Adrian: Sorry I doubted you, mate. Drinks are on me for the next year
Becky: I think I owe you an apology. That was so brave and sweet what you just did. If you need any terrible puns to ease the pain, you know where I am xxx
Regal: There's gonna be plenty of people calling you a Jessie after this. Don't listen to 'em, sunshine. It took bollocks the size of mangos to bare your soul like that. Even brought a tear to the eye of an old villain like me
Sami's phone had barely stopped vibrating since he reached the locker room with words of encouragement, comfort, praise and apology from various friends and acquaintances throughout the world. But there was one that meant more than the rest put together.
Paige: You did the right thing. I'm in room 359. Please come and see me xx
The way he'd treated Paige had been among Sami's deepest regrets as his eyes had gradually opened to the mess he'd created. She'd been nothing but supportive and well-meaning, in her own unique and rather aggressive way, yet he'd ostracised her due to his inability to deal with the truth. Everything he'd mocked and dismissed her for saying about the irreplaceable role Renee played in his life had now come true. And if he was going to find a way out of this mess, he needed to re-establish his special bond with the young Englishwoman at all costs.
"You better not apologise to me," Sami remarked assertively with a half-smile as Paige welcomed him in.
"Don't worry, I wasn't gonna. You were a prick to me and dozens of others. But you've woken up now. I'm not gonna say I told you so either, I understand it was a hard thing to admit. I suppose I just wanna say... welcome back, the real Sami Zayn, I've fucking missed you," she pulled him into a tight embrace as Sami smiled fondly at her. He felt very honoured to be virtually the only exception to her strict 'no hugs' policy.
She'd been busy preparing for her own match, a convincing victory over Sasha Banks in spite of Charlotte and JoJo's best efforts, at the time Sami had hit the ring, only upon returning to her room had she been made aware of what had been said.
"You should see the internet going mental over it all. It doesn't even air for another two days, I've only been able to watch some grainy phone footage from a fan in Row Z," she marvelled as she sat cross-legged on the bed with Sami perching in the corner, quite taken aback if relieved by Paige's seeming instant forgiveness of him.
"Trending on Twitter isn't gonna help me get her back, though, is it?" he sighed philosophically.
"Ambrose has got his claws in pretty deep if last night was anything to go by."
Sami watched with concern and curiosity as Paige's entire body seemed to tense up at these words and she gave an involuntary half-shudder.
"This is why we need to work together. You've got to find a way to get her away from him, Sami. You've just got to," she stated, her eyes burning with sincerity and conviction, her voice sharp and grave.
"I wish I'd believed you about him. Just watching him talk to her like that, and her just taking it. He's like some sort of... God, I don't know. He's done a number on her somehow, I just hope the old Renee's still in there," Sami sighed, placing his head in his hands. As things stood he couldn't quite comprehend the enormity of the task he was facing, the amount of variables and unknowns that lay ahead of him.
He looked to Paige in hope of a gesture of understanding and encouragement. What he saw instead all but broke his heart. She'd begun to sob, heavily but almost silently. How he wished she didn't become quite so emotionally invested in his affairs, as much of a testament to their friendship as it was.
"Hey, come on... It's going to be OK. Whether she forgives me or not, Renee's a smart person, she'll come to her senses eventually where Ambrose is concerned," he said softly, shuffling over and placing his arm around her middle.
"He's not normal though, Sami, he's something... he's evil. He really doesn't care. And he's so good at what he does. He can get anyone to do anything he wants, it doesn't matter how smart they are. He isolates and then he obliterates. He's going to ruin her if we don't get through to her. He's going to ruin her and it'll all be my fault," she buried her head at his shoulder, her sobs now loud and frantic. Sami began to deduce that he was missing something, and that something may be quite distressing to hear.
"What's got you thinking that? None of this is your fault, Paige," he said apprehensively, lightly stroking her hair with his free hand.
"I should've listened to you. You said, back when this business started, that if I got too involved I'd end up getting hurt..." Sami began to well up with dread at these words. Paige's impetuousness and tenacity knew no bounds at times.
"What did you do?" he questioned shakily, and listened in sorrow and admiration as she told of her confrontation with Dean the previous evening. By the end, he hated this man he'd rarely spoken to more than he'd ever hated anyone. The pain Dean had wilfully caused two of the most important people in Sami's life, his callous exploitation of their loyalty, their insecurity and their femininity had him all but glowing with rage.
"How did I let him get the better of me like that? He's right, I am just as weak as the others. They were just blind empty threats, just the nastiest, most horrible things he could come up with to scare me. I should have found them almost comical. But it's the way he says them, it's the way he touched me, he seemed capable of anything," she lamented softly, awe and regret in her voice, a shell-shocked, traumatised look on her face the like of which Sami had never seen from her before.
"But he's not. He's a bully, he's smoke and mirrors, he's only powerful so long as people buy into his intimidation," Sami said with riled-up defiance.
"And I did buy into it. Hook, line and sinker. I abandoned Renee to save myself, I let him win," Paige sniffed.
"He's not won. He's crossed every line there is to cross and I'm gonna make him pay. I'm gonna tell the world just what sort of man he is," Sami snarled, red mist well-and-truly descending, his usual amiable demeanour nowhere to be seen.
"No!" Paige cried, as if there were nothing in the world she felt more strongly about.
"No one can know. No one can know I let him reduce me to that. That's what he banked on, and he was exactly right. Just... just fucking destroy him. He's given you reason enough with what he's done to Renee."
"OK... I won't tell a soul. I give you my word," Sami said, his tone softening at Paige's obvious emotional predicament.
"Thank you..." she breathed, squeezing him tighter.
"...It just made me feel so... helpless. A helpless little girl."
"Anyone, anyone in that situation would have been afraid. The fact you were willing to take him on like that, to resist him for as long as you did, that's guts and loyalty on another level. You're one of the bravest people I know. I've always thought that. You've got the heart of a fucking lion," Sami assured her, relief washing over him as she slowly began to smile.
"Thanks. Sometimes you need to hear those things, and I've been pretty short on people to reassure me lately," she said warmly.
"Well, that's changed now. I solemnly swear my selfish prick days are over," Sami stated with a wry grin.
"Good. Because you really were a prick," Paige replied, and it spoke volumes for how well they understood one another that Sami wasn't in the slightest bit put out.
"Point taken," he smirked. Paige fell silent, as if she was mulling something over.
"C-can you stay here tonight?" she eventually asked.
"I know all this is gonna go right out the window the second you leave and I actually try and get my head down. I've been up for like 36 hours."
"Of course," Sami answered, and instantly knew the feeling of imposition and inferiority it gave Paige to make such a request, and set about laying it to rest.
"...I think I could do with some company tonight too. I'm about to go to war, and I've no idea what the consequences will be if I don't win. Not exactly conducive to a restful night's sleep."
At these words, Paige seemed to instantly become aware of just how exhausted she was, separating herself from Sami's side and giving an almighty stretch and yawn. Sami then watched with alarm as she unexpectedly began removing her clothing before his eyes, undressing down to nothing but her thong.
"Woah, bit of warning would have been nice," Sami quipped embarrassedly, turning away.
"What's the big deal? I've seen you topless loads of times," Paige giggled mischievously.
"You know that's not the same," Sami retorted, looking back at her sheepishly.
"What? Are you worried I'm somehow gonna cause you to forget how much you love Renee through the hypnotic power of my nipples? Her tits are way nicer than mine anyway," Paige chuckled, with the bluntness Sami both loved her for and despaired with in equal measure.
"And when have you seen Renee topless?" he questioned in shock.
"Oh, around and about. We're friends. And not complete prudes like you. You know, that's why you and me can be so close yet have absolutely no sexual chemistry. You're like a Victorian aristocrat. I think I'm gonna buy you a monocle," she joked, as Sami playfully rolled his eyes.
"Think you pretty much nailed it," he chortled. Paige produced an oversized T-shirt from her case, and threw it over her head, covering her entire torso.
"There. They're gone, you can stop blushing now," she proclaimed mockingly. Sami stripped to his boxer shorts, turned out the light and settled in snugly beside her.
"This isn't weird, is it?" Paige asked, sounding uncharacteristically self-conscious.
"I mean, you and Adrian never cuddle like this, do you?"
"Much to the disappointment of Tumblr, no we don't," Sami replied with a laugh.
"And I'd never do this with any of the girls. Apart from that time me and Bayley had to share a bed back in NXT. On that occasion I didn't really have a choice in the matter," Paige recalled with a groan.
"We're different though," Sami stated rather uninsightfully.
"We've always been different..." Paige affirmed.
"...Goodnight. Love you in a completely non-romantic way."
"Love you in a completely non-romantic way too."
Having rebuilt the first of the many bridges he'd burned, Sami was able to drift off into slumber. However, he was under no illusions that his long and treacherous road to redemption had only just begun.