Set after Smackdown before TLC.
"Baron!" I screamed across the parking lot, rushing out into the cold air from the warmth of the arena.
He kept walking at first, his strides long and angry.
"Baron!" I shouted again, tugging my jacket around me as I tried to catch up to him.
He stopped and turned around, standing there to wait for me.
He had already twisted his hair up under a beanie, had on a long black coat and would have honestly blended in with the crowd if he wasn't so tall.
"It's fucking cold out here," he sighed at me "Go back inside."
"Where are you going?" I shook my head as I reached him.
"I don't know," he shrugged "Away from here."
"Then let me come with you," I stepped in front of his bike.
"No," he laughed in annoyance.
"Baron, you could get fired on Tuesday. You realize that right?" I folded my arms across my chest, both in an act of defiance and in an effort to stay warm.
"And?"
"And? What do you mean? This is your job, Baron!"
"They can't afford to lose me," he ran his hand down his jawline confidently with a smirk.
"You think that now," I whispered "But you don't know Shane like I do."
"Oh yeah?" he got closer to me, his eyes burning down into mine "How do you know him?"
First of all, Baron was my friend so whatever possessiveness he was feeling at the moment needed to go away. Second, I worked for Shane. I worked for Smackdown. I sat in the room when a lot of those types of decisions were made and Shane could be cutthroat.
"Shut up," I sighed.
"I'll be fine," he tried to climb onto the bike but I put myself in front of him again.
"I won't! If you get fired, I'll never see you again. If you get traded, then I'll see you like once a month."
"That's why they invented phones and airplanes and shit…" he narrowed his eyes at me.
"Baron," I reached out and took hold of his arm "Just, just please go back and apologize."
"Like hell I will," he looked insulted "How could you even ask me to do that, huh? That little punk Kalisto fucked up my knee. I could have been out for months and you think I'm just gonna sit by and let them crown him some sort of champion? Fuck no."
"So that's it then. You're willing to throw your whole career away, our friendship away just so you can get one over on Kalisto?" I threw my arms out to my sides.
"Just let me deal with it ok?" he finally moved me over with his hand and straddled the bike "I can take care of myself…I'm a loner, remember?"
"No you're not," I shook my head.
Snow started to fall, silent big flakes that were illuminated by the lights in the parking lot.
He looked up at me surprised at my words but he did his best not to show it.
"You're not a loner anymore Baron Corbin."
"And what makes you say that?"
"You like chocolate cake, so much so that I made you one for your birthday two months ago, remember?"
He fidgeted nervously on the bike, his eyes not meeting mine.
"Your favorite beer is a Stella, you listen to talk radio when you drive, you go to confession once every six months…You always write with a pencil in case you screw up, you believe in ghosts because you've seen one, you have a picture of us in your wallet right now that we took in a photo booth in LA…You are not a loner Baron. I know to much about you."
He let out a heavy sigh and climbed off the bike.
"You need to get inside. I told you it's to fucking cold."
"I don't care," I shook my head.
"So what? You get pneumonia and gonna hold that over my head?" he spat.
"Why would you care?" I shrugged "If you only care about yourself, what would it matter if I got pneumonia and died?"
"Shut up," he growled at me "Don't say shit like that."
"Why? Because it's true? Or because you actually have feelings? Because I know you, better than anyone, and I know that you actually care about things. I know that you love this job and if you didn't have it, you'd be fucking lost. And I know that if you left me…I'd be fucking lost."
He reached a hand out to brush away snowflakes that had settled on my freezing cheeks. His hands were still warm.
"You want me to apologize?" he sighed.
"Yes, I don't care if you mean it. Just say it."
"Fine," he nodded, running his tongue along the inside of his cheek "I'll go see Shane in the morning but I'm not promising anything."
"Thank you," I whispered, taking what little agreement I could get.
"You know, you could make me another one of those cakes," he smirked down at me "Gotta be somebody's birthday somewhere, right?"
"We'll see," I whispered, wrapping my arms around his torso.
He ran his hand over the top of my head as he held me close to him.
"I'm warmer now," I mumbled into his chest.
"Good. I don't want you dying on me," he whispered into my hair "Cause I'd kinda miss you too."