[[A/N: Thanks to Miss-RKO, luneara eclipse and KatieKazaMizAwesome. ily all, enjoy this chapter... I hope it sheds some insight on what Mike thinks. and btw, "ta mere" is French for "your mother"...]]
[[EDIT: Had to make an edit to the date mentioned below, partly for my own sanity as I needed to refer to it while creating the Polyvore set for Belle's outfit in this chapter.]]
| MIKE POV | 13th September 2010 |
Homecoming shows were the ones every wrestler looked forward to the most. To revisit the most familiar sights of all, to be able to visit the house you grew up in, to catch up with the people you loved the most... There really was nothing like it, especially when you'd been looking forward to it for so long - and I certainly had. I'd even flown in a few days earlier with my younger sister Belle and my beloved girlfriend Maryse, just so we could visit my parent's house and become one extended happy family for a little while.
The ideas of 'family' and 'home' were, without a doubt, two of the things I held most dear. I'd travelled to so many places and had so many crazy experiences, and during those times I'd learned that the best way to avoid insanity was to remember your goals, where you came from and who helped you to achieve those goals.
Although sometimes, I felt convinced that my sister didn't share the same ideals as we once had. I felt sure she was interested in Daniel despite everything she'd told me... or at the very least, she was so concerned with getting to know him that she was forgetting her goals. I knew that she wanted to be the best she could be, and it was disappointing that she seemed to pay him more attention now. I disliked him completely and I just didn't understand why she'd waste her time in that loser's company.
"Mike, darling? Ta mère says lunch iz ready..." Maryse called out from the kitchen, disrupting my train of thought momentarily - though I knew I'd return to it soon enough. I wasn't done mulling over the reasons for my deep-seated dislike of Daniel, not even by a long shot. Shaking my head, I inhaled deeply and smiled. My mother had made one of her specialties; tuna pasta bake. I walked into the kitchen and hugged Maryse tightly, kissing her lips softly as my mother was present. I then let go and went over to hug my mother. "Love youuuu, Mom!" I sang, laughing as she swatted me away and said "Love you too, son".
"Heeeeeey, guys, what's up?" Belle chirped, rather suddenly at that; i hadn't heard her coming. She looked over our mother's shoulder and grinned, evidently pleased with our lunch for today. I saw her texting on her iPhone and tried to ask her who she was talking to, but she was too busy giggling to herself to bother answering. I grumbled quietly as I turned on my heel and walked into the backyard, only returning to the kitchen once lunch was ready. When we all sat down, I glared at Belle slightly, whispering to her that she'd better not be texting through lunch. She nodded, sending one last text before stuffing her phone back into her pocket. She had better not be texting Daniel... I thought to myself, frowning deeply as I pulled my chair in further and began to eat. I hate that scrawny little rat! He doesn't even deserve to talk to her, she's WAY too good for him...
| AT THE ARENA |
"Belle, where the hell did you get that?" I asked my sister, as we waited in the gorilla position with Alex. She was currently wearing a garish plastic purple tiara, which really didn't look good with her Cincinnati Bengals jersey and orange tights, and I took an instant dislike to it. She just shrugged and said "I'm the homecoming queen, Mike, just chill...", rolling her eyes and fiddling with her phone before turning it off and putting it in her pocket.
Just as my entrance theme began to play, I reminded myself to take a deep breath and "chill", just as Belle had said to. It was time for myself, my sister and Alex to go down to the ring, which we'd all really been looking forward to. We had a segment with Chad Ochocinco which would lead to matches with Daniel for both myself and Alex, and I was definitely looking forward to being allowed to beat the little twerp. As we walked through the curtain, Belle whispered "Sorry...", to which I just nodded in acknowledgment. I couldn't say anything to her now, as I had to concentrate on my mental script.
As i entered the ring, I took the microphone from Justin, signaling him to step out of the ring. "Welcome to Monday Night Raw, Chad..." I drawled lazily, looking at him with well-feigned contempt. I went on to say "You know, we actually have a lot in common, i mean... We're both reality show stars, and we say whatever we feel like, because we can!", earning a few boos from the audience and a loud cheer from Michael Cole. After shrugging lightly and shaking my head, I shook my head and said "Actually, let me take that back... Ochocinco, we have nothing in common, because I am something that you're not... a champion!". I then turned to look at Belle and Alex; the former had her arms folded across her chest with a frown on her face, whereas the latter was smiling and nodding eagerly.
"Hold up Miz, I gotta correct you now" Chad replied, smirking. "The thing is, the Bengals were the AFC North Champions last year... And do you wanna know something else? Me, my boy TO and the rest of the Bengals are gonna win the Superbowl next year! Oh yeah!" he shouted, earning a sizable pop from the audience, who were already eating this up.
"Chad, shut up!" I shouted right back, pausing to readjust my title belt and roll my eyes at him. "If I recall correctly, you and your boy Terrell both left before the end of the half, and were actually tweeting in the locker-room whilst your team tried for a Hail Mary! That is pathetic... No, wait, YOU are pathetic!". After I'd gotten all that out, I took another deep breath and looked over my shoulder. Belle had unfolded her arms, revealing the number 85 on her jersey - Chad's number. She really had planned her outfit well. "See that number 85 on my sister's jersey? I think it represents the amount of good passes you're gonna miss this year... Oh wait, I've got a better one! Maybe it represents the fact that Carson Palmer moves like an 85 year old! How do you like THAT, Ochostinko?" I crowed heelishly, taunting the crowd as I held out both my arms.
After an alert sound played, Michael Cole walked up to his podium and announced "If you two could please be quiet for a moment, it's time to determine The Miz's match for tonight. Shall we spin the wheel?", as the Titantron showed the RAW Roulette wheel backstage. Alicia Fox spun the wheel and as soon as it stopped, Belle smiled mysteriously towards me. "A submission match" he stated. I glared at the screen, burying my head in my hands as expected. Before Cole could even leave his podium, he received another email and proceeded to tell us that Chad was to determine my opponent. The crowd made various noises of shock and awe, as my jaw dropped to reflect those very emotions.
As I walked into the corner where Belle and Alex had been waiting for me, I folded my arms across my chest as Chad began to speak. "Oh, that's simple... The thing is, the number 85 actually represents the number of different ways in which your opponent could make you tap out..." he explained, pausing to smile at the crowd as they gravitated to the edges of their seats in anticipation. "Who's better for you to fight in a submission match than my boy, Daniel Bryaaannnnnn!"
"WHAT?" I bellowed into my microphone, dropping it and glaring at Chad once Daniel's entrance theme began to play. He made his way to the ring and reached for Belle's hand once he was inside, hugging her briefly before she climbed out with Alex. Now I knew it was scripted, but still... I just hated seeing my sister being all friendly with that tool. It went against everything I felt not to snatch her away from him. But it was time to wrestle now, and that was what I would do.
After a few minutes of taunting and punching during the commercial break, we were back on air. Daniel had herded me into the corner, continuously kicking me in the stomach. After he'd had enough of that, he went to the opposite corner and ran back, trying to deliver a running knee before I ducked just in time. His shoulder crashed into the ringpost and I smiled. This match had been agonizing to plan as I'd had to do so in Daniel's company, and I was thankful for the moments like this where he would be in pain, even slightly. I decided to lock him up on the second rope, standing back for a moment as I took a deep breath, then locked on a figure four which he reversed fairly quickly. He then pulled me into the LeBell lock, pulling my head upwards with all his might until I had to get out of his grip and escape the ring.
As the cameras focused in on us, Alex grabbed my shoulders and began shouting "Come on Miz! Get back in the ring!". I wished my script were different, wanting nothing more than to get my hands on Daniel and torture him some more in front of the fans, but I had to do otherwise. I began clutching my stomach and whining theatrically, announcing that I was pulling out of the match due to an injury as soon as I had a mic in my hand. I frowned as Justin tried to announce it as a victory on Daniel's part, immediately interrupting and explaining that it was only due to injury, so Daniel could still face "my apprentice, Alex Riley". He immediately climbed into the ring, and Belle pushed me away as she jumped up onto the ring apron, screaming and begging Alex not to fight him. She better just be good at acting... I thought to myself, huffing quietly as the match began.
Alex immediately sauntered over and punched Daniel in the cheek, causing his head to veer to the side. "Alex! No more!" my sister cried, shaking the ropes. I shook my head and edged closer to her, while Alex went for his overhead Boston Crab lock. I hated that Daniel had to reverse it, but he did. Alex promptly tapped out, and Belle jumped into the ring as soon as the referee raised Daniel's hand and Justin announced him the winner. She immediately hugged him and kissed his cheek; and even though this was scripted, I was still seeing red. I hated this part of the storyline, absolutely hated it with a passion... But the fans reacted to it, so it had to be done.
As does this... I thought to myself, running through the ring and proceeding to give Daniel a hellacious beat-down. After curb-stomping his head, I laid down my US title, shoved his face into it and yelled "You're not getting this Daniel! You'll never be the United States Champion!". Then I lofted him up from the mat and set him up for my Skull Crushing Finale. However, he completely reversed the situation and put me in the LeBell lock. I began tapping out like crazy on top of my belt, glaring rather legitimately. The commentators were going crazy, yelling about how my US Title would be on the line at the Night of Champions pay-per-view this Sunday.
Belle had long since backed herself into the corner. I approached her slowly once Daniel had let go of me, and tried to order her out of the ring. Obviously she didn't listen, walking to Daniel's side instead. In that one moment, they looked so much like a couple that it made me sick. She smiled at him and it looked so genuine, so real, that I had to roll out of the ring before I said anything unscripted, no matter how badly I wanted to. Alex followed me out from the ring as Belle and Daniel stood there holding hands in the middle of the ring, looking every bit like love-struck teenagers. Now I honestly didn't know whether they were meant to do that or not, but once again, they looked every bit as convincing as they needed to.
The last thing I heard before ducking behind the curtain was King asking "Apart from the obvious hand-holding in the middle of the ring, what I wanna know about is why Belle's wearing a tiara!", followed by his letting out a hearty laugh. Cole replied "Duuuuuh King, she's the homecoming queen... Though she's got terrible taste in men... But she'll learn better soon enough when Miz destroys that nerd Daniel Bryan on Sunday night!"
"Hand me a fucking bucket!" I snarled once Alex and I were out of sight. Of course I was being sarcastic, though I did feel a slight urge to empty my stomach all over the floor. I couldn't bear to see my sister holding hands with that goof, and if I was to ever find out they had something going on, I would be completely, indescribably angry. Disgusted. Disappointed. Horrified. Daniel was nothing more than a cocky, ignorant, boring, stupid loser. My sister could never date someone like him, I couldn't allow it.
Just over an hour later, long enough after Maryse's segment for us to go out, I went walking to the Divas locker room to talk to my sister before leaving with Maryse. Upon hearing a rather chirpy, excited tone echoing from within, I froze and stood outside the door, as silent as a ninja. The voice belonged to my sister, and I instinctively knew that there couldn't be anybody else with her, as she disliked talking loudly on the phone before others - she felt it was rude. At the sound of the name "Daniel", I almost fainted. She was talking to that second-rate loser, and I wanted to know why so I stayed exactly where I was.
"I packed some of the DVDs we talked about... Oh, and I found out about these super-delicious chips you'd like, I'll try and find some once we get to Vegas" Belle chirped excitedly. Why was she talking about DVDs and going to Vegas with Daniel? Were they planning to get hitched there? I doubted it, but I knew that he lived there and that really pissed me off. Why the fuck would she agree to go home with him? This was so fucked! Shut up Mike! I told myself mentally, remembering that I needed to concentrate on the conversation I was eavesdropping on. My sister was silent for a moment, presumably as Daniel responded, and then laughed softly. "Oh that's no problem, we have plenty of time apart from that... I have one before lunch tomorrow anyway, and others might pop up during the week... Considering there's a huge show coming up" she said. I knew she was referring to her own interview for , so I assumed Daniel had one later in the week. There was another silence, and then I almost punched the wall in anger.
"I'm SO excited, this is going to be the coolest road-trip ever! I'll meet you at the restaurant just before twelve, alright?" she babbled girlishly, saying goodbye and then hanging up. I bolted about a hundred meters down the hallway so she wouldn't find me, and then pulled out my phone.
"Hey babe, I'm just about ready for dinner now. Gotta take care of something though, I'll be outside in 15. Love you!" I texted Maryse, stuffing my phone back into my pocket and skulking down the maze of hallways until I found Vince's office. If anyone could put a stop to this, he definitely could. As soon I saw the door, I barged right in, not even caring if I pissed him off. I didn't care about much else right now apart from stopping that road-trip.
"Vince!" I shouted, slamming the door behind me. I noticed him muttering something into his phone and then hanging up, putting the phone down on the desk. "Mike, what is it?" he replied, his annoyance seeping into every word. He was mad at my disturbance - and rightly so - but i still didn't care. "Dod you know about this?" I shouted.
"Know about what?" he replied, raising a suspicious eyebrow at me. I immediately dropped down into an empty chair, holding back the urge to let out a lengthy string of curse words. "My sister and that idiot Daniel are going on a road-trip together... He's taking her to Vegas, and God knows where else they're going" I moaned, my hands curling up into tight fists around the chair's armrests.
Vince was silent for a moment, shaking his head as he looked at me in disbelief. "Mike... As a matter of fact, I did..." he replied, shocking the utter hell out of me. This road-trip was Vince's idea? But why? I asked him this, and he laughed heartily.
"Well, you already know what's going to take place on Sunday night..." he started. Don't remind me... I thought to myself, laughing bitterly. I wasn't overly upset about dropping the title - not even to Daniel - as it was just part of the business, but knowing what was going to happen between him and Belle... I didn't want to have to see it, for fear it would translate to real-life. "I thought it might be a good idea for Daniel and Belinda to spend a few solid days together, in order to make them look more real and convincing, and possibly film a short segment to use on Sunday night before your match" he said.
I sucked in a deep breath. Ugh... I thought, grimacing awkwardly. I hated this idea - in fact it was one of the worst I'd ever heard. But I had to admit he had a point. Vince had come up with this storyline because he thought the fans would get into it, and if people saw them traveling together, they'd get talking. And what did talking create? Excitement and curiosity. That was what sold tickets and kept people watching our shows.
"Okay, I understand... But you should know that I'm not happy about this at all. I just hope you know that if anything bad happens to her, I will be holding you both responsible" I said, trying not to raise my voice - that wouldn't help anything. I just couldn't shake the sense of foreboding I had about their road-trip.
"Yes, yes, I know... Now, if you don't mind..." Vince rambled hastily. I took that as my cue to leave, checking my phone to see a message from Maryse in response to the one I sent earlier. My lips stretched into a paper-thin smile as I walked out of the building, gritting my teeth as I went.
Fucking Vince, fucking Daniel... I felt like the whole world was against me wanting someone better for my sister. But I was resigned to this cruel twist of fate now. Daniel and Belle would be traveling together until Night of Champions, and there was nothing I could do about it.
[[A/N: So the million dollar question is: Will Mike ever find out that Vince was lying? What will happen during the road trip and at Night of Champions? All those answers will be revealed in the next few chapters! Yay :D
Feel free to take a look at my other stuff, and please review so I know what you thought, what you think might happen, anything! xD Toodles xoxo]]