Case in Point

by missiridescence

The drastically changed appearance of Miz's money in the bank briefcase compels Alex Riley to reflect the great changes he and Miz have experienced over the past year in the WWE. One shot, non-slash.

Title: Case in point
Characters: The Miz, Alex Riley
Rating: G
Setting: Raw 20/12/10
Disclaimer: Insert usual disclaimer here

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Change is an inherent part of life. Sometimes, the change can be so dramatic and sudden, plunging itself into life like a heavy stone tossed into a river; causing a ripple effect which reaches far enough to rouse everyone and everything in its path.

Such a change made it difficult to see any sort of stability because it is so great, and its effects always seemed to be everywhere, always staring right back at you. Like Miz's WWE title. Every time Alex Riley would turn to his mentor, he would always see the coveted gold and silver belt proudly displayed upon his left shoulder for all to see. It sparkled brightly whether they were in or out of the ring, as though it made no difference if Miz and Alex were mingling with celebrities at exclusive events, or just singing along to their favourite songs while they were car, driving to the arena together.

Whenever Miz walked down the hallways Alex would walk alongside him carrying the used up money in the bank briefcase in one hand, letting it swing back and forth in his grip and bump into the side of his knee every now and then. In the locker room after the show when Miz sat on a bench and polished his title, Alex would do the same for the briefcase and it was in this time that he would take a breather from his hectic, fast-paced life and take the time to study the significant change in the briefcase's appearance.

Looking at it now, it was hard to believe that this was the very same vividly red and smooth briefcase that the money in the bank match participants fought over, and spectacularly showcasing their willingness to put their bodies on the line in order to be the man who climbs the ladder and retrieves it from the top rope.

The briefcase shone brightly then but now it's it was adorned by a rough boarder of scratched paint around it exposing silver surface underneath the paint, and open gashes on the side did the same. Its surface was bumpy and convex, preserving the shapes formed by the various strikes it delivered and received.

Throughout the year, Miz used it as a weapon to send a serious message to his opponents but it was also on the receiving end of Miz's anger and frustrations, where he would sometimes kick it around in the locker room or pound it on the bench and lockers when things were not going his way and the briefcase's continued presence added fuel to the fire by reminding him that time was running out for him to cash it in.

When they were done, Miz held the WWE title to the ceiling light and it sparkled as usual. Alex followed suit and did the same with the money in the bank briefcase and saw the dents. And as he brought it back down, he realised that his fingers were starting to turn red because all the while he was holding it, the dried paint which was like powder, had rubbed onto his skin. No amount of polish could return its condition to its former state.

Miz could have added the case to his wrestling memorabilia as soon as he won the WWE title but instead, he passed it down to Alex, insisting that he carry it whenever they went out to the ring which Alex was more than happy to do. He always took on the most menial of jobs with ardent enthusiasm and diligence. But no other job elicited as much of those sentiments as minding the briefcase. Perhaps it was because that since he was just a rookie, he would be easily fascinated by every single coveted object associated with the WWE, but more importantly, no matter how wrecked the briefcase may be, it was still a relic of an historical moment that he had the privilege of witnessing before his very eyes.

So Alex felt useful, important even, when he carried the briefcase around with him, yet he knew that it was only a matter of time that he would have to hand it over back to Miz.

"You know, I think it's time for me to add it to my collection." He said suddenly, breaking into Alex's thoughts.

Alex immediately creased wiping the dried paint from his fingers, surprised that Miz was able to read his mind.

"Yeah." He replied after a while, and eventually looked up from the case to see Miz standing above him with his hands outstretched expectedly, waiting to receive the briefcase and Alex took one last look at the briefcase before handing it over to him believing that his favourite duty had come to an end.

At next week's show, however, while Alex was sitting on the locker room bench lacing up his boots he looked up to see Miz standing over him with his hands outstretched towards him again, but this time they were holding new silver briefcase. It was smooth, sturdy and under the ceiling lights it shone, not as much as the WWE title of course, but more than the money in the bank briefcase ever did. Alex quickly finished tying the end knot and stood up to level himself with Miz.

"Huh, what's this?" Alex asked, confused.

Miz chuckled, amused at his protégé's reaction. "What do you think? It's a brand new briefcase for you to carry out to the ring!" He paused before adding, "But this one's all yours, so here, take it."

He held the case in front of Alex, expectedly; he mildly shook the case in his hands for emphasis to his words then kept his hands still, making the point that he was not going to move them until Alex received it.

But Alex was reluctant to take it from him; instead he shook his head, gently pushed Miz's hand away and looked at him. "What for?" he shrugged. "I know you made me continue to carry your money in the bank briefcase because you made history with it. But there's no reason for me to carry this one. What's the use?" As he spoke, he pointed to the new silver briefcase which was still in Miz's hands.

It was now Miz's turn to be puzzled, he returned the eye contact with furrowed eyebrows and frown. He looked back down at the briefcase, exhaled and let his voice drop before speaking again.

"Look, long before I cashed the briefcase in, you know I was using it as a weapon to take out everyone else and protect myself. Now that I am the WWE champion, I need to do that now more than ever." He looked at Alex directly and I'm still counting on you to help me do that."

Miz cast his gaze to where he had left the WWE title, which was on a locker room bench on the other side of the room though its gleam was still easily visible. He turned back to Alex and hesitated. "I mean, yes, the money in the bank briefcase and the WWE title are valuable, but so is your help, and I really appreciate it. If you weren't there I wouldn't even have a money in the bank case to add to my collection. I would have destroyed it completely."

Alex rubbed the back of his neck, and looked down, feeling a bit embarrassed for not realising this already. "I guess I had forgotten about that." He admitted.

"I didn't." Miz replied. and once again held up the briefcase for him to hold. Alex looked at it just as pensively as before, but this time he took it from him and examined it closely.

"Just remember you cash it in." Miz reminded jokingly as he picked up the WWE title and placed it on his shoulder.

Alex rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know."

Miz grinned. "Come on, let's go."

Alex returned the smile and promptly followed Miz out of the locker room to head to the gorilla position, gripping the handle of the briefcase tightly one hand and letting it swing freely, feeling glad there was some sort of stability was visible amongst the ripples of change.

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