The title and summary are lyrics from Safe to Say by Vanna
Callie Winters resisted the urge to roll her eyes as footage of the Royal Rumble flashed on the television screen. The brunette sat in a nearby chair and opened her camera bag. She started to put together her Nikon DS3.
"Hard to believe he's back, huh?" a female voice inquired.
The other woman wrinkled her nose, "Would it be too much to hope that I don't run into him anytime soon?"
"Probably." Alana laughed, "You'll be fine, Cal. He's just a man. They're a dime a dozen."
"That is horrible thinking." Callie shook her head, "Adam may have screwed me over, but I know that not all men are like that."
"Don't you mean you know that Punk isn't like that?" her blonde haired friend giggled.
The photographer stared at her, "There's a reason you're one of my only female friends. Don't go getting all girly on me."
Alana stopped laughing, "Sorry. I had a momentary lapse of judgment, but now I'm back."
The young woman ran her hand through her hair, "Look, Phil's a great guy, bu-"
Her co-worker cut her off and wriggled her eyebrows, "So, he's Phil now?"
"Seriously? Stop that." Cal demanded with a glare, "We're just friends. We hang out a lot because we're both always the designated drivers whenever everyone goes out. There's nothing there. At all."
"Mee thinks thou dost protest too much," the blonde sang.
The other woman rolled her eyes, "Five bucks says you don't know what play that comes from."
"I don't gamble."
"Try that on someone who doesn't know you." Callie shot back, "It's from Hamlet and, for the record, the correct quote of that is the lady do-
"Doth protest too much, methinks." Adam Copeland interrupted, "Act 3, scene 2."
Randy Orton and Adam Copeland walked down the hall of the arena.
"It's good to have you back, man," the youngest of the pair stated.
"It's good to be back. Six months without being in the ring just about killed me." Adam replied.
Randy nodded, "Well, everyone's glad that you're back."
"Don't you mean almost everyone," the blonde man quipped.
The other man laughed, "I think it goes without saying that Cal isn't exactly enthusiastic about your return. Punk had to talk her out of trying to get out of taking pictures at the Royal Rumble. She was going to going to trade nights with Delilah."
"Delilah?" Adam shook his head, "There's a reason that girl only takes pictures at house shows."
"That's the biggest reason she caved and went ahead and worked that night." He explained, "Gave Punk a lot of hell for it, too."
The two men headed into catering and sat down at a table. Once seated, Adam asked, "So, Cal and Punk?"
"Cal's been switching back and forth between RAW and Smackdown. Her contracts coming up for renewal and since she's been working here for awhile, Vince is letting her try out both and see which show she wants to work on. Apparently, they became friends because of their shared duty as designated driver. Alana thinks they've got something going, but Cal insists they're just friends." Randy answered.
"Which means nothing because for the first six months of our relationship, we told everyone that we were just friends." Adam mused.
The Legend Killer nodded, "Exactly."
"Maybe I should ask her?"
The younger of the two just stared at him, "Are you crazy? You are the last person she would confide in."
"That's what you think." The blonde smiled, "We don't lie to each other. She and I may have ended badly, but I never lied to her and she never lied to me."
"Well, she and Alana are sitting in the corner." Randy motioned towards where the two women sat, "Why don't you go test out that little theory?"
"Okay." Adam stood and walked towards the two women.
As he trekked to where they where, he noted the differences in Callie's appearance from the last time he'd seen her almost eight months ago. Her hair that once ended just past her shoulders was now styled into a bob. The gauchos she wore showed off her calves. He could see that she was using makeup to cover up the three black stars, similar to the ones he had, that she'd gotten as a tattoo as a present to him on their two year anniversary. Either that or she'd doled out the money to get them removed. He doubted it was the latter option because she hadn't sent him a bill and demanded that he pay for it.
Her back was to him so she didn't notice him approaching. He overheard the part of their conversation and couldn't stop himself from interjecting, "Doth protest too much, methinks. Act 3, scene 2."
Callie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "You know, I always hated it when you finished my sentences."
Adam pulled a chair from one of the nearby tables and joined the two woman, "You don't like that I know you so well?"
"I don't like you at all." Callie spat.
The blonde man turned his attention to Alana, "Alana, would you mind giving us time alone?"
Alana nodded, "Not at all. I've got to start running sound checks anyway."
Callie stared at her friend incredulously as the woman hugged Adam, congratulated him on being back, and headed out of catering.
"I'm going to kill her." Cal muttered.
"No, you're not." Adam replied somberly, "Because you know that if she knew the real reason we broke up, she wouldn't let me anywhere near you."
The brunette fiddled with the neck strap to her camera, "True. Very true."
"You could always tell her." He spoke softly, "I know you didn't want everyone in our business, but she's your best friend."
"Who can't keep a secret to save her life." Cal snorted, "Jay, Chris, and their wives know. That's enough."
"Rumor has it that you and Punk have a thing." Adam stated.
"Well, rumors have been known to be wrong from time to time."
The blonde man shook his head before reminding her, "We don't lie to each other."
"Isn't it a shame that we never made breaking each other's hearts against the rule?" Callie retorted.
"Don't be like that."
"Don't be like what?" She hissed, "Who I hang out with isn't any of your business. You lost the right to care eight months ago."
He sighed, "Call-"
"Stop. Just stop." Callie stood, "You walked away, Adam. You made your choice. I'm moving on. Maybe you should stop being so caught up in what I'm doing and do the same."
Adam Copeland watched as she placed her camera around her neck, swept up her camera bag, and stalked out of catering. He wondered, not for the first time, if she would ever forgive him for the decision he'd made all those months ago.
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