A/N: This is a bit of a late birthday fic for Colby Lopez. (AKA Seth Rollins) This was not on my To-Write list but I wanted to write something for Sethie's birthday. This is Non-Kayfabe Compliant so I will be using their real names. So enjoy!
Colby felt forgotten. Yeah, forgotten, that's the way to describe how he was feeling. It was his birthday today and no one even bothered to greet him. He bumped into Saraya* earlier but she quickly went away like she saw a ghost or something. Joe wasn't any different: He sat with Colby in Catering and the birthday boy eagerly awaited the birthday greeting that never came. He hasn't seen Jonathan anywhere and that just made Colby even more disappointed.
He was sure that Jonathan would be the first to greet him. Heck, he might even take Colby out for a beer or something after the show but nope. No sign of Jon anywhere. Everybody acted weird, though. Like they were holding their breath for something Colby couldn't figure out.
The two-toned wrestler was on his way to his locker room to wait for his match against Nick** even though the show didn't start for another three hours, and to possibly mope about not being remembered on his birthday. This was utter bullshit. Two days ago, everyone was asking him what his plan was for his birthday and now, they're acting like there was nothing special on the very day? Something wasn't adding up.
He went inside his locker room and sat down on the bench, his elbows on top of his knees. He left the door slightly ajar for some reason and he swore he saw a familiar grey leather jacket and brownish-blonde mop of curls turn at the end of the hall. Colby sat up, squinted his eyes as he stood up and followed the man only to lose him when he made a wrong turn.
"Dammit." He muttered, looking around the area where they kept the equipment. Damn, even the technical crew acted weird, even though Lopez was sure that they don't know about his birthday.
"Hey, you guys seen Jonathan around?" He asked two guys and they visibly stiffened.
The taller guy was the one who spoke. "Uh, no. Sorry, Mr. Lopez."
"It's fine. Thanks, anyway." Colby went back to the locker room area and bumped into Randy.
The older superstar cursed under his breath and helped the birthday boy up. "Sorry, man. You in a hurry?"
"Kinda," Colby answered, brushing the dust off the back of his pants. "Did Jonathan come in to work today?"
Randy tried to look innocent but he wasn't very good at hiding it. "I heard he called in sick today. Why?"
"Nothing. Thanks, Randy."
Randy turned to go, only to call after Colby again. "Oh, by the way, Stephanie's been looking for ya, man. Go to the office in about an hour."
Colby looked confused. "Am…I in trouble?"
The inked man shook his head. "Nah, I think she just needs to talk to you about a new storyline. Whatever, just talk to her, alright?"
Colby nodded and thanked him for the heads-up and went back to his locker room to really mope. Jonathan called in sick? But Colby could've sworn he saw the Cincinnati native walk past his locker room earlier. And besides, he would call the half-blonde first before anyone else if something happened. In fact, he should've called earlier to wish his boyfriend a happy birthday.
Colby checked his phone, hoping that Jonathan did call or at least left a few birthday greetings. Sadly, there were none and Colby felt even worse. He wanted to cry but it would be pretty stupid. It wouldn't be the first time people forgot about his birthday.
But it is his first birthday when Jonathan forgot about it. Every year since their first meeting in FCW, Jon would come up with something crazy for the Armenian's birthday, even when they were just friends. For his 25th birthday, Colby was a bit surprised when Jonathan took him bungee-jumping. And the year after that, they just went a bit simpler and just had a dinner at some place. The surprises fluctuated between mind-blowingly awesome to simply adorable so it was hard to anticipate.
This year, though, Jonathan seemed to have forgotten and Colby tried to tell himself that it wasn't like that. Jonathan is sick so he must be resting at the hotel. He's probably asleep right now, Colby tells himself. But he couldn't shake off the miserable feeling in his gut that maybe Jonathan forgot or worse, that he does remember but chose not to do anything this year because even for the simpler birthday surprises, he would spend a lot of money just for a trip or a gift.
Colby tapped his phone gently against his chin before deciding to call his blonde companion.
"Okay, okay. That's enough," Jonathan assured, looking up at the banner that Trinity*** was hanging up. "That looks really good, Trin. Thanks."
The ebony-skinned woman climbed down the ladder. "No problem. Are you sure that your boo doesn't know about all this?"
"Pretty sure. I mean, I told everyone not to breathe a word about this to him so-" Jon was startled to hear his phone blare out the custom ringtone he set for Colby's calls and messages. He took his phone out of his jacket pocket and made a loud hushing sound accompanied with a finger against his lips to keep everyone quiet.
The blonde made sure his voice was a little throaty (since his alibi was being sick) before he answered the call with a sickly "Hello?"
"Hey," Colby said from the other end, his voice filled with melancholy. "Randy told me you were sick today."
Jon made sure to fake a sniffle before replying, "Yeah, think it's the flu or some shit like that."
"Hope you'll feel better soon," The Armenian cleared his throat, waiting for the birthday greeting he knew would make him feel better about his day. "Hey, what day is it?"
"Uh, May 28. Why'd you ask?" Jon made sure not to let out even a whispered greeting. This was supposed to be a surprise.
Colby let out a defeated sigh and when he answered, his voice shook a little, "No reason. Just asking. I'll…I'll talk to you later, 'kay?"
Jon pretended that he didn't hear that sad sigh. "Okay. I'll see you later."
He ended the call, put his phone back in his pocket before helping Stephanie set up the table. After a few minutes, everything was set up. All that's missing now is the birthday boy. "Steph, could you maybe call him and tell him to come to this office?"
The businesswoman pulled her phone from her pants pocket and dialed her employee's number as she put it on speaker phone. She held the phone a few inches away from her mouth so everyone would hear the call. It took a while before Colby answered.
"Hello?"
"Colby, it's Steph. I'm sure that Randy told you to come to my office for a new storyline for your character?"
"Oh, yeah. Sorry, I was just-"
Stephanie ignored him. "Please, get here this instant. I have a meeting in a few minutes and I don't think I can discuss this with you tomorrow."
She hung up the phone without waiting for Colby to reply. "Alright, he's on his way now. Turn off the lights."
Jonathan hurried to the bathroom, carrying a duffel bag, as everyone went around the room to put some last minute touches on the set-up. The blonde man locked the door and hurriedly put on a pair of black slacks. He slipped on a white, long-sleeved dress shirt and tucked the hem into his pants and he slipped a black tie around his neck and finished the look with a black tuxedo jacket. He straightened his tie as he kicked off his sneakers and replaced them with a pair of black shoes.
He was having a conflict with himself whether or not to slick his hair back. But he decided to do it anyway because he didn't have time to think about the pros and cons of doing so. He stepped out of the bathroom, turning off the bathroom lights on his way out. That was the signal for Cena to turn the lights off in the room as they waited for the birthday boy.
A few boring minutes in and almost everyone was convinced that Colby went home, Jonathan being one of them. But Saraya cracked the door open a little but closed it once more, making shushing noises. Seconds later, the door opened and Colby was surrounded in darkness.
"Hello? Steph?" He called out, trying to reach in front of him to try to find the light switch. The lights went on and everyone let out a thunderous "Happy Birthday!" before rushing to the celebrant. The two-toned man stood there speechless for a few seconds, trying to process all of this. So, everyone did remember his birthday and they set up a surprise party for him. He looked around as a number of divas and superstars crowded around him for a group hug.
When they moved away, Jonathan was left standing in front of him, dressed in a fancy suit that he swore he wouldn't be caught dead in. He had a hopeful smile on his face, the dimples on his cheeks making him look even more adorable, his hands stuffed in his pants pockets. He even slicked his hair back and everything.
"You didn't think I'd forget, did you?" He asked after five seconds of silence from his lover. He stepped closer to the younger man for a hug, whispering a "Happy birthday, babe" into his ear.
"Something doesn't seem right." Colby commented and Jon pulled away with a worried look spread all over his handsome features.
Jon looked at the sight around them. Everything was fine and he was sure he didn't miss anything. Everyone had the same expression on their faces, worried that they ruined the champion's birthday party. Jon dropped his gaze back down to Colby, his face showing all of his worries.
Colby reached up and messed up Jonathan's slicked back hair, letting them form their natural curls again. "Don't slick back your hair," He commented, giving Jon a lecturing look. "It makes you look like an encyclopedia salesman."
Everyone burst out laughing, even Jon breathed out a sigh of relief and the party started. Everyone had a great time, dancing and helping themselves to the food. There was no alcohol, though, since they all still had matches and promos to do later in the show. Colby sat down on a couch in the corner of the room, a cup of juice in hand as he stared at the delightful scene in front of him.
"Hey, you're supposed to be celebrating too, y'know?"
The birthday boy looked up and Jon sat down next to him, finishing the last bite of a piece of cake he had on a plate. He took off his jacket a few minutes ago, saying that it was too hot to wear. Colby took a sip of his juice, a bit bummed out that they can't drink during the party.
He finished his drink before breaking the silence between him and his lover. "So, what made you decide to throw me a surprise party?"
Jon shrugged. "I just thought I'd do something normal for your birthday for once. Though, I didn't think that a surprise party would be a good idea."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm supposed to keep the party a secret until you arrived so that means mouth shut. And I didn't want you to think for one second that I forgot about your special day."
*Saraya=Paige's real name
**Nick= Dolph Ziggler's real name
***Trinity= Naomi's real name
Colby Lopez is Seth, Jonathan Good is Dean and Joe (even though he's mentioned once in this story) is Roman. Hope you guys enjoyed and thanks for reading!~
