That evening, Michele invites Russell up to the HoH room to "hang out," which makes Natalie and Jessie suspicious. Upstairs, Russell and Michele discuss how they're in the same boat, without partners. They seem to realize their shared problem has an obvious solution. Of course, only one of them is telling the truth, because it's not like Russell is about to tell Michele about his super-secret alliance with Jeff. They watch on Russell's monitor as Jessie and Natalie come up to play chess right outside the door, amusing Russell with their impotent worrying. All his ex-fellow Athletes can do is fret to each other while Michele and Russell cement their alliance. "He's not that interesting, nor is she," Jessie whispers to Natalie, getting paranoid that he's their target.