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Riya was eliminated.
She couldn't believe it. She was the biggest hot shot in her team yet somehow she was the third one out of her team. She wasn’t even at the merge this time! She wanted to blame everyone but it was too late.
It was all over anyway, it was down to Tom, Tess and Grett. Sure, it wasn’t as fun to watch the show when you were not competing but she felt her chest relax when she knew Grett won.
If she couldn’t win, she would have wanted her to win anyway. Riya stared at her reflection at the mirror before looking away.
She didn’t quite know what she felt for Grett. When she came to the show a second time, she didn’t expect she would have a soft spot for anyone in the team, maybe except for Connor.
Grett was different. The more Riya found stuff about her, the harder it was to pull away. Her facade was basically gone when she was around the brunette. That was the first mistake she did when she joined the competition.
She remembers all the times they were alone in the tent together, all the nights they spend brushing each other’s hairs and shittalking everyone on the team. She remembers the way Grett snorted when they gossipped about Alec’s divorce. Her green eyes were shining.
Riya wasn’t sure why she felt so open with her. The last time this happened was with Connor and yet it didn’t felt the same.
Not like it would matter anyway. There was only one thing in the way of her and Grett and that was her horrible boyfriend Yul.
She couldn’t understand why she was still with him when he kept on berating her. She saw how sad it made her. That’s the one thing she couldn’t understand. She frowned as she glanced at her yellow jewelry.
Grett was with Yul, not her. She needed to get a grip. A knock on her door stopped her thoughts from spiraling. It was the night of Grett’s party for winning. She wasn’t gonna attend but Connor begged her to.
She would have still attended regardless because it was Grett’s big day. She liked to see her smile.
Riya cleared her throat and checked her appearance one last time before opening the door. She expected to see Connor but it was Grett and… Yul.
“What are we doing here with this reject anyway?” Yul groaned, his arm around Grett which made Riya’s eyes twitch. Why couldn’t it be her?
Grett sighed, and shot Riya an apologetic smile which made her heart skip a beat. “A minute darling.” She glanced back at Yul before turning to Riya.
“We just wanted to make sure you were coming. I would really like to see you there.” Grett shrugged, making Riya’s insides turn to mush. Seriously? She was a 30 year old woman. What was she doing?
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll be there.” Riya tried to look nonchalant but her smile was pretty visible. Grett’s smile widened if that was possible. She was just about to speak when Yul interrupted her.
“Can we go now? Her room reeks.” Yul complained. Riya rolled her eyes and was just about to say something in return Grett sent her an apologetic smile and the two left, making Riya’s eyes twitch.
She could treat her so much better.
After making sure she looked perfect Riya exited her motel room and found herself where every contestant was at.
The place was a mess. Everyone was drinking and celebrating Grett on her victory. Well, almost everyone.
For a moment Riya didn’t know what to do or where to go. She wasn’t the most liked person on here and it shoved.
She grabbed a drink and found herself in a secluded corner. She was trying to play it safe and sound but her eyes kept drifting over to Grett. She was smiling, nodding to whatever Alec said as she gripped Yul’s hand tighter. Riya felt herself almost strangling the cup in her hands.
Yul didn’t care about her, why couldn’t she see that?
Riya felt like she was about to explode, sure she had problems herself that she knows is hard to ignore but she feels something real when she is with her.
She was lost in her thoughts as she didn’t notice Connor sneaking in next to her.
“Thinking about Grett?” He started making Riya’s head snap and turn to him frantically.
“What are you even talking about?” Riya let out a small scoff, trying to hide her sheepish look with an annoyed one, but it wasn’t working.
Connor raised an eyebrow, he could always tell when something was wrong with Riya anyway. It was impossible to hide it from him.
“It’s okay Riya.” He offered a soft smile, making Riya avert her gaze. Why was this so hard to hide? Why was she so conflicted?
“I can never hide from you can I?” Riya whispered bitterly, gaze still focused on Grett’s smiling face. If anyone had the right to know it was Connor.
“You look at her the same way that I look at Alec.” Connor spoke with a chuckle making Riya flush a little.
It was true that Connor and Alec started dating after both of them got eliminated and Riya couldn’t help but feel a little satisfaction seeing him so happy.
“Shut up.” Riya nudged him a little before sighing once again. She should be happy for Grett but all she wants to be is to be in Grett’s arms, seeing her smile…
“You should tell her. She doesn't seem happy with him.” Connor interjected, making Riya slowly turn to him.
“I don't want to ruin anything. I hate to admit but we formed a friendship. Nobody would ever want to be my friend after everything I did, but she did. In a way she got me Connor. If I tell her that I’m in love with her, everything is gonna be messy.” She breathed out, she was glad she finally got that out of her chest.
Connor listened to her intently before growing into a smile. God, Riya felt like her entire face was burning.
“You really changed you know?” He said slowly wrapping an arm around her in a half hug. Riya huffed before slowly hugging him back.
“You’re lucky there are no cameras around.” She snorted before nudging his shoulder. “Go find your boyfriend, I’ll be fine.” She assured him.
Connor nodded and waved her goodbye before finding his boyfriend.
Riya sighed to herself as she succumbed to her thoughts once again, when her eyes tried to find Grett’s she found her gaze on her. Riya felt her breath hitch as they both stared at one another.
Grett shot her a small smile, her eyes hinting some kind of longing before turning to Yul, flinching as he ignored her touch once again.
Riya averted her gaze away as she shook her head. It wasn’t meant to be.
All she could do was to stare at her from afar, wishing for a chance.