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The door creaked open just a tad, and Noah sensed an intrusive gaze fixated on him. Once again, someone was poking around where they didn't belong, prying into matters that were none of their business. The last time such meddling occurred, he found himself unceremoniously ejected from an aircraft, subsequently crash-landing into a lake swarming with eels. Now, confined to a less-than-ideal hospital bed, close to the set due to the producers' urgency for a swift return, all for the sake of ratings.
Having to be in top-notch condition for the aftermath, which is coming up in, what, like three weeks, was an insane task. Luckily for him, with an insane producer and a host with an insane amount of money, they could probably end up doing it.
The bandages felt too tight on his skin, and it felt too hot in the room. The tension wasn't lifted in any way by the fact that there was still someone peeking through the door, trying to get a good look at his condition. He knew who it was. The person behind the door knew that they knew they were behind the door.
He sighed and started. “Just come in, I know you’re there.”
An exasperated sigh was heard from behind the door, and lo and behold, entered the mighty Chris McLean, host of the famous reality TV show, Total Drama. Host of the third season, World Tour. Boss of the crew. Boss of Noah. Noah, who was Chris’s personal assistant before World Tour started.
In the Total Drama Aftermath, Noah's entire dismissal act was staged. He certainly didn't anticipate having scalding hot latte thrown in his face, even after Chris claimed it was cold—an unfortunate consequence of this twisted show.
Chris stood awkwardly in the room, a silent duel of gazes transpiring before he spoke, "Listen, kid, I—"
"You're what?" Noah cut in abruptly. "Was my plunge into an eel pond part of your grand scheme to get me back on your payroll, Chris McLean?"
Sighing once more, Chris continued, "I seriously didn't mean for that to happen! The parachute was meant for an intern in one of the earlier challenges."
"Yeah, right. And it just happened to be filled with corgis from the challenge."
Chris took a seat on Noah's bed. "Look, kid, how can I make it up to you?"
Make it up to him? Well, for one, throw Alejandro into an eel pond as well. Then everyone else who messed him over in Total Drama. The producers forcing him to go back onto the show, into the limelight after putting in so much effort to stay hidden from the public. He was in Island for like, three, maybe four episodes for fuck's sake. And all of a sudden, he was getting paparazzied from every angle.
Maybe Chris could make amends by bringing him a plethora of coffee and spitting it in his own face, or better yet, throwing himself into an eel pool. All he really wanted was to see Alejandro's downfall, but his own laziness had hindered any personal efforts.
"I want Tyler eliminated," Noah muttered quietly, his mouth working faster than he processed. They didn’t call him a genius for nothing. Getting one of Alejandro’s allies out worked in his favor, and it’s not like he was needed for the whole villains falling in love ending Chris had planned out.
"Huh?" Chris raised an eyebrow, giving him a perplexed look.
"Nothing."
"Alright, kiddo. You think on that offer, and I'll get back to ya. And I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"For the eels. I seriously didn't mean for that to happen."
For a moment, silence enveloped the room as Chris McLean exited.
He wasn’t surprised to see Tyler out in the next episode.