Team Chris with three Reallys
Noah is a girl (absolutely necessary. Why? Because I said so.)
One of the biggest changes starts back in Island. Noah joins Heather's alliance early on. My headcanon is that Heather generally prefers forming alliances with girls because she finds most of the boys immature, annoying, or simply unreliable. It has nothing to do with her sexuality—if a guy proves useful, she'll gladly work with him—but girls are usually her first choice.
The alliance allows Noah to survive much longer than in canon, nearly reaching the merge. Of course, Heather never forgives Noah for openly rebelling against her, so she eventually orchestrates her elimination.
Meanwhile, Duncan is a Screaming Gopher instead of a Killer Bass -WinkWink-. During the Awake-a-thon challenge, he and Gwen end up being among the last contestants standing simply because they're naturally more resilient to sleep deprivation. Duncan, in particular, has no complaints about spending hours with a cute, permanently grumpy girl asleep against him.
Being well-rested gives the Gophers a huge advantage during DodgeBrawl. Duncan charges straight into the action while Noah feeds him targets and strategies from the sidelines, allowing them to dominate most of the match. They only lose because Cody and Harold somehow combine their completely nonsensical fighting styles into something that defies physics, giving Harold just enough time to catch one of Owen's throws.
They lose the challenge, but working together is what starts their friendship.
(Obviously, a lot more happens between them before Noah's elimination, but that's a story for another day.)
By Action, Duncan and Noah end up on opposite teams.
That doesn't stop them from flirting whenever they get the chance.
As Gwen and Trent's relationship slowly falls apart, Noah has a serious conversation with Duncan. They're both here to win. Neither of them would throw away a million dollars for the other, so the smartest decision is to put their relationship "on hold" until the season ends.
Duncan hates the idea!...but he agrees. Technically.
That doesn't stop them from stealing kisses whenever nobody's looking.
Unfortunately, once the teams dissolve, Courtney, Beth, and Harold manage to vote Noah out. Duncan is safe thanks to immunity, but he can't save her.
Unlike Island, though, they actually get to say goodbye.
One last hug. One last kiss. And one last promise to see each other after the finale.
(Noah is still slightly annoyed that she keeps getting eliminated before Duncan Hahaha)
After Action, Noah accepts a job working behind the scenes for Chris.
Between production work, travel, and Chris being... Chris, she barely has time for dates with Duncan. The distance begins to wear on them, and they find themselves arguing more often than either of them would like.
They agree to sit down and talk after the awards ceremony.
That conversation never happens.
Because the cast gets chased across the studio lot, stranded in the middle of nowhere, rescued... only to immediately be thrown into another season.
Their real conversation finally happens inside the Egyptian pyramid during the very first challenge of World Tour.
As they make their way through the tunnels together, they finally address everything they never got to say.
Duncan refuses to put the relationship on hold again during the competition. Everyone already knows they're together anyway.
AND maybe they'll even end up on the same team this time.
Noah thinks about it for a moment and realizes Duncan's right.
There isn't much left to argue about.
Sure enough, they both end up on Team Chris Is Really Really Really Hot.
Unfortunately for Duncan, the team also includes Alejandro.
At first, neither Duncan nor Noah pays much attention to Alejandro's constant flirting. His charm works wonders distracting the other contestants, making it easier for Team Chris to stay ahead in challenges.
Alejandro doesn't limit himself to the opposing teams.
He's almost suspiciously friendly toward Noah.
She mostly finds his flirting amusing rather than effective.
Duncan trusts Noah completely.
He just doesn't trust Alejandro.
One day, after watching Alejandro push his luck yet again, Duncan finally pulls him aside.
"Listen, pretty boy. You're doing great with the other girls. Hell, they'd probably hand you the million themselves if you asked nicely."
He smiles. Almost laughs. Then his expression hardens.
"But my girl is off-limits."
Alejandro only smiles back.
The conversation quickly turns into a quiet argument.
Duncan makes one thing very clear:
His warning has nothing to do with Noah.
He isn't worried she'll fall for Alejandro.
He's warning Alejandro because he already knows exactly what kind of game he's playing.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I trust Noah."
"I just don't trust you."
Then, after a beat, Duncan adds:
"I'm not gonna be another Geoff."
Alejandro understands exactly what he means.
And all this because I think it's funny that in “Wake Up,” Duncan punches Alejandro for no reason HAHah
If I end up going through with this, just a heads-up: I’ll be terrible at handling a love triangle. Because, for one thing, I don’t even like them that much—let alone harems. So you get the idea. Or maybe not! Let me disappoint you on my own!
