Page 63 of The Cuffing Game
Noah was sure he was going to die today. First the cold, and nowthis. Mia’s face burned tomato red. Her eyes flamed twice as murderous as she glared up at him.
Noah moved away and grabbed his shirt from where it hung by the fireplace.
“Sorry,” he said. “I was just trying to get the door.”
Mia didn’t say anything until he’d put on his shirt. Then, in a low, vaguely concerning voice, she said, “We should probably stay here for the night. I can’t drive in this kind of weather.”
“It’s okay. Neither can I. It’s probably going to get worse, too.”
Mia put her head in her hands and groaned. “Damien is going to kill me. And I don’t even want to think about what the SPC is going to do when they find out about this.”
Noah held his hands up in the air. “It’s okay. As far as I’m concerned, you did nothing wrong. In fact, you saved my life.”
“What if word gets out that you and I are spending the night together? In the cabin that belongs to theownerof the lodge we’re renting for five days?”
Mia was panicking. That much was clear. Noah glanced around the cabin for something that could distract her. But all he saw was old lady furniture, and he didn’t know anything about that.
“No one has to know,” Noah replied, looking at Mia again. “This is just between you and me. If someone asks, we can say we found a vacancy at an inn or something. In separate bedrooms. And Ms. Merritt doesn’t have cameras inside the cabin. I checked.”
At the mention of bedrooms, Mia’s face scrunched up with even more panic. “How many bedrooms does this cabin have? The roads won’t be safe until they clear them tomorrow morning.”
“One. But I can sleep in the living room.”
“You’re too big to comfortably sleep on the lounge chair!”
Noah placed his hands on Mia’s shoulders, looking right into her eyes. “Mia, breathe. It’s okay. You’re okay. I’m okay. That’s all that matters for now. We can deal with the rest when we’re back in the lodge. And you can take the chair, since you’re smaller. But only if you don’t mind sleeping in the living room. I’m good with whatever.”
He’d hoped to comfort her, but Mia’s eyes widened.
“Wait,” she said. “Are you...touchingme? Willingly?”
Noah blinked, looking down at his own hands. They were indeed calmly resting on top of Mia’s shoulders.
“Oh,” he said, stepping away. “Yeah, I was. Wait. How do you know I don’t like physical contact?”
“Well, the footage from earlier today, for one. That was painful to look at.”
Noah winced. “Oh, you watched it.”
“Yeah,” Mia said with an apologetic frown. “But that’s not the only time. You didn’t shake my hand when we met at Ground Smoothie. And when you did touch me to help me up, you looked unhappy. At first, I thought it was because you couldn’t standme,but you looked so uncomfortable the first few timesCelinetouched you, too. You seem to only be comfortable with physical contact when people give you bro-hugs or fist bumps. Or when you and Celine kissed. Maybe you just hate being taken by surprise? Which, I can kind of relate with, since I don’t like surprises either.”
Noah shook his head in awe. “You’re really observant.”
She shrugged. “All I’ve been doing since I got here is watching people from behind the camera. I’ve been watching every contestant, not just you.”
“Right.”
Mia didn’t say anything else, didn’t probe and prod him to askwhyhe hated being touched. And Noah was glad. Because if he was being honest, he had no idea why. At first, he’d thought it was because it’d been too long since hehad any substantial amount of contact with another human being. But after today, he was beginning to realize it was more than that.
In the comfortable silence that formed between him and Mia, Noah finally put together the words he needed. Softly, he said, “You’re right. I don’t like being touched, but only when someone takes me by surprise. Like, I’m perfectly fine at a concert or other crowded areas because Iexpectit, you know? If I had to guess, it’s probably because my life back home wasn’t always... peaceful. I hate it when people raise their voices, too.”
Mia’s face softened. “Oh, I’m sorry, Noah.” After a moment of thought, she clapped her hands in a decisive manner. “We don’t need to include the part with you and Celine in the forest if you don’t feel comfortable with us airing it.”
Noah let out a dry laugh. “How will you guys explain the production delays then? Just include a title card saying I randomly disappeared?”
“I don’t know. But we can figure it out later. That’s not what’s important.”
Noah stared down at Mia, fully taking in the sincerity in her kind eyes. His heart beat a bit faster as he looked away. “You can keep it in. I specifically came on this show to challenge myself. And to show a part of myself no one’s seen before. If people unfollow me because I had a panic attack, then so be it.”
