A/N Chapter nine – X-Treme Torture part one. Thank you Dictator Mags and That British Guy for the nice reviews! I appreciate them. Anyway, enjoy!
"Now for the cool swag!" Chris had just finished explaining the extreme challenge to the campers, and they were now waiting for him to get to the good part. They had been promised a reward this challenge, and they were all eager to find out what it was. "Whoever scores the most challenges gets bragging rights for the night, saves their butts from elimination, and wins a tripped-out, multi-massage, mobile shower!"
Chris motioned over to said shower, and the campers took in its beauty. Courtney clutched Bridgette's right shoulder with both of her hands and whispered, "shower, shower," repeatedly while Bridgette wrapped her arm around her, "I know, baby, I know." Lindsay grabbed the hands of the people beside her, Heather and Leshawna, "it's so pretty, guys, it's beautiful."
Others, however, were less enthused. Gwen rolled her eyes at the other girls' antics, and Geoff sent a look that could only be described as absolutely terrified to DJ and Duncan.
"Can it be?" Heather gasped, her eyes sparkling.
Chris flashed his million-watt smile, "oh, it be!"
"Wow, a shower," Gwen rolled her eyes again, "this is definitely worth whatever harm this challenge is sure to cause us."
"Shut it, weird goth girl," Heather marched over to Gwen and poked a finger onto her chest, "we are winning this shower. Just because you don't think hygiene is necessary doesn't mean the rest of us don't."
Gwen swatted Heather's finger away, "sorry I don't adhere to society's unrealistic beauty expectations. I stay clean. I just don't glorify it like all of you do. It's pathetic."
Heather's eyes narrowed, "It's not pathetic, it's cathartic. It's pampering. You should try it sometimes. Maybe then you wouldn't be so glum all the time. Tell me, Gwennie, do you enjoy being unlikable?"
"All that so-called pampering doesn't seem to do you any good," Gwen grumbled, "considering you're the least likable one here."
During this exchange, Chris boarded the plane and started it back up again, causing all conversation to stop. "Okay, gang, chow for brekkie and report back in twenty minutes for the X-TREME SPORTS CHALLENGE!" Then, he took off, leaving the campers to breathe in the cloud of dirt the airplane left behind.
The campers entered the dining hall, grabbed their breakfasts, and sat down at their tables. The Killer Bass sat in their usual formation and discussed their strategy for this challenge.
"Okay, so only three of us are really in this, four if you count the Sea Doo driver," Courtney said, "DJ, Geoff, and Harold. It's up to you. Admittedly I don't like that. At all. It's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I'd feel a lot better if I had any control at all. It's sky diving, moose riding, and water-skiing, do you think you can do it?"
From his spot next to her, DJ grimaced, "I don't know. I've never sky dived before, and I'm terrified. I'm not too excited about having to do it. Y'all will catch me?"
Courtney nodded, "yes. I promise we will get that couch under you. We won't let you get hurt. And you can do it, DJ. I believe in you probably the most." She looked across the table at Geoff, "and you, Geoff?"
"Oh, I've got this!" Geoff exclaimed, "it's going to be insane! Don't worry, Court, this is the kind of thing I live for!"
"Yes, I assumed so," Courtney nodded her approval, "very good." She turned to Harold, who was sitting next to Geoff, "and, Harold? Waterskiing?"
Harold rolled his eyes. When was his team going to get that they could trust him in challenges? He had never let them down majorly before. "Yes, Courtney. I can waterski, and I can definitely beat Lindsay at it. Gosh, can you just trust someone who isn't you for once in your life?"
Courtney held her hands up in surrender, "I never said I didn't trust you, Harold. I was just making sure everyone knew what they were doing." She flashed him a smile before turning to address Duncan and Bridgette, "all that's left is deciding who drives the Sea Doo. One of you two should do it considering everyone else has already been assigned something, and, just, it shouldn't be me. Not if want to avoid losing, anyway. So, who wants it?"
Bridgette smiled to herself before sticking her hand up. This was right up her alley. Courtney, however, wasn't looking at her. No, she was looking at the boy next to her. Bridgette sighed as Courtney asked, "Duncan?"
"Yeah, babe, I've got it," Duncan answered, draping an arm around Courtney's shoulders.
Bridgette frowned, and DJ and Geoff laughed. They saw what just happened, Courtney completely disregarding her existence. She opened her mouth to respectfully disagree, but the CIT spoke before she could.
"Great, so it's all official," Courtney turned to address all her teammates, "Duncan will be driving the Sea Doo, and Bridgette and I will just be, I don't know, moral support."
"Actually, Courtney," Bridgette interjected, "I'd like to drive the Sea Doo."
Courtney furrowed her brows before adopting an apologetic expression, "oh my God, Bridgette, I'm sorry! I didn't even give you a chance to say you wanted to do it. I just assumed Duncan would be best for this! You think you're the better choice?"
Bridgette nodded causing Duncan to scoff, "yeah right, Malibu. This is all me."
"Be nice," Courtney hissed, turning towards Duncan, "she might actually be the better choice. Let her talk." She straightened herself up and turned back to Bridgette, "Sorry about that, I'm sure you'll be a fine driver."
Not offended by Duncan's comment, Bridgette just giggled and waved her hand, "oh, don't worry about it, it's fine. I get it, he wants to do it. I just would be better, I think."
"How so?" Duncan asked, raising his brow, "because I have my motorcycle learner's permit and a shitload of experience on ATVs, which are just land Sea Doos. I know how to drive things like this, Malibu."
Bridgette giggled again, "you don't think someone called 'Malibu' doesn't know how to drive a Sea Doo? Duncan, I'm an open water lifeguard. Sometimes open water lifeguards have to drive a Sea Doo. Have you actually ever driven one before? Because I have."
Duncan didn't have a response to that. Bridgette was right, he had never driven a Sea Doo before, and she had. No doubt, that would make her the better choice in Courtney's eyes, and it was mostly up to her. He, and everyone else, had long ago stopped questioning her decisions unless they had proof something was better. For example, Bridgette wanting to drive the Sea Doo instead.
Sure enough, Courtney nodded, "okay, yes, that is better. You'll drive the Sea Doo, and Duncan and I will be the moral support!" She smiled at her teammates, "I'm feeling really good about this challenge, guys. We will win this. We have to. It's probably the most important challenge we've had so far."
"Most important challenge we've…" Duncan repeated, trying to figure out what she meant by that. Judging by the confused looks on their teammates faces they didn't know either. This challenge wasn't different than any of the others. Except for one thing, "because of the shower. It's the most important because of the shower reward."
"Yes, because the shower reward," Courtney confirmed, a bit disbelievingly. It certainly wasn't because they were down in numbers or facing a potential difficult vote off. "It's imperative that we win. I just really need this, okay."
Duncan chuckled and rubbed her upper arm, "yeah, you do. You're getting a little ripe."
"Excuse me, what?" Courtney's mouth hung slightly open, and she gave him her best glare, "That wasn't what I meant at all, and you know it! And it's not like you smell –" she shook her head, deciding it wasn't worth it, and turned to Bridgette, "aren't you excited about the possibility of winning that shower, Bridge? It looks really nice."
"It does look really nice, Court," Bridgette agreed, giving her friend a sympathetic smile, "and I am really excited about the possibility. Normally I wouldn't care that much, but it's been so long since I've had a good cleaning."
Courtney nodded, "tell me about it! I feel like I haven't been satisfyingly clean since I got here six weeks ago. The dirt is part of me now, and that's not okay."
Not everyone got the importance of the shower. Geoff looked between Bridgette and Courtney with a blank look on his face, not understanding why this shower meant so much to them. It's not like they didn't have perfectly good showers in the communal baths. He sent DJ a questioning look, and he just shrugged. "What's the big deal, dudettes? 'S just a shower?"
"Just a shower?!" Courtney jaw had dropped completely, "Geoff! It's so much more than just a shower! I don't know what tricked out means, really, but I assume it means that there will be actual water pressure! That there will be actual temperature control! Not to mention, the stalls won't be next to the disgusting toilets! We won't have to wear shower shoes. It's, we need to win it. I won't be able to handle it if we don't."
Geoff blinked as he processed her answer before turning to Bridgette. She just laughed and patted his knee, "don't worry about it. It's just something nice for us to look forward to."
"Ooookay," Geoff said, drawing out the word, "I just don't get why you're so into it. You're usually not into all that girly shit, and that's cool."
Bridgette turned to face him carefully, "all what girly shit, Geoff? Are you talking about the shower?" Geoff nodded and opened his mouth to continue. Bridgette just shook her head, she didn't want him to make this worse for himself, "I wouldn't call that girly shit. I'd call it good hygiene practices and taking care of yourself. I give my body the love it deserves, and a nice shower is part of that sometimes."
Geoff frowned. Was he the only one who didn't get the appeal of a shower? Because, while only Courtney and Bridgette had been vocal about it, no one else seemed confused. "Okay, Dunc, what about you? You don't care about this, right?"
"You're kidding, right?" Duncan asked, looking at Courtney before turning back to Geoff, "I've found that there are, uh, certain benefits that come with keeping myself fresh. A shower wouldn't be the worst thing for me right now."
"Really, dude, you too?" Geoff grumbled before, just like he always seemed to do, putting his foot in his mouth. "It's not like you still have to impress her. She's already your girlfriend."
"Oh, Geoff, no," Bridgette sighed, "why did you just say that? That's not how it works."
While Bridgette's reaction to Geoff's screw up was relatively subdued, Duncan and Courtney's joint reaction was completely flustered. Courtney looked at him with wide eyes before looking at Geoff before looking down at her lap. Duncan's arm slid off her shoulder and feel limply at his side. He kept looking between her and his plate.
"What, no. I'm not –" "– she, well –" "– we aren't –" "– we're just," they stammered, not actually saying anything. This went on for about a minute. Neither wanted to outright say Courtney wasn't Duncan's girlfriend, but they also didn't want to say she was. They were still in that middle ground. Finally, Courtney took a deep breath and gave him one last look before standing up, "we haven't talked about that yet. I'm going to go brush my teeth." Then, she left.
"Hey, man, thanks for that. I really appreciate it." Duncan ran a hand through his mohawk. His sarcasm wasn't hard to pick up on.
Geoff grimaced, "sorry. Didn't know."
"Whatever, man," Duncan stood up, his stool scraping against the dining hall floor, "I'm out, too."
With both Duncan and Courtney gone, it didn't take long for the remaining Killer Bass to also scatter. Harold left first. There was no need for his presence at the table anymore. Then, Bridgette told DJ and Geoff to just go, that she would take care of their trash. This morning hadn't gone well for anyone, and she needed a moment away from her team. Specifically, Geoff. What better way to do that than do something nice for someone else?
Bridgette gathered their trash and walked over to the trashcan. Besides Chef, the only other person in the dining hall was Gwen. The two weren't friends, but they had been friendly the few times they had interacted with each other. Neither had ever given the other a reason not to like them. Bridgette waved and smiled, "hi, Gwen. How are you?"
Gwen returned her smile, "I'm fine. You?"
"I'm good," Bridgette threw away the trash and turned to leave. Then, a small piece of paper flew over to where they were standing. They both looked at it curiously, and Gwen picked it over.
The goth flipped the note over in her hands a few times and saw that there was a heart drawn onto the front. Was this a love letter? She opened it and read the top, For The Girl With The Smoldering Eyes. It was!
"Well, what is it?" Bridgette asked, peering over Gwen's shoulder.
"I think it's just some corny haiku poem," Gwen tried to act casual, but her tone of voice made it clear that she didn't think it was corny at all. Had Trent written it for her?
Bridgette squealed. This was so exciting! "Well? What does it say? Read it!"
"Uhm, sure, okay," Gwen said, trying to hide a smile.
"For The Girl With The Smoldering Eyes:
Beacon of Sunlight
Such Beauty I Cannot Grasp
Behold: A New World
From: An Admirer"
Bridgette squealed again, "woah! Some dude's crushing big time!" She looked down at the ground before looking back at Gwen. She didn't want this to be the case, she wanted it to be for her, but, "it's probably for you."
Gwen's smile broke through, "really? I was going to say it was for you." She wasn't going to say that, but she had to return the favor.
"Maybe," Bridgette smiled, "but Trent is totally crunching on you!" She held out her hand for the note, "I've seen the way he always scams an extra muffin for you."
"Yeah? But Geoff is so into you!" Gwen handed Bridgette the note so that she could inspect over, "he's always doing dumb, little things to get your attention."
Bridgette laughed. That was definitely true. There wasn't a day that went by that Geoff didn't try something. Still, it was most likely for Gwen. Chances were Geoff did not write a haiku. Chances were Geoff didn't even know what a haiku was. However, before she could voice this, Gwen did it for her, "then again, Geoff probably couldn't even pronounce haiku let alone write one."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Bridgette asked. Even though she had just thought it, she didn't like it when Gwen implied it. Her tone was jovial, but they weren't joking anymore.
"Nothing!" Gwen waved her hand, "he's just not exactly the scholarly type."
That assessment was completely true, and Bridgette knew it. That didn't mean she couldn't feel offended on behalf of Geoff, whom Gwen didn't even really know, or hope that he did this nice thing for her.
"Oh, and I suppose Trent is busy boning up on his Nietzsche in his spare time?" Bridgette retorted, causing Gwen to angrily grab the poem out of her hands.
This sparked a friendly argument between the two girls, both wanting the haiku to be for them. Bridgette couldn't believe Gwen didn't think Geoff was smart, and Gwen couldn't believe Bridgette didn't think Trent was authentic. In an effort to prove they were right, they ended up putting a wager on it. The winner would get the loser's dessert for three days, the pride of knowing they were right, and a nice note from the boy they liked.
Meanwhile, Courtney was taking a moment to think about her, Duncan, and what they were doing together. This wasn't the first time someone had referred to her as his girlfriend, but it was the first time someone had done it in front of him. While she usually just shrugged it off and moved on, she couldn't this time. She didn't want to say the wrong thing, and it seemed that he had the same problem.
Courtney sighed as she leaned back on the challenge couch. Did she even want to be his girlfriend? She didn't even hesitate a little when she told herself, "yes, absolutely." She enjoyed Duncan's company more than she had ever enjoyed another person being around, both in their conversations and the physical intimacy they had shared. But it wasn't just up to her. He had a say in it too, and, while she liked to assume he felt the same way, she couldn't just decide for both of them.
Of course, there was always the small possibility that she was just a way for him to pass the time this summer, that she was a fling. Courtney doubted that was the case, but there was a small part of her, the part that she wanted to turn off but couldn't, that screamed at her that it was.
Sitting back up, Courtney saw Duncan approaching her. She placed her hands carefully in her lap as she waited to see what he was going to do. He sat down next to her, not as close as normal but still not far, and gave her a reassuring smile. Then, he swung his legs over the arm of the couch and plopped his head into her lap. She looked down at him and pried her hands out from under his head.
"What are you thinking about, Court?" Duncan asked, peering at her through squinted eyes.
"Oh, you know," Courtney shrugged as she placed a hand on his chest, "just about, well, we'll talk about it later."
Duncan laughed and placed his hand over hers. Even though she didn't outright say it, he knew exactly what Courtney was referring to, and it wasn't a big surprise that that was what filled her mind. He'd done a lot of thinking about it too in the few minutes since he left the dining hall. "Yeah, I know. Want to know what I'm thinking about?"
Courtney nodded. She knew the rules to this game well, it was something they had played all summer, long before she even considered him a friend. "Yes."
Duncan didn't answer right away. Instead, he flipped back into a sitting position and placed his hand on the middle of her thigh. He took a deep breath and looked around to make sure there was no one nearby before saying, "you could be my girlfriend. I'd like that a lot."
"What?" Courtney eyes snapped to his. She hadn't expected him to say that now, and she hadn't expected him to say that so plainly when he did.
"What?" Duncan repeated with a wink. He knew she heard him, and he was almost 100% positive she would agree. He didn't need to say it again.
"Did you just ask me to be your girlfriend?" Courtney whispered, "now? Right before the challenge? Don't we need to talk about this?"
Duncan shrugged, "don't see why we do. It's a fairly simple question. And I haven't asked you yet, I was just saying you could be. If you want me to ask I can, but only if you promise to say yes."
"Okay, then, ask!" Courtney said a little excitedly. She couldn't believe it was this easy! As always, she had gotten too much into her head and was worried about nothing.
Duncan smiled at her, and it was probably the most genuinely happy she'd seen him all summer, "Court, will you be my girlfriend?"
Courtney nodded, "yes, Duncan, of course I'll be your girlfriend! Wait. Does this mean you're my boyfriend?"
"Shit yeah, babe," Duncan squeezed her leg, causing Courtney to loop her arm through his and cover his hand with hers. He had to take a moment to revel in how right this felt. A week ago he was content with "just seeing where it takes us," but he'd grown increasingly eager to put a formal label on what they'd been doing. He wanted to call her his girlfriend and call himself her boyfriend, and he had no problem admitting this to her. "there's nothing I want to be more."
Then, after taking one last look around, Duncan leaned over and kissed her square on the lips. It only lasted a few seconds, but it was enough for both of them. It was getting closer to the start of the challenge, and more people were going to start showing up soon. They just basked in the glow of their upgraded relationship as they waited.
Soon enough, Chris announced it was time for the challenge to start, so the campers wished DJ and Trent good luck before they boarded the plane. The Killer Bass and Screaming Gophers started aimlessly pushing their couches. The plane wasn't high enough for sky diving yet, and there was no way of knowing where they needed it to be until they actually saw their teammate falling from the sky.
After ten minutes of just pushing and chatting, someone finally jumped out of the plane, and they were coming down fast. The gophers quickly identified the jumper as Trent, and he was falling straight to them. Perfect! What wasn't perfect was the fact that he hadn't pulled his parachute yet. Hopefully that wouldn't mess him up too much. Then, before anyone had the chance to realize he was a bit off mark, he hit the ground hard, leaving a Trent-shaped indentation in the sand. That wasn't good.
While Chef took care of Trent, the Killer Bass waited for DJ to jump out of the plane. They hoped he would have better luck than Trent did. From her spot at the middle of the couch, Courtney half listened to Bridgette and Geoff's disaster of a conversation. It had something to do with romance, but she wasn't following. No one seemed to be.
"Think Deej'll do better than pretty boy over there?" Duncan asked from next to her just as Geoff said something about peeing in the snow. Yeah, it was time to stop listening to that conversation.
"He better," Courtney turned her head toward him, "Of course I don't want him to get hurt, but we need to win this challenge. I don't think I can stress that enough. We need this win."
Duncan laughed, "yeah, yeah, the shower, I know. The thing you love mo–" he started, but he was soon cut off by Courtney shushing him. It had suddenly gotten harder to push the couch, and she didn't know why.
Courtney looked to her left and found that both Bridgette and Geoff had stopped pushing. To make matters worse, Geoff had his shorts pulled down slightly, just enough for her to see the tribal sun that was tattooed onto his right butt cheek. She cringed slightly and looked away as quickly as she could. Why was this happening now?
"Geoff, maybe don't do that right now. I don't think anyone wants to see that," Courtney said. She watched Duncan turn his head towards the blonds before he chuckled and let out a, "nice, man!"
Then, they heard it. The screaming, and it sounded a lot like DJ. Courtney picked her head up and saw him drifting through the sky. Thankfully, his parachute was activated. He was a bit away from them, but not too far. They just needed to go now. "Okay, let's go," Courtney ordered. They did and, a minute later, DJ landed on the couch.
Safely on the ground, DJ checked himself for injury, "everything's still here? Nothing's broken? Whew."
Courtney walked around to the front of the couch and gave him her brightest smile before patting him on the shoulder, "told you we wouldn't let you get hurt. You did a really great job."
"Thanks, Court," DJ said, his voice full of relief, "and thanks everyone, for not letting me die. That was so scary. I never want to do anything like that again."
"You're welcome," Courtney laughed, "you know, it was really brave of you to do that, and it was great start of the challenge for us. You should be proud."
DJ looked down at the ground, uncomfortable from the praise, and stood up, "yeah, well, no problem, guys. Anything I can do for the team."
Then, the Killer Bass walked over to where the Screaming Gophers were, per the request of Chef. Once they got there, Chris flew over that area, a little too close to the ground for anyone's comfort, and declared the Killer Bass the winner. He gave them thirty minutes before Geoff and Leshawna had to meet back at the beach for the extreme rodeo moose challenge.
Due to half an hour not being enough time to actually do anything meaningful, most of the campers elected to stay at the beach while they waited. Bridgette decided it was time for a haiku update. While Geoff hadn't offered her much of anything, maybe Trent had. She joined Gwen and the other Screaming Gophers just in time to hear Trent ask about his hair before being wheeled away by Chef. Judging by the goth's general negative demeaner, she guessed it wasn't good news.
Bridgette offered Gwen a sympathetic smile and wrapped her arm around her shoulders before walking her away from her teammates.
"So it wasn't from Trent," Gwen moaned, "all he cares about is his stupid hair. Did you find out anything from Geoff?"
Bridgette laughed and released Gwen, "not about the haiku. I did find out that he has a tattoo on his ass, though. He tried showing me, but I looked away."
Gwen joined in with Bridgette's laughing, "yikes, that's rough! But also really funny. Are you going to try again?"
"Obviously," Bridgette nodded, "I just have to come up with a different way to ask him. I tried being subtle, but he didn't pick up on it. I think the direct approach would be better, I just don't want to be too direct. I'll figure it out."
"I can help you come up with something if you want?" Gwen offered, "then you can ask him before he has to ride the moose."
"Really?" Bridgette asked to which Gwen just nodded, "thanks!"
While the pair began devising their plan, other campers formed groups or went off to do their own thing. Heather pulled Lindsay to the dock so that they could talk without anyone listening in, and Leshawna was taking this time to prepare for the challenge. Riding a moose would be tough, but she knew she had to get this. They were already down, and she wanted that shower.
Harold went back to the cabin, finding that way more interesting that anything that could be happening at the beach. He'd rather be alone than hang out with most of the others. Courtney, Geoff, and DJ were having some conversation about something that wasn't important. Duncan claimed he had something he needed to do and promised Courtney that he would be back by the time the next challenge started. He wouldn't tell her what it was no matter how many times she asked him, but he made sure she knew it wasn't anything bad.
The thirty minutes passed rather quickly, and it wasn't long before Chris announced, "okay, cowpokes, let's start the rodeo moose challenge!"
Knowing this was her chance, Bridgette pulled Gwen to meet Geoff before he had to compete.
"Sup, Bridge!" Geoff greeted, offering a high five to Bridgette. She accepted it, so he moved to Gwen. "Sup, uh, you wanna help me out here?"
Bridgette bit her lip to keep from laughing as Gwen awkwardly accepted the high five, "oh, I'm Gwen."
"Right on, Gwen! I knew that," Geoff smiled, "okay I didn't know that, but I do now! Nice to meet ya. I'm Geoff, but you probably knew that."
"I did," Gwen involuntarily giggled, "but it's nice to officially meet you, too." She gave the pair a bright smile. Then she realized. She just giggled! What was happening to her? She tried to transform her face into its usual uninterested expression, but she found she couldn't. It was these people, Bridgette and Geoff, it was impossible not to be happy around them. Geoff even more so than Bridgette. No wonder they were into each other.
Neither blond noticed Gwen's slight pause. Geoff just returned the smile before turning to Bridgette, "so, Bridge, you gonna cheer me on?" He turned back to Gwen, "I won't ask you, since you're on the other team and stuff."
"That's weirdly thoughtful of you," Gwen said to herself while Bridgette nodded, "you know it, Geoff! I'll always cheer you on. But, I actually wanted to ask you something."
"What?" Geoff asked, "I can't promise I'll know the answer, but I'll try!"
However, before Bridgette had the chance to ask about the haiku, they reached Chris, Leshawna, and the meeting area. Leshawna smiled at Gwen and waved, but the goth pointedly looked away. She still wasn't over the whole voting to keep Heather thing that happened last night. Leshawna sighed before turning back to Chris. Then, their host briefed the competing campers of what all this challenge contained.
"So, who wants first dibs?" Chris asked once he was done explaining everything.
"Oooh! Me! I want to!" Geoff exclaimed, "this is going to be so wicked!
Chris nodded, "okay, follow me."
As Chris led Geoff to the moose pen, the party animal continued to express his excitement to Bridgette and Gwen, "Rodeo riding's kinda like surfin'. Once you catch the lip, you just flow with the mojo!" He slid up to the ladder that would allow him moose access.
Bridgette smiled at him, loving that he used a surfing simile. And it provided the perfect connection! "Yeah! Flow! Kinda like the ancient art of Japanese haiku!"
Geoff's eyebrows furrowed, and that's when Bridgette knew, "what's a haiku?" he asked before climbing up onto the moose. That was disappointing. However, before Bridgette had a chance to express that disappointment, Geoff commanded her attention again, "hey, Bridge, want to see that tat?" Then, he stood up on the moose's back and pulled down his shorts and boxers, giving everyone a view of everything.
"Whoa!" Gwen cringed, but Bridgette just smiled fondly, "definitely not haiku-y."
While most of the campers were at least mildly amused by Geoff's presentation, the moose was not. There was someone standing on him doing dumb stuff. He charged for the gate, and Geoff was bucked off and thrown across the beach in two seconds flat, landing right in the dirty laundry pile.
The other Killer Bass watched this play out in horror. Courtney, who had her eyes buried in Duncan's shoulder, expressed the confusion and disappointment that everyone felt, "is it over? I can't believe that just happened. It did actually happen, right? I didn't just imagine it? Can I look now?"
Duncan pushed her away slightly, "yeah, Princess, it's safe. Come on."
Pulling away slowly, Courtney risked a look to check her surroundings. The coast was clear, so she turned in Duncan's arm to address her team, which was currently just herself, him, and DJ. Great.
They needed to have a team meeting, so she sent DJ to get Geoff, who was in the laundry pile, and Harold, who was next to the laundry pile. She made sure he knew that Geoff better have his pants on. Then, she scanned the crowd for Bridgette. She found her standing a few meters away with Gwen. Courtney just rolled her eyes. The two of them had been doing something all morning, but she didn't care enough to find out what it was. She waved her over.
Bridgette saw this and held up a finger before turning back to Gwen. Courtney could wait a minute, and she wanted to finish this conversation.
"Okay, it wasn't Trent or Geoff," Gwen sighed.
"Yeaaah," Bridgette shrugged, "plus we kind of just assumed it was for us." She pulled Gwen into a hug, "well, whoever it is we're going to find out!"
Gwen, who wasn't accustomed to having another person this close to her, shifted away slightly, "oh yeah we are. I think we're in too deep to just leave it hanging. Who's left?"
"DJ, Harold, or Duncan," Bridgette listed. She paused for a second to think it over, "I don't know which one of those it would be." She pulled away from Gwen, "Courtney's waving me over, so I should probably go. I also think it might be helpful to have some, well, help. Is it okay if I bring her in on this? She's the smartest person on this island right now."
"Sure, if you think she'll be up for it," Gwen agreed, even though she doubted Courtney would be. She didn't seem like the kind of person who would care about this kind of stuff. "I'll just be hanging out around here, come back whenever."
Bridgette nodded and waved to her new friend before joining her team. Everyone was there, including Harold, so chances were they were having a team check-in. She was proved right when she heard Courtney going in on Geoff about his dismal performance. Someone sounded stressed.
"I just don't understand why you thought that would okay," Courtney let out a long huff of air, "like, I'm trying to, and I can't even comprehend why you would even want to do that in the first place. You guys have done so many brainless things during challenges, but this really, really takes the cake. Not only did you just potentially cost us a point, but you could have gotten really hurt. These challenges are unsafe enough as it is, and that made it so much more dangerous. We don't need any injuries." She pressed a hand to her forehead. "Just, I'm glad you're okay. Don't ever do anything like that ever again."
"Yes, Court," Geoff's head was down, and his voice was low. He had enough sense not to argue. "I'm really sorry."
Courtney sighed, "it's fine, Geoff. Just think next time." She dragged her hand down her face before turning to Bridgette, "and look who's finally here. Are you still good to drive to Sea Doo? Or do we need Duncan to do it?"
Bridgette shook her head, "no, I'm good. I've got it. Don't worry about it, Court."
"Okay, I'm trusting you on this," Courtney sighed again and turned to Harold. However, before she had a chance to check in with him, Chris announced, "and now, for the Screaming Gophers. Leshawna, let's get!"
The Killer Bass put a pin in their conversation as watched Leshawna hopefully crash harder than Geoff did. Luck was not on their side. She absolutely kicked ass, holding on to the moose for the required eight seconds and then some. Welp, that was unfortunate.
"So, we have a tie!" Chris exclaimed. He was loving this; it was always so much more fun when it was a close race. "Whoever wins the extreme Sea Doo waterski challenge wins invincibility! I'll need Harold, Lindsay, and the drivers to meet me at the mud pit in an hour. Everyone else will have to stay at the beach. I'll be providing updates through the PA."
"Harold, can you do this?" Courtney asked, jumping right back into this, "because, as much as this pains me to say, it's all up to you now. Please do not screw this up for us. This might be my, uh, our only chance at a real shower. I'll be damned if we don't get it."
Harold groaned, "yes, Courtney. How many times do I have to tell you that I have mad skills? Whatever, don't answer that. Can I go now?"
Courtney rolled her eyes, "yeah, sure, whatever. I don't care. Just be back in time."
Just be back in time? God, Harold couldn't wait until the merge or for them to finally vote him out or something. Sometimes his team could be so dismissive of him, which he didn't even get! Sure, he'd screwed up a few times, but never as hugely as Geoff or Bridgette or Duncan had. He was so ready to be done with them. He didn't say bye before going back to the cabin.
"Okay, so I guess that's it," Courtney looked around the semicircle at her friends and alliance mates, "I know we can still win this. We have to. Anyway, I'm going to go be somewhere else right now. I need a moment." She turned to the boy beside her, "Duncan? Do you want to…?"
Duncan nodded and rubbed her waist. He sincerely hoped that "I need a moment" was code for "let's go find a nice, quiet place to make out for a bit." Not only was that quickly becoming one of his favorite activities, but she was also in serious need of some stress relief. "Come on, Princess. Let's find somewhere."
Courtney gave him a soft smile, and he knew she was on the exact same page as him. Nice! Then, she turned back to her teammates and asked, "okay, so before we go, does anyone need anything?"
DJ and Geoff both shook their heads, but Bridgette raised a hand, "actually, if you don't mind, I have something I needed some help with. It shouldn't take long, I just have to show you something, and you can tell me what you think."
"Yeah, Bridge, that's fine," Courtney sighed, trying not to let her disappointment seep through. She needed a break, but she couldn't very well not help her friend. "What did you have to show me?"
"Oh, it's just this little thing we found earlier," Bridgette motioned for Courtney to follow her, so she did. Duncan, whose arm was still wrapped around her back, came along as well. He was much less competent than Courtney at hiding his disappointment, his scowl growing larger every moment they weren't alone. Bridgette glanced at him before deciding it didn't matter. It was just Duncan. She just hoped Gwen wouldn't mind.
"Well, what is it?" Courtney asked again, "this might go faster if you explain on the way."
Bridgette wasn't offended that Courtney wanted this to be over quick. She got it; Courtney needed a moment to destress away from everyone. Or, well, almost everyone. "We found this note, Gwen and I, after breakfast. It was a haiku. A love haiku. Written to some girl from some guy."
Courtney nodded, a little confused as to what this had to do with her. She waited for Bridgette to continue, but she didn't. She was just looking at her expectantly. "Okay, and?"
"And, we both thought it was for us. I thought maybe Geoff wrote it for me, and she thought Trent wrote it for her."
"You thought Geoff wrote you a haiku?" Courtney raised an eyebrow, "Doesn't that seem, I don't know, a little unlikely? Does Geoff even know what a haiku is?"
"No," Bridgette sighed, "and I know, it was dumb. I just got caught up in it. I really wanted him to do something nice for me. But it doesn't matter. Trent didn't write the haiku either."
Courtney thought this over for a second, "so now you have one haiku, and two boys it could be from."
Bridgette nodded, "exactly! I just thought you could help us figure out how to figure it out. You're good at getting stuff out of people. Well, there's Gwen," she pointed to the right, and Courtney followed that direction. Sure enough, the goth was standing a few meters away.
The trio approached a confused and slightly embarrassed Gwen. They brought a boy. A cool boy. A boy who was going to think she was so lame for caring about this kind of stuff. What was he even doing with them?
"Hey, Gwen, can I see the haiku?" Bridgette asked, and Gwen wordlessly handed it over. She kept her eyes glued to Duncan. Why was he there? She was so focused on his presence in general that she failed to realize just what his arm around Courtney meant.
"Okay, here's the haiku," Bridgette handed the note to Courtney before turning back to Gwen, "good news! Court said she'd help! I think I've caught her up on everything that's happened so far. I hope you don't mind!"
Gwen tore her eyes away from Duncan. Bridgette hadn't mentioned him yet, so she wouldn't either. "Oh, it's, uh, fine. She was going to have to know anyway." She turned to Courtney. "Hello, Courtney, how are you?"
"Fine, thank you," Courtney managed to sound both polite and contemptuous in a way Gwen knew only she could. It was the standard she'd come to expect from the few conversations she'd had with the CIT. "So, the haiku thing? I'd like to speed this up if that's okay, I have a few other things I need to do before the next challenge."
"Oh, uh, yeah, no problem," Gwen wasn't intimidated. She wasn't. She didn't get intimidated, especially not by preppy, bitchy girls like Courtney. If she felt uneasy, that was her own business. "So, I guess, you, uh, already know about Trent." She glanced at Duncan again, and the feeling of uneasiness grew tenfold. "I'm sorry, should I just pretend he's not here or what?"
"I usually do," Courtney sighed while Duncan looked offended that he was even mentioned, "I'm trying to, that's for sure."
Gwen looked at Bridgette, who just shrugged. Did she not think this was weird? "Okay, then. We found this haiku, and we both hoped it was for us." She glanced at Duncan once again. She didn't want him hearing about how much she wanted some dumb (incredibly sweet) love note. "Does he have to be here? I'm sorry, it's just a little weird."
Duncan rolled his eyes before looking at Courtney, "babe?"
Courtney looked at him as well, "just go. I know you don't want to be here. Go to my cabin, I'll catch up with you soon. Five minutes, promise."
"Five minutes, then," Duncan unwrapped his arm from around her, "I'm holding you to that."
"Quicker you go, quicker I'll be done," Courtney smiled as nudged him in the directions of cabin. Then, he left.
Gwen let her mouth hang open as she watched this play out. Were Duncan and Courtney a couple? They were acting awfully couple-like, but, as far as she knew, Courtney wasn't into him like he was her. She sent Brigette a questioning look, but the surfer just rolled her eyes at the pair. The couple, apparently.
After Duncan was out of view, Courtney turned back to Bridgette and Gwen, "okay, you can talk freely now. But, as you know, Bridgette told us everything. You don't have to resay it. Just tell me what you need help with."
Gwen nodded but did not do as Courtney asked. Instead, before she could stop herself, she blurted, "are you and Duncan together?"
"I fail to see how that's important," Courtney crossed her arms over her chest, "Bridgette, I'm sorry, could you just get to the point, please?"
"Yeah, Court, sure," Bridgette laughed as Gwen looked down at the ground. She was intimidated. By Courtney. "Like you said earlier, we have one haiku and two, er, three boys it could be from. We really want to know, but we don't know how to find out."
Courtney let this run through her mind a few times. The solution she thought up was rather simple, but there was no way they missed that. "First of all, I'm going to tell you now Duncan didn't write that haiku for me, nor would I have wanted him to, so turn that three back into a two. Second of all, just ask?"
Just ask. She made it seem so easy. Bridgette rolled her eyes, "obviously, but who? And what do I say?"
Courtney sighed before explaining what could only be the most obvious thing in the world. Ask DJ, Bridgette's good friend. If he said yes, mystery solved, if he said no, mystery still solved. If it was DJ, just ask who he wrote it for, and, if it wasn't, ask around the gopher girls if any them had been getting haikus recently.
Meanwhile, Duncan was making himself comfortable in Courtney's bed. It felt weird being in her cabin without her, he decided, wrong even. They hadn't had the chance to be alone-alone all day, and he wanted her here next to him. Or on top of him, whichever.
The haiku thing was the stupidest shit he'd heard all summer, and Duncan couldn't believe that was what was keeping her away. It didn't even have anything to do with her! It wasn't her fault Gwen and Bridgette weren't smart enough to figure it out on their own, and, if it kept her longer than the five minutes she'd promised, he was going to be more pissed than he already was. Not at Courtney obviously, but at everything else surrounding it.
Thankfully, it didn't even take the five minutes for the cabin door to open, and Courtney to step inside. Duncan pushed himself up, resting his back against the wall and watched as she slipped off her shoes next to his and walked over to her bed. She looked just about as done with everything as he was.
"Hi," Courtney sighed, sitting down next to him. She picked up her alarm clock and set a thirty minute timer. "Sorry about that."
"It's fine," Duncan wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "am I just an asshole, or was that not the dumbest shit ever?"
Courtney laughed, the sound filling the cabin, "most of the time you are, but you're right. It was." She raised herself to her knees and smiled down at him. "But let's not talk about that right now."
Then, she swung a leg across his body and sat down in his lap. She was facing him, and her legs were on either side of him. Her hands were curled around his upper arms, almost as if she was keeping him in place. One of his arms wrapped around her lower back, actually keeping her in place, and his other hand was creeping up towards the back of her head.
"Sorry," Courtney whispered, and Duncan didn't know why she was apologizing. She was on top of him. It didn't get much better than that. "I just, I need to turn my brain off for a while."
Duncan smirked, knowing exactly what was about to go down. Her eyes were screaming at him to kiss her. "Let me help you with that, baby."
Courtney let out a muffled sound from the back of her throat that managed to be both cute and unbelievably hot before attaching her lips to his. She was taking full control, biting down on his lower lip and taking advantage of the "fuck, Court," he moaned out by sticking her tongue into his mouth. Her tongue swept across the roots of his mouth before settling on his tongue ring. It had only been two days since their first kiss, but he already knew she loved playing with it.
This particular kiss went on for several minutes, Courtney changing the angle as she deemed necessary. It was the most assertive she had been with him since this thing started, and he wasn't ashamed to say it turned him on a little. She was always hot, but this was some next level shit.
Courtney finally pulled away, giving him a shy look as she did so. Duncan didn't understand that. What did she have to be shy about? Her tongue was just in his mouth. "Shit, babe, where did you learn to kiss like that? That was, fuck, Court."
"Sorry," Courtney said again, much to Duncan's confusion, "I just really needed to do that."
"Don't ever apologize for kissing me, Court. You can do that any time," Duncan, whose hand was currently knotted up in her hair, rubbed her head slightly. That elicited another soft moan from her. "Fuck, you're so hot."
Courtney looked down between their bodies before looking back at him, "yeah?" He nodded. "Then I guess you would mind kissing me now, would you?"
"Not at all," Duncan breathed as he pulled her back to him, "come here." Then, he closed the distance between them, pressing soft kisses along her jawline before finding her mouth.
Back at the beach, Bridgette and Gwen had made some headway with the haiku. Following Courtney's suggestion, Bridgette had asked DJ if he was maybe into any girls or had written any poetry recently. His answer was a confused yet resounding no, meaning it had to be Harold. Not wanting to ask any of her teammates about it, Gwen mentioned that sometimes Leshawna hung out with Harold. They decided that was good enough for now, that Harold wrote the haiku probably for Leshawna, and that they'd confirm it later.
Now that the mystery was solved, the pair parted ways. Gwen wanted to check on Trent in the medical tent, and Bridgette didn't think that she should be part of that. Instead, she found DJ on the dock and answered his questions about her questions. Much like everyone else, he couldn't believe Bridgette thought Geoff wrote her a haiku. She didn't think she would ever live that down.
Before long, it came time for the final challenge to start. Bridgette bid him goodbye and found Chris. Heather was also there, so she correctly assumed she was the gophers' driver. That could be tricky for Harold, and Bridgette hoped she didn't have anything too bad up her sleeve. Lindsay and Harold quickly joined them, both sporting their most revealing swimwear, and Chris walked them to the mud pit.
After explaining the finer details of the challenge and declaring the Killer Bass the first ones up, Chris got Heather and Harold set up on the Sea Doo and water skis, respectively. While they ran the course, Bridgette talked some with Lindsay, neither paying too much attention to the challenge.
"That bikini looks really nice on you, you know," Bridgette complimented, "you look great in green."
"Thanks, Bridge!" Lindsay gave the surfer her brightest smile, "I've been wanting to wear it for so long! I'm so glad I get to waterski, even if it is in the mud. I'm really good at it."
Bridgette laughed, "you're welcome. And I'm a really good Sea Doo driver, I have a lot of practice."
"'Cos you're a lifeguard?" Lindsay asked, to which Bridgette nodded, "that's so cool! And it's cool that you're my driver. I wouldn't have wanted anyone else."
"Thanks for saying that," Bridgette laughed, "you almost got Duncan, but I made sure that didn't happen."
"Really? Thank God," Lindsay wiped away imaginary sweat from her forehead, "can I tell you a secret? I'm a little scared of him. I would had been so scared if he was my driver."
Bridgette shook her head fondly, "you're scared of Duncan? Linds, he's all bark. But I have to agree. I wouldn't trust him behind the whe–"
Then, she was interrupted by a crash, followed by a loud scream. Bridgette and Lindsay shared a curious look before looking around for the source. It didn't take then long to find it. Heather was sitting on the Sea Doo, topless. Her top hung off a tree branch. Harold was smashed against a rock, a goofy grin on his face. He didn't even look upset that he just probably lost his team the challenge.
A/N So that's part one! Part two will be out tomorrow, then there won't be anymore daily updates. I'm about 4500 words into Brunch of Disgustingness, but I think it's coming together well. The challenge will just be one part, and then we'll have two more parts that will follow the group on reward and the group back at camp, respectively. I'm so excited for it! It should be a lot of fun.
As always, if you enjoyed it please leave a comment! I would really appreciate it!
