The kitchen challenge ended with forced smiles and overcooked chicken, but Sasha barely noticed.
Because Ethan had followed her out.
She ducked into the villa's courtyard, trying to catch her breath, when his voice cut through the night air.
"You didn't have to take that."
Sasha spun around. He stood in the doorway, half in shadow, jaw tight.
"What?" she said, folding her arms.
"Chelsea," he snapped. "You didn't have to let her talk to you like that. You didn't have to—" He broke off, running a hand through his hair. "You just stood there and smiled, like it didn't matter."
Sasha laughed, bitter and sharp. "That's the job, Ethan. You smile, you smirk, you let them call you whatever name trends on Twitter. Welcome to reality TV."
His eyes burned into hers. "That's not you."
"Yes, it is," she shot back. "That's all I am now. The girl everyone laughs at, the one they write off as a failure. At least this way I get paid for it."
Ethan stepped closer, close enough that she could see the faint scar near his temple, close enough to smell the faint trace of his cologne. "You think this is all you are? A punchline? A villain?"
Her throat tightened. She hated the way her voice wavered when she whispered, "What else am I?"
For a long moment, neither of them moved. The cameras weren't here, no producers lurking. Just the two of them, standing too close, weighed down by years of silence.
Ethan's hand twitched, like he wanted to reach for her but didn't trust himself. "You're still the girl I—" He stopped, swallowed hard. "You're still Sasha. That's enough."
Her breath caught. The air between them pulsed with words unsaid.
Then, from the balcony above, a PA's voice rang out: "Guys! Wrap it up. We need you back inside for the evening recap."
The moment shattered.
Ethan stepped back, walls snapping up as fast as hers. "Don't let them break you," he muttered, before walking away.
Sasha stood frozen in the courtyard, her pulse hammering, the echo of his almost-confession burning louder than the studio lights ever could.
And for the first time since signing on, she wondered if she was more terrified of being the villain… or of being seen for who she really was.