1…2…3! DING-DING-DING!
Once again, much to her own chagrin, AJ Lee was once again booked to lose to Nikki Bella, her personal nemesis. For the life of her, AJ could not recall whose idea it was to write up her losing the Diva's title to her. Since that night, AJ had saved her dislike for the storyline for when she got home to her husband, Phil, much to his displeasure. From losing matches against the Bellas to receiving "CM Punk" chants every time she graced the squared circle, she vented to him about every issue she did not agree with, and as a good husband he listened attentively.
Upon making it backstage on her way to the locker room, she ran into Brie Bella, whom had been waiting backstage for her sister to finish gloating about her victory over her tiny competitor. AJ did not particularly like either of the Bella Twins, though it was apparent that she hated Brie the least of the two. One of AJ's cornerstones was her being able to voluntarily smile in the face of anyone she did not care much for.
"Why, hello, Brie." AJ greeted with as much sarcasm as she could muster. Brie blinked slowly, knowing AJ was insincere with her greeting.
"I was actually hoping I would see you first before Nikki made her way back here." Brie replied. "I know you don't really like me very much, but I've been paying attention to how the Creative Team's been handling you lately and I wanted to say I don't agree with it at all. It's almost like they're punishing you for Phil's decision to leave how he did." As much as she hated to say it to herself, Brie nearly spoke as if she had been listening to one of her nightly conversations with her husband. She then felt Brie's hand on her shoulder, and her reflexes immediately told her to move. "I spoke with Stephanie about it, and she said she will work on getting you a better storyline once this one finishes out." AJ was beginning to hate Brie even less than she did. Though, one would not dare say that she liked the twin, lest they wished to instantly fall on AJ's bad side.
"Umm," she began. "Thanks, Brie, but I'm fine with how things are. If I don't like something, I'm perfectly capable of handling it on my own." AJ then reached up and patted Brie on her head twice as if she were a small dog. "You tried, Barbie." Brie nodded in acceptance.
"I just wanted to help because I actually do respect you as a wrestler, AJ." Before Brie could finish her thought, Nikki had come backstage and met AJ with a saucy smile.
"Well, if it isn't the loser, Misses CM Punk!" Nikki said, knowing AJ did not like being called that. "Enjoy your place on the food chain, little girl. The real Diva's Champion is here!" Nikki laughed as she walked away, Brie looking back at AJ before following her. AJ shook her head as her mind worked to process what had happened. She recalled Nikki saying something that was meant to offend her more than merely her presence, but she was not paying much attention to the annoying Diva. She then thought about the look Brie gave her as the two of them left. For a brief moment in time, AJ felt Brie was sincerely sorry for all that has happened to her and wanted to help her, but AJ almost immediately threw that theory out of her mind. She knew that after her match she was no longer required to remain in the arena, so she decided to leave. She called a cab as she walked down the hallway, then she bumped into the face of the company, John Cena. He was in the main event tonight, and looked as if he had been preparing although his match was not for another hour.
"Nice seeing you, AJ." John said, a bit of cheer in his husky voice. "Where are you off to?" AJ did not have a problem with John, but she normally tried to keep her conversations with him to a minimum simply because of who he was dating.
"My part in Raw is over, so I'm leaving for tonight." AJ replied. "Creative didn't plan anything else for me after my match with your girlfriend, so I really don't have much of a reason to be here." John noticed a bit of attitude in her voice.
"You normally stay through the entire show." He pointed out. "You alright?" The truth was, she wasn't. She was not going to tell John that, however.
"I'm fine." She lied. "I just need to get some rest. It's been a long day today." John raised his eyebrows at her.
"Alright then." John said. "I'll see you tomorrow. We have a few interviews to do." AJ smiled then turned to head out of the arena.
"See ya then, Johnny Boy!" AJ retorted before walking away from John. John then heard footsteps and a voice call out to him.
"Cena!" the voice, attached to a cameraman, called out to him. "You're on interview with Renee in five." John looked back to where AJ was standing before following the cameraman to the interview area of the arena.
Outside waiting on her cab, AJ pulled her phone to see that she had one unread text message and two missed calls. The text message was from Brie (she had given Brie her number after Brie lent her a few of her things when she had lost her luggage on one of the flights overseas). It read, "Hope you feel better soon. Text if you want." AJ debated on whether or not to reply. She didn't necessarily care for Brie, but she didn't hate her too much either. Brie had been one of the nicer Divas and the only Divas aside from Paige and Layla who reached out to her after her luggage went missing, and she also made sure AJ made it to the event by offering a ride of which she refused.
"Thank you, Brie." AJ texted back, deciding to nice and accept Brie's kindness just this once. After all, she did seem sincerely worried about AJ before she left.
AJ then looked to see who had called her. Paige had called her first then Phil called her immediately after. She sat down on the bench next to her and dialed Paige. The phone rang thrice.
"AJ?" Paige answered.
"Yup. It's me. Who else would it be?"
"Don't know." AJ could almost see Paige shrug her shoulders. "I saw you leaving and wanted to check on you. Are you alright?"
"I'll be fine, Paige. Promise. I just wanted to get some rest for tomorrow."
"Okay then. I'm glad you're alright. I'll text you in the morning. Good night, Little Demon." AJ almost laughed.
"Alright, alright. Good night, Ghost Face!" The cab arrived for AJ as she ended her conversation with Paige, and she signaled to the cab driver to open the trunk for her to put away her bags.
The show ended, and Dolph Ziggler had just made it to the backstage after working the main event with John Cena and Ryback against Seth Rollins, Kane, and Cesaro. Dolph grabbed a towel from the receptionist and dried his hair. He then felt a hard hand on his back. He turned to see the taller Swiss man grinning at him.
"Good match as always." Cesaro said to Dolph. "Let's hope we get to meet in the ring again." Cesaro nodded and walked to the locker rooms before Dolph could reply. The younger man blinked then raised his eyebrows.
"Man, Tony is weird as hell sometimes." Dolph said to himself before heading back to the locker rooms to shower.
After Dolph had showered and gotten ready to head to his hotel room, he met one of the receptionists.
"Hunter and Stephanie want to see you." The man said. Dolph nodded and went to see what his bosses wanted. He left his bags in the seat outside of the office, then walked in to see Hunter and Stephanie discussing something before they turned their attention to him.
"Dolph." Hunter greeted as he shook Dolph's hand. "Good job tonight. You looked great out there."
"Thank you." Dolph replied humbly. "Just doing what I love."
"We're glad to hear you say that." Stephanie said. "We just want to let you know that all your hard work isn't going unnoticed, Dolph. We were just waiting for the best moment to give you what you deserve." Stephanie then picked up a burgundy folder and handed it to Dolph. "We have big plans for you, Dolph. We love you, the fans love you, and everyone backstage loves you. We think it's time for you to become a true marquee player."
Dolph's eyes widened as he opened the folder to see what looked like a storyline. He skimmed through a few lines that stuck out to him, and blinked.
"We know it's a little risky for you." Hunter started. "With how you perform, though, I knew you would be perfect for the story." Dolph was almost shocked as he continued to read.
"I don't know what to say." Dolph replied. "I'm honored you want me to be in this considering-" Stephanie cut him off.
"Before you finish that, Dolph, we know about your history of concussions and injuries. Even with all that, you're out there giving it your all and putting on star performances. I mean, your charisma is unmistakable. We already pitched the story to John and he is welcoming the change in character." The first question that came to Dolph's mind was…
"How does Mister McMahon feel about this?" Hunter smiled from cheek to cheek.
"Vince decided it was best to finally hand the company over to us." He told Dolph. "We are in complete control now, and we want to do things a bit differently."
"We want what the fans want." Stephanie added. "The fans want change, then that's what we are giving them."
Dolph was speechless. The storyline called for Dolph to challenge Cena at the Summer Slam Pay-Per-View event to a match for the WWE Championship Title, a match made to bounce off the momentum between the two men. As weeks pass, Cena was to cheer Dolph on during his matches while Dolph did the same during Cena's. John would, however, become a bit worried as Dolph gained heavy momentum. Two weeks before Summer Slam, John would cut a chilling promo finally addressing the boos he received while at the same time hyping up his match with Dolph Ziggler. Dolph would exchange words with Cena. Cena would then extend his hand to Dolph, only to surprise him with an Attitude Adjustment, and cementing the day Cena turned Heel. To work alongside John Cena during this nearly legendary moment completely humbled him.
"I really don't know what to say." Dolph repeated, still somewhat speechless after reading the script in its entirety. "This is big stuff."
"Right." Hunter said. "This is a historic moment. After almost a decade, Cena will be the bad guy everyone has wanted him to be, and we couldn't think of any other full-time Superstar who could work that story over with him like you could." Dolph did not have to think of his answer to Hunter and Stephanie's proposal.
"I accept." He said. "I'll do it." Stephanie clapped her hands together.
"We know you'll make us happy, Dolph. Take that with you, read over it, then come back to us when you are ready to sign the contract."
"Yes Ma'am." Dolph replied before shaking Hunter's hand and hugging Stephanie. "I'll call you tomorrow afternoon."
"Good." Hunter said. "Have a good night. We'll see you tomorrow." Dolph nodded then walked out of the office, leaving the two bosses to themselves. Stephanie looked over to her husband.
"Are we making the right decision with him, Hunter?" she asked. Hunter nodded.
"We said we would do our best to listen to the fans. Besides, Ziggler's good at what he does. It's about time he gets a little recognition." Stephanie thought for a moment then smiled.
"You're right. He is good." Hunter looked as his watch.
"Well, Steph. Let's get dinner before we go get the kids." Hunter kissed Stephanie on the lips gently.
"Yes. Let's."
AJ removed her bags of the trunk of the cab, paid the fee, and went inside the hotel to meet the receptionist.
"Good evening." AJ said. "I was just checking in with you again." The man smiled.
"You know," he began. "You don't have to check in with me every time you leave and come back."
"I know, but you look bored every time I come here, so I try to brighten up your time a bit by saying hello."
"Well then." The man was humbled by AJ's kindness. "Thank you, Misses Brooks." AJ rolled her eyes.
"Just April's fine. Remember?"
"Right. Forgive me. Your room is ready, of course, and Mist-" The man stopped before he finished to correct himself. "Phil… is waiting for you." AJ smiled again.
"Thank you…" she looked at his name tag. "Patrick. Have a good night. I'll see you next time." She walked away towards the elevators down the hallway.
While in the elevator, AJ began ruminating about her current position in the company. Since she returned to work after her wedding, the Creative team had not been using her as much. The times they did use her in a storyline, it was often a story with no structure or anything of interest. She was often a shadow for the other Divas, including Nikki Bella. AJ was beginning to feel worthless to the company she cherished so dear. Before she could think any longer, the elevator stopped. AJ stepped out and headed to her room. Normally, Phil left the door open for her. Tonight, however, the door was closed, so AJ pulled her card key out and opened it to find Phil sprawled across the large bed sleeping while the TV watched him attentively.
"Someone had a long day." She said to herself as she laid her bags down by the door. The noise made by the bags hitting the floor woke Phil from his sleep. He sat up slowly to find AJ sitting at the edge of the bed taking her shoes off.
"I wasn't expecting you back yet." Phil said to AJ. "I wanted to get a nap in before ya told me about your day." AJ stopped what she was doing to turn around enough to look at him out the corner of her eye with a wiry look on her face.
"Was that supposed to be funny?" she asked. Phil put on his signature half grin.
"No. It was supposed to be truthful." AJ turned all the way around to face him.
"I can't help it if a lot of things at work bother me now, Phil." Phil sat up closer to her and crossed his legs.
"If ya love it there, then don't sweat the small stuff." He said. "Every job has its issues, Babe. If you love what you do, then suck it up, get out there, and fight. Right?" He stretched his arms out in an attempt to search for a response from AJ.
"Okay, okay." AJ said. "You're right. You're always right."
"This isn't news to you is it?"
"No. I just needed reassurance, I guess." AJ thought for a moment before mentioning her next topic. "Brie's been really nice to me as of late."
"That flat-chested Bella?" AJ narrowed her eyes a bit before answering.
"Yes, Phil. Her."
"She doesn't seem so bad. She's not as bad as her sister, Honeydew Bella, though." AJ nearly laughed at Phil's nickname for Nikki.
"Honeydew Bella, Phil? I mean, seriously?"
"That's all she's got." AJ huffed.
"Well, 'Honeydew Bella' also has the title I worked my entire life to get!"
"To be fair, Babe, no one's a champ in the WWE for too long."
"So says the man who was WWE champion for over a full calendar year." Phil nodded.
"Point taken, but my point is you're gonna fall some days, April. Usually, it's when you're dealing with somebody ya don't like too much like Honeydew Bella. Ya gotta take back what's yours and show them that it was meant for you and only you."
"You're right." AJ said quickly. "I should just kill Nikki Bella and get it over with."
"That's my little demon." Phil said after laughing at AJ's retort. She kissed him gently.
"Seriously, though. You're right. I'm in a business that changes like my character changes her moods. I shouldn't have gotten so attached to that title belt. It did feel good to be on top of the Diva's Division."
"To me," Phil said as softly as could muster. "You always will be the number one Diva." His compliment made AJ her beam with joy. All she could do was hug him tightly.
"I love you so much." She said. "What am I gonna do about Brie, though? I mean, I don't like her, but I don't hate her. She's been so nice to me." Phil shrugged his shoulders.
"Why don't you talk to her?" AJ's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Really, Phil?" she asked. "Talk to Brie Bella? Are you kidding me?" A blank, unreadable stare fell onto Phil's face.
"No." He said simply, AJ's eyes narrowing at the comment. "What? I don't see what harm it could do. Brie's really trying to do the right thing by you, Babe. Give her a chance. You already said you didn't hate her."
AJ hated for Phil to be right but he was. Brie really had not given her a reason to hate her as of late other than being a Bella twin, and she had also been trying to make amends with AJ. AJ simply brushed her off for being associated with Nikki through blood.
"You're right." AJ said. "I hate it, but you're right."
"What are you gonna do?" AJ thought for a moment.
"I'm gonna call her right now. It's not too late right?" Phil shrugged his shoulders again.
"Don't know, Babe." He replied. "Only one way to find out." AJ narrowed her eyes at him before pulling her phone out of her pocket and dialing Brie's number. It rang three times.
"Hello?" It was Brie.
"Hi Brie."
"AJ? I honestly didn't think you'd contact me at all, much less call me."
"I know, I know. I admit, I haven't really been the nicest to you even though you've been so nice to me. I wanted to say thank you."
"Anytime, AJ. I'm sorry for being so mean to you when you first got here. I was just trying to stay in character so Creative would actually take me seriously."
"I understand you there." AJ then had an idea. "What are you doing right now? Is Nikki with you?"
"She's with John tonight." Brie replied. "I'm here in my hotel room with Bryan."
"How far are you from the soup place downtown?" Phil raised his eyebrow at AJ's conversation with Brie.
"I'm not sure." Brie answered. "I think I'm about five minutes or so from it."
"Let's meet there, and bring Bryan. We can all have some Italian Wedding soup."
"That sounds great, AJ."
"What hotel are you staying in? We'll come and get you." Phil mouthed 'We will?' after AJ spoke.
"We're right next to the arena. It's the larger hotel with the parking lot. We can meet you downstairs if you like."
"Sounds great. We'll be there in a few minutes."
"Can't wait." AJ ended the call, and turned around to see Phil glaring daggers into her.
"What?" she said innocently. "You said I should make amends, right? That's what I'm doing."
"Right now, though?" Phil asked. "This couldn't wait?"
"Oh, come on, Phil. You make it seem like you don't want to go."
"Good, because I don't." AJ huffed.
"Well, you're going. I can't go by myself. I'd be a third wheel."
"Bryan's only going because you told Brie to bring him."
"Well, Brie couldn't leave him there by himself, Babe. He'll get lonely and stuff." AJ was beginning to believe she would not win the argument.
"They're married, April. They see each other every day. Bryan would have been fine with Brie meeting you for soup tonight." Phil paused for a moment. "Yeah, about that…"
"I couldn't think of anything else, Phil." AJ replied with a defeated look on her face. Phil hated seeing her upset, so he tried to console her.
"Well," He started. "You're doing a good thing. That's good enough, I guess. I'll go." AJ brightened up almost instantly.
"Yay!" AJ yelped. "Get dressed. We're leaving now."
"Alright, alright."
In their room, Brie and Daniel Bryan were getting prepared for their night with AJ and Phil. Daniel was sitting on the couch lacing up his boots while Brie was in the bathroom brushing her hair.
"You know, Brie." Daniel began. "I think it's nice of April to invite us out tonight. I never thought she liked you much."
"Well," Brie said as she continued to brush her hair. "She had every right to be upset with me. I mean, even though I was just practicing my character, I wasn't the nicest person to her. I'm just glad we're on better terms now. I really do appreciate her work."
Even after marrying her and seeing who she really was, Daniel could not help but be amazed at how different Brie was from her sister, Nikki. While her sister sought after fame and fortune when the day ended (much like her character on screen), Brie looked to be nice to everyone and make sure everyone was in a good mood around her. Brie caught Daniel staring at her and smiled.
"What do you think?" Brie asked as she twirled so Daniel could see her at all angles. She was wearing a pair of blue jean capris, a black blouse, and a pair of black sneakers. She decided to wear her hair down.
"Beautiful." Daniel said as he pulled Brie close and kissed her. She smiled.
"Let's go meet April." She said to him. "They should be down there waiting on us by now." They both headed for the door. Daniel opened it to let Brie out.
"After you." He said, making Brie giggle before she walked out.