barely got the sentence out before he spluttered out his beer in laughter. The houseguests looked at one another, attempting to hide their disgust at this vulgar humour, and a few let out unenthusiastic chuckles to content their HOH.
"I think we should take Mr. HOH to his room now," Gwaine broke the silence with a smirk. "Who wants to see his HOH room?"
This was another huge bonus of being the Head of Household that the presenter hadn't mentioned on screen. Not only did you get to stay in a premium bedroom, but the producers customised it for you by getting in pictures of relatives and friends. In addition, you received a letter from a member of your family or spouse. So when they climbed the spiral staircase up to the HOH room, they were not entirely surprised to be greeted by the blown up picture of Percival's dog.
The room itself was nothing to sneeze at either, with its large bay window and queen-sized bed it was certainly an upgrade from downstairs. Parallel to the bed was a fire place and above it a collection of TVs showing the goings on of the people downstairs. This allowed one to be upstairs relaxing in their room, but still able to see what every houseguest is doing at any time of the day. It was easy to see how the room promoted suspicion, obviously they were hoping for some major drama and maybe even some fist fights in the coming weeks.
Upon seeing the collection of images, including one of his wife, Percival seemed to sober up a bit. The houseguests followed him around as he pointed out his parents and his brother. He recalled a few old stories about them, including some about this days as a wrestler. In fact, they came across a picture of his first fight and there'd been more than a few pleasant remarks about his... interesting hair style. Soon enough, however, they found themselves sitting on the couches provided to listen to his letter.
"It's from my wife," He said, already sounding a little choked up, but maybe that was just the alcohol. "Dearest Percival, if you're reading this then you did something good! You won Head of Household! Of course, I don't quite know what that means, but I'm sure I'll be proud when I see it."
The houseguests laughed as he paused for a second expectantly.
"We're all missing you already, especially your parents and of course Damien." He stopped for a second to clarify. "That's my dog."
"But we're all really proud of the sacrifice you're making for your family and wish you the best in your efforts to win this competition. Don't push yourself too hard and don't be an ass."
Arthur snorted and Percival grinned at him, a risky move but it seemed to have won him some points for being courageous. The line between being genuine and making an ass of yourself was a thin one indeed. Merlin snuck a quite glance at the blonde, was it wrong that he admired how easily he could be himself? Merlin, on the other hand, was analysing every word he said, every movement he made and the message it might put across. That was what you were supposed to do, right? This was how you played the game. Merlin quickly looked away from the brash blonde to listen to Percival.
"You're a strong man, not just physically but emotionally too. Still, don't forget that other people aren't. This game isn't about emotions; it's about strategy. Don't say or do anything you can't take on your conscience because, in the end, you have to be able to sleep at night with what you've done. We want to see you win this game fair and square; we want to see you make our family proud. But above all, Percival, please try your best. I hope this letter has reminded you that you have an entire family behind you, even if we're not there beside you. Stay strong."
He seemed a little teary eyed after reading it and Gwaine gave him a good slap on the back as he wiped his eyes.
"She sounds nice," Merlin said softly, not even knowing if anyone was listening, though it seemed, in the end, that everyone was. "Your wife." He clarified to the house guests.
Percival looked at him, properly looking for the first time. "She is." It was probably the most sincere moment that they had shared so far and Merlin thanked his quick thinking: getting on Percival's good side was essential to staying in the game this week. Perhaps, now, he had found something they could connect over.
Merlin would be lying if he said he'd never thought about getting married, having a wife, some kids, a dog, y'know the whole 'white picket fence' ordeal. The right woman had just never come along, at least, not yet. After all, he was only 22 and understood well that these things don't come around quickly or in the way you expect them to. There were times when his patience began to run out though.
"I'm gonna' go to bed now, Merlin." Gwen said, breaking his train of thought. "You coming?"
"Yeah, sure." He said, moving himself off the couch and following Gwen back downstairs to their own room where Lancelot was already waiting.
They all slipped back to the bathroom to shower and change into something more comfortable before reclining on their beds to chat.
"I'm really dreading this," Gwen admitted, lying back on her bed.
"Why?" Lancelot asked incredulously.
"Because," She answered. "School was hell for me."
"Why?" He repeated once again.
"Let's just say, I wasn't exactly popular and I certainly wasn't intelligent." She sighed. "I never had any boyfriends so the girls called me a lesbian."
"School was just so..." Merlin continued, his story was much the same. "Degrading. Everything was based on the most materialistic, shallow features of life. My school days were some of the worst in my life."
"I don't remember it like that." Lancelot said quietly, obviously fairly stunned by what he was hearing. "I had some good friends in my school days, though I'm not in contact with any of them now. But..." he trailed off for a second.
"I think it just brings out the worst in people."
"Amen to that." Gwen said, pumping a fist in the air from where she lay.
"I guess that's why we've been dragged back there." Merlin mused as he turned off the lamp by his bed, the only source of light left on in the room.
"Night everyone."
"'Night."