Paradise Thriller

Social Climbers

"You think they have anything planned for us tonight?" Alison asked. She and Travis were walking side by side, as the group made their way up another twisting trail looking for cabin number 2.

"I doubt it. They'll probably give us a chance to get settled in," Travis said.

"Yeah, maybe," said Miranda, looking back over her shoulder. "But you really never know what's going to happen next."

Isn't that the truth, Alison thought as she forced a smile back at Miranda's face, flushed and excited at the thought of adventure.

As it turned out, things seemed to have quieted down for the evening. Alison and Miranda were settled in their cabin, the last one the group had located in the labyrinth of trails. Alison unloaded her box, noting with some relief that most of what she had packed had been left intact. Of course, she considered, she'd had to be careful not to include anything that would betray that she was anything other than a between-jobs fitness instructor looking for her 15 minutes of fame and a chance at the prize money.

Miranda dumped a bag of makeup on her cot and began sorting through it. Alison looked on in amusement.

"Do you think you brought enough stuff?"

Miranda pulled out a jumbo container of facial towelets and began carefully removing her makeup.

"One of the things I wondered about was whether there would be a bunch of makeup people here, you know?" She finished wiping her face, then started applying moisturizer from a little tube.

"I mean, you never know just how 'real' these reality shows are." She finished with the moisturizer, scooped the collection of tubes, jars and flat cases back into her bag, and stretched her legs out. "I always wondered how it works, and I'm not taking any chances on looking like a total loser when this thing airs."

"I didn't see any make-up trailers, or set designers lurking around," Alison said, "but who knows? Maybe all that stuff doesn't really get rolling until tomorrow morning."

"Maybe. But just to be safe, I brought my own stuff." She patted the bag. "You're welcome to use any of it."

"Thanks," Alison said, smiling at Miranda.

"So what's your story, really?" Miranda asked.

"Nothing much to tell. I've been working in a few health clubs back East, and just needed a change of scenery."

Miranda nodded and Alison continued. It was amazing how much more her cover story rang true even to her own ears each time she told it.

"I've been wanting to open my own little club for awhile - something on a small scale, offer yoga and a few other classes, and some personal training services. But the costs are out of sight in New York. That's why I headed out to the West Coast. Plus," she laughed, "what better place to offer personal training than in the land of the beautiful people?"

"You've got a point," Miranda said.

"In a town where spandex is de rigueur, there's no place for a couple extra pounds to hide," Alison said, and Miranda grinned back at her.

"So, anyway, once I got there I found out that the demand for personal trainers may be higher, but so's the cost of retail space. I'd just about given up the idea of opening any sort of studio and was going to try offering personal training services at the client's home, when I saw the ad for this show."

"Cool," Miranda said. She got up and started rooting through her cardboard box again.

"I figured why not give it a shot? If I make it to the end, I'll have some start-up funds and maybe I can rent space after all. If I get booted off the show, at least I can use the TV exposure as my calling card."