A/N: I know, I know, lack of updates is max sucky. But here she is, in all of her glory. In other news, I sure do love playing games and switching between the main and background stories, don't I? I know what the deal between Chelsea and Dean is, do you?

Butterflies.

Thousands of butterflies.

That was the only thing that Chelsea could come up with as how she was feeling as she stood facing the black curtain, her heart thumping harder in her chest. In just a matter of minutes, she'd be wrestling again for the first time in a long time. She had to repeatedly tell herself that this was nothing; that she'd done this a hundred times before. She'd even fought some of the most established women during her run on NXT. Summer Rae was a dandelion in a field of roses; undoubtedly one of the least talented in-ring stars she'd ever competed against. Even the WWE Universe trusted that Chelsea Sweetly could easily outsmart her opponent on Smackdown.

That still didn't calm her nerves. Roman had been a sweetheart, popping into the diva's locker room much, much earlier in the evening when it was still vacant. He gave her a single yellow rose, wishing her all the luck in the world for her grand re-debut. He had assured her that her promo had gone over perfectly on Monday Night Raw, and the beginning of her rivalry with the ladies of Total Divas was making its rounds all over social websites.

"No matter who says what, Chels, you deserve to be here. You worked hard as hell to be here. You've earned this."

With that, Roman smushed his lips against hers, using his upper body strength to pull Chelsea as close as possible.

"I love you, Chels," he muttered between kisses.

She was pulled back to reality as Summer Rae took her place opposite of her, a strange and sadistic smile already on her face. She held both her hands up to her neck, mocking Chelsea and hinting that she'd "choke."

She's just jealous, Chelsea thought to herself. Still, the gesture didn't help out her nerves and Summer's ridiculous music started piercing through her ears. She was probably dancing down to the ring now, her blonde hair whipping back and forth with confidence, her bright and sunny ring attire catching everyone's attention with the fuschia and yellow tie-dye.

Chelsea looked down again, frustrated at her own ring attire. Okay, so it wasn't that bad; but nothing at all the glamorous pieces that she had been wearing while announcing. She adjusted her black spandex tights, making sure the ridiculous cut-outs on them weren't showing anything they shouldn't. The stylist had gone full-blown late Victoria style, her tights showing skin in some pretty risqué places. Her butt was plastered with hot pink and glittered script, reading "XOXO, CS."

She was glad she'd gotten her way with her shirt, though. They'd wanted to put her in a sports-bra like tank top, but she'd battled her way through that one. She didn't want to show off her nasty scar on live television. Instead, the hemline was lowered and her spandex tights became sluttier.

Whatever.

She took a deep breath as Summer did a short promo in the ring. She was talking about how she had established herself both in dance and in-ring, and how it was such a joke that Chelsea Sweetly thought she could call a few matches and think she deserved to go toe to toe with someone as well-known and prestigious as herself.

Please.

She was given the thumbs-up by one of the audio technicians, and her music began to strum. Cutting Summer Rae's rant off, she casually strolled down to the ring, her footsteps in tune with the music.

"Take me, I'm alive. Never was a girl with a wicked mind; but everything looks better when the sun goes down."

Chelsea snuck a glance at the fans, who seemed to be engaged in her video. She would have to thank everyone later for pulling together such a spectacular display—she looked fierce as all hell on the titantron.

She now stood on the apron, watching Summer intently through her eye makeup, hoping she looked as intimidating as she felt. The cameraman was almost up her ass as he was shooting the writing across her tights. God damn, personal bubble, dude!

But she quickly turned on her heel, leaning back against the ropes as if she were relaxing. She blew a quick kiss to the fans and flipped over the top, landing perfectly on her feet. She was certain that Dean would blow a gasket later—blah blah blah, don't get injured on your entrance trying to be a show-off. But she had to make a statement; and that she did.

The crowd had a pretty decent response, much like the response AJ got when she skipped her way to the ring. She was happy to see she already had a pretty fair following, and noticed someone in the crowd held up a sign that said "I STAND WITH CHELSEA."

Summer rolled her eyes, whipping her hair behind her as she turned away from Chelsea like she was going to walk out of the ring. Chelsea, however, caught the Barbie's elbow and wiggled her finger, mouthing "I don't think so," as she pulled her across the apron and into the post for a mad Irish whip.

Summer sold it really well, whining about how bad her back hurt. It probably actually did, but she could ice it later. Right now, they had a show to put on.

Chelsea ran at Summer, who was lounging in the corner. In a sudden burst of momentum, she was airborne, landing a heel kick against Summer's chest.

The fans cheered, and Summer slumped lower, falling to her ass.

"Show off," she muttered as she played possum.

"I'm just getting started," Chelsea yanked her up by a hand, Summer now teetering in her white boots. She kicked her in her bare stomach, and Summer was now doubled over. She was setting up the fame-asser.

But Summer moved out of the way, and Chelsea fell down the apron. As the bitch that she was, Summer pointed and laughed at her opponent, and the crowd booed her. Chelsea had hit the mat hard, and she was sure her ass was going to bruise.

In one quick sweep of her arm, Summer was no longer standing, either. Chelsea scrambled to her feet, dropkicking Summer so that she was flat on her back.

She started up the turnbuckle, knowing full-well that she was queuing the end of her match. She had debated with Stephanie when she'd found out her debut was going to be cut super-short. But Steph had assured her that her match would be a teaser, showcasing just enough to make the fans want to see more of what she could produce.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the pink and black on the stage. She looked up as the Total Diva's crew got a huge crowd reaction. Natalya was in the center, and the Bella twins stood on either side of her in matching baseball-style ring attire. Eva Marie came from the back next, followed by Cameron, Naomi, and the newest woman who had signed up for the next season, Rosa.

The pack slowly made their way down the ramp, almost like a wolf pack scouting out their prey. Chelsea was surrounded, and everywhere she looked, there was yet another Total Diva.

All of the women now surrounded the ring, cheering for Summer Rae to get up. She caught Nat's eye, and started yelling to her.

"What, Summer needs you guys to win this match?" she spat, faking her frustration the best she could.

"She would win anyways, we're just her insurance policy," Natalie smirked, beginning to climb up the ring apron. The referee yelled at her to get down or she'd be sent to the back, which Natalie obeyed. Dropping down to the floor, she pretended to be innocent.

Chelsea turned her focus back to her match. Summer was up again, and Chelsea ran to the ropes to use them as leverage.

Natalie caught her ankle, and she hopped for a moment, not allowing herself to fall.

She turned and yelled at her former friend, only to be caught by a painful, stinging hook from Summer.

Bitch. That was pretty real.

Now, Eva Marie was on the apron, clapping and encouraging Summer, who was holding Chelsea by her red curls. She gave her a chop across her chest, sending her stumbling backwards to the ringpost.

Eva Marie now held Chelsea's hands so that she was trapped, Summer wailing on her, sending her fists flying.

"Hey, you!" the referee pointed at Eva Marie, who let Chelsea's hands go. She put her hands up in innocence. Chelsea stumbled to the center of the ring, tipping over. The Total Diva crew cheered as Summer Rae took a bow. The fans, on the other hand, were booing again.

"Let's light it up…!"

The crowd quickly shifted as they now cheered. AJ stood on the stage, the Divas championship belt up on her shoulder, a microphone in her other hand. She wore her Love Bites t-shirt and ripped shorts, her knee-high Chucks accentuating her tiny little legs.

She hushed the fans, giving them a cute, evil smile.

"You know, I don't know what it is about you guys," she started. "A while back, I dropped quite a pipebomb on you guys, calling you out for what you really were. Talentless. Fake. Lucky."

The crowd began to cheer again, a small CM Punk chant breaking out somewhere in the back.

AJ smiled again, looking down at her feet as her fiance's ever-loyal fanbase still cheered for him, despite the fact that he was certainly retired.

"When I see you all in the ring, I can't help but laugh. Summer Rae is scheduled to fight against my friend here. Total Divas? Try Total Cheaters! How much offense has she really had, without help?"

Chelsea lay still in the center of the ring, hopefully doing a decent job of pretending she'd gotten her ass rocked by Summer. She could feel a few scratches by her left ear, but otherwise, she didn't hurt at all. She was energized.

The reality stars started yelling down the ramp at AJ, who obviously couldn't hear a word they were saying.

'The funny thing is, none of you have changed. You don't hold a candle to me, and still don't deserve to lace up my Chuck Taylors. And now, you don't even deserve to buy Chelsea's eyeliner.

"You think you have it all? What do you really have? You don't like each other much. You don't know what it's like to be divas champion. You don't know what it's like to work your ass off to be where you are. You. Have. Nothing."

AJ was then joined on the stage by Tamina, her arms crossed and a solemn look stretched across her face. Layla El joined them next, followed by NXT star Emma, and a tall, ferocious darker woman who, much to Chelsea's disappointment, was definitely Alicia Fox.

"We deserve to be here, do you?"

With that, AJ threw her microphone down, leading her entourage down the ramp. Chelsea was at her feet now, but everyone was too preoccupied to notice. She whirled her opponent around quickly, catching her with a clothesline. Summer was down, and Chelsea scrambled to the top turnbuckle, blowing a kiss to the crowd, then winking at the other Total Divas, who were now definitely paying attention. She jumped, and she felt like she was flying.

Her elbow connected with Summer Rae's sternum, and she quickly stretched her into an uncomfortable finishing move; Sweet Dreams.

Summer tapped almost immediately, and Natalie signaled her followers into the ring. Now, Chelsea was surrounded. The women closed in on her, and now Natalie was in her face, jabbing her finger into her collarbone, sending her further and further back into the corner.

But in a flash, Tamina had Natalie by her hair. Natalie whipped around, starting to say something about how it wasn't nice to pull hair, before Tamina caught her a neat, quick judo kick to her chops.

The total divas slid quickly out of the ring after that, all talking trash to the remaining stars. AJ put her sneakered foot gently on Natalie's chest, making a silly muscleman pose.

Tamina and Layla raised Chelsea's hands up in the air, congratulating her on her first victory. The crowd reaction was way better than anyone had predicted. Turns out, it wasn't just the women in the locker room who were sick of Natalie and her cronies. This had turned into an epic battle of Us Vs. Them, with AJ as the unofficial leader.

"You did great, kid," Alicia Fox said to her, clapping her on the back and sliding outside the ring.

Chelsea and her allies left the ring first, the Total Cheaters still around the ring, yelling obscenities. Chelsea knew that the storylines were going to get a whole lot more personal, and for that; she was afraid. But right now, she saw huge potential for herself. She felt finally, after all her huge struggles in the past, she'd finally changed her life for the best. She was climbing to the top of the mountain.

"You're lucky for getting called up to the main roster," Dean had said to her. "Aside from Lita and Mickie, the women's division blows."

"I know it. I really need to work hard to prove that I belong there just as much as they do. But what about you, when are you going to join Vince McMahon's brainwashed army?"

She watched as Dean shrugged. "They really want me to kick it up a notch in the indies, first. Sometimes I worry that I'm not focused enough, got my mind on other things too often. But I don't think I'd change that for the world. Make it big, or help the person I love more than life itself? More than wrestling? It's a no-brainer, really."

Snapping out of her memory, she now sat opposite of Dean in the Shield's locker room. He had written down a short list of things that she could improve on, but she was still too hyped to listen much. Chelsea generally was able to take her former friend seriously, but for some reason, she was having a tough time today. Did he throw away his beliefs and morals just to make it big? Did he use people he cared about as stepping stones, not caring about how they felt? The latter at least, she really thought so. The proof was sitting behind those cast iron gates back in California.

"Chelsea, you're not listening to me."

She flitted her eyes to meet his, a stern gaze locked in.

"Do you ever regret it?" she found herself asking, her voice dripping with venom. She rarely had enough balls to bring up the past with Dean, since she really didn't know how he'd react. That, and she still was extremely hostile towards him, still aching for answers.

"Chelsea…" he said slowly, putting his paper down. "You know this isn't the time or place to talk about it."

"Then when is, Dean? When are you going to look me in the eye and say that you fucked up?"

"You told me yourself; it's not you I have to apologize to. And you're right."

"Was it because you wanted to be more famous? Because you wanted to wrestle the big dogs, shoot to the top along with people like Cena or Orton?"

Dean laughed now, which only aggravated the woman more. She could see that his anger was boiling now, and she had struck a nerve. "Do you see me fighting in main events Chels? No, you don't. I'm here because I deserve to be here. Just like you. Do you really think I did what I did to get a leg up in the company? If you do, that's a load of bullshit. I regret it every day, every moment, and every second. Do you think Marissa is my dream girl? Absolutely not. But I'm sticking with her because I know I deserve to be unhappy, since I will never be able to see my dream girl again!" Dean stood up, his face red, leaving her sitting alone in the locker room.

She put her hands in her face, focusing on the cool metal of the steel chair she was sitting on seeping through the cut-outs of her attire. She hadn't meant to piss her trainer off so badly, and maybe she should've approached the topic better. They never really did sit down and talk about what happened or why, although she supposed it was easier that way.

Both of them still carried a lot more hurt than she ever thought possible.

The door swung open, Seth and Roman both bouncing off the walls. They had an epic tag team match against Luke Harper and Erik Rowan of the Wyatt Family, so both of them were high on adrenaline.

"Hey, there's the girl!" Seth slid where Dean had just been sitting, giving a goofy grin to cheer her up.

"What's wrong, sweet cheeks? You have no reason in the world to be sour," he extended a hand to her, but she shied away.

"I kind of pissed off Dean," she explained, giving a weak and watered-down version of why he was storming down the arena hallway angrily.

"Dean's always got his panties in a bunch," Seth told her knowingly. "It's that stupid girl. He doesn't even like her that much."

Roman jerked his head up. "Knock it off, Seth, of course he does."

Seth rolled his eyes. "Okay, if you say so. When you two lovebirds are sleeping by each other, I have to sleep opposite of Big D. You know what he does? Mutters shit in his sleep. He doesn't talk about the wicked witch. He's always bringing up some other name. Alice, maybe? Allison?"

Chelsea froze, her heart pumping ice through her veins.

"Allison? Doesn't ring a bell," Roman said back, coming over to Chelsea and running his hand through her hair.

Of course it doesn't, Chelsea thought to herself.

She stood up abruptly, catching the two men off-guard.

"I really need to get changed," she said lamely. She turned to Roman.

"My brother comes home for the weekend. Still coming home with me?"

Roman confirmed that he was. Chelsea had to find her phone, pronto. She texted Toby quickly, telling him to call when he was finished exchanging pleasantries with the rest of the family.

She had to make sure he put all of her papers and newspaper articles in her file cabinet. Maybe pick up a few things. Hell, maybe she'd ask him to buy some orange juice or something to put in the refrigerator, just so it looked like she did more than sit and cry over unchangeable events after her release from the rehabilitation center.

Except, of course, after she'd gotten the news, all she did was cry. All she did was curse God and wish it wasn't true.

Part of her even wished it had happened to her.

Chelsea turned her shower on, letting her mind go crazy again. All she wanted was to move on from such a fucked-up past. Between Dean, rehab, Jeff, the WWE…NXT…Total Divas…she was exhausted. And as much as she wanted to come clean about everything she'd gone through, it wasn't necessarily her heartache to reveal. She'd been truthful about the drugs, and Jeff Hardy, rehab, even. But the missing link was Dean.

And as it looked right now, he was in serious denial. He was never going to take responsibility for his role in perhaps the worst tragedy she'd ever encountered.

But he should. She would've never gotten into the car if she wasn't going chasing after the love of her life.

The love of her life that had broken her heart, her trust, and stolen her future.

It was difficult to look past that and carry on with life normally. It only solidified Chelsea's belief that it didn't matter if you were a good person or not; you would be taken away from people who loved and cared about you at an inconvenient time.

She washed her hair now, slowly calming herself down. She began thinking of Ro again, and of AJ, Tamina, and Seth. At least she had those people with her now. And even though they were not any sort of replacements, they were there for her.

But how long until they weren't, either? She'd already lost Nattie as one of her best and truest friends, Nikki and Brie following her lead. It might be a matter of time until Chelsea Sweetly was once again at rock bottom, sitting in her studio apartment pouring over the same paperwork she'd scoured over minutes before.

She never wanted her life to be like that again.