Author's Note: Alrighty, this is something I have reworked from a story that had once been published on my old account. I was inspired to do something with it and sat down and brainstormed before reworking the original prologue into two chapters that made more sense to me. It's an AU, one of the most AU things that I have ever attempted, so don't mind the changes in the details. I hope you enjoy it! As usual, I own nothing WWE-related.

If It All Ended Tomorrow

Prologue:

John Cena was watching the brunette as she flipped through her book from a distance. Dina Morrow was the perfect girl in his eyes. She was about seven inches shorter than him, with chocolate brown hair that fell in natural waves to about midway down her back and soft grey eyes that showed just how kind she was. It was rare to see anger spark in them but when it did, they looked like molten silver. Her skin was gently tanned, and John knew it was because sometimes she sat on her roof to read. The girl was resisting his advances, but John was determined to make her his and learning everything about her was key to that, he was sure.

It wasn't like Dina wasn't attracted to John but she knew that in their little town, with John's father being a senior member of the two gangs fighting over territory… the only way he could see his life going was to follow in John Senior's footsteps. Dina had no intention of being swept up in crime. She had dreams. Dreams that took her out of this town, dreams that kept her on the straight and narrow. So it didn't matter how cute John Cena was, or how kind he was to her because walking down that road with John wouldn't lead to anything good.

As John approached, he realized the book she was flipping through was what she had to read for her English class. She was in the advanced class and John… he wasn't. Not because of a lack of intelligence on his part, but rather a lack of ambition for his studies. His ambitions were elsewhere. Taking a seat beside her on the steps that looked out over the slightly ratty football field, he put on his best smile.

"Hey neighbour." Dina glanced up when she heard John's voice and offered him a small smile in return.

"John." She greeted him hesitantly, anticipating the nagging that was probably going to come next. She and John had known each other for years, growing up next door to one another. In fact, when they were younger they had actually spent a lot of time together – it wasn't until John had hit thirteen that his father had started teaching him about 'business' and a distance grew between the two teens.

"You know if you were with me, you wouldn't have to bother with that shit right? I'd take care of you."

"Believe it or not, John, my greatest aspirations in life aren't to be a gangster's wife, popping out a kid every year. I actually like this book, for starters, and more importantly, I want to get out of this town, not stay here. My studies are important to me."

"But Di, baby, you'd be safe with me." A hint of a plea entered his tone and Dina shot a small glare in his direction, those grey eyes taking on a silvery look.

"Don't call me Di, you know I hate it – or baby, I'm not your baby. How am I supposed to feel safe with you Cena? You're in a gang, for Christ's sake." Her voice had lowered to a hiss to keep the words between them, although it wasn't really necessary. Most people knew about John and his best friend, Randy's gang connections. They weren't the only ones in the school with those connections either.

"Dina, that is exactly why you can feel safe with me. I know how to protect you." The brunette laughed softly and shook her head, snapping her book shut and rising up from the cement step.

"No John. You can't."

With that, she walked away from him and left him sitting there staring after her. It frustrated her. John had all the potential in the world to be something, to be popular, or some kind of sports star. Instead he was popular in the wrong group, for the wrong reasons and his only focus was on taking his father's position. After all, both he and Randy had already been initiated into the gang. Dina wanted to be something, to be someone. She wouldn't call herself popular but she was something of a social butterfly, since most people seemed to like her and she could fit in wherever she pleased. It probably didn't hurt that most people knew of John's fondness for her and therefore didn't want to mess with her, as much as she tried to keep her nose clean of criminal connections.

Randy Orton took a seat by his best friend a few moments later, looking at Dina's form growing smaller as she continued to walk away from them. "Struck out again, huh?" He asked sounding a little amused.

"She'll cave eventually. I know she likes me." John replied, finally turning away from the girl he was obsessed with. He knew they could both feel the sexual tension.

Randy shrugged, "What are you going to do if she does leave? I know she wants to. Dina always says she has dreams."

"She won't. How many of us actually make it out of this town? I love her, but I don't think Dina's going to be the next one to succeed. You'll see. Even if it takes ten more years… Eventually, Dina will be mine."

"Whatever you say, Cena. Whatever you say."

Author's Note: Okay, that is it for the prologue. Chapter-wise, this story will be fairly short. Certainly a lot shorter than Legacy of the Rattlesnake, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless!