Chapter 8.
Wyatt stands there feeling starstruck and dumbstruck at the same time. The MrBeast he’s grown up watching on screen is standing right here in front of him.
“You know who I am?”
Jimmy’s grin softens. “I do. I know some of you. Names, faces. And I’ve been given the basics on the rest. I know you too, Jack. And Alek, I appreciate you choosing to be here despite your circumstances.”
“Thank you,” Alek says.
“So wait . . . what . . .” Wyatt stammers. “What are you doing here?”
Jimmy glances out at the tents, at the guards, at the cameras that absolutely weren’t supposed to be here. For a heartbeat, he looks serious.
“Well, let’s see,” Jimmy says, choosing his words. “Since they asked me to be the one to invite you,” he says, “I kind of felt like I should show up for the first day of orientation and say hi.”
“Orientation,” Alek says with a dry edge.
“It does feel like the first day of school,” Jimmy says.
“Or boot camp,” Jack says. He doesn’t bother hiding the suspicion. “You gonna explain what’s actually happening?”
“Not everything,” Jimmy shrugs. “I’m happy to tell you what I’ve been told, but obviously I don’t know what I don’t know.”
“How about some highlights?” Alek asks.
Jimmy nods once. “I tried to give you those in the letter I sent to all of you. Without trying to sound like some philosopher—which, believe me, I’m not—I really am convinced that if this competition plays out the way I hope it will, this can be the first day of better days.
For a lot of people who don’t usually get better days.
I wouldn’t have put my name on it if I didn’t think it mattered. ”
Wyatt knows a lot about Jimmy. Wyatt watches him and thinks, He looks young enough to be in the crowd.
“You really believe someone my age can be the leader you described?” Wyatt asks. “Or Alek. Or Hannah.”
“Don’t sell yourself short,” Jimmy says enthusiastically. “I’m not all that much older than some of you. There’s no age limit to being someone who tries to do the right thing.”
Wyatt hears the words and feels his stomach tighten. “Not sure about my leadership capabilities, not gonna lie,” he says.
“It’s no accident you’re here. The same goes for Jack. And Alek.” Jimmy looks at each of them.
“Hope you’re right,” Wyatt says, wondering just how much Jimmy Donaldson knows about him.
Rupert Chadwick, the fourteen-year-old from England, joins the group. Wyatt had hung out with him a little the day before. Already he feels this kid is old and wise beyond his years. The way Hannah Wagner is.
“So this is all your idea?” Rupert asks, eyes fixed on Jimmy.
“I was asked to come up with a concept, amp up some challenges, look for some specific dynamics,” Jimmy says. “By people with a big vision for a better future. A better world. That reeled me in.”
“Something else you said in the letter,” Alek says. “You told us to trust you.”
“I meant it. I mean it even more now that I’m meeting you guys,” Jimmy says. “I’m not going to pretend I can control everything here. But I can promise you this: I’m going to do what I can to keep it honest.”
“Then what’s with the cameras?” Alek asks. “In your letter, you said—”
“Nothing goes public. No live-stream. No uploads. They’re for internal monitoring only—security. It’s important everyone is safe. At least, that’s the line I was sold.”
Jack notices. “Well, that’s not the most comforting.”
“To be brutally honest, I just asked about them too,” Jimmy replies thoughtfully. “They were a surprise to me. And, when it comes to important things, I’m not a big fan of surprises.”
They hear a crackling sound from the loudspeakers situated around the field, followed by a man’s voice. The voice that follows is too smooth. Too steady. Like it could go all night without breathing.
“May I have your attention please?”
“Who’s that?” Alek asks, shoulders tense.
“Your Host,” Jimmy says.
“Time for your first tests,” The Host says through the speakers. “And for the games to begin. Remember: You are being evaluated in ways you won’t perceive. We watch your wristbands. We know who freezes first.”
Wyatt can’t help himself. He’s willing to put his voice to the nerves they’re clearly all feeling at the moment.
“What tests?” he yells out.
“The red tents, of course, Mr. Jordan,” The Host says.
Wyatt turns to ask Jimmy what that means.
But Jimmy is gone.
Steven Noble