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Twenty-four contestants compete for one million dollars as they eliminated one by one. |
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Note: Before we start our story I just have something to say. I originally had an account to Writing.com, but lost the username to it. A couple months later I figured I'd try out a new one and I put the first chapter here up as a static item. But then I was sent an email with a coupon for the old account which mentioned the username so I took it, deleted the new one, and am putting this in book format. It was up for like a day so I don't think too many people saw it, but I just wanted to put that out there so no one thinks I'm stealing or anything. And with that, on with the show! A Competitive Community Episode 1 Part 1: Let Us Entertain You “Lights . . . camera . . . Action!” Warren Grasten heard his cue and began his introduction. “Hello there, folks,” he said into the microphone with a warm smile. “My name is Warren Grasten and I’m your host for the program. Welcome to the premiere episode of ‘A Competitive Community.’” Feeling happy with the initial introduction, Warren moved away from the large, golden gates he was standing in front of and began explaining the format of the contest. “Here’s how our show works, ladies and gentleman,” he said, keeping a relaxed gaze on the camera. “Opportunity is the name of the game. Reginald Grevner, our series creator, spent years climbing the ladder of success in the television business, says he got to where he is today because of opportunities he managed to secure. Now,” said Warren, waiting a second for dramatic effect, “he wants to give some opportunity back.” “Twenty-four contestants, aged eighteen to twenty, have been selected from over five thousand auditions online at our website, acompetitivecommunity.com. Here on Mr. Grevner’s grand estate,” he said, gesturing at the large mansion and its acreage behind the large gates he was standing in front of, “they will be split into two teams to compete against each other in a series of challenges, which will test them athletically, mentally, and how well they can work as a team. For the winners of each challenge, they will receive a reward of some kind, usually in the form of some amenity or privilege.” Warren made sure to have his best smile on while explaining that. “But for the losers,” he said slowly with a frown, “it means one of them will be leaving the competition later that day, be it via the team voting off one of their own or our panel of three judges, who will be introduced later on, determining who should be eliminated. Once we reach the halfway point with twelve contestants left, the merge shall commence and everybody will be on their own.” “For the winner,” Warren said, a new grin spreading across his face, “the grand prize is 1,000,000 dollars in cash. The runner-up will receive 100,000 dollars, the third place semifinalist wins 10,000 dollars and the fourth place quarterfinalist wins 1,000 dollars. Everyone else will unfortunately walk away with nothing but their memories.” The host then took a little breath, partly to let the information sink in, partly because he needed one. “But enough rules for now, ladies and gentleman, let’s meet our contestants!” Warren said, switching back to a cheerful tone. “They’ll each be arriving separately in limousines, sent to pick them up for the last leg of their trip to here. Already, they’re getting a taste of the good life. Oh, here comes the first one now!” A simple black limousine drove up near the gates. Once it stopped, a young man stepped out of the back seat and it drove off. He looked Caucasian, mid- to above-average height, and wore a simple black jacket over a red shirt with regular blue jeans. As the young man ran a hand through his short chestnut-brown hair that parted in the middle, he held out the other to give the host a handshake. “Leon, Leon, congrats on being the first to arrive!” exclaimed Warren giving him a firm handshake all the while. “Thanks, I plan on being the last one to leave as well!” replied Leon smoothly, giving a small chuckle. “Seriously though, can’t wait to meet the other players, unless they just want to give up now! Kidding of course.” “Ah, well, you won’t have to wait long, here comes the next limo,” said Warren, pointing down the road. The camera panned to where he was pointing to see the next limo stop and the next contestant emerge. A young lady with skin the color of cinnamon and wavy shoulder-length hair as dark as licorice stepped out, wearing a simple sundress with a watermelon green skirt and pink top. “Hello hello!” the girl said cheerfully with a bright smile and wide brown eyes. “I’m Vivi and can I just say I am so happy to be here and that I hope I’m here for a while. This is like a dream come true! Ah, I’m so excited!” “Whoa, calm down there!” said Warren, laughing. “I’m Warren, your host.” “I’m Leon, your competitor,” said Leon, giving her a handshake. “Great to meet both of you!” replied Vivi, still smiling. “Oh, looks like the next contestant’s here already.” From the third limousine came a calm looking fellow. He had matted dark hair, a fairly tanned complexion, calm blue eyes, and was dressed as if he were just hanging with some friends on a Saturday. “Hey everyone, I’m Ben,” he said smoothly, giving a general hand wave. “Well, you sound pretty relaxed there, Ben,” said Warren a little surprised. “Yeah, aren’t you excited?” asked Vivi. “I mean, we’re on national television, we’re competing to win half a million dollars, and I’m sure there’s gonna be lots of cute boys competing!” Realizing what she just said, Vivi started backpedalling. “Well, uh, I guess you wouldn’t care about that last part but I’m sure they’ll be a few girls you’ll like. Don’t worry; I’ll put in a good word for you.” Ben couldn’t help but smile at Vivi tripping over herself as he put his hands in the pockets of his light brown jacket and shrugged. “I’m pretty quiet most of the time,” he explained. “Don’t get me wrong though, I do want to be here and I did come to win.” “That’s what I like to hear!” a voice from behind exclaimed. All heads turned to see the fourth contestant had arrived. A young man with a stocky build, very light blond hair cut short, and a very wide smile. Dressed in a white t-shirt and brown shorts, he walked up to the host for a handshake. “Edward’s here!” announced Warren. “So Edward, what hopes do you have for the competition?” “Well, I’m a team player, so I guess I just want a team that works well together,” replied Edward. “Teamwork equals trust, so I’ll be there for anyone on my team, you know?” Leon immediately moved forward to make a first impression. “Hi, I’m Leon,” he said reaching out for a handshake. “That’s someone who’s got it right. You can count on me, Edward.” “You know, I just realized I’m the only girl here; all the other contestants are guys,” said Vivi. “Don’t worry, I’m sure more of the girls will be here any minute,” Warren reassured her. “That wasn’t a complaint, trust me,” said Vivi, grinning with a mix of girlish delight and mischief. “In fact, if you could just call all the other girls and tell them not to co-” “Hey everyone, Miss Violet Ollitra has a-rrived!” another young lady boomed as she walked up the driveway to meet the party. “Damn,” Vivi muttered as Warren greeted the latest arrival. She then perked up to meet her compatriot. “Hi, I’m Vivi. Nice to meet you, Violet.” “Well I am a born socialite,” Violet said, still smiling from ear to ear, unaware of the arrogant vibe she was sending. She had her blond hair tied in a large bun, wore small blue earrings that matched her eyes, and was wearing a purple sundress that was the exact shade of her namesake, which she thought herself clever for thinking of. “You have good taste,” Vivi complimented, trying to be polite. “Thank you for noticing, I’ll teach you fashion sometime if you like,” Violet said. “But what I really came here for is some excitement. Nothing happens back home at all; it’s only money, money, money everyone talks about. What do I need to do to get some drama?” “My mom says you usually get what you want by being yourself,” Vivi said through a clenched smile, reeling from the no doubt accidental insults that nonetheless cut very deep. “Oh, you think so?” asked Violet excitedly, oblivious to Vivi’s subtle little attack. “Oh look, here come some more contestants!” Sure enough, not one but two limousines were stopped at the curve. From the one in front, an energetic-looking guy with straight brown hair cut short nearly bounced his way up to the growing group of attendees and gave everyone a handshake. From the other one was a girl wearing a rose-red top and simple blue jeans rolled up to her ankles. Her bright green eyes seemed to be taking in everything around her, an easy task with her above-average height. “Hey everyone, Calvin here!” the young man proclaimed exuberantly. He was the slightest bit stout, dressed in simple summer clothes and had short dark brown hair. “I am pumped for this contest!” “Ah, that’s the spirit!” Warren agreed. He then turned to greet the other newcomer. “Good to see you as well, Karen,” said Warren. “How are you feeling?” Karen offered up a small smile. “Well, not as energized as that guy, that’s for sure. I’m just saving my energy for the challenges. I like trying something new and when I do, I do it right. I’m keeping both my eyes on the prize at all times.” “Well, you’ve got 23 other contestants to watch out for as well,” Warren pointed out. “And it looks like number eight is fast approaching! Everyone move up the driveway a little, there’s getting to be a lot of you.” The next limo’s passenger was a young-looking boy, no older than 18. He was on the short side had very dark, curly hair, and his face easily gave away his Puerto Rican heritage. “Hi,” he said a little quietly in a shy tone. “My name is Adriel. Thank you for selecting me for the show; I’m so glad for the opportunity.” “Well, you don’t sound happy,” Edward commented. “Something wrong?” “Yeah,” Calvin chimed in. “This is awesome! We get to be on TV, have challenges thrown at us and maybe even some money for it! How can you be so quiet?” “I’m just kind of shy,” he explained. “I live in a small quiet town and my lifestyle hasn’t ever had any major excitement. I thought getting out here and doing this contest would help with that.” “Well it’s a good thing I’m here then!” That last outburst of excitement startled everyone, especially Adriel. They all turned around and realized that the next contestant had arrived unnoticed by any of them. She was a husky girl wearing a simple knee-length black dress with matching heels. Her hair was done so that most of it went down her back, with some cascading down both sides of her face. She also wore a large pink ribbon in her hair. “Hi there, I’m Cheryl!” the mystery girl said in response to the nine shocked faces staring back at her. “Adriel, was it? Sorry about the scare. Although how any of you didn’t hear me sneaking up is beyond me, y’all talk way too quiet in my opinion especially this shy one here and the quiet guy who hasn’t said much.” “When you say ‘sneaking up . . .’” Warren started to question. “Well, with all these trees around, it’s pretty easy,” she said, looking proud of herself. “Oh, I should probably explain myself. See, I’m a theater girl, was in a ton of plays in high school. And with that kind of personality comes a need for attention. I like the spotlight, and this case,” she pointed to the camera for effect, “that would be the camera. So the best way to make an entrance is obviously a shocking one, am I right?” Karen rolled her eyes at this. She’d have to pay extra attention to this competitor. “Did any of that make sense to you?” Edward asked Calvin. “Who cares, I like her already!” exclaimed Calvin. “She’s hot and fun!” “There’s your order of drama. Satisfied?” Vivi asked somewhat sarcastically to Violet. “Oh hell, yeah!” Violet replied excitedly. “Now this is what I call interesting. I wanna be friends with that girl. She’s the first person here that seems interesting at all.” Whether Vivi was interesting or not, she sure had a few interesting words to say to Violet if weren’t for the fact they were on camera. Meanwhile, Warren was greeting a girl with long, flowing blonde hair. At this point, people were splitting into side conversations and not everyone was paying complete attention to see when people were arriving. “Great to see you made it, Heidi,” he said, greeting her with a handshake. Heidi chuckled a little, her dark blue sundress swaying side to side. “The pleasure is all mine,” she answered, being polite. “I’m sure I’ll just love the people here.” She then walked over to Leon. “I think I like you already.” She then put her arm around him. Leon wanted to enjoy this, but something didn’t seem right. “And just why would that be?” Heidi giggled again. “Well, I’m a good judge of character and you just seem like someone who really wants to win.” She then leaned close to his ear. “And between my charm and your determination, we’ll tear right through this contest,” she whispered, the sweetness in her voice gone. “What do you say to that?” Leon replied instantly. “That guy over there seems gullible, that girl seems crazy enough to do anything, and that girl over there gladly wants to be part of some drama,” he said quietly, motioning to Edward, Cheryl and Violet respectively. “I say we got this.” While Heidi and Leon continued talking quietly about their competition, they were careful to note the next two attendees, both male, who had arrived almost simultaneously. One had slicked-back blond hair and was dressed in a smart casual style for summer. The other looked more laidback, wearing a dark blue t-shirt, and khaki shorts. “Barry, Miles, great to have you join us!” Warren, ever the greeter, exclaimed. “How are you feeling about the contest?” Barry had his answer ready. “Well Warren, I have a multi-track mind that helps me multitask. I figured I’d be able split my focus on whatever I need to while still having my eye on the prize.” “Well Barry, good to know who I can count on in a team challenge,” complimented Miles, who seemed more calm than Barry in personality as well as wardrobe. “’Course that’s if we’re on the same team.” “Well, you’ll find out soon enough, Miles,” Warren offered for an answer. “We’ll all find out soon enough when we come back!” At that point the camera stopped rolling. However, since the show was pre-taped, that meant it was only down for a few seconds to insert a commercial break. “Welcome back to the premiere of A Competitive Community!” exclaimed Warren to the audience as the camera resumed filming. “If you’re just tuning in, our first 12 contestants have already arrived. Now to welcome lucky number thirteen,” he said as he motioned towards the next limousine to arrive. A large African-American girl stepped out. She had a very rotund physique that was dressed in a rather unflattering dark red top and a golden skirt. Her creamy brown hair fell down in two locks on both sides of her face with the rest of it tied in an upward bun. She trudged up to Warren with a surly growl on her face. “Kendra, glad to-“ “Why did it take this long to get me here?” barked Kendra, startling the affable host, as well as the other contestants. “That limo ride took at least an hour and now I find I’m not even the first here! How hard can it be to find a decent chauffeur?” “Wow, bitch alert,” Violet whispered to Vivi from the side of her mouth. ‘Takes one to know one’ Vivi thought to herself. Kendra immediately snapped when she heard the comment. “Who said that?” she bellowed furiously. Her eyes then narrowed on a nervous-looking Violet. “It was you, wasn’t it?! Don’t’ lie, I have good hearing and I know I heard someone say I was a bitch!” she yelled as she stomped menacingly towards the gossipy socialite. “Who do you think you are to-“ “No, who do you think you are to show up and just start yelling at everyone?” Again Kendra wheeled around. “Now who said that?” she yelled, ironically proving the point of her critic. “I did,” said Ben calmly, much like everything else he had said. “The name’s Ben and can I say what a joy it is to make your acquaintance,” he continued dryly, earning some laughter and approval from the other contestants with his sarcasm Kendra was absolutely seething now. “Look pal, I didn’t come here to be criticized by everyone, especially not by some smart-ass-“ “And we didn’t come here to be bitched at by some entitled brat who thinks she owns the place,” interrupted Karen, who had also been pretty quiet. “Ben’s right. You’ve had a bad attitude since you got here and let me tell you right now honey, the only thing that’ll get you is a one-way to ticket out of here. Now do you wanna argue with someone else and get cut off again or do want to shut up and work on some damage control? Kendra raised a finger at the two of them and opened her mouth to speak, then, after thinking over what Karen said for a few seconds, dropped the argument and trudged over to a spot in the middle of the driveway where she wasn’t standing close to anyone in particular. She then crossed her arms to her chest and, begrudgingly, offered a very quiet and probably insincere “sorry.” Warren took a deep breath. “Alright then,” he said. “Getting back on track, two more contestants arrived while that little incident was occurring. Everyone, this is Lara and Melissa.” Warren motioned to the two girls standing next to him. “Hello everybody, I’m Lara. I’m very happy to meet you all and hope we can become friends,” the first girl said as she nervously gave a curtsy to her welcoming party. She had mid-length tangerine red hair that fell down her back. It was combed neatly into a simple black hair band, with a few bangs resting at the top of her forehead. Her cerulean blue eyes seemed to be darting around nervously; clearly she had witnessed a lot of the fight and was intimidated by the mid-sized crowd of contestants. Lara was wearing what looked like a Catholic School outfit, a white top with black buttons running down the middle, a knee length black skirt and dainty little black shoes with white socks. The second girl, however, didn’t seem nervous at all. “Oh come on, are you that nervous? We’re on national TV here, lighten up and have some fun with it!” she said to Lara. The girl then turned to the rest of the contestants. “In case it’s not already clear, I’m Melissa.” Melissa’s green eyes sparked with confidence. She had wavy blond hair tied into a ponytail and was wearing a simple blue shirt with brown shorts. Melissa was also much shorter than most of her compatriots, standing at about 4’10”. “And since we’re all getting to know each other, I’m gonna say this right now,” she continued. “Do NOT treat me like a little girl because of my height. I’m eighteen and want to be treated like it, you got that?” Everyone nodded their understanding, although Kendra barely moved her head since she still didn’t feel like talking to anyone. “Good. So Warren, we’ve got like nine contestants to wait for, right?” “Funny you should mention that,” the host replied jovially. “Because here comes the next limo now.” From the next limousine came not one, but two contestants, both girls. The first one out had a plain white dress on and little black shoes that resembled Lara’s. Her light blond hair fell down a little past her shoulders and large baby blue eyes that were darting around as if in search of something. Her breaths seemed a little labored, as if she had been dreading her arrival. The other girl was standing with her arm wrapped around the first one. She had thick, curly black locks that were pinned so that they would all fall down her back evenly. She wore a blue cashmere dress with a slightly low neckline and black lacing at her waist. Her Asian heritage could be seen in her face and she wore a motherly expression as she comforted the other girl. “Wow, another double entrance?” Warren questioned with raised eyebrows. “Those chauffeurs work fast.” Kendra looked ready to argue otherwise but a couple of stern glares from Ben and Karen kept her tongue at bay. The comforting girl spoke first. “Lucie’s limo broke down on its way here,” she explained, motioning to shy-looking girl. “Mine was the one nearest to her at the time, so we took a little detour and picked her up. Poor girl’s been nervous this whole time. I’m Mary, by the way.” She reached out and gave Warren a firm handshake. “I’m very excited to meet you all and hopefully become friends. And I’m sure you’ll all be friendly with Lucie and be able to help me get her out of her shell. I mean, who could hate this?” she asked as she motioned to Lucie as if she was to trying to sell something at an auction. Lucie for the record was still nervously staring at everything and hadn’t breathed a word. A few people approached them trying to take Mary up on her offer. “You seem pretty responsible; I like that,” said Lara. “I’m Lara. I think you’ll be a good friend to have.” Ben had also come up, but wanted to talk to Lucie. “I’m Edward. I see you’re really nervous. Don’t worry, most people here seem nice. Just hang in there, okay? Lucie nodded and gave him a grateful smile. “Thank you,” she said in a very soft voice. Melissa also had something to say. “Well, looks like I’m not the only short girl here. What a relief!” she exclaimed. “Also, I noticed that short guy over there seems pretty nervous. I think you two would make a cute couple,” she added while subtly motioning towards Adriel. Lucie gasped. ‘Adventure and romance all in one day?’ she thought to herself. ‘I knew I was in over my head.’ “You’re very forward,” she said shyly to her new acquaintance. “I don’t even know your name and you’re already setting me up for dates?” Melissa had to chuckle at that. “Okay, you’ve got a point. I’m Melissa and yes, I’m very forward.” “Enough chitchat everyone, the next contestant has arrived!” announced Warren with his usual energy. From the next limo came a guy who had a very strong build. He had brown eyes and short brown hair as well as stubble all around his chin and upper lip. He wore an olive green with matching khaki pants and brown sandals. His face was rather serious, almost stern in fact. “Cyrus, glad to see you made it alright,” said Warren as he gave Warren a handshake. “How’s it going man, I’m Calvin,” greeted Calvin as he walked up to Cyrus. “I am pumped that I am meeting this many cool people. Up top!” he exclaimed as he raised his hand for a high five. Cyrus merely cocked an eyebrow and gave Calvin a firm handshake. “I don’t do that,” he said flatly. Calvin looked a little put off by the cold reception he got for his friendly hello. “Ooh, a man of mystery, I like that,” cooed Cheryl as she sashayed up to Cyrus and winked flirtatiously. “Hey handsome. Bet you don’t keep the quiet act up when you’re alone with a girl.” She started walking her fingers up the front of his shirt. “I’d be happy to prove it.” Cyrus just stared at her with irritation and disdain. “You’re going to stop that now.” Cheryl backed off and shrugged. “Whatever. I like a challenge; that’s why I’m here anyway. “Wow, she’s a character, isn’t she?” Melissa remarked to Vivi, who had walked away from Violet and her incessant, obliviously insulting chatter. “Hon, I was just standing by a socialite for ten minutes who doesn’t get how obnoxious she is. You’ve seen nothing. Besides, if you thought that was wild, you should’ve seen her entrance.” Meanwhile, Leon and Heidi were still quietly talking to each other. “So most of these girls seem either extremely difficult or total pushovers,” said Leon. “The big guy, though, he seems tough. We’ll have a lot of power if we can get him to do what we want.” “I like the way you think,” replied Heidi with a smile. “We just can’t be too obvious. If we acted like you-know-who,” she said while subtly indicating Kendra, “it wouldn’t get anything done.” The next limo pulled up. A girl with long wavy, brown hair stepped out. She was wearing a simple black dress with matching heels and had had a few freckles on her face. Her eyes were light green and she seemed to have a lot of energy. “Hi everyone, my name is Alice and I am so excited to be here! I hope a lot of you become my friends and, for the boys, love interests, maybe?” Alice giggled a little, than frowned. “Wait a minute. Why does it look like there are more girls than boys? Let me count, one, two, three-” “There are eight men and eleven women,” said Cyrus gruffly. “Not counting the host, of course.” “Well someone’s Mr. Serious. How’d you figure that out so fast?” she replied. “In order to emerge victorious, you need to know everything about your surroundings. It makes it harder to be caught off guard. I came here to win and I will not let myself trip up over a mere oversight.” “Now there’s someone who knows how to think things through,” said Barry. “That’s a winning attitude.” “I could use that attitude,” said Adriel with a sigh. He hadn’t talked much since Cheryl had frightened him, although he was now standing next to Lucie since Melissa had motioned him to join them. “Alright everyone, move up the driveway a little,” said Warren while adjusting his tie. With this next contestant, there will be twenty of you here.” From the twentieth limo came a tall young man. He was African-American, had very short black hair and deep brown eyes. He seemed pretty relaxed and was wearing a simple red t-shirt, simple black shorts, and a pair of tennis shoes. “Hey everyone, I’m Victor,” the newest attendee said as he walked up to the growing crowd of contestants. “Glad to see I’m not even close to being the first one here; that seems like it’d be awkward waiting around for everyone else.” “Well, you won’t have to wait long Victor, since there are only four contestants that haven’t arrived yet,” Warren reassured him. “And it looks like one of them is just pulling up.” Another limo had indeed come to drop of the next competitor. From the vehicle emerged a young man. He had short, thick jet-black hair and green eyes. His outfit consisted of a tan-colored summer jacket with matching trousers and a dark green shirt. His dark green eyes showed no fear, something that couldn’t be said about several of his competitors. “Good to see you Joseph,” said Warren giving him a high five. At this point several contestants wondered if greeting people was all Warrens’ job consisted of. “Hey Warren, looks like I’m late to the party,” greeted Joseph with small chuckle. “Well, you are only the twenty-first person to get here,” Warren replied with good-natured sarcasm. “So yeah, a little late.” Meanwhile, Leon and Heidi were still quietly assessing their fellow contestants and had decided they needed a third person for their group. Three, they had theorized, was the perfect number since it made the group large enough to have some power while not being so large they would be noticeable. The only problem was who they should ask. “So what did I do that made you team up with me?” asked Leon. “Well, you seemed to be alone, like you didn’t come here to be friendly,” replied Heidi. “Not to mention everyone else seemed like they just wanted friends, not a secret team-up.” “Oh, so we’re not friends?” Leon asked coyly. “Cute,” Heidi said with a smirk. “Now think. We need someone who’s focused on winning. I’d thought about asking that Karen girl, but she seems to be too moral judging by how she handled Kendra.” “Why didn’t you ask her before that? Why me instead?” “Because if you weren’t as cutthroat as I hoped you were, I could charm you with my looks to help me anyway. That probably wouldn’t work with Karen. Probably for the best anyway, I don’t play well with other girls.” “Good to know you have no problem with whoring yourself out,” replied Leon half-joking, half remembering that that was always an option. “Seriously though, should we go for Cyrus?” asked Heidi. “He’s looks tough enough to survive a lot stuff.” “No, he looks too disciplined. He probably works alone. We need to find someone else,” replied Leon. “Or someone else can find you.” Caught off guard, Heidi and Leon turned to see Joseph standing right by them. “How did you-” Heidi began. “I notice things,” interrupted Joseph. “And I saw you two talking and eyeing the competition. I thought you might want a third for your party and I want a team to rely on early in the game. So it looks like we’ll all get what we want. Any questions?” His two compatriots were impressed. “You’re in,” said Leon. Joseph nodded. “Good. Now pay attention, looks like two others got here while we were talking.” It was then Leon and Heidi noticed Warren was chatting with two newcomers. The first one was a fit-looking guy wearing a short-sleeve white T-shirt and black workout shorts. He had upright brown hair and eyes that were the exact same shade. Standing next to him was a girl with blue eyes and brown hair tied into country-style braids that fell on her shoulders. She was wearing short jeans and a white blouse with a purple flower print. They both seemed to be repressing a lot of energy, as if they had been waiting to go somewhere all day. “Well Tristan, Jill, glad to see you both are pumped up for the contest,” said Warren. “How far do you two think you’ll go?” Tristan answered first. “You know it!” he said loudly and confidently. “I’m going all the way! I’ve been to training to be in top physical condition. This competition’s gonna be brutal, but I’m gonna get through it!” Jill smiled. “Well that’s fine and all,” she said, “but what about the not so sporty stuff? Believe me honey, I agree with what you said; I’ve been a tomboy my whole life. But I think they’ll have stuff that’s more about brains than brawn.” “Not a problem for me,” interjected Victor. “I know I didn’t get to say this when I got here, but I’m hoping to use my mind. Nothing’s better than figuring out a solution to something. I do the New York Times crossword puzzle every day.” “Hey, so do I!” exclaimed Karen brightly. “I was starting to think I wouldn’t find anyone else my age that did.” “Really?” replied Victor with raised eyebrows. “How old are you?” “Twenty. How old are you?” “Twenty,” said Victor with a smile. Karen looked at him amazed. “Well, what are the odds of that?” “How much you wanna bet they start going out together?” Miles asked Alice with a grin. “Not fair, I’m the one who came here looking for love,” she replied irritably. “Eh, maybe they just end up friends.” “All right everyone, the wait is almost over,” announced Warren. “Now before we can officially begin the contest, we have one more contestant to meet and here he comes.” As Warren spoke, the final limousine had pulled up. A burly young man with brown eyes and a chinstrap beard stepped out to meet everyone. He had messy brown hair underneath a fisherman’s hat and was dressed like an outdoorsman would be. He appeared calm and gave a general hand wave to everyone. “Well, looks I’m just about last to get here,” the last contestant said with smile. “What’s up everybody? I’m Hershel and I just want to get through this competition without stressing out. I’m not one for drama; I’d rather relax and take it easy.” “So it’s not just me” said Edward with relief. “I’m with you I don’t want any drama either. The name’s Edward by the way.” “Look, it’s great you two are all buddy-buddy, but don’t forget this is a contest,” said Barry sharply. “But if you‘re on my team and you cost us a win, I will make sure you’re gone.” Miles rolled his eyes. ‘Apparently this guy thinks he can walk in and be the team leader’ he thought. ‘Fine with me, anyone who’s in charge tends to get blamed for losses, which means I can sneak on through.’ “Okay everyone,” said Warren in his announcing voice, “it’s been great getting to know you all, but now that you’re all here we can begin. Follow me inside Mr. Grevner’s estate.” At that moment, the large golden gates at the top of the driveway opened up to let them in. As they stepped inside, they noticed just how large the estate was. While there were a few buildings here and there, as well as the large mansion in center of it all, most of the land consisted of fields of healthy green grass. Surrounding the entire estate was a thick grove a trees. For the contestants with good hearing, they could even hear the sound of a couple of babbling brooks nearby. Hershel especially seemed satisfied with the lush nature around all of them, as he mostly liked the outdoors. “Take in the sights boys and girls, because this is your new home for the next several weeks.” “But where do we sleep?” asked Jill. “Good question. Let’s go to your cottages right now and get the sleeping arrangements all sorted out,” replied Warren. The twenty-four competitors were then led by the host to the southwestern corner of the estate. They were now in front of four identical cottages that were paved with white bricks and blue roofs lined up in a row. Each had a wooden porch painted white attached to the front. A water fountain with stone benches surrounding it sat in front of the four small houses. “These guest cottages are where you’ll retire to at the end of each day,” explained Warren. “The two on the left are for the girls and the two on the right are for the guys. Six will be assigned to each cottage. When I call your name, go stand by the one you are assigned to. “Heidi, Karen, Vivi, Lucie, Mary and Lara; you all are in Girls Cottage A,” the host said motioning to the cottage on the far left. “Um, question? Where’s all our luggage?” asked Vivi as the other five girls started walking towards their sleeping quarters. “All of the luggage you had in the trunks of your limos was delivered to your cottages after you were dropped off. The chauffeurs used that side entrance after they drove away from the main one,” said Warren as he pointed to a smaller gate not too far from the cottage area. “It should be in the commons area of your cottage.” “Oh, okay,” said Vivi, who then joined the rest of her cottage mates. “Now then, Violet, Jill, Alice, Melissa, Cheryl and Kendra; you all are in Girls Cottage B.” The remaining six girls walked to the front of their new home, although most of them were uneasy since Kendra had a very large scowl on her face. “Now for the boys. Ben, Cyrus, Victor, Edward, Adriel and Barry; you six will be staying in Boys Cottage A.” The first half of the male contestants did not have any complaints. Adriel was a bit relieved to have some of the more relaxed guys such as Ben and Edward as his cottage mates. Meanwhile, Victor, Cyrus and Barry all felt they could at least respect each other as fellow strategists. “And finally,” continued Warren, “Miles, Tristan, Leon, Calvin, Joseph and Hershel; it’s Boys Cottage B for all of you.” Leon and Joseph subtly glanced at each other to indicate their satisfaction with these arrangements. It would be easier to plan things as a party if they were in the same cottage. “Alright then,” said Warren to the twenty-four young adults. “I’ll let you all get settled in and figure out who sleeps in what room. Report to the patio at the front of Mr. Grevner’s mansion in fifteen minutes for your first challenge. Remember, whichever team loses will have one of its members eliminated by the end of the day. Any questions?” “Yeah,” said Barry raising his hand. “What are our teams?” “Glad to see you’re paying attention Barry,” replied Warren with a smile. “The teams are very simple: It’s the Boys versus the Girls.” Most of the contestants were alright with their teams, although Victor and Karen were disappointed that their budding friendship would have the strain of them being on different teams. Heidi meanwhile was shooting her two cohorts a “what are we supposed to do now?” expression since this meant she’d be separated from them. However, it was Alice who seemed to be the most upset. “What?” she exclaimed while stomping her foot. “That means I can’t be my romantic self and flirt with boys during the challenges! Give me one good reason why you would do something like this!” “Well for one, what you just said,” Warren pointed out. A few contestants gave a small laugh at that. “And if you must know, it’s because you all don’t know each other very well right now and this will make it easy to identify your teammates.” “But I wanna get to know the boys!” wailed Alice in frustration. “How do you expect me to do that if you don’t let me be on a team with any of them?” By now, several of her competitors were getting annoyed with her, especially the girls who were to be her cottage mates. “Another reason,” said Warren with growing impatience, “is that you’ll be able to talk with all your cottage mates as a team, allowing you to plan things and work more effectively.” Alice stomped her foot again. “Whatever,” she grumbled. “Alright then,” said Warren. “Now if you’ll all excuse me, Mr. Grevner told me to meet with him after all of you were settled in. See you in fifteen minutes!” And with that, the host turned to leave and the twenty-four contestants entered their cottages. |
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