Chapter 21

The next few days were hard ones. Since Roman had given up his job, he wasn't on anymore of the cards for the shows, and even though he still traveled with Mel, Stephanie and Hunter told him that he wasn't allowed inside the arena. No amount of yelling could make them change their minds, and so Roman had to wait out in the parking lot, huddled in the car and watching Raw on his phone.

Because Roman was no longer around to protect her, some people backstage began to get hostile toward her, especially the other Divas. She could barely walk down the hallway without getting tripped and shoved. Rosa Mendes enjoyed yanking on her hair as she walked by, and then rattling off a Spanish tirade if Mel tried to say anything. Natalya always gave her nasty looks whenever she came anywhere near her, and Cameron and Eva Marie were constantly whispering behind her back. It seemed like every time she rounded a corner there were people glaring at her or talking about her. It was like high school all over again.

Of course, she had AJ on her side, but the Divas' Champion was too busy dealing with Paige to always be with Mel. She always jumped to Mel's defense whenever she was around, but whenever the tiny brunette was gone, Mel was fair game. Eve occasionally dropped by to see Mike (even though she would never admit it), but she couldn't help Mel without blowing her cover. The other Divas who didn't torment her stayed out of all of it, not wanting to put their own careers on the line. Mel could understand their concern, but it still hurt to know that she was utterly alone.

Next Monday saw Mel standing in her locker room, getting ready for the mixed tag match that she was having that night. It would be she and Dolph Ziggler against Fandango and Layla, and even though it was a bit of a random move on Creative's part, she was just grateful that it wasn't another handicap match.

Mel chewed her bottom lip as she buckled the lavender belt that held her sparkly light blue shorts up, trying to get in the zone. Her mind was clogged with everything that had happened recently, and she knew that she needed to clear it all out and just focus on her upcoming match. She needed to show that she was just as good in the ring as AJ and Paige, and that she deserved a title shot. It was going to be hard considering that Stephanie despised her, but she was willing to put in the effort.

The petite brunette examined herself in the mirror, making sure that everything was in place. Her thick brown hair was straightened and pulled back into a high ponytail, and her makeup looked flawless. She adjusted her sparkly light blue top, examining the lavender accents on it. She had just gotten some new gear, and she was loving how it looked on her. Unfortunately Sandra had added a little extra padding to the cups of the top, so her boobs looked bigger and were pushed up. It was a bit uncomfortable for her because it she wasn't used to showing so much cleavage, but hey, if she had it, she should flaunt it, right?

She had also gotten new sparkly lavender knee pads, and a pair of pretty white boots. She had specifically requested a lot of sparkles, thinking that it would make her look extra cute, but she had heard the other Divas mumbling that she looked like a walking disco ball. AJ had told her not to worry about what they thought, but it was really hard to ignore the constant whispers and dirty, almost pitying looks.

When it was time for her to go out for her match, she made her entrance to a symphony of bubbly music. She stopped halfway down the ramp, placed her hands on her narrow hips, and turned to look at the stage, waiting for her partner.

Dolph Ziggler's familiar music hit, and cheers erupted from the crowd. Dolph stepped out onto the stage and wiggled his ass before striding down the ramp to meet Mel. He offered his arm, and she hooked hers through it as she walked with him to the ring. He held the ropes for her, and she climbed in and waved to the crowd as he finished his entrance. The crowd was going wild, and it was clear who the fan favorites were.

Fandango's music hit, and the crowd was quick to boo as he and Layla emerged. Layla was wearing some sort of shimmery gown that reflected the light, and Mel snorted. And they all called her a walking disco ball.

The girls started off the match, and for awhile Layla really took it to Mel. She eventually got the upperhand when she swept Layla's legs out from under her and jumped on her, smacking her head against the canvas until the ref threatened to disqualify her. The crowd loved her sudden burst of energy, and cheered her on as she hit Layla with a dropkick and then a DDT.

Layla managed to knock Mel away, and slapped Fandango's outstretched hand and rolled out of the ring. Fandango stepped into the ring and looked at Mel, who started right back at him with her hands on her hips. Fandango did one of his stupid little dances and stood looking at her like she should be falling at his feet. Mel rolled her eyes and reached behind her, smacking Dolph's hand and tagging him in. She stepped out of the way as Dolph flew in and started to beat the living crap out of Fandango. He hit the Zig Zag, and Mel delivered her own finisher to Layla when she tried to break up the pin. The ref counted to three, and Mel and Dolph were the winners.

While they were celebrating, Mike came out of nowhere and slammed into Dolph from behind, knocking him down. He proceeded to beat on him, signalling the start of their feud over the Intercontinental title. Mel rolled out of the ring and backed up the ramp, knowing that she wasn't supposed to get involved. She acted scared like she was supposed to, and covered her mouth with her hands as Dolph got the shit kicked out of him.

When Mike was finished with the Show Off, he took off his designer sunglasses and looked up at where Mel stood on the stage. He gave her a wink and a cheeky smile, which caused the crowd to go crazy at the possibility of what that might have meant. Mel smirked to herself as she turned and walked through the curtain, thinking about how the rumors of she and Mike entering into a storyline together would be flying over the Internet in a few minutes.

Typical Mike.