Disclaimer, etc., are in part 1.

Thanks to those that have reviewed so far.

Part Ten

On Monday night, after the match, CM Punk had suggested to Eve that she spend the next week getting used to the idea that she was now a member of the New Nexus.

Instead, she had spent the past week trying to forget it had ever happened. Not that she'd really had much of a chance to do that. After all, it seemed to be all anyone wanted to talk to her about. After having breakfast with John Morrison on Tuesday morning, she'd ended up seeing Kofi Kingston at the airport and, while she knew that his questions were asked out of honest concern, that hadn't changed the fact that she hadn't wanted to talk about it any longer. She'd already spent half the night talking about it with Natalya, then the morning talking about it with Morrison... Really, she'd just wanted to forget about it. But it seemed like everything was conspiring against her, because there had been no way to avoid it. She'd been asked about it on Twitter. Repeatedly. The WWE website had an entire story on it. More than one, actually. There had been an article wondering why CM Punk had chosen her and what his motives were, and then there had been a secondary article questioning how she would handle the situation she found herself in. Oh, and she couldn't forget the article that explored how the guys - especially Cena, who had been the one pinned - must feel after what had happened on RAW. So not just one article, but three. There had also been a fourth article, not really focused on her, but on the at the time unidentified new-comer that had helped out the New Nexus and was apparently now a member of the group.

And then there had been the rest of the WWE's programming for the week. The situation had been recapped so thoroughly on Superstars that she'd actually turned it off, feeling like they were showing the match in its entirety... And then there had been another recap on SmackDown. Not as detailed as the one on Superstars, but the end of the match had been shown again, as had the aftermath, including the part where CM Punk had rushed in and pulled her from the fray, keeping her from being knocked over and possibly saving her from an injury. Despite knowing what had happened - she had, after all, been there and done that - it had still been a little disconcerting to watch CM Punk rush over to get her out of there.

She'd changed the channel then, not wanting to watch the rest of it, and it was because she'd done so that she almost missed the fact that the man that had attacked Cena on RAW had finally been identified. That information had been sent to her by Natalya, the older diva having perhaps realized that there was a good chance that Eve would be avoiding watching too much of the shows this particular week. So it was through the divas' champion that Eve found out that the newest male recruit to the New Nexus was named Mason Ryan... and that he, like all the other guys in the New Nexus, would be taking part in the Royal Rumble on Sunday night.

The Royal Rumble.

It would be her first appearance since what had happened on Monday night, the diva having been told that she wouldn't be required to be at the Saturday live event before the Rumble. She would, however, be required to be at both the pay per view and RAW the following night... Probably just to walk out there and act as a valet for any matches that the New Nexus had. CM Punk would probably enjoy making sure she was out there as much as possible, constantly reminding Cena and Orton and R-Truth and Morrison that it was their fault that she was now in the situation that she found herself in. That she was a part of the New Nexus because of them.

"I'm not wearing a damned arm band," Eve muttered to herself, though she wasn't entirely sure that was the truth. Honestly, she wasn't sure what all she could be forced to do now that she was a member of the New Nexus. CM Punk was, technically, her leader, and Lord if that didn't scare her half to death. The guy seemed crazy as a loon sometimes, but Eve didn't really think that was true. No, she thought that Punk just wanted people to think he was nuts... He wanted people on edge, he thrived on being unpredictable and having people wonder what in the hell he was going to do next. The guy was a master manipulator; that much was a given. The trouble was, Eve didn't have a clue just how she fit into whatever plan he had right now... Whatever or whoever he was currently trying to manipulate.

Heaving out a sigh, the diva continued to pack her bag for the shows, carefully placing her wrestling boots in the bag, then jerking slightly at the sound of her cell phone ringing. Reaching over for it, she glanced at the incoming number, noting that she didn't recognize it... Eve fervently hoped that some fan hadn't gotten hold of it because she really didn't want to have to change it. Sighing, she lifted the phone to her ear as she pressed the button to take the call.

"Hello?"

"Eve?"

"Who is this?" she asked, frowning a little, the voice familiar, but the diva not sure whose voice it was.

"You can't tell? I'm so hurt," the man said, and even before he told her who it was, she had the sudden sinking suspicion that it was a certain leader of the New Nexus. "This is CM Punk."

She was right.

"How did you get this number?" she demanded, and she could practically hear him smiling on the other end of the line.

"Well, you are the newest member of the New Nexus. I needed a way to get in touch with you. It was provided to me."

"Well, I suppose I'll just have to change my number then."

"And I'll just have to find a way to get the new number," Punk countered, and Eve thought she heard him sigh on the other end of the line. "I didn't call you to argue. I just wanted to ensure that you would be bringing your wrestling gear with you for the shows this week."

"Of course I will. I always bring my gear with me, just in case."

"Good. I thought you were the type to always be prepared, but I wanted to make sure. You'll be needing it. I'll see you on Sunday," he told her, and before she could say anything else, he ended the call, leaving Eve standing there frowning... And wondering just what in the hell CM Punk had planned this time around.