Chapter Text
12:05 pm
As Julia soared through the air with her arms spread outwards like an eagle, she inhaled a happy breath. There was no one to oppose her anymore. She was just flying without a care in the world.
“Add to cart… Add to cart… mmm I love same day delivery,” Julia hummed to herself as she performed flips in the air.
Julia confessional: That’s my national anthem *points to herself proudly*
However, right behind her was Wayne who was zooming towards her like a bullet train. He wore a cocky smirk as he mentally prepared what he was going to say to Julia to throw her off her game.
Wayne confessional: *taps his head* Time to play some mind games with her!
“Yo Sterling,” Wayne cooed from behind.
Julia turned to him incredulously. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Wayne in his squirrel suit now flying alongside her. But this was impossible!
Julia confessional: *wide-eyed and confused* HOW did he even catch up to me?
“How’s this? If I win the money, you have to go out with me! That sound cool?” he smirked. Oh how she loved and hated that little arrogant smirk of his.
“Are you seriously asking me out now?” Julia sneered but this was just to cover up the fact that her heart had lightened slightly at his request. Almost as if she had wanted to be asked this all season…
“Yeah… so what do you say?” Wayne chortled, continuing to be very direct with her.
“Well… you’re not going to win so I don’t have to worry about that. Sorry, not sorry,” Julia rolled her eyes.
THUMP!
“EUGH!” Julia winced as the 195-pound hockey captain got on top of her. “Hey what are you doing? Get off of me!” she screeched as she tried to fling him off with very little success. Julia did her best to twist herself in her squirrel suit but Wayne was not letting go. Just as she had done to him back at the chasm.
“You think you’re the only one who can play dirty?” Wayne said fiercely.
VVVVRRRIIPPP!
He easily tore off one of her wings off and discarded it. A strong gust of wind and the wing flew away and out of sight.
Julia felt a sudden panic. She could not finish this race with only one wing. Even worse, she was probably going to fall into the trees waiting below.
“MY WING! YOU – ” she swiped at Wayne as she slowly began losing altitude. Julia managed to grab on to Wayne’s leg and for a few brief seconds, she was able to hold tightly on to him as he continued to fly.
“HEY! NO HITCH-HIKING!” Wayne looked down furiously at Julia who was desperately holding on to him for dear life. Wayne did not know what to do. He needed to get Julia off of him soon since she was currently dragging him down. But how?... He couldn’t just kick her off. He would feel terrible!
Suddenly, Wayne felt a violent rush of pain in his right leg. It felt like his skin had just received a thousand cuts from a thousand hot knives.
“OWWWW!” Wayne roared as he felt Julia’s sharp nails scratching against his leg. She was losing her grip and sliding down slowly.
“WAYYYYNE! HHHHEEEELLLLPPPPP!” Julia cried as she held on to Wayne’s boots even though she knew it was over. Two seconds later she had lost her hold of Wayne and found herself falling to the ground, her single wing flapping uselessly as she did her best to fly and stay airborne.
“JULIA!” Wayne yelped with a slight grimace, doing his best to ignore the slightly bloody leg he now had to deal with.
Wayne confessional: *looks horrified at leg with scratch marks* She’s got claws!
Julia panicked as she looked down and –
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
“OW! EUGH! OWWW!” Julia yelled as her head banged against the tree branches three times in succession, scratching her face and sending spit flying. Her squirrel suit had even managed to come off of her due to the impact. After an intense beating from the branches, Julia hit the ground face-first and groaned.
*
12:09 pm
Wayne landed softly on the ground and immediately took off his squirrel suit. It was much too bulky and would slow him down. Wasting no time, he began sprinting to the dock to collect his well-deserved prize money.
However, with each step a little voice spoke in his head. This did not feel right to him. But why?... He knew why. Wayne could sense that Julia was not coming.
He turned and looked back at Julia who lay face-planted on the ground, unmoving and still. He bit his lip hard, staring back and forth between the finish line which he could see just up ahead and the unmoving Julia. He began to sweat bullets and his teeth chattered cartoonishly as he struggled to make a decision. He kept looking back and forth between the prize money and the girl of his dreams.
Briefcase-Julia. Briefcase-Julia. Briefcase-Julia.
“WAYNE! KEEP GOING!” Bowie called from the stands. He could not believe that Wayne was having doubts now.
“DON’T LOOK BACK!” Nichelle cried.
Wayne continued to stare blankly at Julia. Still, she did not stir.
Wayne sighed. It would be so easy to go and pick up the briefcase while she was down. But… is this how he wanted to win? Because his opponent had been injured?
Wayne confessional: If I’m going to beat her, I want to beat her at her best!
Much to everyone’s surprise, including his own, Wayne found himself moving away from the money and towards Julia.
“IT’S A TRAP WAYNER! TURN AROUND!” Raj yelled, eyeing Julia nervously. Though she was playing possum, Raj knew better. Julia was still conscious and she was hearing everything they were saying. He could not be fooled by her.
“DON’T BELIEVE HER!” Emma shrieked.
“Might wanna check up on her brah. She looks pretty hurt!” Zee said.
“JUST LET HER GET EATEN BY THE BEARS!” Caleb spat. Everyone turned and looked at Caleb, concerned. He blinked.
“Whaaaaat?” he said slowly. “I have the right to be mad at her for what she did to me!”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Unfortunately their words of advice fell deaf on Wayne’s ears. As he began to walk closer towards Julia, hidden from view she smiled maliciously to herself.
Julia confessional: *laughs* What a gullible fool. He’s SO naïve…
Wayne knelt down beside Julia’s head. He tapped it twice with his knuckles. She looked up innocently. Wayne did his best not to laugh. He took a deep breath as he stared into those violet eyes he liked so much.
“Jules. I just wanted to say… you’re a really bad actor. No one’s falling for this!” And with that, he turned around and sprinted away while laughing to himself in the air.
The whole peanut gallery dropped their mouths in shock. They had not been expecting Wayne to go over and taunt Julia like this.
Caleb confessional: Wow. Wayne teasing Julia like that was not on my Rematch finale Bingo card. *whistles* Didn’t know he had it in him.
“Oh wow! That is a pleasant surprise!” Bowie clapped.
“Nice work!” Millie cheered.
“OK ain’t gonna lie. I’ve known Wayne for over 13 years and he still got me there!” Raj chortled.
As Wayne continued to run away from her, Julia stared at him. A muscle began to twitch under her eyes as she struggled to control her breathing. Her fingers scraped the earth in anger. There was no doubt about it. Julia was losing her composure.
She sharpened her gaze on Wayne’s backside as volcanic hatred rapidly filled her insides. Now all she wanted to do was beat him to a pulp. He had come all the way over just to mock her and run away laughing?
Julia confessional: *hits the wall* I can’t believe I can’t trick him anymore. This is a disaster!
Immediately Julia got up, ignoring the sticks and leaves in her hair, and charged. She was sprinting like a bull towards Wayne with no intention of stopping. Pure adrenaline and anger fueled her every step.
Everyone gasped.
“What the – is she crazy?!?!” Millie shrieked.
MK stood up from her seat and cheered.
MK confessional: And that’s why Julia is going to win! She’s fearless and spicy!
Wayne began to sweat bullets as he heard Julia’s resounding footsteps behind him coming closer and closer. What was that noise he was hearing? Was that her heavy breathing? Why did it sound so out-of-control? So deranged?
He made the mistake of looking back and what he saw almost made him shit bricks. A front view of Julia’s face, and though it normally looked beautiful to him… today, not so much. Simply put, she looked insane.
Wayne yelped. “YOOOO! JULES CHILL, IT’S NOT THAT DEEP!” he said horrified.
Finally, Wayne made his way on to the dock, Julia right on his tail.
Everyone stared at the two finalists in front of them as their footsteps echoed loudly against the wooden planks. It certainly sounded louder today as nobody in the peanut gallery was speaking. They could only watch transfixed as Wayne maintained his slight lead over Julia. And… he was almost there!
The briefcase shined brightly under the sun waiting to be claimed. Who would put their hand on it first? Who was about to join the great winners of the past and solidify themselves as the newest Total Drama champion? A legendary title which could not be taken away.
Up in a hot air balloon, Emily, Chris and Chef were staring stunned. It looked really close. There was Julia right on Wayne’s heels. He was barely keeping the lead and would most likely be overtaken by her soo –
CRASH!
Wayne blinked but he did not look back. Whatever that sound was, coincidentally he could no longer hear Julia’s unhinged breathing behind him.
Wayne extended his hand to pick up the handle of the case but then –
“WAIT! PLEASE! NO!” a shaky, emotional voice yelled from behind him.
Wayne skidded to a stop and turned around. This was certainly frustrating for everyone in the peanut gallery to watch.
“STOP!” Bowie shrieked, face-palming himself in disappointment.
“OH COME ON ALREADY!” Nichelle scowled.
“WAYNE GET THE MONEY FIRST! TALK TO HER LATER!” Raj roared.
“DUDE THE MILLION! GET THE MILLION!” Ripper stood up from his seat and pointed to the briefcase.
“DON’T BE A MORON WAYNE!” Chase said.
“Damn… I hope Julia is alright! Would suck to see her get hurt man!” Zee whistled.
“DUDE!” Chase scolded Zee who blinked.
“Whaaaat?...” Zee said as he munched on some free popcorn which the entire peanut gallery had just received.
Wayne could not believe what he was seeing. He stared at Julia lying on the ground with her hand stretched in front of her towards him. Thick tears had formed around her irises and were flowing down her cheeks. It was hard for him to even see her eyes because of her tears. She was begging for him to stop playing?
Wayne blinked. This was the second time he had made her cry this season! And this time he hadn’t even done anything! It wasn’t like last time when he had accidentally rammed into her and sent her flying into a tree…
Julia continued to plead though she did not get up. Wayne noticed she was gripping her ankle tightly as she clenched her teeth. Wayne knew exactly what was wrong with her. She must have sprained it!
“P – Please, I can’t lose. I’ve come too far…” Julia choked.
“DON’T LISTEN TO HER WAYNE! SHE’S FAKING AN INJURY AGAIN!” Priya shrieked as she put a supportive hand on Caleb’s shoulder.
By now, so many tears had formed around Julia’s eyes she was looking anime. “I worked so hard! Lying, cheating, manipulating everyone. I – I have to be rewarded somehow! Otherwise, it’ll all have b – been for n – nothing!” she cried. Would Wayne be able to understand how she was feeling? It certainly looked like it. He lowered his eyes to the ground and sighed.
Julia stared at him, lost for words. Her fate was now in his hands. So what was he going to do?
Wayne confessional: *sighs* Coach would hate it if I won when the opponent wasn’t at their best.
CLACK! CLACK! CLACK!
Wayne began making his way in the opposite direction from the money and towards a trembling Julia. Eventually, he stood over her, knelt down until his eye was level with hers and smiled.
“Coach always told me to play fair. Well… I’d feel pretty awful if I just scooped up the money while you were down… let me at least level the playing field!” Wayne extended a friendly hand.
Julia looked at him gratefully, her lips quivering. She could not believe he was doing this. He really was a good guy and a much better person than she was because had the roles been reversed, she would have already been a millionaire.
The peanut gallery did their best to knock some sense into Wayne before he entered the lion’s den.
“There’s honour and then there’s stupidity! WAYNE!” Bowie was sweating. He could sense Julia’s fakeness from a mile away. She was such a bad actress.
“Julia is E-V-I-L! I THINK YOU FORGOT THAT!” Axel roared.
“WAYNER! IT’S A DEKE! IT’S A DEEEEEKE!” Raj cried, jumping up and down and flailing his arms like a madman. “SHE’S ABOUT TO STEAL THE CUP AND THE CONN SMYTHE TROPHY AWAY FROM YOU!” He was seriously considering jumping down from the stands, swimming across the water to the docks and knocking some sense into his best friend with a gentle smack on the head.
Wayne was not listening to anybody. He only had eyes on Julia. He grabbed her shoulders and scooped her up easily. They were now nose-to-nose, facing each other. From Wayne’s point of view, the world was standing still. Nobody in the peanut gallery existed. The judges did not exist either. Only the beautiful woman standing in front of him. She was his everything.
“Sterling, I’m going to be honest with you,” Wayne said breathlessly. Why was he so out of breath? He wasn’t even running anymore. No… Wayne knew it wasn’t the running. It was her breathtaking beauty and what he was about to say next. He could not hide it anymore. It was finally time to tell her how he felt. How he had always felt.
“Erm – Grizzly skier?” Julia gave a nervous little laugh. She felt slightly ashamed that she didn’t really know his last name when he had been calling her ‘Sterling’ all season… but only slightly.
“Grezetski,” Wayne corrected her. “Like the legendary Gretzky. My parents named me ‘Wayne’ after him!”
Julia’s breathing was also turning irregular. She was just as nervous as he was. “Right. I – I… thank y – ”
Wayne cut her off. “I did my best to ignore you today. Pretend to be angry with you. Focus on the game like a real champ. But – ”
“You like me too much to ignore me?” Julia smiled.
Wayne blinked. Was it that obvious? “Yeah! Can I finally say that? Jheez. I’ve liked you from the beginning Jules. Since we worked on the same team. Every day, I played hard because I wanted to impress you.” It felt great to finally reveal the season-long secret he had been carrying with him.
“Well, you DID impress me. Multiple times. I just never got around to telling you that. I always thought you were great. You’re my MVP. You can shoot pucks into my net any day of the week,” Julia whispered as she looked deep into Wayne’s eyes.
Wayne threw his head back and gave an energetic laugh. Perhaps he was overthinking it but she had said this last line as if she had wanted to say it for a very long time.
Everybody gasped twice, first at Julia’s words and then at Wayne’s reaction. From the hot air balloon watching the scene below and hearing every word, the three hosts stared blankly.
“AHAHAHA! NO WAY!” Chris howled with laughter. “DID SHE REALLY JUST SAY THAT?!?!”
“Wow. What a finale…” Emily laughed.
“Can we even show that on TV? Think of the children… and them bed sheets about to be stank,” Chef said concerned.
Bowie confessional: *visibly freaking out and having a breakdown* EWWWWWW! This is REVOLTING! The flakiness. The ooziness. The SLIMINESS. UGHHHHH! I. AM. LOSING. MY. MIND! They’d better not kiss!
Wayne ran his fingers through her hair. “You’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen! This look you got right now – y’know with the bun – it’s my favourite! You should totally do it more,” he laughed.
Julia looked up at him. “Really? You like it more than the long hair?” OK, if he was complimenting her hair like this, he was totally into her. No boy had ever said that to her before.
“Yeah. I’ll take the bun,” Wayne winked.
“K then. I’ll wear it more often just for you and you should totally take off your hat. You look really good withou – ”
Julia paused as Wayne brought his index finger to her lips. “Shhh Sterling – ”
Julia stared dumbfounded as Wayne suddenly pressed his lips against hers. She blinked stupidly for a second but… it felt too good. Too right. She had to close her eyes too. As he held her around her waist, she wrapped her arms around his neck tightly and decided to let the moment play out. Without thinking, they swayed back and forth still kissing passionately.
For the first time in her life, Julia found herself caring more about a boy than money, followers, prized possessions… Was this guy really the ultimate treasure?
“Eww!” everyone said. Chase fell off of his seat dramatically and fell with a loud CRASH!
“YUCK!” Chris gasped. It was going so well until this!
“Aww!” Emily chuckled. “So sweet!”
Bowie Raj confessional (Bowie): *slides down the outhouse confessional, moaning* OH NOOOO! OH THE HORROR! IT’S JULIAYNE! I’M SEEING STARS! I’M SEEING STARRRRRRRRSSSSS! *disappears from view of the camera. The only thing that can be seen is his hand sliding helplessly down the wall*
Bowie Raj confessional (Raj) *grabs Bowie’s hand* It’s OK BOWIE. Maybe Wayne is just tricking her?
Bowie Raj confessional (Bowie) Please! If anything JULIA is the one doing the tricking!
Chris confessional: *vomits and groans* WHAT IS WRONG WITH GEN Z? KISSING IN THE FINALE? THAT IS… *vomits again and wipes his mouth with his sleeve* UNACCEPTABLE! *vomits AGAIN*
Suddenly, Julia was first to open her eyes. Both of them had temporarily been distracted from the money but she had finally come back to her senses and recovered first. Panic quickly filled her insides. She was enjoying the kiss too much at a time where Wayne was vulnerable. She did not want to let go but she had to. Julia felt a fleeting feeling of hesitation in herself but quickly quashed it by looking at the briefcase behind his back. It reminded her that she had to go there and pick it up. It was hers.
Julia’s eyes sharpened and she flashed an evil grin as Wayne’s lips kept pressing against hers. Only Wayne’s eyes were closed so he would not be ready for what Julia was about to do.
The peanut gallery had not failed to notice this.
“WAYNE!” everybody shouted, doing their best to get him to open his eyes but it was pointless. He was still in a kissing mood.
Against her will, Julia managed to gather the strength to lift her leg behind her before kicking it right up his –
THOINK!
“EUHHHHHHHH,” Wayne’s eye twitched as Julia delivered a clean kick to the kiwis. Why is it always the kiwis? he thought miserably.
“AHHH!” Ripper, Zee and Chase flinched as Zee spat out his soda. Each intuitively put a hand above their nether regions. They had felt that.
Wayne stumbled backwards with blurred vision. “OW! No chalk!” he wheezed before tripping over the left, untied shoelace of his boots. The back of Wayne’s head collided with the dock and he rolled sideways into the water. With a loud SPLASH! he lay near the surface limp and lifeless.
Wayne confessional: *wet and annoyed* OK real talk. How many times am I going to get knocked into water today because of Julia?
“Later Grezetski,” Julia called over her shoulder playfully.
Wayne stared dumbfounded at Julia’s backside as she ran away from him, getting closer and closer to the briefcase. At least she remembered his surname…
Though Wayne did not show it, deep down he was hurting. That kiss had been the best feeling of his life! It was like he had won the Stanley Cup!
But feeling like you had won the Stanley Cup and actually winning the Stanley Cup were two completely different things. Wayne knew he had made a rookie mistake today. Like too many athletes, he had celebrated too early. He sighed in defeat. It was his own fault he had let Julia take the money away from him and now there was nothing he could do…
The peanut gallery couldn’t believe what they were seeing. The winner of their choice… the big-hearted hockey captain was quitting? When he was so close to the end?
Damien confessional: This guy came way too far to lose now! I got an idea!
“WAYNE! YOU GOTTA STOP HER!” Damien stood up from the stands and pointed to Julia maniacally.
Wayne spit out a fish from his mouth and groaned. Why was everybody still believing in him? Julia only needed about another 15 seconds and then she would claim the prize.
“WAYNE! YOU CAN STILL WIN THIS!” Axel stood next to Damien and clapped her hands. Behind them, everyone else nodded in agreement.
Wayne blinked. He admired Axel, Damien and the peanut gallery for believing in him until the very end but he was also being realistic. “But, I… I cant. She’s too far ahead,” he groaned in defeat.
“YES YOU CAN! THINK! YOU HAVE ONE WEAPON THAT SHE DOESN’T!” Damien put his hands to his head and winked.
“I DO?!!?” Wayne’s brow furrowed. “What are you talking about?” Was Damien just making up stuff to make him feel better?
“C’MON MAN! USE YOUR HEAD!” Axel bellowed. “YOU NEED TO USE EVERYTHING YOU HAVE.”
“What do I have?” Wayne said defeated. Now Axel was speaking nonsense as well!
“THINK! SHE SAID YOU SHOULD TAKE IT OFF BECAUSE YOU LOOK BETTER WITHOUT IT!” Damien said urgently. “NO CAP!”
A brief pause as Wayne and Damien’s eyes met.
Wayne tried to go over these funny words in his head. One weapon that she doesn’t have… use your head… everything you have… Julia thought he looked better without it… no cap…
And then it finally hit him! He knew what Damien and Axel wanted him to do because he had seen it before. Damien had already beaten Julia once this season and now it was time for history to repeat itself.
Wayne’s eyes met Axel’s. She nodded at him and gave an encouraging smile.
Axel Damien confessional (Axel): Yeah he’s got it. Good for him. *fist-bumps Damien*
Axel Damien confessional (Damien): AYYYY. DON’T HOLD BACK BROTHER!
Wayne confessional: So there I was, listening to masters Damien and Axel’s words of wisdom when the flashbacks hit me. Coach always told me to use my head. I have a hat! *points at his red cap*
Wayne lifted himself up until one arm rested on the dock. As water dripped everywhere, he concentrated on Julia. She was the puck and it was time to hit her with his stick. Sticking his tongue out, Wayne took off his hat doing his best to ignore the copious amounts of water which dripped along the sides of his face.
He pulled his hat back and took a deep breath, focusing only on Julia’s backside. He had one shot. One chance to make Total Drama history. His hand was trembling but he was doing his best to keep it steady. This was going to be the ultimate buzzer beater. A game 7, last second of the last period type of buzzer beater. Aiming carefully, he released his hat with as much force as he could muster.
It left his hands and shot towards the selfish, cold-hearted influencer.
Julia reached her hand out with a greedy expression on her face. The prize money was about to be hers! Only a few more steps…
Julia confessional: Darlings! Your 2024 champion is… *bows*
Wayne watched in amazement as his hat took off like a frisbee, spinning through the air and picking up speed. It was spinning, spinning until –
WHACK!
“EEEEEUUUGHHHH!” Julia yelped as she felt a powerful force strike the back of her head. Julia went flying over the prize money and ended up falling into the lake head-first, her desperate fingers narrowly missing the top of the briefcase by a few inches.
Wayne grinned, lifted himself up from the water and began running to the briefcase. With Julia out of the game there was no one to oppose him.
Three steps… two steps… one final step and the horn blared.
BEEP!
“WAYNE WINS!” Chris announced. There was no mistaking it. Wayne’s left hand was firmly grasping the shiny handle. The finale and the season was over!
Wayne hoisted the briefcase high into the air. If he were on a rink, he would’ve already done laps with this thing. As he held it up into the sunlight, he turned around to his supporters.
“WOOHOOOO!!!! CHAMPION! CHAMPION! CHAMPION!” he jumped up and down.
“AHAAHAHAHH! THAT’S MY BOY!” Raj whooped as he jumped into the water and began swimming towards Wayne. Finally, Raj lifted himself up onto the dock and stood alongside Wayne. They wrapped their arms around each other’s shoulders and grinned.
“HERE RAJIE, YOU CAN HOLD THE CUP TOO!” Wayne passed Raj the briefcase.
“HOOT! HOOT!” Raj said as he kissed the briefcase and held it high in the air.
Wayne Raj confessional (Raj): *excited expression* Think of all the hockey games we can go to! And – and infinite strawberry ice cream! And maybe we can check out the casinos at Las Vegas too! *hugs the money*
Wayne Raj confessional (Wayne): *hugs Raj* True that Rajie! Everyone knows Vegas is where you go to make even MORE money! HOOT! HOOT!
“Aw rats,” MK sagged her shoulders in defeat as she watched everybody else around her celebrating. Though nobody paid any attention to her, Julia poked her head out from the water, brushed her wet hair out of her eyes and climbed back up to the dock.
Julia gritted her teeth as she watched Wayne and Raj take turns exchanging the briefcase and kissing it. She had been so close to getting what she wanted. She had played so hard only for it to end like this! Because of a dumb hat? Why did she tell him he looked better without it? Had her own words finally caused her own downfall? Julia wanted to scream until her vocal chords got shredded. She was too angry.
Julia could not keep her mouth shut. Before she knew it –
“I lost… to THAT GUY?!?!!” Julia hung her head and choked.
Wayne turned around, looked at the flustered Julia curiously and chuckled. He had just remembered something! While Wayne let Raj hug the briefcase for the 29th time, he made his way over to Julia.
The game was over. Maybe they could finally stop taking things so seriously and hang out. He bent down in front of her and rubbed his fingers through her hair.
“Well guess what Sterling. I won so you know what that means,” he winked.
Julia looked at him wide-eyed but did not respond. And then she broke down and cried into his shoulder. She knew exactly what he meant.
Wayne looked at her startled. Were those tears of happiness or tears of disgust? Wayne let Julia shudder along his shoulder for a minute before he put a hand to her chin and turned her face around so that she was looking directly at him.
Finally, he swooped in for the post-season kiss.
Julia blinked as their lips pressed against each other’s once more.
“We’re going to Chipotle,” Wayne whispered an inch away from her.
Julia pulled away from him, revolted. She had never heard such blasphemy in her life. The first thing this guy wanted to do after winning three million dollars was go to a fast food place for… commoners?!?!
“CHIPOTLE?!?! YOU JUST WON THREE MILLION DOLLARS AND YOU WANT TO GO TO CHIPOTLE?!?! NO! TAKE ME TO DORSIA,” Julia shrieked.
“That place doesn’t even exist,” Millie scowled, eyeing Julia with disgust from the peanut gallery. Millie had a feeling if Wayne was sharing his money with Julia, half of it would be gone the next morning after a long, excessive shopping spree.
Wayne threw his head back and laughed. He loved American Psycho too! “Nahhhh!” Before she knew it, Wayne had picked her up by her legs and was now carrying her across his shoulder.
“PUT ME DOWN!” Julia yelped as Wayne ran along the dock back to Raj.
“I’m about to score a hat trick tonight! And you got front row seats Jules!” Wayne guffawed. Raj raised a curious eyebrow.
Raj confessional: *gasps* He’s going for THREE goals? OK WAYNER!
Julia’s mouth fell. She knew what he wanted to do later tonight. “Are we really going to – ? Are you SERIOUS? Why are you so excited?”
“OH YEAH!!! Don’t worry, I got a helmet! Provides real protection!” Wayne knocked on his own head. “And hey I didn’t bring it up first. You were the one who said I could shoot pucks into your net!”
Raj roared with laughter. Julia had no choice but to nervously laugh with him as well.
*
8:55 pm
All 16 campers were back at the campfire for one final ceremony. Wayne was holding on to his briefcase proudly.
Chris, Chef and Emily stood by the fire smiling.
“Congratulations to Wayne. You battled pink balloons, 100 m towers, blind, hungry piranhas, Ghostface killers with chainsaws, extreme baking, intellectual puzzles, buzzer beaters, Boney Island, freezing ice baths, intense archery, painful memory games, underground caverns and stinky scorpions, Macarthur’s dogs and now the intense Rematch finale! After six grueling weeks, you are now an official millionaire!” Chris announced grandly. It had been one of his favourite seasons to host. For a brief moment, he once again saw Owen but a second later he was back to Wayne.
“I’m actually equivalent to three millionaires coach! Triple the prize!” Wayne lifted three fingers and grinned. Julia, who was sitting on his lap, looked up at him and smiled.
“Wayne. As the winner, you get the final, most sought-after, most prestigious prize Wawanakwa has to offer… the final marshmallow!” Emily said as she raised the white, fluffy campfire treat high up into the air. “Come on up!”
Wayne’s eyes lit up.
“WOOOO!” Priya cheered. It was time for another winner to eat the champion marshmallow. She was happy for him as was everyone else.
Everybody clapped for Wayne as he ran up to the front and tossed the marshmallow into his mouth. For some reason, this tasted better than all the others he had eaten during his time here. Maybe it’s because it had been so long since he had actually eaten a marshmallow…
Wayne turned around and looked at his fellow campers. He did not feel complete just coming up and claiming his marshmallow. He wanted to do something more. He wanted to give back because this was who he was. It was time to give his post-game victory speech. Where he would acknowledge everybody who helped him get to this point. After all, he couldn’t have won without them. This was the value of teamwork.
The Rematch champion cleared his throat. Everybody immediately became quiet, ready to listen to him speak.
“It feels great to win the cup but I wouldn’t have been able to do it without all my supporters. Priya, last season’s champion, you helped me start those horses by ramming your shoe up Marvin’s butt – ”
Everybody laughed. Priya buried her face into her hands.
“Caleb, you got those horses back under control when they showed signs of aggression. That was some real help!”
Everybody clapped for Caleb. Even Julia who looked quite awkward doing this. Priya stood up and yelled “WOOOOO!” in front of his face. Caleb leapt back, slightly frightened but quickly laughed it off and gave her a hug.
Wayne turned to the three jokers sitting near the back. “My boys, the legendary Trout Trio, you gave us some good laughs. You made this finale fun! Besides, if you guys hadn’t held us up over pizza, Emma wouldn’t have thought to ask for ice-cream. Super important by the way. It was way too hot so we needed to cool off eh?”
Applause.
“OH YEAH!” Emma nodded as Chase, Zee and Ripper looked around proudly, acting as if they had played with real strategy today.
“Nichelle thanks for hitting Julia off. You really slowed her down for the second part!”
Nichelle tried her best not to look too pleased with herself as she received a barrage of applause. Even Julia was clapping.
“Rajie, Millie. Thanks for getting me back in the game when I was about to give up. HOOT! HOOT!”
More applause. Raj pounded his chest and Millie hooted back.
“Bowie. That trash you talked to my girlfriend was pretty hilarious. But iiiiiff you do that again, I’ll have to say something back to you.”
Everybody laughed once more. Bowie gave a dramatic bow and winked at Julia. She rolled her eyes at him and was the only one not to clap for him. Giving Bowie his flowers was one of the last things Julia would ever do.
Chris gasped. Had he heard that right? Wayne had said it so casually. It looked like they really were dating now. How unfortunate.
“Axel, Damien. Thanks for giving me the brilliant idea to use my cap to ultimately win the whole thing.”
More applause for the most important act of the day. Axel and Damien high-fived each other and pointed at their own heads.
Wayne turned to the final two. “MK, Scary Girl. You two played hard, you should be proud! We always gotta give credit to our opponents who challenge us to be the best!”
MK gave a sheepish grin. She found it slightly surprising that everybody was clapping for her when she had been rooting for Julia. Scary Girl smiled as this was the second time in her entire life she had received loud applause, the first being on Oct 13 2006 when she was born.
“And that’s all I have to say for now,” Wayne concluded. He turned to the camera and winked. “I’m going to bed a Total Drama CHAMPION BABY!”
Wayne received a standing ovation as he went back to his stump and let Julia rest on his lap. She eyed the briefcase with the money a little too eagerly.
Chris chuckled. It was finally over. The campers would now be shipped off to Playa Des Losers, no longer his responsibility. They would get one final sleep at the resort and then the next morning, the boats would arrive and take them all back to the main land where they would either take a taxi, an Uber or a plane back home. Then he could finally sit back in his private jacuzzi and slurp tasty sundaes with not a single care in the world.
Another year gone. Would there be another season with a new cast? Or a third season with this cast? He did not know. He did not care. Right now, all he wanted to do was sleep and chill after six weeks of hard work. Nothing could ruin his mood! Except –
“Yo Wayner, know what time it is?” Raj flashed an evil grin at his best friend. Wayne nodded, and likewise, grinned mischievously at Chris.
Chris’ heart skipped a beat. This felt too familiar for him. He had seen this before! All those years ago… summer of 2007… Was he really about to get chucked into water once more? Ruin his fabulous hair? But much to his surprise –
“GROUP PHOTO! ON THE DOCK EVERYONE! HOOT! HOOT!” Wayne took Julia’s hand and began running to the dock.
“HOOT! HOOT!” Raj chortled as he grabbed Bowie’s hand and the two followed after Julia and Wayne.
Emily extended her hand to Ripper, Caleb lifted Priya on to his shoulders, and the others took off excitedly in groups of twos and threes. Chris lagged slightly behind them and breathed a sigh of relief. Was he being punked? It didn’t seem like it. They were just going to take an innocent group photo!
*
All 16 players and Emily were on the dock with a perfect sunset (much like their first day back) behind them. The top of everybody’s heads had a glowing, golden tinge. Chris was standing on a boat with a camera ready to take the final snapshot. Everybody assumed position and began to flash teeth but suddenly –
“Hold up. Gotta keep my money nice and dry!” Wayne said. He set the briefcase with his money aside, patted it twice and then made his way back to the middle of the group.
Chris aimed the camera once more at their faces.
“Excellent! Hold that pose!” he said excitedly. “On three. One… Two… OH! Wait, sorry! Forgot the lens cap!”
Everybody’s faces fell.
Chris tried once more. But the result was still the same. “One… Two…OH! No, card’s full!”
Everybody’s faces fell once more.
“Unbelievable,” Priya muttered. “This is happening AGAIN? Everybody watch your feet!”
“What?” everyone said in unison.
“Alright there we go!” Chris said excitedly and everyone knew from his tone he had gotten it right this time. This was the one. The final snapshot of the season and the one they would all post to their social media pages. “Everyone say Wawanakwa!”
“Wawanakwa!” everybody said happily.
FLASH!
The photo revealed Wayne in the middle, carrying Julia on his shoulders. Beside him, to his left were Raj and Bowie who were holding hands. Near the end of the dock were Chase and Zee who were making funny faces, doing their best to ruin a perfectly nice photo. Next to them were Emily and Ripper in the middle of kissing. Ripper seemed to ignore the orange soda dripping onto his head. Beside them were Axel and Nichelle, leaning on each other’s backs with crossed arms and looking at each other smiling. Sitting cross-legged at the very front center was MK who held up one hand for Julia to grab onto. At the other end were Caleb and Priya who were looking at each other with one of Caleb’s meaty hands around Priya’s waist. Next to them was a shy-looking Millie who was in the middle of hooting and next to Millie were Emma and Damien who had their arms wrapped around the others’ shoulders.
Below, in the depths of the waters, was Scary Girl who was smiling widely with a shark.
Chris put down the camera and whistled at the final snapshot. No campers fell in the water this time. Maybe that’s because there were only 17 of them as opposed to 22… rather disappointing. He had wanted to see them yelp in shock as the dock crumbled under their combined weights. It would’ve been the perfect way to end the season the same way as it began all those years ago but perhaps maybe next yea –
CREAK!
“WHAT THE – ARRRRGGGGGGHHHHH!”
SPLASH!
The boat Chris Mclean stood on had suddenly given a powerful lurch, causing him to slip over the rail and fall into the lake. He popped his wet head out and spat out a fish. Chris turned his head around, wondering what in the world had just happened and then… there… he saw it.
Chris spit out a mouthful of water and gasped. “YOU! YOU ARE SO NOT GETTING A PAYCHECK THIS WEEK!” he shook his fist in the air.
From the helm of the boat, there was Chef Hatchet wearing a mischievous grin and winking.
“AHAHAHAHAH!” everybody laughed as Chris scowled. The night’s surprises were not over just yet though. It seemed Chris was about to get his wish for at this moment, the Rematch champion decided now would be a great time to hop in and join their host in the lake.
“EVERYONE IN THE WATER!” Wayne pointed at the lake. He took Julia by her hand and cannon-balled with her.
SPLASH! SPLASH!
“No, no, no! Dudes!” Chris protested but –
Too late. Everybody paired up in groups of twos and threes and so the epic jump into the lake commenced. Chris could do nothing but stare open-mouthed at them all.
“There’s something insanely scary about a whole group of teens jumping into the water…” Chris narrated as the camera showed everybody jumping in slow motion.
All the wet-haired campers laughed as they splashed water into each other’s faces. The kissing couples did not seem to care what was thrown at them. Ripper ignored the jellyfish that was in his hair.
“Will there be another season with these campers? Who knows? Don’t really care. I’m your host Chris Mclean and this has been Total… Drama… Island!” he concluded as numerous fireworks lit up the sky, signalling the end of the Rematch.
THE END