He sat on the bed, watching her zip her suitcase, wondering how it had all gone this far, praying that he would find the words to make her stay. His eyes heavy, his body needing sleep, as they had been up all night. How did one fight over a stupid shirt end in this? He had to think of something to stop her, to end this awful hurt. His heart ached, his stomach was bawled so tight he thought he would vomit.


She walked in the room and all eyes turned to her. She had gone to the same school since kindergarten, until now, her freshman year of high school. She could never blame her mother for this, even at 14 she understood why her mom did this, but her heart still ached. Her memories flashed to her mom, so skinny, laying in the hospital bed, she didn't want her only child to remember her like that, and with only one living relative, there was no choice into where her daughter had to go. The arrangements had been made, now she just had to make her child understand. Scarlette had been sent to live with her great-aunt, who was too involved in her own circle of friends to care much for her.

"Two rules." Matilda said when she picked Scarlette up from the airport.
"Don't get pregnant, and stay out of my way." She was shown her room, and was told that she was enrolled for school at North Ridgeville High school, which started in two days, there was plenty of food in the kitchen, and she could find all her stuff in the back porch. Then the old lady was off for two months on a cruise.

Scarlette pulled her deep red hair behind one of her ears as she handed the teacher her slip.
He read her schedule out loud.

"Alright, who can show her around?" All at once every boys hand in the room shot up. The teacher laughed.
"Who has even one class with the poor girl. Scarlette is it?"

"Lettie, I go by Lettie." She responded.

"Tommy, I know that you are in here the same time she is during 3rd bell." Mr. James said.

"Yeah, my schedule mirrors hers." Scarlette looked at the red-head guy, muscular, for a 14-year-old.
"I'll show her around." He smiled.


There was something that drew Tommy to her. That was 4 years ago, he was still attracted to her, but he couldn't find the words to make her stay.

They were past the fights, past the screaming, past the hurtful words. Maybe he couldn't come up with the right words to make her stay because he was leaving too. When he told her he had joined the army, she almost passed out. It was the same night she agreed to marry him, only five short months ago. They already shared an apartment. Lettie moved to it right after she turned 18, and got the money her mom had left her. She was all too happy to get away from her aunt.
He heard Lettie take a deep breath as she walked over to him.

"I just, I don't know what to say." If he wasn't going to be there how could he ask her to stay and wait?

"There is nothing left to say. We're just in different places in life right now." She bent down and kissed his lips.
"I love you. Take care of yourself." She looked down at the ring on her left hand, and slowly slid it off. She tried to hand it to him, but he refused to take it. "I'm sorry." She laid it on their bed. His eyes left her as he looked at the ring.

'Maybe I should pick it up, get down on my knees and try again?' He thought. He willed his body to move, but he sat frozen in place. He knew that this was coming. The fights had been happening everyday for the last two months. Fights over the littlest things. Then, when he questioned her of seeing someone else, to see the hurt in her eyes. The hurt he had caused, was almost more than he could take. He watched her as she walked to the door of the studio apartment. She turned for one last look at him, her eyes begging for him to come up with something to make her stay, but nothing would come, his mind couldn't process the words. She turned and walked out the door.


6 years later


Lettie took a deep breath as she stood behind the screen, waiting for it to raise. Tonight was her first night back after being on the shelf for 9 months.

"Kill it Lettie." James Storm called to her, as he passed by with her boyfriend, Bobby Roode, who she wasn't on speaking terms with right now. He smiled weakly at her, and she did the same.
Angelina Love was already in the ring, as the screen flashed the pictures of 9 months ago when Angelina had injured her shoulder. Tonight was meant as revenge, in the fans eyes for the injury, but Scarlette would be all to happy to get a few good shots in on her for all the rumors that were flying around back stage about Love and Roode while Lettie was home recovering. Both denied it, of course, what else would you do when a hot-tempered red-head came at you with a baseball bat, but some of the pieces fit together too good not to match. It wouldn't have been the first time that Bobby cheated on her, she had caught him with numerous ring rats, but for him to actually do it with someone she had called a friend, she didn't want to accept that.
She heard Christy Hemme's voice over the mic.

"Now for her competitor, returning after being out for 9 months, from Cleveland, Ohio. SCARLETTE ROSE!"
Her music began; Break by Three Days Grace, and the fans went wild as she made her way to the ring.
Her deep green eyes sparkled in the lights, as she flipped over the top rope. Angelina slid out of the ring, knowing Lettie was pissed and she was in for a beating. Lettie wasn't interested in a wrestling match, she was there to hurt Love. The ref called for the bell when Love got back in the ring and Lettie attacked her, she let her fists fly, knocking Love to the ground.
The ref tried to get Lettie off.

"Come on Scarlette, get off her." He said, finally grabbing Lettie by the waist, pulling her off. He backed her up to the corner.
"Cool it or your going to get disqualified." Brian Hepner told her.
Lettie took a deep breath, and nodded.

"Fine, I'll stop." He stepped back, as Love stood up and Lettie tackled her again. Hepner called for the bell, while trying to get Lettie off. She was relentless with her punches, and wasn't satisfied until her knuckles slammed into Love's mouth, causing blood to pour. With that Lettie stood up, and after a couple of kicks, she let Brain pull her away. She hopped out of the ring, leaving Hepner to tend to Love, and walked up the ramp.
Bobby was waiting for her when she got to the back.
"How cute is she now?" Lettie snarled.

"Really Lettie, you can't just for once not say anything.?" He asked.

"Fine, sorry." She said, trying to let it go. They had been together 3 years, she didn't want to throw it away for nothing, she had no real proof of Bobby and Love, and it had been almost a year since she had caught him with a rat, he told her he had stopped, and while she didn't believe him, she had no proof. She owed Bobby a lot. He had gotten her the try out for her career with TNA, she loved her job, loved the fans, and loved most of the people she worked with.
"You done for the night?" She asked him.

"No, I got to go out with Fortune at the end of the taping." He said.
"Why? You going somewhere?"

"Yeah, Vel is done, we're going out, I figured you guys would come join us after?" She asked.

"Well, of course." James Storm said, walking up behind them, putting his arm around Lettie.
"Good fight, if I ever need a back up in a bar fight, I'd pick you." He laughed. James and Booby had been best friends for years, but lately there was a tension between them.

"Thanks Jimmy." She smiled, wrapping her arms around him. She notice Bobby tense up, but didn't care too much, she was still mad at him.
"Have a good match. I gotta go shower, and find Jamie before she leaves without me." She jogged down the hall to the girls locker room. She saw a few people standing in the hall, she opened the door to the locker room, before it hit her who she saw, when she leaned back they were gone.
'No way, it couldn't have been him. Just a look alike.', she thought to herself, and went to shower.
After getting ready, she packed her bag and walked out into the main part of the locker room, running into Jamie.

"Hey, I've been looking for you." Jamie said, pulling off her Velvet Sky t-shirt and grabbing a tight-fitting sweater out of her bag.

"Here I am. Whats up?"

"Lauren's pissed about you kicking her ass." Jamie said.

"I don't give a shit about Love, that skinny bitch can kiss my ass." Lettie hissed.

"Listen, like I said, I have no idea if there was ever anything going on with them." Jamie said.

"I know, I don't care if he fucked her. There was enough there for rumors to start J, and she should have known better. She knows me, and she knew what was coming for her tonight. She's lucky I couldn't find Sting's bat." Lettie laughed.


A bunch of the wrestlers went out to a bar around the corner from the hotel. An hour later the rest of Fortune showed up, minus Bobby.

"Where is he?" She asked AJ, who could never lie to her.

"He said he had a headache, and was going back to the hotel." AJ frowned.

"Funny, isn't it, that Lauren isn't here either." Lettie jumped up, leaving her full beer sitting on the table.
"James, pay for me, I'll get you back tomorrow." She said, walking out of the bar, towards the hotel. She text him as she jogged.

S-Sorry ur not feeling good, want me to come take care of u?

B-No, I'll be ok, going to bed.

S-K, c ya in couple hours

She walked into the lobby of the hotel, and made a dash for the stairs, knowing she wouldn't have much time. She listened at the door for a minute, and heard what she knew she would hear, before sliding her key card and swinging open the door. She swung it open so hard the handle got stuck in the wall, causing the door to stay open. The two on the bed froze. Bobby's eyes bugging out.

"You bitch. Didn't I give you your message in the ring tonight?" Lettie screamed at Lauren, running over and grabbing her by the hair, yanking her naked body off Bobby.

"Let go of me Scarlette." Lauren screamed, trying to get loose, swinging at Lettie. Lettie pushed her up against the wall and punched her in the face a couple of times. As she slid down the wall, Lettie turned to Bobby, who was standing behind her, in his boxers.

"Just let me explain." He said.

"Fuck you Bobby!" She yelled.

"If you would fuck me, we wouldn't have this problem." He retorted.

"We? I have no problem, you do, you can't keep your dick in your pants, to top that off you make your friends lie for you?" She slapped him, and kicked him in the balls when he grabbed his face. He crumbled to the ground and she kicked him, before being turned around and punched in the face by Lauren. The girls were still fighting when everyone made it to the room. The guys pulled them apart, and pulled Lettie out of the room.
"Fuck you Bobby! I will kill you both! Just wait!" She screamed as they pulled her down the hall.

"Just forget it Lettie." Jamie said, sliding her another beer.

"How can I just forget it? Lauren used to be my best friend, at least I thought she was, maybe she was just using me to get close to him. Anyway, Bobby and I live together, I can't just never see him again."

"I know, but it's not like this is the first time he has done this to you."

"Thanks Jamie, point out how stupid I am. That really helps." Lettie scuffed.

"No, that's not what I meant. It's like he thinks that because he has done it before and everything was OK, he can do it again." Jamie sighed, rubbing her friend's arm.
"Why don't you stay with me a few days?"