Page 35 of The Cuffing Game
This could not be happening. “Cut?” Mia said in a shaky voice. She let out a quick breath and yelled, “Cut!”
After Damien and Kallie stopped recording, Mia asked Jack, “Whathappened?”
“Well, she confessed that I’m her crush,” he replied, looking at her with wide eyes. “And I said I didn’t feel the same way. She didn’t take it very well.”
“Ah,” said Mia. Her heart still felt like it was about to leap out of her chest.
“And I got it allon camera,” Damien said. “I’m actually glad she’s eliminated now, because sheesh! There’s a fine line betweengooddrama and too much.”
Mia took a few breaths, trying to calm down. Everything was going to be fine. And no one was hurt. This was just a brief bump in their shooting day. She had to keep reminding herself of that.
At that moment, Bethany and Alex returned to the living room. Noah and Celine also came back inside the house, looking very confused.
“Did everyone get a chance to talk to whoever they wanted today?” Mia asked all the contestants. Luckily, her voice, at least, was steady. “Raise your hand if you need more time to decide who you want to cuff with today.”
Everyone stayed still.
“Okay then,” Mia said to her crew. “Let’s resume filming. Kallie and Damien, please direct your cameras toward me.”
When they began rolling again, she called out, “Contestants, please come stand in the living room with your arms linked with your cuffed partner from the previous night. It’s time to determine the cuffles for Day Two.”
She waited for everyone to get into their cuffles before continuing, “Noah and Celine, since you two were the most popular cuffle, you get to decide first. Would you like to stay together for Day Three? Or would you like to cuff with someone else?”
“We’d like to stay,” Celine said. “Or at least I would.”
“Me too,” said Noah.
If they were at school, Mia would have commented on the weird look on Noah’s face. But since they weren’t, she cleared her throat and moved on.
“Tiana and Jack,” she said. “You guys were the second cuffle. Would you like to stay together or cuff with someone else?”
Tiana and Jack looked at each other. Jack shrugged.
“I’m honestly okay with whatever Tiana wants to do,” he said.
“Let’s stay,” Tiana replied.
Jack nodded, and the two remained standing with their arms linked.
“Great,” Mia replied. “The third cuffle in terms of audience votes was Bethany and Caleb. But Bethany, you confessed to Jack, your original crush, and he said no. I’m sorry to say that you are now eliminated fromThe Cuffing Game.”
Bethany sighed. “Whatever.”
She walked off before Mia could ask her if she had any parting words.
Mia turned to Caleb. “Um, so with Bethany gone, is there anyone else you’d like to cuff with?”
Caleb looked at the other contestants. The other contestants stared back at him.
“Matías?” he said at last.
Matías’s eyes widened. He looked back and forth between Caleb and Shirin before saying, “Sorry, I’m not interested.”
Caleb shrugged. “Fair enough. Let me guess, you’re straight?”
Matías winced and shook his head. “No, you’re just not my type. Sorry!”
Beside him, Shirin covered her mouth with her hands, like she was trying hard not to make any noise.
