Okay guys, so I want to apologize for taking such a long time to get this chapter out. I had a lot of trouble writing it for some reason and I was starting to run out of ideas. So hopefully I didn't lose any readers and all of the fans of this story will continue to read it. And thankyou to all the people who commented on the last chapter. You know who you are! Also, the next chapter is going to take a while because the ending of school and all of my state tests I have to take. Not to mention the five hours of homework I get every night. I swear teachers think I have no life! But anyway, sorry for that little rant, I hope you like this chapter and I did my best.

The visit to North Carolina had been short but Jeff was still grateful that he was able to see his father and spend some alone time at his own home. But as quickly as it had arrived, the quicker is disappeared into the past as it was time to move on to the next city. Jeff had boarded the plane early in the morning by himself, with bags in hand, heading back to Madison Square Garden. It had passed by like a breeze and he now found himself, once again sitting in an empty hotel room staring at the ceiling wondering what Maria was doing.

Maria sat on her hotel room floor, surrounded by her closest friends. The usual spunky and hyper red head sat unusually quiet as her friends prepared her for her date with Dolph. Maria wiggled her toes in admiration as Candice finished painting them hot red to match the tight dress Melina had bought her earlier. Kelly sat on the bed and gently curled her hair to perfection. Soft tresses cascaded down Maria's back and Maryse clipped a diamond barrette into the red mane to add a glamorous affect. Maria wasn't the only diva in the room that was quiet. Eve sat on the couch, squarely placed to the side of the room staring at the carpet. They had become close after their talk in the bathroom that one evening. Eve couldn't help but sigh at the sight. She knew Maria still loved Jeff but she bit her tongue and decided not to say anything on the subject.

"So how do I look?" Maria stood in front of a full length mirror and stared at her reflection. She ran her hands down her torso and smoothed out the deep creases. The sudden noise coming from the Diva snapped Eve out of her own thoughts and her eyes glanced up upon the beauty.

"Hot!" Kelly smiled and touched up the latest curl that bounced to perfection.

"I have to say we did a pretty damn good job." Melina smiled and high-fived Maryse.

Candice faked a smile and leaned her chin on the taller girl's shoulder, "He won't be able to take his eyes off of you Maria." She didn't exactly agree with the date but as long as Maria was happy, Candice would be as well.

Maria giggled and leaned her head against Candice's, "You think so?"

"I know so," Candice laughed and looked at Eve, "Don't you think so Eve?"

Eve smiled but hesitated to answer. All eyes in the room were on her, if she wanted to say something, now would have been the perfect timing, "You look gorgeous Maria," She sucked in a deep breath, "But…"

"But what?" Kelly screeched out of shock, "She looks hot. That is all that matters."

"No, it's not all that matters." Eve retorted harsher than she meant to sound.

"Then what else is more important? May I ask?" Maryse questioned.

"How about the fact that she doesn't have any feelings towards Dolph at all." Eve crossed her arms and looked at each girl in the room. Purposely avoiding all and any eye contact with Maria.

"Eve do not start." Melina glared at the larger brunette after glancing at Maria. She stood there; blank as if she had just seen a ghost. When Maria finally gained her voice back from the realization of the fact Eve just stated, she quickly thought of an excuse to leave.

"I have to go," Maria looked at the clock on the wall and grabbed her purse, "Dolph said he was going to pick me up at 8." The clock had just struck six o'clock p.m. She shook her head and quickly walked out of the room.

"Now look what you did Eve!" Kelly lightly punched her arm and looked at the equally annoyed diva.

Maria walked swiftly down the hall way, occasionally tripping over her high heels. The thought of actually going out with some one other than Jeff had finally gotten through her head, and now she wasn't so sure if she could go through with it. Sure Dolph was extremely good looking and he seemed sweet enough, but he couldn't compare to Jeff. Maria wasn't sure where she was going, considering her date didn't start for another two hours, but she needed to get out of that room. She decided against going to some one else's room and continued to walk until she ended up in a small secluded park outside of the hotel. It was full of lights and flowers. Stone carved fountains sprouted water from a hidden pipe that had Maria in complete awe over the sight.

"You know, a pretty girl shouldn't be outside all alone." Maria gasped at the sudden invasion of her privacy and turned around to see Dolph leaning against a wooden bench. A smirk placed across his lips and a pink rose in hand. She smiled and walked towards him.

"Well, I'm not alone anymore." He stretched out his hand and placed the flower in her own hand. A small smile fell upon Maria's mouth as she smelled the flower. It was a kind gesture but the flower was nothing compared to what Jeff use to do.

"That's because I'm here," The smirk grew bigger; "You look beautiful, by the way." Dolph gently kissed her hand and Maria felt the sudden urge to pull it away.

"Thank you." She kindly smiled at him and he took her hand leading her out of the small park.

"So since I see you're already dressed, do you want to start our date a little early?"

"Sure." Maria faked an excited smile and walked down the street, hand in hand with the man that was going to cause more problems than she could have known.

"What I did?" Eve yelled at the other girls in the room, "You are letting her go out with a guy she doesn't care about! You all know she still has feelings for Jeff!"

"He cheated on her!" Melina screeched, "I'm not letting her go out with him again so he can just hurt her again."

"Ughhh!" Eve groaned, "Have you not seen him? Do you not see how miserable he is?"

"Yes I do see how miserable he is! He deserves it." Melina retorted, earning a nod from Kelly and an awkward shrug from Maryse.

"Do you honestly hear yourself Melina?"

"Yea I do hear myself Eve, and I'm glad I do because I'm the only smart one here in this argument because she doesn't have feelings for him anymore."

"So you're telling me that if Cody cheated on you, you wouldn't have feelings almost a short month after it happened?" Eve shot back.

It took a moment for Melina to respond but when she finally did, the answer was obviously a complete lie.

"No, I wouldn't."

"Exactly what I thought you'd say," Eve shook her head and walked rapidly to the door, "I don't want her to get hurt either, and letting her go out with Dolph is exactly what is going to happen." Eve slammed the door harshly and stomped down the hall.

"Can you believe her?" Melina huffed and looked over at Candice who hadn't said a word.

"Yea, I can believe her," Candice sighed, "Because she's right." Candice grabbed her belongings and sped out of the room to follow Eve.

"What?" Melina yelled after Candice, but nothing was uttered by the determined brunette.

"Eve!" Candice continued to run after the Latina and finally caught her while she entered the elevator. Candice stepped into the door, blocking it from being able to close.

"Are you here to argue with me about this too?" Eve questioned annoyed.

"No," Candice shook her head, taking a moment to get her breath back, "I'm not."

"Then why are you here?" She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, obviously confused from the confession.

"Because I think you're right," Candice took in the shocked expression, "He's just going to hurt her and she doesn't need that right now."

Randy had tried to ring Cody for what seemed like the hundredth time. He wanted to do something but do to the younger man not answering his phone, he wasn't getting very far. After about ten minutes of pacing back and forth on the worn out carpet, his phone began to ring, signaling Cody was finally going to answer.

"Hey Randy, you called?"

"Yea I did, about five-hundred times man!" Randy sighed.

"Ok," Cody paused, "So what's up?"

"I want to do something."

"Like?" Cody questioned. Leave it to Randy to be so brief in his discussion.

"I don't know that's why I thought you could help."

The restaurant was crowded when Maria walked in with Dolph. He ignored the line leading to the podium and barged through the mob of people.

"Hey!" "What makes you so special that you get to go to the front?" Maria heard the now angry crowd make the remarks and embarrassment ran through her body like a bolt of lightning. She kept her head down while Dolph talked to the young hostess.

"Two for Ziggler."

The young girl cleared her throat, "I'm sorry sir but you're going to have to wait like everyone else."

"I have a reservation," He paused and looked at the group of people, "Unlike the rest of them." A smirk played upon his features.

"Of course," She flipped through the book and crossed off the name, "Right this way sir."

He rolled his eyes, "It's about time." The hostess shifted uncomfortably and walked to a table that was decorated exquisitely. Dolph sat down and grabbed the menu, leaving Maria standing. She guessed chivalry was dead after.

"Sorry about that," Maria whispered, "Usually he's not like that."

"No problem." The girl gave Maria a warm smile and walked back to the podium while Maria sat down.

"Jeff!" He heard his name being called and loud knocking at the door. He rubbed his eyes and slowly pulled his body up from the bed. It was 8 o'clock; he had guessed he dozed off.

"Jeff! Open the door!"

"I'm coming!" Jeff got up, "Geez." He mumbled under his breathe and unlocked the door. It opened and Eve, Candice and Matt walked into the room.

"Sure, come on in."

"Thanks!" Eve beamed and then turned serious.

"You need to do something!" Candice poked at his chest.

"What?" Jeff rubbed his now aching chest.

"She's on a date with Dolph." Matt stated the obvious while chewing on something.

"Yea I know she is," He sighed, "What do you want me to do about it? It's not like I can stop her."

"Yes you can!" Eve whined, "You know she still loves you!"

"No she doesn't, if she did she wouldn't be with him! She'd be with me."

"Jeff," Eve almost slapped him for his stupidity at times, "She's doing it on purpose!"

"You of all people I thought would figure that one out Hardy!" Candice joined in.

"I don't know," He stopped talking for a minute, "She seems pretty happy with him."

"She's not, she is happy with you."

"Or she was anyway." Matt spoke again and dove to miss the incoming pillow that was aimed at his head.

"Shut up!" Jeff growled and glared at his older brother.

"Sorry." Matt mumbled.

"Okay," Eve broke the tension, "You need to go to the restaurant there at or wait in her room until she gets back." Candice nodded in agreement

"That's going to make me look like a stalker Eve."

"No that is going to make you look like you'd do anything to get her back."

"Where are these waiters?" Dolph groaned impatiently.

"She said she'd be right back Dolph, relax." Maria answered starting to get annoyed at his childish behavior.

"That was forever ago."

"It was five minutes ago Dolph," Maria sighed and kept composed, "Plus it was to go get your drink."

Just then the waitress appeared and placed a glass of liquor in front of him.

"Are you ready to order?" When Dolph nodded the waitress took out a pad of paper, "What would you like?"

"I'm going to have the steak, cooked medium rare with a side of potatoes." Dolph finished and threw the menu towards the waitress.

Maria looked at the shocked woman's face and gave an apologetic smile, "I'm going to have…."

"She's going to have a salad," Dolph interrupted her; "You have to watch you're figure babe. Don't want to gain any more weight."

Maria bit her tongue and nodded at the waitress before she left to fulfill the orders.

Jeff stood awkwardly in the middle of Maria's room. Candice had let him in with the extra key she had given Randy. He wasn't quite sure what to do considering he had no clue what time she was going to be back. He paced back and forth, watched some television and even cleaned up some of the room. To his own surprise, Maria still had a picture of himself in the draw next to the bed and an old t-shirt he had given her when they first started dating. He smiled to himself as he fingered the shirt in his hands. Maybe she wasn't over him completely like he thought.

Throughout dinner was a complete disaster for Maria. Dolph continued his ranting about everything that bothered him and Maria just nodded pretending like she cared. This was the worst date she had ever been on and she was wondering what happened to the sweet and caring side of Dolph.

"Are you listening to me?" Dolph broke Maria out of her day dream.

"Hmm?" She looked at him, "Sorry I lost you there." He nodded and continued to talk making Maria roll her eyes.

"Well it's getting pretty late," He stood up, "Maybe I should take you home."

"Yes please," Maria nodded and stood up as well, "Thank you."

Driving in the car was mostly silent except for the occasional honk of the horn. Maria smiled when they arrived back at the hotel. She couldn't wait for this date to be over and when they reached her hotel room door she could not have been happier.

"So this is your room?" He asked and looked at the dingy, washed out door.

"Yup this is it." She leaned back on her heels slightly.

"I had a really good time." He moved closer to her.

"I had a good time too." Maria faked a smile and back up into the door. A bad move on her part. Dolph was now pressed up against her front, his hot breath lingering in her ear.

"So maybe we should do it again some time." He placed kisses on her neck and cheeks.

Maria struggled to move out of his grip but he only made it tighter, "I really should be in the room, Candice is probably getting worried."

"Don't worry about it," He breathed, "I'm not so sure I want this date to end."

Maria felt uncomfortable, "What do you mean?"

"Open the door and you will find out." He kissed her on the lips and Maria pulled away.

"I think you need to leave Dolph." Maria fumbled with the keys trying to get the door to open.

"Why? What's the matter sweetheart?"

"I don't want to do this." She finally got it open and pushed the door open trying to get inside but Dolph grabbed her arm.

"Where you going?" He tightened his grip and pulled her back into his body.

"Dolph! Stop! You're hurting me!" Maria cried which made Jeff jump to full alert inside the room. Dolph pushed the door open and dragged Maria into the room, not noticing Jeff. He threw her on the bed and pinned her down.

"Don't worry," He smirked, "I won't hurt you and it will all be over soon." He kissed her once again and she screamed as loud as she could. But do to the intruding lips; her cries were muffled into silence. Maria lied on the bed helpless. She was strong but the man on top of her was stronger and a whole lot bigger than her tiny form. She couldn't help but wish what he said was true.

"Get the hell off of her!" She heard someone scream. Dolph threw her to the side causing her to hit her head against the bed frame. Her vision was slightly blackened.

"You son of a bitch!" Maria heard a crack and assumed it was a bone being cracked. She cringed at the thought.

"You bastard! You will pay for this." Dolph screamed and ran out of the room. Jeff had only hit him one but he had a bloody nose and he was almost sure he had fractured a bone in his jaw. Jeff ran to the aid of Maria. She had a small scratch on her arm and a larger bruise had already formed on her head from the impact of the hit.

"Are you okay?" Jeff touched her body looking for more damage.

Maria rubbed her head, "Yea I'm fine."

"Are you sure Maria?"

"Yes, I'm positive. Thank you" She looked up at Jeff and gave him a genuine smile, "I don't know what I would of done if you didn't stop that."

He smiled, "Well good thing I did then, huh?"

She laughed a little, a sound he had missed, "Why were you here anyway?"

"Well I knew you were on a date with him, and I wanted to make sure you were all right and all." He smiled sheepishly knowing he sounded like the over protective father.

She smiled a sad smile and looked at Jeff again, "Well thank you again."

"It was no problem, I'm just glad I got here on time." He helped her stand up and she brushed herself off. He held her in his arms longer than he should have but reluctantly let her go so he didn't cause more problems.

"Well I'm going to go." Jeff cleared his throat and began to walk out of the room. Maria nodded and watched him walk towards the door, "Jeff?"

"Yes?" He turned his head and looked at her.

She took a deep breath and was going to tell him how she honestly still felt but chickened out, "Umm…thanks again."

With that he nodded and walked out of the room.

So what did you think? Not my best work right? Please tell me what you honestly think. Your opinions are what keep me going with this story. Read/Review!

1) Should Maria tell Jeff how she feels?

2) How is Candice going to tell Maria she is pregnant?

3) Should Jeff give up or keep fighting for her?

Let me know your thoughts!

XOXO

HardyOrtonLuvr714