December 16, 2011

When she woke up that particular morning she knew that day was going to be special. Why wouldn't it be, it was her twenty-fourth birthday after all. How was she going to spend it, obviously with her amazing boyfriend and their kitten. She sat up and stretched she left the small bedroom to find Phil and Kofi in the living area of the bus.

"Morning guys." she greet them both with a smile.

"Morning Lex." Kofi gave her a smile. It had taken Lex a little while to warm up to Kofi but now he was one of her great friends.

"Hey babe." Phil said from where he was stretched out watching a movie. Eammon was curled up on his chest. A fact that did not go unnoticed by Lex. She sent a smirk his way.

"Daddy's little guy looks so comfortable." she said with a small giggle.

Phil glared at her but made no motions to remove the cat from his chest. Lex knew he would not admit it but the cat had grown on him. She would often get up in the middle of the night and find Phil and Eammon just like they were now.

"Have you guys eaten yet?" she asked.

"If anyone should be making breakfast it is us Lex. Today is your birthday after all." Kofi said. He stood and gave her a hug.

"Thanks Kofi. If you weren't already married I would totally make sure we dated."

"Hey woman back off that's my wife." Phil pretended to growl. Lex giggled while Kofi rolled his eyes.

"So sorry Punk. I promise never again." she said still laughing. "But I must ask why Kofi is the wife and you are not."

"Cause I am nobody's wife."

Kofi decided to get in on the fun. "You keep telling yourself that Honey." He patted Phil on the top of his head. Phil flipped him off and that only made Lex laugh harder.

"So seriously guys pancakes and turkey bacon sound good?"

"Whatever the birthday girl wants." Phil remarked for both men. Lex could get used to hearing that and set to work on breakfast. Truth be told she loved cooking for Phil but she didn't get to do it very often so she jumped at the opportunities.

"So what do you want to do today Lexie?" Phil asked taking a moment to look at her.

"I dunno." she shrugged. "I supposed we can do something before the house show tonight."

"You don't want some sort of big bash to celebrate your twenty-fourth?" Kofi asked.

"Nah I am cool just bumming around with you two." she replied. "I have done the whole big birthday party thing and although it is nice I would much rather just spend the day with a small group of people that I care about."

"Sounds good to me." Phil said he gently placed the cat on the floor before going over and standing next to his girlfriend. "Happy birthday Babe." he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple.

"Thanks." she said as she continued to work. "And the best present I could get is for both my guys to retain their titles at the pay-per-view Sunday."

"We make no guarantees." Kofi said. Although both men knew the outcome of the match. Both knew that they would retain the tag team and WWE titles respectively, Lex chose not to know. She always told them it made it all the more exciting to not know the outcome until the end of the match so they respected her wishes and did not tell her.

"So Kofi rented a car so we could do whatever you wanted after we go to the gym." Phil informed her. "Anything special you want to do?"

"Believe it or not I want to find somewhere where I can buy the Dark Knight Returns comic."

"I have created a monster." Phil beamed. "But I just cannot get enough of you liking comics."

"Eh- beats sitting around this bus being bored as hell before a show." she said with a shrug. She placed her ipod on Phil's dock and began getting the stuff to make breakfast for the guys. Soon enough they were all eating.

"This is really good Lexie." Kofi said between mouthfuls.

"Why thank you sir." Lex gave Kofi a goofy grin. "I am glad you are enjoying it."

After breakfast Phil and his two road wives got into Kofi's rental and headed for the closest gym. Phil decided that he wanted to drive, which was rare because Phil hated to drive. He tended to get a little grumpy if he had to. Kofi was riding shot gun and Lex was stretched out across the backseat reading Fifty Shades of Grey.

"Shit!" Phil exclaimed as he slowly began to pull over to the side of the road.

"What's going on Babe?" Lex asked taking her attention from the book she had been so engrossed in. It was then she saw the flashing lights. She sat up.

Phil rolled down the window just as the police officer approached. "Can I help you officer?" he tried to keep his voice calm but he knew what was going to happen, what always happened.

"License and registration please." Phil reached into his wallet and pulled out his Illinois state license.

"There is no registration. This is a rental." Phil explained.

"You got the paperwork for it?"

"Yes I do." Kofi popped open the arm rest and pulled out the paperwork for the rental. He also produced his own license. The cop looked all the paperwork over.

"Sir may I ask why you pulled us over?" Kofi inquired. But he knew why just as much as Phil. He wanted to roll his eyes but he refrained.

"You got any drugs in the car fellas?"

"Excuse me what?" Both Phil and Kofi exchanged glances, both forgetting Lex wasn't familiar with their constantly getting pulled over.

"Lexie, it's alright." Phil tried to calm her. He knew his girlfriend tended to be a hot head. Especially if she felt something was unjust.

"No it's not Philip. Did you seriously just ask them if they had drugs on them? How can you even make that kind of accusation?"

"Lex please-" Kofi tried but once Lex was started there was no stopping her.

"Why because because one of the men is an African American and the other is covered in tattoos there must be something shady going on? That is profiling which in case you were not aware officer is illegal."

"Miss are you giving me attitude?"

"You bet the fuck I am." Phil let out a groan. Why couldn't they ever just have a nice normal day? Was that so much to ask?

"Ma'am step out of the car."

"What are you going to arrest me. Well go right ahead it won't be the first time." Lex said with an eye roll.

"Wait you have been arrested before?" Phil turned his head to face his girlfriend. That was something he had not known.

"Sorta, I had a few incidents where I was taken in when I was younger. I was a hotheaded brawler back then." she said with a shrug. "But no charges were ever filed so usually I would have to pay a fine or do community service. I also never went on my record."

Lex stepped out of the car. The officer instructed her to face the car with her arms behind her back. She did so but all the while arguing with the man. The cop cuffed her and then frisked her to see if she had any weapons on her. He also grabbed her wallet from where it was hanging out of her back pocket. He looked at her ID before bringing her over to his squad car and placing her in the backseat.

"He's gonna arrest her." Kofi said near panic.

"He can't. Well I mean if he really wants to be a dick he can but I doubt he wants to have to fill out the paperwork. I think he is just trying to scare her. That damn woman is so foolish sometimes." Phil shook his head.

"Like you wouldn't have done the same thing." Kofi was quick to point out. They both watched in the rear view mirror. The cop was talking on his radio but what got them is that they could both clearly see Lex's mouth moving very rapidly. Obviously she was still mouthing off.

Two minutes later the cop let Lex out of the car. He uncuffed her and both wrestler's watched as the woman continued to berate the police officer. Then they watched as said officer made his way back over to them.

"Gentlemen I am sorry to have taken up your time." he looked like he did not want to be apologizing but then he looked over to where Lex was continuing to glare at him. His face turned a little paler. "Y'all have a nice rest of the day."

Lex returned to the backseat. "Well that was just a fuckin waste of time." she vented.

"What the hell happened?" Phil asked.

"I verbally abused the guy. Told him I wanted his badge number and that he could take me to jail but as soon as I got there I was going to call Uncle Gino. Apparently he had heard the name before because the next thing I know he's letting me go."

Phil whistled. "Uncle Gino huh? Went right for the big guns."

"Who's Uncle Gino?" Kofi asked confused.

"Lex's Uncle is only one of the most powerful attorneys in all of upstate New York. He was the one who got that baseball player cleared of all those charges last month. The fuckin guy was guilty as sin but Gino is very good at what he does."

"Very nice." Kofi said with a laugh. "Is that why your record is still clean?"

"Probably." Lex had never really thought about it but there was a good possibility that is exactly why she was never in any serious trouble for all those fights she got into when she was younger. Some of them were pretty nasty too. "Anyways the cop was a douche bag. He had no reason to stop us. I mean just because Phil looks like he is on some pretty strong meth doesn't mean his is. No he just never sleeps."

"Thanks Honey."

"Your welcome baby." she replied back with a grin. "Now let's get the hell outta here before I have to save you two from any more asshole cops."

"Lex you almost got arrested on your birthday." Kofi was quick to point out.

"Hey, I have had worse birthdays." she replied very nonchalantly. "Remember I was very close to dying." Phil's hands became a little tighter on the steering wheel. He still was not a fan of reliving what he could now clearly see was a very scary time in his own life, he could only imagine what it was like for Lex.

"Oh yea sometimes I forget you were so sick."

"Sometimes I forget too." Lex said with a laugh.

After the gym and lunch the threesome made their way to the arena. Lex was all smiles as she walked arm and arm with her boyfriend. "So how are you enjoying your birthday so far?"

"It's been so great. Even the whole thing with the cop wasn't that bad. Although I can think of a few more pleasurable ways I'd rather have been doing while in handcuffs." he raised a brow.

"I have created a monster." he replied.

"No, I was always like this. It's just now I can put my thoughts to action." she gave him a grin.

It was then that Lex noticed something. "Hey where's Randy? I am honestly surprised he was no beating down the front door of the bus first thing this morning." she frowned and stopped walking for a moment.

"I think he said something about having a meeting with Vince this morning." Phil remarked.

"Oh yea. I think you might be right Babe. That has to be it. Because there is no way my 'big brother' would forget my birthday."

"Nope." Phil wrapped an arm around her waist. "Hey I am kinda hungry again. Wanna get some crappy catering food."

"Didn't we just eat like two hours ago?" she asked with a laugh. He gave her a slightly begging look. "Fine." she leaned up and kissed the place where his neck met the bottom of his jaw line.

"So I just realized that in five more months I am finished with school." Lex let out a small squeal. "I am honestly very excited."

"My babe the college grad." Phil announced with a smile. "Sounds very sexy. My woman is all educated."

"Your woman?" she asked with an amused smile. "It will be nice to have something to fall back on after this WWE thing gets old."

"You mean you do not want to be in this business forever?" Phil asked with mock-shock.

"No, it's fine now because I am young and carefree but someday I want to buy a house and settle down."

"Settle down huh?" he asked slightly interested. "You planning on a little house with a white picket fence and two and a half kids?" although his tone came off as slightly mocking he really did want to know.

"Nah. The twins have ruined the idea of kids for me. They are so bad that I am like yea never."

He had to suppress a scoff. He knew that she loved those two little kids more than anyone else in the world. She was never happier than she was when she was with them. As corny as it sounded those two little children were her best friends.

Phil held the door open for his girlfriend and she walked into catering. "SURPRISE!" There were streamers and balloons everywhere. Lex froze and looked at everyone in the room with huge bright blue eyes. Standing in the middle of the room both wearing Cheshire Cat grins were her 'big brother' Randy and the man who made all of this possible, Chris.

"CHRIS!" Lex launched herself into his awaiting arms. It had been quite some time since she had last seen him. Sure they talked on the phone or skyped all the time but now he was there face to face with her. There were tears in her eyes. She had missed him so much.

"Hey there Sweetheart. Excited to see me?" he released her and then gave her a kiss on the forehead.

"You have no idea." she sniffled a little.

"I could not miss your birthday." Phil joined them then. He slung his arm around Lex's waist once again.

"Jericho." Phil said with a nod. "It's been a while."

"Hey Punk." Chris said holding out his hand. Phil grinned before shaking his hand. Chris studied Lex for a moment. She was beaming up at her boyfriend. She looked so happy and content with the world. Even Phil looked happier than he had ever seen him before. He had had his concerns when Lex called him to tell him the new that she and Phil were dating. But just looking at the completely smitten looks they both wore sold him on the fact that they were a couple.

"Hey Brat. What I don't get a hug?" Lex moved away from her boyfriend and surrogate father figure to give Randy a hug.

"Was this your idea?" she asked.

He shrugged. "A little. It was more Beth and Nattie."

Lex realized something, something she already knew but now it was really confirmed. She had some amazing friends who loved her just as much as she loved them. It was a comforting thought. She had family even when she could not see her real family.

It was late, after the show. Kofi had decided to sleep on Randy's bus to give the couple some alone time. They were currently enjoying a shared shower. Nothing dirty, just taking comfort in the fact that they were together. Lex was standing on her tiptoes working shampoo into Phil's hair. Her nails gently massaging his scalp as she did so. It felt amazing, he leaned down to kiss her.

"My turn. Turn around." he poured shampoo into his hands and worked it into a frothing lather. His strong fingers glided through her hair with ease.

"Have you done this before?" she asked.

"What shampooed someone's hair?" he asked. "Yea, I have. But it's not what you think. I have never actually taken a legit shower with anyone before. Usually it's just like a quickie and then a rinse off. This is nice though. But to answer your question when my youngest sister was little she would not take a shower unless I was the one giving it to her. I know it sounds strange but she refused to take a shower unless I was there to wash her hair."

"Well that's because she loved you. Obviously she still does."

She turned around to face him. "You are a good man Phil Brooks. You should let more people see this side of you." she rested her cheek against his chest.

"Then they will expect me to be nice all the time." he said with a laugh. She could feel the low rumble of his chest against her cheek.

The water started to get cold so they got out of the shower. Phil wrapped a soft towel around Lex's frame before wrapping one around his own hips. "Can I brush out your hair?"

She gave him a strange look. "Ok." she finally said.

He grinned at her before leading her towards the bedroom on the bus. "Sit." he ordered. She did as she was told. He went into his closet and grabbed a pair of shorts before joining her on the bed. He sat on his knees behind her. He removed the towel from her head and gently began running a comb through her hair. He worked in silence but soon enough her hair was in a neat ponytail.

"All done." He said.

"This has been such a great birthday."

"Oh that reminds me I have not given you your presents yet." he said walking out of the bedroom. She followed him.

"Punker you didn't need to get me anything. Having you in my life is more than enough." Normally Phil was a little weird about complements because he normally believed that people were just being nice to him because he could do something for him. But he knew Lex better, she just honestly cared about him.

"I know but still I had to get you something. I was so pissed I gave Randy the idea to get you that dvd series before I realized that I should have gotten it for you. So I had to wrack my brain to figure out what to get you. Now it's a little corny so bare with me and don't tell anyone." There was excitement in her eyes.

"Yea I was wondering about Randy's present. I was pretty sure I never mentioned that series to him but did love it. I also love the fact that you know me so well." she kissed the tip of his nose.

"Here." he handed her a small wrapped box. She excitedly ripped into the paper to reveal another Pandora charm box. She opened it up to find a little silver heart charm with a golden key attached to it.

"Is this the key to your heart?" she asked. He blushed a little as he nodded. "You are right it is corny." he frowned. "But I love it so much." he looked a little relieved. His sister had suggested the idea to him. He was against it at first but he had become desperate. Next he handed her a thinly wrapped package. Lex tore off the packaging. It was a piece of red construction paper. There was writing on the paper. Written in black sharpie was 'One Free Coupon for One Stupid Chick Flick' she looked up at him and burst out laughing. "I honestly think I might love this more than the charm. It's just- well so you."

"There's one more." he said sheepishly as he handed her an envelope. She looked at him warily before she opened the envelope. She was a little nervous because one never quite knew with Phil. She stared at the contents for a few minutes before she finally understood. Inside the envelope were concert tickets, not just any concert tickets, Celine Dion tickets.

"Celine Dion really?"

"That asshat Adam got you Taylor Swift tickets once so I needed to step up my game. There was only one person you love more than Taylor Swift and that is Celine Dion. So yes I got you tickets and yes I will go with you but I will be holding onto these." he took the tickets away from her. "And I will flat out deny that I got you these if you try to tell anyone. I mean it."

She placed a hand on his cheek. "Thank you Phil. I honestly love everything you got me. But once again just having you is enough."

"Happy Birthday Babe." he smirked before kissing her. "But that concert is going to cost you. And believe me I have all sorts of kinky things in mind for payment."

She chuckled. "I have no doubts in that. Since we have the whole bus to ourselves why not start cashing in now?" she raised a brow suggestively at him.

"I really have created a monster." he was grinning from ear to ear.

"Maybe you did."