A/N: Sorry this took forever-ish. I got reacquainted with my Wii.. And well, I guess you can figure out what happened. Hahaha. Thanks for reviewing, by the way. Keep it coming!! So here's the next chapter.. Enjoy!
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Pinky Promise
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Chapter 9: Let's Kick It
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A knock resounded throughout Bianca's apartment early the next morning, and Bianca lazily got up from her place at the sofa to see who it was. Glancing through the peephole to see John waiting outside her door, her eyes widened with embarrassment; she was still dressed in her pajamas, which consisted of a tank top and cotton shorts. She contemplated running into her room to change into something more decent, but she decided against it when John continued to knock.
Bianca slowly opened the door. "Good morning," she greeted, smiling shyly at him. She stepped aside to let him in.
"Morning," John replied, and chuckled when he noticed Bianca's attire. "I didn't wake you up, did I?"
"No, of course not," she assured, her face a slight tinge of pink. "So what's up?" Now that she thought about it, why the hell was John knocking on her door at 7am anyway?
"We're heading out to the next venue," John explained. "I just wanted to see you before we left," he smiled sadly at her.
"Oh," Bianca said, disappointment in her voice. The few days that she had spent with John were very hectic and fun, but now he had to leave. She really didn't want him to; they just reunited a few days ago after all. "So where are you headed to now?"
"San Jose. It's a six-hour drive so me and Randy decided to get a head start," John said. "He's waiting in the rental right now."
"You should go then," Bianca told him, despite wanting him to stay. "Don't wanna keep him waiting."
"Let him wait," John smirked and he slowly stepped up to Bianca, who was pouting. "You gonna miss me?" He opened his arms and Bianca let herself be engulfed in a hug.
"Yeah," she softly admitted in a muffled voice as she rested her head against his chest. She sighed sadly and reluctantly pulled away.
"Don't worry, Binx," John placed a hand on her cheek and lightly traced his thumb over it. "It'll only be a few days. I'll come back once I get everything done. Then we can work something out with our engagement."
At this, Bianca looked up at him questioningly. Work something out?
John smiled softly at her. "I was talking to Vince the other day," he started, "and he allowed it, so I want you to come travel with me." Bianca opened her mouth to speak, but John held a hand up to silence her. "You don't have to say anything right now," he said. "I know you have your career with the LA Times to tend to, but it's just something to think about." Bianca said nothing as she nodded. "I'm gonna head out," John said and Bianca followed him the short distance to the door.
"Drive safely," she said as she hugged him one last time.
"A'ight," John nodded, wrapping his arms around her once again and kissing the top of her head softly. "Don't have too much fun without me," he grinned at her as he pulled away.
"I won't," Bianca smiled weakly, watching John walk away. She sighed sadly and retreated into her home. No job, no John.. What was she supposed to do for the few days that he would be away? Ever since reuniting with John, life had been much better and more fun, despite her being fired. But now Bianca had to prepare herself for what she knew would be the most boring three days of her life.
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Ugh! Bianca hated it when she was right. Not even a few hours had passed and she was already bored to death. How was she going to survive the next few days? She found herself pacing around, like she did on the night of their engagement, but this time, John wouldn't be showing up any time soon. She forced herself to sit on the sofa, where she let out an exasperated sigh. Although she was bored out of her mind, there was one thing that she could not stop thinking about; "I want you to come travel with me".
Bianca frowned in contemplation. John and his crazy ideas. Yet, just like all his other crazy ideas, it didn't sound so bad at all. In fact, Bianca loved the aspect of traveling with John and the rest of the WWE. She would be able to see the world, or at least the rest of the country, with her best friend and make new friends along the way. There were just a few setbacks to this plan. What about her apartment? Or her bills? Or her so-called job that John thinks she still has? Bianca just sat there, thinking about how this could possibly work out.
It took a long while before the beginnings of a plan started to formulate in Bianca's head. She could sell some of her things to earn easy cash. She was hardly home anyway, so most of her furniture were still in good condition. Then she could pay off all of her bills and her rent and move out of her apartment just as she and John are about to leave for the next town. The money that she would get off of her furniture should be enough to hold her down for just a bit. And after that, well, she still had John. Bianca cringed at the fact that she would be using her best friend, but she kept repeating in her mind that it was necessary. As much as she didn't want to do it, it had to be done.
Now that she had a solution to her apartment situation, there was still the issue about her job. Bianca decided that John would never ever find out that she was fired. But how was she going to play off agreeing to travel with him without being suspicious? Bianca had to think of a plan for that as well. She hoped that John would be too thrilled to ask about how she was able to travel with him. She'd figure something out when the time actually came. There was no use in worrying over something that might not even happen. Besides, John trusted her enough to not question her motives, right?
It was settled; Bianca would sell her things for cash and move out of her apartment just in time to leave with John. She would have to start now, though, if she wanted things to be done by the time John came back for her. And so Bianca had found something to do for the rest of the day.
She found a website where she could advertise her possessions online. People would be able to place bids on each item, and the highest bidder would get it, like an online auction. She set the bidding to be open for three days, just to see how it would go.
For the rest of the day, Bianca delved through her house in search of things that she could auction off and the starting price for them. She knew her sofa had to go—it would bring in some good money, as well as her flat screen TV, the coffee table, and her appliances in the kitchen. Her dresser would also account for easy money. There were also her computer desk and office chair. Now, for the next few days, Bianca would have to wait and see how the biddings would work out, and once her belongings were sold, the money she'd earn should suffice for a while.
Bianca flopped back down onto her sofa, pleased with all that she had accomplished that day. She willed herself to relax and closed her eyes, the background noise of the TV lulling her to sleep.
Yo VIP… Let's kick it…
Ice Ice baby.. Ice Ice baby..
Alright stop, collaborate and listen..
Bianca grinned as she blindly reached for her cell phone. "Hey," she greeted, cutting off the song. Bianca remembered when she and John were only teenagers. Ice Ice Baby had just come out and they were both crazy over it; John had even dressed up as Vanilla Ice one time for Halloween, so it only made sense that she would put that song as John's ring tone when he called.
"Hey Binxie," John's voice rang out from the other line, causing Bianca to relax even more. "I'm in my hotel now. Me and Randy checked in a few hours ago, but we wanted to walk around."
"I see," Bianca was just happy to be talking to him. "Anything good happen?"
"Nope," John replied casually. "What have you been doing all day anyway?"
Bianca shrugged, although John couldn't see it. "Nothing," she sighed sadly.
"Nothing huh," John smirked to himself. "You miss me that much?"
"You don't even know," she whined. "It's so boring here without you."
John couldn't help but chuckle. "Come on, Binx," he coaxed lightly, "we've gone ten years without seeing or hearing from each other. The next few days should be nothing."
"Nothing but hell," Bianca replied smartly, causing the two of them to laugh softly to themselves.
John shook his head in amusement. "Would it help if I said that I miss you too? And that these next few days are gonna be hell without you?"
The corners of Bianca's mouth twitched upwards. "Maybe…" she said suggestively. John was such a charmer.
"It better," John jokingly threatened, "because I mean it," and the two shared another laugh. "But hey, I'ma head out to dinner with the guys. I just wanted to check up on you and let you know that I'm here."
"Thanks, John," Bianca said sincerely. "I'm glad you called. Go have fun with your friends."
"Will do," he grinned. "Good night, Binx."
"G'night, Johnny," she playfully sang before they both hung up. Bianca sighed; hearing John's voice would have to suffice for three days.
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Vivian Evans slapped a stack of bridal magazines down onto the dining table in front of her daughter, who looked up at her with a raised eyebrow. "Now Bianca, don't give me that look," she said as she took a seat across from her daughter.
"What's all this?" Bianca asked, picking up a magazine and casually flipping through it.
"Well, you're getting married aren't you?" Her mother answered. "A wedding is not going to plan itself," she stated matter-of-factly.
Bianca rolled her eyes. "Mom, I just got engaged a few days ago. Do we really need to do this now?" She asked, motioning at the pile of magazines before her. She didn't know a thing about weddings. And wasn't wedding planning a couple's thing anyway? Should she really start planning without John?
Vivian scoffed. "Yes. The sooner you start planning, the better."
"But John's not here," Bianca trailed off. "I'd really rather plan this all with him." She put the magazine that she held in her hand back on the table and pushed it towards the pile, oblivious to the hurt look on her mother's face.
"Well, where is he?" Vivian looked on expectantly.
"He left for San Jose yesterday," Bianca replied. "It's his job."
"Sweetie," Vivian reached a hand out and rested it on her daughter's. "If John's going to be traveling, you can't wait for him to plan this, otherwise you'll never get married. Not soon anyway. That's why I want to help you."
Bianca saw the sincerity in her mother's eyes and smiled softly. Her mother just wanted what was best for her after all. And that hopeful look that her mother had when she dropped the magazines in front of her reminded her of a kid in a candy store. She had to do this, if only for her mother. "I don't know how to get started, mom. What should we do first?" She gave her mother a small smile.
Vivian beamed at her daughter and clapped her hands in excitement. "Well, let's take a look here," she trailed off as she chose a magazine and placed it in front of Bianca. She moved to sit in the chair next to her daughter.
They had practically spent the whole day skimming through each magazine, looking at pictures and reading articles for ideas. Although planning a wedding wasn't exactly fun and games for Bianca, she was just glad that her mother was enjoying it. It was every mother's dream to see her daughter walk down the aisle, after all.
"And what have you two beautiful women been doing while I was gone?" Bianca grinned and turned at the new voice that entered the house.
"Hi, daddy!" Bianca hopped out of her seat and headed over to her father, who was a nice shade of red and had just set his golfing equipment off to the side.
"Hi, honey," Larry hugged his daughter in greeting and pulled away. "So what brings you here? And where's John?" He looked around to see that his future son-in-law was nowhere in sight.
"John's in San Jose for the next show. Mom and I were just looking through some magazines for ideas for the wedding," Bianca explained as she and her father headed towards Vivian.
"Planning already?" Larry raised an eyebrow inquisitively.
"Mom insisted," Bianca chuckled lightly, shaking her head, and Larry smiled down at her knowingly. That was typical Vivian, always prompt and precise.
"Well, Viv," Larry directed his attention towards his wife. "I say that's enough planning for the day. Since Bianca's here, why don't we go out for dinner?"
"Good idea!" Vivian stood up from her seat to join her husband and her daughter. "There's a new place just down the road that I heard was absolutely marvelous," she clapped her hands animatedly before heading up the stairs.
Bianca grinned up at her father. "Nice, dad. Very nice."
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Dinner with her parents had been very pleasant for Bianca. It was just very relaxing, and her mom hadn't even gone in psycho mode the whole day. Bianca didn't even want to go back home because she'd be alone if she did. But there she was, back in her apartment. It was close to midnight, and Bianca changed into her PJs before settling into the bed. She reached for her laptop on the bedside table and placed it on her lap.
Bianca had almost forgotten about her auctions. Going onto the website and logging into her account, she was pleased to find that there were already many people interested in buying her things and the bids were getting higher and higher. And there were still a couple more days to go.
Bianca shut down her laptop and placed it back onto the bedside table, where another thing had caught her eye. Her cell phone was flashing, and across the screen was an icon saying that she got a new voicemail. She dialed the appropriate number and waited. "You have one new voicemail," the automated voice sounded out. "New message:"
"Hey, Binxie," Bianca relaxed at the sound of John's voice. "I just wanted to see what you were up to today. I'm sorry I didn't call earlier; Vince had me running all over the place, and I finally escaped," she smiled when she heard him chuckle. "Well, uh.. You're probably already sleeping since it's pretty late, so I'ma head to bed now, so good night… or good morning if you get this in the morning." Bianca giggled softly. "A'ight.. I miss you, Bianca. See you soon." And with that, the message cut off. Setting her phone back onto the nightstand and snuggling into bed, Bianca couldn't stop the smile on her face. Just a couple more days.
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Bianca spent majority of the next couple of days at home in front of her laptop. She was amused to find that people were virtually fighting to win her things. Initially, her items were priced low, which caught the attention of many potential buyers, and Bianca was pleased to see that the numbers had risen drastically. All she had to do now was wait for the auctions to close.
The day before John would come back was the day that Bianca paid off her last rent and utilities bills. Earlier on, she had talked to her landlord about moving out, and although her landlord was saddened to see her go, he was also happy to know that Bianca would be moving on to bigger and better things. Her landlord was generous enough to let her stay until the last of her things were sold.
Checking her bank account online, Bianca let out a low whistle. Once her rent and utility payments go through, she would have under five hundred dollars in the bank; she was practically broke. She shook her head and clicked her tongue against her teeth. The auction would end tomorrow, and then her financial status would improve at least just a little bit.
With that settled, Bianca figured that she should start packing her things. Aside from her furniture and appliances that she auctioned off, she really didn't have much to pack; most everything fit into two luggage. All the things that she really couldn't bring with her she decided to box; perhaps she could leave it at her parents' house.
Bianca was excited; in less than 24 hours, John would be back. Her auction would be closed and she would have money again. But then Bianca's face fell into a frown. Now that she thought about it, she wouldn't be able to leave with John just yet. She would need to stay back until all her possessions were sold. That meant that they would spend even more days apart. They've been apart for longer times before; a few more days shouldn't hurt, right? But John looked so eager to take her away with him when he came back. What exactly was she supposed to tell him?
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And so the next day finally came, and Bianca kept herself busy until John would arrive. The auction was closed and Bianca contacted each of her winning bidders to see how soon they'd be able to claim their items. She let out an exasperated sigh once she got off of the phone with the last person. None of them would be able to stop by that day, some required her to mail the item to them, and others said it would take about a week until they would be able to come get their claim.
"Lazy asses," she complained to herself. She wasn't even done packing yet, and she no longer felt the need to now that she would be staying back longer than expected.
Once the doorbell rang, Bianca said nothing as she opened the door and hugged John right away. "Nice to see you too, Binx," John grinned at the welcome that Bianca gave him and he made his way into the apartment with Bianca still clinging to him.
"I missed you," Bianca said in a muffled voice as she buried her face into his chest, taking in the scent of his cologne.
John opened his mouth to reply but caught a glimpse of the open luggage near the sofa that was only half full of clothes. "You're not done packing?"
Bianca looked up at him, then at the luggage before pulling away slightly. "About that," she started hesitantly. "I can't leave just yet…"
"Why not?" John asked, concern written all over his face.
What was she going to say? She couldn't tell him that she was moving out of her apartment because she got fired and could no longer afford to live there. She couldn't tell him that she was selling her things because she was broke. As much as she hated doing it, she needed to lie to him again. "I need to finish up a few things for the LA Times before they'll let me go. It's gonna take about another week or so."
"Oh," John said with slight disappointment. Bianca nearly let out a sigh of relief that he actually fell for the lie. "We'll be in Seattle in a week. So I guess I'll see you then?"
"Yeah," Bianca smiled sadly. She felt guilty, and the disappointed look that John had on didn't make her feel any better. "I'm really sorry, Johnny. I should have told you earlier so you didn't have to drive all the way down here for nothing."
"Nah, it's all good," he smiled reassuringly at her. "I got some promos to do down here before my flight tomorrow night anyway." John proceeded to place his hands on her shoulders and give them a light, supportive squeeze. "Just do what you need to do down here, a'ight?"
"A'ight," Bianca answered playfully. "Are you sure Mr. McMahon is okay with me traveling with you?" She asked in a more serious tone.
"Vinny-Mac is cool with it, as long as you stay out of trouble," John smirked at her and Bianca stuck her tongue out at him. "Besides, I'm the champ. That pretty much entitles me the freedom to do whatever I want."
Bianca snorted at his cockiness. "Whatever you say, Johnny boy."
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John said goodbye to Bianca before he left for the next city, and Bianca was left to herself for a week. She spent the first half of the week taking care of her business and getting her possessions to the appropriate people. Bianca was able to get all her things out well before the week was over. Everything else was packed in boxes and luggage; she was set to go. However, she wouldn't be heading to Seattle just yet. John had scheduled her flight to be a few days more, so for the time being, Bianca would spend the rest of her time with her parents.
"So what exactly are in these boxes?" Larry Evans asked his daughter as he helped Bianca haul her things from his car to their house. "And what's with the luggage?"
Bianca waited for her parents to settle at the dinner table before answering her father's questions. "I'm gonna be traveling with John for a while," she said, cautiously.
"Oh really," Larry smiled at his daughter. "And your bosses are letting you do that?"
"Well," Bianca started. "Being promoted to editor does have its privileges," she thought up quickly. "I'll be gone for a few weeks." In all honesty, Bianca really didn't know how long she would be away or if she would even be back at all. How could she go back with no apartment to go back to?
"And the boxes?" Vivian asked curiously. "What's in them?"
"I figured I'd have my apartment fumigated while I was away. I was wondering if I could leave these boxes here with you guys. It's just some stuff.. Picture frames, books, stuff." Bianca was starting to hate herself; lying was becoming easier each time.
Larry and Vivian only nodded, oblivious to the nervous look on their daughter's face. "So when are you leaving?"
"In a few days," Bianca answered. "I wanted to spend the rest of my time here with you guys. If that's alright with you?" She looked up at her parents innocently.
"Of course, honey," Vivian said promptly, moving towards her daughter and pulling her into a hug. "You know you can always stay with us whenever you want to."
Bianca hugged her mother back appreciatively. "Thanks, mom."
The few days spent at her parents' mansion were quite productive. Bianca and Vivian continued their wedding plans and Bianca also spent a lot of times outdoors with her father. It was very nice and relaxing, and Bianca almost felt like a kid again being babied by her parents.
Larry and Vivian escorted Bianca to the airport. After getting her plane ticket at the front desk and getting her luggage taken care of, she made her way back to her parents.
"Enjoy yourself, alright?" Larry told Bianca as he pulled her into a hug.
"Of course," Bianca grinned at him then turned to face her mother.
"Take care of yourself. And John too." Vivian and Bianca hugged for a long while before pulling away.
"I will," she smiled at her mother. "I better go," Bianca said to her parents, getting one last good look at them. She really didn't know when she would see them next. "Bye guys, I love you." She wrapped her arms around the both of them one last time.
"Have a safe flight, honey," Larry told her, and she waved goodbye before heading towards the terminals.
Although Bianca was slightly sad to be leaving her parents, her eagerness to see John was much more. Bianca was surprised to find that John had gotten her a seat in the first-class section. It was much roomier and she got a window seat. She wasn't sure if John gave her a first class seat by accident or what; she would have to talk to him about it later-- not that she was complaining or anything.
Bianca settled into her seat comfortably and gazed out the window. She hadn't been in a plane in years, and she was slightly anxious. The plane had just taken off, and Bianca watched as the land under them was getting farther away and the buildings were getting smaller. Resting her head against the back of her seat, Bianca smiled to herself, a giddy feeling forming within her. Goodbye Los Angeles, hello John Cena.
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A/N: Review?
