Wipeout

"Jeez, you okay, Shane?"

"Yeah...fine," he said, a tad irritated, rubbing the back of his neck to soothe the muscles. The premiere episode of WWE Superstars was officially over, with the crew setting up for Raw, with Shane McMahon having just had a battle against Legacy member Cody Rhodes. However, in hitting the Coast to Coast after he had been disqualified, he had slipped on the top rope and while he did manage to have at least a foot connect with the trashcan, he hit his head pretty good on the way down, leaving him dazed in the ring for a few minutes. He shook his head, hoping to get the irritation out of his tone before he addressed Angelle again. "Are you okay? Steph and Cena were telling me about what happened with your sister last week." She nodded.

"Everything's fine," she said. Shane shook his head.

"She's lucky you didn't kill her," he said. "Stephanie used to pull shit like that on me all the time, and I used to have to go and bail her out. But at least when her teenage years were over, that shit was over, too." She nodded. "She's lucky to have a great sister like you, though, who worries about her."

"Try telling her that," Angelle scoffed. Shane laughed.

"She'll see it eventually. Some people are a bit slower than others." She laughed.

"I'll testify to that." Shane shook his head from side to side, as though to work the kinks out, as Stephanie and Vince approached.

"You all right, Shane?" Stephanie asked. Shane nodded.

"I slipped a bit on the rope, but at least I didn't eat canvas halfway to the mark," Shane laughed. "One of these days that will happen and it will suck worse than anything that has ever sucked before." Stephanie and Angelle laughed.

"That's an impressive feat though, Shane," Angelle said. "I don't think I could clear the ring corner to corner like that." Shane laughed. "How much practice did it take?"

"Not as much as you'd think," Shane replied. "The Shooting Star Press on the other hand..."

"I'm glad you stopped using that," Vince said with a roll of his eyes. "You never could land on your target." Everyone laughed. Shane shook his head.

"You were one of my targets, Dad."

"And you missed."

"Touche." Stephanie looked at Angelle.

"You busy after the show tonight?"

"Um..." Angelle blushed. "Cena and I are going out after the show or something. I think that's what he was getting at earlier..."

"You've been hanging with him a lot lately," Stephanie observed. A wide smile spread across Angelle's face, even though she fought to stop it.

"Look at her – she's blushing like a schoolgirl!" Vince laughed.

"Somebody's digging on The Champ!" Shane laughed.

"I seriously hate you guys," Angelle laughed, a deep scarlet blush crawling up her features. "Seriously, could you announce that any louder, Shane?"

"I probably could," he told her. "But since you were being sarcastic, I probably won't." She laughed, shaking her head.

"Why don't you invite Cena to come out with us?" Stephanie asked. "Batista, Legacy, Beth, Anthony and Lilian are all coming out with us."

"That's quite a group," Angelle said, blinking.

"Come out with us," Shane said. "You know we'd love to have you."

"I'll go ask Cena, all right?" she laughed.

"Well..."

"Okay, okay, I'll go do it now," Angelle laughed.

"Oh, on your way there, can you tell Vickie Guerrero to meet at the Gorilla? Raw tapings start soon and we need her first thing."

"Sure." Angelle made her way down the hallway. She was looking around at the people who were there. There was Michelle talking to Victoria Crawford, who competed under the psuedonym Alicia Fox. She had been drafted to SmackDown in the supplemental draft, and it appeared that Michelle was going to take her under her wing for the time being. Then there was Morrison and Melina hanging out; the word around the locker room that the two had started dating again, which seemed to work out because Morrison had been drafted to SmackDown in the supplemental draft, leaving the old pastures of the ECW stomping grounds. In the distance, she spotted Vickie and Chavo talking at catering.

"Vickie!" she called. Vickie turned her head and stared as Angelle made her way over.

"Hey, Angelle, how are you?" Chavo asked. Vickie gave Angelle a hug.

"I'm doing great," she said. "Vickie, Steph told me to tell you that we need you at the Gorilla because Raw is set to start taping." Vickie nodded and excused herself. Chavo flashed Angelle a smile as she got herself some coffee.

"How are you enjoying WWE life?" he asked. "Now that you've been here for about a month."

"It's great," she said with a smile. "Everybody's been so nice. Even the moodiest guys have been nice to me."

"That's good to hear," he said. "I hate to cut this short, but I've got to run. I've got to go talk to Rey-Rey. I'll see you around. I'm glad you're having fun here." She nodded and he gave her a pat on the arm before he disappeared down the hallway while Angelle continued to make her way towards the locker room of John Cena.

She knocked on the door and waited for him to answer. The technicians were rushing about in a flurry, trying to get ready for Raw before the show started. Finally, after knocking again, he opened the door, the championship slung over his shoulder, dressed in a Hustle, Loyalty, Respect T-shirt with his trademark denim shorts and a U Can't See Me baseball cap. "Hey, Ange," he said. "What's up? Am I needed already?"

"Probably. But this is kind of a personal call about after the show," she said. He cocked an eyebrow.

"Oh? Everything good for later tonight?"

"Oh yeah. Everything's fine. Steph and Shane want to know if we want to go out with them tonight instead." She saw John hesitating over it. He was quiet for a few moments.

"Who else is going?"

"Um...Beth, Legacy, Anthony, Dave, Lilian...and I think Shane and Steph. Or just Shane. I can't remember. They wanted me to ask if we were in." He leaned against the door and gazed down at her.

"What do you think?"

"I think it could be fun, but if you just want to hang out with me tonight, there's no problem with that either. I'm leaving it up to you."

"Thanks a lot. No pressure." He stopped and sighed. "I think it would be fun. Let them know we're in...but you and I...we're going to hang out one on one pretty soon."

"You're on, Champ," she said with a grin. "I have to take my place in the Gorilla, though. I'll see you later." He nodded and she disappeared while he went back into the locker room. Backlash was in two weeks and it was shaping up to be big. Adam and John were going all out to plug their Last Man Standing match and with both titles on the Monday night program, Angelle was pretty sure the plan was for John to lose to Adam. It's not like John cared; it seemed as though he had been happier since Elizabeth had been rescued and it seemed like there was something blossoming between the two of them. He was still consumed by the business...but he wasn't as consumed with it whenever she was around. It was a strange feeling for him, but he couldn't help but wonder if she was aware of this.

Angelle took her place at the Gorilla, where Vickie was already there to make her initial Monday night address. Stephanie looked across to Angelle. "Is he in?" she asked.

"Yeah," Angelle replied. "He's in."

**

Back in his locker room, John was with Paul, Adam, Alvin and Phil. "So, what's up for tonight?" Adam asked John. He shrugged.

"Going out tonight with the McMahons and Ange," John said. "She stopped by before tapings started to ask if I would join them."

"You've been spending a lot of time with her lately," Phil observed. John was a perceptive man; he could sense the hostility resonating from Phil's tone, but knew better than to bring it up in public, in front of everyone. He shrugged.

"She needs friends," he said. "And I happen to be in her area, so we hang out." John and Alvin exchanged odd glances with one another. Phil didn't seem to be happy with his explanation, but became quiet nonetheless while John explained to all of them who was coming out. Adam said he might come out, which prompted Phil to break his silence.

"Maybe I should come out, too," Phil said.

"You don't drink," Alvin said, cocking an eyebrow. He shot a look at Cena.

"Doesn't mean I can't go out and have fun," he retorted. Alvin shrugged at the suggestion and Phil got up and left, murmuring something about having to do a web interview. John cocked an eyebrow.

"What the fuck was that all about?" Adam asked, running a hand through his hair.

"Beats me," John said with a shrug.

"It looks like our favorite little punk has a crush on Steph's assistant," Paul said.

"And he probably feels threatened by your presence," Alvin said with a shrug. "Alpha male thing."

"Get out of my face with that psychology shit," John laughed, shaking his head as he readjusted his cap. "I didn't think that you were into that shit anyways."

"Do you wish there were something more going on?" Alvin asked, ignoring Cena's other comments. John shrugged.

"Angelle's got a lot of shit going on right now," he said, "And the last thing I want is to pressure her into anything. If she likes me, or if she likes Phil, she'll deal with that when she's ready. Until then, I'm her friend, nothing more, nothing less, okay?" The guys nodded.

"But you do like her," Paul stated. John shrugged.

"Have you seen her? I'd have to be a blind man not to think she was gorgeous," he told them. "I mean, a girl that beautiful? It's a shame she's not a Diva so everyone can look at her."

"That's sweet...in a really weird, WWE-sort of way," Adam laughed.

"You've never used that line before, Adam?" Paul teased.

"Fuck no... that one's definitely a Cena Original." The room broke into laughter.

"Keep it in your mind, guys," he told them. "You know, for when you guys finally talk to a girl."

"Ouch," Alvin said, recoiling as though Cena had physically slapped him.

"Total ownage," Adam agreed with a laugh. "So do you really think Phil's gonna go out tonight?"

"Probably. Though I can't imagine how much fun he can have at a club with drunken athletes." He shrugged. "So long as he doesn't make things too difficult for Angelle, he can go wherever the hell he wants."

"You sure are protective of her," Adam said.

"Yeah," Paul agreed. "What's up with that?"

"She's practically a neighbor, all right?" he said. "And like I said, she's got a lot in her head at the moment and I just want to make sure nobody fucks with her." The guys nodded, but Cena could tell they didn't believe him. He left the locker room so he could make it to the Gorilla before he was needed to drive Vickie crazy.

**

They all pulled into the parking lot of a club called Willow's and they merged together, constructing a game plan. Shane and Stephanie were excited to be having a night out with everybody, and Beth, Anthony and Lilian were excited to spend a night out with Angelle, who had her praises sung by not only Stephanie, but John and Phil. Lilian was sure that she and Angelle were going to become good friends, as Mickie James also liked Angelle.

"So what's the game plan?" Stephanie asked as Hunter draped an arm around her shoulder.

"I don't know what your game plan is, but I'm planning to stay semi-sober tonight," Angelle retorted. "I still have to be coherent for SmackDown tomorrow. So no kamikazes, Shane-O." Stephanie nodded in agreement while Shane snickered and the guys groaned in disappointment.

"I'm with Harper here. Tomorrow's going to be busy for the two of us, so if you guys plan on getting drunk, we'll be the designated drivers," Beth replied. Hunter seemed to think it was a good idea, but he didn't plan on drinking very much as well, which had Stephanie agreeing to keep herself in check as well. The Divas agreed to be designated drivers while the men vowed to party harder than they had at WrestleMania. Everyone pretty much agreed with the system, and they began to make their way towards the front entrance..

A car, midnight blue, pulled up in the parking lot, the light flashing on the entire crowd of Superstars. They turned to see the car as the lights faded and Phil got out of the car. Angelle cocked an eyebrow. "Phil? What are you doing here?"

"Ouch," he teased. She shook her head.

"You know what I meant," she replied. "I mean, this is a nightclub. It's not normally a 'straightedge' hangout." Phil grinned.

"I told John earlier that I was going to come out. Didn't he tell you?" he asked, shooting a stare at Cena. If John was fuming at Phil's presence, his demeanor definitely wasn't showing it. But John caught on to what Phil was doing, and he was not impressed. But Angelle wasn't catching on. He wondered if anyone else caught onto it. Dave and Randy looked uncomfortable about it.

"I didn't talk to John much tonight, so he didn't have much chance to tell me anything," she confessed sheepishly. "You know how it is. Life of a WWE employee." Phil cocked an eyebrow at John, who was shaking his head at the gall on the man in front of him. Phil knew she was trying to rationalize just why John didn't say anything. Stephanie and Shane both sensed the tension building between the two men and decided to break the ice a little bit.

"I say let's quit wasting our time inside and go inside," Shane said with a wide grin.

"I'm with you there," Lilian replied. Lilian and Beth walked Angelle into the club, while Phil and John followed close behind, exchanging what seemed like death stares at one another.

**

Angelle was on the dance floor with Lilian, Beth and Stephanie, swaying her head to Britney Spears' "Circus". She looked great; having changed into a black halter minidress with heels that flattered her toned legs. Stephanie was still in her business attire; having left the blazer in the car. Beth was in a pair of black tights with a flowing gold top with a sloping neckline, her blonde hair in curls. She was surrounded by men who were asking her what she was doing with a guy like Santino while Anthony was at the bar, trying to pick up a woman that had caught his eye. Lilian had opted to stay in her ring gear; a white layered miniskirt and a black halter top embedded with jewels. There wasn't a man in the club that wasn't staring at the women, some who were forward enough to approach, others who wanted to completely steer cleer of them out of nothing more than sheer intimidation. And, being the good-natured woman she was, Angelle found she was constantly taking pictures for everybody who wanted to pose with Cody, Ted, Randy, Hunter, Shane, Stephanie or the others.

The Divas were all swaying on the dance floor while the men were off dancing with others, while Hunter stayed back at the table with Dave and Randy, having an unofficial Evolution reunion. Stephanie spotted Hunter staring and waved at him. He waved back.

"So what's up with Phil and John, Ange?" Beth asked. "Do you know?"

"What do you mean?" Angelle inquired, cocking an eyebrow.

"Come on – you seriously didn't notice the way they were looking at each other tonight?" Lilian asked. "They could have killed each other with the looks they were giving each other!"

"I don't know," she said. She shook her head. "I guess I'll have to ask them."

"You'll have to do that separately," Beth told her. "Between those two, it's a miracle there's no blood on the walls yet."

"I wonder why that is," Angelle mused. "They were pretty good friends until recently." Stephanie knew the reason; and judging by the expressions on the other Diva's faces, they understood too. But they knew Angelle had enough going on that they didn't need to crowd her mind anymore. "Circus" faded into "Candyman" and Lilian went off to dance with Cody Rhodes, while Beth dragged Phil off into the middle of the floor.

"Someone's coming for you," Steph said, motioning with her eyes across the floor. Angelle looked and saw John approaching, making his way through the crowd of people, focused on Angelle as though she were the only one in the club. She felt a blush crawling up her features as he approached. Stephanie took off into the crowd, searching for Hunter, when John approached.

"Hey," he said with a smile. He leaned into her ear and whispered, "I never got to tell you this earlier, but you look great."

"Thanks," she said, a wide smile pulling at her features.

"You good for a dance?"

"With you? Always." He put an arm around her waist and drew her close. So close, she could smell his cologne teasing her senses as she rested her head against his chest. He smiled, staring down at her glossy brown hair. She's so beautiful, he thought to himself.

"John, I don't know if I can really thank you for everything you've done for me in the last few weeks...with Elizabeth and everything..."

"Don't think anything of it," John replied. "I was happy to be helpful."

"John, if there's anything I can do to thank you for being so helpful for me, let me know," she said, pulling her head off of his chest to look into his eyes. The shining chocolate orbs seemed to pin him down. He smiled.

"There is something..." he said with a grin.

"What's that?"

"Would you do dinner with me after Raw goes off the air next week?" She was about to say something to him when it dawned on her what he was asking for. Her jaw dropped. Angelle went to speak, but closed her mouth shut, before she finally spoke.

"John Cena, are you asking me on a date?" He contemplated his answer for a few moments.

"Yeah. I guess I am," he said. "If that's okay. No pressure or anything, but would you like to go out for dinner with me?" She smiled.

"I would love that." She rested her head back on his chest and they continued to dance in the club.