Fergal Devitt smiled at the comments on his Instagram page, the recent pictures of him and Dottie at the Zoo, thanks to Drew taking all the pictures. For publicity reasons, it was better to keep heels and faces apart, to keep what was called Kayfabe. So Drew sort of became their personal cameraman.
"Your girlfriend is cute," someone posted.
He didn't have the heart to correct the comment.
As Fergal made his way towards the costume department of the next Raw show before SummerSlam he stopped in his tracks.
Drew McIntyre, the Scottish superstar, stood outside of the costume department with his arms crossed and a look on his face that didn't read well.
"What?" Fergal asked when he walked up.
All Drew had to do was motion into the room. Dottie O'Connor was standing in front of the man known as Dolph Ziggler. Nick Nemeth had a hand on Dottie's hip and holding her hand up while her other hand rested on his shoulder. They were shuffling from side to side, Dottie staring down at Nick's feet. Her vibrant red orange hair was not in its usual ponytail, it hung around her shoulders and she was wearing a red top that had a few too many top buttons open for Fergal's liking.
"What the fuck?" Fergal asked but he was rooted in his spot next to Drew.
"They've been like this for twenty minutes."
"If he kisses…" Fergal stopped himself.
He'd broken up with Cathy, especially after that stunt she had pulled with Dottie earlier in the week, and again with Cait's employment. He'd been focused on making sure that Dottie was safe, that she was happy. After the trip through Buffalo, and the godawful visit with the girls' mother, Fergal found himself drawn ever more into Dottie's life, relishing in holding her hand, having her rest her head on his shoulder.
Seeing Nick Nemeth with the cocky ass grin on his face had the laid back Irishman seeing red.
"Jealousy doesn't suit you." Drew stated flatly.
"I'm not…"
"Yes, you are." The Scotsman said. "You were never this way with Cathy."
Drew was correct. With Cathy he didn't have to worry about her constantly, she could take care of herself. Dottie just needed help and he liked being there for her.
But Dottie wasn't his. He'd sworn that she was just a friend. But seeing her with Nick Nemeth, the cocky asshole IC Champion, he was starting to get under Fergal's skin.
"Come out to dinner with me, Dot." Nick said.
She looked up at him. Her mouth was slightly open, but then her lower lip disappeared between her teeth.
"Um…" She mumbled
"I don't want Devitt to have you all to himself. I get jealous, too, you know."
"Why? You're sort of my friend, not like Drew, or Colby."
"Come on, Dot. Little Red, you have to do something on your own without someone telling you what to do. What do you want?"
"A date. A nice one, one that is like in the books."
"See, I can give that to you." He drew her closer than necessary. "Show you what a real man can do for you, Dot, that's what I can do. So, go out with me tonight. I'll have you back before midnight, my car will turn into a pumpkin by then anyway."
She laughed. Of course she would laugh. After all the hand holding he got from Dottie, Fergal would have thought that she was back to her old self for the most part.
Fergal sighed and turned around. He had a spot to get ready for, he was going to be attacked by Constable Corbin that night. If Dottie came to the curtain to see him back, then that would be great. But he didn't want to hover any longer. Being sick of seeing Nick with his hands on Dottie was hard to digest.
Kevin Steen was in the locker room. Kevin Owens and Fergal had been in NXT together, basically trained together there. He had a wife and two kids, and as a friend would keep tabs on Dottie, but now that Drew was in the picture and work in the way, neither two men had a chance to chat.
"Hey, man," The Canadian from Montreal said when Fergal sat down next to him. "What's going on?"
"Nothing."
"Does it involve a certain redhead seamstress?"
"Nick's asked her out to dinner tonight. I caught him dancing with her in the costume department."
"Yeah? He's going through with it?"
"Going through with what?"
"You've been too wrapped up in your shit with her that you don't listen around here anymore. I heard Ziggler talking to Corbin about Dottie."
"What did he say?"
"Just that he wanted to take her to a new level, to be a real woman or some shit like that." Kevin said. "Look, man, I know you've just broken up with your girlfriend, but Dottie, she's special. She's a special person that needs a special person in her life. If you're going to be it, you need to make your move."
"I don't know if I…" Fergal couldn't finish the sentence.
"You saw her in pain, I've seen you spitting jealousy during the three weeks that you didn't talk to her, after she said I Hate You to you. When she hugged Colby after the match, man I saw your face. You were livid."
"I wasn't jealous. Just shocked."
"Because you weren't the first anymore."
"What?"
Kevin rolled his eyes. "I know about you being the first to get her to talk to you. You were the first person that she let touch when she started working here. She was different, overly quiet, she kept to the rooms she was placed in. But then you showed up in her life and she started leaving that sanctuary. She started becoming an actual person rather than a shell of one. It was because of you."
Cait had said the same things in passing. He'd been that person for Dottie, the first male person that didn't treat her like crap. He took his time, he treated her like a person, and holding her hand, hugging her, they were things he always looked forward to.
"Get your shit together, man." Kevin said. "Isn't your parents coming for SummerSlam?"
"Yeah, they are. I'm picking them up." He rubbed his face. "I forgot."
"Have them meet Dottie. Have them meet Cait. See how things turn out." Kevin's suggestion didn't sound too far fetched. "From what I've heard about your folks, your Mom would adore Dottie regardless and from what I've heard, their mother isn't all that good to begin with."
He had to get ready. Him and the man known as Braun were in a tag team match that night against Kevin Owens and Jinder Mahal. The storyline was a little convoluted but with the story of Baron Corbin and Finn Balor not getting along, who was the so called Bigger Man, well that was new.
Fergal left the locker room to get a drink, to get his head in the game as the saying went. Only as he walked into the catering area near the curtains, some of his co-workers were greeting the man known as Dean Ambrose, of course Dottie was there because of Colby Lopez, aka Seth Rollins. She wasn't alone, as with Colby was Dottie's sister Cait O'Connor.
Dottie stared up at Dean Ambrose, keeping his wife Renee Young between her and him. Jon Good was talking mostly to Colby and Joe Anoa'i, Roman Reigns. He was just coming back from an arm injury that kept him out for a while. Dottie hadn't the chance to meet him, Cait seemed more worried about his character than the fact that Nick Nemeth was looking on.
Apparently his staring had drawn Dottie's attention. "Hi, Fergal." She greeted him.
"Heya." He responded, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets.
"Hey, Toothpick." Jon greeted him. "Eat any carbs lately?"
Dottie bit her lower lip as she looked around. "We ate elephant ears at the zoo." She supplied. Obviously unsure of what to say in a conversation.
"Really?" Jon smirked. "Kind of surprising at the abs on you. Course Dottie here probably stares at them more often than not since you're her boyfriend."
"What does that mean?" Dottie asked.
"Social media, Darlin' Dot." The Dean smirk appeared. "He posted pictures of you and him at the zoo. Renee was oohing at them the entire morning."
Dean Ambrose had no filter. Dean Ambrose was an ass.
The hierarchy of the company, and the respect there in, was complicated. Getting in a fight with the man known as Dean Ambrose would be a mark up for him in his career and that was something he'd rather not do in front of Dottie. Dean Ambrose pushed buttons a lot and he was digging for a response from either Fergal or Dottie. Fergal opted for the silent treatment because he hadn't been around as long as Dean Ambrose had.
"What social media?" Cait asked.
"Instagram. Most of the fans think its cute that Finn Balor was taking his girlfriend to the zoo." Renee said.
"Excuse me." Dottie said, moving away from them. "I have to go do something."
"Dottie," Fergal tried to reach for her but she pulled her arm out of his reach.
She hugged herself as she walked back to the costume department. Dottie walked with her shoulder to the wall as she went, looking at her feet. Fergal's chest twisted near painfully as he watched her leave.
"Dude, you're such an asshole." Joe said.
"What? Hey, I'm just making casual conversation here. She's cute when she blushes anytime Balor's around."
"At least you're married to a sensible person. I'd be kicking your ass if you did anything to my sister." Cait said.
"Sure thing Spitfire. Keep your girl in line, Colbs." Jon looked at his Shield partner.
"She's right. Don't go bothering Dottie like that, okay?" Colby actually crossed his arms. "She's a good friend and a great person. You're the one being the asshole right now."
"I'm going to go check on her. See if she's okay." Cait said.
"I'll come, too, try to explain my husband to her." Renee said.
"That would be great. Do you have a step by step guide on how to control him?"
"Sorry no, he didn't come with instructions. I have to ad-lib as I go." Renee responded.
The two of them walked off. At least Renee took time out to get to know Cait and Dottie, and Renee was a good interviewer and a people person.
"Saw all I needed to see. When were you going to ask the little redhead out?" Jon asked Fergal.
"I'm not. We're trying to get back into good graces with each other."
"Because you broke up with her as a friend, yeah, I know all about that story. Grapevine works wonders around here. Look, man, I also know that Ziggles is in the running for her attention. And from what I've seen, she'd be better off with you."
That's two people who had said just about the same thing that day.
"Now I may be an asshole but I saw the way she looked at you. One of these days you're going to lose her, and you'll only have yourself to blame."
"Speaking from experience?" Joe asked.
"Saw you running around with your head up your ass long before you asked Galina to marry you." Jon retorted.
"Dottie doesn't think like that." Fergal said. "She's been isolated, in her own little fantasy world of fairy tale romance. I can't bring myself to let her down like that again." And why was he telling Dean Ambrose all of this?
"Then let her experience a real world romance. Renee and I have had our fair share of issues, you sticking your ass out like that for this girl should say something."
"Sticking my ass out is what scared her." Fergal retorted.
"And now you know why I don't do social media, I let Renee do that for me."
"See, and you said you didn't have anything in common with her." Joe snickered at Jon.
A little while later, Fergal found that Dottie was talking to Drew about something. He had his shoulder against the wall, she was hiding near him. Of course Cait was trying to to calm her down. The things that Jon had said were affecting her. She even wiped away the tear that fell from her face.
"Little Red, there you are." Nick approached them. "Hey, Babe, what's wrong?"
"Not now, Nick." Drew said.
"Yes, now. Come on, what's going on? Keep me in the loop this time." Nick said, glancing at Fergal, who had yet to say anything.
"Jon Good said stuff that made me feel confused." Dottie said. "He's strange. I don't understand him."
"No one does, that's the unfortunate thing." Nick said.
She looked at him. "Were you serious earlier? That dinner question?"
"Yeah, I was. I'm dead serious about it, Dorothy."
"Don't call me Dorothy, my mother calls me that and I don't like it. Dottie or Dot. But," she finally saw him, she finally saw Fergal. "I'll go out to dinner with you tonight." She looked at Nick. "After the show, right?"
"Oh yeah, totally. That would be awesome. Wear something nice. I'll stop by to pick you up after my place in the show." Nick said.
Fergal turned and walked away. He'd rather not be there longer than he needed to be. He had a job to do and he didn't want to mess up on any of his spots. He knew Dottie was in good hands and none of them would let harm come to his Lovely.
Damn Nick for stepping on toes though.
Dottie's Dinner Date is the next installment after this one. It'll be up some time this week. I'm doing something at the moment.