At the same time, #HannahWinterVotesStolen shot to the top of trending topics across various domestic and international websites, with click-through rates still skyrocketing.
No one saw this coming.
The producers and George River alike had underestimated Hannah's popularity and the wrath of her fans.
The vote swap had been agreed upon from the start. It was more convenient than vote-buying.
But George had no idea that Hannah's votes were so high. He thought the difference between the first and second place scorer would be at most tens of millions of votes, but the result was a bitter slap in the face of everyone.
With 130 million votes against 50 million, the gap was too wide. The foul play was indisputable.
The producer, so panic-stricken he could barely stand, trembled as he asked, "River... Director River, what should we do?"
George's face was somber. "Are we sure Hannah Winter didn't manipulate her vote count?"