Page 54 of The Cuffing Game
The two of them shared a knowing look. There it was again. The faintsomethingbetween Damien and Alex. This was neither the time nor place to bring that up, though, so Mia said instead, “Regardless of my own feelings, it’s not like that between me and Noah. That one time we went outside together, we sat around the firepit and talked for a bit because we both couldn’t sleep. That was all. But it wasn’t planned or anything like that. I promise. And he definitely doesn’t like me that way. Noah and I aren’t even friends. I’ll do my best to stay clear of him from now on.”
Damien pursed his lips for a moment, keeping his gaze steadily on Mia’s. Then finally, he shrugged.
“All right, I believe you,” he said. “Let’s get started with the day.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Noah
“Everyone, please bundle up in your coats and come out to the front yard,” announced Mia.
That was it. That was the entire message. Compared to how verbose and friendly her previous announcements had been, this one was jarringly short.
Wondering if there was something wrong, Noah got ready as quickly as he could.
Downstairs, Alex met him and the other contestants to mike them up before they all went outside. In the front yard, Damien and Kallie were already recording, while Mia stood behind them, quietly observing everyone.
Three newcomers stood in front of the lodge. Noah froze.
“Yay, new people!” Tiana exclaimed.
Celine also cheered, but Noah stayed silent as he scanned the new faces.
The first person was Carlos, who Noah recognized from Day One, while the second was a brunette white girl he’d never seen before. The last newcomer was, unfortunately, not a stranger to Noah.
Kyle Yoshida stared back at him with a wide, toothy grin. A shudder ran through Noah’s body at the sight of Thad’s Little. Or, ex-Little, as Noah now knew him as.
Things between Noah and Kyle had started out normal enough. Since Kyle was Thad’s Little—and thus Noah’s “Grand-Little”—the three of them had hung out a few times throughout the semester. But then Noah noticed little things. Like how Kyle started styling his hair like Noah’s. Or how he quoted specific lines Noah had said in his videos. It’d initially seemed like harmless imitation, so Noah never said anything. But then the lies started. Like when Kyle falsely told Thad that Noah had said certain things.
When Thad informed Noah last week that Kyle had gotten himself kicked out of Alpha Tau for lying and stealing, Noah hadn’t been surprised. He’d hoped he’d never have to see his Grand-Little again.
But, unfortunately, here Kyle was. Right in front of him. On Mia’s show, out of all places.
Kyle enthusiastically waved at Noah like they were close friends. A wave of disgust hit Noah, but he forced a smile onto his face for the cameras.
“Noah!” Kyle exclaimed. “I’m so happy you’re still here!”
Kyle’s expulsion from Alpha Tau was fraternity business, and it’d happened during finals week, so there was a good chance theCuffing Gamecrewhad no idea what kind of guy he was.
Noah had to warn Mia. He glanced over at her, hoping to catch her attention. But when their eyes met, Mia immediately stared down at her feet. He frowned, trying to puzzle out why she wasignoringhim.
“Hi, everyone,” Mia said. Apparently Noah didn’t count as “everyone” because she looked around and made eye contact with everyonebuthim. “Y’all already know Carlos. Please welcome him back, along with our other newcomers, Kyle Yoshida and Violet Russo!”
Everyone politely cheered and clapped, and the newcomers went around to individually introduce themselves—orreintroduce themselves, in the case of Carlos—to the original cast.
Unfortunately, Kyle made a beeline for Noah. “Noah! What’s up, brother?”
The younger boy held up a hand. Although Kyle wasn’t a “brother” to him anymore, Noah gave him a high five to avoid causing a scene.
He had to find a way to warn Mia. If only she’d lookupat him...
“Hey, nice to see you,” Noah lied, masking his own disgust. “What brings you to the show?”
He’d asked the question to probe Kyle’s intentions, but was wholly unprepared when Kyle replied with, “Well, you know. I wanted to meet some hot ladies. I have my eye on Celine, especially. I’ve been following her for years.”
The word “following” in a social media context wasinnocuous enough, but the way Kyle said it made Noah cringe. Kyle looked over his shoulder, and Noah followed his gaze to see that the other boy was checking to see if any of the cameras were recording them. They weren’t. Kallie’s camera was filming Shirin and Tiana, while Damien’s was with Carlos and Celine.
Noah didn’t notice Kyle leaning into him until it was too late. Noah jerked back, but not before Kyle grabbed onto his arm.
