AN: Time for nominations! And boy, are you guys in for a shock…
Oh, and everybody cheer for the first-time reviewer! You know who you are!
Just as a little explanation, due to popular demand, I'm going to start this chapter with Mush waking up and realizing where he is, you know, using Blink as a pillow…I thought it would be funny to see exactly what he thinks…
Mush
"Mush…Mush…wake up…"
I groaned and just curled up tighter, not wanting to give up the warmth of my bed. Wait…I was sitting upright…and my bed was breathing?!
My eyes snapped open and I realized just where I was- curled up against Blink on the couch, my head on his chest and his arm wrapped around me. I resisted the urge to jump about a mile in the air in shock, because luckily, he was still asleep. Cowboy was standing over us, a huge grin on his face.
"Comfortable?"
I gently pulled away, grabbing Blink's arm and setting it on the couch instead of on me. I stood up and heaved a sigh of relief- now he could wake up and he'd never know.
"Come on, everyone else is waiting. Time for breakfast." Cowboy said, reaching down to wake Blink up, but I grabbed his arm before he could.
"Did the others…" I started, and he hesitated before shaking his head 'no'.
Oh dear God. He was lying.
Everyone knew. They'd probably seen it, too.
I spun around and stalked to the kitchen where everyone else was seated at the table as Skittery dished out some kind of radish, tuna, and milk mix that looks and sounds disgusting but has come to be our favorite breakfast meal. He said it was Japanese or something.
And then, as I sat down, I remembered my dare. I'd have to be cussing all day…that didn't help my mood, on top of what had already happened. My family would absolutely maul me when I got home, not to mention the rest of my congregation. Briefly I wondered how Blink and I had gotten into that position in the first place- I didn't remember a thing along those lines, just our conversation.
I suddenly noticed something else that was strange and slightly disturbing- Specs and Dutchy were sitting on opposite sides of the table, neither one talking or even looking up from their food. I was surprised Dutchy even agreed to come to breakfast with the rest of us.
"Good morning, Mush." Spot said, a huge grin on his face as he waited for a response. No dress, though…big brother must not have played along.
"Good fucking morning."
The entire table burst out into laughter, though this was another thing that I didn't find the least bit funny.
Just as Blink walked in, running a hand through his hair, the doorbell rang. That's right: the doorbell.
We all looked at each other in shock, and since Blink was already standing up, he went to the door and opened it, all of us watching anxiously. Nobody was at the door, but there was a package sitting on the front step. Blink picked it up and studied it carefully, and he suddenly started laughing as he walked back to the table with it.
He dropped it on the table right in front of Spot. "It's for you. It's from big brother."
And in response, Spot paled about ten shades.
"Alright, open it up, Spot. I gotta see this." Cowboy said. Spot stood up and tore the tape off, blushing madly as he pulled out a bright pink shirt and a bright pink mini-skirt. And underneath that were various makeup items and even a blond, curly wig and a pair of pink high heels. I was laughing so hard I thought I would pass out.
Spot suddenly threw a death glare at Skittery, even though Skittery just had this small smirk on his face and wasn't even laughing.
"You'll get yours, Skitts. You just wait."
At this, Skittery did laugh, albeit quietly. "I don't doubt it."
Spot stood up and walked out, muttering about big brother and the fact that it always butts in to house matters.
"So Blink…did you sleep well?" Snitch asked, and I could feel the blood rushing to my cheeks. I looked down at my food, hoping no one would notice.
Blink, however, just looked confused. "Yeah…why?"
Everyone at the table was snickering now, and I could practically feel the blush spreading all the way up to my ears. Cowboy suddenly shot a look at the other house guests that basically said to 'drop it', and for once, I was thankful that he was there.
"So…who's gonna help him do his makeup?" Race asked, immediately sending us into fits of laughter once again. "Blink, you're a theater person, right?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Well, don't all the guys in theater have to wear makeup? Don't you know how to put it on?"
"Usually I have someone put on my makeup for me…but I guess I could give it a shot."
The conversation just drifted, and I basically kept my mouth shut because I didn't want to have to curse. I just couldn't get my mind off what had happened, so I probably wouldn't have been able to keep up with the conversation anyway.
Spot opened the door and walked out about ten minutes later, and I couldn't believe my eyes. The phrase 'like a glove' doesn't have anything on this outfit.
Race and Snitch immediately dragged him over to the chair and sat him down, and Blink pulled up a chair in front of him, studying the makeup big brother had provided. We all gathered around as Spot blushed, anxious to watch his 'makeover'.
Blink grabbed Spot by the chin and tilted his head toward the light and immediately began applying foundation as Cowboy shoved Spot's feet into the heels and buckled them.
"Hey Bumlets…go get his hair mousse. We're gonna need to slick down his hair before we put the wig on. Close your eyes, Spot." Blink ordered, applying a bright, glittery pink eyeshadow and then using glittery eyeliner and lipliner. The lipstick was also glittery and neon pink, and then Blink used a glitter brush to make every inch of exposed skin shine with glitter.
"If I didn't know any better I'd think you'd done this before." Cowboy said to Blink, helping Bumlets mousse down Spot's hair.
"Um…I was in 'Rocky Horror Picture Show'. Everyone was dressed like this."
"Even you?"
"………Yeah. Even me."
Blink put about ten bobby pins in his mouth and threw the wig on Spot's head, using every single bobby pin to make sure it stayed on. Then he sat back and sighed as Spot sent us all glares of certain death.
"He looks like a girl!" Itey said, and everyone agreed. If I had never seen him before, I would've thought he was female. At least the attention was off of me and Blink for now.
Racetrack
Before we knew it, it was almost time for nominations, and I finally got my chance. Skittery was washing dishes alone- everyone was just waiting in the main room.
"Hey…care for some help?" I asked, and after eyeing me carefully for a moment, he threw me a rag to start drying the dishes with. We worked in silence for a moment before I spoke; I figured I was safe from any outbursts he may have since he was elbow-deep in soapy dish water.
"Who do you think is the biggest threat right now?" I asked quietly.
"Why is it you wanna know?"
"Just getting opinions."
He practically threw another dish at me, shaking his hair out of his eyes. "I'm really not sure."
"Do you honestly expect me to believe that?"
"No."
Okay, I was getting fed up now. He was like the goddamned Sphinx, talking in riddles all the time! I laid a hand on his shoulder, and I felt his entire body stiffen and a shiver go all through him. I didn't think anything of it at the time, even though I probably should've paid more attention to that little detail.
"Listen. We need to start seriously thinking about this. I mean, there's a person in head of household, and none of us know who he's going to nominate!"
"I do."
"Did he tell you?"
"No."
"Goddamnit, Skittery!" I hissed, letting my hand drop off his shoulder and grabbing another dish to dry. He was doing this on purpose, just to annoy me. I knew it. "I'm asking for your help. A truce. I protect you, you protect me. They'll never expect it out of us, of all people. Come on, it could keep us off the block for ages!"
He thought for a moment, and my offer hung in midair, ready to be grabbed or dropped.
Skittery
I honestly didn't know what to pick. If I didn't take his offer I'd be on his bad side for the rest of the time in the house. If I did take his offer, I risked getting backed into a corner. But he was right- at the moment, the rest of the house guests think we hate each other. And having a truce underneath that could come in handy.
"Alright…you've got a deal. On one condition."
"What's that?"
"If we get down to the line, it's every man for himself. I don't like the idea of being tied to you through the whole competition."
He thought on that for a moment as I dried my hands, and then he nodded. "Fine. You've got a deal."
We shook on it, and then we started to head for the main room- but suddenly, my feet slipped out from under me, and I heard a metallic kind of 'ring' as my head slammed into a counter.
And then, it was like one of those old fashioned TV's- the darkness closed in as the pain took over, leaving a pinpoint of light before everything went black.
Specs
"Guys! Help!"
All of us heard Racetrack's shout and ran to the kitchen, where Skittery was laying unconscious on the floor and Race was kneeling beside him. I rushed forward, keeping Race from moving him.
"No, don't move him. What happened?"
"He slipped and fell. Busted his head on the counter, I think."
I didn't want to move him, but I had to make sure he wasn't bleeding, so I gently lifted his head just the way dad had shown me and checked for blood. Luckily, he wasn't bleeding.
"Specs…do you know what you're doing?" Dutchy asked, worry stressing every one of his angelic features. That was the first time he had spoken to me since last night.
"My dad's a doctor." I said, looking around the room. "Somebody find me a flashlight!"
"A flashlight?" Spot snorted as Dutchy and Blink took off to find one for me.
"I have to see if his eyes are dilating. He may have a concussion. If he has a concussion, we're going to have to hope he wakes up soon."
What's so bad about a concussion?" Itey asked, biting his lower lip nervously.
I thought for a moment, going through the list in my head. "Nausea, amnesia, temporary confusion, dizziness…possibility of coma, if he doesn't wake up pretty soon…it's a bad thing in general."
Blink and Dutchy came back in and Dutchy handed me a flashlight, and I quickly opened Skittery's eyes one at a time and checked them. The news wasn't bad, but it wasn't quite good either- only partial dilation on both eyes.
"Is he okay?" Race asked, sounding almost guilty.
"Mild concussion. He'll probably be fine. He may come down with flu-like symptoms for the next day or so."
Sarah's voice suddenly broke the tense situation. "Does a doctor need to be sent in?"
I shook my head. "No, I think he'll be okay if we keep an eye on him. But if he doesn't wake up in about an hour, we will need a doctor. We need to take him to his bed."
I waited for Cowboy, Dutchy, Mush, and Blink to get a grip on him, and then we slowly lifted him, and I made sure we didn't jar his head in any way. We slowly carried the limp boy to the bedroom and laid him down, and Mush offered to stay with him during nominations.
I gave Mush instructions on what t do if he woke up and we went back to the main room, all of us quiet after that little surprise. We took our seats and Snitch stood up, holding the box with all our keys in it.
"Okay…no big speeches…let's just do this." He said, pulling out the first key. "Cowboy, you're safe."
Cowboy took his key, a look of unmistakable surprise on his face. I guess he expected to be nominated.
Next key. "Bumlets, you're safe."
Bumlets took his key with a sigh of relief.
Next key. "Specs, you're safe."
I felt relief wash over me as I took my key. Now all I needed was for Dutchy to be safe…I wanted to apologize to him without nominations hanging over us like some kind of dark cloud.
Next key. "Itey, you're safe."
No big surprise there.
Next key. "Spot, you're safe."
Wow…big surprise there. Who was he nominating if he didn't nominate Cowboy or Spot? Skittery, maybe?
Next key. "Race, you're safe."
Race still seemed to be brooding over the accident in the kitchen. His head snapped up when he heard his name, and he took his key and threw it around his neck without a second thought.
Next key. "Skittery…he's safe."
Blink reached forward and took Skittery's key. "I'll hang it up for him." He said quietly.
It was down to three- Blink, Mush, and Dutchy. I was already in shock just from having it down to those three.
Next, and last, key. Please be Dutchy. Please be Dutchy. "Dutchy, you're safe."
YES!
Dutchy took his key, and Snitch looked at Blink to speak, since Mush wasn't present. "It's purely strategic. Always will be. Just like Cowboy said, it's nothing personal."
He didn't say anything else- he just picked up the box and the nomination bag with Blink and Mush's keys inside and went back to put them away. We went to hang our keys back on the wall, and I went straight to the bedroom to check on Skittery. Blink came along, probably to tell Mush that he'd been nominated.
"Has he waken up yet? I asked, and Mush shook his head. I did a quick once over of Skittery, and then left Blink and Mush alone to talk. I knew that now that they were on the block together and with the veto competition coming up, they'd have a whole lot to talk about.
"Hey guys…where'd Dutchy go?" I asked Cowboy. He pointed to the backyard, and I looked out seeing Dutchy sitting once again with his feet in the pool. I walked out and approached him from behind, and he saw my reflection on the water.
"You gonna shove me in again?" he asked.
"It's awfully tempting…but no."
I sat down beside him and didn't speak- I was content to be able to just sit next to him, not saying a word.
"Thanks for what you did with Skittery in there. Your dad is probably real proud of you right now."
"It's no problem. Just glad I could help."
We fell silent again, and I got up the courage to look at him. He was avoiding meeting my gaze, and I wondered if last night I had made the biggest mistake of my life. I felt like I may have lost him for good by pulling a stunt like that.
"Dutchy…" I started, swallowing hard as I thought about what to say to him. "About that whole thing last night…I'm sorry."
"No, it wasn't your fault."
"I know, but I'm sorry anyway. And I was hoping we could just…forget about it and start over. I…I don't want to lose a friend over a game."
He opened his mouth as if to speak, and at first, he said nothing. "What if…what if I don't want to forget about it?"
I felt my heart jump into my throat. Had he just said what I thought he said? I looked back up at him, not quite sure just what he meant by it.
As if sensing my confusion, he suddenly grabbed me by the neck and jerked me forward, pulling me into a long, sweet kiss. We broke apart and his lips brushed against mine with a feather-light touch that sent tingles up my spine.
"I think I'm in love with you, Specs." He whispered, his breath mingling with mine in the warm afternoon air. And when all I could do in my state of mind was take in a shuddering breath, he leaned forward and caught my lips in another kiss, this one just as sweet as the first.
They say perfection is impossible. That's not true.
I was kissing perfection.
AN: Next chapter is the veto competition!
Oh, and the whole concussion thing? It's just cementing the family. Every family has accidents, and they've gotta make it through. You know me- always throwing in wild cards!
And all Mush and Blink fans, don't worry, there's still veto! There's always a chance that both of them could stay in and somebody else get kicked out…but that depends on how good you are at begging and pleading for their sake…no, I'm just kidding. Review!