Not for the first time, I wondered where our clothing was. In every other season of Endurance Island, each person was assigned a color - I’d been yellow - and your name was plastered across your chest and back so the audience would have an easy time remembering who you were. Now we were heading to the island, and there was still no bag of gear. Maybe it’d be part of the first challenge, and I grimaced at the thought of having to fight for my own clothing.
Then again, they did say that this season would be a tough one. I was starting to wonder what I’d gotten myself into.
Then I looked over at Kip’s smug face and decided that the opportunity to knock him down a peg would be worth it. After all, my reputation couldn’t get any worse if I added ‘villain’ to my resume, could it?
The boat bobbed its way to the shore, eerily silent. It felt like we were waiting for something, but what? I gazed at the other contestants. They wore the same tense, anticipatory look that indicated we were all waiting for some big reveal.
Then, a motorboat started.
I jumped; someone across from me did, too. We’d been so on edge that the sound had caught us off guard. It wasn’t our boat, either; the sound of the motor came from the distance. And even though we weren’t supposed to speak, someone near me snorted with derision.
Ah yes, I knew who this drama llama was.
A fancy red speedboat came into view, a solitary man in khaki at the helm. Even though it was a windy day, his perfectly hairspray-shellacked brown hair didn’t move an inch. From a distance, I could see his pearly white smile gleaming against his tan.
Chip Brubaker, the host of Endurance Island.
He pulled the speedboat up alongside our wooden boat in a dramatic fashion, and the cameras turned to him. Every season, Chip had a big entrance. Endurance Island had made him an even bigger star than any contestant, and he milked it for all it was worth.
Chip pulled his boat alongside ours, and I saw people lean forward, waiting for the go.
“MAKEUP,” Chip yelled, waving an arm frantically. “Where’s makeup? We need to reshoot my entrance. My hair’s a fucking disaster.”
Cameramen sprang into action. I blinked as cameras went down and someone pulled out a radio. “We need makeup for Chip,” a man murmured into his walkie-talkie and then clicked it off.
Sure enough, another speedboat started in the distance and pulled up alongside Chip’s as a woman climbed on board. She began to dab Chip’s face with powder and then combed his stiff locks.
Next to me, the sexy guy crossed his arms, his entire pose screaming you’ve got to be kidding me. I felt the same way. Here we were, baking in the sun and thirsty, and Chip wanted his helmet of hair fixed. But we were stuck. I knew from my experience last season that everything waited on Chip, and Chip knew it.
Eventually, Chip’s hair was refreshed, and he sped away, only to drive up again a minute later so the camera-crew could film it anew. This time, he gave the camera a beaming smile, ignoring us.
“On this season’s Endurance Island, our players are returning for a second chance to show their stuff in the most wild, most difficult season we’ve put together. In a game full of twists and turns, this year will be even more outrageous and more challenging than ever before. Competing for the million dollar prize and a chance to call themselves the winner are sixteen former contestants from a variety of shows. From winners to losers, sex kittens —”
I cringed at that.
“—to good ol’ boys, everyone coming to the island has one mission - beat everyone else. They’ll be here for six weeks, through rain and sun, living on the beaches and foraging for food and shelter between competitions. They’ll have to keep on their toes if they want to keep one step ahead of the other contestants, because this year’s Endurance Island is full of twists…and we’re starting with two big ones.” Chip raised two big fingers into the air, gesturing for the camera.
Across from me, the girl with the Miley Cyrus hair fidgeted so hard she was about to shake the boat. The guy at her side squeezed her hand again and she calmed a little. I knew how she felt. If my hair wasn’t tucked into a bun atop my head, I’d be chewing on the ends nervously. As it was, my fingers twitched with the need to grab my hair as an outlet. What were the two big twists? Now I was leaning forward, because I didn’t want to miss a word.
No one breathed. No one talked. Everyone was on edge, waiting.
The dramatic pause continued. Chip gazed at us, and then nodded to the cameras. “Let’s go to the beach for this next shot, I think. It’ll be better for the show.”
“Sounds good,” one of the cameramen said, and somewhere on our boat, a motor started. We headed to shore, puttering along over the choppy waves. I swallowed the annoyed groan in my throat. This was all part of the show. Chip knew how to keep an audience hanging, damn the man. Even if the audience was us.
By the time we hit the shore, we were all jittery with anticipation. Production instructed us to line up on the beach, and I found myself standing next to Kip again. Ugh. The producers sure were going to play up our prior connections, weren’t they? I crossed my arms over my chest protectively and kept my gaze fixed on the host.
Cameramen swarmed the beach like flies, seemingly everywhere. Chip had makeup fix his hair one more time, and then approached a long line of multicolored boxes nestled in the sand on the beach. From here, I could see names written on each one. Sure enough, there was a yellow box with 'Annabelle' written on it.
Well, that answered the ‘gear’ question that had been looming in my mind.
“As you know,” Chip boomed, his voice cutting across the beach and catching the attention of everyone. “On previous seasons of Endurance Island, contestants were given an option to pick one luxury item from the supplies provided. This, in addition to their standardized bag of gear, was all that our players were allowed to bring for their six weeks on the island. This time, however, we’re doing things a little differently.” His smile grew, as if he had a secret he was sharing with the imaginary audience. “All you can have for this round on the island is what is in this box.” He patted the one closest to him.
I studied the row of boxes. Each one was a different color with each contestant’s name. Each one was about a foot high and a foot wide, and all were of a uniform size. I tried to imagine what was inside. Rice? A tarp? Would we all have the same thing or would they be random items?
Chip stepped away from the boxes. “But we’re not getting to those just yet. First, I’m going to tell you a bit more about how the game will be run this time.”
Here we go. I tensed, straining to listen.
“We have sixteen players and eight camps. You’ll be divided into teams of two and will be partnered up on individual beaches.”
My heart sank. Last season they’d done two big teams, but I remembered a prior season where things had been boy-girl and there had been a lot of boy-girl hooking up. This wouldn’t work well for my girls’ alliance plan.
“Every three days, we will go to Judgment. The two teams that are in last place in the competition will be nominated for Judgment by their peers. Teams will vote for one pair of contestants to go home. Except this year…there’s a twist. The losing team of two will then compete against each other to see who stays and who goes home.”
Then again, they did say that this season would be a tough one. I was starting to wonder what I’d gotten myself into.
Then I looked over at Kip’s smug face and decided that the opportunity to knock him down a peg would be worth it. After all, my reputation couldn’t get any worse if I added ‘villain’ to my resume, could it?
The boat bobbed its way to the shore, eerily silent. It felt like we were waiting for something, but what? I gazed at the other contestants. They wore the same tense, anticipatory look that indicated we were all waiting for some big reveal.
Then, a motorboat started.
I jumped; someone across from me did, too. We’d been so on edge that the sound had caught us off guard. It wasn’t our boat, either; the sound of the motor came from the distance. And even though we weren’t supposed to speak, someone near me snorted with derision.
Ah yes, I knew who this drama llama was.
A fancy red speedboat came into view, a solitary man in khaki at the helm. Even though it was a windy day, his perfectly hairspray-shellacked brown hair didn’t move an inch. From a distance, I could see his pearly white smile gleaming against his tan.
Chip Brubaker, the host of Endurance Island.
He pulled the speedboat up alongside our wooden boat in a dramatic fashion, and the cameras turned to him. Every season, Chip had a big entrance. Endurance Island had made him an even bigger star than any contestant, and he milked it for all it was worth.
Chip pulled his boat alongside ours, and I saw people lean forward, waiting for the go.
“MAKEUP,” Chip yelled, waving an arm frantically. “Where’s makeup? We need to reshoot my entrance. My hair’s a fucking disaster.”
Cameramen sprang into action. I blinked as cameras went down and someone pulled out a radio. “We need makeup for Chip,” a man murmured into his walkie-talkie and then clicked it off.
Sure enough, another speedboat started in the distance and pulled up alongside Chip’s as a woman climbed on board. She began to dab Chip’s face with powder and then combed his stiff locks.
Next to me, the sexy guy crossed his arms, his entire pose screaming you’ve got to be kidding me. I felt the same way. Here we were, baking in the sun and thirsty, and Chip wanted his helmet of hair fixed. But we were stuck. I knew from my experience last season that everything waited on Chip, and Chip knew it.
Eventually, Chip’s hair was refreshed, and he sped away, only to drive up again a minute later so the camera-crew could film it anew. This time, he gave the camera a beaming smile, ignoring us.
“On this season’s Endurance Island, our players are returning for a second chance to show their stuff in the most wild, most difficult season we’ve put together. In a game full of twists and turns, this year will be even more outrageous and more challenging than ever before. Competing for the million dollar prize and a chance to call themselves the winner are sixteen former contestants from a variety of shows. From winners to losers, sex kittens —”
I cringed at that.
“—to good ol’ boys, everyone coming to the island has one mission - beat everyone else. They’ll be here for six weeks, through rain and sun, living on the beaches and foraging for food and shelter between competitions. They’ll have to keep on their toes if they want to keep one step ahead of the other contestants, because this year’s Endurance Island is full of twists…and we’re starting with two big ones.” Chip raised two big fingers into the air, gesturing for the camera.
Across from me, the girl with the Miley Cyrus hair fidgeted so hard she was about to shake the boat. The guy at her side squeezed her hand again and she calmed a little. I knew how she felt. If my hair wasn’t tucked into a bun atop my head, I’d be chewing on the ends nervously. As it was, my fingers twitched with the need to grab my hair as an outlet. What were the two big twists? Now I was leaning forward, because I didn’t want to miss a word.
No one breathed. No one talked. Everyone was on edge, waiting.
The dramatic pause continued. Chip gazed at us, and then nodded to the cameras. “Let’s go to the beach for this next shot, I think. It’ll be better for the show.”
“Sounds good,” one of the cameramen said, and somewhere on our boat, a motor started. We headed to shore, puttering along over the choppy waves. I swallowed the annoyed groan in my throat. This was all part of the show. Chip knew how to keep an audience hanging, damn the man. Even if the audience was us.
By the time we hit the shore, we were all jittery with anticipation. Production instructed us to line up on the beach, and I found myself standing next to Kip again. Ugh. The producers sure were going to play up our prior connections, weren’t they? I crossed my arms over my chest protectively and kept my gaze fixed on the host.
Cameramen swarmed the beach like flies, seemingly everywhere. Chip had makeup fix his hair one more time, and then approached a long line of multicolored boxes nestled in the sand on the beach. From here, I could see names written on each one. Sure enough, there was a yellow box with 'Annabelle' written on it.
Well, that answered the ‘gear’ question that had been looming in my mind.
“As you know,” Chip boomed, his voice cutting across the beach and catching the attention of everyone. “On previous seasons of Endurance Island, contestants were given an option to pick one luxury item from the supplies provided. This, in addition to their standardized bag of gear, was all that our players were allowed to bring for their six weeks on the island. This time, however, we’re doing things a little differently.” His smile grew, as if he had a secret he was sharing with the imaginary audience. “All you can have for this round on the island is what is in this box.” He patted the one closest to him.
I studied the row of boxes. Each one was a different color with each contestant’s name. Each one was about a foot high and a foot wide, and all were of a uniform size. I tried to imagine what was inside. Rice? A tarp? Would we all have the same thing or would they be random items?
Chip stepped away from the boxes. “But we’re not getting to those just yet. First, I’m going to tell you a bit more about how the game will be run this time.”
Here we go. I tensed, straining to listen.
“We have sixteen players and eight camps. You’ll be divided into teams of two and will be partnered up on individual beaches.”
My heart sank. Last season they’d done two big teams, but I remembered a prior season where things had been boy-girl and there had been a lot of boy-girl hooking up. This wouldn’t work well for my girls’ alliance plan.
“Every three days, we will go to Judgment. The two teams that are in last place in the competition will be nominated for Judgment by their peers. Teams will vote for one pair of contestants to go home. Except this year…there’s a twist. The losing team of two will then compete against each other to see who stays and who goes home.”
