Page 40 of The Cuffing Game
This is just another case of on-set comradery,Noah told himself.That’s all.
Day Three
The Cuffing Game
Behind-the-Scenes Contestant Interview
Matías Cisneros
MIA:Hi, Matías, thanks for joining me. Please state your name, year, major, and crush.
MATÍAS:Hello, I’m Matías Cisneros. Sophomore, communications major, and my crush is...[pauses and whispers while holding his hands to his mouth]
MIA:Sorry, what was that?
MATÍAS:Jack. My crush is Jack Miller. Who’s probably everyone’s crush, which is why I’m saying it out loud, because he probably won’t even see this.
MIA:I mean... he might! You never know.
MATÍAS:True. But anyway, I doubt he likes me back. You saw him rejecting Bethany.
MIA:Last night wassomuch. Is that why you didn’t try to cuff with him these last couple of nights?
MATÍAS:Yup. I mean, come on. Bethany and Jack look so good together, like Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce! And thatwasn’t enough for him. He’ll probably reject me, too, and everyone will see me get humiliated from whichever country they’re at for winter break right now. People watching me get rejected from literally all the continents except Antarctica? Not exactly my idea of a good Christmas present!
MIA:I think some people might actually be in Antarctica right now for a research program. Since it’s currently summer there. I remember reading about it in a brochure while I applied to Marlon.
MATÍAS:Great! People will also see me get rejected in Antarctica. How lovely!
MIA:Can I ask you a question that I think our viewers would also want to know the answer to?
MATÍAS:Sure, go ahead.
MIA:I get why you didn’t cuff with Jack. But why did you cuff with your friend, Shirin Ahmad? Twice?
MATÍAS:[nervously laughs]Sorry, we were both too scared to even talk to our crushes. Are we disqualified?
MIA:No, not at all. Like I said, it’s fine as long as it’s mutual.
MATÍAS:Okay, good. It’s just been all too much. My crush is the next all-American NFL superstar![laughs]As for Shirin... well, she can talk about her situation herself, if she wants to. But the stakes are also high for her.
MIA:Okay, our time is up, but I’m wishing both you and Shirin the best. Just know that you don’t have to do or say anything that makes you uncomfortable. And remember to have fun!
MATÍAS:Thanks, Mia. And I’ll try!
Chapter Sixteen
Mia
After interviewing Matías early in the morning, Mia, still groggy eyed and exhausted from her late night with Noah, stumbled back into her room. Kallie wasn’t in her bed, probably getting breakfast with the other crew members downstairs.
Mia knew she should eat something, too, but she wasn’t hungry. If anything, she wanted to go back to sleep. But she couldn’t. Not today, when they had an early-morning start to the shooting day. She chugged a few gulps from the water bottle she’d left by her bedside and plopped down in front of the intercom that linked to the speakers around the house.
“Attention, contestants,” she said. “Please report to the front of the lodge. We will start the random event for today in twenty minutes.”
She looked at herself in the mirror before heading downstairs. Her hair was messy, and there were big dark circles underneath her eyes, making her look like a raccoon. She splashed icy cold water onto her face and shuddered.
It had been even more freezing last night, and yet she’d barely felt the cold while she and Noah sat outside, talking for who knew how long. Granted, they’d had the firepit, but if it hadn’t been for the snow dusting her hair and coat at the end of the night, she’d have forgotten she was outside at all.
