Reality Big Brother 13

by Medlie Skyth

Big Brother 13. Same house, but with a different twists, and all new competitions! The big brother cast plus one additional member, Mel, deal with the ever-shifting power in their own ways while trapped inside a house for the summer.

1. Eval

Reality

Everyone KNOWS what insanity the Big Brother house can suck you into. The story of my experience of spending three months away from civilization with is beyond insanity.

The summer was full of twists, bullies, friends, betrayals, romance, competitions, alliances, and temptations. I, being the youngest in the house, am surprised I'd come even this far. It's the last week of this game, and there's only three feisty females left in the crazy house. Dani and I struggle on our final endurance competition to see who will win the last Head of Household for this season, as Rachel had dropped sometime yesterday morning. Though every muscle in my body felt like it were about to fail me at any second, all I could think about was what the hell was going through Daniele's mind. I hadn't spoken to her for at least four days since the incident... and tensions had been through the roof since. Even Rachel, who awkwardly sat on the bench, soaked from the icy rain, was notably aware of our panicked aura.

The clock hand came swinging around yet again. I had to jump, but my body wouldn't answer to my pleading commands! All I could do was watch it's swinging movement swoop by, and hope I'd jump in time before it comes crashing into my blistered ankles.

And before I knew it...

Ch 1; Eval

"My name is Julie Chen!"

Me and the fourteen other house guests hear echoing from the front. Clapping and cheering could be heard before some dudes with cameras lead us around to the side for our introduction.

"But what the houseguests don't know is, from the moment they enter the big brother house, they'll be hit with one of the biggest twist of the summer!" I hear the ambitious Julie Chen announce.

The twist was no secret. Our agents and crew informed us that veterans would be returning to the house... but anything for the audience! We are actors, after all, and if Julie says we don't know, then I guess we don't know!

"I will now introduce the house guests..."

That's my cue! We walk in a separated line to the front door.

How exciting... I'm actually in front of the big brother house! Week one, day one, the first day of a brand new adventure! The day leading to many more days of fame and friendships, experience as an actor and as a person, and of course the experience of a life time!

The veterans were held back, since we're not supposed to know. I'll be the one who'll go in the diary room and say 'Aw no! I didn't know Eval Dick was gonna be here! This totally ruined my strategy! Aw snap!' ...yeah, they'll get a kick outta that! More air time for me, since I'm gonna be famous and all.

The first guy in line stops, and we line up in rows. I was next to an African-American male with a short afro, and an old blond lady. ...She looked old. In front of me was a white male with short black hair that was spiked up in a faux-hawk. We all look around like this is the first time we've ever seen each other, and... oh? These numbers are scarce? Where ever could the rest of our housemates be? Hmmmm?

"Take a look around you... these people will be your friends, these people will be your enemies. And one of you, will walk away with the half million dollar prize." Julie greets. As we look at one another. We are instructed not to speak yet, however.

"When I call your name," she continues "please enter the house and place your bag on your selected sleeping area."

We wait impatiently, as does the crowd.

"Adam"

A large muscled bald man throws his bag over his shoulder.

"Kalia"

I see an African-American female from the next row down nod through my peripheral vision.

"Melanie"

I struggle to life my bag, and then place the strap over my shoulder.

"Dominic"

The dark-haired man in front of me grabs the two handles on his case and allows it to hover over the ground.

"And Porsche, you may now enter the big brother house."

A young blond picks up her bag and the five of us enter the house!

Right away the bald man is plowing through the house. The spiky haired boy is shaking hands with Porsche, and he offers to carry her bag.

Hello! Struggling teen over here! Some assistance!

Next thing I know a hand comes to my side and lifts the bag off my shoulder.

"Whoa! You okay!" The dark-skinned female asks as I spin around. "You looked like you were gonna fall over!" She jokes.

"Thanks." I laugh nervously. What was her name again?

"My name's Melanie." I inform, taking my bag from her as we walked into the house.

"Kalia." She replies and shakes my free hand.

We part our ways in search of loggings. Kalia stopped at the first room in the right wing. It had hot-pink wallpaper and a flower-power theme. I'm not surprised the spiked hair boy didn't follow his new crush in there! The colors were pink, fuchsia, violet, pink and pink. Not really my thing either! Jordan would like this, but I assume she'll share a bed with Jeff. Rachel and Dani? I think they'd die before they slept in a room like this!

The bald and the dark-haired Latino took the room on the right, diagonal to the pink room. The walls looked like solid metal, and shined like it too! Was it like, tin foil or what? Everything else in the room was either black or red. This was CERTAINLY Eval-Dick material! No doubt that guy will physically pick up the person who claimed the bed he wants, and throw them in the pink room! And since I'm the smallest... yeah moving on!

So we reach the room farthest down the hall before it morphs into the living room. The whole thing is animal print! Leopard rugs, tiger stripped sheets and bed-spreads, and the walls were white covered in segments of fur. It made me think it's what a fashionable cave-lady would call 'decoration'. Before I set my bag down, I made sure all the fur was fake. It was, of course.

Porsche peaks in and asks if I want to join them for champion.

"Uh, sure!" I nod. "But I'm not drinking any!"

Eventually all the newbie's had entered the house, and we sat in the living room, pored drinks, and went around the room introducing ourselves.

"Well, I guess I'll go first." I announce. All eyes on me. Yes! "My name is Melanie, I'm 18..."

They all seem to nod in acknowledgement. Some try to lie about their age, and would pretend to be 18, but they could defiantly tell! I could pass for a 16 year old if I wanted!

"I'm from Waterford Michigan, and I'm a student at Oakland Community College!" I finish.

"What field?" A male voice asks.

"Acting." I smile confidently.

"Ooo, we got a performer!" The same deep male voice comments. He was teasing, of course. "Watch, we're gonna think she's sweet and innocent and she gonna end up chopping our heads off! Chop chop chop!"

"...I don't know how to respond to that." I admit. The houseguests laugh at my adorable cuteness!

I sit, and the introductions proceed clockwise. "Okay, my name is Porsche, and yes, my dad named me after a car..." The bright blond trails. "I am 23 years old, and I live in Florida! As a, cocktail waitress!"

Respect. Respect.

"Alright, my names Adam, I'm 39, I'm from New Jersey, and we are gonna HAVE A ROCKIN SUMMER!" He excites, his voice level already rocking the house! That was the bald guy... Adam.

He pumps his fists a few times before taking a seat.

The spiked hair boy stands now. "I'm Dominic." He starts, scratching his head. "I am... 25 and I live in California with my girlfriend!"

Do you really? I mean... who says that! He's lying! He's gay! ...maybe.

"I'm Shelly." The stringy blond-haired female stands, takes a sip of her drink, and proceeds to set it on the table. "I live in Centerville Ohio with my beautiful husband and 7 year old daughter."

We all 'aww' simultaneously. Adorableness!

"Ight, my name is LawON, also known as mister handsomfied..."

Don't worry... adorableness beats handsomfied any day.

"I'm 39, and I live in ILLINOIS," Voice control problems much? "And I'm looking forward to a wonderful summer with y'all lovely people."

"So my name is Keith. I'm 39, also from Illinois."

"Yeah man!" Lawon interrupts, and offers a high five.

Keith accepts. "Ahh, and I'm a human research manager, and that's about it!"

Next Cassi stands. Her beautiful form-fitting outfit highlighted her body features, and her fair skin glowed against the golden brown color of her long flowing hair.

"So my name is Cassie..." She begins, her voice that of an angel...

The guys had their eyes locked to her breasts. Totally immature!

"I'm 26, and I am a waitress at hooters in Tennessee!"

The boys respond immaturely. Waitress... that girl should be a model! I'm waiting for one of those guys to make that stupid 'you're the only ten-I-see' joke. It surprisingly never came up!

"Well, I'm Kalia." Kalia introduces. "I live in Philadelphia and I just turned 30!"

"Big three OH!" Lawon comments loudly. Everyone toasts, including me with my sparkling apple juice!

"To the cast of Big Brother thirteen!" Adam comments and we clash glasses again. Everyone seemed to be laughing and enjoying themselves, and we all talked for another five minutes before Julie appeared on the television screen.

"Julie!" Many of us smile.

"Hello houseguests! As I'm sure by now you have all introduced yourselves."

We nod and chuckle, and look around for a second.

"Not so fast! Because you have not met everyone in the house just yet." She informs bluntly.

"Ooooh?"

"Ooo...!" Were some of our reactions, along with Kalia's "I told you!" comment to me and Porsche.

From the HoH room on the top floor we hear the door open. We look but see nothing yet.

"As many of you know dynamic duos have ruled the big brother house... teams such as Dan and Memphis, Enzo and Hayden, Jessie and Natalie, and who could forget Mike Boogie and Dr. Will?"

We tried to look as nervous as possible.

...no, I'm sorry. Dan is NOT re-entering the house. I know, I know. I too was disappointed.

"We have brought back three teams to compete in this summer's-"

That's all she got out before Jeff, followed by Jordan, was the first to come down the spiraling steps. We all go rushing over and re-introduce ourselves, offering them drinks and a seat.

Rachel and Brendon came down next. Yep; it's possible. We're sick of her already! Still we put on our pretend 'Ohhh... Yaaaaay...' faces to greet her.

"Guess whose back bitches!" She announces in her annoying voice. Yuck!

Lastly, Daniele Donato appears from above. It took me a moment, but then I recognized her.

"Uh oh!" Lawon comments, looking above.

There, over the balcony, stood over-lord Eval Dick. Daniele's father.

"Hello there." He smites, smiling in a sinister way. I was instantly struck with fear, along with the rest of the newbie's.

"Aw man! Eval Dick has entered the house!" Adam stresses. "There goes my strategy!"

'EY! That was my line...

We all return to the living room, now with our full cast. Dick sat at the nominations chair, kicking back like he owns the place. I was initially next to him by some default, but move in between Kalia and Jeff.

Daniele sat at the far end, and as we continued to speak Dick reveled that his rebellious daughter hasn't spoken to him since season 8. Wow!

Dani was in her own separate world right now, staring at the fish tank blankly.

And of course that annoying laugh that makes Rachel Rachel came out every five minutes. Ah-HA HA HAHHH! Yeah- no.

The Veterans took their rooms. Jeff and Jordan hit up the furry room with Me, Keith, and Lawon, Brenchel and Eval occupied the death-metal room and somehow Dani ended up in the pink room. I guess she wanted to be as far away from her daddy as possible.

So our rooms are set, and we take a moment to explore the new renovations on the house. Immediately I see Daniele pushing on walls, searching for a secret room no doubt. I don't blame her! Kalia, Porsche, and Cassi are checking out the work room, and the others disappeared in the kitchen and up the stairs. I decide to join the girls in testing the equipment.

"So you're really, like, 18?" Kalia comments from the bike-looking machine.

"Oh, yeah! I know some people lie about that." I nod understandingly. "But nope I'm legit 18!"

"So you and me are the youngest in the house!" Porsche then responds. I smile back at her.

"What do we have here?" Jeff asks, entering the room now too.

He jumps up on the treadmill and starts running in an arched position. Jordan laughs, and I giggle a little.

"Jeff! It's not turned on!" Jordan points out. I think it was adorableness, but Cassi sort of shot one of those 'no shit!' looks in her direction, followed by an eye role.

"Oh- you mean this thing is turned off?" He smiles back at her.

Moving on!

I wander out, as Dominic wanders in. Shelly was upstairs with Keith and Lawon, Brenchel unpacked in the metal room, while Eval was talking with Adam in the kitchen.

I didn't really have time to stumble around on where to go, because Julie called us back in the living room.

We gather, and take our previous seats. It was time for the first competition of the summer. She explains the perquisite rules, and then asks us to go outside. We hear the black screen, which blocked our view previously, rise from the sliding door.

Being honest, there are a lot of things in this 'reality' TV show that are scripted. Our first HoH was our own improvisational decision, however. I for one was planning on specifically NOT winning the first position of power. I do have a bit of strategy... and the beginning of the game is not my place to shine. I'd rather make a big move later on, more importantly being in the house later in the game!

The very first competition and they're already hitting us with trivia! We take our boxes, each marked with our names on the middle of the three steps.

Don't underestimate me... just because I'm eighteen doesn't mean I haven't seen this show and studied every move of every person since season one! Maybe I was a little young to understand this show mommy and daddy watched every summer, but I sure was curious enough to look anyway!

I grew up knowing this game... I don't know when or how I learned the rules... the terms... the concept itself, but it's all just second nature. And now I'm living it.

So I'm playing along, getting question after question right, when I realize- shit! It's down to me and Brendon? I'm always so proud of my knowledge of this game, gloating about it... that I forgot my game strategy myself!

"The final question will be a written one. Please grab the chalk board located on the right side of your wall." Julie echoes through our speaker-clips.

I cannot get this right... I have to get this one wrong! I just have to!

"In big brother six, Eric and Kayser extended the longest period of any endurance competition in big brother history." She recaps.

I REMEMBER THAT! And then when the others came off, they opened boxes with hinders or rewards, and one made a horn noise, and one was... a PB&J slip, and...

"How many minutes did that competition last?"

...okay. So I just pick a low number like, 3? ...it was more like three days. ...oh, see then it'll be obvious! So I guess I put, like, 525600 minutes? Oops... that's from the song.

"Melanie, I NEED an answer!" She pressures. I squiggle on some random digits... 4321! And hold up my board. Please lose... please lose... PLEASE...

"And the correct number was..."

Anticipation is killing us all!

"Four-thousand fifty one, congratulations Melanie, you have won the Head of House hold!"

Oh few... that's a relief! ...wait WHAT?

Claps and cheers came from the other side, along with Lawon's "I TOLD YOU! SHE A DANGEROUS LITTLE TIGER!"

Brendon shook my hand in respectful defeat, and Shelly placed the veto around my neck.

I was dizzy... what just happened? I kept saying 'thank you, thanks guys, thanks.' But I was defiantly not happy!

"What's in store now that Melanie's Head of H-" Julie's voice revered before she took her button on the button.

"Stay tuned to find out." Eval glares. ...oh shit!

So suddenly me and Shelly are all buddy buddy? Yeah, I wasn't born yesterday. Obviously people want safety. This is the first time Shelly acknowledged me! Plus Dominic approached me a lot today. Bet if he could go back in time he would've helped me with my bag... Oh well. That doesn't matter. What matters is me finding out what these people are really like, and finding the trust-worthy ones to align with.

None of the veterans came to talk that day. They're obviously too high and mighty to kiss butt. I wouldn't expect them to, after all. If nothing else I was ready for threats from that gang! After finally shaking off Shelly and Lawon, I'm able to get some privacy in the animal print room before they open up my HoH bedroom.

MY HoH bedroom... Oh, listen to me! I guess I could get used to this.

No reason to make a big deal out of it! The voice of the supervisors blew through the house. No big introduction for me! Just a "The Head of Household room, is now, unlocked." From the man's robotic voice.

Everyone went up and waited outside the door. I make my way up too and wait for everyone to get there.

"Me and Brendon have already seen it." Rachel comments, feeling the need to throw that in there. Yes Rachel, you've been here before, WE KNOW! We wish we didn't!

Finally Eval gets here from whatever he's doing, and I open the door.

The room was like golden, fitting for a queen! The rug was a pearly white plush, and the walls a scarlet-red. The bed was gold and shaped as 'a big circle', as described by Jordan. Good job! You know your shapes! Yaaaaay!

A couch-ish thing with gold-yellow type cushions was diagonal, facing the bed. A big TV... big brother is watching! Or at least, little sister is! Muh haha! (...that's me, in case you didn't catch that) and right from there was my personal bathroom.

There was a table with snacks, candies, and candies. I opened the skittles, and passed them around. See, we're all friends! For now anyway till I have to put someone on the block... even Eval and Dani took some candy though, hopefully to be kind, since I'm now Head of Household.

As the group filed out, some lingered. The vets were first to leave, then Adam, then Porsche. Soon it was just me, Shelly, Kalia, and Cassi.

It should really be Porsche with us instead of Shelly. We were already a group! Soon Shelly gets the hint and heads down to the kitchen, leaving me and the girls to talk game.

"Wow... I don't think ANY of us expected you to pull out over the vets!" Kalia praises. "No offence or anything!"

"Yeah- we were all shocked!" Cassi admits.

"Yeah..." I sigh. "So was I."

"I bet! Hahah!" Kalia cheers, and then hits me with a high-five. "You showed them!"

"Heh!" Cassi giggles, and then shoves more candy in her mouth.

"Actually, I gotta tell you guys something." I start.

Before they can respond, Porsche knocks at the door. "Melanie? I left my wrappers, can I-"

I had already nodded at Kalia, who was sitting at the foot of the bed, to open the door.

"Oh! Good good, you're here!" I comment. "Sit down, I gotta tell you guys something!"

She sits on the couch next to Cassi. They all look at me, waiting for my announcement with curiosity. "What is it Mel?"

"Okay... honestly? I didn't even WANT to win this competition." I admit.

They're quiet at first. "So, what? You just guessed?" Porsche chimes in, trying to make sense of what I just said.

"Well, I didn't wanna be, like, the FIRST person to go out, but after that yeah I ended up getting a lot of lucky guesses and..."

"Is that why you answered 4321? I was wondering why such an odd number!" Kalia adds, finally making sense of things.

They all seemed to believe me. Now weather these girls are my friends or not... well let's say if I hadn't won, we wouldn't be all close-knit like this. I'd still be the wandering outcast, no doubt. Maybe winning HoH was a good move on my part... but for now the three think it was unintended, and they can go spread that all over the house if they like! It'll be easier to put people up if they know I didn't want to, I would think.

"So what are you gonna do? Like... you don't even know who you're gonna put up!" Cassi realizes now.

"I don't even know half these people's names!" I cry, "I'm seriously freaking out!"

A pause of silence, then "Why not put up two veterans?" Kalia suggests out of nowhere.

"I thought about that earlier." I reply somberly. "I really don't want them after me this early in the game."

"So we have to put up someone who, like, won't care." Porsche gathers.

We? Uh, this is MY HoH lady! But, then again, if you wanna do the chopping and take credit, be my guest!

"So, afro dude and spiky hair guy?" I offer.

They laugh in amusement.

"Oh Melanie! You're so cute!" Cassi giggle. My face turns a bright pink. "Just so you know Mel there will be no golden key with the name 'spiky hair guy' on it!"

I laugh again, and get the feeling they want to teach me now. It's fine... I need a quiz on the names, so it'll be good for me.

"Okay, I'm...?"

"Cassi." I get out, still laughing a little.

I bet if they choose to broadcast this, there'd be like a little score-thing on the bottom of the screen, one labeled 'correct' and the other 'incorrect'. Then a little 'ding ding ding!' goes off when I get the first name right.

"And, Kalia and Porsche." I continue, pointing throughout the room. Two more points!

Kalia turns on the big screen, then zoom in on the kitchen.

"That one?" She tests.

"...bald guy?"

EEEEER!

"Okay, Mel? His name is Adam." Kalia says, in a more serious then teasing tone.

"Adam." I nod.

"Him?" Porsche asks, pointing at afro dude.

"Umm... ..."

EEER! Two strikes!

"Lawon." Kalia informs. Right...

"And that's Eval and Brendon." I say, already knowing that group.

We switch the cam to the pink room.

"Okay, these two."

"Well that's Shelly, and the spiky hair guy is... ...Latino?"

ERERER!

"Dominic!" Kalia and Cassi say at the same time. Riiiight, Dominic.

For now it was getting late, and the girls decided they'd let me think on it overnight before making any decisions.

"Or at least, it'll give you time to remember the names!" Cassi smiles, and then shuts the door on the way out.

Man, it has been a LONG first day...

First thing in the morning I'm expected to make my nominations. But what should I base them on?

"Everyone knows you don't know what you're doing, so just say that you had to put up someone, and it happens to be those two." Kalia explains. I guess it makes sense.

"Thanks Kalia." I smile. She nods then opens the door. "Wait... Where are you going! You just got here, come hang out!" I beg her. "It's lonely up here by myself."

"Then come downstairs for breakfast! Jeff made eggs!" She invites, and then leaves out the door before me.

"Uh, coming!" I shout after her, but she was gone.

What happened to Kalia? I thought we were becoming friends! ...maybe it's just in my head. It's only the second day, after all. Maybe I'M the one whose acting funny! It makes sense. Yeah. I am pretty stressed about nominations. Lawon and... and afro guy- no wait, Lawon IS afro guy! So... Lawon and... ...Nick? No that's not right! There is no Nick in this season!

I continue to contemplate through my mind as I spiral down the steps.

Sure enough, there were eggs out. I picked an apple from the basket and joined Cassi, Adam, and Jordan outside.

"Can I sit here?" I ask, as if I were still in my old high-school cafeteria.

"No, no one else is allowed to sit here." Adam jokes. "Naw, I'm just playing."

"Have a seat." Cassi smiles and pats the spot next to her.

I promptly place myself at her side.

"Jeff made eggs, you know." Jordan comments, noticing my green apple. "You can have some, he made them for everybody!"

"Kalia told me." I reply. "I don't eat eggs."

"Kalia told you?" Cassi asks confused. Adam had a puzzled look on his face too.

"Yeah, she came up and said breakfast was ready, like, five minutes ago." I reiterate. "Why?"

Cassi and Adam stop eating for a moment and look at each other, then shrug and go back to their meal. "It's just, uh..." Cassi starts, uneasy.

This is really starting to spark my suspicions now. "What?"

"Nothing." She replies, nonchalant. "How's you fruit?"

Rotten.

At first I figured I'd wait until nominations were over to start making enemies. Even if I had, it was already too late for that. I enter the living room through the kitchen and find Dominic and Daniele, who looked like they were having a conversation, then stopped when I walked in.

"Am I interrupting?"

"Kinda." Dani replies with an annoyed glare.

Whoa! Like, whoa. Can you TALK to the HoH like that before nominations? But why would Dani have a problem with me.

Dominick stands before I even get the chance to ask.

"So who are you putting up Melanie?" He asks out of the blue, and stands too close for comfort.

"Uh... well... it's a tough decision cause I really don't know everyone yet..." I stutter, backing away.

"Pfff!" Dani mocks from the other side of the couch.

"Really?" Dominic asks, continuing to step forward.

And thank god, it was Kalia who came passing through. Kalia would have my back! "Really what?" She asks, entering with her breakfast.

"Kalia!" He signals her over. "Melanie here says she doesn't know who she's gonna put up yet." He explains, putting his hands on his hips judgingly.

"You said you were gonna put up the spiky hair dude." She replies, as if to remind me in a matter that Dominic was not hearing all this.

He was, though. She knew that. And to my dismay, so was spiky-hair number two, standing in the doorway and listening to all the drama. Perfect. Just, perfect. Kalia deceived me!

"Oh, is that so?" Eval smirks, entering the room. "Tell us Melanie, which spiked hair guy were you talking about? Hmm?"

He was causing a scene. Rachel ran in to get everyone, and soon the whole house (minus Cassi Jordan and Adam) was gathered around the living room, watching two spiked haired guys intimidate me.

Eval Dick was winning.

"You would really put me up?" He mocks. "That's not a defense to putting up Doms over here, that's a fucking death wish."

He still managed to maintain his poise in all this. That's the scariest part of it all...

"I don't know..." I softly mutter in defeat.

"What?" Dominic taunts.

"I said I don't KNOW!" I scream back, then speed-walk away from the scene. Porsche followed me upstairs, but Kalia remained where she was.

On the television they all looked very awkward. Dick was pleased with himself, and acted as though nothing happened as he chows down on a plate of eggs. Brendon Rachel and Jeff were heading outside, and the rest sorta stood there like farm animals. I quickly turn it off when Porsche knocks at my door.

"Mel? You okay?" She calls through. I don't respond, but she comes in anyway. "Melanie?"

"I'm fine." I lie. "You can go back downstairs now..."

The door shuts behind her as she sits next to me on the bed. "Common, don't let it get to you! Kalia and them are just big bullies." Porsche reassures me, patting my back and trying to be sensitive.

Another knock. Porsche turns on the telescreen to see Cassi and Jordan at the door.

"Come in..." I reply, and they step inside."

"What happened?" Jordan asks, only semi concerned.

Cassi also looked with a curiosity of the situation they only partly heard through the door.

"Dominic and his new girlfriend were being jerks, and then Kalia came in and made it worse." Porsche explains to the clueless girls. "Then Eval came in and blew up at her, and she hid up here."

"Aw..." Jordan sympathizes. "Mel you can't let them get to you! You gotta stand your ground and fight! Otherwise this house is gonna eat you alive. I know from experience!"

"I... I know." I nod slowly. Porsche wipes the single tear falling from my face. "Look, I'm alright, really. Just-"

And another knock. This time it was Dominic.

"Can you give us a moment?" Jordan calls through the door.

"Ah, I just wanted to apologize. And..."

And clearly Daniele did not approve of him being up here, so she drags him back downstairs. We watch him leave, and then Jordan turns the TV off.

"Mel, you cool off, and come down stairs when you're ready to talk about this." She informs, and leaves out the door, followed by Cassi.

"You sure you're alight?" Porsche asks one last time before standing up.

"Yeah."

She looks at me with disbelief, but leaves anyway.

...oh, why did I have to win this week?

"As Head of Household, it is my duty to nominate two people for eviction this week." I begin. "I will start by pulling the first key. That person is safe. Then he or she will pull the second, and so on and so forth." Was I reading this right? So on and so forth? Do teleprompters have typos? "I will now pull the first key." I continue, and remove the first key from the wheel.

"Adam, you are safe."

"Thank you." Adam accepts his key, and then spins the turning wheel to him. "Jeff, you are safe."

"Thank you Melanie."

It went from Jeff to Jordan, Jordan to Rachel, Rachel to Lawon, to Porsche to Brendon to Shelly to Cassi to Keith.

That left one key in the hole. I start to feel nervous, and temporarily forget my speech. Keith turns the key, lifts, and reads...

"Dominic."

Eval shoots me a glare.

"You are safe." Keith finished, placing the key on the turner and spinning it over to him.

I think that Eval may have expected to go up. But what he didn't know was I'd put his daughter next to him on the block.

"I have decided to nominate... Dick and Daniele, for eviction." I start shakily, but find my poise. "I was told I need to fight and stand up for myself... Dick?"

He raises his eyebrow and smiles.

"This house is going to eat me alive, and I don't need you assistance." I state. "And Daniele?"

Not even a glance. ...was she dead?

"You placing is purely strategic."

I just want Eval to go... and if he repeats his actions from season 8, then with any luck there should be no way he's coming off the block. Either they stay... or Dani takes herself off and I find a pawn... or Dick wins veto and takes his beloved daughter off. It's a win-win-win.

"This meeting is adjourned." I conclude, and Adam helps me lift the wheel.

Once put back in its place, I realize how many enemies I've already made. My game is falling apart, and if I survive the next few weeks, I'm just gonna lie low and avoid any and all drama.

We have Dani and Kalia, who are now extra pissed at me since I put Dani on the block. We have Dick, who... hopefully... will be gone by the end of this week and I won't have to worry about him. And last but not least, we have Dominic! Who I just learned is head-over-heels for Daniele Donato. Three seasons later and she can still charm her servants to do whatever she says. Sickening!

I return to my dungeon room and change into my swim suit. They had just opened the pool before the ceremony, but none of us wanted to get wet.

Except Adam. He jumped right in, clothes and all! It splashed us.

No knocks or anything while I was changing. I assume that was everyone else's plan too. I walk down stairs and enter the bathroom in search of a towel. Cassi beat me to it, and hands me one from the big pile she grabbed.

"Thanks!"

"No problem."

Some how we all managed to squeeze in. Neither Dani nor her crew showed, nor did Shelly, Dick, and Brendon for whatever reason.

Me Cassi Adam Jeff Jordan Keith Rachel Porsche and Lawon. HA! That's nine of us in an eight-person pool! It was uncomfortable and comical at the same time!

"Yep, I'm getting out now." Jeff announces. Jordan follows him, and Rachel didn't look like she wanted to be here with all the newbie's. She leaves.

"Six." I count. "Seven if you include the rubber ducky."

"Hmhm!" Cassi smiles, and then addresses the group as a whole. "Anyone wanna play Marco Polo?"

We all crack up!

"Yeah, uh, NOT IT!" Adam calls.

"We could play an improv game." I offer.

"That's right!" Lawon reminds. "Tiger here is a natural actress!"

I think he calls me tiger cause I sleep in the tiger-print bed. ...works for me!

"Has anyone ever played 'bang'?" I ask. Pretty much everyone has, since we all have acting experience. Some a lot more then I do. The only one confused was Porsche.

"Oh my god I love bang!"

"I wanna go first!"

"No, I called shottie! Heh, get it? Cause it's 'bang'?"

"Wait, what?" Porsche asks, not understanding the excitement.

"You don't know what bang is?" Cassi asks in shock.

We spend a good five minutes explaining the rules, and then Adam volunteers to go first. We all spread out in an even pentagon, and await his first move.

For you non-theatrical type, Bang is actually a really simple game to explain. One person stands in the middle with their fingers shaped like a gun. That person randomly picks someone to 'shoot', then shouts-

"BANG!"

Adam points directly at Lawon, who then 'catches' the gun, also shouting 'bang'

Now his fingers pointed at both sides; I was on one and Keith on the other. I duck underwater faster, which results in Keith's death.

If Lawon hadn't 'caught' the gun or reacted fast enough, he would be the one killed, and both Keith and I live. If only it worked that way in the big brother house... Oh, also. You don't HAVE to play this in the water. It works just as well with regular ducking or crouching, or dramatically falling to the floor, or whatever your mind thinks!

"BANG!" Adam strikes again, this time at Porsche.

"What? Uh..." She points at Adam. "Bang bang bang!"

...I don't think she gets it.

"...let's play something else." I suggest.

Instantly Lawon shouts "HAVE YOU EVER!"

Everyone seems delighted.

"...have I ever what?" I add.

"OH MY GOD YOU'VE NEVER PLAYED HYE?" Adam stresses. "Everyone's played that!"

"Adam she's eighteen! 'Have you ever' is a drinking game." Porsche reminds him.

"Oh." He remarks.

"I can just drink milk." I offer, not wanting to be a bother, but still wanting to be involved.

"It isn't really fun until you get drunk."

"I...could drink monster? And like, get sugar high?" I offer instead. Monster came along with my goody basket of being HoH.

"This one on sugar? That could be dangerous!" Lawon comments. "Let's do this!"

After learning the game, I was quick to catch on! Really plain questions came up, but they started getting more imaginative as the crew drank more and more.

"Okay, okay." Cassi stutters. "Umm... Have you ever... Eaten a blue cow on the moon!"

Adam takes a drink.

"OH! Shut up!" Rachel laughs. She and Shelly joined the game too after we came inside.

And they got even more stupid as time passed. How is this funny?

"Alright... have you ever..." Porsche laughs. "Uhh... have you ever, farted?"

"Really? ...REALLY?" I say, when no one picked up their glass. "I'm out."

"Bye bye Mel!" Cassi laughs.

"Bye Tiger! Reow!" Lawon calls, swiping his 'claws'.

It was up to my HoH room. Maybe I'd shower off the chlorine and listen to some music? Or I could pick up my room. My wet swimsuit was on the floor, and Porsche's candy wrapper from yesterday. Yeah that's about it.

Okay wait! There's all this stuff going on in the house that I don't know about. Kalia switched sides, or was never on my side to begin with. And Dominic has a major crush on Dani? Showmance! And who knows what else is going on! I need to get the gossip. I need to find people who aren't playing improv games, and try to strike up a conversation.

Except pretty much everyone who I can talk to is drunk.

"Except maybe not Keith!"

I say to myself. Keith was napping last time I checked, but he might be up now! And were Jeff and Jordan playing HYE? ...nope. According to my telescreen they're chatting in the weight room. I do need to thank Jordan for the good advice... maybe I could even align myself with her and Jeff! Kalia got in with Dani, after all. Why can't I, the first HoH, be on the same team as two veterans? ...I wonder if they've already paired up with Brendon, Rachel, and Eval actually...

Only one way to fine out.

"Can I intrude?" I ask, poking my head in the work-out room.

"Come on in." Jordan answers, and I sit on a bike-ish thing.

"I, uh, I wanted to thank you for the advice you gave me earlier today." I start nervously. "I really appreciate it."

"What? About standing up for yourself?" She confirms.

I nod.

"No problem."

I smile, and then look at Jeff. He's expressionless.

"Did you want to use the Treadmill?" He asks, not straying from his sightline.

"Oh! No. No thanks."

...this is going awfully slow. So... do I just bring up one of my many questioning topics, or try to start a conversation that'll lead into one?

"So... everyone's drinking. And I'm really bored." I explain. "But, like, I don't wanna intrude on your privacy, so if you want me to leave just tell me."

Jeff shuts off the machine and looks at me. "Can we talk some other time?"

Oh...

"Oh! Sure!" I reply, understanding that I may have just got Jordan in trouble. "No problem."

He shuts the glass door, but after taking a couple steps away I gave in to my curiosity and listened at the door.

"-was so sad, and he was being mean to her!" I hear Jordan explain.

"I know you're sweet and I know you want to help everyone but right now I need you to keep away from them, and stick with helping our alliance." Jeff replies.

I quickly step around the corner when the fur-room door opens. It was just Keith waking up, but I didn't want him, or anyone, to know I was spying.

I walk from the living room around to the kitchen and take some of the empty beer cans to recycling. Keith sits down and pops one open, and I realize how much of an outcast I still am.

We now add Jeff and Jordan to my 'not-happy-with-me' list. That totals to sic out of fourteen people who would vote me out next week, provided I go up.

And 'stick to helping our alliance'? Jeff didn't say 'you need to help Eval'. Obviously they're pared with at least one other person, if not more. It looks like I'm the enemy here, which sucks! Someone has to do something to get on someone's bad side... to get a target on their back besides myself... but who would make such a stupid move?

Night fell quickly. I took a nap after picking up my fellow house-mates empty cans, but it was 5am when I awoke.

No bright lights, no excessive noise... no noise at all, actually. It's a pretty isolated room. But I just couldn't get back to sleep. I kept counting the numbers over and over in my head... it was hard to keep track, and I always added up to fourteen.

There are fifteen people in the house! Fifteen! I must be doing the math wrong... Daniele, Dick, Dominic, Kalia, Jeff, and Jordan. These were the people against me. 6. Porsche and Cassi. 2 more. The two were definitely on my side. Lawon, Shelly, Adam, and Keith. 4 more, have not aligned with any side yet. Brendon and Rachel. Another two, who are possibly in an alliance with the rest of the vets, minus Dani.

It's Dani's fault she's not with the other vets. She won't go anywhere near her father, or even speak to him for that matter. If she just talked to Jeff and them, I'm certain they'd let her be in their group. She'd have to actually WORK with her father though, like she did season eight! She's so stupid in a stubborn sort of way! Like she has something to prove.

Aw man... I lost my number track again. Okay... 6 plus 4 plus 2 plus two... that's still only fourteen houseguests! Who am I forgetting? Spiky? Check. Bald? Check. What about Latino? ...no, he's spiky. Arrrrg! It's too much for my wandering brain to compute... especially under all this stress and it being 5:02am. Perhaps some hot tea? I check my telescreen first to make sure Eval or someone else isn't up. Coast is clear! I'll just grab some apple-cinnamon and take it upstairs.

While microwaving my beverage, I stare outside into the darkness. Our yard is walled off, but the outdoor environment is almost like an escape from the claustrophobia this house emits. It's already getting to me... I know that. Why, I'm even starting to see things! Like a lump under the hammock. And it's moving! Haha! Right. Like someone fell asleep out on the Hammock.

...or did they?

My tea beeps at me as I slowly slide open the door, and then shut it as quietly as possible. The lump wasn't moving anymore... but it was hard to tell if there really was something there in the dark. I get closer... quietly...

"Hello?" I whisper to the bunched up blanket. I felt stupid...

...

...poke.

"EE!"

The lump squirmed to the point where it spun off the hammock, still tangled in the blankets.

I jumped back when Dani emerged from the pile.

"Ah!"

"Melanie, what are you doing out here?" She snaps, trying to keep her tone hush, however.

"What are YOU doing out here, Daniele?" I counter. "Are you even aloud to sleep out here?"

She was more than irritated with me at this point. "I don't care. I can't fucking sleep in that room with those girls..." She sighs.

"Well, my bed's still open in the animal-print room." I point out. "You could always-"

"I don't care how many times those sheets have been washed..." She grunts. "There's no way I'm sleeping somewhere that you've got all your slimy... Melanie germs all over."

Sheesh. Looks like someone's not getting HoH then.

"So you'd rather sleep outside and suffer bug bites and possible rope burn then just take my bed?" I confirm.

"That's right!" She says in a sarcastic tone.

Dani resituates (is that really a word? Resituates? ...if it is that would be a great spelling competition word!) herself on the hammock and throws the covers back over her face and body.

I wait a second.

"So you're just gonna-"

"Get the hell away from me." She grits, and I feel my tea has cooled off by now.

Before going in I look back at her one last time. What did I ever do to her?

I end up falling right back to sleep after a couple sips of my drink, and before I know it it's 9 o' clock! Our food locker is being re-stocked, so no one has had breakfast yet. Apparently Jeff put in a request for pancake mix! We all waited with our stomach's growling for the storage to open.

Now that everyone was sober, the outcast feeling had disappeared and I found myself in the middle of a conversation with Lawon and Keith.

"What happened with Doms? I thought we were tight, y'know?" Lawon asks as I'm stepping outside.

The blankets from the hammock were gone completely.

"I don't know, man." Keith remarks.

"What ever happened to Kalia?" I chime in.

Both look at me.

"I though she and I were tight, but now she's with-"

"The white witch?" Lawon finishes. "We know."

White witch... maybe I have two allies right here if they're also not-too-happy with Daniele.

"...I heard from someone." I start, as I sit in the corner nook of the outside furniture. "That Dominic has a major crush on Dani."

"I knew it!" Lawon brags. "That Daniele hasn't changed one bit! And I bet she'd be just as quick to throw him under the bus too." He finishes.

Me and Keith nod.

"But what about Kalia?" I ponder. It was the perfect moment to get some info, so why not take advantage. "When did she decide to ditch us?"

I meant us in the most universal way. 'Us' wasn't Me, Porsche, and Cassi. It was anyone and everyone against Daniele and her rat pack. Including Keith and Lawon.

"I don't know girl." Lawon sighs.

"We thought you would know." Keith admits.

"Well..." I begin. "Why don't we meet up in the dungeon with Cassi and Porsche, and see if we can't put our heads together and figure this out?"

They think on it.

"Who wants to see Jeff make pancakes?" Rachel shouts out the door. ...no adorableness points added nor deducted.

We all stand up and make our way inside.

Keith puts his hand on my shoulder.

"Just give me a time and I'll be there." He answers.

"Keep me in on the loop too, kay girl?" Lawon adds.

I smile at them both. Finally, we're getting somewhere.

After breakfast, I head to my room where Porsche is already waiting. We plan on spreading out the times we come up here, just so there are no suspicions.

Once the five of us gather, its right to game talk.

"So we were talking about what got into Kalia." Lawon states. Best to keep things open, I suppose.

"Like..." Porsche starts in a confused tone. "What do you mean by that?"

"Like how she just flipped sides and betrayed all of us by joining with Dani!" I explain.

"Do either of you have any ideas? Cause I'm drawing a blank." Keith informs. "I get why Dominic would be so quick to change sides, but something isn't right..."

"Maybe Kalia's America's player!" Lawon throws out there. "It could be some sort of twist!"

"That's actually very possible. I've seen that happen, where America's choice gets a vote for whoever they choose as their player." I recall. "It could be some sort of twist that she doesn't have control over."

"I think... maybe she and Dani had an alliance from the start, and she was just up here doing Daniele's dirty work." Porsche suggests.

"Wait, like how?"

"Cause remember? She was the one who pitched the idea of putting up one of the veterans!" She reminds. That's right... "And I thought that was a terrible idea too! So the only explanation really is if Dani told her to come up here and be our buddy until she convinced you to put up who Daniele wanted!"

"Ohhh..!"

"Makes sense!"

"Wait..." Keith pauses. "If Dani wanted specific people out, why have Kalia up here? Why not just do it herself?"

"For one..." I reason. "None of the veterans came to talk to me about game until Eval started yelling at me. If she came up here and started making deals, it would set her aside as an enemy to the other veterans." I explain, still partially explaining to myself. "But since she had Kalia, a newbie come up here, it was easier for her because she wouldn't have to do the dirty work, and keep the target off her back."

"That..." Porsche agrees. "And the fact that we already know Daniele's not the type to walk up here and make friends. We had no idea about Kalia though... which made it easier to deceive us."

"So what you're saying is Kalia's been on Dani's side the whole time?" Keith summarizes.

"It makes the most sense!" I comment.

"...but wait!" Lawon interrupts with new doubt. "Kalia talked to Mel here before anyone else in the house."

"Right, she helped me with my bag." I confirm.

"So how could she know to act friendly if she and Dani didn't even have an alliance yet?" He reasons.

Ohh...

"I think..." He continues. "There's gotta be some sort of twist that-"

"Oh my god! Kalia's gay!" Cassi finally speaks up.

...what?

We all looked at her with curiosity... how the hell did she know that...?

"Kalia told me the first night that she just broke up with her girlfriend about a month before the show." She explains. "I promised I wouldn't tell anyone else about it, but you guys are just making this was too complicated!"

"So... what does that have to do with her flipping sides?" Porsche questions.

Cassi sighs. "Remember the first thing you said when we were up here? Daniele charmed Dominic to do whatever she demands?"

Wait for it... wait for it...

"Ohhh!" Porsche finally realizes.

"Yep."

"Man, Daniele used her white witch powers to attach strings to Kalia! It's the third day in and she's already becoming the puppet master!" Lawon states.

This is good. I have more people on my side then I though!

"So where do we go from here?" I ask.

"You put her up on the chopping block," Keith reminds. "I know the plan was to get Dick out right away, but if any of us win the veto-"

"We can leave her on the block and vote her out!" I finish.

"Bingo!"

Cassi sits in closer. "I'm in with that... as long as no one mentions Kalia's secret."

There's a pause of acceptance.

"So numbers..." Keith begins.

"Nooo, numbers hurt my head!" I whine.

"Mel..." Porsche starts. "We need to think this out."

"...So we have the four of us, and we need at least 7 votes." Keith begins, laying out the details. "Who can we get to vote Dani out?"

"Jeff Jordan Rachel and Brendon." I blurt.

They look at me suspiciously, and then Lawon speaks up. "How can you be so sure?"

"I might have overheard Jeff and Jordan saying they were in an alliance with Eval Dick." I admit.

"Sneaky Tiger! Very sneaky!" Lawon compliments.

"Okay, wait!" Cassi interrupts. "How did the conversation go exactly?

I explain how Jordan was practically telling me to put Dick on the block, and how later I heard Jeff scolding her for practically putting ONE of their alliance members on the block.

"And how do you figure Rachel and Brendon are in on this too?" Cassi objects.

"Well who else would they align with? Adam or Shelly?" I reason.

"As a matter of fact, I overheard something myself." Keith admits.

We await the new information.

"It's not much, but I did see Dick talking some serious game play with Brendon when I got out of the pool."

"What kind of game play?" I ask. "Not to steal your line Cassi, but we do need to be very specific about the information. You know how fast things spread in the house..."

Nods of agreement across the room.

"Basically, I heard Dick say something about if Brendon won the veto to NOT use it, then Brendon said 'understood' and I walked away after that cause I didn't wanna get caught, ya know."

This is peculiar.

"So... we DO know that Dick is in an alliance with Brendon, and in an alliance with Jeff and Jordan." Porsche lies out.

"Just connect the dots! Rachel's on Brendon's side, Brendon's in an alliance with Dick, Dick's in an alliance with Jeff and Jordan, and Jeff and Jordan are in an alliance with more than one person!" Cassi concludes.

"Woo! Pretty, AND smart! You go girl!" Lawon compliments, and gives her a high-five.

"Now that that's sorted out, we know the two major alliances in this game."

"Three, actually." Keith admits.

"Man Keith, why have you been holding back all this information? There's ANOTHER alliance?"

"Well, we have; Dick, Brendon Rachel, Jeff and Jordan on one side..."

"The veterans." I label.

He nods. "Dani, Kalia, and Dominic on the other side..."

"...we'll come up with a cool name for them later. Like, the puppet witch, people."

...no Lawon. Just no.

"And the third?" Cassi asks impatiently.

"The newbie's." Keith smiles. "With Mel, Porsche, Lawon, me, and Cassi."

Ohhh!

"I can get with that!" Lawon says first.

"If you guys are in, so am I." Cassi nods.

Porsche looks at me.

"Whatta you say Mel? Wanna be the ring-leader of a group called 'the newbie's'?"

I look around. The decision seemed rushed, but there were already two alliances formed. We could let them pick us off, one by one, or I can put my false trust into this group.

"...Looks like the newbie's are gonna take over the veteran's house!" I smile.

"Ye-ah! That's what I'm talking about!" Lawon cheers.

And so I've aligned with my group of five. Who knows what Shelly and Adam are gonna do. Probably just be floaters until they get picked off. We'll keep them for now... right now our target is Daniele Donato. Eval can wait... Because without their puppet-master Dani, Dominic and Kalia are useless! It's like killing three very annoying birds with 8 votes! And once we break up that alliance, it'll be the five newbie's against the five vets. All we have to do is have one of the five newbie's win the veto. That's like... five to four to three. Us five for nominations to stay the same, four (Brenchel and JJ) to take Eval off, and Dani's crew of three to take her off. That leaves three wild-cards, including Dick. Who knows what he's gonna do if he's asking Brendon to use the veto on him? 5+4+3+3 = 15... at least I have something right! But how?

Even though we can't ALL play in the veto, the odds are in our favor! Three people will be picked, and our group has a better shot then Dani's. Four to two.

And you know what? If Brendon or one of the vets take off Eval, who cares? I'll just throw a pawn on the block and Daniele's fate is sealed! Poof!

Eight to two. Eight people can be picked and I would be more ten happy. And, I mean, common. What's the odds that Kalia and Dominic are picked, along with Shelly or Adam? Let's be serious... I have to have at least ONE person helping me!

By now all were filtered out in staggered times. We actually weren't up there all that long, for everything we covered. Cassi stayed behind, though. We discussed the odds of the Veto competition, which resulted in the large paragraph above.

"So basically we have it covered, in most likely hood." Cassi confirms.

"Let's put it this way; it's highly unlikely that the odds won't be in our favor. ...if you can follow that." I explain.

"Yeah, I gotchu." She nods.

"Good! Cause I don't really know what I just said!" I laugh.

"...Mel you can't let Dani suck you in." Cassi says, completely changing the subject.

"What? No! Are you kidding? I know her game, I'm not gonna-"

"That's exactly what Kalia said." She sighs with disappointment. "She told me she had a crush on Dani, and she TOLD me it wasn't gonna effect her game play, but Daniele was just too clever. Too tempting." Cassi explains.

"Cassi, I understand, really." I urge. "I'm not gonna fall under her 'white witch powers' as Lawon would say. ...I'm strait."

I could feel the questioning through her stare. She tilted her head down and looked up at me, as if to convey disbelief.

"...really." I state, and try to mimic her stare.

"... I think you're cute."

What?

"W-what?"

"SEE!" She scolds. "I told you that yesterday and you lit up like a Christmas tree!"

"Do gay people even have Christmas?" I wander off the topic.

"Melanie! If you show ANY signs like that in front of Dani she will swoop in and take advantage. Trust me! She will manipulate you, and pretend to be your friend, and tease you and make you do her dirty work and-" Cassi lists.

"Just stop!" I squint with my hands over my ears. "Okay, okay. You caught me off guard." I admit. "But that doesn't mean I'm gay. ...or bi or lesbian of whatever." I defend.

She looks at me with that same pressuring glare.

"...really." I sigh.

"Mel if you let Dani catch you off guard like that with me or her or any female in the house, she'll be after you like a shark!" She explains with concern. "Just... I don't care what you are; just don't show any signs of even being bicurious, okay?"

"But I'm not!"

"Melanie!" She grunts.

"Okay okay!" I give. "I promise, I promise! Just... stop with the creepy glare."

She accepts my response, even if she was still unsure. Who can blame her though? Kalia betrayed us both, so it's hard to trust anyone.

"...so if you're so strict on me keeping a, per-se 'strait' reputation, I assume we don't have to mention my... off-guard moments to anyone else?" I confirm awkwardly.

"As long as you don't betray the newbie's, then yes. I'll keep your secret." She compromises.

"...thanks."

What? Don't look at me like that! I just got Cassi to stop, and I don't need you starting with that eye glare. I'm strait!

...really.

Cassi left after this and I lay in my room to think about veto. Best case scenario, worst case scenario, the odds of a fair balance... which were not good with the advantage going to the newbie's.

"Dani will leave for sure." I assure myself. "And it'll be one hundred less things for me to worry about, whereas if Eval left, it would probably only reduce ninety nine." I exaggerate, laugh to myself, and shut my eyes.

It's been two hours since breakfast. The first half hour was figuring out where the power lies within the house, and maybe another 15 minutes forming our alliance and deciding who we really want gone, and all the stuff in-between. Another half hour goes towards my conversation with Cassi about veto and my possible weaknesses. If I could add that all up, I could give you a number of how long I've been sitting and listening to music. ...but I'm so sick of numbers at this point I think I'm going to throw up math-equations.

On the telescreen, I see Daniele and her rat-pack have left the kitchen. I guess it's safe to go down and grab a drink. Maybe play an improv game? I need some actual social time after all the game talk.

That's the second part of my strategy; part one being LOSE the first HoH competition. That didn't work, but it turns out things worked out anyway.

The second part is to equally divide my social time and my game time. If I make friends and stay in the loop, then when it comes to game talk, I'll be included. Plus... it'll help the insanity go down if I spend time relaxing and talking with people as friends.

The very third part of my plan is to make a bold move. If I survive it, then people will respect me for it and remember it when it comes time for votes! No one's gonna remember the first week, though. And it's not even that big a deal anymore now that I KNOW other people have my back. We'll wait and see what opportunities arise in the future.

I pour myself a glass of chocolate milk and sit at the high-tops. Shelly sat next to me, but didn't say anything relevant, other than she was waiting for her anchovies to cook.

There are two things in this world that I refuse to eat, and they would be fish and eggs. ...and fish eggs. ...okay three things! But I think fish eggs would fall under one of those categories, if not both. Seafood or animal products?

I ponder a bit longer on the subject, until she gets up to check on her fried fish bits. I move to the animal-print room at that point.

Lawon's napping... Well since Dick's in the death-metal room sleeping and Kalia's in the pink room reading, then that leaves me with the gym-room, or outside.

...Daniele and Dominic are outside, Rachel's in the gym-room. Which is more risky? Possible humiliation from Rachel, or possible confrontation with the rats?

"Heeey, Rachel!" I greet.

She looks at me with a 'go away' expression.

There's only one cure for a glare like this...

"So I was hoping we could get everyone together and play poker?" I inform her, and her mood changes entirely.

"Oh yeah! I'll go see who's gonna play.

We gather Lawon, Adam, Porsche, Brendon, and Jeff. Plus me and Rachel makes six of us! ...ew numbers! Ew! They're all over the cards! Eeeeew!

"Mel? You pass or play?" Rachel asks, and it snaps me out of my phase.

"Uh, Play!" I answer. She deals me two cards.

...the numbers. I am touching the numbers! I, I just can't handle this.

"Fold." I call when it gets around to me. I couldn't quite read the numbers on the cards anymore, and was feeling dizzy, so no point in calling or raising when I can't compute this anyway.

The fourth day rolls around that we've been in this house, and it's almost time for the Veto comp. Everyone sat on the couch as I read the rules for the competition on the card given to me in the diary room.

"Big brother will let us know when the competition is to begin." I recite, and then hold the card down. We disperse and get into the game mood.

The vets were in the Death-Metal room, discussing scenarios and odds. They had no idea we were actually on their side for this one, or that there even is a 'we'! They're odds were so off!

Cassi suggest the five of us quiz each other, but Keith seems sure that they won't do another trivia competition.

"Well I've seen the show, and they've never done two in a row like that." Keith reasons. "They spread the high-points out, that way the power has less chance of ending up in the same spot.

Makes sense.

"We should just rest up and make sure we're in the best condition possible." He suggests.

I agree. We all seem to follow his logic, and break our chat circle when Jordan enters the room. By the time she came in, we all looked pretty natural.

Whatta you all think the competition's gonna be?" She asks, asking Cassi and I.

"Psh, like I know." Cassi laughs. "You're the one with all the experience!"

"Well I don't know either. Jeff thins it's gonna be an endurance, but it's really really hard to tell at the beginning." She says.

I kept thinking... Jordan? Why? Jeff specifically asked you not to help us, which includes giving advice! Cassi kept her mouth shut, so why don't you go back and be loyal to your group, and stop getting me and yourself in trouble with Jeff!

"Well best of luck to you all!" She says.

"You too." Cassi replies.

"COMMON KALIA YOU'VE GOT THIS!" Dani shouts from the side. Oh, I hope she's not serious...

Today's veto was a mix between speed and accuracy, and some endurance. We had to 'milk' these stupid plastic goats, and carry the cup with the gripy handle in your mouth, and the cup is full of spoiled goat milk, and you're expected to carry it across a fucking beam to the other side and pour it in this stupid slot, which you could never get all the milk in without slipping and falling or moving your neck in some twisted backwards double-jointed position, which apparently none of us had that ability.

Dani was the very first won out! Common! Like... at least fight for your own safety! I think she feels pretty secure, and also considered that if Kalia or Dominic won, they'd be safe for the week too.

That's right. Kalia and Dominic. Both, the last two people I didn't want to play in the veto- no. The ONLY two people I didn't want to play, and here they are. The third person selected to play was Rachel, which I would have been happy with if she didn't suck at this particular competition!

But Dominic fell off shortly after Rachel, who fell five minutes after Dani.

It's fair, in an unfair way. Me for nominations stay the same, Kalia for Dani comes off the block, and Dick for... who knows what he's gonna do! We suspect he'll either take himself or Dani off, but with his unpredictable nature, he may just leave the nominations as they are! ...yeah but that would just be too perfect.

"Right now it's a three-way tie between Melanie, Dick, and Kalia. Kalia, being only slightly ahead." Shelly announces off the card.

Picking the host is so hard! Because you don't wanna pick your favorite person, in chance of reveling your alliance, and you don't wanna pick your enemies, and I was contemplating picking Jordan cause Jordan's just a universal adorableness, but then Jeff might get mad at her again for being my friend so that left me with our two floatables, Shelly and Adam.

I guess floaters are good for something after all!

"Common Kalia! You got this. You got this!" Dani chanted. Her cards were laid out face up and highlighted in bright yellow marker... she had absolutely nothing to hide and made sure everyone knew. The cheers for Kalia were more like bragging about her alliance. Her achievement to whore herself out for power, in a sense. I can't stand it! It's almost as this goat milk.

"Ahh!"

We hear, and to my right I see Kalia, face down on the grass.

YES!

"Kalia! You have been illuminated from the competition! Please take a seat on the bench." Shelly announces.

That was my biggest concern. Now all I have to do is beat Eval. I've beat a veteran once... I can do this...

I wish I could see Dani's face right now. Porsche told me afterwards that when Kalia fell, Dani became furious with her! She treated her like she treated her father for the past three years... silence and zero acknowledgement.

I just need to focus, and maybe if I don't pay attention to anything else, I can-

"DING DING DING DING DING!" A buzzer ran through the yard.

Did I win?

"Congratulations, Dick!"

Why is Shelly calling me a dick? ...oh wait...

"You have won the Golden Power of Veto!" Shelly congratulates, and puts the large object around his neck.

Fuck. This will no doubt result in hours of gloating and taunting, and a continuation to the bad-mouthing. Just what I need.

"What's in store for the houseguests now that Dick holds the-"

Julie's voice echoes before she remembers to lift her finger from the button.

"Hmhmhm, stay tuned to find out!" He snarls. This is not the happy ending I envisioned!

So, hopefully, as we all pile into the living room, Dick decides he's going to take himself off the block, and I put up a pawn (which we all discussed earlier today), and... the world will continue to be a happy, Dani-less place!

But first, in the words of Julie Chen, Dick has the opportunity to give his rival the chance to plead her case.

In earlier seasons you were expected to ask, even if you were on the block. I think in time they made it an option weather to ask if they'll speak, because the pattern became so predictable!

Person on block: (stands) Well, uh, you won the veto, and, uh, you're gonna take yourself off! You would be crazy not to! But... uh... yeah that's it. (Sits)

I've also seen it where someone has won the veto, and were not on the block nor HoH, and didn't ask if they wanted to speak. Maybe they cut out that part, but still, this is very important. Why?

If Dick is not required to ask Daniele to plead her case, will he do it anyway? Just to force her to talk to him? And the question is... does Dani even have to give a 'speech'? ...this is gonna be interesting!

"I, as the holder of the Golden Power of Veto, now have the power to change Melanie's nominations." He recites, not even looking at the teleprompter but repeating it word for word.

...nominations! Hehehe! Nom nom nom! ...okay you know what? That goat-milk is getting to my head... this is crazy! FOCUS TIME!

"Before I make my decision, I would like to give each nomine the chance to plead his or her case." He smiles devilishly.

"Daniele, you may start." Eval prompts.

Dani doesn't look up, or sway her sightline by a centimeter. After a pause that seemed to last for hours...

"Go to hell."

A couple of us moved our heads back, while the others popped their eyes out. Sassy!

"I have chosen..."

He has to look at the teleprompter for this, because it tells him how long he needs to wait.

"To, use the power of veto."

My heart was pounding a hundred miles a second! It's absolutely killing me! Tearing me to shreds! ...OH JUST SAY IT ALREADY!

"...on my daughter Daniele."

Few... I can finally-

WHAT?

"Melanie, since I have now changed the nominations, it is your duty as head of household to choose a replacement nominee."

We just assumed, odds and all, that Dani wasn't coming off the block. We never discussed this scenario! Oh... Lawon was right! We were forgetting something!

I look at Jordan... this is the best thing for both alliances... no matter how hard it's gonna be.

"...Jordan. Please take a seat next to Dick on the chopping block."

She does so, and the vets and floaters look shocked.

I return to my spot next to Cassi and avoid tears. Dick takes the attention now.

"This veto meeting is adjourned." He concurs, placing the PoV necklace in its box.

...Just so you know. When we all stand up from meetings like this, we don't ACTUALLY stand up in slow motion. Just Lawon, cause he's crazy like that.

It usually gets a laugh or two, but in such tense situations like this... not so much.

Immediately I invite Jordan up to my room. She and Jeff oblige, and we head upstairs.

As far as the vets were concerned, this is what I wanted to happen all along! My initial plan was to put Dani up with the chance that if Dick won PoV, he would take his daughter off over his own safety. If it were still day two, things would be just swell! So I have to pretend it's still day two, and bring that 'method acting' ability out.

We enter the room and wait for the door to shut by itself.

I speak before they have the chance.

"You are not my target! Neither of you." I finish.

"Whoa! Chill out." He commands, and puts is hands in a falling motion, like telling a dog to heel.

"We know you're not targeting us, and I'm fine going up as a pawn, but-"

"But next time you need to give us a warning in advance!" Jeff interrupts Jordan mid-sentence.

"Right, uh... I know that sorta came out of the blue, but really I just want Dick gone. He's my target, like... you guys are safe with me, okay? I promise." I finish. "We cool?"

"Yeah." Jordan smiles. It was a relief to know she didn't totally hate me.

They start to exit. "Advance warning in the future, okay?" Jeff confirms. I give him the thumbs up.

"Well if you can't get Daniele out, at least we should get rid of her biggest ally!" I defend against Lawon's heated issue.

"All I'm saying is, why not put up one of her people? THEY ARE the Vets targets! No one would blame you!" He comes back.

"Guys..." Porsche complains.

"And what then?" I counter. "They just think it's a coincidence I happen to put up the person they want and just, go along with it?"

"ARE YOU FORGETTING, THAT KALIA, HAS BETRAYED YOU! They would understand! And be more than happy to vote her out."

"Right, because all 'floaters', meaning you five PLUS Shelly and Adam, go against the HoH and vote out Kalia, when right now they all believe I still want Dick out?" I reply, even more enraged.

"All I'm saying is that-"

"You GUYS!" Porsche repeats in a louder tone.

"WHAT?" We respond at the same time.

"There's no point in arguing about the secrecy of our alliance if everyone on the first floor can HEAR you!"

...oh.

Me and Lawon shoot each other a glare. This isn't over.

"I think what's done is done, and there's no point in arguing something we can't go back and change." Keith agrees.

What matters is that the target on my back is decreasing with Daniele's safety in the house. I took the time to really think things through, and, in my own best interests, maybe it's best if Dani stay for a little. Just until this first week is forgotten.

"I'm gonna go to bed before people start to wonder where we all went to at three in the morning." Cassi announces

"Just tell them you were at Chili's! " Keith suggests. "With their 7 irresistible sides, juicy baby-back ribs, and hot-served chili dogs, where else would you be?"

"...really Keith?" I challenge. "Does it LOOK like the girl eats Chili's? She weighs two pounds!"

"...and, you know, just in case you forgot, we're IN the big brother house." Cassi reminds.

"Something that SOME PEOPLE..." Lawon glances at me. "Seem to forget?"

"Oh you-"

"Okay, okay!" Porsche whispers. "Everyone to bed, now!"

"...yes mama." I pout, and the crew leaves the room.

I guess after this we just wait for the eviction, and... see which group the power falls to. But for now... sleep.

After a few seconds of discussion over lunch, Lawon decided there's no point in arguing over something that's already been done.

"But we should start thinking about situations like this before they happen next time." He notes.

"Definitely." I agree.

Adam walks in the kitchen, where we were discussing, and our short conversation comes to an end.

"Melanie, can I talk to you for a sec?" He interrupts.

Lawon steps out of the room, but I can still see him peaking over the corner.

"Sorry to take up your time, I just wanted to see, you know, who everyone's voting out..." He begins. "I assume the plan is to take Eval out?"

"Yeah." I nod.

He shakes my hand. "Alright! Just making sure things haven't changed! Thanks for the talk!" And leaves.

Lawon enters from the different direction, after Adam's out of sight. "Whatta you think all that was about?"

I shrug. "He probably just wants to make sure he's on the majority side of the votes. It's best we don't think anything of it."

"...I guess... but I don't know about him. What if he-"

"Best," I remind. "Not to think about it."

Cassi called me up to the dungeon. We were sitting up there now.

"So what's this about?" I ask, wanting to get right to the point.

"News flash on team vets!" She begins in a hurried tone. "Daniele's not their number-one target!"

"Cassi, I already knew this. Did you miss the part where Dick took Daniele off the-"

"They all want YOU gone."

...huh?

"Well, okay, but..." I begin, uneasy. "I know that they don't exactly LIKE me, but... you're not suggesting I'm their number-one target... right?"

...

"Cassi, I'm like, second or third on their list!"

"Not according to miss blabber-mouth Rachel." She sighs. "They're talking about how you're 'building an army', and they wanted to make sure I wasn't going to side with you."

"...oh no..."

"Mel..."

Okay... let's think...

"Obviously they're a little far behind. Since, you know, they don't KNOW that we all decided on this together?"

"Melanie, aren't you concerned?" She asks.

Of course I'm concerned! "I'm concerned that someone from our group has a loud mouth, and told someone something that lead them to believe I've been pulling together an alliance."

"Look, fact of matter is, there's a good chance you'll be going up next week." She sighs. "We'll call Porsche up later and discuss this, but right now don't mention anything to the boys, okay?"

If we want to resolve anything we're going to have to include them at some point...

Still, if what Cassi's told me is true, then we really need to watch our backs about meetings like this. The vets think Cassi is not aligned with anyone yet; it needs to stay like this. She hurries back down before Brendon or Rachel notice she'd ran up here to begin with. Thank god.

Have you heard that song 'Shark in the Water'? The song describes how this female who's feeling a little lonely, so she makes up lies and pretends she's scared to get close to a certain guy.

But the first time you hear a song, its different then the twentieth.

I heard it on a commercial. It was a music video type thing, and there were a group of teens at a carnival. My conception of this song the very first time I heard it was... These teens were all friends, but they had the thought that 'maybe there's a shark in the water'. The water representing the group itself, and the shark like a weasel, who's really only there to eat up all the other fishies.

Does that make sense? It slightly reminds me of the possibility that one of our crew could be unreliable. It happened with Kalia, and I knew coming in to the agreement was a risky move, but it was the only way to make sure I had SOME people behind me.

And now the vets think I'm going against them. Or at least, that's what Brendon and Rachel believe. And they'll try to make Jordan believe she's another 'target' of mine and I'll have the entire house against me and the world will blow up! ...or maybe Jordan will come to me before just taking their word for it? She seems like a sensible girl.

In the mean time... is it possible for me to convince the vets that I want Dani out? That's she's MY number-one target? It might earn some trust points. But how would I go about this...

Later the same day big brother informed us that we were not to go outside. After three and a half hours of waiting for the black screen to be lifted...

"Guys! The door's gonna open!" Dominic calls from the kitchen.

We listen to it unlatch, and come rushing in from all over the house.

What's the big surprise that we'd been waiting forever for...?

...

...

"Its corn hole?" Jordan states in disgust we enter the yard.

"Almost four hours of being locked in the house for this rickety piece of cardboard?" Adam notes, also feeling a tinge of disappointment.

I was pretty happy. I used to play corn hole all the time! I didn't know what it was called until today, but I have pretty good hand-eye coordination.

For those of you who have played the 'game where you throw the sand-bag in the circle', that's corn hole. Now you know!

We all grabbed some bean-bags, ignoring the coloration, and threw three each to see how many points we could get. Dani had to explain the rules to everyone on how points work, and everyone who didn't already know how to play caught on pretty fast.

After some warm up rounds a few people lost interest, while a lot of us were ready to do an actual competition we drew names out of competition chip bag to see who would go against whom.

"Dominic!" Kalia smiles when she pulls the chip.

"Uhh, Shelly!" I read off the chip I'd pulled.

"Dani." Adam reads off when the bag was passed to him.

"Wait, that just leaves me!" Porsche realizes when there's an odd number of people.

"I'll play too guys." Jeff announces, re-entering the yard.

Dominic beat Kalia; Shelly beat me... by luck. And Dani beat Adam, and Jeff beat Porsche!

Soon it's down to the final two... Jeff against Dani. As much as I hate to admit it, Dani was pretty amazing at this game.

"And it's tied! Nine to Nine!" Rachel calls. Since the competition got good, everyone else pretty much came back out.

It's Jeff's throw... we all wait for his move...

"Ohhh!" the crowd sighs when he misses the board completely.

Dani steps up with her last pink bean-bag.

1, 2, 3, BANG! Right in the center! A perfect game!

"Yaaaaay!" We all clap respectfully. She smiles at her victory, and then resets the board.

Those who didn't play the first round now played. Porsche drew a layout of competitors, and since there was an odd number...

"I can go again, if you guys need me to." Jeff offers.

"I say winner has to face the champion!" Adam suggests. We all agree, and Dani looks a little flattered.

"Oh, no. No. I'm not THAT good..." She replies bashfully.

Of course when it came down to Dick and Dani, the final two, Dani easily defeat her father.

For the first time in five days, the house felt united. We laughed and cheered, and took turns playing and talked about our out-of-house lives. It was like orientation all over again!

Lots of these things come out of these people when they're drinking... Kalia confesses to being bisexual, which leads to Dominic telling us he doesn't have a girlfriend! Cassi admit she wasn't really a waitress at hooters, but a professional model. I so called it! No wonder she had all that improv experience. Even Shelly came clean on her actual age, which no one questioned to begin with, but at least she was trying to be part of the conversation.

"What about you Mel?" Dominic asks.

"Me? No I'm really eighteen!" I laugh.

"No, I mean, what's your secret?" He corrects.

My secret?

"Yeah, lighten up Melanie! It's sharing day!" Shelly blubbers. ...can she come up with fake holidays like that?

"Well that is my secret!" I say, avoiding saying something that might hinder my game.

"You being eighteen aren't a secret!" She reasons. ...damn.

"Common." Dominic pressures. "Tell us something, that, none of us would ever think unless you told us about yourself."

"I bet she's like some sort of super star? Huh?" Adam guesses. "She's some famous person in the teenager world! What's that... Helena Gomez person?"

"SELENA Gomez." I correct. "Her name is Selena Gomez, it's not that hard to pronounce! Jeez..."

"HEY EVERYONE! MELANIE'S HELENA GOMAZ!" Adam shouts.

No one really paid attention. They were all drunk off their asses. Big brother really needs to stop stocking the fridge with alcohol...

"Adam, I'm not Selena Gomez." I sigh. "I don't really have a secret, but if I think of one I'll be sure to tell you, alright?" With that, I get up and head inside.

"You know just cause you're 18 doesn't mean you can't, like, TALK to people who are drinking." Jeff explains.

"I know..." I sigh. "But I just feel really awkward around... drunk people."

"You know, Dani said the same thing a couple days ago." He recalls.

Where IS Dani?

Come to think of it, she came in after winning the corn hole game and I haven't seen her since.

"Well I'm going back out there. Why don't you come with instead of hiding away in your dungeon?" He suggests, and then waits at the door.

"That's okay. Thanks."

He shrugs and leaves, and I head up to the HoH room.

"There's gotta be something!" I hear from outside my door. "Some sort, of secret..."

"..."

I turn the lock and open there door, and there was Dani, froze like a deer in headlights.

"Dani?" I accuse. "What are you doing in here? This is my HoH room!"

"Yeah, for like, two more days!" She glares, and then continues to knock on the walls. "But then it's mine. So go back outside and play your stupid corn hole game, and do whatever it is you do, while I find the secret switch that opens the secret door."

Feisty!

"Or, you can get out of my room, and I WON'T tell Kalia and Dominic where you were." I threaten.

"They were looking for me...?" She asks, almost annoyed-like. "God damn it!"

She then storms downstairs angrily and starts searching for her teammates. Did I lie to her? Yes. But what's she gonna tell them. 'Oh, Melanie told me you were looking for me while we were in her HoH room'. Riiiight.

The next few days went by very slow. Eval Dick knew he was going home, but he felt proud he'd saved his daughter. He figured he'd just enjoy the last few days in the house and have fun! Turns out when he's not playing the game, he's not as intimidating. As a matter of fact he's really easy to talk to!

Then eviction day came...

"Before the voting begins, each nominee will have a chance to plead their case and Jordan, you're up first." Julie announces from the television. Jordan stands and starts her speech, only half caring with the subtext of 'whatever, I'm safe bitches!' ...'cept Jordan would never say that.

"Alright. Well, it's been great getting to know y'all this week. Aaaand, if you keep me that's great!"

"Thank you Jordan." Julie replies after waiting a moment.

We expected Dick's speech to be something similar. A three second sentence pretending like he doesn't want to go, but really is...

Oh, no.

Since the veto he's been acting passive and chill, but it's apparent this was all an act for a greater purpose...

"Alright! How much time I got? Wait, I don't give a shit."

We all snap out of our routine faces and look at him almost confused.

"There are obviously alliances that have already formed. We know two of them, they have nothing to hide. They are not your threat."

He was talking so fast, trying to squeeze all this information in! They are not a threat... hmm...

"I'm warning you there is a secret alliance in the house. Those people are Cassi Lawon and Porsche with their ring leader-" He pauses, actually taking a moment to point me out. "Melanie."

All eyes fall on me. It was for a brief second, but enough to make me realize what he's trying to do.

With that he takes his seat, smiling and seeming proud with himself.

He knew all along Dani was my target. He also knew she was the Vet's target as well. In a final effort to preserve his daughter's game, he tried to take the target from her back and put it on mine. He saw that what I was doing was no different than Dani; building an alliance to go after another alliance. The flaw with Dick's plan was, the vets didn't see me and the newbie's as much of a threat as Daniele.

With a vote of 14 to 1, Dick was voted out of the house. No one was going to vote Jordan out, which I knew the moment I decided to put her on the block. I assume Daniele was the one person to keep Dick in the game. She at least owes him her vote. It didn't really help her out too much; it just proves how much she's going against the Veterans.

Dick turned this house upside down and it's only the first week! It'll take some time before we can flip it back to where it was. I'm sure no matter how close we get, things are going to be severely different in this house...