Chapter Eight

Drew exhales heavily enough to make the strands of hair in front of his face lift off of it, scowling when they fall back into place a few minutes later. He's up early because he and Wade are waiting for Adrian's flight when he'd much rather be back in his hotel room, curled up in bed and trying to get a wink or two of sleep. The fact he's been sharing a hotel room with Wade the last few weeks has certainly made things interesting for the both of them. He had a match last night—that he'd lost—so that Wade could come out and make it look like they'd allied up.

Now, they just have to wait for their tiny little Geordie—his new partner—to show up.

"Oy, this flight is taking for-fucking-ever," Wade announces for the third time since they joined the crowd of people waiting to pick someone up. "Good thing Neville is definitely worth it."

"Just as long as this means I get a run with a belt, I'm going to be a happy person," Drew says.

Wade leans over and pats him on the knee. "You will, Drew. It's all in the plans."

"Like they don't fucking change those plans while the goddamn show is air—Oh, look. It's Addy." Drew points to a small figure in the crowd, smirking when Wade squints to make sure.

There is no mistaking Adrian Neville, though. Drew's heard the Dwarf jokes before, and the jokes about the big ears, and he's heard Tyler Breeze complain about Adrian's awful hair more than once, so it's not like he's going to miss him. In one of those polo shirts that never quite fits him right and a pair of khaki shorts, Adrian is smaller than almost everyone around him except for those who qualify as children and a few scattered women. It's funny because Drew's never thought of himself as particularly tall, especially not in WWE where men typically run six-three and up, but Adrian is so small that Drew's going to look like a giant next to him.

At the same time, he feels a pang in his chest when he sees how lost their little Addy looks as he searches the crowd for them, his hands gripping the duffel strap across his chest nervously. This isn't territory he's familiar with on a normal basis beyond a few dark matches, and now he's going to be dragged into the spotlight far sooner than the plan was because of a whim. And it makes Drew irrationally angry because it's going to jeopardize Adrian's career, as well as Paige's, and he doesn't even want to think about what might happen to him or to Wade.

Wade flags Adrian down, and the moment the small Geordie spots them, he hurries over with his head down in what is possibly the saddest and most adorable way possible. Drew drags him into a hug out of habit and because Heath's stupid affectionate streak has rubbed off on him after so many days spent watching Heath hug and cuddle up to every available and willing person.

"Nice to see you got here all in one piece," Wade says, giving Adrian's ponytail a playful tug.

Adrian makes a noise and straightens, rubbing his eyes. "I'm bloody exhausted, though."

Yes, because Hunter put him on a stupidly late flight instead of just letting him get a normal flight on a normal fucking day because Hunter is a fucking asshole. Jesus, Drew needs a stress ball or fifteen to squeeze. "Let's get you back to the hotel and you can take a nap. Our debut details can be worked out after you've had enough time to get some actual rest."

Wade hums in agreement. "That works for me. You're on tonight, and we want you at your absolute best, and we're going to make sure you're ready for it. Do you need us to stop anywhere, or can we just take you back to the hotel? You can borrow my bed for your nap."

Adrian shakes his head. "No. Just get me to a bed. Please."


A/N: I love Adrian to death and yet I am already hurting his fragile self.

Damn me and my inability to stop hurting the ones I love.

Shit, this makes me feel for Sami and Jessicka.

Well, here is this chapter.

Hope you enjoy.