The Power of Vows
Theodora Crain wasn’t exactly looking for anything in particular when she signed up for Arisa Cox’s game. Nothing at all. She was looking for a pleasant way to pass the time, an enjoyable way to put forth her competitive side. She didn’t anticipate what she got, not at all; there was not a single scenario in her mind where she thought she would fall for someone in the midst of the whirling, all-encompassing vortex of the game.
Showmances are essentially forbidden as an unspoken rule; the one thing that can tank one’s own game as emotions flare and hearts flutter. Judgement is clouded, one would presume. But through the clouds and the thin veneer of resistance, sharp blue eyes could see one thing clearly, like beams of light steaming through the clouds, emanating one notion, one thing she was drawn to in her mind before all else: Arisa. She was suddenly worth more than any game, and in this case, she suddenly had all the motivation in the world, fighting for victory in order to impress her one true love. The admirable host put up with hardship, trifling, and criticism from players all throughout only to produce the most iconic game, season after season, episode after episode, again and again. This season, however, Theodora was determined to make the most memorable. It wouldn't be for the money or for the win, but for Arisa.
Now, everyone that stood in her way was to go. Nick and Arisa had been flirting in public, so clearly, Nick would have to go. And he did. (Now, that sounds quite murder-y, but alas, by “have to go,” Theo merely meant he would have to go to the Evicted Lounge to hang out with his besties, Big Miss Steak, Doja Cat, and Bayleigh). Theo knew he would be particularly thrilled to hang out with Miss Steak, who had been grievously robbed of making it to the midpoint of the game.
Obviously, as weeks went on, Theo managed to impress Arisa with her mad comp skillz. It was time to show Arisa that she was worth it, and of course she wanted to impress Arisa’s best friends too, her lovely co-hosts: Cent, Saoirse, Billie, and DW. They’d already gotten engaged upon the eviction of Nick, but she still wanted to show all her friends she was serious. She was going to plan their wedding, right in the middle of the very game she’d never thought she’d take her eyes off of.
***
Weeks passed, which, in game, is basically years. Regardless of how they got here, here they were now, Arisa and Theo busy bickering for days regarding where their wedding would take place. Theo couldn’t fly to Canada, as border was quite literally closed due to Coronavirus, and Arisa obviously would never leave the safe-haven of her snowy, hockey-filled paradise to go into the treacherous land where that orange Cheeto-looking freak had just reigned terror upon. Instead, they settled on an outside location: Australia. Nothing could go upside-down there, could it? At the very least, they figured they could listen to some Australian gay pop by The Veronicas or Courtney Act on full-blast.
The music at the venue was expertly picked out. Billie Eilish was going to preform, because she was great friends with Arisa, but instead they’d decided they wanted the music to keep everyone in high, joyful spirits, so Billie became Arisa’s Maid of Honour instead. Better yet, Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande came to preform! How was there enough money to afford their appearances, one may wonder? Well, Arisa is exceedingly rich, as one can see by her continuing to dish out prize money for her crewmates each game, and, being the wonderful person she is, she consistently receives good karma from the universe by winning bingo and the lottery. Overall, everything was tailored perfectly for the guests; Nicole Franzel’s wedding could not relate. Whatever one would imagine her wedding will be like, it would be advisable to simply think the opposite when envisioning this one.
Everything was going quite smoothly, in all honesty. Both women were about to walk down the aisle while Maid of Honor Saoirse and Maid of Honour Billie stood expectantly, looking on proudly. Cent, too, was ready to perform his officiating duties but-
Bang.
A loud noise resounded, rippling through the ceremony, and guests’ heads turned away from the flower-laden aisle and onto the intruders.
They stood there, their silhouettes dramatically on the horizon, in a display that was quite superhero-esque, despite the fact their motives were quite the contrary. The prejurors.
The crewmates gasped, completely forgetting they had even existed. They hadn’t even realized they might be able to escape the lounge and battle to get back at them all for evicting them! Madison Pettis stood up in her chair to squint at the foreign sight in front of her until she spotted Max the dog! Max was supposed to be the adorable little ring bearer, but Nick Jonas, Miss Steak, Bayleigh, and Doja Cat seemed to have taken him along with the rings fastened to his back! He barked sadly, and Arisa and Theo knew this was no longer going to be any ordinary wedding… A sabotage always had to be fixed before one could get back on task.
A shout resounded in the distance, and one of largest silhouettes raised her hands high to brandish her weapon: “It was a Big Miss Steak not inviting me!”
Nick Jonas, too, began singing a ballad about justice and revenge, coming forward while Bayleigh ushered Max away, further from the shaken couple.
The wedding was outdoors, so the prejurors began to attack from different directions, charging onto the scene with weapons to create chaos. The attendees at this wedding were iconic in their own rights, however, and would not let Arisa and Theo suffer on their big day.
Nick, yodeling some sort of frenzied song about being “Jealous,” charged onto the scene, but thankfully Da’Vonne Diane Rogers was there, and she was basically a superhero, and had her girls’ backs.
“Your shit has hit the fan, point plank, and the period,” Da’Vonne stated firmly, meeting the eyes the intruder, doing a backflip and knocking Nick backward, sending him stumbling into bouquets of edible arrangements.
Miss Steak approached Theo and Arisa now, practically snarling in distaste, her gun that she’d gotten ever since her comp win aimed and at the ready to do some crazy shit.
“We couldn’t invite you; we don’t even know you, and you’re clearly insane,” Theo yelled, stepping in front of Arisa instinctively. “Why are you doing this?”
Miss Steak blinked, pausing for a moment to ponder.
“I don’t recall,” she said easily and earnestly, tilting her head with a smile, her hesitation quelled as she continued to come forward.
Theo and Arisa thought this was it. Their wedding would be ruined, sabotaged by some clowns, but at least Miss Steak didn’t seem to know how to use her gun; it apparently was more for decoration and for perceived badassery.
The two women backed into a corner but then… The one person they forgot to pay attention to for once slinked out from behind the large steak.
It was the unknown variable: Doja Cat.
A knife, no, a steak knife, suddenly jut out just beneath Miss Steak’s clavicle as she let out a sharp gasp. Eyes wide, as if in slow-motion, she turned to face her adversary and own personal saboteur whilst falling forward, her necklace’s pearls scattering at her feet, bouncing with shallow clacking noises on smooth alabaster. Miss Steak met Doja’s eyes with disbelief during her descent. There was a question there, gleaming within those deep, dark irises: Wdym?
Doja smiled to herself, her work complete as the slab of meat thudded to the floor. In fact, Miss Steak fell so perfectly that the knife’s point had landed directly on top of a kiwi which had rolled to the floor upon the destruction of the edible arrangements so that the knife had inadvertently created a very interesting-looking kabob. Definitely a unique flavor palette, with citrus and savory, but she supposed it might taste a bit like the combination of pineapple and beef on a Hawaiian skewer… Anyway, once she was done pondering the flavor combinations she could feed to her hobo later as if she was Remy the Rat instead of Doja the Cat, she dusted off her hands and smiled, curtsying to shocked wedding attendees. With a flourish, she left, sauntering away to leave everyone in stunned silence aside from the echo of her heels receding from the venue.
Mouths agape, Theo and Arisa turned to each other in silent question. Could the wedding go on? Theo’s eyes flit downward, and she noticed Arisa had been grasping her hand tightly for security this whole time, and she was doing the same… A soft smile tugged at Theo’s lips; she realized they could still do this. Doja had averted the crisis, though not intentionally, and they’d be able to get their rings back now.
A whine resounded from behind them as Max trotted up to them as if on cue, freed from Miss Steak’s evil grip which had been keeping him fearfully at bay with Bay, who was now shouting after him helplessly until she fled in frustration. He lowered his head, brandishing the rings which were still fixed on a black cushion on his back. He may not like Christmas very much, but he sure loved weddings, and wanted his favorite humans to carry on.
Arisa knelt down to retrieve her ring, barely waiting for Cent to hurry over to officiate once again. She smiled as she reminisced about the ring she’d gotten. When she knew she was going to marry Theo, she’d immediately gotten Da’Vonne to do her this favor for her. That small, tiny, special Power of Veto she had won on BB22? She gave it to her to make into a ring. Arisa suspected Day had wanted to be rid of those BB22 memories, but to Arisa, she knew it would be special for Theo, as it was an iconic comp win, and everybody in their right minds simply adored Day. Thus, she'd had that little necklace remodeled into a ring, with the golden veto adorning the top with diamonds newly inserted and encrusted throughout into a perfect wedding band.
Theo picked up hers as well, ready to slip it on Arisa’s finger after their vows. Everything was a heartfelt blur from that point on, their dresses flowing, while music very tentatively began playing once again... But that was just the nature of their love for one another. It was serene, and their eyes stayed locked, indifferent to the chaos previously around them while guests hurried to shuffle over to watch again.
“I do,” they each echoed.
Theo slipped Arisa’s diamond onto her finger, and Arisa slipped the veto onto hers.
When Theo’s eyes landed on it, her eyes welled up, a gracious smile breaking across her features, eyes crinkling until she burst into the happiest of grins.
She’d won in every way. She’d won the heart of her beloved, won into the happiest of futures, and she even won a very special Power of Veto. Nothing could stop her now.
Subject: A Story Among Us Submission 