Forever changed, forever changed, nothing ever stays the same…forever named, forever changed…

3 Years Later

The beeping from the alarm was painstakingly loud as Stephanie rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling. Seven AM. Time to go to work. Her manicured finger pressed the big red button bringing an instant end to the annoying sound. It was amazing just how little time she needed to fully wake up. But her body was wired even in sleep. It was the lifestyle she led. There was no time for sleep and even less time to waste. With a self serving sigh, she got out of bed and walked to the adjoining bathroom. A heavy puff of steam hit her face as she stepped onto the cold tiled floor. Her lip curled into a smirk at the sight of the unruly shampoo covered head that poked out from the glass shower door.

"Help, I dropped the soap."

Stephanie took one look at his serious expression and burst out laughing. Mario, her Latin heartthrob. They'd been dating for almost two years now and had just recently decided to move in together. For the past couple of weeks she'd been invited to join him in the shower. Sometimes she obliged but not today.

"Well I'm sorry about that but you're just going to have to bend down and pick it up yourself."

"You're no fun," he huffed before disappearing under the water again.

Stephanie ignored him and went about brushing her teeth. Today was too important for any distractions. That included morning shower sex with her boyfriend unfortunately. Simply put, she was a huge ball of nerves. Raw was in Madison Square Garden tonight and for the first time in almost three years she was set to appear on WWE television again. To say she was a wreck was an understatement. She was absolutely crapping herself for lack of a better term and being on camera was only half the reason why. She would be in the back, she would be expected to do the rounds and show her face after being gone for so long. She still worked for the company but strictly in the office now. Three years ago she had ran from everything to do with WWE TV and never looked back. Besides, she was happy now. More than happy. Without the travel her life was a lot less hectic. She had an amazing guy, she was in love, everything was perfect.

Mario had been a breath of fresh air and a sure fire change of pace from the jacked up locker room of WWE. They had been set up by a mutual friend and had been inseparable ever since. Admittedly, Stephanie was surprised at her attraction to him. His complete lack of knowledge about the wrestling business should have been off putting but instead she found it refreshing. Obviously he'd grown to become a fan but in the beginning they never talked about wrestling or the business. It was exactly what she needed at the time after the break up with Paul.

"God," she chuckled in amusement to herself. She hadn't seen him in so long and if she was being honest with herself, he was the main reason for her nerves. She just….didn't know what she would say if she saw him tonight and the chances of that happening were very high all things considered. It was going to be awkward and she didn't know how she felt about that. It wasn't like she loved him anymore. At one point in her life she loved him so much it consumed her to the point that she thought she'd never get over him. That's why she distanced herself from TV any chance she got. After they broke up they had been forced to work together on TV to play out the rest of their storyline for another four months. It had been the most torturous four months of her life. Soon after they 'divorced' she jumped to Smackdown while he stayed on Raw, a little after that and she was off TV all together. And it had been good for her, there was no denying that. Truthfully she didn't miss it. She was happy with her life now and that wasn't going to change because of one night back on the show.

"I don't think you heard a single word I just said."

His words and warm hand resting on her hip tore her from her thoughts. She'd been standing there staring into space with the toothbrush hanging out of her mouth.

"Steph!" Mario chuckled, this time wrapping his arms fully around her waist and pressing his chest into her back. They looked at each other in the mirror. "I asked what time you want me to come to the arena tonight?"

Stephanie could feel the back of her night shirt growing damp as she rested against him. He hadn't dried yet. Finally coming to her senses, she shook her head and pulled the brush from her mouth. "I'll call you. You can meet me before and we can go in together."

Mario noticed her eyebrows pulling together as her face grew slightly rigid and tightened his grip around her waist. "It'll be fine. I'm sure everybody can't wait to see you."

"Yeah." His bright smile was almost enough to put her at ease. Unfortunately he just didn't understand the business no matter how many times she explained it to him. Everybody would pretend that it was great to see her again when in actual fact they probably didn't give a fuck. To them she was and always would be Vince's little girl. The fact that she had been gone for so long didn't matter. They probably barely realized she left. Bless Mario though for trying to make her feel better. Her free hand rested over his and gave it a gentle squeeze. He just didn't understand but she was happy he was coming. She needed him for moral support if nothing else. And he was really excited to finally attend a show. He had been begging for what seemed like forever now and probably found it weird that she never brought him. Now he would be sitting front row with a few of his buddies watching her in the ring with her family. The thought brought a smile to her face and she squeezed his hand again before stepping out of his embrace. "I gotta get ready."

"I'll finish up outside and let you get showered, babe," Mario said softly, dropping a quick kiss to her cheek and stepping into the bedroom to get dressed.

Alone with her thoughts, Stephanie stripped out of her clothes and climbed in the shower letting the hot stream of water calm her nerves. Tonight was going to be fine. She just had to get over herself really. She was Stephanie McMahon. So what if the boys wouldn't be happy to see her? She wasn't coming back for them. She was coming back for her family and she simply couldn't wait to hear the roar of the crowd and feed off their adrenaline. Being in front of a WWE crowd was a rush like no other. Being in front of a WWE crowd at MSG went beyond that. It was an experience like nothing else. All she had to do was turn up and find out just what exactly her father had planned for the segment.