Mistakenly Eaten

20. Bonding With Althea

Althea sighed, finally preparing the last of the meal for the day and turned to leave the kitchen. She spared a glance on all of the dishes in the kitchen and once again, she felt the most confident in her own.

So far, not even once was she announced as the winner of the competition.

She was always confident with what she had prepared and every time, she would look around at the rest of the prepared dishes, she would feel a hope in her heart that she was going to win that day but the next day, the least expected person would get announced.

She felt annoyed that most of the times, it was Andrew who would be announced as the winner.

Within a week, he was already announced twice and if he was going to be announced as the winner again, she was definitely going to raise her voice.

As everyone exited the kitchen, Althea called Garry out, making him pause and turn back towards her.

“Hey! Don’t you think they have been announced Andrew as the winner quite much?” she rose her concern with him and Garry gulped hard, sensing that Althea might get suspicious if she is not announced as the winner any time soon.

It was clear as the day, that her dishes were far better than everyone else and Althea wasn’t blind to not to know that she could beat everyone else easily and yet she was being dodged from winning a day off.

Salva was determined to keep her cooking everyday so that Nicholas kept on getting his daily dose of good food.

So far, they had noticed many positive changes in him.

They had noticed that he had began going to the gym.

He had began talking a stroll by the garden and even jogged every morning.

It only meant that sooner or later, he might get tired of the island routine and might want to move back and move on with his life, for which Salva just couldn’t wait.

As soon as Althea walked away from Garry, he immediately rushed to get Salva, who was present in the dining room.

“Salva! Who do you plan on announcing the winner tonight?” Garry asked and Salva shrugged, going through the list of the participants and deciding what will be cooked the next day.

“I don’t know, I was thinking maybe you or Fiona.”

“Make it Fiona.” Garry stated, attaining the attention of the girl, who was just entering the dining hall.

“Make me what?” She asked and Salva replied her back.

“The winner for today’s competition.”

“What? Why?” she asked, suddenly worried, why Garry wanted her to win. “That will mean that I will not be able to cook with you guys in the competition.” She protested, suddenly feeling envious that she would not get to be anywhere near Garry.

Salva grunted rolling his eyes.

“A. fake competition and B. don’t worry. The day you get your day off from the competition, you will get to cook for everyone else. So, it will be a win win.” Salva told her, earning a growl from Fiona.

For the past entire week, she noticed that Salva’s eyes on her had gotten sharper and he had been trailing for quite more strictly, ever since she tried to pull the little trick of making Althea and Nick run in to each other.

“Listen, Althea is getting suspicious that you are making Andrew win quite a lot. And even though he is a good cook but we all know that she also deserves to win.” Garry informed Salva, who sighed, understanding Garry’s concern.

“I get that! We will have to make her win as well but not at least in the first two weeks. Nick has gotten used to of her food. Right now he is very indulged and the only thing that excites him are his meals. So, for now, lets just keep Althea on the edge. We can announce her as second or third in the competition. Maybe that will give her some hope that she could be placed as number one in the upcoming weeks.”

Fiona scoffed listening to Salva’s words, as she organized the plates on the dining table.

“I thought this was a fake competition.”

Salva turned to give her a stern look and she immediately shut up and ran away from the dining hall, rushing out in to the main foyer, where she bumped in to Nicholas.

“Slow down! Why are you in such a hurry?” Nicholas asked Fiona, who didn’t say anything to him and simply ran off down the hallway.

He was quite weirded out by her behavior. In fact, he felt that everyone around the house had been acting weird for the past entire week.

He was about to enter inside the kitchen when Serena walked out, carrying his food trolley.

She squeaked the moment her eyes landed on Nicholas, standing in front of her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, looking around the main foyer, hoping and praying that Althea wasn’t around.

“I was thinking about having the dinner in the dining room today. Why don’t you bring the food in there?”

Serena’s eyes went wide, as she realized that Carl and his fake crew were shooting the food scenes in the dining hall and Anthony and Martha might also be present inside the dining hall and Nicholas was kept unaware of their presence on the island.

Nicholas took a step towards the dining hall but Serena immediately jumped in front of him and stopped him from entering the dining hall.

“Why don’t you have dinner in the living room? Dinner with a view?” she offered and Nicholas c****d a little.

“Why what’s wrong with having dinner in the dinning room? I thought you out of all the people would be happy if I had dinner in the dining room because you have been nagging me about having dinner out of my office and…”

“But in the living room, there would be a view.” Serena stated, pulling the trolley and pushing it in front of Nicholas, visibly forcing him to take a step back and move back towards the large living area.

Nicholas felt a bit confused by Serena’s movements but wondered if he was being a lousy observant or if there was something absolutely off about everyone in the house.

Well, these people are a bit screwed up in the head!

He concluded and shrugged, moving back towards the living room and Serena followed him, making sure that he did indeed went in the living room.

Throughout the dinner, Serena didn’t leave Nicholas’s side and once he was done with his food, he finally left for his bedroom and Serena got back inside the kitchen, leaving the dishes behind to be washed by the kitchen staff and entered the dining room.

“Guys! Nicholas wanted to have dinner in the dining hall today.” She told Salva, Anthony and Martha, who all sighed in exhaustion.

“Okay! I just feel like everyone in creating problems for us on purpose.” Martha complained.

“Don’t you think that the guy you are just referring to is the one we are taking this whole trouble for?” Anthony pointed out towards Martha’s hypocrisy and she simply shook her head.

“I know, I was the one who told you to take the risk and we have been hiding from Nicholas on this island and in this house for the past entire week but I am now done. I can not have this garbage food anymore.”

She pushed the plate in front of her away and got up, dashing out of the dining room.

“I will be by the pool.” She told everyone and Anthony walked right after her.

“Where are you going?” Salva inquired from his uncle, who shamelessly shrugged.

“I do whatever she does.” He smoothly climbed out of the situation, rendering Salva disappointed.

“What are we going to do now?” serena asked from Salva, who scratched the back of his neck.

“We can move the whole tasting thing inside the kitchen. The participants leave the kitchen right after Althea is done cooking anyways, right? So, we can show that they tasted a dish or two and then we are good to go.” Salva shrugged and Serena nodded.

“Carl! Move the entire crew inside the kitchen and use the back door of the kitchen to move your cameras in and out.” He ordered the fake director who shook his head.

“Can’t do that. We don’t move the equipment from the dining hall because it is quite a lot of work.”

“So, keep the cameras in the pantry but we have to keep the kitchen empty at times as well. Now that Nicholas is moving around the house we have to be careful.”

Salva stated, getting out of the dining area but paused when he saw Althea standing in a chiffon robe, by the sliding glass doors of the main foyer, right behind the staircase, opposite to the main door.

He immediately rushed to her side and called her out.

“What are you doing?”

Althea was startled for a moment, as she held a hand over her heart and breathed relentlessly.

“Oh! You scared me.” She laughed gently and Salva pretended to laugh along with her but squinted his gaze at her sternly, signifying that he wanted answers to his previous question.

“What are you trying to do?”

“Well, can’t you see, I am going to hang out by the pool.” She told Salva, who c****d.

“At this time of the night?”

“Well, I figured that the director might be asleep and besides, I usually don’t see many people hanging out around the house anyways, which is quite spooky to me. I mean, I’ve read many blogs and posts by the old participants and they’ve all said that the participants hang out together all the time and that’s how they pass the time on the island and make memories but I honestly don’t see anyone around the house. As soon as the cook off is over, everyone just disappears. Why are people so dead this time?”

Salva opened up his mouth to speak but before he could’ve said another word, Althea chased him off.

“Besides, I kind of get this feeling that the participants don’t like me much. I mean, Fiona tried to get me fired from the competition by making me run in to the director…” she spilled the truth out but gasped, as she realized that she didn’t even realize and spilled the truth in front of Salva, who gently nodded his head.

“I already know.”

“Phew! Thank God! So, as I was saying that Fiona doesn’t like me already and I get that, she might see me as a threat but you know what is even more creepier? That guy who is positioned next to me, Garry.”

“Why? Did he do something?” Salva asked, actually concerned, if someone tried to cross a morally questionable line with Althea, which would be wrong on every level in his books. She was brought there for a mission and if someone tried to take advantage of her, it would mean serious trouble at the island.

They might be liars and manipulators but not rapists and harassers.

“No! not anything as such.” Althea immediately cleared the air, sensing by Salva’s expressions, that he was assuming something quite deep and serious.

“All he does is, ask me about my cooking skills and try to learn and copy me all the time. Again, I get it he might see me as a tough competition but yesterday, I saw him even copying the way, I stand while I cook, that was slightly, actually quite creepy.” Althea chuckled, making Salva snort a small laughter along with her.

Fiona stood hiding behind the staircase and eaves dropping on their conversation and once, she was assured that Garry and Althea didn’t have much going on and the only reason why Garry showed so much interest in Althea was because he was simply impressed with her cooking skills, she sighed in relief and immediately made up her mind that instead of considering her the enemy, she should actually try to get closer to her and learn cooking from her, so that Garry would be impressed by her instead.

“So, I just thought that this might be a really good time right now to hang out by the pool. Besides, I was just complaining to Garry that the judges are putting too much favor to Andrew and making him win but I guess, I am just being lucky and being a bit too arrogant about it as well. I shouldn’t complain, if I am getting to cook everyday. Between you and me…” she leaned forward, making Salva lean ahead as well, “… please make sure I don’t win these regular cook offs.”

“Why?” Salva asked with a glimpse of mischievous and curiosity.

“You see, I never got to cook this openly in front of so many people. The only people in front of whom, I could cook so openly were my family and friends and the occasional catering parties that I booked. But this…” she sighed, looking towards the kitchen with gleam and shine in her eyes, that one could clearly see and tell how bright her hopes were.

“… this had always been my dream. And I am just really lucky that I am getting to live my dream. So, I guess for now I would like to continue this dream and yeah, winning wouldn’t hurt every now and then but I am just glad with where I am right now.”

Salva’s gaze was stuck at Althea’s glowing face. he couldn’t believe, how someone could be so happy with something that wasn’t even real but yet, so pure and esteemed in her eyes.

Fiona jumped out from behind the staircase, startling both Althea and Salva, who was shaken out of his trance and immediately realized that he was driven in to a deep thought and was actually focusing on Althea’s face.

“Let’s go out and hang by the pool together.” She offered, grabbing Althea’s arm and dragged her out towards the pool area.

“Oh! I …”

Before Althea could’ve said another word, Fiona simply took her out by the pool and Salva was left alone, scared with his thoughts, as the realization dawned upon her that he was bonding with Althea.

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