SPECIAL NOTE/NOTICE! I will be in the process of moving this weekend. No clue how long it will take or if I'll be able to post at my normal time on Tuesday. I'll be enrolling my kids in a new school that starts on the 31st and getting things situated for all of that (I do so love transferring school records and such). I may have to cut down to posting on Fridays only for a few weeks in order to get all the RL stuff done.

Evie made it through Friday's house show easily, though her legs were beginning to throb by the time they made it to Jonesboro, Arkansas, for Saturday's event. She recognized this particular and distinctive pain as a harbinger of her period, and was glad that she always carried a few sanitary supplies for such occurrences. That afternoon, she begged off visiting the gym in favor of an extended soak in a hot bath, hoping that it would help ease her tightening muscles.

She was just drying off and pulling on her most comfortable panties when her phone rang with Joe's personal ringer. "Hey, Joe."

"Hey, we're about to head back, but we're stopping for food on the way. Want anything?"

Evie paused for a beat. "Taco bell?"

Joe chuckled. "Are you serious?"

"Unless there's a Chipotle, then I want that instead."

"Got a craving, babygirl?"

She sighed and flopped back on the bed before curling on her side in an attempt to relieve the pulling, grinding feeling in her stomach and lower back. "Please don't."

"Don't what?" His voice was obviously confused.

"Don't tease me about girl crap."

Joe snorted. "I would never tease you about that. I have sisters and a very strong fiancée, remember?"

"Right. Forgot about that."

"So, you want something spicy?"

"Uh huh." Evie felt her stomach rumble at the thought of something hot and iron rich. "Steak and black beans, please."

"No problem."

Ending the call, she forced herself to stand up and pull on her long, dark grey tutu skirt and the shirt she'd grabbed to pair with it. The white shirt featured Grumpy Bear from the old Care Bears show with 'Grumpy Day Shirt' written around him as he frowned and stomped through the clouds. She was happy that she remembered to pack a pair of ballet flats, as there was no way she would be able to walk in heels for the next few days.

Combing her hair, she looked up when the suite door opened and the guys walked in holding up the sacks containing their food. "Thanks, guys!"

They ate together, laughing as Colby recounted the behavior of the members of the Crossfit class they had joined that day. One of the women had followed him around, her eyes wide and beseeching as she asked him all sorts of questions about his daily workouts. A man had done much the same with Joe, nearly sitting in his lap and then pretending as if it were an accident. Jon had simply been his usual, surly self, so that no one wanted to be too close to him.

"Yeah," Colby chuckled and knocked Jon's shoulder playfully. "No one wants to pet a dog that might turn and bite their hand."

"Fuck off," Jon raised a hand to push the other man with a smile.

Colby waited a few moments, finishing the last of his burrito, before backhanding Jon's bicep with a sharp thwap. Jon returned the action, chuckling as Colby made a quiet sound of pained displeasure. The soft laughter halted when the next hit was much harder and aimed at his thigh.

"Guys," Evie spoke up from where she was slowly eating her lunch. "C'mon. Just call it a truce and eat."

Ignoring her, Jon tackled Colby out of his chair. Their long legs flew out, knocking into the underside of the light table. The force of the blow sent the table into the air a few inches. While the men's containers were mostly dry – the shells of their burritos doing much to contain any liquid – and their drinks were in water bottles, Evie's burrito bowl and open cup of soda were not. The shifting of the table caused the disposable bowl to skid off the now inclined surface, only coming to a stop when it hit Evie's chest.

Jon sat up at her dismayed sound, followed quickly by an equally disheveled and grinning Colby. One look at Evie's shocked expression, her mouth a perfect 'O' of surprise, along with the sight of salsa and the juices from the beans soaking through her shirt caused them both to burst into laughter. When her eyes flicked up from surveying the damage to meet his own, however, Jon saw tears threatening to fall.

Evie felt the warmth of the food before she even realized the severity of the damage done. Joe had gotten her the hottest, reddest salsa the restaurant carried, and the black beans were also a bit soupy. The resultant mix of liquids meant that her shirt was most likely completely ruined. As she tried to decide what to do, her cramps came back full bore while her stomach complained at not being filled. The whole situation felt suddenly completely out of her control, and as if it was the worst thing that possibly could have occurred.

The mirth of two men on the floor drew her attention, and she looked up from her shirt to see them laughing at her. "It's not funny."

Jon was confused. What the hell was wrong with Evie? "Well, it kinda is."

"No, it's not." Evie scooped the cup and her takeout container off the floor and dropped them carelessly onto the table before standing. She gathered the front of her skirt to act as a sort of pocket to keep the rest of the spilled food from dropping to the floor. "I'm going to bed."

"Princess!"

Refusing to let them see the tears now tracking down her face, Evie shouldered the bedroom door open and locked it behind her. The moment she had the solid wood between her and the table, she hurried into the bathroom. Letting the tears fall, she mourned for her shirt as she tossed it in the trash and brushed off the skirt before rinsing it in the bathtub. By the time she pulled on a light nightgown, not wanting anything constricting her waist, Evie's tears had dried and she knew she had overreacted. Unlocking the door, she read the short note Colby had slid under the door with a smile, and then left it open a crack as she climbed under the covers.

While Evie was locking the bedroom door and heading to the bathroom, Jon was looking at his friends in confusion. "What. The. Fuck?"

"Dude," Joe shook his head and wet a cloth to clean up the floor as much as possible. "Not cool."

Colby threw his trash away. "I'm with Jon on this one."

Joe looked between the two of them with a frown as he dabbed at the spots of red on the beige carpet. "Are you two really this stupid?"

Jon snorted. "Apparently!"

"She's been taking pills every 4 hours for the last two days. She begged off the gym because she wanted to soak in a hot bath. She is having cravings. . .?" When he got nothing but blank stares in response, the big Samoan shook his head. "She's on her period, you assholes!"

"Okay," Jon shrugged. "And?"

While Joe launched into telling Jon how bad things could be, Colby wrote a quick apology note and slipped it under the locked door. Grabbing his bags, he let the others know that he would meet them at the show.

"My mom had really bad ones. I learned to avoid being around her when that happened, so I'm taking off." Colby pulled his hat on, tucking his hair behind his ears.

Jon snorted. "Coward."

"Maybe, but I lived this long." Giving a wave, the two toned man slipped out the door.

Turning to Joe, Jon gave a helpless shrug. "So, what do I do now?"

"What I want to know," Joe said. "Is how the hell you didn't know about her time of the month."

Jon shrugged. "It's not like she told me."

"Okay, but you guys are sleeping together now." Joe shrugged. "Thought it would've come up is all."

Jon frowned and rubbed at the dull ache forming in his forehead. "It's not like that with us."

"Seriously?!"

Jon shrugged. "Taking it slow and trying to do things right."

"Well," obviously deciding to leave the subject alone, Joe cleared his throat. "Evie could either want to eat everything or not be able to stomach anything. Chocolate is a nice thing to have on hand, though some girls want ice cream instead."

Joe shrugged. "I just know that it can be a really emotional time, and that your princess needs someone to take care of her right now, not someone to laugh when she feels like crying."

Nodding, Jon finished his burrito in two large bites and cleaned up the rest of the mess. "So, I'm gonna run and get her a few things. Did you want me to drop you off at the show first, or what?"

"Meh, I'll come with. It's too early to check in for the show, and she could probably use as much quiet as possible."

Leaving the hotel, the two men first stopped at the drug store where Jon bought chocolate bars in different sizes and brands, Midol, and Pamprin.

A middle aged woman reached past the two men to grab a few boxes from the shelf, smiling as she heard them debating the merits of purchasing both major brands in order to cover their bases. "Buying for the girlfriend?"

Jon nodded. "Yeah. No clue what I'm doing."

"Well, you can't go wrong with buying both." The woman turned and was almost to the end of the aisle when she suddenly spun around to face them. "She might like a heating pad or some of those patches that heat up when you wear them."

Thanking her, Joe and Jon went two rows over to find the pull-and-peel heating patches that Evie could wear under her clothes. They then popped into the closest Chipotle to replace what she's missed eating at lunch, knowing that she could warm it in the suite's microwave whenever she woke up, getting the sour cream and lettuce on the side. On the way back to the hotel, Jon spotted an ice cream parlor and ran in for a small container of mint chocolate chip that he could fit in the tiny freezer in the room.

After storing the food, Jon checked on Evie. Finding her asleep, curled up on her side with a pillow hugged to her tummy, he sighed. How could he have been such an asshole to her earlier? Writing her a note, he left it on top of her iPad before heading out to the show with Joe right behind.

O:O:O:O:O:

Evie woke as the sun disappeared behind the distant hills, the sky awash in brilliant pinks and purples. Hobbling to the bathroom, she took care of her immediate needs and then reached for the iPad in its resting place on her bedside table. She smirked when she saw a note from Jon folded just a bit off center on top of it.

I'm sorry I laughed and acted like a jerk. I'm sorry. There's food in the fridge, ice cream in the freezer, and chocolate on the counter. I love you, Jon

Grabbing her phone, she sent him a quick text. You're forgiven.

Warming up her dinner, Evie added the lettuce and sour cream before curling up on the couch to watch Happy Gilmore while she ate. The bag with the chocolate bars also contained some medication that would help her cramps a bit, and some patches that she managed to apply to her lower back and then to her lower abdominal muscles. By the time Jon returned, Evie was stretched out on the bed with pillows under her feet to elevate her legs, knitting and laughing at another movie.

"Hey, Princess." Jon kicked off his boots and kissed her hello.

Evie smiled against his lips. "Hey, babe. How was the show?"

"Good. People are loving this feud." Chastely kissing her once more, he went to take a shower.

Finished with her ice cream, she tossed the empty container before wriggling down under the covers. When Jon finished in the bathroom and stepped through the door to see the shape of her under the covers, he grinned and then slid between the sheets to join her. When Evie curled tightly onto her side, he reached for her hand first.

"Worst part of your day?"

Her voice was slightly pained as she answered. "Freaking cramps and wanting to cry at every stupid thing. I cried at the end of Happy Gilmore, for God's sake!"

"Sorry," Jon frowned and pulled her into his chest for a soft hug. "I've got zero experience with this shit."

Pressing a kiss to his neck, she sank back into her original spot. "It's okay, baby. I love you anyway."

Jon froze. "What?"

"I've known it for a while now. Even told you once when you were asleep." Evie shrugged. "Guess I finally got the balls to say it out loud when you could hear it."

Sliding forward, Jon kissed her so softly that his lips barely touched hers. "Say it again?"

Evie giggled. "I love you, Jonathan Good."

Kissing her deeply, Jon chuckled. "I love you back."

Evie snuggled into his chest. "Worst part of your day?"

"Making you cry." Jon ran his fingers through her hair. "I hate that shit. And you already know what the best part of my day is, so don't ask."

Knowing that he was referring to their declarations, Evie nodded and supplied her own. "Waking up to food and ice cream was pretty amazing, but I enjoy you being sweet."

Jon chuckled and hugged her close, rubbing his hand down over her spine and massaging her lower back through her shirt and the patch that was offering her a modicum of relief. When she gave a low sound of pleasure and let her legs relax just a bit, he coaxed her closer and spread his huge hand to span the width of her back just above her hips. Pressing a kiss to the junction of her neck and shoulder, he worked her tensed muscles slowly as she sighed once again.

"Just don't tell anyone else." Jon's voice was a low rumble against her ear. "Don't want people to think I'm getting soft."

Evie giggled. "Nope. I only want you bein' this sweet with me."

"So," Jon folded the covers down so they were once again in the fresh air. "They're definitely going to break up the Shield the Raw after Payback."

"Really? Why?!" Evie drew back to frown up at him. "You guys are at the top of your popularity!"

Jon nodded. "They want it to be a huge surprise when Colby double crosses us and joins the Authority."

"What?!" Evie shook her head. "I'm not gonna be able to handle this, am I?"

Jon chuckled and moved them around until they were spooning quietly. He liked the feeling of her wrapped in his arms, the two of them pressed together from chest down. Her body was tiny next to his solid frame, and he felt massive and entirely masculine when he held her.

Her voice, quiet in the darkness of the room, drew his attention away from thoughts of her fragility. "Do you think they'll let me stay with you? They might decide my assistance isn't necessary without three of you to worry about."

Fluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuffffff!