“Well, here we are. Last elimination ceremony. Are you guys ready?” he asks, standing directly in front of me.
I can’t look at him. He’s blocked my view of the white wall I was focused on, so I look over his shoulder and stare at Claudia instead. She’s expressionless tonight, a change from her usual pursed lips and fiery eyes.
No one answers Ed, and he lets out a sigh.
“Listen, it wasn’t my decision. I can’t divulge the details of why Jace isn’t here, so please don’t ask. All I can say is that rules were broken, and he was eliminated. So put a smile on your faces. Fake it if you have to. We have sixty seconds until we’re live.”
His voice went from caring and compassionate to serious and firm in the span of a few sentences. It’s like he was trying to pretend to understand how we were feeling and then decided not to.
Fuck him.
Fuck this show.
I don’t need this bullshit in my life. I should quit tonight if I don’t get eliminated. Who cares about the money? I don’t need it.
That’s a lie.
I do need it.
And if I leave, I will have wasted the last five weeks. Quitting means I don’t get anything. Not a single cent. Elimination at least guarantees me a little bit of the pot.
A little is better than nothing at all.
“Good evening!” Eds hollers, and immediately I plaster on a fake smile. “Welcome back to Love or Lust. Tonight is the last elimination ceremony before the final four enter the last week of the competition. Who’s going home tonight? Who gets another shot at the grand prize? All will be revealed before the night is over. First, let’s take a look at what everyone’s been up to this week, shall we?”
As soon as the light turns red, letting me know we’re not on camera anymore, I turn and watch as clips and images of this past week float across the screen. Teegan and Jace. Bella and Lennon. Me with Bella. Game night, all of us sitting around the poker table. All the girls lounging around the pool. Milo, Jace, and Lennon from their camping trip.
They’re all smiling, beers in hand.
I can see an empty bottle next to Milo’s feet. Jace’s phone is in his hand. He’s taking a selfie of the three of them.
The screen fades to black, and Ed clears his throat just as I turn around to see the light change back to green above the camera.
“We’ll be back with more highlights from this week’s dates. Not everyone watched the movie...”
His voice trails off, but he remains smiling at the camera until the light changes again.
People start scrambling, adjusting the five us of on the platform, powdering my face, playing with my hair. It all happens so fast I don’t have time to object before they’re gone and Ed’s putting on a show for the cameras again.
“Welcome back. This week was about getting to know each other on a more personal level. The guys picked the movies, and the girls hosted movie night. But like I said... not everyone was there to watch the movie. Let’s take a look at what happened behind closed doors.”
The first clip is of Milo and Teegan making out. I roll my eyes because the look on her face shows anything but excitement. A stark contradiction to the next clip where she’s making out with Jace. This time he’s the one who isn’t into it, and you can tell. She’s practically mauling him, and he’s sitting there perfectly still.
When my face flashes across the screen, I want to duck and hide. I’m with Jace. We’re on the couch, making out. It makes me wonder how long the clip is because we didn’t kiss that long before he carried me to bed. Thankfully they cut it right as he’s sliding his arm beneath my legs.
But then the next clip is me making out with Lennon. My face heats with embarrassment. I know I told Jace what happened, but I’m still ashamed I made out with both of them. Even if it was the moment I knew for sure I’d made the right decision. It was the confirmation I needed.
The clip is shorter than the last, and suddenly I’m staring at Bella straddling a shirtless Lennon. Their make-out session is hot. You can tell they’re both into it, and this time the clip doesn’t cut when I expect it to. Lennon lifts her with him as he stands and walks into her bedroom, shutting the door behind them.
The screen fades to black again, and I turn back around to face the cameras.
“As you can see, a few people were able to take advantage of the alone time and got to know each other a little better than others. But lust doesn’t always translate to love, does it? When we get back, we’ll find out who has another chance to make a love connection and who’s going home tonight. Be right back.”
“Oh. My. God.” Bella whisper-shouts to me as soon as we’re clear. “I can’t believe they showed that on TV. I’m freaking out right now. My parents are going to see it.”
She has a point. At least they didn’t show Jace carrying me to the bedroom. Though, if he was still here, they might have.
“I didn’t realize you were into Lennon,” I whisper, leaning in closer so he doesn’t hear me.