Dakota was nervous as she got into the ring, seeing Amanda.
"Any preferences? Bodyslams, submission holds, top rope moves?" Amanda asked.
"All of them." Dakota says.
"Alrighty. Now I'm gonna springboard off the ropes, you catch me and put me in a headlock but don't twist my neck… that happened once with Paige and Cameron." Amanda responded before she bounced off the ropes and Dakota applied the headlock. "Alright, perfect." She said after Dakota let go. "Next one is an old school favorite, hammerlock that transitions into an armbar, ready?"
Dakota nodded and bent Amanda's right arm behind her before Amanda locked her left arm behind Dakota's back and hip tossed her before applying the armbar for a few seconds, Dakota standing up and smiling.
"Feels good training here… now what's that one move you used to do?" Dakota responded.
"Oh, the Litacanrana. Lita taught me in 2004 how to but after my seizures and subsequent leg injury, I scaled back a bit on the high risk moves. That's when Finn taught me the things he learned in Japan." Amanda explained.
"Awesome. Oh wait, what about that running powerbomb that Seth Rollins does?" Dakota replied.
"Wouldn't recommend it at first, he inadvertently injured Sting at Night Of Champions last year, not sure if Sting will come back… but Sting has had a thirty year career that's spanned around the world and made history no matter the wrestling promotion he signed to, there's a reason they call him The Icon… fans and wrestlers from many generations will always idolize him. And I'll be honest, him losing at Night Of Champions last year was a fucking joke, that's no way to treat any legend or icon in this business. But being the arrogant jackass he is, Seth felt like he had to prove he's at icon status…" Amanda said before stopping and taking a breath. "I felt a sense of relief after The Shield split apart, I suggested the idea to creative and when they went with it, it meant that I didn't have to take Seth's attitude lying down anymore." She responded, unaware that Seth heard her after walking over… until she heard a fake cough and turned to see Seth, who was livid.
"Didn't like what she said?" Dakota asked. "How about you and me make a deal?"
"Last person to say that whacked me with a paint can!" Seth growled, Amanda muffling a laugh.
"Deal is you and have a match right here, right now. I lose you get to yell at her, I win you fuck off." Dakota responded, folding her arms.
"Let me save you the trouble." Seth said before leaving, Dakota turning to Amanda.
"Problem solved." Dakota said.
Amanda nodded before the two left. At the hotel later, Amanda was somewhere between asleep and awake, Finn opening his eyes.
"Want a backrub to help ya sleep?" Finn asked, Amanda nodding and turning onto her right side so Finn could rub his left hand up and down her back.
"Dakota seems nice. She even stood up to Seth and challenged him to a fight." Amanda said.
"He accept?" Finn asked.
"He stormed off." Amanda responded, Finn once again seeing the scar on her upper back that was nearly a decade old… and every time he did, it made him angry at her ex. "You know Randy's not like that anymore, Finn…" She said quietly, arching her back slightly so Finn could reach a knotted up muscle.
"It doesn't make it right that he ever put his hands on you, lass." Finn whispered after Amanda turned to face him, Finn wrapping his arms around her and the two falling asleep.
Meanwhile in the hallway Dakota sat in front of hotel room door, listening to her music loudly. She went out before to grab some new headphones and something to eat but somehow managed to forget to grab her keycard for the room.
She sat with her legs crossed, listening to Thunder by Imagine Dragons when Sami came along.
"Hey lady, are you okay?" Sami asked, Dakota not hearing him over her music. He walked a bit closer.
"Hey are you alright?" Sami asked a bit louder this time, Dakota still not hearing him. Sami tapped her shoulder and that's when she snapped. She grabbed the hand and pulled it back, Sami yelling in pain before she let go.
"Don't ever do that again." Dakota said as Sami rubbed his hand and Dakota pulled her headphones out.
"Sorry. Get locked out? The phones sometimes deactivate key cards." Sami responded.
"I forgot mine. I thought I grabbed it before I left, turns out I grabbed my ATM card but forgot the room keycard." Dakota said.
Sami checked his keycard and got an idea, opening his own room and seeing that their rooms were adjoined. He opened the door and walked into Dakota's room, opening it.
"Problem solved." Sami responded, Dakota walking in with a smile.
"Thanks for that." Dakota said.
"You're welcome. Name's Sami." Sami replied.
"Dakota." Dakota responded, the two shaking hands.
The next morning…
Amanda opened her eyes, finding that sometime in the middle of the night that she had ended up curled up close to Finn, her left leg entangled with his right.
She wasn't exactly sure how they had ended up like this but she wasn't in any hurry to pull his arms off of her… Amanda couldn't remember the last time she had been held this intimately.
At some point, they would have to get up… but Amanda closed her eyes and fell asleep again, her head resting over Finn's torso.
Sami and Dakota were in the lobby, Sami checking his phone.
"Nothing from them yet?" Dakota asked.
"Should we investigate?" Sami asked.
"Since when are we a team?" Dakota asked.
"Better us than Rollins or the other former members of The Shield." Sami explained.
"Yikes, how many people have a problem with Mandy and Finn? She's an adult, he's an adult, I call that a consenting relationship." Dakota responded.
"I heard that you challenged Seth before. Is that true?" Sami asked.
"Yep why do you care?" Dakota responded.
"Just making sure that I never piss you off." Sami replied.
"Trust me boy, you don't wanna do that. You wouldn't walk away alive." Dakota said.
"Would anyone?" Sami asked jokingly.
Back in the room, Amanda opened her eyes again… this time, she saw Finn looking at her.
"Good morning." Finn said.
"When the hell did I doze off?" Amanda asked, mind still scrambled.
"Probably about the same time I did, love." Finn answered, lightly rubbing the back of Amanda's head.
"Careful now…" Amanda said quietly.
"Still getting those migraines?" Finn asked, Amanda nodding.
"I'd go back to taking the Excedrin but I'm sure it's what caused the seizures." Amanda responded before the two heard the sounds of Sami and Dakota laughing in the hallway.
"Sounds like they're getting along." Finn replied.
"The next thing I know, she's whacked him with a paint can!" Sami said, Dakota laughing.
"Oh man. I would pay a million bucks to see that happen." Dakota said.
"It was awesome." Sami responded.
"That's why I would pay the million bucks." Dakota says before a family of 5 walk past. "Excuse me." She says before leaving.
"Dakota wait!" Sami calls after her.
Dakota slammed out of the hotel, tears running down her face. She leaned against the wall near a alley before pulling out a packet of cigarettes out and lighting one up. She plugged in her
headphones and started to listen to her music loudly.
But it didn't stop the footsteps… she stood up, opened it and saw Amanda.
"What do you want?" Dakota snaps.
"Heard the front doors slam… Sami explained that you saw a family walk by and it upset you." Amanda responded.
"I don't want to talk about it." Dakota says.
Amanda sat down on the pavement, Dakota seeing the scar on Amanda's left palm.
"For three weeks after Chris's, Nancy's and Daniel's deaths, I didn't talk at all… and after that, I thought that life wasn't worth living without people who were basically my second family. So I tried to kill myself… and I would've died had Shawn not found me." Amanda explained, Dakota looking at her in shock at her admission, before sighing.
"After my dad failed to get signed on WWE, my mother divorced him. She left along with my twin older brothers. Haven't had any contact with them since and have no clue on where they fucked off to. There are two reasons why I want to get signed, one it will make dad proud, two it will piss my bitch of a mom off and make her regret what she did years ago." Dakota explains.
"I hope she does regret it." Amanda said as they stood up, Dakota hearing a 'crick' echo from Amanda's left knee.
"Oh, that doesn't sound good." Dakota says, as she drops the end of her cigarette on the ground and twist her foot on it.
"It's an old injury, I jumped off a cage a few years back… thought I tore my ACL but it was just bruised." Amanda replied as they headed back.
She had a feeling something was up.