Real(ity) Feelings

Chapter 12

"Question number one," the host started, as Joe and Dianne shuffled their paddles that were adorned with the faces of the other contestants. "Who spent their secondary school years on an air force base in Germany?"

Joe remembered Jay announcing this fact a few nights before - he and Dianne grabbed the paddle with Jay's face at the same time, sharing a grin as they confirmed their selection and won a point.

"Question number two," the host continued. "Who will not eat apples before noon?"

Joe heard Dianne stifle a giggle as the other couples looked at each other confused. Joe remembered Dianne droning on about how she couldn't possibly eat apples before noon three days ago as they were all lounged around the pool - but clearly the other couples had tuned out their ridiculous conversation. He did a small fist pump as they won a point, while the rest of the couples came up empty.

The game continued on, Joe finding he and Dianne were on the same page the entire way through, almost as if they were reading each other's minds. It had come down to he and Dianne against Steve and Mia - who he knew had a disadvantage since Mia had come into the mansion halfway through the week.

"Question ten," the host announced. "Who worked as a manicurist before settling into their current career?"

Joe saw Dianne's eyes shine in excitement as she scrambled to grab the paddle with Luke's face on it. Joe shot her a skeptical look before whispering, "Are you sure?"

Dianne gazed up at him, a look of confidence in her eyes, "I'm positive."

Joe could not recall any conversations when Luke had talked about working as a manicurist - in fact the notion seemed absolutely ridiculous, as he pictured the tall blonde man daintily painting finger nails. But he trusted Dianne, so with a deep breath, he turned around the paddle.

"And the winner of this week's date is..." the host teased, turning toward the camera, "Joe and Dianne!"

Dianne squealed in excitement as they both rose to their feet. She wrapped her arms and legs around him as he lifted her up and spun around. He knew the joy in her eyes was also reflecting in his as they made the same realization at the same time - they were finally going to escape this house.

---

Dianne walked down the stairs, dressed in leggings and a tank top, gripping a garment bag with a more formal outfit hanging safely inside. After the cameras stopped rolling, Marisol had swooped into the backyard, grabbing Dianne and whisking her upstairs, into a room that was normally off limits to contestants. Inside, Dianne and come face to face with rack upon rack of beautiful clothing, excitement bubbling up inside of her as she realized they were all for her.

Marisol hadn't seemed particularly thrilled she and Joe had won the date, but she wasn't as icy cold as she had been the day before, so Dianne was choosing to be cheerful around the producer. They had picked out a brightly colored mini dress and nude heels for the evening part of the date, and then Marisol had tossed Dianne the casual clothing, briefly mentioning that the afternoon portion would include something more "active." Distracted by the glittery clothing around her, Dianne had waved her off, pulling on the leggings and touching up her make up in the mirror.

Now, she was stood downstairs in the foyer, waiting for Joe to make his presence known. She heard footsteps behind her, and he suddenly appeared, wearing baggy joggers and a loose fitting tee - a garment bag also in his hands.

He reached out to link their hands, giving hers a tight squeeze as they made their way out into the bright sunlight and into the waiting SUV.

She kept ahold of his hand, sitting closely to him in the backseat and whispering, "Why does it feel like we're escaping prison?"

He laughed and let go of her hand, moving his to her thigh and squeezing lightly, "Because we sort of are. A beautiful oasis prison, but still a prison."

She let her head drop to his shoulder, a position she had become very familiar with over the last week, placing her hand over his, rubbing up and down slowly with her thumb.

"Did your producer tell you what the first part of the date was?" Joe asked softly. "Why are we dressed like we're going to the gym?"

Dianne shrugged, "She just said something active, I think."

She watched as he nodded, focusing his gaze out the window, both of them curious about where they were headed.

---

Joe helped Dianne out of the car when the SUV came to a stop in the middle of a field, about thirty minutes later. She looked up confused, pushing her hair out of her face as a gust of wind whipped around them.

"Where the hell are we?" he heard her ask in a low voice.

He shrugged, turning around to take in his surroundings. He slowly came to a stop as his eyes focused on a small plane sitting 100 yards away - a man dressed in a jumpsuit and parachute standing casually next to the open door.

"Oh no," he heard Dianne mumble next to him. "No, no, no, no."

He looked down and saw Dianne's face frozen in fear, all the color draining out of her cheeks, going a deathly shade of white, which he was pretty sure wasn't from her hangover. She glanced up at him before adding, "I can't do it."

Joe reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her gently toward the plane, "Come on...let's just go find out what this is all about."

"No, Joe. Joe I can't. No." she whispered over and over as they approached, her voice becoming more panicky the closer they got.

By the time they arrived at the plane, he could feel her hand shaking in his. He managed a small smile toward the man in front of them, reaching out to shake his hand, before wrapping a protective arm around Dianne's shoulders.

"Hello Joe, hi Dianne," the man started, a grin spreading across his face, "Welcome to the first portion of your date - there's nothing like a little adrenaline to get sparks flying. So today, you won't be driving to dinner - instead you two will be parachuting there - by jumping out of this plane.