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Things were going exceptionally well. Alejandro couldn’t help but smile.
They might not have won first class, and the perks that came with it, but he won something much better: an elimination, orchestrated by his own hand.
And all he had to do now was sit and watch.
Alejandro stood taut, peering out from behind a tiki statue. He was cloaked in shadows cast by the torch light, giving him an ethereal glow. He enjoyed watching his plans unfold perfectly, it was gratifying.
The success was only tampered by a couple minor.. inconveniences. Those never left his brain. Alejandro prided himself on being subtle but, even he couldn’t evade everyone’s eyes. He was laying on the charm too sickly sweet to worry about subtly. It was the only way Leshawna would fall, he had evaluated his options. She was a strong opponent, he was simply stronger.
The dissenting opinions that rose because of his ploy would quickly be silenced. That would be done efficiently as well. Heather was easy to diffuse with a couple quick remarks and Noah…well Alejandro would have to deal with him later.
He wouldn’t let them ruin his moment. He watched with glee as Chris presented peanuts to the contestants of team Victory. He held one bag, explaining how both DJ and Leshawna were in danger. Alejandro knew better. Leshawna had failed the challenge, she had to go. The team that was once alive and well was reduced to a duo. It wouldn’t be long before he snipped off the remaining buds. It wasn’t his intention at first but, it was the most logical course of action. Three teams were variable, two were easy. There was a winner and a loser.
The winner would be him, of course. That was always the plan.
He pat himself on the back when Chris threw the last bag to DJ. Leshawna was gone.
She frowned, looking at the others with betrayal. “What? Really guys?” she asked.
“Sorry..”Lindsay said.
DJ just looked guilty, his head tilted towards the ground.
“Fine, but you’ll regret it when you—“
“Ahem we don’t have time for a whole speech, take the parachute,” Chris said.
Alejandro’s lips curled into a wider smile. He stepped out from the shadow of the tiki statue, meeting Leshawna’s eyes from behind the benches.
He held his hand up, waving to her slowly.
She glared at him, ready to give him one last parting word when Chris handed her a parachute.
“Bye Leshawna,” Lindsay said, waving awkwardly.
“Hope you get back safely,” DJ said.
“Yeah..”she said. She narrowed her eyes, giving Alejandro one last look before she jumped off the plane.
Chris laughed, watching her plummet. He shut the door when the wind started to get too intense, turning to the others with the clap of his hands.
“Well congrats for surviving another ceremony, go get some rest and maybe plan on doing better next challenge,” Chris said.
“Okay,” Lindsay said. “It’s okay we can still do this, next challenge we’ll win for sure,” Lindsay encouraged.
“Ohh..maybe,” DJ frowned as they both stood up.
Alejandro watched them leave, sporting a dying smile. His work was done. He earned some relaxation in economy class, if the words even went together. Losing was necessary, he would deal with the consequences.
Alejandro snuck out from behind the statue, looking around for any movement.
Chris was there, watching him.
“Ah Al I figured you were back there with Leshawna’s facial expression,” he said.
“I guess I should say thanks for the interesting elimination ceremonies, you were a good investment,” he said with a smile.
Alejandro felt his eye twitch. “De nada, it is all part of my plan,” he said.
“Good, you keep doing what you’re doing and maybe it’ll work in your favor down the line,” Chris said with a wink.
“Of course,” Alejandro said.
“Well I have a hot tub with my face on it so go on, don’t cause too much trouble,” Chris said, laughing to himself.
Alejandro gave him a polite smile until he turned around, scowling. He wasn’t doing any of this for Chris’ ratings. He was doing it to win.
He would let the host think what he wanted. It was as he said, it could be useful later.
Alejandro pursed his lips in thought as he walked out of the room. It was a job well done. The only question was how should he celebrate?
________________________
Alejandro ended up in the dinning hall. It had been a long day and economy class didn’t look appealing, especially since Tyler was currently taking up a large portion of the seating. He was sound asleep, mumbling something about chickens, Alejandro didn’t want to know.
Upon entering the room he was greeted with a welcoming sight, one that gave his visit a purpose. He didn’t change his course, he simply narrowed his eyes at the person sitting near the entrance.
It was Noah, picking at his plate with a fork. His eyes were filled with disdain. Maybe he could put in some more work before he settled down. He really couldn’t have asked for a more perfect opportunity to tie up whatever lose ends he unwound during the challenge.
Alejandro glided across the room to grab a tray, first and foremost he needed to ease into conversation. Like Heather Noah was observant, he needed to play koi.
“Gracias,” Alejandro said to Chef. He glared at him, giving a grunt of acknowledgment.
Alejandro grabbed a fork off the table and looked around the near vacant canteen. He raised an eyebrow upon “spotting” Noah. He was, in fact, sitting alone. There was a plate to the side of him but, the table was empty otherwise.
“Amigo, do you mind if I sit with you?” Alejandro asked nonchalantly.
Noah eyed him, sticking a piece of salad in his mouth. “Owen’s sitting next to me,” he deadpanned.
“Oh..then I shall sit across from you,” Alejandro said. So much for a leisurely conversation, he had to get to the point before the oaf came back.
“Okay,” Noah said with an unsubtle eye roll.
Alejandro slid into position, placing his tray in front of him. He would not be eating most of it but, he would try. He had to get used to it for the next three days. The things he did for his overarching plan.
Noah stared at him as he took a bite of something he could have sworn moved.
“What do you want?” Noah asked blithely. He appeared unimpressed as his efforts. Alejandro wanted to give him a piece of his mind.
He didn’t. Only because they were on the same team. He couldn’t have them hating each other, that would just make things more difficult.
“Nothing amigo..I simply wanted to congratulate you on the effort during today’s challenge,” Alejandro complimented. It was a technique he used often. Butter someone up with blarney, then strike. His father was well adapt at it, he learned from the best.
“Right, effort, I think I lost second only to Owen,” Noah scoffed.
“Look if this is about me commenting on your flirting forget about it, I get it, it’s strategy,” Noah said. It was an obvious lie, Alejandro wouldn’t leave it at that.
“As long as we don’t lose I’m fine with it,” Noah shrugged, continuing.
Alejandro frowned. “You seemed very suspicious of me,” Alejandro said.
“I just wanted to clear up any misconceptions, to make sure you weren’t misinterpreting what I was doing,” Alejandro said. He jabbed his fork into his tray, making no move to eat what was stabbed on the other end.
“I’m not, I was just..confused,” Noah said, finding the words. It still sounded like he was sucking up. Alejandro admired his effort. He was really quite clever for how lazy he always was. Had he been more active Alejandro might have been worried.
“I just thought you were done with the whole flirting schtick, it’s kind of getting old” Noah said. He looked away for a moment, his fingers began to drum against the table.
“It is not any plan, I was simply trying to encourage our fellow competitor, it is unfortunate that it backfired,” Alejandro said.
“That’s not what it looked like,” Noah said.
Alejandro gave him a playful smile. Noah was being very insistent about his flirting despite not caring.
Interesting.
“You know amigo, it almost sounds like you’re jealous of the attention she was getting,” he said. The words were mainly to catch him off guard, and test his theory if he got lucky.
Noah sneered at him.
“Why would I be jealous of her? She’s gone now,” Noah said bitterly. He was slowly inching back in his seat, hands gripping the lunch tray tightly. He wanted to escape but, he knew it would look suspicious.
“It’s quite alright amigo, you do not have to hide it,” Alejandro said. He smiled, leaning closer before giving him a wink.
“No..what are you— I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Noah sputtered. He was actually turning red.
Very interesting.
“I don’t think you’re attractive Alejandro, even if I did your personality would be a major turn off,” he said.
“Of course, you are very believable amigo,” Alejandro teased.
“I would hope so because I’m telling the truth,” Noah said, hoping to nail the coffin shut on the argument.
“Im going to need proof amigo,” Alejandro said.
“Why should I have to prove it? You’re the one that got caught, I was just pointing out what you’re doing,” Noah said. He shoved a bite food in his mouth, looking nervous.
“Because you are firing baseless accusations, I was simply being kind to Leshawna yet you seem to think it was more than that..that I would dare mess with her feelings for me,” Alejandro said.
“I told you I don’t care alright..just forget it,” Noah said softly.
“But what if I don’t want to forget it?” Alejandro asked. He slowly pushed his tray aside, propping his arms up on the table as he stood.
“How do I know that you weren’t questioning my strategies? You have provided no proof for another plausible explanation.” Alejandro knew he was being forward. He simply had to back him into a corner, make him think he had no other options. Forget that Alejandro was revealing himself.
“It was a mistake, I was just saying what I thought I saw..I wasn’t suspicious I was just—“
“Jealous?” Alejandro asked again.
“No..I wasn’t,” Noah denied again.
“Then what was it amigo, I must know,” Alejandro said. He narrowed the space between them, making sure Noah felt on edge. He was more likely to spill things when he was hyperaware of his every move. Alejandro was good at making people nervous.
Noah looked away from him. He looked like he’d lost his appetite.
“Nothing, just drop it,” he said, ears turning red.
“Tell the truth and I’ll leave you alone amigo,” Alejandro promised.
“I am, I just noticed, I don’t have a crush on you and I wasn’t suspicious I just..” he gave Alejandro a frustrated huff.
His eyes roamed away, fingers tapping slowly.
“I don’t know, I saw you encouraging Leshawna and I wondered why you couldn’t do the same to me—“
“…to our team, we could actually use it,” Noah said correcting himself half way through.
Alejandro raised his eyebrow.
Noah must have noticed what he said as he clammed up, looking at him blankly.
“I didn’t mean it like that..”he said, sweat practically rolling down his forehead.
“Of course,” Alejandro said.
“I should have complimented you sooner, you did well in the challenge, better than Owen anyways,” Alejandro said, waving his hand aside.
The comment made Noah frown, Alejandro decided to keep his hostility against Owen quiet for the time being.
“Thanks I guess..”Noah said.
“It doesn’t matter now..I just think your strategies are going to make us lose,” Noah scowled.
“You’re right I was distracted…from you,” Alejandro said. He reached his hand out, brushing aside Noah’s bangs. The motion didn’t change his face much but, Alejandro could tell it affected him. His body grew rigid.
Some part of him wanted Alejandro’s attention. What was the harm in giving it to him. It would distract him from his manipulation, maybe save himself from an enemy down the line.
Besides, out of everyone on the team Noah was the easiest on the eyes, and tolerable. Of course he was well above the bare minimum when compared to Tyler, Owen, and Izzy.
“I’ve been meaning to say that your eyes are exquisite,” Alejandro purred.
That sparked Noah into action.
“Alright enough, whatever this is isn’t working Al, I know what happened to Leshawna.”
“Tell me what purpose complimenting you served, you are on my team and I have no goal to eliminate you.”
Noah scowled. He stood up from the table, grabbing his tray.
“Whatever, I’m not that stupid Alejandro,” Noah said.
“Your face says otherwise,” Alejandro teased.
Noah looked away, setting his tray next to the trash.
“Leave me alone,” Noah said.
He tried to walk away before Alejandro grabbed his wrist. It was a light hold but he was so close, he couldn’t just leave his work unfinished. He had to seal the deal, Noah clearly wanted to.
“Let me go Al,” he hissed.
“But I’m not done amigo,” he said.
“Yeah you are,” Noah said. His body said otherwise, not pulling away.
Alejandro released his wrist.
Noah stared at him, brow furrowing. “Your plan won’t work you know, no one will fall for it.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Alejandro said.
Noah frowned. He bounced on the balls of his feet, mulling over his options. He could still leave, but he wouldn’t. He knew what he wanted and Alejandro was waiting for him to take it.
Perhaps he needed some more motivation.
“It’s okay amigo, you don’t have to hide how you feel from me, I won’t judge,” he said.
Noah scoffed. “Yeah right..everyone else still will,” he said softly. He looked frustrated, fist balling up. He hated what he was feeling, or he hated that he’d been caught. Alejandro knew the second he admitted it that Noah wasn’t a threat. Noah knew what he was doing but, he was more worried about what he was feeling. That was somehow worse to him.
“Take what you want,” Alejandro encouraged one more time. He stared at him, smiling.
Noah’s face was as red as Alejandro’s shirt as he met his eyes.
He waited.
Then he struck.
Noah reached towards Alejandro. He grabbed onto the collar of his shirt, pulling Alejandro towards him. Alejandro didn’t resist, meeting him in the middle for a kiss.
It was perfect aim, only lasting a couple seconds. Noah pushed hard, Alejandro let his hands fall to his sides, unable to move before Noah pulled back. It was hard to say how he felt at the action but, his ears warmed.
“Don’t tell anyone, this doesn’t change anything,” Noah stated as a fact.
Alejandro levied a brow at him.
“I’ll stay out of the way, for now,” Noah agreed with a grumble.
Alejandro smiled.
“Gracias,” he said.
“Yeah whatever..”
Noah turned quickly, nearly running into Owen who appeared in the hall.
“Oh hey little buddy..”he said, swaying back and forth. His face was green, cheeks puffed.
“I don’t think eating that sausage was a good idea..”he muttered.
“Come on dude I’m sure Chef has some medicine or something..”Noah said. He started guiding him away quickly, turning back to give Alejandro one last look.
Alejandro only waved, watching him walk away with a smile.
Hook, line, and sinker.
He really was good.