CHAPTER NINE
Following her introduction to the nearly seven foot tall man, all Willow could do was listen as the two men conversed about subjects that didn't interest her in the slightest. She knew that her uncle could be very talkative and under the assumption that their conversation would last awhile, excused herself from the room and exited into the hallway. Unfortunately she hadn't thought about what she would do once she escaped and so the redhead was left standing alone in the middle of a busy hallway, looking lost. It didn't seem wise to travel very far from the locker room, getting lost was the last thing she wanted to do. All in all, her options seemed to be very limited and it didn't help one bit that she could have sworn to have seen the brightly colored hair again.
In with the rest of the WWE for less than an hour and already she seemed to be losing her mind, that was just perfect. She could only imagine how many times she would hear "I told you so" from her friends when she relayed this information to them. Her expression fell into one of sadness when it hit her that two out of the three people from Sunnydale whom she cared about weren't on speaking terms with her. The image she was portraying to her future co-workers was the last thing on her mind as she reached up and brushed the single tear from the corner of her eye. When her movement reminded her of the purse she was currently carrying, she eyeballed it and pulled open the clasp. Inside were a few personal items and her uncle's pack of cigarettes which she had agreed to carrying for him.
He had decided to keep the lighter in his own pocket but Willow remembered with a start that she had one of Spike's in her purse. Her lips curled slightly upward in fond recollection of how she had come to having it. Spike had been needling Buffy as he usually did and the redhead had threatened to take it if he didn't lighten up. Of course the stubborn vampire hadn't listened to her, not believing that the meek Slayerette would make good on the threat. She laughed quietly to herself as she remembered the expression on his face when it had gone missing and noticed one of the other people in the hallway was giving her a strange look. Reddening slightly, she realized that it must look like she was insane, standing alone in a hallway laughing to herself.
Taking another look at the door that separated her from Glen and Theo, she figured they would be in there for awhile and decided to head back in the direction they had come from when they entered the building. She passed the two guards standing in front of the door and went outside, spontaneously deciding to do something she never imagined she would be doing. Reaching inside her purse, she removed the cigarettes and pulled one from the packaging. One hand awkwardly holding the white stick, she retrieved the stolen lighter and brought the cancerous object to her lips. Taking a deep breath, she lit the cigarette and took a small drag. Immediately she began coughing up a storm and it felt as though she was going to lose a long right then and there.
Her attention was suddenly drawn away from her hacking fit when she heard the sound of amused laughter coming from her left side. Turning her eyes to the source, she was surprised to see a tall man with tattooed arms holding his own cigarette which was already halfway gone. She could feel the redness coming to her cheeks and forced herself to regain her composure before frowning at the stranger. There was a smirk on his face when she looked at him and Willow couldn't help but be reminded of the peroxide blonde she had been thinking about no more than five minutes earlier. Deciding that she could be friendly despite his apparent mockery, she offered a hand and introduced herself. "Willow Rosenberg, and as you can tell I'm really not a smoker."
It seemed as though he was going to refuse her gesture but thought the better of it and took her hand in his own larger one, giving it a firm shake before letting go. "You must know who I am." She was taken aback by his confident statement and shook her head. "Sorry, can't say that I do." It appeared that he didn't believe her and the look on his face made it clear that he was humoring her with his response. "Well then, let me introduce myself. Randy Orton at your service." Willow felt someone tap on her shoulder before she could form a response and spun around, quickly slamming her tennis shoe-clad foot down on the imposing figure's own. "What the hell?!" She could hear Randy's exclamation at her action from behind her but paid no attention.
Instead of stopping to think about what she was doing, Willow followed her Sunnydale instincts and brought her knee firmly up into the new man's groin. While she did that she was reaching into her pocket and grabbing the crucifix that was always kept near. Shoving it in front of her, Willow was shocked when the man with the long blonde hair whom she had just struck showed no adverse reaction to the holy symbol and horrifying realization dawned slowly on her. When she had noticed the man in her peripheral vision, there was a nasty smirk on his face and she had translated it into that of a vampire's and reacted before thinking. It was now clear that she had misinterpreted the situation and it mortified her.
Without a further word, she practically yelled "Sorry!" in the man's face before moving around him and walking speedily back towards the entrance of the building. The pair of guards remembered her from earlier and allowed the distraught girl to rush past them without incident. Unbeknownst to her, the blonde man was still crouched on the ground outside, in pain from the redheaded woman's sudden and unexpected attack. Randy Orton had moved rapidly to his side and was helping his colleage back to his feet. The two men stared at each other for a moment before turning both of their gazes to the door she had disappeared through. "What in the flying fuck was that?!" "I really don't know, Adam."