A/N Not much to say, enjoy!
Chapter Four:
Duncan kept his face perfectly calm. He stared straight ahead, making sure not to look at anyone.
This is fine. This is perfectly alright. I have no problem with what is happening right now. The events taking place do not bother me in the slightest.
He knew the cameras were rolling. What else could he do?
"Aw, Chris, you shouldn't have!" Duncan grinned at his host.
"Ah, but I did!"
Duncan turned to Gwen, who was sitting next to him.
"Sorry," he whispered. "I know you'll do great."
"Yeah, thanks," she smiled weakly.
Over on the Heroes team, Courtney was processing the news. Zoey was sitting next to her, while the guys were on the row below.
"Well, that's exciting," Zoey turned to Courtney with a smile.
Maybe for the better…
"Chris, are you kidding me!? How am I a villain!?"
"Well," Chris shrugged, "you used Sam as a human shield. And Duncan used himself as a human shield. So, it seemed fitting to swap you guys."
"Don't worry," Zoey reassured her. "I'm sure it'll be alright."
"Fine," Courtney sighed dramatically, ignoring Zoey completely. "I guess I'll switch."
"Good luck," Zoey smiled anyway as Courtney stood up to leave.
"Now," Chris returned to his announcements, "wasn't this an exciting episode? Anyways…" he droned on.
"Zoey," Courtney gripped her arm and whispered fiercely. "Listen to me."
What? What's going on?
"Yeah?" Zoey whispered back. "Are you ok?"
"Of course I'm ok," Courtney rolled her eyes. "Just, listen."
"What is it?"
"Just…" she seemed conflicted. "Look out, alright?"
"Uh, sure," Zoey was weirded out.
"And don't tell anyone I told you that, or I will lose. My. Shit. Ok?" She let go of Zoey's arm and stood up to leave.
"Wait," Zoey whispered frantically, "what am I looking out for? Courtney? Courtney!"
"Bye, guys," Courtney waved to her ex-teammates as she walked over to meet Duncan, who was waiting for her.
"Ah, Courtney," he smiled. "Going to the dark side?"
"Shut up, Hero," she grinned back.
"Oof. Dagger."
Zoey looked on at this exchange in concern.
Why would Courtney tell me that? What am I looking out for? Why did she have to be so vague…
"Hey, Zoey," Duncan took Courney's old spot.
"Oh, hi!" Zoey smiled at him. "Welcome to the team."
"It's an honor," he smiled sarcastically.
"And that's our show!" Chris kept talking. "This has been Total. Drama. All-stars! Ok, good work everyone. That's all for today."
The moment the cameras were off, Duncan dropped the smile from his face.
"Alright," Zoey stood up. "Anybody want dinner?"
"You guys go ahead," Duncan waved her off. "I'm gonna stay here for a bit."
"You're sure?" Zoey looked at him in concern.
"Yep."
"Do you want us to save you any food?"
"I… don't care. Sure."
He could feel Sam and Cameron staring at him. It seemed that Zoey did all of the talking for the guys on the team.
"Well, alright."
"Bye," Duncan waved.
I don't care if I'm making everyone here uncomfortable. They can deal with it.
The Heroes team shuffled towards the Spa Hotel. Duncan watched until they were out of sight.
"I knew he would be like that..." Cameron fidgeted with his hands.
"Like what?" Zoey pressed.
"You know… standoffish. Sort of… rude."
"Eh, maybe he's just annoyed to be on our team," Sam didn't particularly care.
As long as he has his video games, he never causes problems… Well, except for the fact that you can't talk to him.
She turned to her boyfriend.
He's been acting kind of weird the past few days… I'm sure he would tell me if it was something serious.
"What do you think?" She asked Mike.
"About what?" He asked with a note of suspicion in his voice.
"Duncan."
"What about him?"
"Just… what do you think?"
"I dunno," he crossed his arms. "I don't really know him."
"Well, I'm keeping my guard up. Between him and Sierra," Cameron shuddered when saying her name, "I have enough to worry about."
"Yeah man, what's with that?" Sam asked him.
"I don't know. I think she subconsciously believes that I'm Cody, and she's acting accordingly."
"Weird stuff, dude."
Back at the campfire, Duncan waited until both teams had left so nobody would overhear the conversation he was about to have. The only person left behind was Chris, who was taking a moment to read over some notes.
Perfect.
"So," Duncan caught his attention. "What gives?"
"Ah, Duncan, I didn't realize you were still there."
"Well," he stood up from the bleachers and walked towards his host. "I'm here."
"Well, how can I help you?"
"Oh, drop it. Why'd you do it? Did you have this planned from the beginning?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't pretend you don't know. Your stupid teamswap idea!"
"Ah, yes. I thought you'd get a kick out of that."
"What's your deal? Why pull a switch?"
"Everyone loves a red herring."
"Who's 'everyone?' It's only a red herring for me! You only got my hopes up! The audience has no idea what's going on! And you better not-"
"I know, I know, I won't say anything, I gave you my word."
Duncan nodded stoically.
"I just don't understand the purpose."
"Duncan," Chris shook his head. "You know the purpose. It's the only reason I do anything." He pat Duncan's shoulder. "Drama!"
"Did you have this planned from the first season of your stupid show?"
"Of course not. I can't plan that far ahead!" Chris smiled widely. "But we have detailed biographies on all of you. How could you expect me not to use them?" He tilted his head.
"I'm not giving you what you want."
"And what do I want?"
"Chaos. You want a massive fight to break out, yeah? Some sort of dramatic breakdown? I'm not doing it. I'm gonna get through this season, no drama, and then I'm gonna leave."
"Sure," Chris obviously wasn't convinced. "It's all up to you. You better head back soon, by the way. You don't want to keep your team waiting!"
"Fine," Duncan growled.
There's no point in arguing with Chris… Once he makes up his mind, it's over.
He began to walk back to the spa hotel, but Chris stopped him.
"Duncan?"
"Yeah?"
"You were always my favorite. You know that, right?"
"I…know. I know, Chris," Duncan stared at his feet.
"Good. Just making sure. Now, get out of here."
Duncan wasted no time leaving.
I'm not going back to that hotel… I need to clear my head for a bit. Strategize.
There was a place he had in mind. During his first season on the island, he found a small cave near the edge of a cliff. He often went there when he wanted to be away from the other contestants, which was most of the time.
Even though it's been two years since that first season, he remembered the culture shock when he first arrived.
My life seemed so different from everyone else's… Then again, I'm sure everyone thinks that about themselves.
He found the cave fairly quickly and sat on the cold ground.
I should've brought weed this time around… Stupid.
Duncan leaned his forehead against the rocks. The cool stone surface was a welcome difference from the humid air of the island.
What to do… Nothing, I guess. Put on a face. It's not even that much time to get through. Still doesn't mean I want to go back yet. I'll just stay here for a bit.
Back at the Spa Hotel, the Heroes were gathered around the kitchen table eating dinner.
"So great job today guys!" Zoey beamed.
"Thanks for keeping me afloat, everyone. I know I wasn't the most useful today!" Sam grinned. It was one of the rare times he wasn't using his GameGuy.
"Don't worry about it," Mike reassured him. "We all have our days."
"I hope Sierra's alright on Boney Island," Cameron stared at his plate.
"I'm sure she's fine," Mike dismissed his concerns. "She seems pretty tough."
"It's weird not having Courtney here," Zoey sighed. "I mean, it'll be different."
What was she trying to tell me earlier?
"She definitely took the game seriously," Mike agreed. "Maybe too seriously."
"Yeah, maybe it's for the better?" Sam offered. "She would do anything to win. She even used my face as a leech shield."
"Sorry about that," Mike winced.
Of course… she would do anything to win! I'm sure it's not above her to try and get into my head. She just said whatever she thought would throw me off. And I almost let her!
"She'll probably be happier on the other team," Zoey considered. "She has more friends there."
"It is kind of strange that the teams are split up by generations at this point…" Cameron pondered. "Scott's all alone over there. And I guess, if we don't count Sierra, because technically she only appeared in Season Three...we can deduce that Duncan is alone over here!" Cameron smiled as if he took pleasure in the fact. "He's outnumbered."
Why does he look happy? Aren't we supposed to be the nice team?
"Which is exactly why we need to be nice to him," Zoey nodded. "Right? Make him feel welcome?"
The sound of a door opening shocked the Heroes into silence.
"Um… hello?" Duncan called out.
"We're in the kitchen!" Zoey answered in a cheery voice.
Duncan rounded the corner to find all of his new teammates gathered around the kitchen table.
"Uh… what are you guys doing?"
Don't tell me this is a team dinner. I can't even imagine the Villains doing that.
"Just having a team meeting," Zoey smiled. "Want to join? We saved you some food!"
Why does he look so suspicious?
"Oh, sure," he took a few more steps into the kitchen.
Where should I sit? Let's see… there's options. Well, I don't want to raise suspicions, but that might make me look even more suspicious…
He took a seat between Sam and Zoey.
"So, you guys always do this?" He asked.
"Yep!" Zoey smiled.
"Oh Christ, we would never do that on my old team. Everyone hates each other over there. Like, just severe fighting every night. It was kind of great, though."
"I see," Zoey stared at him.
He's like a bull in a china shop… No, that's mean. He's just a loud guy. Very expressive. The life of the party, maybe.
"Why is it great?" Cameron looked scared to speak.
"Hmm?" Duncan tilted his head. "What's great?"
"The fighting… on the Villains… you said it was great?" Cameron barely got the words out.
"Oh, yeah!" Duncan smiled.
Why do all of these people look terrified? I'm not that scary… And I'm really turning on the charm right now.
"Well, Cameron, you gotta understand," Duncan continued his explanation. "It's not that… Hmm, I guess I don't know how to explain it. I've known the other contestants for two years at this point, yeah? So it's just kind of how we roll. It would be weird if there was no fighting."
"So… it's what you're used to?" Sam tried to understand, although he also appeared uncomfortable.
Him too! What's the deal?
None of them looked worse than Mike, who seemed like he was about to pass out while at the same time desperately trying to hold it together.
"Yup! It's just what I know," Duncan agreed with Sam's observation. "But this place seems totally different."
"Are you alright?" Zoey whispered to Mike, who was on her other side.
He just nodded.
"Yup… just tired. It was a long day."
Duncan picked up on their whispering instantly.
Maybe he said something… Only one way to find out!
"So," Duncan cleared his throat. "Why do you all look totally freaked out?"
"What do you mean?" Cameron whispered.
"Cameron, you haven't stopped staring at me since I walked in here. You too, Sam. What's up?"
Zoey ran a few fingers through her pigtails.
I knew they couldn't be subtle…
"Well," Zoey bit the bullet and spoke on behalf of the team. "I think, maybe, that your reputation precedes you." She tried to choose her words carefully.
That sounded so dumb…I'm mortified. 'Your reputation precedes you?' I sound like Dracula or something…
Thankfully, Duncan just smiled back at her.
"My reputation?" He asked in mock-disbelief. "Please, do tell."
Zoey just stared at him.
I can't be mean. He's gonna think I'm such a jerk.
"Fine," Duncan shrugged. "Cameron, you tell me."
At this rate, they're all gonna vote me off for being the outsider. Maybe that wouldn't be so bad. But I'm sure Chris will keep me around for a while… So it's just gonna be awkward. More awkward than it already is, if that's even possible. I can't believe Zoey is handling this better than the rest of the team. I expected her to treat me like shit.
"Uh, well, um," Cameron floundered for words. "You pierced your face."
"What?" Zoey turned to her friend in disbelief. "Cameron…Seriously?"
"I'm sorry, I panicked," Cameron whimpered. "It was the first thing I thought of."
Somehow, Duncan found that funny.
"That's what the panic is over?" He raised a pierced eyebrow.
I guess he really is sheltered…All of them seem easily-impressed, actually. Guess I'll win over some points.
"Look, guys, I'm an open book," Duncan reassured his team.
And that's a complete lie. But, whatever.
"We're supposed to be a team, yeah?" He continued. "So, we have to trust each other, yes?"
Zoey appeared delighted by that response.
"Exactly!" She beamed.
I knew he wasn't a bad guy. Different doesn't mean bad.
"So," Duncan added, "ask me whatever you want. I don't want to be the odd man out, yeah?"
Maybe she's being so nice because she's embarrassed… She's overcompensating or something.
"Cameron," Duncan kept talking. "You wanted to know…"
"Why did you do all those piercings?" Cameron was engrossed.
"Oh. Because it's hot," he shrugged.
"What? How?" Cameron was baffled.
"It's for the aesthetic."
Zoey was just happy that Duncan gave a real answer.
I mean… piercings DO make people more attractive. It's just a fact.
"Is that why you dyed your hair?" Cameron inquired, trying to grasp the situation.
"Exactly. I just like how it looks. Nothing else to it."
"Oh! That's why I dyed mine," Zoey jumped in, eager to join the conversation before it could derail.
"You dye your hair?" Sam looked at her in complete confusion.
"I- yes, Sam. It's not actually neon red."
"Oh. I guess that makes sense…"
"Did you do it yourself?" Duncan asked her.
May as well try to be nice…
"Yup! Ah, I just used some cheap dye from somewhere."
"Impressive," Duncan noted. "I couldn't even tell."
"Ah, thank you," she looked down and smiled.
"Aren't you worried about finding a job?" Cameron interrupted. "Because I think red isn't too offensive, but green?"
"Christmas colors…" Zoey mumbled.
"Nah," Duncan dismissed his concerns. "Nobody gives a shit in art. Also, I had a job. I worked at Subway for like, two years."
"Wait, what?" Zoey was amazed by such a prospect.
"Yup, swear to God."
"How was it?"
"Fine. I mean, it was terrible for the most part because old people would give me shit about their order. Also, we were always understaffed, and everyone who worked there was on drugs. But I think that actually made it better? Anyways, I needed the money. Everyone should work a shitty part-time job, I think."
"Weren't you a waiter somewhere?" Zoey asked her boyfriend.
"Oh God, when I worked at Applebees? That place was a mess. I was a busser, then I was a waiter. I don't know. It was fine, I guess…"
"At least they tipped you," Cameron offered. "I bet Subway didn't do that."
"Oh, Subway didn't tip us."
"But at least they hired you, with your record and all."
Zoey bit her lip.
Great, I knew Cam would bring that up… No, it would come up either way. But, I wonder if Duncan would be mad if we asked about it. I have to admit, I'm curious.
"Oh, yeah!" Sam suddenly remembered. "What was juvie like?"
Thankfully, Duncan didn't seem too upset.
I should've figured they'd ask that…
"You really want to know?"
"Personally, I do," Zoey spoke up. "If you don't mind, of course. It's just that I've never known anybody who's gone, so I'm just curious."
"...Wha-"
"Yeah, me either," Mike spoke unprompted for the first time all night. "I'd like to know too."
Duncan held his eye contact for a brief moment.
…I see.
"Well, um, it wasn't that bad," Duncan tried to recover. "The food was terrible, I'm sure you were wondering. There were fights. I never got roughed up too bad… The showers were freezing. We didn't have electronics."
He could hear Sam lightly gasp at that last part.
"We kind of had school. Like, I don't think anyone learned anything, but we had to do these packets. I didn't have to repeat the year, somehow. But let's say I'm not winning any Nobel Prizes. And that's pretty much it. Overall, it was uneventful."
Now, please don't ask anything else. No need to look further.
"What did you do? Like, what did they arrest you for?" Cameron was mesmerized.
"I killed somebody."
"Really?"
"No. Of course not. You think they would let me on this show if I did that?"
"Oh. Right."
"But I'm not gonna tell you what I did. All that matters is that I won't do it again."
...Hopefully.
"I think this is the longest I've gone without my GameGuy this season," Sam said out of nowhere.
"Fine, go get it," Zoey sighed. "Also, Duncan, we saved you some dinner." She walked over to the counter and grabbed a plate of food.
"Oh, thanks," he took it from her as Sam left the room.
Does she decide when Sam can use his GameGuy? That was really weird…
He looked at the food to see if it was something he could stomach. Rice, green beans, grilled chicken. He took a fork and dug it into the rice.
"So, where ya from?" She asked while watching him eat.
"Nova Scotia…" he answered after swallowing.
"Oh! Mike's from there," she smiled. "I'm sure you knew that."
If only he wasn't being so quiet…
"Ah, yes," Duncan smiled. "Of course. 'Canada's Ocean Playground.'"
"How could I forget?" Mike trailed off.
"It's gotta be better than where I'm from," Zoey propped her head up with her hands. "Tiny town in Saskatchewan. I always thought it'd be cool to live near the ocean."
"Well, I guess the grass is always greener," Cameron suggested. "I like small towns. Feels cozier."
"Oh my God!" Sam shrieked from the other room. "No, no, no!"
"Sam!" Zoey stood up from her seat instantly. "Are you alright?"
Sam stumbled into the room, holding a mess of mangled wires.
"Who...who…" he was struggling to breathe.
"Sam, calm down!" Cameron stood up. "What's wrong?"
"Someone broke my GameGuy!" Sam held up the battered device.
"What?" Zoey looked shocked. "Who could've done this?"
God, I hope it wasn't Duncan…
Apparently, Sam had the same idea.
"You!" He turned on Duncan, who quickly got up from his seat. "You did this, didn't you?"
"Seriously? I wasn't even here."
"No, no, I know what's going on. You joined this team to create chaos!"
Cameron watched the exchange in fear, not daring to speak.
"Dude, you're being dramatic. I was with Chris, then I came here. You think I snuck into your room?"
"Duncan's right," Zoey stood up for him. "He wasn't here, there's no way he could have broken your GameGuy. It must have been someone else."
Great, his first night here and everyone's already turning against each other.
"Sorry to ask, but why exactly is this thing so important?" Duncan asked.
Sam whirled on him again.
"You're fucking joking, right? You can't keep a gamer from his GameGuy! You just can't!"
"Ok! Sorry, I didn't know."
Oh, cringe cringe cringe…
"Sam, don't worry. I'm sure we'll find out who did this," Mike tried to reassure him.
"I just don't know what I'm gonna do…" he sniffled.
"We'll figure something out," Zoey nodded.
"I can't believe someone has it out for him," Cameron rubbed his hands together nervously.
"Well, we don't know that," Zoey tried to stop the situation from escalating. "It probably wasn't personal."
Honestly, at least he won't spend all of his time online… It's still terrible, of course.
"Maybe we should call it a night?" Mike offered.
"I think that's a good idea," Zoey nodded slowly. "We still have a challenge tomorrow."
"Let's go, Sam," Cameron gently led him away from the kitchen and towards the guy's bedroom.
Duncan looked down at his plate. He really hadn't eaten much.
Zoey picked up on it.
"Stay here for a bit. Finish eating."
"Ah, sure," he poked at the grilled chicken with his fork.
No way.
"Well, that was crazy," Mike was standing next to his girlfriend.
"I know," she sighed. "Well, you know how he gets."
"Apparently so," he grinned. "Good night, I guess." He kissed her quickly.
"Good night," she blushed.
Duncan was still staring adamantly at his plate by the time Mike had completely left the room.
Grilled chicken, I'm sure it's not even cooked. Salmonella hiding inside a hunk of raw meat as it rots in the open air… Rice, green beans. That's fine.
"Sorry for the chaos," Zoey sat back down.
I hope he doesn't mind if I sit here with him… I just don't feel like going back to that empty bedroom. Without Courtney and Sierra, I'm totally alone.
"Nah, it's nothing," Duncan ate a forkful of green beans.
"And um, I'm sorry that Sam accused you of breaking it."
Is it wrong to bring it up? Maybe I shouldn't have said anything-
"Don't worry 'bout it. Like you said…'my reputation precedes me.'"
"I didn't mean it like that-"
"Zoey, it's alright. Seriously. At least you were brave enough to say what you were thinking. Not many people are," he reassured her.
She really gets nervous about everything, huh?
"Well… alright, then."
I have to stop being so nervous about everything…
"And besides, we both didn't know."
"Didn't know what?"
He looked up and smiled.
"You can't… take a gamer away… from-"
"Oh God, don't finish that sentence. It's too embarrassing."
"Ah, so you picked up on that too."
"Unfortunately."
Wait, that might sound mean…
"That's to say," she continued, "Sam's a great guy, but-"
"No he isn't."
Get real, Zoey.
"...What?"
"C'mon now. Sam's not a great guy. He's always on his GameGuy, that has to get annoying."
"I mean… I don't know."
Is he trying to trick me into saying something mean?
"Aw, you can say it. I won't tell anyone. Nobody would believe me, anyways."
Zoey considered the notion.
He does have a point…
"I mean… well… I guess the fact that he is always on his GameGuy can get a little annoying."
"I can't believe you just said that."
"Wait, no, I take it back," Zoey panicked.
"Nah, I'm just fucking with you. He's the worst."
"Oh… oh!" She laughed. "You really had me there."
"Sorry if I scared you," he ate a forkful of rice.
She's not so bad…
"In your dreams."
I knew he wasn't a bad guy…
"So, you said you do art? Is that how you say it? I never know…"
"Yup. I'll show you sometime, if you want."
"Yeah! That'd be great," she jumped at the opportunity to form a friendship with her teammate.
"Not tonight, though," he put down his fork and picked up his plate. "The madness has to end somewhere."
"Of course… are you not eating that chicken?"
"Hmm?"
Shit.
"Ah, no," he continued. "To be honest… I don't completely trust the meat here. I can't imagine Chris following health and safety standards."
"Hmm, smart thinking," she didn't press any further.
He tipped the remaining contents of the plate into the garbage disposal.
"So, good night?" She offered.
"Yeah, good night," he put the plate and fork on the counter.
"See you tomorrow," she watched as he left the room.
"Yep. See ya," he vanished from her sight, leaving her alone.
She considered sitting at the kitchen table, but there was really nothing for her to do there, so she figures it was time to brave her empty bedroom.
I hope we can hang out more. He's a nice change of pace from the usual members on the team. Now, if only Mike would stop being so weirdly quiet… I'll have to talk to him. Figure out what's wrong. I know he won't tell me otherwise, he hates talking about that type of stuff…
In the guy's bedroom, everybody else was already in bed by the time Duncan stepped inside. He wasn't sure if anybody was actually asleep, but nobody said anything to him, so he figured nobody wanted to talk.
Eh, that's for the better. I'm done for tonight.
He climbed into bed and stared at the ceiling.
This is weird, but I kind of like her. There's no one else on this team I can even talk to, anyways. Then again, I can't let my guard down… God, I actually feel kind of bad for her. What's that about? It doesn't even matter.