Disclaimer: I own nothing associated with the WWE.

Author's Note: Hey! Thanks to Hailey Egan, x0allisonqt0x, jcott3, hardygirl87, SILENTMUSINGS, purplelygoodnes (you'll get your Miz line, lol!), dumwolf, myers1978, and ThePinkyPop for your reviews! You guys are awesome! Well, this is the last chapter. Thank you all for sticking with me! Glad you all enjoyed it! So, here we go with the aftermath.

Chapter 10

"When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears

When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears

And I held your hand through all of these years

But you still have all of me..."

-"My Immortal," Evanescence

Three weeks later...

Maria sighed as she stood outside of the room Vince McMahon was using in the arena, quickly knocking on the door. That night had been one of the hardest of her life since the actual bombing, though there hadn't been a day that had gone by where her dreams weren't haunted and her waking thoughts weren't plagued by memories. The Smackdown show that evening had been dedicated to the superstars that had lost their lives in the attack with her and the rest of the survivors standing in the ring together in tribute. To her, it was a miracle she made it through that night.

"Come in."

When she heard the chairman's gruff voice, Maria closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she pushed open the door. She looked at Vince sitting at the table sadly, seeing the picture of him and both of his children that he always brought with him. She knew that learning his son was the one behind the bombing had been exceptionally painful for him, especially since he was going to be spending almost the rest of his life in prison.

Vince watched her carefully close the door behind her. "So, you've made up your mind?" he asked. "This is what you want to do?"

Maria nodded. "Yes," she answered quietly.

"All right." Vince grabbed the crutches that were leaning against the table and pushed himself to his feet. "I need you to sign this release form."

The diva nodded, brushing her hair back from her face as bent over and picked up the pen, signing on the line. "Here you go," she said, holding the paper out for him to take.

Vince sighed as he took it from her. "We're sad to see you go, Maria," he told her quietly.

Maria felt a thin line of tears form in her eyes. "I know, and it makes me sad to go," she replied. "But with everything that's happened and with a child on the way, I just can't do it."

"I understand. You don't have to explain it to me." Vince then let go of one of his crutches and pulled her into a quick hug. "I wish you all the best. And if sometime in the future you'd want to consider coming back, a door will be open for you somewhere."

"I'll keep that in mind," Maria muttered, wiping a stray tear from her cheek as she smiled up at the chairman. "Bye, Vince."

"Bye, Maria."

Her smile lingering, Maria turned and left the room, stopping with surprise when she almost walked into someone as she shut the door behind her. "Hey, Jeff."

"Hey." Though he tried to be cheerful, there was something off about the younger Hardy, but she couldn't blame him. She couldn't imagine what it had been like to find out his own brother had been involved with the bombing and was now sitting in prison for it, though his sentence was much lighter than Shane McMahon's. It was going to be a long road ahead for the brothers. His green eyes saddened a bit as he looked down at her. "So, you went through with it then?"

Maria slowly nodded. Jeff had been one of the only people she told about her plans. "Yep, I resigned," she confirmed. "I just can't do it right now with everything..."

"I know," Jeff muttered, placing his hand on her shoulder comfortingly. "Smackdown's losing a wonderful diva."

"Well, WWE hasn't been the same since the Charismatic Enigma left," Maria replied with a smile.

Jeff laughed a little before he sighed, pulling Maria close to him in a tight hug. "You have my number," he told her quietly. "Keep in touch, okay, Maria?"

"Of course," Maria assured him, being careful of his foot brace and wrapped arm. "I'll talk to you later, okay, Jeff?"

"Okay, sounds good. See you later."

Maria smiled, walking past him down the hall. She was just anxious to get out of the arena and try to sleep, though she knew it wouldn't be easy. She passed by Drew and Taryn, who were on their way to the locker rooms, and got hugs from both of them before continuing on her way, not in the mood to stay and talk. If she had to explain to another person what she was doing, she feared she would break down. Her emotions were a mess, and she felt like she was leaving a big part of herself behind her the closer and closer she got to the doors.

When Maria reached the lobby, she saw that Adam was sitting at one of the tables in the food court, mindlessly playing with an empty cup. She stopped at the base of the stairs and watched him for a moment. No one knew exactly what had happened between him and Jay in the hotel other than Adam would have died if it hadn't been for the other man since he wasn't telling anyone, though she did know that the ECW champion's sentence had been drastically reduced since it was argued he had killed Evan to protect Taryn and he hadn't been involved in the actual bombing. Shane and Evan had been the two that set the bomb off, and after his next court date, there was a good chance that Jay would get off on probation.

Wanting to make sure he was okay, Maria slowly walked over to him. "Hey, Adam."

Adam stopped what he was doing and looked up at her. "Hey, Maria."

"You all right?" Maria asked, sitting down in the chair across from him. She wasn't used to seeing the Rated R Superstar so quiet and withdrawn.

"Yeah," Adam answered casually, looking down and starting to play with the cup again. "I'm just thinking about what happened. I know it's been three weeks, but every night, I wake up and panic because I think I'm still trapped inside that hotel..."

Maria's eyes saddened. "I know what you mean," she murmured. "I go through the same sort of thing. I know it'll get easier to deal with in time, but now..."

Adam nodded, knowing exactly what the red-haired diva was talking about. They didn't say anything for a long moment until Maria finally sighed. "Well, I'm gonna go and try to get some sleep," she said as she slowly stood up. "If you ever want to talk..."

"I'll give you a call," Adam finished as he got to his feet as well, giving her a one-armed hug.

Maria smiled and left the food court, crossing the lobby and pushing open the front door as she stepped out into the night. There she found John leaning back against the railing, his bags at his feet. "Waiting for a ride?" she asked, going down the couple of stairs to join him.

"Yeah," John answered. "Mike wanted to be here for the tribute, so we carpooled. Plus, with my back, he didn't think I should be driving."

"Still wearing the brace for that fracture, huh?" Maria said, remembering what she had told him about the injury.

John nodded. "It'll come off in a couple more weeks, but it'll take a little more time than that before I can start wrestling again," he explained with a sigh. "I'm just glad it's over..."

"I hope it is," Maria muttered, hoping that with the tribute that night, she could finally rest a bit more peacefully. "I need sleep..."

"I haven't gotten much either," John replied. "I've been having nightmares..."

Maria sighed, knowing that he had been the one to see Beth get killed and was then almost killed by Evan, but she knew she couldn't fully understand how traumatizing that was. But before she could offer any words of comfort, a dark car pulled up, and Mike Mizanin stepped out of the driver's side.

"Ready to go, John?" he asked, opening the trunk for him.

"Yep." John turned to Maria, giving her a hug. "I'll talk to you later. Good night."

"Okay. You too." Maria hoped she wasn't hurting him as she hugged him back, but John seemed to be okay as he released her and picked up his bags, walking to the car and putting them in the trunk. Mike closed it, waving to Maria as he got back in behind the wheel and John got in the passenger side beside him. Then, he began to drive away.

Once the car was out of sight, Maria walked down the sidewalk and sat down on a bench that was under a tree in front of the arena. She looked up at the star-filled sky above her with a heavy sigh, a thin line of tears forming in her eyes. After all that had happened and the decisions she had to make, she was both physically and mentally exhausted. All that she wanted to do was sleep and forget about everything...

Then, she jumped and gasped when her hooded sweatshirt was draped gently over her shoulders, and she quickly looked up at the man behind her, not having heard him approach.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Phil muttered, sitting down on the bench next to her and wrapping his arm around her.

Maria slipped her arms into the sweater's sleeves before sighing and resting her head on Phil's shoulder, wrapping her arms around him to hold him close. She had come so close to losing him when he had been shot by Shane that for some time, she thought she had. But fortunately, the bullet had missed any vital organs, and he was on the way to making a full recovery.

Phil sighed as he placed his chin on top of her hair. "So you got your release worked out?" he asked.

"Yeah," Maria answered quietly. "I'm sorry, Phil, but I can't..."

"Hey, it's okay, Ria. You have nothing to apologize for," Phil told her, kissing he head. "After all, you didn't know the bombing was going to happen, none of us did. We didn't know about this child..."

"I know." Maria took Phil's hand tightly in hers as though she had no intention of letting it go, blinking her tears away when she found that was all she could say. She only hoped that all she was feeling was getting across. "I love you, Phil."

Phil gently tilted up Maria's face so she was meeting his hazel eyes, running his thumb lightly but lovingly over her cheek. "I love you too, Ria," he murmured before meeting her lips in a deep kiss.

They parted after a moment, and Maria laid her head back on his shoulder. "Phil?"

"Yeah, Ria?"

Maria sighed heavily, looking up at him again. "You'll still always be here, right?" she asked quietly, uncertainty in her tone. "Like you said?"

Phil looked at her sadly as he sighed, running his hand through her hair in a comforting way. After all that happened, he wasn't surprised by her fear. "Of course I will be, Ria," he told her, kissing her again before pulling her close to him. "Always."

The End

Author's Note: So, that's it! I hope you guys enjoyed it! Thanks again for sticking with me through this story, I'm glad you liked it! Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated. Thank you!