Hey! Guess who finally had time to sit down and write? AND it hasn't been six months since the last update. I'm rather proud of that. However, I'm not to thrilled with this part of the chapter (Chapter 8 is in two parts, both in AJ's POV). I have rewritten this chapter at least three times, so this is the best it's gonna get. I like the next part better for whatever reason. Speaking of, Part 2 will be up immediately.


TUESDAY, AUGUST 19, 2014 — SMACKDOWN TAPING, AFTER THE SHOW

"Are you serious, AJ? You had the opportunity to sit down with Paige and talk to her…and you chicken out?!" I held my phone away from my ear as Kaitlyn shouted. Smackdown had just ended, so I was currently in the locker room getting changed. Kait had called not even five minutes ago and unfortunately for me, she only wanted to know about the talk Paige and I were supposed to have after Raw… Yeah, it never happened. Kaitlyn had been too busy all week to actually call me and I had conveniently avoided the topic when she texted me. "Are you even listening to me?"

"Not really, no. My thoughts are all over the place." There was a short silence.

"AJ, I can't read minds. You're going to have to use your big girl words and tell me what's wrong." That was the problem. I have no idea what's going on anymore. What is even worse is that I can't even think of a believable excuse to appease both Kaitlyn and myself. I just don't understand anymore. I am always trying to be in control of…everything really, but I've lost what little control I had ever since Paige had come up to the Main Roster. When it comes to Paige, I have no control. Whether it be having control over her or myself is to be determined, but either way it pisses me off. Of course, I'm too stubborn and proud to ever admit that to Kaitlyn, so I did what I had been doing for months. I blamed Paige.

"Kait, the same thing has been wrong for almost five months now. That 5'8", Casper pale, skip stealing bitch—"

"Damn it, AJ!" I nearly dropped my phone when Kaitlyn started yelling again, swearing under my breath as I scrambled to catch my phone and moved it over to the ear she didn't scream in, rubbing the other one with my free hand. "Answer me this. What is your problem with Paige?" I nervously bit my lip, trying to think of another way to blame Paige.

"She waltzed in the night after Wrestle—"

"No." Kaitlyn cut me off sharply. "I mean off-screen away from the cameras. Paige was only doing what she was told to do. It's not her fault that you weren't informed of a script change."

"I was aware of the script change."

"Then what the hell is your problem?" I had no idea what to say. "I ask you again. What do you have against Paige?" I gave up. I was out of excuses.

"…I don't know." The words tasted bitter in my mouth, the syllables foreign. That was the difference between my 'AJ Lee' character and 'April Mendez.' It's almost like I have split personalities. 'AJ' always knew what she wanted, how to get it, and could always protect herself. 'April' was the complete opposite. 'April' is the side that no one gets to see. I keep to my in-ring persona to protect myself, to keep my emotions from being toyed with (you can thank Phil for that because the bastard cheated on me and left me at the altar). The more I have to work with Paige, the more she has to be around me, the more I realize the damn girl is breaking through my emotional defenses. It scares the hell out of me. Sighing, I put Kaitlyn on speaker so I could sit down and take off my Chuck Taylors that I wore to the ring. However, I didn't move to untie them after I sat down. I just stared blankly at the phone that was on my lap. "AJ, just to her. Quit putting it off." I nodded before remembering that she couldn't see me.

"Yeah, alright." I replied. "We will have opportunities to talk. We aren't going to the hotel. We're going straight to the next city because it's a really long. I will talk to her in the car."

"You better. I will make another surprise call to make sure you did what you said."

"The sad part is that I know you will." I huffed. Kaitlyn laughed, which made me smile a bit. "I will talk to you later."

"Bye, AJ." With that, we both hung up. I rubbed the bridge of my nose with the hand that wasn't holding my phone.

"What the hell just happened?" I asked myself rhetorically, chuckling as I tossed my phone down on the pile of clothes I never bothered to throw back into my bag (after changing into my ring gear). I just sat there for a moment, thinking to myself. Eventually, I got up and finished getting changed out of my ring gear. I threw on a pair of comfortable jeans, a pair of Nikes, and a white Ninja Turtle tank top. I then took out my contacts and replaced them with my glasses before packing everything up, slinging my bag over my shoulder, and skipping out of the shared Divas locker room towards the private locker room of the Divas Champion. Stopping in front of the door when I got there, I knocked on the door.

"Are you decent, Casper?"

"No, I'm struttin' 'round in nothing but my Doc Martins." Came the sarcastic reply of Paige through the door. I rolled my eyes, opening the door and walking in. Paige was sitting on the fancy leather couch (all of the champions' locker room has one) and playing on her phone. She had changed as well; now wearing black skinny jeans, boots, and a cropped Disturbed shirt that also had the sleeves cut off. Paige glanced up from her phone when I closed the door. Our eyes met for a moment before Paige awkwardly looked back to her phone.

"What'cha doing?" I asked, trying to start a conversation. Paige shrugged.

"Talking to my brother." She replied. She didn't look up from her phone.

"Zak?"

"Roy. Zak doesn't talk to me." Paige froze, almost as if she had just realized what she said. Then she eyed me suspiciously. "How the bloody hell do you know my brothers' names?" I was the one to shrug this time.

"I've heard you talking about them to Tenille before." I answered, referring to Emma. Paige rolled her eyes and stood while sliding her phone into her pocket, avoiding eye contact with me. What is going on with her?

"Are you ready to go?" She asked shortly. I nodded slowly as Paige slid on a regular black leather jacket and black Snapback before packing her things. I then started fidgeting with the hem of my tank top, a nervous habit I had developed back in my NXT days. Kaitlyn was right (as always); this talk is long overdue.

"I was thinking we could talk—"

"Oh, like we were supposed to last night?" I flinched at Paige's sudden bitterly sharp tone (I admit that I had it coming), looking at her as she stepped into my personal bubble. Paige backed me against a table, causing me to swallow thickly when our bodies were against each other. "I don't feel like talking. I just want to get to the next city. Maybe we can talk tomorrow, 'kay pumpkin?" Paige was still too close for comfort, the English girl patting my cheek after she called me 'pumpkin' before unpinning me to get her bag. Her sharp tone had faded, but it was passive aggressive and sarcastic. I'm not quite sure which one I dislike the most. I couldn't help but sigh. This girl was impossible.

"Paige—"

"I said I don't wanna talk." Okay, now she is starting to piss me off. I crossed my arms.

"Too bad. I want to." Paige didn't say anything. Instead, she shouldered her bag and ignored me as she walked out of her locker room. I glared at her back as I followed her.

I hate being ignored.


As I said, I wasn't too thrilled with how this turned out, but at least it's something. I tried to add a little Pai-J tension towards the end. I also apologize for all of the dialog. It's a bad habit to use more dialog than description. Review to let me know how it was!

Ju$t!ce