“We’ll just leave you two here alone torelax,” the attendant says as she leaves the candlelit room where our two contestants are oiled up and blissed out, nakedly relaxing under thin sheets.
“Oh, jeez. Do we have to watch it? I mean, did they,” he uses hand gestures to try to encompass all his horror, “and did it keep recording?” Jackson turns his head sideways and squinches his eyes.
“You have a dirty mind, Jackson,” Rory admonishes. “Believe it or not, they both fell asleep. Pretty boring footage. But a little after lunch there was this.” She fast-forwards to the spot she is seeking. Ryker and Lacey are lounging on cushioned chaise lounges in a private courtyard, a bubbling Jacuzzi in the background. They are both wearing robes and he’s feeding her strawberries. We see a bubbling flute of champagne.
“I’ll just fast forward to the good part.”
Lacey is straddling Ryker. Robes and towels are coming off, being flung left and right. Something lands over the camera lens, cutting off the view.
“And then after there was this.” She fast forwards again.
“I can’t explain it, Ryker. There’s something about you. When I’m near you, I get butterflies.”
“Oh no she didn’t,” Jackson's head is in his hands.
“What?” Rory and I both look at him.
“She used the ‘butterflies’ line.” Jackson groans. “It’s the third-most overused reality show phrase. Right after ‘not here for the right reasons’ and ‘Can I grab you for a sec?’ You know what’s next right? The ‘I think I might be falling in love with you.”
“Dude. How much reality TV do you watch?” Rory pulls a face.
“Most of the people on these shows are in it for the exposure,” Jackson says. “At the risk of sounding like a cliché, I am not so sure these two are here for the right reasons.”
“I have everything I need. I’m happy. They have heat,” Rory says.
“Just because they were attracted to each other doesn’t mean that they are a great match,” Jackson says. “Lots of people are attracted to each other who maybe shouldn’t be.”
The space triangulates, as Jackson meets my eyes, and I look away in time to see the way Rory is looking at him and at me taking stock.
“Show us Darwin and Chloe next?” I request, doing my best to break the tension.
“Their date was super sweet,” Rory zips through a bunch of footage of the two of them volunteering at the children’s clinic. “I mean nothing earth-shattering or dramatic, but lots of giggling and some heartfelt moments. Especially this one.”
She stops on a scene where the two contestants are helping to paint a mural on the wall. Noah’s Ark? They appear to be painting a couple of goats. But suddenly Darwin is overwhelmed with emotion. He attempts to wipe the tears from his eyes and ends up streaking paint all over his face. Chloe stops what she’s doing and attempts to comfort him.
“It’s okay, Darwin. You can tell me anything. I’m a nurse,” she says.
“I guess I just always had to be strong, you know. There was no room for weakness in our house. My brothers needed me. I’d like to think Gampy would be proud of me now,” Darwin chokes out, voice cracking.
“Oh Darwin, I’m sure he would,” Chloe takes the paintbrush from his hand and embraces him.
The camera zooms in on the tears in Darwin’s eyes. They spill over and leave a trail on his cheek.
“Poor Darwin,” I say. “Who was he talking about? His grandpa?”
“His frat’s mascot! Gampy the goat got taken away by animal protective services. Having him in the house was a code violation,” Rory snickers.
“Oh,” I say, biting my lips. “That’s not good.”
“I think we can make something of this footage if we cut it right,” Rory judges. “It’s kind of a funny tender moment. He was very attached to the goat. More than he is attached to Chloe. We also captured this key moment after,” Rory says.
In the later scene, Darwin is cleaned up and the couple is seated outside the clinic, holding hands. Darwin’s speaking into the camera, looking incredibly uncomfortable.
“I dunno, Chloe. I just don’t know that I’m worthy. I think you might be–”
Rory pauses the tape. “Does anybody want to guess the end of the sentence? Jackson?”
“Too good for me?” Jackson deadpans.
