Nick bolted upright in his .... his bed? He took a moment to look around himself. His heart and head pounded in unison as he surveyed the plain room. The curtains were drawn. A single floor lamp dimly illuminated the room in warm light. The smelled of freshly washed linens and dusty carpeting filled Nick's head. He fumbled his hands around the bed in search of his phone. His muffled ringtone played from under the pillow.  A moment of searching and his hand gripped the cold buzzing rectangle and brought it to his face.<br/><br/><div style="background-color:#0000FF; border:1px solid black; margin:10px 10px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px;"><span style="font-style: italic">"Hi Nicky! This is Mom. Dad give me your number so I can message with your! I hope you having good time in school. Very proud and miss you very much.</span></div><br/><br/>The text brought a smile to Nick's face for a moment. Every response he typed, he quickly erased; they were all lies<br/><br/><div style="background-color:#40FF00; border:1px solid black; margin:10px 10px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px;">"School's going well....<br/>"It's great here...<br/>"I got an A on my first Exam in...<br/>"I'm fine...</div><br/><br/>He sighed and stood out of bed, tossing the phone back onto the pillow before stumbling into the bathroom. The harsh fluorescent light in the bathroom illuminated his morning face and made him look ghoulish. A quick look in the mirror told him he'd been out for a day at the least. He couldn't seem to remember why, though. He couldn't seem to remember much of anything from the past few days. Something about a show? He brushed his teeth and climbed into the shower. His mind was buzzing with thoughts as he tried to piece together where he was and why. He was concentrating so hard that he didn't notice the showerhead had stopped. A crackling sound followed by a chunk of ice hitting his back brought him back to reality. He looked up to see the nozzle had been encapsulated in ice and he immediately wiped his face in frustration.<br/><br/>"I guess I'm done then," he stepped out of the shower into the ice rink that had become the bathroom floor. A moment of jerky movements and slipping and Nick had managed to get back into the room.<br/><br/>As he got dressed in his same clothes, the phone he'd called his phone began to ring again. He took his time to get dressed before looking at it. A message from a hidden phone number popped up on his screen.<br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><div style="background-color:#0000FF; border:1px solid black; margin:10px 10px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px;">Dear Nicolas,<br/><br/>I know things are not very clear as of right now. There were some things that had to be arranged, but all is done now. A car will show up at the front of the hotel in an hour. Collect all your belongings and do not tell anyone anything more than they already know. I will see you soon.<br/><br/>A. J. Willams. </div><br/><br/>Memories flooded back into his mind. <span style="font-style: italic">The Reality show! I made it?</span>. He didn't know why but he was anxious and excited at the same time. He'd only taken the opportunity up because the posting had covered his traveling and lodging expenses, but now that he was actually going to be a part of a tv show he didn't know whether to regret the decision or jump on the bed. He packed his bags hurriedly and rushed out of the hotel room. <br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Don't know who's getting charged for that room but I hope they can handle some fees.</span></span>