Page 85 of The Cuffing Game
“Ready?” Kallie asked.
“Ready,” replied Mia.
Damien started the live stream.
“Hi, everyone,” Mia said, looking into the eye of the camera. “Welcome to the live finale ofThe Cuffing Game. I’m sorry to say that Celine Huang and Kyle Yoshida have decided to drop out of the show. But we wish them nothing but the very best! Stick around until the end of the live stream to vote for the winning cuffle. That lucky pair will win the cash prize of five thousand dollars.”
She paused to look up from the camera. Damien nodded, and so did the rest of her crew.
“Our first cuffle took everyone by surprise, even themselves!” Mia continued with a smile. “But they’re still very cute. Please welcome Carlos Manalo and Violet Russo!”
She stepped away from the camera, and Carlos and Violet began their date.
“So,” Violet said. “I can’t believe we made it to the finale. I can’t believeI’mhere, honestly. Like, I just got here! I feel bad since I’m so new to the show!”
Carlos shrugged. “It’s okay, I was one of the original contestantsandI was the first one to be eliminated, so we balance each other out. I, for one, can’t think of a better person to be by my side today.”
“Aw, same!”
Mia watched the laptop screen as the viewer count ticked steadily up. Fifty people tuned in... then a hundred... five hundred... a thousand. Then suddenly, ten thousand, fifteen thousand... seemingly in the blink of an eye.
Her palms started to sweat. She wondered if her own family was watching, too.
Comments, emojis, and unfortunately also spammers flooded the chat, too quickly for Mia to read everything. But she did see several people talking about how cute Carlos and Violet were.
In a weird way, it’s like they were meant to be.
Violet’s yellow dress is so cute!! Does anyone know where she got it from?
Aw Carlos <3 Violet
“Since we just met each other a couple days ago,” Carlos said, recapturing Mia’s attention, “I want to make things clear. I don’t want you to feel pressured to get into a relationship with me because we’re on the finale of this show, okay? We can treat this as a normal second date if that helps.”
Violet smiled. “Sounds good. But also, Iamreally interested! Like, I appreciate you setting expectations and all that, but trust me, I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to get to know you more. I do have to ask you something, though. Before we go any further.”
“Hm?”
“Do you like anime? Sorry for the random question, but the last guy I was with... he didn’t like that I love nerdy stuff like anime and Marvel movies. And I don’t really want to be with anyone who shames me for my hobbies.”
Carlos clapped his hands. “Are you freakin’ kidding me? Iloveanime! And comic books, too! I literally grew up going to Comic-Con.”
“That’s amazing!” Violet exclaimed. “I’ve always wanted to go, but I usually don’t stay in California during the summer.”
“We should totally go next year! Wait, sorry, is it too soon to make plans like this?”
Violet giggled. “Not at all. I’d love to go with you.”
As the cuffle continued their conversation, Mia smiled. After seeing how much of a not-so-good time Carlos andViolet had on the show, she was glad they had found each other. Their date raced by, and in what seemed like almost no time at all, Mia stood in front of the camera again to say, “We’ll be right back with the second cuffle after a short break.”
Damien paused the stream, and the crew prepared for the next cuffle date. Sunset was fast approaching, so Mia went around to light the candles on the table while Alex set up light panels to brighten the space. Kallie adjusted the camera while Damien double-checked the stream connection. The way they worked in perfect harmony made Mia smile. She was going to miss her crew. She hoped this wouldn’t be the last time they could all work together.
Shirin and Tiana couldn’t stop smiling at each other when they came out for their date, so much so that Mia felt euphoric just watching them. Both girls looked amazing; Tiana wore a Cinderella-esque sky-blue chiffon dress while Shirin was in a sleek, long-sleeved black evening gown.
“Okay,” Mia said once the girls were settled in their seats. “Ready to go?”
“Yup,” replied Shirin.
“It’s now or never,” said Tiana.
