Real(ity) Feelings

Chapter 20

Marco. Just the thought of him made Dianne's skin crawl as she thought of all the times she had had to dodge him this past week. She had managed to avoid him for most of the week - luckily one positive of living in a house with nine other people. But she knew she had to sell their relationship to the public, so she forced herself to spend time with him when they were all together outside - it was safer that way. No intense personal conversations, but she could still laugh and smile at his stupid stories, encouraging him without actually saying much.

He had tried to hug  her a few times - and while she had managed to stop herself from yelling and pulling away - she also explained that she needed to take it slow. He had agreed, although begrudgingly, and it had saved Dianne the guilt she felt whenever she looked over to see Joe sitting far away from her, feigning loneliness.

It had been extremely hard to avoid Joe all day, every day. But their evenings were what had gotten them through the week. She felt herself smiling slightly as she thought of their bed - that small bed in the crowded room that had become their sanctuary in this game. Luckily, since she and Joe were still coupled up, they were still sharing a bed every night, per Oasis Island rules. Even though they had to appear not to be speaking and their bodies had to be on opposite sides, Joe had realized they could still hold hands under the covers without the camera picking up on it. So he had reached out and linked their fingers every single night, giving her gentle squeezes and rubbing his thumb over her palm after exceptionally difficult days. Occasionally he'd gotten cheeky enough to reach out and rub his hand up and down her back or give her a bum a quick squeeze as he turned over, which always made Dianne shiver in the best way, and bury her head in her pillow to hide her smiles from the camera.

Bringing her eyes back to the scene in front of her, she watched as Jasmine chose Bobby and Mia chose Steve. It was just about her turn, and she stood up, flattening her skirt with her hands and making her way to the opposite side of the fire pit.

---

Joe kept his gaze facing down, occasionally sneaking a look over to Marco and then up at Dianne who was standing there looking off into the distance.

"The boy that I'm choosing to couple up with tonight," she started, her voice sounding more nervous that Joe thought it would. "Is someone who means a lot to me."

Sucking in a shaky breath, Dianne continued, her voice a bit stronger, "He's someone that has always been there for me. Always had my back. We share a lot of meaningful memories...and this last week has really shown me that."

Joe looked over at Marco who was grinning from ear to ear. "Not so fast, mate," Joe thought as he smirked to himself.

Glancing over, he saw Ben standing with his arms crossed, a stormy look on his face, and Marisol a few feet away, practically beaming in joy. Returning his attention to Dianne, he saw her finally raise her eyes to look at him, her nerves clearly shining in her hazel eyes. He gave the tiniest nod of encouragement, hoping it would help her continue on.

---

Dianne saw Joe's head nod briefly before he focused his attention back toward the ground. This was it, this was the final piece of the delicate puzzle they had so carefully put together over the last five days.

"Marco," Dianne spoke, "You and I have history together. We have shared so much over the years. To be honest...I never thought I'd see you again."

Suddenly feeling paralyzed by anxiety, Dianne paused, and sucked in a shaky breath. She saw Joe watching her again, his eyes looking at her intensely. Those blue eyes, that had made her weak so many times before, were suddenly giving her strength.

"And honestly..." Dianne spoke again, her words now dripping with coldness. "I would be glad if I never had."

She watched as Marco's sly grin slowly turned into a frown.

"You cheated on me three years ago. Repeatedly. Not only ruining my career, but also my life."

She watched as the other couples stared at her in shock, their mouths slightly agape, completely entranced by the words coming out of her mouth. Encouraged by their reaction, she continued, her voice stronger now, and rising in volume.

"I gave up the one thing I loved in my life because of your actions, and I wanted nothing more than to see you suffer the same way I did."

Suddenly feeling emotional, Dianne breathed in deeply, feeling tears pooling in her eyes before she spoke again, her voice coming out softly, "But I don't need you to suffer. I don't need anything from you, to be honest. Because I've found someone here who gives me everything in the world. He gives me strength when I'm weak. He makes me laugh when I'm sad. He takes care of me in a way that I never thought possible. And that someone...is Joseph Sugg."

She paused, as the tears continued to gather in her eyes, and she blinked hard to try and keep them from falling, as she watched the tips of Joe's ears go pink at her words and a shy smile spread across his face. They hadn't discussed her speech - his reaction was 100% genuine and it was melting her heart.

Turning to face the group again, she stood a little straighter before speaking again, "Joe and I discovered a week ago that Marco was brought here as a strategic move to break us up for better ratings. At the time we were angry. So angry that we decided to play our own little game."

The entire group began whispering in hushed sounds, looking at Joe and Dianne in awe. Marco had begun to turn an unsightly shade of purple, his fists clenched at his sides. Dianne could see the host even staring at them in shock, as the cameras continued to roll. In the corner of her eye, she thought she saw Karen, the executive producer, begin to walk in front of the cameras, but surprisingly, it was Joe's producer Ben, who  reached out and pulled her back. 

"Joe and I never broke up, it was all a stunt," she continued, looking back at Joe. "And I never will break up with Joe...because I...I love him."

She finally felt a tear escape and roll down her cheek as she rushed to continued, "And so the boy I want to couple up with tonight...and forever...is you, Joseph."

Unable to sit back a second longer, Joe launched himself off the bench, gathering her up in his arms and lifting her up, spinning around in a circle. As he lowered her down, she gripped onto his shoulders and pressed her lips against his in a desperate kiss, her tears slowing as she heard the other couples clapping and hollering behind them.

As they broke apart, Dianne saw Marisol behind a camera staring at her with daggers in her eyes. She threw her clipboard and headset onto the ground and stormed off, causing an unending stream of giggles to erupt from Dianne's throat.

---

Joe leaned down and kissed her again before finally loosening his grip and turning to the rest of the group who were still jumping up and down and clapping.

"Um, thanks for your support guys, you're absolute legends," Joe laughed. "And I'm sorry you had to listen to my moaning all week."

"Mate, YOU'RE the legend," Luke shouted, running toward the bar to grab champagne. Joe chuckled to himself before realizing Marco was still sitting, motionless, staring at the two of them.

Gripping Dianne's hand and moving protectively in front of her, he turned to stare back, before speaking in a low voice, "I know you're probably ready to punch me in the face...but mate, honestly...it's time for you to fuck off. Out of the mansion, and out of Dianne's life."

He heard Dianne giggle nervously behind him as Marco rose off the bench and stomped off the set, brushing off the swarm of producers that came running toward him.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Joe turned back toward Dianne, grasping both hands and bringing them up to his mouth to kiss her knuckles gently. She gazed up at him, her eyes sparkling.

"We did it," she whispered. "I love you."

"I love you too," he responded, smiling so widely his cheeks hurt.

Suddenly overcome with emotion, Joe didn't trust himself to say anything more, instead choosing to wrap his arms around Dianne tightly, holding her close and ignoring the chaos as it unfolded around them.