The Dark Side
Corey had gotten up early the next morning. She'd showered, and dressed, then got all of her things together. She rented a car, and drove to the hospital, where Dean was. She wanted to surprise him.
She parked close to the entrance, got out of the car, and sat on the trunk. She pulled her phone out, and dialed a number.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"Getting ready to get out of here. What are you doing princess?" He asked.
"Nothing much, just sitting here, missing you. I have something to talk to you about, but it can wait until after you leave the hospital." She said.
"What is it?" Dean asked.
She shook her head.
"Trust me, it can wait until after you leave the hospital." She said.
She heard a male voice in the background, on his end.
"Listen, the doctor just walked in with my discharge papers. I'll call you back when I leave the hospital." Dean told her.
"That sounds like a plan." She said.
They hung up. She began texting Roman, as she waited for Dean. Five minutes later, her phone rang. Dean's name came up on the caller ID.
"Dean?" She said.
"Yeah, it's me. I'm done, so what do you need to talk to me about?" Dean asked.
She looked around, but he wasn't there.
"That was quick." She said.
"I guess so. You're stalling." He told her.
She rolled her eyes.
"I'm not stalling, Dean. I just don't think that you're actually out of the hospital." She said.
"I'm in the elevator, on my way out of the hospital. Does it matter if I'm outside of the hospital, or on the elevator?" Dean asked.
"I'm sure you'll figure it out. I'll talk to you, when you're out of the hospital." She said.
She hung up on him. She laughed, as she got off of the car. She leaned up against the trunk, and waited.
Dean wasn't paying attention, when he walked out of the hospital. He was dialing her number. She laughed, but answered.
"I'm outside, now talk." He told her.
"Look up." She told him.
He looked up, and saw her standing there. She smiled and waved.
"Get over here now." She told him.
She hung up on him again. He hurried over to her. He looked good. She wrapped her arms around him, and held him.
"You're lucky I like you so much. I would have kicked your ass, if you were anyone else." He told her.
She laughed.
"Whatever, you missed me too much, to get too mad at me." She said, with a laugh.
He pressed his lips to hers.
"Just a little." He said.
She laughed again.
"I'm sure that's all." She said.
"Did you miss me?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes.
"More than you'll ever know, Romeo. So, where to now?" She asked.
"Anywhere but here." He told her.
He pulled her into another kiss. He groaned, when she pulled out of the kiss.
"Come on Romeo, let's get out of here." She told him.
*X*
Casey drove for a couple of hours.
"So, not that I'm not happy you're here, I am, but why are you here?" Dean asked, as she drove.
"That's a part of what I wanted to talk to you about." She said.
"What happened?" He asked.
She laughed.
"That's a loaded question." She said.
"You're stalling, again." He told her.
"Man, you're pushy. Fine, I have some time off, so I thought that I'd play nursemaid. I thought you'd enjoy that." She said.
"Oh, I will be, but you're the Diva's Champ. Days off don't exist for you." He said.
She exhaled loudly.
"They do now, until further notice." She said.
"What the hell happened?!" Dean asked.
"Hunter did not like that I never stopped Roman from kicking Kane's ass. He told me that I was relieved of my duties, until further notice. I guess it didn't help that I ran my mouth either. He's not happy with me." She told him.
He seemed surprised.
"So he suspended you for what happened on Raw?! It was entertaining!" Dean said.
"I know, he's also pissed that I'm still saying no, to joining the Authority. Apparently, he's running out of ideas on how to get me over to the dark side." She said.
"That's still no reason to suspend you." Dean said.
"He knows that, but he's seeing if the suspension will change my mind. He has one last card to play, if this doesn't work." She said.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Hunter will go to Vince, to get me with the Authority. If that happens, either I agree, or I'll be fired." She said.
"Are you kidding me?! How did you find that out?" Dean asked.
"Kane warned me, that's how desperate Hunter is getting." She said.
"That's low, even for Hunter." Dean said.
"If Vince says that he wants me with the Authority, I'll have a big decision to make." She said, with a sigh.
"You'd really quit WWE, if they tried making you join them?" Dean asked.
"I don't know. I've fought against them for so long. If I were to just jump ship, when things get bad, I'd be just like Seth." She said.
"But you love WWE." He said.
"Yeah, but I don't want the job if I'm forced to be in a group, that I never wanted to be a part of, in the first place. Especially when that group has Seth in it." She said.
"I understand that, but this is your career. Plus, who would keep me in line, if you were gone?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes.
"You sound like you want me to join them." She said.
"Not exactly. I don't want you to join them, but I also don't want you to leave WWE either. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer, kind of thing." He told her.
"You're crazy, you know that right?" She asked.
He grinned at her, and she laughed.
"I thought that's what drew you to me, in the first place." He said.
"One of the many things, Romeo." She told him.
He laughed.
"Do you want to know what drew me to you?" He asked, wiggling his eyebrows at her.
She blushed.
"I'm sure I can figure it out, I know how you think. Some people think that I know too well." She said.
"I could always show you, when we stop." He told her.
"You did miss me." She said.
"It was torture!" He told her.
She laughed.
"Poor baby." She said, running her fingers through his hair.
"Let's get a hotel for the night." Dean said.
She laughed again.
He took her hand in his, brought it up to his lips, and kissed it. She exhaled loudly.
"I guess we're getting a room." She said, with a smile.
"I can hardly wait." He said.
She pulled into the first hotel she came across, and she got a room. They got into the room, shut the door, and dropped their bags. In an instant, Dean had her in his arms, and was kissing her. She giggled.
"I've missed you too, Romeo." She said, as he pulled her shirt off of her.
They fell onto the bed.
X*X*X
Corey had her head on Dean's chest. Dean was playing with her hair.
"Corey." He said.
"Yeah." She said.
"Maybe you should join them. You love wrestling. You shouldn't give that up." He told her.
"Roman will never forgive me if I join them." She said quietly.
"Let me deal with Roman." He said.
She exhaled loudly.
"I can't believe I'm even thinking about this, let alone contemplating it." She said.
"Maybe you'll have fun." He said.
"I doubt it." She said.
"It'll be more fun when I get back." He told her.
"Oh, I'm sure." She said.
He laughed, and kissed her hair.
"I'll take care of Seth when I get back." He told her.
"And I will be front and center, watching you do it too." She said.
"That's my girl." Dean laughed.
She laughed with him.
She turned to her stomach, propping herself up on her elbows. She looked up at him, and ran her fingers through his hair.
"What's on your mind, princess?" He asked.
She sighed.
"I'm so not looking foreward to having the conversation with Hunter. He's going to get that smirk on his face. The one that says I won. I just want to slap it off of his face. Then there's Seth..." She said.
He smiled at her.
"Let Hunter think he's won. As for Seth, you could always make his life miserable." He told her.
She gave a laugh.
"Now that sounds appealing." She said.
"I thought it might." He said.
She leaned up, and kissed him. He groaned, and rolled her over to her back.
X*X*X
Corey stayed with Dean until Monday. Monday morning, she left, to go speak with Hunter. He seemed overly happy to hear she wanted to meet, to talk. She hoped she had made the right choice. If it all went to hell, in a hand bag, she was blaming Dean. He was the one that had talked her into it.
She parked her car, and exhaled loudly. She pulled her cell phone out, and dialed a number.
"Remind me again, why I'm agreeing to this?" She asked, when he answered.
Dean laughed.
"Because, you love wrestling. That, and I'd miss you too much." He told her.
She smiled.
"Oh, right. Okay, I guess I should get inside then. I can't believe I let you talk me into this." She said.
He laughed.
"Good luck princess. Give them hell for me." He told her.
She laughed.
"Thanks Romeo. I'll call you, and let you know how it goes." She said.
She hung up, took a deep breath, and headed inside.
About ten minutes later, she was sitting across from Hunter. He was looking way too happy with himself.
"Ms. Dove, I was very surprised to get your call. What can I do for you?" Hunter asked, smirking at her.
She smirked, as she refrained from rolling her eyes.
"I want my job back." She said.
He raised his eyebrows.
"Please?" She added.
He smiled at her.
"So, after everything, you think I should bring you back? I don't know Corey, I think you're going to have to change my mind. How are things going to be different if I allow you to return?" Hunter asked.
She studied him for a moment, trying to decide how to proceed.
"Okay, let's cut the crap. Kane delivered your message, loud and clear." She said.
"What message would that be?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Kane told me that you're getting desperate. You're going to go to Vince, to order me to join." She said.
"Yes, that message. I see, and what happened?" He asked.
"There's two choices. Either join, or quit WWE." She said, with a shrug.
He started looking worried.
"What did you decide?" He asked.
"I shouldn't have to be forced into something I don't want to do." She told him.
Now, he was getting very worried.
"Are you telling me that you're quitting?" He asked.
She smirked.
"I never said that. I have a question for you. What are you willing to do, to get me to join?" She asked.
"That depends on what you want." He said.
"So, if I asked you to, I don't know, have Seth get his ass kicked by some superstars, you'd make it happen?" She asked.
He narrowed his eyes at her.
"I don't know if I could get that cleared. Is there anything else?" He asked.
She thought for a moment.
"I think I might hold onto it, an IOU, so to speak. You'll owe me." She told him.
He looked confused.
"So, are you saying that you are accepting? You'll join?" He said.
She smirked.
"You've finally gotten what you've been after, for a while now." She said.
"What changed your mind, after all this time?" He asked.
"I've been told that I love wrestling too much to quit. Let's just say, you owe Dean Ambrose now too. You'll honor it too. He's the only reason why I even considered your offer. You owe him." She told him.
"Ambrose? Why would he want you to join?" He asked.
"Apparently, he's worried about my future. Set up a match against Nikki Bella, I still want to kick her ass. I need to release some aggression." She said.
He gave a nod.
"Welcome to the Authority Corey. I know some people who will be very excited to know you've changed your mind. Your match will be set up." He told her.
"Yes, I shall be having a conversation about Seth, with you. That will have to wait until later. I need to get ready for Raw. Thank you Hunter." She said.
She hurried out of his office, and out to her car. As soon as she got inside, she called Dean.
"Hey princess, how'd it go?" He asked.
She gave a laugh.
"Interesting. He was super excited that I changed my mind. I let him know that he owes you one, and he's going to honor it. Things are definitely going to be interesting. I've got a match against Nikki tonight." She told him.
He laughed.
"You work fast. Good. What are you doing now?" He asked.
She groaned.
"I have to find a hotel, then I want to get a quick work out before I go to Raw." She said.
"Back to normal then." He said.
She laughed.
"Yes. So, I want you to rest. That's an order." She said.
"And what's going to happen if I don't?" He asked.
She smiled.
"Oh, I'm sure that I'll come up with a punishment, for when I see you again." She said.
"I like the sound of that. I miss you already." He said.
"Me too. Okay, I've got to go find a hotel. I'll call you later, I promise." She told him.
"I'm holding you to that, princess." He told her.
She hung up, and headed for a hotel. It took twenty minutes, but she managed to finally find one. She got her room, and changed into her work out clothes. She put her headphones on, listening to music, and headed for the gym.
X*X*X
Corey was walking to her locker room, when she was stopped by Randy Orton. She frowned.
"What do you want Randall?" She asked.
He smiled at her.
"I've heard the great news. Welcome to the dark side. What changed your mind?" He asked.
"Getting to make your life miserable. It was a deal I couldn't pass up. It should be fun." She said, with a smile.
The smile on his face faded.
"Yeah right. Hunter wouldn't allow that to happen." He said.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. He really wanted me to join the Authority, and was willing to give me almost anything I asked for." She said.
"I don't believe you." He told her.
"Believe what you want, I don't care. Even if he hadn't, I'm sure that Seth is very excited I've joined, and he would enjoy giving a curbstomp, if I asked. I can be quite persuasive, when I want to be." She said.
He narrowed his eyes at her.
"What makes you think Seth will do what you want? I doubt it, after the way you've treated him, since he turned on the Shield. You've got nothing." He said.
"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Randall." She said.
He glanced over her shoulder, and smirked.
"Let's ask him." Randy said.
Corey looked at him in confusion.
"Randy, I see you've found the newest member of the Authority! Corey, I would love to take you out for a celebratory drink, after the show." Seth said.
"Great." She groaned.
She turned to face Seth, as she got an idea.
"That depends." She said.
He smiled.
"On what?" He asked.
She smiled.
"I'll let you buy me a drink, if you do one little thing for me, first." She said.
"Really?" Seth asked, in surprise.
She nodded.
"Yes, I'm being serious. I will get a drink with you, if you do something for me first." She said.
"Okay, what can I do to help you?" Seth asked.
She smiled.
"All I need you to do is curbstomp someone." She said.
Seth laughed.
"Is that all? Of course. Who is the lucky guy?" Seth asked.
"I knew you'd be the one to help me. I need you to curbstomp Randy." She said.
Seth looked surprised.
"Randy? Randy Orton?" Seth asked.
She nodded.
Seth looked at Randy, confused.
"What did you do to her this time?" Seth asked Randy.
She rolled her eyes.
"I congratulated her." Randy muttered.
"Summerslam, dipshit. Yes, Seth, I want you to curbstomp Randy, the next time you're in the ring with him. He doesn't think you will. So, what do you say? Are you going to do it?" She asked.
Seth looked from Corey to Randy, then back to her.
"So, let me get this straight. If I curbstomp Randy, you'll go out with me?" Seth asked.
"You said a drink." She said.
"Make it a date." Seth said.
She frowned.
Randy laughed.
"I guess it won't happen then." Randy said, with a smirk.
She narrowed her eyes at him.
"You know what Seth? If you curbstomp Randall the first chance you get, I'll let you take me out to dinner, before you take me out for drinks." She told him.
"Seriously?!" Randy said.
"Seth, you don't have to tell me now. I'll be watching, when you curbstomp Randy, you can take me out. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready for my match against Nikki Bella." She said.
She moved past them, and went in to her locker room. She was laughing to herself. She set her duffle on the bench, and started getting her ring gear out. She stripped, and got into her ring gear. She put her title around her waist, and left her locker room. Seth and Randy were gone. She sighed in relief. She made her way to hair and makeup. They straightened her hair, and put it in a high pony tail, while they did her makeup.
She was just finished, when a stage hand came up to her.
"Triple H wants to see you in his office."
She sighed.
"Thank you." She said.
She hurried to Hunter's office. She knocked, then walked in.
"Corey, please come in." Hunter said.
"You needed to see me? What's up?" She asked.
"Have a seat." Hunter said.
She sat down.
"What did I do now?" She asked.
"I heard what you asked Seth to do, and what you'd give him in return." Hunter said.
She raised her eyebrows.
"That was fast. So, what, are you going to stop it from happening?" She asked.
Hunter studied her for a moment.
"No. Actually, I'm not. You want to get back at Randy, for Summerslam. He deserves it, I completely agree with it." Hunter told her.
She smirked.
"He does. So, for this to happen, what's it going to cost me?" She asked.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes.
"Oh please. I know you too well. To get this, I know that you want me to do something." She said.
He smiled.
"Seth will be going to the ring with you, for your match." Hunter said.
She rolled her eyes.
"It's always something. Why?" She asked.
"Story line. Seth and Randy will be fighting over you, and Seth is going to take Randy out. This will be the start of it, Seth curbstomping Randy. Randy will be off camera for a while, after this storyline." He told her.
She shook her head.
"You want to use me to help take Randy out?" She said.
"Essentially, yes." He said.
She smiled.
"Well, since Summerslam, I've been wanting to get back at Randy. It's perfect." She said.
He smiled.
"I thought you'd have a problem with the idea." He said.
She gave a shrug.
"It's best for business, and I get what I want." She said.
"You're learning. Go get ready for your match, you're opening Raw." He told her.
She gave a nod, and left the office. She headed for gorilla, smiling as she walked. Seth caught up with her.
"So, did Hunter talk to you?" Seth asked.
She gave a laugh.
"Yes, Seth, he did. You'll be at the ring for my match." She said.
"Good. I'm glad that we can talk, without you yelling." He said.
"For now." She said.
"I'll take it." Seth said, as Nikki's theme started playing.
Corey got into position, for her entrance. Seth stood next to her. Moments later, her theme started playing. Corey headed out to the stage. She paused for pictures. The crowd got louder, when Seth walked out, and stood next to her. He held his golden briefcase in the air. They walked down the ramp, to the ring. Seth split the top and middle rope, for her to get through. Nikki looked bored, as she rolled her eyes. Corey smirked at Nikki, as she took the title off of her waist. She handed it to Seth, who got out of the ring with it.
The bell rang, and the match started.
*X*
Corey speared Nikki, then covered her. One. Two. Three. The bell rang. Corey's theme started playing. Nikki rolled out of the ring, as Corey stood. The ref held her arm in the air.
Seth got in the ring, with her title. He handed it to her, then gave her a hug.
"Careful Seth." She hissed at him.
"Sorry." He said.
Her theme cut out, and was replaced by Randy's theme. Randy walked out onto the stage. He was smiling.
"Congratulations Corey. That was an amazing match. I also want to be one of the first to publicly welcome you to the Authority." Randy said.
He walked down the ramp, to the ring, as he talked. He got in the ring, and faced her. Corey put the title on her shoulder, and crossed her arms in front of her.
"I was happy to hear you finally traded up from the Shield. However, I am surprised to see you here, with Seth. If anything, I think everyone here would agree, you traded down from Dean." Randy said.
The crowd enjoyed that. Seth didn't like it too much. She gave a laugh, as she put her hand on Seth's shoulder.
"What do you want Randy?" She said.
"If you're actually looking to trade up, look no further." Randy said.
She rolled her eyes.
"Oh please." She said.
"I'm being serious. When you're ready for a real man, I'll be waiting." Randy told her.
Before she could respond, Seth had jumped Randy. He hit him in the head, with the briefcase. Corey moved out of the way, to watch.
Seth went after Randy, and got him down to his hands and knees. Seth winked at Corey, then curbstompped Randy's head into the mat. Randy was laid out. Corey smiled.
Corey and Seth got out of the ring, and headed backstage. Seth was happy. He walked her back to her locker room.
"So, when should I pick you up?" He asked her.
She rolled her eyes.
"You held up your end of the deal, I guess I have to keep up my end. Meet me, after you get cleaned up from you match, at my hotel room." She told him.
He grinned.
"Great. I'll see you there." He told her.
Seth left, and she went to change. She got out of her ring gear, and into her street clothes. She packed her duffle, then headed out to her car. She had a date to go get ready for...
