“And you only took about an hour to think about it before you said yes.”
“It was at least two.”
“If you say so.”
They were smiling at each other when TJ’s voice cut in. “So there were sparks from the start, as we’ve established. What do you think of each other now? I mean, obviously something went awry, right?”
His line of questions felt dangerously close to the ones that had led to their explosion during the last interview when he’d asked why they’d broken up. Not to mention, the same question had instigated last night’s fight too. Olivia shifted in her chair and heard Chuck clear his throat.
“I still think she’s driven. I still think she’s passionate,” Chuck said. “And I don’t think anything necessarily went awry. We just got to know each other and realized some of our traits don’t exactly align…peacefully.”
An involuntary snort snuck out of Olivia’s nose. She threw a hand to her mouth.
“Have something you want to share, Olivia?” TJ asked.
“That’s just a polite way of saying it.”
“How would you say it?” TJ said.
She considered and decided not to pander to TJ’s quest for drama despite being able to list off a catalog of all the ways she’d describe their incompatibility. “The same, I guess.”
A sly smile spread across TJ’s face. “Well, maybe livingtogether has taught the two of you some manners. A week ago, I can only imagine what choice words you would have used—some of which we all heard in that video from the street.” He kicked a foot up onto his knee and pivoted.
“Speaking of lessons, what have you learned about each other living here these past few days? Any habits you can’t stand?”
“That’s a bit of a leading question, isn’t it?” Chuck said flatly. “It hasn’t been all bad.”
“You tell me, Chuck. You were the one who spent the night locked outside that first night. How would you say things are going?” TJ turned a knowing, smug grin on him.
The embarrassed heat wave that consumed Olivia was not subtle. She felt everyone’s eyes move to her, and she knew they’d all watched the footage from that night—from everything, surely. Confirmation of it made her want to hide.
Chuck folded his arms. “Well, sure. The first night was a little rough.”
“Mm-hmm,” TJ said. “Olivia? What are your thoughts about that night?”
She imagined her flushed face being turned into an internet meme. Or worse, the shot of her threatening to light his shirt on fire that night—even though she would never have actually done it—becoming a GIF.
Why had she signed up to be on TV?
A million dollars a million dollars a million dollars, she thought once more.
“I think things might have gotten a little carried away,” she said quietly. “I’m still sorry.”
Chuck shrugged. “I’m over it.”
“So!” TJ said, loudly refocusing attention when they didn’telaborate. “Back to my question. What have you learned about each other these past few days? Olivia? You go first.”
She let out a breath and mentally sifted through everything that had happened. It had only been two and a half days, and she’d seen a new side of Chuck. Of course, she’d seen the side she knew well—the stubborn, brash, homing-missile-for-her-last-nerve side—and they’d gotten in a fight last night, which was par for the course. But she’d also seen the tender side of him that he kept hidden and only showed during his most vulnerable moments. Like when he’d tried to soothe her nerves over being on camera; when he’d intervened during the first interview; when he told her she’d make a good parent. And everything he’d said moments before about his first impression of her. And, however ill-fated it had been, he’d tried to have a real conversation with her last night about their problems.
She honestly wasn’t sure she ever would have seen any of those things if they hadn’t ended up locked in a house together.
Smoothing her hands over her lap, she turned back to TJ, to the camera, and said, “I’ve learned that he can surprise me still.”
TJ gave her a look of sincere intrigue. “Interesting.” But he didn’t elaborate. He turned to Chuck. “And you? What have you learned?”
Chuck didn’t look at TJ or the camera. He looked right at Olivia, again like she was the only person on the planet. “I’ve learned that she’s capable of things I didn’t know.”
The statement was ambiguous, but the look on Chuck’s face made her think it was more of a compliment than a dig.