Chapter 29: Dirty Little Secrets
Reviews:
richboylion: The scary part is that no, she didn't have any specific feud with Brick aside from them being allied against each other.
DSX62415: That's true for competitors, but the interns aren't so lucky. Indeed, Chris did go to far, though if you think he learned anything, you have another think coming. They do say the only apology that matters is one accompanied by a change in behavior, after all.
erinm2003: I might or might not.
OmniUIShaggyOver: Indeed. Lindsay and Tyler probably will be hurt. As for Scott, he actually sped Dave up.
Teams:
Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Mean: B, Beth, Courtney, Dave, Heather, Jasmine, Katie, Lindsay, Sammy, Scarlett, Scott, Topher, Tyler
Team Survivor: Alejandro, Bridgette, Cameron, Dawn, Duncan, Geoff, Leshawna, Lightning, Noah, Shawn, Sky, Sugar, Zoey
The episode opened on Team Survivor post-workout. Some of them were currently in the washrooms showering, while others were waiting their turn.
Bridgette and Zoey were sitting together and they saw Duncan give Noah a wedgie. "Why are you friends with him?" Bridgette asked Zoey.
"I know Duncan can act like a jerk sometimes," Zoey admitted. "But he really isn't that bad. He doesn't really mean any harm by it, not really. Besides, he appreciates my art."
Sugar watched Bridgette suspiciously.
"Any particular reason you decided to make me relive one of the more omnipresent parts of my seventh grade experience?" Noah asked Duncan pointedly. "You know, aside from your immature need for validation."
"I'm just trying to bring back some sense of normalcy," Duncan said. "You have to have noticed how quiet it's been since Brick got airlifted out."
"Well, you're not wrong about that," Noah admitted. "I normally wouldn't mind the quiet, but the reason behind it makes us all uncomfortable."
"Yeah."
Confessional: Duncan
"I don't think any of us were predicting what would happen to Brick. I didn't get along with him, but he wasn't a bad guy, and most people liked him. When he, of all people, got set up and hurt by a teammate..."
Duncan scratched the back of his head. "Maybe it would feel more normal if Scarlett got disqualified like Mal was, but she's still here."
End confessional
Alejandro exited the showers, fully dressed and with a towel wrapped around his head. Sugar asked him quietly, "Hey Al, can I talk to you for a sec?"
Alejandro cringed at the nickname. "Certainly. But please, don't call me that."
"What, Al?"
"Yes. Address me by my full first name or not at all."
"Well, wutever. I know you ain't as nice as you act. Nobody's that polite less'n they want somethin', and Justin told errybody how you double-crossed him. Don' worry, I just wanna team up with ya fer now."
Confessional: Alejandro
"I could play ignorant. Or, I could use this as an opportunity to get some people eliminated. I can easily pin the blame on Sugar afterward."
End confessional
"Okay, you've convinced me. I'll align with you," Alejandro agreed.
"Great. Now, I'm thinkin' we oughta lose Bridg-" Sugar continued, but was cut off by Alejandro. "On one condition. I get to pick the first person we go after."
"What? But that ain't fair!" Sugar protested.
"You came to me for help. I'd say it's perfectly fair, unless you don't want my help," Alejandro countered.
"Fine," Sugar groaned. "Who do you wanna go after?"
"I have not decided yet," Alejandro told her. "I'll tell you when I do."
"Can we at least vote for Bridgette if you ain't decided when we lose next?" Sugar asked.
"If there isn't a more obvious target," Alejandro conceded.
Confessional: Sugar
"There won't be. Ha ha ha ha ha!"
End confessional
Over the intercom came Chef's voice. "Alright maggots! Assemble at the gym for your challenge! Now!"
After a short pause, Chef amended his statement. "It has come to my attention that some of y'all are showerin'. So, better finish that first. But make it quick!"
At the gym, a blond woman who definitely wasn't Chris addressed the campers, sans Sammy, who was still on her way. "Your challenge for today will test how well you know your team, and hopefully uncover some juicy secrets."
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Noah asked.
The woman laughed. "How do you not know who I am? Blaineley Stacey Andrews O'Halloran? I'm very famous." She only received blank stares.
Recognition then lit up in Topher's eyes. "Oh, I recognize you now! You're that annoying woman from Celebrity Manhunt who tried to bother Dad a few months ago! He refused because he says Celebrity Manhunt are 'vultures looking to kill as many celebrity's careers as they can before the network finally puts their rotten excuse for a show out of its misery.'"
Some of the campers chuckled at his bluntness. "Well. Are you always this rude?" Blaineley asked.
"Only to Chris," Chef told her. "He's mostly pretty nice to everyone else."
"It's a matter of respect," Topher said. "I respect my fellow campers, Chef, and the interns. I don't respect Chris, and I don't respect tabloids, which is effectively what Celebrity Manhunt is. Soon, they'll be running conspiracy theory episodes on how John Kennedy's death was planned by the Soviets. Or calling people racist and sexist for not watching TV shows they shill for."
"Hmph. As I was saying, today we're going to-" she continued, but was cut off by Sammy's quick arrival. "I'm here! Oh, hi Aunt Mildred. What are you doing here?"
"Aunt Mildred?" Heather repeated, causing a round of laughter from the rest of the campers.
"That's enough!" Blaineley shouted. "You will all address me as Blaineley, or as Ms. O'Halloran."
Confessional: Sammy
"I never understood that stage name. Aunt Mildred doesn't have, like, any Irish heritage. I know 'Mildred Maddox' isn't a famous-sounding name, but still."
End confessional
"Where's Chris, anyway? Did he finally get fired after that stunt he pulled last episode?" Courtney interjected.
"No, Chris is at an award show, which he will be attending for the next week or so. In the meantime, I will be your host," Blaineley explained. "As I was saying, today's challenge is a game to test how well you know your teammates. I will read an embarrassing secret for one team, and everyone will have to hold up their dry erase board, with the name of the teammate they think the secret belongs to." As she said that, the interns passed out dry erase boards, markers, and erasers to the campers. "Oh, you may sit down on the bleachers."
The teams sat down, Team Survivor on one side, Team CIRRRRM on the other. "You will have ten seconds to write a name down on your dry erase board," Blaineley elaborated. "If the majority of the team guess right, you get a point. If not..." she trailed off as the interns placed the shock collars from the Truth or Scare challenge on the contestants' necks.
"Real original," Noah commented sarcastically.
"Is this entirely necessary?" Alejandro asked.
"Maybe not, but the viewers like it," Blaineley told him. "As well, if you guess wrong, the other team will get a chance to guess whose secret it is. If they guess right, they get the point. If not..."
"Yeah, we get the idea," Heather said bluntly.
"Most of the secrets belong to all of you. But we threw in a few of the eliminated campers' secrets to keep things interesting. Any questions?"
"What happens if two people have the same secret?" Beth asked.
"Good question," Blaineley admitted. "We tried to avoid that, but it could still happen. Which is why we brought back Clucky the chicken!"
The aforementioned fowl walked up to Blaineley. "If we accidentally assigned a secret to the wrong person, or two people have the same secret, they can take the lie detector chicken test to prove it." Tyler cringed.
"First team to ten wins. Any other questions? No? Good. Let's get things started. I'll give you each an easy one to start out with just to make sure that you get it. Team Survivor, which member does Jasmine have a crush on?"
The members of Team Survivor all quickly wrote down a name and turned over their boards. Every single one had written down "Shawn."
Every single one except Shawn himself, who was still trying to think of whether Jasmine had said she had a crush on someone. When he finally noticed his teammates' boards, he was surprised. "Wait, really?"
"Dude, even the Lightning noticed," Lightning told him.
"She isn't subtle about it," Sky concurred.
"You really didn't notice?" Zoey asked.
"And everyone on this island knew but me?" Shawn asked. Upon hearing all of his fellow campers say "YES" at once, he palmed his face. "Now I feel like an idiot."
"I don't think I even need to say 'that's correct,'" Blaineley said. "Team Chris, which member of your team was sent to juvenile hall for destruction of property?"
All of Team Chris's boards except for Scarlett's, Lindsay's, and Tyler's read "Scarlett." Scarlett had written "Scott," Tyler had written "Courtney," and Lindsay had written "Mick."
"Well, at least Lindsay is thinking outside the box," Blaineley noted. "But yes, it was Scarlett. Destroyed a rather expensive car with a crowbar. I think you get it, so let's start on the hard ones. Team Survivor, which member has a scar on his or her midsection that he or she is ashamed of?"
Confessional: Cameron
"Okay, whose midsections have I seen enough of to rule out? Based on challenges where we wore our swimsuits, I'm sure it's definitely one of the girls, because the remaining girls all wear one-piece swimsuits or wetsuits of some sort except for Sugar.
"Hey, don't look at me like that. I just have a good memory."
Confessional: Leshawna
"Who would have an embarrassing scar? Probably someone who thinks about their looks a lot."
Confessional: Zoey
"Is it even someone who hasn't been eliminated?"
End confessional
"Prepare your answers!" Blaineley said, forcing each of the contestants to quickly write something down. "Now, show your answers!"
Team Survivor turned over their dry erase boards. Geoff, Dawn, Cameron, and Noah had written down Bridgette's name. Sky and Alejandro had written down "Zoey," while Lightning and Duncan had guessed "Leshawna." Leshawna and Bridgette had written down "Sugar." Shawn had written "Dawn."
"It looks like the majority opinion on Team Survivor is that Bridgette is the one with the scar," Blaineley noted. "That is...correct!"
Bridgette lifted up her sweatshirt to show the scar. "I have some kind of protein intolerance, and that led to kidney surgery when I was a kid," she explained. "I know it's not really something to be ashamed of, but I really don't like looking at it."
"I did notice that you have low-protein meals specially made whenever Chef makes something that actually has protein in it," Cameron noted.
"Which isn't often," Noah shot at Chef. Chef growled at him.
Confessional: Sugar and Alejandro
Sugar looked at Alejandro, who was squeezed in the confessional with her. "Think Bridgette's gon' get voted out over her medical condition?"
Alejandro shook his head. "Considering that this is Episode 29 and Cameron's still here, I doubt it."
Sugar shrugged. "I guess."
End confessional
"It doesn't really hold me back. I just have to watch what I eat," Bridgette hand-waved.
"Well, that's 2 for Team Survivor, 1 for Team Chris. Team Chris, whose parents were once anti-vaxxers?" Blaineley asked.
Team Chris thought, and wrote names down. When they turned over their signs, it was fairly clear that the team wasn't really sure. Scott voted "Katie." Topher, Jasmine, and Katie voted "Dave." Heather and Dave voted "Scott." Courtney, Sammy, and Scarlett voted "B." Tyler voted "Jasmine." Beth, when prompted to reveal her answer, revealed that she hadn't even written down a name.
Lindsay voted "Roy." Blaineley looked at her. "I don't even know who you mean. There isn't anyone with a name anywhere close to Roy who was on this show."
"Oh," Lindsay said.
"Since we have a tie, Lindsay and Beth will vote again," Blaineley said. The two girls looked at their teammates uncertainly. Lindsay uncertainly wrote a large "B" on her board. Beth looked at her teammates again. She decided to vote "katie."
"Okay, Team Chris voted for B. That is...incorrect!" Blaineley held out a remote. "And you know what that means!" She pressed the button, shocking Team Chris.
Confessional: B
"I understand the idea. I'm mute, and that could be from an untreated childhood illness. Could be, but isn't; in reality it's the result of me swallowing a button cell battery. Half of my vocal chords were destroyed by it."
End confessional
"Okay, Team Survivor. Which member of Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Mean has parents who used to be anti-vaxxers?"
Team Survivor seemed equally unsure. Shawn wrote something down, and Lightning looked over his shoulder and copied his vote. Others thought, before eventually writing things down. They revealed their votes.
Shawn, Lightning, Bridgette, Leshawna, Sky, and Noah had voted "Scott." Cameron, Duncan, and Geoff voted "Dave." Dawn, Alejandro and Zoey voted "Beth." Sugar voted "Samey."
"Team Survivor votes Scott! And you know what that means!" Blaineley pressed the button to shock Team Survivor.
"What the heck? My parents aren't stupid enough to skip vaccinations!" Scott shouted, offended.
Leshawna shrugged. "You seem like you got some stupid white trash in yo' family." Scott sneered at her.
"So, was it Dave?" Duncan asked.
"No, it was me," Beth admitted. "They realized they were wrong when I was a few years old and a family friend's kid died of measles."
Confessional: Beth
"I was too young to remember. It was a sad story but not something life-changing."
End confessional
"Anyways, let's move on to our next question. Team Survivor, which member once got tazed by a famous person's security guards?"
Most of Team Survivor voted "Duncan." Duncan himself, along with Geoff, voted "Sugar."
"Incorrect!" Zap. "Team Chris?"
The majority vote on Team Chris was "Sugar." "Incorrect!" Zap.
"It was me," Lightning admitted. "The Lightning got tazed when he sha-punched Nick Cannon in his [bleep] stupid [bleep] face."
Confessional: Lightning
"And the Lightning ain't sorry either! Nick Cannon is a sha-[bleeeeeep]! Sha-nobody accuses Pops of takin' steroids! Nick Cannon, if you're watching, go sha-[bleeeeeeeeep] ya [bleeeeeeeeep] with a shovel!"
End confessional
"Woah. What did Nick Cannon ever do to you?" Blaineley asked. Then she decided, "Never mind, you can tell me later. Team Chris, which of you decided it would be a good idea to kick a skunk to get it away from you? And then couldn't get the smell out, so they had to go to a big school event smelling like skunk spray?"
The members of Team Chris looked at each other. When they voted, the campers allied with Scott voted for Tyler, as did Scarlett. The others voted for Scott.
"And Team Chris votes for Tyler. That is...correct!" Blaineley announced.
Confessional: Scarlett
"As much as I find Scott unpleasant, I doubt he would be stupid enough to kick a skunk. His cousin on the other hand..."
End confessional
"Team Survivor, which member had a childhood crush on Freakazoid?"
Team Survivor looked at each other. Then every single one of them seemed to instantly know the answer.
When Blaineley had them turn over their boards, every single one of them had written "Izzy."
"That is...correct!" Blaineley answered. "So now we're at Team Survivor two, Team Chris one. Let's give Team Chris a chance to even things up, shall we? Team Chris, who still sucks their thumb when they sleep?"
The members of Team Chris started writing their answers down. Scott looked over Sammy's shoulder and copied her answer. When they showed their answers, Sammy, Jasmine, Heather, B, Beth, and Scott had voted for Amy. Courtney, Scarlett, and Topher had voted for Max, and Lindsay had drawn a crude but recognizable picture of Max. Tyler hadn't written down anything, and Katie and Dave had voted for DJ.
"And Team Chris votes Amy! Bhat is...incorrect!" Blaineley announced, zapping Team Chris. "Team Survivor, which-"
"Um, Aunt Mildred," Sammy said, getting Blaineley to glare at her. "That actually is one of Amy's secrets."
"I'm pretty sure it isn't," Blaineley brushed her off. "Team Sur-"
"No, Samey's right," Heather said. "That's one of Lamey's secrets." Sammy looked at her, confused.
Confessional: Sammy
"Did she use my nickname so that her nickname for Amy would rhyme with mine?"
End confessional
Blaineley rolled her eyes. "Fine. If you want to take the test, fine. Clucky, get up here."
Clucky the chicken sat on Sammy's lap. Tyler, who was sitting near her, yelped and fell out of his seat.
"Amy sucks her thumb when she sleeps," Sammy told Clucky. Clucky stared at her intently for a few seconds, but confirmed that she was telling the truth.
"Huh. Amy told me that was one of your secrets," Blaineley said. "Point to Team Chris!"
"Amy has a habit of telling people her embarrassing secrets are actually mine," Sammy told her.
Blaineley shrugged. "Team Survivor, which member has a tendency to burp when around someone they have a crush on?"
Team Survivor's members looked at each other. Upon revealing their boards, the only one who had not written down "Sugar" was Sugar herself. Sugar had written, "Jeff."
"Incorrect!" Blaineley said as she pressed the button on the remote.
Team Chris then cast their votes. The majority, with no one else really in mind, voted for Geoff.
"Incorrect!" Blaineley declared, zapping Team Chris.
The members of Team Survivor looked at each other, but none spoke up.
Confessional: Sky
"I know most people have been sharing right now, but they don't need to know that secret."
End confessional
The episode showed a brief montage of Blaineley asking personal questions, shouting, "Incorrect!", and pressing the button on her remote. When it ended, both teams were looking a bit singed. A few correct answers had been found, and Team Survivor was leading with 4 to Team Chris's 3.
Blaineley looked annoyed. "We've been at this too long already, and you all are terrible at reacting to secrets in an entertaining manner. You know what? First team to five points wins. Team Survivor, which one of you fake-cried in order to get somebody else in trouble within the past six months?"
The members of Team Survivor looked contemplative.
Confessional: Noah
"That's a tough one. I would think most members of the team would at least have a bit too much dignity..."
Confessional: Cameron
"I wouldn't have put it past Justin, but at the same time, I'm not sure. He seems a bit too image-conscious. In a purely physical way, not a PR way. Tears don't look good."
Confessional: Alejandro
"All I know is it wasn't me. I doubt it was anyone already eliminated, because it doesn't seem to fit my read of them, but among the former Moose I might not be able to be sure..."
End confessional
The answer Team Survivor ended up giving was "Sugar."
"That...is...incorrect!" Blaineley declared, zapping them.
"Team Chris, if you steal this one, you'll have a chance to win on the next one," she continued. "Which member of Team Survivor, current, past, or would-have-been-were-they-still-here, fake-cried in order to get someone in trouble within the last six months?"
Heather huffed. "If I get zapped one more time..." she whispered to herself as she scanned Team Survivor's seating. Her gaze lingered on Alejandro briefly, but she dismissed him. However, she then noticed the person sitting behind him. "Wait, could it be...?"
Confessional: Heather
"I knew it couldn't have been Ale-lame-o. He's too prideful for that. And everyone else on that team just doesn't seem sneaky enough to try to get someone else in trouble by fake-crying. But maybe..."
End confessional
Heather quickly whispered to her teammates. "Dawn. It was Dawn. Back at the talent show."
"Wait, what?" Sammy whispered back, her fellow former Gophers looking similarly confused. "Dawn wouldn't..."
Confessional: Sammy
"Wait, is it possible Dawn might have actually tried to get Amy eliminated? She doesn't seem like she would, but..."
End confessional
Team Chris showed their boards. Heather had voted for Dawn. So had Dave, Scarlett, Lindsay (though she had spelled it "Don"), Tyler, Katie, Topher, Scott, and Courtney. B, Beth, and Jasmine voted for Justin. Sammy, unsure of what to write, had left hers blank.
"Team Chris votes Dawn! That...is...correct!" Blaineley shouted.
Team Survivor all stared at Dawn. "I know it sounds bad, but I promise I had a good reason!" Dawn defended. "I knew there was a chance we wouldn't lose the talent show, and if we didn't and someone else messed up, Amy might not have been the one to go home when we did lose. The Gophers were all hurt by her words, but no one else was going to be the first to admit it. In the interest of Sammy's mental health, Amy needed to be eliminated as soon as possible."
Nobody spoke for a second. Duncan was the first to respond. "She has a point. That girl was toxic. "
"I still think I shouldn'ta lost that talent show," Sugar then grumbled. "Lousy Chef, wouldn't know talent if it hit him right in his face."
Confessional: Alejandro
"While I certainly to Sammy's position, I do have to wonder if this means Dawn is capable of making more big moves. I'll have to keep my eyes on her."
End confessional
Blaineley gave Team Survivor an unimpressed look. "I have to say, I was expecting more of a reaction. Maybe surprise? Shock? Betrayal that someone who carried herself as being so nice would play so dirty?"
When Team Survivor mirrored her unimpressed look, she scowled. "Fine. Team Chris, this last question could be your chance to win this. Answer wrong, and you give Team Survivor two more chances to beat you."
"Quit dragging it out and ask already!" Courtney demanded.
"Okay. Team Chris, which member posts jazzercise tutorials online under the name 'MotionMoonKing?'"
Team Chris's members looked at each other. While the members looked like they had an idea of what the answer was, they didn't look completely sure. When they revealed their boards, they all read 'Beardo', except for Tyler, Topher, Scott, and Lindsay. Lindsay voted for 'Rick', Tyler, Scott, and Topher for DJ.
Blaineley paused, drawing out the suspense. "That...is...incorrect!
"Team Chris?"
Every member of Team Chris immediately voted for DJ.
Confessional: Noah
"All three of his roommates voted for him. I don't think that's a coincidence, especially given that the obvious person who might come up with the Paper Moon King reference is off the table. All I'm completely sure of, though, is that it isn't anyone still here. Scott's too poor, B's frame rules him out, Tyler isn't secure enough in his masculinity, Sierra would have said something if it was Topher, Dave is way too insecure in his masculinity, and if it was one of the girls, I'm sure Cody would have recognized her. I'm not completely sure, but my gut says DJ."
End confessional
"...Correct!" Blaineley declared. "Team Survivor wins! And for their prize, they get...a free five-year subscription to the Celebrity Manhunt magazine! This episode is brought to you by Celebrity Manhunt. All the latest gossip, straight to you."
Team Survivor jeered this. "Boo! Your reward stinks and so do you!"
"As for Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Mean, I will see you, at elimination."
After the challenge, Topher and Heather were talking. "So, we're agreed then? Two members of the enemy alliance first, then we ditch Scarlett?" Heather asked.
"Sounds like a plan," Topher agreed. They then went their separate ways.
As Topher was walking back to camp, Sammy saw him. "Hey, Topher!"
"Good afternoon, Sammy," he responded pleasantly. "How are you?"
"Could be worse, could be better," Sammy answered. "So, the rest of us were talking, and the others wanted me to ask you to vote out Scarlett with us."
Topher winced. "Sorry. I want to, really. But if I were to vote out Scarlett now, I would destroy my position in the game. Trust me, I have no intention of letting her reach the merge, let alone the finals. But I can't vote her out yet."
Sammy looked at him with an expression of disappointment. "I'm sorry about Brick," Topher said sincerely. "He's a good guy. He deserved better." Sammy simply nodded.
Elsewhere, Beth was confronting Heather. "Do you still want to be allies with Scarlett?"
"Not really," Heather admitted. "I might have considered being friends with her before what she did..."
Confessional: Heather
"Ha! As if. She's too competent and would have ended up being a threat later. Besides, I wouldn't be caught dead being friends with someone who thinks that hideous sweater-vest is a good fashion choice."
End confessional
"But now she's just a tool. In more than one sense of the word. I'm going to use her, then discard her," Heather finished.
"And let her have a chance to hurt someone else?" Beth asked.
"As if. If she hurts someone else on this show, she's not only getting eliminated, but also sent back to juvie," Heather said. "That was the condition for her not being disqualified."
"And you're not going to vote her out?"
Heather thought for a moment. "I might be convinced to vote out Scarlett tonight...if you were to align with me again."
"I'm going to vote for her anyway," Beth said. "Why do I need-oh. You mean permanently, right?"
"That's right," Heather confirmed. "Of course, trusting you would be a risky move for me. If you were to vote out Scarlett and then go back to the other alliance, that would be very bad for me. What guarantee can you give me that I can trust you not to do that?"
Beth thought long and hard. "I guess you're just going to have to trust me."
"And that's the problem. I don't trust you or anyone else here," Heather admitted. "I can be sure Dave and Topher won't betray me because they can't. If I go down they'll go down with me. But you have options now. And I can't trust you not to break our alliance because you already have."
"Wow, way to make me feel bad," Beth said. "I broke our alliance because you wanted to work with Scarlett and you wouldn't listen to me when I said I didn't want to!"
"And you were right," Heather conceded. "But let me tell you a little secret: I'm not a nice person. I'm not as bad as Scarlett, at least I hope not, but I want to win, and I don't care if that means I have to be ruthless. Would you stick by me if I decided the best plan for getting ahead was to arrange a breakup between an established couple? Or to blackmail someone into voting off a friend?"
Beth sighed. "No."
"Then you're just going to have to wait," Heather told her. "Two members of your alliance. No more. Then we ditch Scarlett."
At the gym, Alejandro and Sugar were talking while shooting hoops. "Welp, we won today," Sugar said.
"Si, we did. Though I can't say I was impressed with our prize," Alejandro concurred.
"Meh, maybe them magazines'll come in handy if'n we run outta toilet paper," Sugar shrugged, with Alejandro wincing at the thought. "So, what about-" She stopped talking when she noticed Alejandro walking towards the bleachers. Hiding underneath were Cameron and Noah, both missing their socks and shoes while Noah had lost his outer shirt and Cameron's chest was bare. "What...are you two doing?"
"Playing strip Yu-Gi-Oh," Cameron told him. "It's not as fun as I thought it would be."
"Well, no duh! Yer s'posed to play strip games against someone a' the opposite gender!" Sugar explained.
"We tried but no girls were interested," Noah said. "But we can't quit now. Our pride is on the line."
"My disappointment in you is immeasurable," Alejandro said. "It hurts to even be in the same vicinity as you right now." With that, he walked off, Sugar trailing behind him.
Once they were gone, Noah looked at Cameron. "They're hiding something."
Cameron nodded. "I agree. Do you think maybe they're secretly dating?"
"Ew! No!" Noah protested. "And there's no way. Alejandro is handsome, smart, and talented. Sugar is none of those things. No, they're planning something."
"An alliance," Cameron said. "Alejandro's the de facto team leader, so Sugar wants his influence. And Alejandro wants her to do his dirty work, so if they get caught she'll take the fall."
"Exactly. Only question is what to do about it."
Cameron thought for a moment. "Sugar we can remove if need be. Her skills set is unreliable, and Lightning has made his distaste for her quite clear. Alejandro will be a harder sell, but if we lean on the fact that he'll be a big threat come the merge, we might be able to get rid of him."
Confessional: Noah
"Okay, when did Cameron start being a schemer?"
End confessional
Alejandro and Sugar had a similar conversation as they walked. "I feel they weren't there for strip Yu-Gi-Oh," Alejandro told Sugar.
"You think they were spyin' on us?" Sugar questioned.
"It's possible," Alejandro told her. "I think we should deal with Cameron soon, just to be safe. Maybe he won't be next to go, but soon nonetheless."
Sugar pondered Alejandro's words. "Cameron's the one with the big forehead, right?"
Alejandro rolled his eyes. "No, that's Noah. Cameron's the one with the glasses."
Sugar then shook her head. "Then he's the fella who told me the diamond I found in that mine wa'n't real. I don't think he's plannin' to get us voted off, 'cause if he was, he'd 'a just let me quit right there."
Confessional: Sugar
"I still think we need to get rid a' Bridgette. The shrimps? They ain't no threat."
End confessional
"No luck," Beth told her allies. "Heather's not budging. Any of you found that immunity idol yet?"
"No," Courtney answered. "Stupid Chris, making them so impossible to find. How did Owen find one?"
"Never mind that," Jasmine dismissed. "We need to convince someone. Dave?"
"In Heather's pocket," Courtney shook her head.
"Katie, then?"
"Topher's minion."
"Lindsay?"
"She still trusts Scarlett."
"Well, that's rather stupid," Jasmine commented.
Scott snorted. "Tell me about it. Sometimes I think she doesn't even have a brain in her-" he cut himself off. "Wait, that's it! Sure, she may not vote for Scarlett willingly, but what if we tricked her?"
"How?" B typed into his text-to-speech device.
"We tell her that this time, the vote is for who you want to win! She'll probably vote for Tyler, and if we can get one more vote like that...is there anyone else supremely stupid allied with Scarlett?"
"Katie," Jasmine said. "Nothing going on up there."
"Then we tell her that too. That gives us six votes to Scarlett's five. But we have to make sure to tell them late enough that Scarlett and Topher can't tell them otherwise."
At the Campfire Ceremony, Blaineley was reminiscing about the day. "Today was a fun day, wasn't it? We had a fun challenge, plenty of good humor..."
"Today felt like it was months long," Heather snapped. "Just get on with it."
The interim hostess scowled at her. "I'm going to read the votes now," she said, opening the box that contained the votes.
"One vote for Scarlett.
"Another vote for Scarlett.
"One vote for Beth. That's two votes for Scarlett, one vote for Beth."
"Yes, we can count," Scott said. "Hurry it up."
Blaineley scowled at him. "A second vote for Beth. And another vote for Scarlett.
"One vote for Scarlett. One vote for Beth. And a fourth vote for Beth.
"One vote for Scarlett. Another vote for Scartlett. That's six votes Scarlett, four votes Beth. And don't interrupt me, or I'm sending you home instead of the loser.
"A fifth vote for Beth." At this, Beth was looking nervous. "Okay, moment of truth," she whispered to herself.
"A vote...for Betty. I'm going to assume that means Beth." The camera showed Beth and her allies visibly panicking.
Confessional: Lindsay
"Janet told me earlier that tonight we were voting for the winner. But something about that didn't seem right to me. Scarlett said earlier that we were voting for Betty, so I voted for her."
End confessional
"And the last vote is for...Sadie. It's a tie!"
"So, what do we do now?" Topher asked.
Blaineley shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't prepare a tiebreaker. Might as well have Katie vote again, but only be able to vote for Scarlett or Beth."
Katie looked at Scarlett and Beth. She thought long and hard, with no indication of what she was thinking.
Topher then decided to make it easier for her. He pointed to Beth and mouthed "Choose Beth." Katie nodded. "I choose...Beth."
Blaineley nodded. "Beth, you have been eliminated. Everyone else, come get your marshmallow."
Beth sighed. "Well, it was fun while it lasted. Goodbye, guys! I'll miss most of you!" She then boarded the Boat of Losers, and it sped away.
A/N: This chapter took way too long. It's just...I couldn't seem to find the motivation to write the challenge. The character interactions were easy, I'd been planning them for a while now. But the challenge itself seemed to defy all my attempts to work on it.
Thoughts on Beth: I like her, but I also don't like her in a sense. I do think she's charming in her own way, but at the same time she always felt like she was in someone else's shadow. I tried to change that up a bit by distancing her from Lindsay, but I don't really think it worked.
Next chapter...being realistic, expect it by Christmas.
Elimination order:
Dave, the Germaphobe (RETURNED)
52: Staci, the Compulsive Liar
51: Dakota, the Fame-Monger
Sugar, the Pageant Queen (RETURNED)
50: Amy, the Evil Twin
49: Leonard, the LARPer
48: Anne Maria, the Jersey Shore Reject
47: Izzy, the Psycho Hose Beast
46: Rodney, the Lovesick Farm Boy
45: Max, the Super-Villain Wannabe
Jo, the Take-No-Prisoners Jockette (RETURNED)
44: Ezekiel, the Homeschooled Guy
42 (Tie): Gwen, the Loner
(Tie): Dawn, the Moonchild (RETURNED)
42 (Tie): Eva, the Hothead
41: Ella, the Fairytale Princess
40: Justin, the Eye Candy
39: Cody, the Flirty Geek
37 (tie): Mike, the Thespian
37 (tie): Aiden, the OC Hate Sink
36: Sadie, the other BFFFL
35: Beardo, the Human Soundboard
34: Sam, the Gamer
33: Sierra, the Super-fan
32: DJ, the Brickhouse with Heart
31: Trent, the Musician
30: Jo, the Take-No-Prisoners Jockette
29: Harold, the Nerd with Mad Skillz
28: Owen, the Optimist
27: Brick, the Cadet
26: Beth, the Wannabe
