Alexa paced through her living room, glancing over at the clock. Colby would be stopping by any minute to pick her up and she couldn't remember the last time she had felt so nervous.
Her make-up was to perfection; a light layer of foundation covered the blemishes on her face. Her lips were coated a deep red and she had miraculously managed to pull of the smoky-eye effect, probably from all the times she had spent watching other people do it for her. Deciding not to bother straightening the natural waves of her hair, she let her chestnut locks flow down to the middle of her back.
She was wearing a black, bustier-style crop-top which was embellished with lace, showing off her toned midriff. With that she had on a tangerine orange coloured asymmetric, waterfall skirt, with the front reaching mid-thigh. Her feet were cased in a pair of black, strappy wedges which added a few inches to her 5'7'' frame.
Hearing a succession of knocks, she quickly slipped on her black leather jacket before grabbing her purse and making her way over to the door. She greeted Colby with a friendly smile. ''Hey.''
He grinned back at her. ''Hey, you look nice.''
''Thank you.'' She looked over his jeans and dress shirt combination as she stepped outside. ''You too.''
They made their way over to his car in a comfortable silence, strapping themselves in before setting off. ''I feel I should give you a heads up, a couple of the girls are super excited that you're coming tonight. Be ready for fan-girling.''
Alexa let out a groan and leaned back on the head-rest. ''Way to make me even more nervous...''
''It'll be fine.'' He laughed, sparing her a quick glance as he drove. ''Why are you nervous?''
''In case you didn't notice, I've been a bit socially inept lately. I don't want them to have this... big expectation of meeting 'Sierra' when I'm not her any more...'' She told him honestly, blushing when she saw the perturbed look on his face. ''Sorry. I don't usually talk this much but I did a few shots before you came, to calm my nerves...''
''It's alright.'' Colby shot her a warm-hearted smile. ''I know we've literally only just met but if you ever need anything, you know where I am... and that's not me hitting on you, I have a girlfriend, it just never hurts to have another friend.''
''Thank-you... you're not going to fan-girl over me too, are you.''
''You wish.''
They carried on making idle chit-chat until they reached the bar, Colby giving her shoulder a small squeeze to reassure her before they walked inside. After heading to the bar to get their drinks, the pair wandered around for a few minutes as they searched for everyone. He eventually spotted them over in the corner of the room and he gestured for her to follow him.
They weaved their way through the crowd and she eyed the people around the table as they approached. Trinity 'Naomi' McCray, Celeste 'Kaitlyn' Bonin and April 'AJ Lee' Mendez were sat on one side of the large table while Curtis 'Johnny Curtis' Hussey, Tyler 'Brad Maddox' Kluttz and Ettore 'Big E Langston' Ewen took up the other side.
As soon as the pair came into view, the entire table fell into silence and Alexa shifted nervously before giving them an awkward wave. ''Hey.''
Colby laughed before taking pity on her, stepping forward and making the introductions. The small group shuffled around and he and Alexa slid into the booth. ''Where's everyone else?''
''Jon's at the bar and I think Joe went to the men's room.'' Curtis told him before taking a long swig of his drink.
''So, Lex, do you know many people down here?'' April asked curiously.
''Me and Darren are pretty tight and I'm good friends with Joe.'' Alexa took a sip of her drink. ''I've known Shaul since she was a baby.''
Colby turned to her with a questioning look. ''Were your families close growing up or something?''
She opened her mouth to respond when April let out a little huff beside her. ''She grew up with the Guerrero family after her father passed away. Eddie's brother, Mando helped train her.''
Colby's eyes widened at the smaller woman's rant before glancing sideways at Alexa, who chuckled before nodding. ''She's right... Let me guess, Google?''
Everyone laughed as April sent her a sheepish look, a light blush covering her cheeks. ''Yeah, sorry.''
''Stalker.'' Celeste covered her comment with a cough.
They all laughed and April shot her a glared before turning to Alexa with a smile. ''Can I ask you something?''
''Of course.''
''Do you wear contacts?''
Alexa chuckled, her eyes were naturally a unique violet colour and she had been plagued with that question for years. ''Nope, all natural.'' She finished off her drink before getting to her feet. ''I'm going to head to the bar, does anyone want anything?''
Everybody politely told her what drinks they were having and she grabbed her purse before making her way over to the bar. She walked away with a small grin, seeing April, not so discretely, pick up her cell phone and show the group her Wikipedia page.
She ordered the drinks and the bartender loaded them all on to a tray for her, which she carefully carried back through the crowd. As she neared the table, her eyes caught sight of Jon and beside him sat the hulking form of Joe 'Roman Leakee' Anoa'i. They had first met in 2007 when he had been attending the annual Hall of Fame ceremony when his father had been inducted. She had been good friends with his brother Matt 'Rosey' Anoa'i during his stint in the WWE.
Joe had his back to her so, deciding to have some fun, she crept up behind him and leaned down so she was closer to his ear. ''MalÅ, susu poki.''
He had just taken a swig of beer which he promptly choked on, causing the entire table to break out laughing. Jon gave him a hard pat on the back as Colby took the tray out of her hands and set it down on the table.
Once Joe's coughing and spluttering had subsided, he stood and pulled her into a quick hug before pulling back and narrowing his eyes at her. ''I'm going to kill Matt, why would he think teaching you Samoan was a good idea?''
She just grinned at him as she slipped into the empty seat next to Jon. ''He only taught me the dirty stuff.''
Trinity turned to her with a questioning look. ''Girl, what did you say to him?''
''I just said hello.'' She shrugged nonchalantly, reaching out to pick up her glass.
''Before she called me a cock-sucker.'' Joe added, making the group chuckle. He took a gulp of his drink before looking over at her. ''I didn't think you were going to come...you look great, by the way.''
''No, she looks fucking hot.'' Jon drawled as his eyes raked over her body, not even trying to hide it. A rosy hue appeared on her cheeks and Joe slapped him upside the head, quickly turning his smirk into a frown. ''What was that for?''
The next few hours had flown by and Alexa was pleasantly surprised to find herself actually enjoying herself. Tyler, Ettore, Trinity, Celeste and Curtis had all called it a night and left a while ago, leaving the others to entertain themselves at the table. They had bought two bottles of tequila and AJ, Alexa, Jon and Joe were playing Never Have I Ever. Colby was the designated driver for the night so he was just watching on in amusement.
''Okay, never have I ever... pissed my pants in public.'' April started, glancing around.
Nobody moved for a second before Alexa rolled her eyes a chugged back her shot.
''How public we talking?'' Joe asked with a grin.
''House show.'' She mumbled, scowling when they laughed. ''I had Trish in a headlock and she was trying to fight out of it, one of her elbows hit me really hard in the bladder. Luckily, I was wearing pants that night...''
They laughed again and Colby turned to look at Jon expectantly. ''Shouldn't you drink too?''
''What?'' Jon asked, confused.
''Well, I find it extremely hard to believe that you've never pissed yourself in public.'' He teased.
''Well I haven't, so fuck you.''
They all laughed and looked towards Alexa, who was trying to think of something. ''Um, never have I ever been in handcuffs.''
''The metal kind or the furry kind?'' Jon winked at her.
''Either.'' She said, thankful that her cheeks were already red from all the alcohol she had consumed.
He kept his eyes locked on hers as he swallowed his drink and slammed the glass back down. ''Never have I ever done something I regret.'' Jon stated, watching as April and Joe both downed their tequila while Alexa's remained untouched. ''I'm sure you've done things you regret, sweetheart.''
''I don't do regrets.''
''There must be something you wish you could go back and change.'' Joe pointed out.
''There's a ton of stuff I wish I could go back and change... doesn't mean that I regret any of it. Everything happens for a reason. Even if the reason is that you're stupid and you make bad decisions.'' She looked over to find Jon's gaze fixed on her and she quickly looked away. ''Whose next?''
Joe raised his hand and spoke after a few moments. ''Never have I ever cheated on someone.''
Nobody drank and Colby snorted, patting him on the back. ''That means you have to do the shot, big man.''
He did it without complaint, grimacing as the liquid burned a path down his throat. ''Yeah, that kind of backfired on me...''
''Never have I ever had a one night stand.'' April piped up.
Jon snapped his shot back as the others watched with a smirk. ''Really? None of you have just hooked up with someone for the night?'' April and Joe shook their heads before he turned to Alexa. ''Come on, you must have!"
''What's that supposed to mean?'' She asked, an offended expression on her face.
''Well, when you were on the road all the time, you must have... needed to scratch that itch at some point.''
''I had my boyfriend on the road with me, I didn't need to go out to bars looking for random hook ups.'' Alexa told him evenly.
''What about before you got together? Or after you broke up, that is assuming you're not still together.''
April, who had obviously heard some of the gossip, was pulling her finger across her throat from beside her, gesturing for him to shut up. Joe was watching her, expecting her to blow up at any minute while Colby was just looking between the pair in confusion.
''We got together when I was nineteen. Before that I had been in Mexico and Ring of Honor, working my ass off. I was focused on wrestling, not getting laid... And no, we're not together anymore.'' She grabbed the shot glass and gulped it down.
''You realize that he wasn't enough man for you? Decided to find someone who was?'' He pushed teasingly, ignoring the looks he was getting from the others.
Colby shook his head, knowing this wasn't going to end well. ''Jon-''
''It's okay.'' Alexa cut him off with a wave of her hand before facing Jon again. ''Actually, it was the other way around, I obviously wasn't enough woman for him and he cheated on me... I only found out through the dirt sheets nine months later, when the woman he slept with popped out his kid...''
Jon gaped at her, a nonplussed expression on his face as he tried to soak in everything he had just heard. Darren had told him and Colby that she had been through some heavy stuff and that she could use some friends, but he had never imagined how bad it had actually been.
Alexa reached out and grabbed the half empty bottle of tequila before standing. ''I'm just going to head out. Um, thanks for a good night...'' She flashed them a small smile before and left before anybody could stop her
April, Colby and Joe turned to him simultaneously, similar expressions of exasperation on their faces.
''Dude, you're an idiot.'' Colby admonished.
''How was I supposed to know?'' He looked over at April. ''You obviously knew, why didn't you say something?''
Her mouth dropped open and she glared at him angrily. ''I tried stopping you, but you just don't know when to keep your mouth shut.''
''She's left her jacket.'' Joe pointed out, quickly interrupting the bickering.
''I'll go after her and apologize.'' Jon told them, reaching over to pick up the leather jacket as he got to his feet.
''Make sure she gets home okay.'' Colby said, a warning look on his face. ''And be nice, dude.''
He scoffed. ''I'm always nice.''
Alexa had only made it halfway down the street before realizing she had no idea where she was. As soon as she had stepped out into the fresh air, all the alcohol had seemed to hit her full force, which made her sense of direction even worse.
She flopped herself down on the curb with a sigh and unscrewed the cap from the bottle, taking a long swig before replacing the lid. She wedged the bottle between her thighs while she leaned forward and unbuckled her shoes. A satisfied groan escaped her lips when he feet were freed from their confines, the shoes looked great but weren't very comfortable.
''Man, you've got some ugly toes.''
Alexa turned her head to the side, rolling her eyes when she caught sight of Jon. ''No, I don't.''
''Yeah, you do.'' He insisted, lowering himself to sit down beside her. ''They're practically like fingers.''
''Well, then just focus on the middle one.'' She told him as she wiggled them.
He snorted and passed over her jacket. ''You left this inside.''
''Thanks.'' She shrugged it on before she faced him. ''Sorry about before... I know I came across like a complete bitch an-''
''It's fine.'' Jon interjected. ''I should've dropped it. I need to learn when to keep my mouth shut.''
A small smile appeared on her lips after a few moments. ''Is it weird that I kind of like it?''
''My mouth?'' He questioned, raising an eyebrow.
''Your bluntness.'' She amended, turning away from him as she fiddled with the straps of her shoes. ''All people seem to do around me is walk on egg shells, it's nice to have someone not give a shit and just be real.''
They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, passing the bottle back and forth between them. Jon eventually broke the quiet with his raspy voice. ''I hope you at least got a good hit in.''
She let out a laugh and shook her head. ''I wish I had.''
''Why didn't you? I mean, you don't exactly seem the time to just take things lying down.''
Alexa snorted at his unintentional pun and faced him with a wry smile. ''Actually, I did take it lying down, literally.''
''Okay, I'm lost...'' Jon said as he watched her take a swig. ''I'm missing something aren't I?''
''I broke my neck the day after it all came out...''
He looked at her sympathetically. ''Fuck, that's rough... it makes sense now though, why you're so...''
''Bitter?''
''Damaged.''
''I am nowhere near drunk enough for this conversation...''
''I think you've had enough, sweetheart.'' He swiped the bottle away as she tried to raise it to her lips, laughing at she pouted. ''Come on, let's get you home.''
A/N - Thanks for the review AshleighxAwsome, glad you're enjoying the story! K, I've removed the old story because I don't plan on going back to it. I'll be using parts of it in this story though, as flashbacks.