Chapter 24
MISSY
“Team Amber, seeing as you have come in first place tonight, you’ll be sleeping in the Beachside Bungalow,” Niall says as he stands in front of the final three teams, a nearby camera focused on him.
Colton, Niall, Teams Amber and Fuchsia, and I all occupy a single wooden platform just beyond today’s finish line; it’s situated several paces away from an unfamiliar but stunning beach.
Niall motions to Bill and Maria then extends his arm toward a short trail that leads to the cutest bungalow I’ve ever laid eyes on.
It’s a single-story building with pristine white walls, light-blue trim, and topped with a straw roof.
The inside glows with a soft light, and though I don’t see it, I know there’ve got to be beds in there with memory foam mattresses and down-feather pillows.
Who am I kidding? Of course there are. The place even has a front pergola that extends onto the beach and is equipped with a fan, light-blue loungers, and is surrounded by sheer white curtains that blow in the coastal breeze.
One of the nearby staff members steps toward Bill and Maria, ready to guide them down the trail.
Maria reaches for my hand, giving it a quick squeeze before letting go.
I give her a double thumbs-up, happy for my friend as she and Bill step off the platform and toward their little dreamboat of a bungalow.
“And now for our second place team.” Niall emphasizes the words second place as if all of us aren’t already swimming in the tension and anger radiating from Legend and Silver.
After Colton and I broke ourselves free from our net using the pocketknife, we’d grabbed our paddles and the teal saw from its tree and bolted for today’s finish line, getting to the beachside checkpoint just as the low sun bathed the island in a luminescent glow, turning the waves a shimmery gold.
We’d arrived to find Maria and Bill already past the coral finish line and standing on the platform next to Niall.
But Legend and Silver were stuck on the opposite side of the coral line, crouched on the ground, frantically rummaging through their backpacks for something they believed to be there—all the while, Simon, my favorite burly staff member, stood above them with folded arms and a steely expression, blocking them from crossing the finish line until they provided their three items.
Just then, everyone had stopped what they were doing to watch as Colton and I darted out of the woods with our paddles, saw, and two coils of rope in hand. Without losing momentum, we’d leaped over today’s finish line and rushed onto the platform, taking our place next to Niall and Team Amber.
The look on Legend and Silver’s faces when they’d realized we had their rope and pocketknife was the greatest reward of this game yet. Karma, sweet karma.
After Silver had a big ole hissy fit, Colton and I tossed Team Fuchsia their rope, allowing them to cross the coral line and take third place. And, surprise of all surprises, they didn’t so much as give us a thank-you.
With Team Amber walking to their bungalow, I eagerly wait for Niall to reveal where Colton and I will be staying for the night while also ignoring the beady little serpent stares from Legend and Silver.
“Team Teal,” Niall starts, and my stomach buzzes with anticipation. “After coming in second, you will be staying in the Bunk Hut.”
The Bunk Hut? My mind instantly fills with a dozen images of what it will look like.
Will it be clean and cute like Bill and Maria’s bungalow, or will it be as unappealing as its name sounds?
I can only hope that, despite what it sounds like, it promises a good night’s sleep—and if it happens to have some cute decorative pillows, I wouldn’t mind.
Spoiler alert: there are no decorative pillows.
“This is the Bunk Hut?” I turn to Simon, confirming that what Colton and I stand in front of is indeed the “prize” for coming in second place.
But, true to form, Simon doesn’t answer.
With a minuscule tip of his head, Simon turns and starts back up the trail he just led us down to get here, but my eyes don’t miss the familiar woven palm fan he plucks out of his back pocket before fanning his face and whistling a tune.
I swivel back toward Colton and, by default, the Bunk Hut. “So, this is the second-place accommodation.”
Colton assesses the sparse structure, hands on his hips. “They really pulled out all the stops for us.”
“Five-star hotel? Forget it, it’s clearly a six. Constructed of the most high-end dilapidated wood this jungle can boast,” I deadpan.
Colton chuckles.
Once more, I assess our Bunk Hut with its four support beams and peaked roof. It looks more like a pavilion than a hut. Against the structure’s only wall is a rusty iron bunk bed that stands atop a slab of gray-and-brown flooring. “I mean, nothing says home sweet home like stained concrete.”
Colton strokes the scruff of his beard and tilts his head. “And the way that only one side of the hut has a wall really gives it that open-concept feel.”
“And to top it all off, it’s beachfront property.”
Colton smirks conspiratorially before extending his hand, palm up to me. “What do you think, Missy Jean? Will it do?”
“I can’t imagine anything better.” I slide my hand into his, and fire shoots up my arm. Since our kiss last night, we haven’t exactly had time to talk about it, or even to attempt it again. I mean, if he wants to kiss me again. I mean, what if he doesn’t want to kiss me again?
My budding fears are quickly snuffed out when Colton shifts his hand out of our mitten-style handhold and weaves his fingers between mine. Oh, good gracious. It’s just a simple movement, and yet I feel like I’ve welcomed a thousand lightning bugs into my body. What is this boy doing to me?
Hand in hand, we step toward the Bunk Hut.
I’m almost afraid that if I get too close, it might collapse on me, but then I remember I’m on a multimillion-dollar TV show that would get sued out of their boots if anything collapsed on a contestant.
Then again, maybe not. Considering the liability waivers I’d signed before the show, I’d likely be the one sued if anything happened to me.
“I bet money you two won’t last the night.” Legend’s voice comes out of seemingly nowhere, taking me by surprise.
Colton and I pivot to find Legend and Silver walking past us on the dirt trail next to the Bunk Hut. They trudge behind their coral-shirted staff member as if they are cattle being herded off to the slaughter and not to their night’s accommodations.
Silver eyes us as if we’re two knock-off Prada bags, disgusted that we dare exist in her presence, but thankfully, she keeps walking by. And though I don’t love how Silver’s sour mood makes the sky above me feel a little darker, it’s Legend’s lethal stare that makes me squirm.
“It’s the privileged getting more privilege.” Legend shakes his head before following his sister down the trail, disappearing from sight.
The glowing fireflies inside of me swarm away, taking their light with them, and I’m surprised at the feeling, or rather the thought, that takes their place.
I am just like Legend. All this time, he’s had Colton and I pegged as some aristocratic, silver-spooned players just because Colton has a famous dad and I’m a former pageant queen.
He’s unwilling to look past the top layer.
It is infuriating having someone judge you, even when they don’t truly know you.
Yet, isn’t that what I’ve done to Colton ever since I met him?
To me, he had everything—the influential family, the money, parents who cared for him. It was an unfair advantage. One I had blamed him for. I’d never even tried to dig deeper. What would have happened if I hadn’t been so prideful and jealous for all these years?
Colton casually walks into our hut and pulls his backpack off his shoulder, tossing it onto the ground.
Legend’s comment seems to have rolled off Colton like water off a duck’s back, likely the result of fielding years of comments just like that, except from my very own mouth.
Colton catches my eye, flashing me a warm smile.
I smile back, this time with a promise to see him better. To see people better.
The next two hours are filled with the monotony of keeping us fueled and functional for the final day of Sunsets and Sabotage while, at the same time, we race against the sinking sun that’s ready to strand us in darkness.
We both walk into the ocean, fully clothed, scrubbing off the layers of dried mud that have clung to us ever since we dug for the paddles in the mud pits; then Colton and I split up to divide and conquer.
He searches for wood and builds a fire just outside of the Bunk Hut while I scour the jungle for fruit.
I eventually make it back to our fire with a papaya and a coconut, and Colton and I consume our meager dinner on slabs of tree bark before getting ready for bed.
Now that the sun has gone and the stars have assumed their place in the sky, I retrieve our flashlight.
We take turns shining the light on each other as we both remove our lapel cameras and mics like we do every night before bed.
However, this time, there are no ledges on the sides of our beds to put them on, so we place the equipment on top of our backpacks that lie slumped on the floor.
I feel a sense of relief knowing that my mic won’t be resting next to me tonight, picking up every snore that comes from my mouth.
Looking as exhausted as I feel, Colton climbs up the narrow iron bunk bed with the flashlight in hand. When he gets to the top, he tosses me the flashlight, and I quickly get tucked into bed. Then I try to sleep.
But it’s not long before I hear the springs of the bed above me squeak, marking Colton’s restless movements.
“Can’t sleep?” I ask, already aware of the answer.
“Nope,” he groans.
Poor guy sounds miserable.