Chapter two, here we go! It's not as long as chapter one though, sorry about that.
But it does have more interactions between Valeria, Chris and Chef. Plus Manu gets officially introduced!
CHAPTER TWO:
WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN - PART 2
"Oh, look!" Izzy cried out in delight after the interns swapped out the numbers for round mats of different colors. "Team colors!"
Harold's face scrunched up in displeasure at the sight of Team Victory's. "Why the heck is our mat yellow?" He asked and waved a fist in the air. "We're no cowards!"
Leshawna patted his shoulder, "Relax, sugar. The mat's gold 'cause Team Victory is first place!" She cheerfully corrected.
Gwen let out a troubled sigh. "I can't believe Duncan got disqualified just 'cause he won't sing!" She said, rolling her eyes.
"Maybe he can't sing." Heather piped in with a smirk.
"Oh," Courtney scoffed and pointed a finger at the taller girl, "he can do anything he sets his mind to. And now he's stuck on the plane, waiting for a ride home." She deflated, looking sadly at her sandals. "Poor thing. He must be miserable."
Valeria crossed her arms over her chest and squinted at the contestants. "I highly doubt that. And I repeat, it's written in your contracts." She said, exasperated. "Did you not read it before signing?"
She received sheepish looks.
"Seriously?" Valeria asked in disbelief. "I need a minute." She sighed, stealing one of Chris' green grapes from his bowl.
Sierra walked over to Izzy with a smile. "Duncney fans will be devastated, but I think you and Owen have a shot at becoming fave Total Drama couple on my fan site." She admitted.
Izzy smiled brightly, "Owen's magic. When he breathes, his nose whistles the national anthem!" Weirdly enough, it did.
"Super cute!" Sierra commented, and Valeria had to disagree. Strangely impressive, yes. Cute? Not so much. "But he's no Cody. Did you know Cody slept with a stuffed emu named Jerry until he was… well, okay, he still does." She giggled.
Noah turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow. "And you know this how?"
"I called his aunt once. I pretended I was a telemarketer!" She proudly replied.
"Ooh," Noah started sarcastically. "Stalker-licious."
"Yeah, tell Manu to start on those restraining orders. Thanks." Chris mumbled to Valeria, passing her the bowl of grapes as the camera crew signaled they were going live. Chef crashed the cymbal, catching the attention of the three teams. "Don't know about you guys, but I am loving Egypt." He said with a chuckle. "And I'm gonna love it even more watching you enjoy your second challenge: The Amazing Camel Race!" The host cheerfully announced.
"Where are the other camels?" Harold questioned.
"There are no other camels." Chris shrugged, "It's a camel race, not a camels race."
"Yes!" Heather cheered.
"What?!" Alejandro snapped, looking down at their goat, which bleated almost angrily at him and tried to nip at his pants.
Leshawna pointed at the stick in annoyance, "We won last time, but they get a camel, they get a goat, and we get a dry ass stick?!"
Valeria smiled sympathetically, "Each reward has its advantage, some more than others. You'll see." She reassured.
"You'll be racing to the world's more infamous waterway… the Nile!" Chris revealed, "Each team must bring their rewards all the way to the finish. You have sixty seconds to strategize, starting now!"
Team Amazon started arguing right off the bat, pushing and shoving at each other as they scrambled onto the camel. Alejandro was quick to take the role of leader of Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Hot (no, she wasn't going to get over that any time soon). The blue eyed young man turned to his teammates, "We need no camel. We have each other, and we are unstoppable!" He said, throwing his arms in the air, and the other guys nodded their heads. "We have the will and the strength, and together we will triumph!" Ooh, careful there, Alejandro, your wickedness is showing. His team, minus Sierra, cheered.
Team Victory was also a bit of an unorganized mess. Harold was waving the stick around like a sword while the others dodged. "On the bright side, I can use this stick to defend us from deadly sand snakes." He said, striking what looked to be a martial arts pose. "They could be anywhere." He added, making his team uneasy. Leshawna leaped into his arms, and he strained under her weight. "Fear not. I will protect you." Harold waved the stick again, almost taking out Ezekiel's eyes, and Valeria made sure to keep the first aid team close by.
DJ snatched the stick back. "Cool it before you really hurt somebody!" He somehow managed to hit a bird, which fell to the ground.
Meanwhile, Alejandro had managed to get all his team perfectly balanced on the goat. Owen laughed, "This is so cool, Ale-handout. Or Alakazam! Eh, I'm just gonna call you Al, okay?" Valeria noticed the displeasure on the latino's face at the nickname. "Whoo! Go, Al!"
Noah looked uncertainly at his team, "Yeah, this is gonna work."
"Have faith, Noah. Believe in us." Alejandro told him with a charming smile. With the grace of a gymnast, he got to the top of the human pyramid.
"Woah!" Tyler laughed upon noticing they'd stopped wobbling. "We're perfectly balanced!"
"Okay, color me impressed." Noah admitted, and Alejandro preened under the attention. He turned to catch Valeria's eyes and shot her a wink. She let out a light laugh and gave a small wave.
— Valeria and Chef confessional —
"How long do you think until Manu's out to kill him?" She casually asked Chef.
The man shrugged his shoulders, "I give him a few more episodes before Manny's out for blood." He said, chuckling. "Though you might speed things up, you little devil."
Valeria gasped, putting a hand to her chest, "Who? Me? Starting drama?! I would never!"
They both snickered.
— end confessional —
"Alright, Teams. Nile's that away." Valeria gestured in its general direction. "Big, blue, and watery. Can't miss it."
"Pray you don't. 'Cause you'll die." Chris said innocently, shrugging his shoulders. "Probably get killed by the local scarab beetles. It's mating season, y'know. They get all killy when they're in heat." He pointed out, laughing evilly.
Leshawna smiled nervously, "I am sure glad there aren't any out here." She laughed, "Those things are nasty!"
"We'll make sure to let them know." The host grinned, "Right, Chef?" Chef kicked a vase over, pouring an army of beetles onto the sand, making the contestants — and some of the interns — scream in fear as they ran away. Chris cackled, and Valeria shook her head at him. The scarabs wouldn't kill them, just… pinch them a lot.
Ding!
"Time for a song!" Chris cheered, "Think of it as a mini challenge. Maybe music will soothe the savage mate-seeking scarabs! Make up a good song, and maybe they won't kill you. Who knows. Not me."
Valeria cupped her hands around her mouth, "We have a few medics and EpiPens on standby in case you guys need them!" She called out, ignoring Chris' disappointed groan. "Just focus on the song and getting to the finish line so you don't get disqualified like Duncan!"
Truthfully, some of these guys sure needed vocal coaches.
Valeria shushed Chris' protests and turned to the camera with a smile. "Which team will win, and who will have to say goodbye to one million dollars? Find out here on Total Drama World Tour!"
"You have to sing it!"
"Shh!"
Helen's team changed Valeria out of her costume and into a pair of shorts, a light blue button up blouse and nude boots along with a sun hat. Her long hair was styled in a side braid, and they kept her makeup very light. She joined Chris and Chef on a reclinable chair under the shade provided by a large umbrella, putting on a pair of Prada sunglasses, and raised an eyebrow at the stares she was getting.
"What?" She asked defensively and crossed her legs, "I'm getting paid to look good."
Team Chris was the first to reach the Nile. Chris cupped his hands around his mouth, "Welcome to the third challenge!"
"What?!" They heard Owen shout distinctly. "Speak up!"
"I said, welcome—"
"What did you say?!"
"—to the third challenge!"
"What?!"
"Goddamnit—"
"Oh my god." Valeria muttered, pulling out the megaphone. "Welcome to the third challenge!" She began, rolling her eyes behind her shades. "Each team must weave a basket of river reeds. It has to be big enough to carry your whole team and the prize from the previous challenge. Once you do that, use your baskets and the oars behind you to row yourself across the finish line." The megaphone was then snatched from her hands.
"First team to get across the river flies first class with the one and only Valeria Ochoa to our next destination!" At her unimpressed stare, Chris shrugged his shoulders and turned off the megaphone. "It'll up the ratings and encourage them to finish up faster." He explained innocently.
"Yes!" She heard someone from the team cheer, only proving his point.
"See?"
Sierra was freakishly quick to start weaving a boat and was already halfway done by the time Team Amazon arrived on their camel. Sierra and Izzy began talking, only for Heather and Alejandro to start heatedly arguing about something. It was too far away to hear clearly, but as they hopped onto a motorboat to join them on shore, Valeria heard Alejandro say something about an unfair trade.
"Where's Chris? Surely, he won't allow this!" Alejandro snapped, his fists on his hips as he glared at Heather.
"Excuse me," Said host called out as they made it to shore. "Did somebody—" He yelped when Sierra ran over to hug his legs.
She grinned happily, "Today is officially the best day of my life, so I really hope you allow us to swap." Sierra said, looking up at him with a sickly sweet expression. "But, of course, you'll make the best decision , 'cause you're the best decider ever!" No, he really wasn't. She's seen the atrocities Manuel has taken out of his closet. Who the hell needed fifteen plaid shirts?
Of course, Sierra's ass kissing worked like a charm. "And that's why I'm going to allow it!" Chris said smugly, making her squeal in delight.
Alejandro sighed, "As you wish."
Heather stuck out her tongue at him before waving excitedly at Valeria. "See you in first class, Valeria!" She almost squealed, ignoring the weird looks sent her way by her team.
Oh, Valeria realization dawned on her as she saw Alejandro's expression sour. She grinned, hearing Chris mutter something about ratings, and blew a kiss at them.
— Alejandro confessional —
"That was obviously meant for me." He said smugly, crossing his arms.
— Heather confessional —
"First class is so mine." She said confidently.
— Valeria confessional —
"Drama!" She sang happily, clapping her hands. "Free entertainment, baby!"
— end confessional —
Sierra was quick to finish Team Amazon's woven boat, and Team Chris groaned. "Don't give up. We still have a shot." Alejandro told them determinedly.
"Al's right! Thanks, Al." Owen said happily, weaving more river reeds into their half made boat. Alejandro shuddered in disgust. Team Victory arrived at last, all of them crying out in disbelief as they realized they were currently in third place.
Valeria thanked an intern as she was handed a martini and turned on the megaphone again since Chris didn't feel like repeating what she'd said earlier, complaining about the heat. "Team Victory, you have to weave a basket boat out of reeds and row to the finish line. Good luck!" She shoved it into Chris' chest — brushing off his dramatic whines about abuse — and took a sip of her martini.
Team Victory quickly gathered their river reeds to get started on their boat, and Courtney called out to Cody, who was struggling to make the camel get on the woven boat. "Maybe if I push…" He trailed off, moving behind the animal. His hands slipped as he pushed, and he face planted into the camel's dirty ass. His team face palmed, and Valeria quickly sat up so she wouldn't choke on her martini. Chris cackled by her side, joined by Chef.
"Izzy, tell Ruby to get in the boat!" Courtney ordered the strawberry blonde, who was quick to comply.
Noah interjected, "Woah, woah! Izzy's on our team now, not yours." He reminded them and turned to Izzy, pointing a finger at her. "Not a word."
Izzy mimed zipping her mouth shut.
"Ugh, fine, we'll do it ourselves." Courtney groaned in annoyance. The girls got off their boat, all lining up to pull on the reins of the camel, who refused to move even an inch. On the ground, Cody crawled to the riverside to scrub his face clean.
"Ha!" DJ called out tauntingly, his team almost done with their boat. "Who's happy to have just a stick now?"
Leshawna chuckled, "And who's happy Leshawna knows her way around a weave?" She asked smugly.
Team Chris pushed their boat into the water upon Alejandro's orders. Owen threw his arms up victoriously, "It floats! Awesome!" He laughed. Alejandro scooped up their goat and got into the boat, giving the Amazons — meaning Heather — a smirk.
"This is totally unfair!" Heather cried out in frustration upon noticing. "If it wasn't for that stupid swap, we'd be halfway across the Nile by now!" She complained.
Alejandro turned to them as his team began rowing. "We're gonna win fair and square." He declared, "But to make sure you believe that, talk to the camel." He told Izzy.
"Yeah? Okay!" She grinned, making a series of groans and grunts that actually made the camel walk to the boat.
"Color me impressed." Valeria admitted, a touch disturbed.
Team Victory quickly paddled after Team Chris before Team Amazon could catch up to them. Chris sighed, "Clearly this part of the challenge isn't hard enough, soooo…"
Ding!
"Time for a musical reprise!" He cheerfully called out, and all the contestants groaned in unison. Chris frowned at them, "Hey, if you'd finished the song the first time, you wouldn't be here now, Zeke." He said accusingly, smiling almost wickedly when the teams turned to glare at the homeschooled kid. "Start singing! And put your backs into it."
A few strangely shaped logs started floating after the teams' boats as they sang. Then she realized the logs had teeth. "No mames, is that a fucking croc?" Valeria gaped, taking off her sunglasses to make sure she was seeing correctly. "Chris! I thought you said this location wasn't crocodile infested!" She cried out, turning to look at him in shock.
"I said it wasn't infested! There's only like four of them, see?" He pointed out defensively.
"Jesus…" Valeria muttered, downing the rest of her martini.
The Amazons were the first to arrive at shore. "Till the Amazons… wiiiiiin!" They sang before breaking out into a cheer as the rest of the teams arrived.
"Congratulations! You're alive." Chris chuckled, standing up to join them. "And as long as you all brought your rewards across the finish line, there will be no elimination tonight." He announced.
"...I lost the stick." Ezekiel announced sheepishly, making his team abruptly stop cheering. He chuckled nervously, shrinking under their furious glares.
"Yikes." Valeria hissed sympathetically.
It came as no surprise that Ezekiel was eliminated, dropped off at the airport with escorts to make sure he wouldn't stay on the plane like last time or else Manu would actually lose it. Duncan was also left at the airport, though Valeria received word that he didn't board a flight to Canada. Interesting. She finished off recording the ending of the episode with Chris in the cockpit and changed into something more comfortable.
She walked into first class, and Heather was quick to come right up to her, almost vibrating with excitement. "Hi, Heather." Valeria greeted, amused.
"I'm such a big fan of how you play Camila in Pasión de Corazones." She admitted, joining her at the bar. "You're my inspiration." No surprise there, Camila was a bit of a mean girl with a soft spot under all the sass.
"Thank you." Valeria said, smiling and — truthfully? — basking in the attention. She rarely got to sit down with such passionate fans of the series, always rushing through autograph signings and photo sessions. "What's your favorite scene from the season?"
"There's so many!" Heather gasped, then bit her lip in thought. "I'm stuck between when Camila stole Teresa's boyfriend," Of course, though it was Armando who kissed Camila, "and the finale where she revealed herself!"
Oh? Valeria raised her eyebrows, "You're not mad about the cliffhanger?" She asked, surprised. A lot of people had complained about it— even Chef!
Heather scoffed, "Of course not! It was an amazing way to tie off the finale of season one!" She replied.
"Wow." Valeria's smile grew.
The black haired girl clasped her hands under her chin imploringly, "When's season two coming out?"
She laughed, "Probably next year. We'll start filming after I finish up here." Valeria explained, and Heather pumped her fist. "How about this, you make it to the finale and I'll take you with me."
Heather gasped, "Really? You'd do that?"
— Valeria confessional —
"Not only does it give her motivation to win and adds to the drama— because, let's face it, Alejandro is definitely getting to the finale. I also gain a partner in crime!" Valeria smiled widely. "I see this as an absolute win."
— end confessional —
"Hey," Cody spoke up from his chair, "what's, uh, Pasión de Corazones about?" He asked, stumbling over the Spanish words.
Heather gasped like he'd confessed to a murder. "You've never seen it?!" She asked, staring at her confused teammates in disbelief.
"Uh, no?"
"Seriously?" Valeria yelped at the familiar voice, a hand flying to her chest as she turned to see Manuel standing behind the bar.
"Jesus, Manu, you almost gave me a heart attack." She said, trying to calm her racing heart. "What are you doing here?"
Manu shrugged, getting out the supplies to make some milkshakes. "I'm done for the day." He replied innocently. He gave the girls, who were staring with awestruck expressions, his charming dimpled smile. "I'm Manuel Ochoa, Vale's older brother." He introduced himself, reaching out to ruffle her hair affectionately. "I'm the editor."
"And he's taken." Valeria added, swatting his hand away to fix her hair. He flashed his engagement ring with a grin. Chris also had one, but he didn't wear it while they were filming to keep the media at bay. They were going to come out publicly — both about their relationship and their preference — after getting married. The girls, except for Sierra, groaned in dismay.
"But seriously, you guys have never seen Pasión de Corazones?" Manu was a big fan of the series, probably the biggest. It was, after all, his precious little sister's first big hit after she debuted as the show's antagonist turned protagonist.
"Not really." The rest of Team Amazon shrugged.
"Unacceptable. Let me get the projector, we're binging this." Manu said seriously, and Heather cheered. Valeria laughed at their excitement, shaking her head.
"I'll get the popcorn then." Valeria said, rising from her stool.
"Oh, and get the caramel brownies I made, they should have cooled off by now." Manu piped in, bringing out the projector and the screen.
Cody whooped at the mention of candy, "Aw, yeah! First class rocks!"
"Hell yeah, it does!" Heather agreed, getting comfortable in a cushioned chair to watch her favorite series.
As they watched the first episode, Valeria supposed it was nice to have some friends.
Aww Valeria finally has some friends, how nice. Alejandro better watch his back, who knows when Manuel will strike?
TRANSLATIONS
No mames: you're kidding (Mexican slang)
Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed and don't forget to tell me what you think!