Chapter Twenty-one:
"I wish you could stay longer." Derrick hugs his mother. Layla is with him to say her goodbyes.
"I have to get back to work, son." Mrs. Cyrus replies wanting to stay to hang out with her son more.
"Yes, I know to provide for my dreams." He grins.
"Of course, everything I do is for my precious baby boy." She speaks half sarcastically.
"It is not, I am shocked." Derrick pretends to be hurt.
"You will live." She simply states.
"Should I leave?" Layla senses the shift to awkwardness.
"No Layla, it is just a conversation we always converse when he leaves for work." Mrs. Cyrus assures there is no anger.
"Oh well… I am going to-"
"Layla, it is fine. I want you to stay until my mom heads to the plane." He requests.
"Trust me, sweetie he will need you." Mrs. Cyrus advises her.
"I will. You see I am a mother's boy." He admits.
"Aww, that is so sweet to get emotional each time you two part." Layla very touched by this reveal. "I will stay no objections made." She agrees.
"You take care of her my son, I don't want to hear you two broke up again." His mother warns.
"Yes mother." He kisses her cheek.
"You, Miss Layla, you treat my baby boy with all the romance he deserves. You also don't let his stubbornness change your decisions to benefit him." She looks at Derrick who smiles innocently. "You stick up to him which I enjoy seeing a little bit of his vulnerable side. Secretly, I have never seen my son so off his guard than when it involves you." She compliments.
"Thank you, Mrs. Cyrus." She hugs her.
"I will visit again as soon as I can." She promises before heading to the tunnel.
"We will be waiting." Derrick waves bye.
Derrick and Layla just look out the window seeing the plane take off.
"Are you okay?" Layla rubs his arm.
"I will be I always will." He kisses her hand to feel what his mother feels to see him off. "Thank you for coming."
"Of course, whatever you need I am here." She lays her head on his shoulder.
"Come with me somewhere." He looks at her innocently.
"Anywhere." She answers sweetly.
"Where are you taking me?" Layla wonders still in the car ride for one and a half hours.
"You have to wait until we get there. I am not ruining the surprise." He answers focus on the road.
"Please." She pouts. "My butt is starting to hurt at least can we have a rest?" She requests.
"We are almost there, twenty minutes." He replies seeing the exit.
"Twenty minutes is too long." She whines with crossed arms.
Derrick pulls over. "Maybe this will pull you over until then." He kisses her passionately having Layla pull over to sit on his lap. "Can you wait until then?" He pecks her one more time.
"It better be worth it." She sighs laying her head on his forehead.
"It will be trust me." He pecks her forehead. "Now, please take your seat so we can continue to head there." He requests knowing he can't drive with her on his lap.
"Okay, however, I am holding your hand until we get there." She climbs over the gear shift holding his right hand.
"Absolutely, I would not have it any other way." He pecks the back of her hand.
"You took me to a diner." She is surprise that it is just a local, old diner." She was expecting something more romantic.
"Yup, this is my favourite diner. Everything I decided, every big decision I have made, I have contemplated here." He explains.
"Everything?" She wonders if he pondered about her here.
"Especially you." He touches her chin. "You are the most important decision I made here." He reveals.
Layla blushes. "Stop." She gently slaps his chest.
"Come on, let us see if you can predict the future like I do." He grins opening the car door.
"I can already with you in my future for many, many years." She responds taking her boyfriend's hand to be guided out of the car.
"Sounds like you have it down to the very detail." He chuckles as Layla glares at him.
Derrick and Layla enter the diner with it having a retro theme with the waitress dress in poodle skirts.
"I have never picture you as a retro fan."
"I never picture you as a screamer, so I guess we are both surprise." He whispers in her ear. Layla blushes as Derrick guides her to the far booth in the corner. "This is the most secluded booth here it helps me to ponder without interruptions." He mentions.
"Hello, I am Kimberely, what can I… Derrick?" She utters surprise.
"Umm… yah, do I know you?" He doesn't recognize the waitress.
"It is me Kimberely from babysitting." She tries to have him recall her.
"You mean…" She nods. "OMG, you are all grown up." He stands up to hug her.
"Of course, it has been five years since you left us." She sulks missing him.
"I explained this to you when I left. I have to pursue my career." He explains again.
"You said you would keep in touch." She whines.
"I did with every present for your birthday. Anyways, how are your folks?" He wonders with them always busy to not take care of their daughter.
"Mommy is a homebody with daddy still in the business." She mentions casually.
"That is good." He smiles as Layla clears her throat.
"Kim, I want you to meet a special person in my life." Kim looks to Layla as she wonders who this girl is. She notices her, but haven't acknowledge.
"This is my girlfriend, Layla." He introduces as he rubs the back of her hand.
"Ooo… I see, of course." She winks that this is for storyline purposes, wrestlers hang out with each other to make believable.
"No Kim, she is my actually girlfriend." He senses that she doesn't take him seriously.
"You don't have to convince me Derrick." She grins to keep his secret.
"Anyways." He changes the subject to forget trying to convince her. "Layla, do you know what you will be having?" He turns his attention towards his girlfriend.
"Yup, I will have the pasta linguini with chicken." She replies with a smile.
"Delicious." Derrick mentions. "I will have-"
"Don't worry I know your order already, unless you changed it." Kim wonders learning it from the staff.
"Nope, not much just more me at on mine." He answers.
"Absolutely, I will be back with your drinks." She happily replies.
"You didn't-" Kim walks away.
"Don't be that way." Derrick immediately directs.
"What way?" She asks confuses.
"That she must be important to you and you haven't told me attitude." He responds.
"She didn't take my drink order." She rebuts to his statement.
"I will tell her when she comes back." He tries to keep her calm.
"I think she did it on purpose to have multiple trips to our table." She mentions with a pfft.
"I don't think so." He waves it off. "She probably forgot with the shock of my presence." Layla gives him an 'are you kidding me?' glare. "What?" He chuckles. "I know one person who falls for it every time." He smirks moving his body closer to hers over the table.
"Oh yeah, who?" She teases with a giggle.
"Oh, she is cute, beautiful, and such a catch to be with." He compliments.
"Really." Layla blushes as she moves the correct amount further.
"Absolutely." He kisses her. Layla holds his cheek for balance.
"Excuse me." Kim utters. The kiss is broken up to a tick off Kim. "I have your drinks. I forgot to ask you about your drink, so I got you water." Kim lifts it up to 'accidentally' spill it on Layla's chest.
"Kim." Derrick yells in shock.
"Sorry, I will be back for your meals." She struts away.
"We will take it to go." He responds heading to Layla's side. "Are you okay, baby?"
Layla breathes in and out to control her rage. "I am fine." She gives a small smile.
"Can we leave, please?" She speaks politely to not cause more of a scene.
"You don't want food, you might get hungry on the way back." They still have a long journey back.
"If I stay here, I might attempt something I will regret. I don't want to jeopardize that for you." She warns sweetly.
"Don't you mean for us?" Layla shakes her head. "You think I will lose my temper as well." She nods. "Okay, we will go." He agrees while he wraps his jacket around her shoulders to help with some draft to her wet chest.
"Here is the money for our meals." Derrick places $25 down on the counter.
"Derrick." The owner enters with bags of food.
"Kevin." He sighs hoping not to see him.
"You know how she feels about you." He reminds him to explain her actions.
"I remember, although, do you remember how I had to gently tell her that I can't by pursuing my career?" He recalls.
"It was the truth." He confesses quietly.
"If I was just completely honest to her maybe this wouldn't have happened." He mentions not having Kim hate him. He truly cares for her as a friend.
"Why did you give her presents every birthday?" The owner wonders not wanting this for his niece; his brother is the Chairman of all the retro restaurants in the States.
"I promise to keep in touch. I always keep my promises you should know that." He reminds him.
"You promise not to mention that." He clenches his teeth.
"I haven't, I am guessing you were the one that return the presents since she turned 14, right?" He grins figuring it out."
"I needed to protect her." He didn't want his niece to hold on to hope that Derrick will return the feelings.
"Great job. Come Layla, let's go." He escorts her out.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Layla asks back at their suite. The journey back was silent. The only time he spoke is when she was indeed hungry and he asked what she wanted. With her last experience with diners, she settled for a burger with fries at a fast food restaurant.
"No Layla, I don't want to." He answers in a sweet, calm tone.
"Okay." She pecks his cheek to leave him alone to change. "I will be in the bathroom washing up." She informs him. Derrick nods as she heads there.
He sighs when he hears the door close. He ponders on why now his past is resurface when he is in his happiest moment. His life is great with his title, his career, his friends, having his mother watch his match live, and especially Layla back by his side, why now? He is now frustrated with now must explain this to Layla who doesn't deserve this on her as well. He wishes his mother was still here to give him advice. Just on cue, his phone buzzes with him having a grin on his face.
"Hello mother." He speaks gratefully.
"Wow, someone is in a good mood. Did you and Layla have a 'celebration' again?" She giggles.
"Please mom, don't ask me about that." He utters disgusted.
"Of course, anyhow, why are you so chirper?"
"Actually, I am grateful for your call." It is creepy how she knows the perfect moment to appear.
"What did you do? I am just getting home and you two are having trouble she is disappointed.
"No mom, we are fine until-"
"Son, what is wrong?" She asks seriously.
"I went to the diner today with Layla."
"Okay, did Kevin give you a hard time?" She knows that he eats there to help the family.
"He did at the end, but someone else was there."
"Who else was there?"
"Apparently, she works there now as a waitress."
"Who?" She asks impatience.
"Kim." He simple answers.
"Kim, Kim… OMG." She gets the reference. "She works there."
"Yes mom, I introduced Layla as my girlfriend, but I think she took it as storyline romance." He explains.
"Did you correct her?" She gets why that could be the case.
"I tried to, however I gave up. Mom, she made a scene when she caught us kiss. She poured a glass of water all over Layla's chest."
"Is she okay?" She is concern for her as much as her son.
"She warned me to leave before we both do something we will regret." He answers sitting on the bed.
"Smart girl, I told you."
"Yes mom." He whines with a sting to his pride. "What do I do? How do I explain this to Layla? This could have us break up again." He sniffles.
"You really love her, don't you?" She questions with a smile.
"How do you know?" He does, although hasn't told anyone.
"You only get emotional when a person you love is in the cross hair. It happened to Trish when you told her after calling me for advice." She reminds him of that situation.
"I should follow the same advice." He wonders.
"No, remember John was with you two without Kim working there. Kevin accused you when you entered the diner with Trish laughing."
"John was parking the car." He mentions.
"Yes, he helped you clear the misunderstanding. Kevin understood because Trish expose her feelings for John."
"They became a couple that night." Derrick smiles at the positive memory.
"To have them be a couple is a positive of that day, you have that as a cushion as you explain the situation." She explains the difference of the situation.
"I don't have any of that in this situation." He informs his mother.
"No, you do have the love you have for one another. I have seen how you two are together, the love you have. This will shock her, however if I know how deeply he loves and cares for you she will stay." Mrs. Cyrus hopes she is right for his son's sake.
"If she doesn't?" He asks in case it happens which he hopes it is just a formality.
"I will be by the phone to help you." She responses hoping it is just a formality as well.
"Thanks mom."
"Tell her everything son." She warns.
"Yes, I will. Bye."
"Bye." She hangs up.
Derrick hangs up the phone. He takes a big sigh before heading to the bathroom. He opens the door to see her washing her face. He wraps his arms around her waist before pecking her on the neck. "Hi."
"Hey."
"Layla, I want to explain on what happen earlier, however, I need to know that you will stay for all of it, until the end."
"I will." Derrick spins her around to see her face. "I will stay until the end." She assures him.