~ What Lies Beneath ~

Author's Note - Got such lovely reviews for the last chapter so here's another. How did everyone like Money in the Bank? And what's with the lack of Punk/AJ? We're already at chapter 38! Wow. I hope you're still enjoying the ride! Let me know :) And enjoy SmackDown!

Warnings - Strong language throughout and possible scenes of a sexual nature ;)

Disclaimer - I own no-one but Abbie in this story. This is merely a work of fiction; it all came from my brain. At no point do I suggest this story reflects reality, it's entirely made-up. Any other songs, cars or brands mentioned also belong to their respective owners.

~ What Lies Beneath ~

~ Chapter Thirty Eight: ~

"Are you STILL in a mood with me?" Phil whined as they sat outside a restaurant in Manchester.

"You refused to help me prepare"

"I helped you! But I'm not gonna F5 you when I've never done it before - let alone learned to do it safely and on someone half my size!" he argued.

"Don't get your panties in a bunch. I'm only pulling your leg" she laughed, kissing his hand which was resting over hers on the table.

He pulled it away. "You're not getting off that easy"

"I thought it was me mad at you!" she laughed, checking her phone.

After what Regal told him, Vince is fining Rosa for messing with your stuff.

Cody x

Abbie sighed as she read the text.

Thanks for the info, but I'd rather you stayed out of it.

Abbie x

"Who's important enough to take your attention away from our lovely little lunch date?" Phil enquired as he picked at the various salad items on his plate.

"No one, just unimportant work stuff" she rolled her eyes. Her arm was on fire as she reached up to continue eating.

"You really burnt yourself out huh"

"It's what I do…throw myself into a work out when my brain won't shut up" she shrugged, picking at her fries. She realised too late that he knew exactly what was on her mind. She tried to change the subject…

"How much weight do you think I should aim to gain?"

He studied her curiously. "Judging by the way you've played with those fries for half an hour you won't be putting any on at all…"

"I'm not really hungry"

"Well you need to either eat them or remove them from my line of sight because I'd inhale them in under a minute given half a chance" he chuckled.

"Have them then" she told him, pushing the bowl to him.

"Woman are you crazy?" he asked wide-eyed as he recoiled like it was poison. "I'm trying to be good…I'm not sure I've eaten anything that wasn't the colour green in a week!"

"You're always on these crazy health kicks, live a little" she laughed.

"And wobble around the ring every Monday? Nuh uh. In answer to your question, as much as possible. You just want a bit more to you; bit more cushioning for those bones"

She nodded and tried to eat some more. As she gazed up, she looked over Phil's shoulder and her mouth dropped open.

"What?" he asked, looking around worriedly.

A waiter carried the most incredible looking ice cream sundae to the table next to theirs.

"I want one of those" she pointed, licking her lips.

"You can't be mean enough to make me watch you eat that…" he whined.

"Watch me" she laughed.

Ten minutes later, she had her very own sundae in front of her. Her mouth watered as she watched the way the ice cream melted, the fudge sauce dripping down the sides of it and the whipped cream swirled on top. Phil looked on, totally mesmerised.

"I hate you" he groaned as she scooped up a spoonful and moaned at how good it tasted.

She savoured each mouthful, licking the spoon clean. Phil didn't know where to look.

"I'm happy to share" she teased, offering him a spoonful. He pouted at it. "How much is one bite going to hurt?"

"You're such a bad influence" he laughed, letting her feed him. As he opened up, she took a detour and missed his mouth, getting cream all over his nose. She gave him a cheeky grin as he complained, trying to lick it off. She didn't fail to notice how cute he looked right then.

Her phone buzzed on the table and she snatched it up as Phil made to grab it. He tilted his head slightly, curious.

I was only trying to help. I heard about you and Phil. Thanks for the fucking heads' up.

Cody x

Well I don't need your help thanks. And it's none of your business.

Abbie x

It is my business when it makes me look like an idiot. You could have told me before I fucking kissed you!

Cody x

We didn't tell ANYONE. Not just you. Not everything is about YOU. You should have known better anyway. We were done.

Abbie x

Well I apologise for having emotions. Cold-hearted bitch. Maybe I still fucking cared about you. Whatever. Fuck it.

Cody x

Abbie's breath caught as she stared down at the message. She forgot Phil had been watching her the whole time.

"Everything okay?"

She took a deep breath and shook her head, putting her phone away. "I guess not. But I'd rather not talk about it now"

"Well when are you going to talk about it? There seems to be a growing list of things we need to talk about…" he told her, feeling a little agitated at the communication barrier.

She looked down at her lap and his gaze softened. "I know it sucks…but avoiding it is only making it worse"

"That was Cody. He heard about us…he's mad I didn't tell him" she started.

Phil's jaw stiffened. "He thinks he's mad? When I see that douchebag I plan to…"

"…Phil" she interrupted. "He's mad because if he knew we were more than just friends he wouldn't have kissed me okay. So you can calm the fuck down" she shook her head frustratedly.

"It doesn't matter to me; either way it happened and I'm not happy about it"

"You already made that clear" she ran a hand through her hair. "But Cody doesn't matter, this is a pointless discussion"

"Don't defend him then" he argued.

"I wasn't defending him! For fuck's sake Phil!"

There was silence for a few moments while they gathered their thoughts.

"I thought we came here to talk about last night…" he added, his tone softer now.

"I…I'm sorry…no…" she shook her head, getting up and throwing some money on the table before leaving.

"Abbie!" he yelled, not caring that people were staring. "Fuck my life" he groaned. She was totally shutting off from him now and it was incredibly frustrating. Where the hell was she even going? She wasn't in great physical or mental shape at the moment…

Abbie felt tears threatening as she walked away, hearing him call out to her. She forced them back and carried on walking. She wanted to tell him everything but he was being awkward about Cody and she really needed to be in the right frame of mind to talk about things - things she had never told another soul.

She sat down on a park bench and retreated into her thoughts. Her phone buzzed and she smiled at the name on the screen. He always made her feel better.

Hey chick, how's it going?

Zack x

I'm okay, how are you?

Abbie x

I'm great. Regal's been raving about you all over NXT. Looks like you have another big fan ;)

Zack x

Aw, that's sweet

Abbie x

You deserve it. We need to go catch a movie or hang out. I'm sure Phil won't mind me stealing his lady for a while ;)

Zack x

Sounds good, I miss your happy face

Abbie x

She was interrupted when she felt a presence beside her. She didn't turn to look. She knew who it was by the musky scent that embraced her whenever he was near.

"Sorry, I know I'm a douche"

"Don't be sorry" she smiled a little at his apology.

"I'm still not great at the whole knowing when to control my temper thing"

"I've noticed" she laughed. Things fell silent between them as it started to rain. They were in England after all.

"Can I have a hug?" she asked quietly.

He grinned and held out his arms. "They're free" he winked.

She shuffled in next to him and encircled his waist with her arms. He crossed his arms over her shoulders and planted a kiss on the top of her head which was damp from the droplets falling quickly now.

"You don't have to talk about anything if you don't want to" he assured her.

"No…I said I would talk to you and I'll feel better when you understand" she said firmly.

"You wanna go somewhere dry?"

"No…I'd rather stay. There's no one around. I mean, as long as you don't mind getting wet" she said quietly.

"I'm fine, go ahead princess"

She laughed a little. "Did you have anything in particular you wanted to know?"

He paused for a moment, thinking. "…Are you afraid of me?"

"God no, I could kick your ass" she joked.

He frowned. "You know what I mean…the look on your face last night, you were terrified"

"I'm not scared of you Phil; I'm scared of being THAT kind of intimate with anyone"

"That night when someone spiked your drink…you told me about what happened when you were younger. Do you remember telling me that?"

She nodded slowly, awkward silences filling the air everytime they ceased speaking.

"Is it that? Is that why you're so scared?" he asked, keeping his arms locked around her.

She took a deep breath. "I've never ever told anyone this before…NO ONE. So this is a huge deal to me"

"I know" he soothed.

She thought carefully about where to begin. Saying it out loud was making it all too real…

"I was wrestling for a scummy little company in New York…it was bad. Pay was bad, conditions were bad - the owners couldn't care less as long as they made their money at the end of the night. Sometimes they couldn't afford to pay us - but I had little alternative at this point. I was really struggling. I had nothing but an old car and my wrestling gear. I ran out of money a few months after I left home so I was working a few odd jobs on the side to keep me afloat. My attitude was work for anyone and everyone and I learned a lot that way. But this place was the worst. The same night I was forced into a barbed wire match…that's when it happened…"

She closed her eyes for a few seconds as Phil rubbed her shoulder supportively. She continued.

"I was in bad shape, I had some really deep puncture wounds on my arms and the blood was starting to soak through my shirt where I cut my side. I had some bandages in my car so I figured it would be okay. We also got paid properly this time. I hadn't eaten in a while so I thought maybe I'd go buy some gas and something to eat with it…"

Phil took a few shaky breaths. It hurt to know she'd been through that hell. It brought back some unpleasant memories of his own time on the road. But by the sound of it - his experience had been a walk in the park in comparison. His mind struggled to comprehend a girl of seventeen alone with no home, not even able to feed herself every day with no family to fall back on. It's a frightening world out there when you really look at the underbelly of a big city.

"It was a little theatre and the back was surrounded by alleyways. I was only walking to the car and he…he must have followed me. He shoved me into the wall and held me there. He was just too strong" she whispered, unable to look Phil in the eye.

"Did you know him?" he asked gently.

She shook her head. "He was a wrestler for the company same as me, but I'd barely seen him around. I arrived, I worked and I left. I don't think I ever had a soul I could call a friend until at least Ring of Honor. I hit him when he grabbed me…maybe I shouldn't have, it made him angrier. He was kind of old…probably in his forties or fifties" she breathed quietly.

"I head-butted him and he hit me…he took my pay" she swallowed hard, sensing the difficulty Phil was having in controlling his anger.

"He…he called me a slut. He told me he was going to show me what men did to sluts…then he tried to take my clothes off" she said, voice cracking towards the end of her sentence. She clung tighter to Phil as she continued.

"Then he said I was acting frigid…and he was touching me. I gave up…I just accepted it was going to happen" she hung her head. "I saw someone across the street and I screamed. I know you say luck is for losers Phil…but I was so lucky that man was good-hearted enough to investigate. If he hadn't come along, if he'd been too scared to intervene…"

"Don't…" Phil winced as she went ahead and said it anyway.

"He'd have raped me Phil…he came so close to taking the one thing I've held onto above all else. The one thing that's MINE. He failed that night…but I still felt dirty, violated…used. I escaped. The worst thing? I had to go back! I had to go back there knowing he was there and I had NO ONE to turn to! No one cared Phil!" her chest heaved as she held back her emotions. She was done crying. Not anymore.

Hearing her say it, hearing her tell the story hit him hard. She'd been through so much. It was no wonder she had issues. He couldn't believe she wasn't completely messed up. He couldn't believe she trusted him, how could she trust ANYONE after that?

"He didn't stop. He harassed me for months…months" she shook her head. "I managed to avoid it, leaving early and parking closer to the building. I was scared out of my mind. He watched me. He got his friends involved, they taunted me, spread rumours about me…made my life hell. Then I got called up to Ring of Honor and I escaped it all. I had some great years there. I still didn't get close to anyone but I was much happier. Then I got the call from Vince, I met you and I've never been happier. You've changed me Phil. I actually have a group of people I can be comfortable around…"

"I didn't change you. I just showed you that there are people out there that care" he whispered.

"But it's still imprinted in me, I don't feel like I'll ever be able to shake off that part of my life" she clutched his shirt in her fist.

Phil was uncharacteristically quiet. She looked up at him; his face a shade paler, his eyes glassy. He held her tightly; as if afraid someone would take her back to the life she'd lived all those years ago.

"Thank you for letting me in" he told her after a few moments of contemplative silence. "It means a lot that you're willing to share that with me. I can understand why you reacted that way last night"

"That man…that was my only sexual experience…I can't help but associate everything else with what happened. I don't do it on purpose"

"I know" he kissed her head.

"Part of me believes that men turn into animals when sex is involved…sex changes people, makes them do things they wouldn't normally. Clouds judgement, triggers aggression…" she trailed off.

"It kills me that you went through all of that. I can't imagine the emotional scarring…have you thought about counselling? Maybe even a group to talk to other people who had the same experiences?" he suggested gently. She tensed up in his arms.

"No…reliving it just then was enough. I understand that my aversion to sex is irrational; I don't need someone to tell me that. You've done more for me in six months than any overpaid psychologist could" she argued.

"Just don't shut down on me okay? I want to understand so you have to let me in. One day, maybe I'll get to show you that sex is so much more than a physical action…" he pondered, reaching down to lift her chin. A droplet of rain ran down her nose and he wiped it from the tip. He caressed her face in his hands before moving them down to her neck, pulling her into a soft kiss.

As they walked back to the hotel, he couldn't help but stare at the way her soaked shirt clung to every contour of her svelte body. She took his breath away and the best part? She didn't even know…

On Monday, the scene had been set. Laurinitis had made his announcement. What was it you ask? The segment they filmed played out to the arena as well as the millions watching at home…

Punk grinned smugly at Laurinitis, enjoying taunting the older man.

"You think it's funny Punk? To make jokes about the way I speak? Well maybe you need to worry about your little friend after what happened to her last week…"

Punk's grin faded, replaced with anger.

"It makes me sick that Brock would dare put his hands on any woman. But Abbie can take care of herself. She's a fighter" he announced proudly.

"Oh I'm glad you said that…because next week she's going to go one on one with Mr Lesnar" Laurinitis chuckled.

"You WHAT? !" Phil yelled.

"You heard me"

"Why?" he shouted.

"Brock requested it. But like you said. She can take care of herself so no need to worry" Laurinitis winked as he walked away, leaving a fuming Punk in his wake.

Later on in the show another segment aired, building the drama of the storyline even further.

Abbie was sitting in her locker room after her match, elbows on her knees thinking hard about how she was going to survive next week…

There was a knock at the door.

"Yeah?"

None other than Beth Phoenix popped her head around. Abbie stood defensively - on her guard in case she was attacked again.

Beth held her hands up. "I'm not here to cause trouble. I wanted to apologise. I was mad that you took my title. I got Brock involved…I asked for his help - I never should have done that. I regretted it the moment he touched you"

"Is that all?" Abbie asked angrily.

"No…I came to warn you. He's dangerous Abbie…I'm scared of him. And I'm scared for you. I asked him not to wrestle you, I told him I changed my mind but he wouldn't listen…he wants to mess with Punk, and he has some sick fantasy about hurting you. I don't know what I've done…"

Punk burst in, hearing Beth's voice.

"What do you mean you don't know what you've done? You've unleashed a monster! You stupid little girl! This is YOUR fault!"

Beth recoiled as Phil yelled at her. Abbie put a hand on his forearm and pulled him back.

"Leave her. It's too late. I'm facing Brock whether I like it or not…"

The cameras cut.

"Nervous yet?" Beth asked.

"Yeah" she laughed. "Mostly because I want to do a good job and make sure the divas get some respect though. It's pressure"

"You'll do great; couldn't have picked someone better for the part. I watched you from developmental, you're incredibly talented. Good luck out there" she smiled.

"Thank you" Abbie told her, touched.

Abbie woke up on the morning of the big match and ran through her usual routine in an almost robotic state. She was trying not to think too much about the consequences of the decision she made to volunteer for this…she needed to focus. Phil had mostly stayed out of her way all week, knowing she was preparing herself mentally for a tough challenge. As she stepped on the scales in the arena, she was disappointed to find she had only put on three pounds.

"Better than nothing" Mike smiled, clapping her on the back.

She pulled on her kick-pads and began stretching. She could sense the boys' eyes on her as she bent forwards in her ring gear. She knew it was harmless but she'd never be totally comfortable with the attention.

"Mike, can you help me stretch? I don't know where Phil went…"

"Of course" he told her as she picked up her leg and stretched it over her head. His eyes widened at her flexibility as he put his hand on her calf and gently pushed on it. They switched legs and Mike laughed as she challenged him.

"Come on Mizanin…is that all you got?"

He stretched it further, pulling a face as Phil walked in.

"Mike, what the fuck are you doing with my girlfriend?"

"Nothing…nothing at all"

"He was doing your job Philip" Abbie answered for him. "Seeing as you were no where to be found"

"Sorry…I was grabbing a few things. I got some tape and this" he said, pulling something out from behind his back.

Her mouth fell open and she grinned, taking the bear and burying her nose in his soft fur.

"Lucky charm?" Zack asked.

"Something like that" she laughed. She kissed the bear and popped it safely in her bag. "How did you know I needed tape?"

"I didn't, but I figured it wouldn't hurt" he shrugged.

"I was thinking about taping up my shoulder…where I dislocated it"

"Sounds like a plan Stan" he said, undoing the roll of tape. "You two can go now" he chuckled to Zack and Mike as Abbie unzipped her top.

"Someone gets special privileges now" Mike rolled his eyes. "We'll wait at the gorilla for you" Mike winked. She gave them a thumbs up before undoing her top so Phil could wrap her up.

"Here?" he asked, rolling the tape over her shoulder.

"Yeah…and if you can go all the way over towards my neck too? It feels like a weak spot and I'm paranoid…you know? When I broke it…"

"Your collar bone?" he said, finishing her sentence for her.

"Yeah…I'll feel a bit better knowing it's covered. I know the chances of me breaking it again are slim, I'm not going near the top rope - but it plays on my mind and one less thing to worry about would be nice"

He finished wrapping her securely as she put her top back on. She looked in the mirror and laughed a little. "I already look broken and I haven't even wrestled yet"

"Better safe than sorry" he kissed the top of her head. From the worry lines on his face, she could tell he was as nervous as she was. "What's the plan for the match?"

"I literally get to punch him like twice…other than that it's all offense from him. At least I don't have to worry about any spots or whatever"

"You just have to look out for you. You're experienced in that ring, I'm sure you can handle it" he said, sounding like he was trying to convince himself as much as her.

"Show time" she took a deep breath.

"I'll see you after the match…" he hugged her tightly.

"Aren't you coming?"

"I can't come to the gorilla because I'll change my mind stop you from going out there" he breathed, kissing her forehead repeatedly.

"I love you" she whispered.

"I love you too…be safe, I'll see you when it's all over…"

Will Abbie survive her match with Brock? What impact will it have on her ability to defend her title or even wrestle again? Will Brock go easy on her? What happens when Eve finds out about Phil and Abbie's public display of affection?

The consensus seems to be that you guys like the long chapters so I think we'll stick with them aha :) SO MUCH MORE to come so keep reading and reviewing! Please continue to leave me any opinions, thoughts, comments, feelings, favourite parts, least favourite parts and anything else you feel like! As usual, the more reviews, the sooner the next update :)