Chapter Text
For the first time in many days Spencer had been in the game, he was actually very excited for a challenge. No, it's not a mathematical based or a fantasy VR challenge, as much as he would love to experience one to show off his skills and potential.
No, it's a dance challenge.
The day on the show was just like any other, a few more contestants had gone ever since Alec was eliminated in the tie breaker but nothing interesting happened, at least in Spencer's opinion that is. When everyone in both teams were called for another challenge, they where all surprised on what Emily announced what the challenge will be about.
"Today, we will be bringing back a very popular fan favorite! But with a little twist on it!" She said, waving jazz hands.
"Oh! Oh! I know!" Finn interrupted, his eyes filled with childish excitement as he waved his had, "It's the musical challenge, is it?"
"Oh! So close! It’s not exactly a musical challenge per se. Yes there will be music involve but you guys won't be signing—" she paused for a moment, her smile widen with glee, "The twist is, you guys will be dancing!"
"Dancing? Oh that's awesome too!" Finn said, swaying his hips side to side, "I've been eager to show my dance moves!"
While everyone around him started to talk among themselves Spencer was deep in thought.
Dancing, a form of art that can be either come in a form of two, multiple, or even just one person alone, that puts their mind and soul into the movement of that they create using their own bodies. Sometimes it brings out joy, or maybe relaxation, or maybe nothing at all and just kept going with the flow.
When he was little lad he had the choice to pick out a sport, while his parents were very much proud that he was doing great in his studies in school they wanted him to have a good physical health. So they made him pick from a list of after school activities to do, things like football or gymnastics would make him grimace, but he did eventually settle down with one active he had actual interest in.
Ballroom dancing.
Standard ballroom dancing that be more precise.
It was quite fun and he enjoyed the classes he was taking. He learned a lot about all types of European dances, while he sadly had to stop when he entered his eleventh year in school to focus more on his studies so he could be accepted to his dream school, Oxford university, he still knows how to dance pretty good.
One of the few good memories he had with his last relationship with Freddy was that in exchange for his ex teaching him how to defend himself, he would teach him ballroom dancing in return. Sure there were lots of bumping into walls and stepping on shoes, but what truly mattered to them was that they enjoyed themselves, that they enjoyed each other. Of course that was before Freddy started to—change.
Spencer physically gulped, hard. It's a beautiful memory, but it's also very painful given the circumstances that he went through with their past relationship.
"All right let me explain the rules" Emily said, interrupting Spencer's thoughts, "Just for the challenge only, they're will be only four winners! Everyone else will have to face elimination, teams will not matter. The other thing is, since both teams now have the equal amount of members one member from the fans and one member from the favorites will be paired up with each other."
"So, the rule is the we have to team up with a member the other team for this dance challenge, only two teams of two will win and everyone else will be on the hot seat?" Ara repeated.
"That's what I said" Emily rolled her eyes, "Anyway, the two winner teams will have immunity and will be rewarded with an all you can eat buffet! Yes, there will be Vegan friendly options!"
Gabby smiled at this.
"You all have all day to plan your dance and pick the song, at night is were everyone will have to preform one by one and be judged by yours truly and two of my interns" She pointed at a man and a woman intern towards her right, "When I say go you all have to pick a partner and start planning okay?"
Everyone stayed silent, ready to start.
"ready, get set, Go!"
As soon as Emily snapped her fingers and yelled go, everyone from both teams began to scatter around to find partners. Bruno came up to him and gave him pat on the back for good luck and went to go find a partner. It was only a few moments when almost everyone had a partner while Spencer was still looking for one. He held his arms in embarrassment, being picked as a last resort was no stranger to him as it always happened in his past dance class (as well as PE classes), and being the only one with a partner or being the last one to team up was still upsetting to him.
He looked at the teams in front of him, Ara and Bruno talked about what type of dance and music they would like (more like Bruno talking and Ara being annoyed with him), Finn pestering Tom to be his dance partner until the life guard caved in defeat and agreed, Oliwia leading Gabby to find a spot to plan (and Gabby being very uncomfortable with her the entire time but she agreed to be partners because she felt bad).
He looks away, trying to be small as possible as he scan the already taken fan contestants with his lenses covered eyes. Maybe if he asked Emily if he could work by himself—
"Hey you free?"
Spencer looked up.
In front of him was the very same guy he promised himself he would look out for under the guise of being suspicious, Sam.
"Oh! Um—" he cleared his throat as he was caught off guard, "Yeah, I don't have a partner yet"
"That's perfect, wanna partner up with me?" Sam smiled as he reached out his hand towards Spencer, expecting a handshake.
The statistical student hesitated a bit, but he did took it with a nod.
~ Confessional: Spencer ~
"As much as I don't trust the guy one bit, at least I have a partner for this challenge" He sighed, "and at least maybe I can gain some knowledge about the guy as we work together, as they say 'keep your enemies closer'"
~ Confessional: End ~
"Do you wanna find a place to plan in the forest? Or do you wanna go inside the dressing room?" He pointed towards a rather large cabin that appears to be the 'dressing room', a similar room from back in season four's music challenge.
"The dressing room" he said, he loves nature as the next guy but at this point he's getting sick and tired being outside all the time.
"Cool, lead the way" the risk analyst position himself, letting way for the other male to go passed him.
Spencer raised a brow, but passed through towards the cabin anyway.
"Woah seriously? You dance?" Sam said surprised.
Both men were sitting on some chairs, in front them was a big makeup desk. They had to share the dressing room cabin with some of the other contestants so it was a bit noisy but no matter, they would have to make it work with what they have.
"Yep!" Spencer grins, "I used to take lessons as a young lad, but I stopped when I was around secondary school. Yes I know, a nerd like me liking dancing? Unbelievable! Things aren't black and white you know"
Sam blinked, "You're a nerd?"
"Yes…?" Spencer questioned, maybe 'nerd' isn't the right word to describe him, he would prefer the term 'smart'.
Sam tilted his head in confusion, then the realization hit him, "Oh! You were in season four right? Sorry I only watched season one" he rubbed his neck.
Spencer's mouth almost gaped open, the guy only watched season one?
Once that piece of information was processed into his brain, he just barely stop himself from showing his smirk. The guy he had a close eye on and sees him as a potential threat doesn't fully know what he did in his previous season, he doesn't know what he's truly capable off. He could use this to his advantage later in the game.
"Yeah yeah I work hard on my studies, most people tend to mock me for it" he said, trying not to say to much, "Anyway, I do have experience with ballroom dancing"
"Ballroom dancing? That's interesting, Standard or Latin?"
"Standard, though I would have loved to learn Latin if I haven't quit dancing"
"Standard? I heard they have different categories of dancing. Which ones did you learned?"
"Well—" the younger male placed a finger on his chin, "I did learned about quickstep, Waltz, foxtrot, and Tango. If you asked me Waltz was one of my favorites to dance"
It's true, he deeply adored Waltz and Viennese waltz.
"Have you competed in any real dance-sport competitions?" Sam said, asking way more questions than Spencer would usually like. He'll led it slide this time, only because dancing isn't his main ability, that would be statistical probability and strategy.
"Yes, only once. It was competition where the prize money was four thousand pounds. Sadly me and my partner didn't win" Spencer's mood seemed to bitter a bit as he remembered how he lost that competition, he worked day and night to prefect his moves.
"Oh cool! What type of dancing were you doing in the competition?"
"Tango"
Sam nodded, closing his and placing a hand underneath his chin, looking like he was in deep thought. Spencer was about to ask what the bloody hell he was thinking about before Sam opened his mouth.
"Then that settles it, let's do tango"
Spencer's eyes widen, "T-Tango!?"
Sam nodded.
"Are you sure? Tango is rather difficult to learn, usually Waltz is considered to be the easiest"
"Sure I never danced to tango before, much less Ballroom tango, but I'll take the risk and learn how to dance it for a couple hours. I'm a fast learner after all"
Spencer just continued to look at him.
The older man laughed, "What? You think I wouldn't have enough in time to learn it for the challenge?"
"I—" Spencer paused, well yeah?
"As I said so before I am a fast learner. Come on, let's go outside for more space so you can teach me" he reached out his hand towards him.
Spencer moved on his own and took it. He had low hopes on making it work with a beginner at dancing, but the challenge is in a few hours and he needed to win this, for immunity and for some real food. So he really doesn't have a choice.
They made their way outside.
"Ow! Bloody hell watch were you are stepping!!"
"Woops! Sorry!"
Sam gave him a humorous look while Spencer send him a glare. It with his third time this hour he had stepped on his food when practicing, each time he would step harder. Seriously his last newbie partner from secondary school stepped on his foot less than this man.
But Spencer did have to admit, he was actually learning faster that he initially thought. Sure he was making mistakes but by the looks of it he got ballroom tango almost figured out. He got the spins figured out by the first try, his head and arm movement is decent at best and he started to get the hang of his foot movement, all is left is for him to stop stepping on his foot.
"Okay, since you have the hang of it let's take five and discuss what music we should play" Spencer suggested.
"Great, my legs are hurting me" Sam stretched for a bit and then sat down on a rock. Spencer did the same on a nearby fallen log.
"So, what music would you suggest?"
"Well, they are many great ballroom tango songs from my dancing days, but one song that deeply enjoyed dancing when I mastered tango is called "La Foule", truly a classic"
"Well there we go, we use that song then"
"It is kinda fast paced though, are you sure?"
"Pretty sure, besides, I have the most wonderful teacher here to teach me" He winked, making the other male blushed as he quickly looked away.
"F-fine! We will used the song. But there is still one problem, we need to figure out the lead and the follow. I have more experience so it would be easier for me to lead, however you seem to have a good structure for that would be prefect to lead—"
"Then why not let me lead? You teach me enough the couple of hours, I think I'm ready for the big step"
Spencer raised a brow, almost baffled by the suggestion, "Oh yeah, if your so confident in your leading skills then show me" he positioned his arms, "Let's see if your even decent enough to lead"
Sam smirked as he closed in towards the other male, liking a good challenge. Once both their stomachs were touching and Spencer bends his back a bit, Sam was already leading them. His moves were surprisingly fast and his reflexes were sharped, Spencer had no problem with fallowing him either.
It's just what he suspected, Sam has an amazing ability to adapt. Sure the whole time he was leading he did stepped on his foot about two times but still, for a beginner he's doing pretty well.
They might actually win this challenge.
But still, this could be bad for Spencer in the game as a whole, there is someone in the fans' team that appears to be well socialized, strategic, and a fast learner, someone like that could win this game. He would most definitely be a problem to deal with later on the game.
He'll have to think of a strategic plan for this later.
Once they were done and separated, Spencer gave him an approving nod, "Well it seems that you have surprised me, maybe you can lead after all. But we still need to practice, we need to be flawless in our dance moves. I know Emily as a judge from last season, she was ruthless and unforgiving in the musical challenge, we need to greatly impress her and her interns if we want to win"
"And you are one hundred percent correct!" Sam agreed, bowing and extending his hand to him, "So, let continue practicing"
Spencer didn't say anything back, most likely he stopped thinking straight when he felt his heart skipped a beat as the taller male bowed down like a Prince Charming or something. He huffed as he grabbed his hand and started to practice once more. Over the hours it was nothing but practicing,along since multiple five minutes break and a lunch and dinner break, everything was going smoothly.
When the challenge was about to begin he was fairly confident that they will do very well, and Sam himself doesn't seem nervous, everything is going perfectly. They changed into their preforming clothes once they went back to the dressing room and went behind stage where the rest of the contestants were. Emily had called in the first team to preform while the others wait.
And for the better or worst, Spencer had found out that him and Sam are the last to preform.
Although while the two were waiting they did see everyone else perform and witness multiple types of dances like hip hop, street-dances, salsa, swing, traditional, and he even saw standard Waltz from Evie and Lake of all people.
And yes almost all teams had made numerous amount of mistakes during their performances— good, the more chances they will be picked as one of the winning teams the better.
And before he knows it, he and Sam were up next. They both walked up stage to see Emily and her interns sitting in front while the rest of the contestants where sitting in the back on bleachers, some are bored while others were excited to watch.
"And here comes our last group, Spencer and Sam!" She enthusiastically announced, "Oooh! This is certainly a surprising duo! Alright, your song is set and ready to play. Whenever you two are ready"
The two men looked at each other and nodded, they both stand on the opposite side of each other from about 3 feet. Spencer positioned one hand into a curve while the other was stretched, Sam didn't exactly do the same, one hand was positioned down and the other was also stretched. They walked closer towards each other until their arm and body intertwined, Spencer bend his back into a small curve into the correct position needed for the dance.
The music begins.
To be honest Spencer never had a remarkable dance before, not even when he was competing on his first and only dance competition back in secondary school. Not even with his ex-boyfriend.
But with Sam as his partner, even though he was new to tango and ballroom dancing as a whole, was absolutely brilliant for a beginner.
For him it felt like he was flying in the air, the wind gently blowing through his body.
He tried to pay attention the audience without trying to lose focus, sure doing such a thing is would make a dancer lose focus and bump into other dancers in a competition—But he couldn't help but look at the audience, some people looked at them in awe, the bored ones now sat up interested, and others where already clapping.
Spencer feels… good about the positive attention.
And before he knew it the three and a half minute music was over and both of them stopped with a pose, Emily clapped her hands as she held up a perfect 10 for her score, the interns did the same.
"That was a good performance!" Emily praised, "Where do you two learned to do ballroom perfectly? Please I must know!"
"Oh I'm just a beginner, the real one with talent is Spency boy over here" he wrapped his hand around the other's waist, making him blush a bit, "He taught me everything I know"
"Wow really? I never knew someone like you even knows how to dance!" Emily said.
Spencer gulped before responding with confidence, "I practice it when I was young, didn't know it would come in handy"
"I'll say" Emily joked, "Okay everyone, get together on the stage, it's time to announce the winners!"
And so everyone minus Spencer and Sam got up from their seats and went to the stage. The nerd felt a light tug on his sleeve as he saw Bruno with a big grin, complementing his dance moves. Spencer gave him a small smile before turning his attention back towards Emily.
"Alright, the two winning teams have been decided!" She as she read off her notecards, "After doing the math on all the points you all earned. Second place with the second most points earned goes to—Ara and Bruno!"
Ara smirked as she flipped her hair with her had, "Ha! I knew it, see I told you K-pop inspired dances will give us a win!"
Bruno jumped in excitement, "We won! We won!"
Emily cleared her throat, clearly annoyed that she was interrupted "Okay, now for the winner with the most points! Drum roll please!"
Sounds of drums were being playing from somewhere in the background.
"—and to no one's surprise, it's Sam and Spencer! Who have a perfect score!"
Spencer nodded with a satisfied hum, of course they won, the probability of them winning the challenge after all the hard work they done was nearly 80%.
"Congrats to the two teams! You've been granted immunity and the buffet prize" she clapped her hands as she looked at the rest of the contestants, "Alright, while the two teams are busy stuffing their mouth with food the rest of you will be heading to the elimination ceremony. Get going!"
And so they did, Spencer and the rest of the winners were taken to the buffet were they all filled their empty stomach since the island didn't have much food other than fruit and seafood which barely satisfied anyone here.
He ate with the rest of the challenge winners and the others went to the voting ceremony. Turns out the ceremony had two contestants being booted out, who was voted out Spencer did not care, as surprising as it sounds to the so called "good strategist". All he could think about was the challenge and how—good it felt. Not only because of the positive reaction but how wonderful it was to dance with his dance partner.
He can’t believe he’s say this but—he wants to dance with him again.
Oh god just thinking about it makes him more eager, it’s embarrassing.
"Spencer? Spencer!"
Said strategist snapped out of his thoughts and looked back at Bruno. Ah that's right! Him, Bruno, Ara, and Natalia were sitting near the bond fire while drinking from coconuts and eating some fruit. Bruno is in his alliance and Ara is a potential ally because Bruno managed to connect with her, but Natalia didn't have anywhere else to go so despite hating Spencer's guts she decided to hang out with his group.
"Huh? Yes Bruno?" Spencer said slightly annoyed.
"You looked a little spaced out there for a sec. I was trying to say that you were awesome back there" Bruno squealed, "While everyone else hand a sort of a hard time dancing you and Sam were perfect! In total sync!"
"I'll say" Natalia said while taking a sip of her drink, "Not to feed your gigantic ego or anything but that was one of the smoothest moves I've have ever seen, and I binged watched dancing with the stars a while back! Again, don't get it twisted that I'm complimented you for once"
She giggled and Spencer rolled his eyes, seriously why is she still here?
"You said you knew standard ballroom right? That's so cool!" Bruno complimented, Ara nodded in agreement.
"Hate to say it but I agree! Hey, have you learned Latin ballroom by any chance?" Natalia asked.
The Englishman shook his head no, "Nope, I quit dancing my dancing classes to focus more on my studies when I was in my late teenage years. Though I would've loved to learn it if I was not busy studying for Uni"
"Well did you graduated already?"
"Yes—?" Spencer responded with a raised brow, a bit suspicious that Natalia was asking him more questions, doesn't she hate him?
"Well since you don't have to worry about school anymore then why don't you get back on it? You seemed like really passionate about it when you preformed. Unless you don't want to continue dancing for whatever reason"
Spencer was about to respond to her when he stopped and thought for a moment. He did truly loved to dance and he was surely devastated when he made the difficult decision to quit his dance classes because he thought it would be a distraction from his dream university. So now that he graduated and finally got his masters, what is stopping him from dancing again? Maybe the events of his last season on this bloody show were still lingering in his mind like a parasite that he didn't even thought about the hobby he once loved so dearly. If he wasn't thinking about the awful time he had on his season then his face was stuffed with books for his final exams, plus the stress he had from them.
Now that things had finally calmed down for him, what's stopping him from getting back on it again?
Soon the group finished up their talk and snacks and parted their ways to hit the hay. Their next challenge isn't for a few more days so they might by as well spend most of their free time sleeping, relaxing, or talking with friends.
Though that specific night however, Spencer did have some troubled sleeping…