Thank you to nic-002001, TwinPhoenizOfDark, WaDelicious and the ananymous reviewer! Sorry for the delay, I'm hoping to get another chapter up this weekend as well in order to somewhat apologize for the lack of story. Anyways, hope you enjoy this installment!

Chapter 26: Heart of a Champion

Wade wandered around backstage at Raw the night after Riley's title win. He hadn't seen her since she left the hotel room with John Cena but he was somewhat concerned about it. She had left the room the night before with nothing but her belt and the clothes on her back, everything else of hers was left in the hotel room, Wade had packed it up into her suitcase and thrown it into the trunk of the car.

Now he trekked around, looking for anyone who could help him locate Riley. All he wanted was to make sure she was okay, that they were okay. He had only been without her for a night but he already missed having her sleep next to him.

He rounded the corner and spotted the one person he wanted to see more than anything. He no longer had to look for John Cena or even Randy Orton because standing next to Cody Rhodes with a big smile on her face was Riley Williams, the Diva's champion herself. Taking a deep breath, Wade moved his legs forward and headed right for her.

Cody Rhodes spotted him first, Riley had her back towards Wade. He stopped listening to her talk and just stared at the much larger man with his eyes locked on Riley. Riley noticed his eyes widening as he stared off behind her, Riley slowly turning her head, her smile faltering as she laid eyes on Wade, standing a mere five feet away from her.

"Can we talk?" Wade asked, his voice quiet, almost shy.

"I guess."

Riley reached across and ran her hand down Cody's arm, giving him a signal that he could leave and she'd be fine. Cody gave her one final smile before brushing past the two of them and wandering down the hall, leaving the two of them alone.

"Riley what in the bloody hell happened last night?" Wade asked, confusion in his tone.

"I walked away from you." She stated, as though it was the most obvious answer.

"Why?"

"Because, everything fell apart last night."

"But you won."

"Yeah and I don't think I really wanted to. Wade I want out. I want out of this company, I want out of the Diva's division and I want out of this relationship." She stated, her tone of voice becoming sad at the last part of her statement.

"What?"

"Wade I don't think I can do this, us, anymore. As cliché as this is going to sound, it's not you, it's me and I mean that with everything I have. You haven't done anything wrong-"

"Then don't end it!" He broke in, clearly frustrated that this was happening to him.

"I'm sorry."

Wade was left standing alone as Riley simply walked away from him. He had no warning, no signs as to what she really wanted and now she was informing him that they were no longer an item, that she didn't want to be part of the company. Wade stood there, watching her as she faded away, his heart breaking with each second he spent away from her.

XxxxxxXxxxxxXxxxxxX

Riley sat across from Vince in his office later that day. They had been discussing the events of the previous night, Vince clearly a supporter of Riley being th Diva's champion. In his eyes, no other femal wrestler had deserved it more than Riley. She had put her heart into it a lot more lately, gaining more extravagant opponents and a much more interesting storyline than she had been working with the past few months.

Riley had been thinking about what she wanted to do since she left Wade in their hotel room the night before and Riley had finally come up with a solution. In a perfect world, she would have marched into Vince's office, plopped her butt in the chair and demanded that she be given time off for an indefinite amount of time. It wasn't necessarily ideal but what she wanted in her own mind was exactly what she needed.

The conversation had slowly turned around, Vince no longer as excited about her being in his office. She hadn't exactly demanded time off, she had meekly asked if it would 'be possible to take a few days off from wrestling to maybe, sort some things out that need to be sorted out'. Vince's smile dropped away from his face as he absorbed everything she was saying.

"Let me get this straight Miss Williams, you actually started taking your pills and now you want to take some time off from the company?"

"Yes sir. I appreciate everything you've done for me but due to personal reasons I can no longer provide you with everything I've got. I'd really like to take a step back from the company and rethink what I need to do. I'm sorry but I'd rather take some time off to regroup instead of just disappointing you and the fans."

"Riley, you're a champion!" He forced out, his tone rising with each word.

"I know sir but I'm not the right person to hold that butterfly belt." She confessed, fidgeting with her hands, which rested in her lap.

She bit her lip, trying to remain confident in her decision to take a leave, Vince McMahon was doing everything in his power that he could in order to change her mind. He wasn't about to just give up on the one girl he actually liked having in the company.

"What if I give you the opportunity to switch brands? Would being on Raw help you change your mind? Would you stay then?" He asked, leaning his elbows on his desk, moving closer to her, lowering his voice to just above a whisper.

Riley broke her hands apart and moved them so that her fingers wrapped around the edges of the armrests. She squeezed the wooden pieces tight as she fought off the urge to cry in the middle of Vince's office. All she wanted to do was go back to being the Riley before the championship. She wanted to get her suitcase, flush her pills and continue living her life in a blissful state of oblivion.

"Mr. McMahon, I know you're trying to help-"

"Come on Riley, you're my number one Diva right now, not to mention my favourite superstar. I will do almost anything to keep you around."

"I know but I just can't do it anymore." She admitted, leaning forward, her bum at the edge of the chair now, getting ready to end her career and leave.

"Maybe we can work out a deal here. I mean I can't just let you walk away still holding on to the title."

Riley's eyes widened as he finally started to give in to her. She wasn't really expecting him to be so understanding about what was going on with her, hell he barely even knew what was really going on. Vince McMahon knew nothing more than the fact that Riley Williams was the sole female member of a group that was slowly falling apart while she rose up above them, taking her push in stride. She flashed him a small smile, thinking about all the possibilities of how her deal could play out in her head. He wasn't going to let her walk away with the title but that didn't mean he wasn't going to let her walk away at all, he had implied he would give in to her leave of absence request.

"What are you thinking Mr. McMahon?" She asked, eager to find out what was going on in his head.

He scooted his chair backwards and stood up, leaning on his desk with both palms now. His lips curled into a smile as he eyed his number one diva. Riley matched his smile with one of her own as she crossed her arms under her bust, meeting his excitement filled eyes with her sad eyes. She just sat and waited for her opportunity to speak, wanting nothing more than to strike a deal with Vince K. McMahon.

"I shift you back to Raw for one final episode-"

"Obviously you want me to lose the title right?"

"Lose is a harsh term Miss Williams, but I can leave that up to you. Lose it or vacate it due to injury, either way, we have to make this work in our favour."

"I don't mind losing it Vince." Riley shrugged, she hadn't wanted to win it in the first place, losing it was the farthest thing from her mind now.

"But the fans would. Riley they love you and when you won that title I don't think I have ever seen a crowd of people so excited before in my life."

Riley's heart raced at his bold statement. He had been in the business a long time and had witnessed a lot of wrestlers win, and lose, titles and to hear that the crowd cheering her win on was the most excited crowd ever floored her.

"Right, the fans. I don't mind staying for-"

"How do you feel about one final Raw episode followed by your very last Smackdown episode?"

Riley's eyes lit up with excitement. She was starting to catch on with his train of thoughts. Making a deal with Vince McMahon was turning out to be way easier than Riley had ever imagined.

"I think I get it. You want to give Kelly Kelly her rematch on Raw, I win but I hurt myself and then I'm kind of forced to vacate the title on Smackdown?" Riley guessed, trying not to sound too happy about what was playing out in her own head. If Vince had a totally different idea, Riley would be heart broken.

"You're known to have a track record with shoulder problems aren't you?" Vince grinned, giving her exactly what she wanted.

"Are you really going to let me leave?" She asked, almost exasperated at how hard she had argued with him.

"Riley Williams, I am not some sort of monster that you may think that I am. If you are truly unhappy in this company, I will not force you stay, as much as I want you to. All I'm asking in return is that you walk away on a high note and think long and hard about coming back when you feel the time is right. I will give you a match at Wrestlemania if that's what it takes to get you back in this company."

"Sir I greatly appreciate the offer and while I'm off I will think about it."

"That's all I ask." Vince smiled.

Riley let out a sigh of relief as Vince pushed himself away from the desk, his body relaxing slightly. She let out a chuckle as he flopped into his chair, a look of bliss plastered on his face now.

"Vince, you've been way too good to me. I'm so grateful for everything you've done and there aren't enough words that could even come close to saying how thankful I am."

"Riley, just remember, this isn't the end. You'll be back one day, I just hope that day is sooner rather than later."

Riley nodded her understanding. She forced her body to move, making her way out of the chair. Slowly and surely, Riley strode across his office for the final time. She was getting quite used to fighting for her job in the past year or so but here she was, giving it all up without any sort of contention.

As she opened his office door, she glanced back at him, smiling as he looked back at her, nothing but content surging through his body. She turned her head forward and stepped into the hall, the weight of the world dropping as soon as the door clicked shut behind her. Riley moved her hands to her hips and shook her head. Riley was starting to feel happy again already and all it took was giving up her title, her career and her relationship.

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