Chapter 9: New Job Offers

One Month Later: Before Fyter Fest

"What do you mean there's going to be another meeting?" Kenny asked Cody from where he was laying on his floor, his phone in front of him and his muscles bunched from the stretching he had been working on. "I just got out of one yesterday."

"We're offering Joy and Rae a better job opportunity." Cody said. Kenny could hear the sounds of Cody's dogs in the background. "Tony heard what they did for the company and wants to offer them a place on staff."

"What about Ava?" He asked

"I think it's better she stays with Best Friends. Nothing against the woman, we just don't know enough about her to get her to do anything else."

He sighed as he stood up and grabbed his phone off the floor. "Do I have to wear a suit?"

"No, I don't think so. But you and the Bucks are expected there. I've already called Joy and Rae and they said they would be there." Cody said.

Kenny walked into his big kitchen. The house he had chosen while stateside was big enough to hold his interests all in one place. Most of it was in the living area, then there was his more personal tastes hiding his bedroom. He and Adam lived close enough, most of the EVPs had relocated to Jacksonville for a majority of the work that they were doing. While getting AEW up and running and getting everything going for the fans, he hardly had a chance to play the games and do the things he wanted. Except for when Ava and him were together in Vegas. Even then, Rae was there to make sure he didn't hurt the dark haired tiny woman.

"I don't know if Ava is going to be coming." Cody said.

"If you're not going to offer her a job, then why would she come in the first place?"

"Because Best Friends are in the training center today. You might want to go check and see if they like the new facility."

The training center had been added onto Daily's Place when the idea of AEW came into existence. And as Kenny was mostly stateside for those things, he had gone several times for training purposes.

Now he had another reason to go.

"I need to get ready." Kenny said as he started for his master bedroom.

"I heard she likes the color red." Cody said.

"Why would you say that?"

"Because Trent brought it up when we talked today. I'll see you in an hour." Cody then hung up on their call.

Getting into the shower, Kenny washed away the hours of working out at home. Though the dark haired woman that had dominated his conversation with Cody had popped up. Even though he spent an hour with her in an arcade in Las Vegas, he wanted to show her more, he wanted to let her see what he was really into.

He was acting like a teenager. When growing up, he'd been deemed too nerdy thanks to his gaming habits. Maybe that was why his sexual favors were anyone who like gaming as much as him. The little woman never really spoke, never really said a word but she had a determined expression on her face when they gamed together. Her jaw was set, her gaze foreword as their characters fought. By no means, she was an expert but she obviously knew her way around a gaming cabinet and a video game before.

Kenny wore a red undershirt under the dark colored blazer he wore. If he had to go through a job meeting, and if there was a chance he could see Ava again, then he was going to do it.

Forty-five minutes later, Kenny pulled into the corporate parking lot of Daily's Place. The complex that Daily's Place was had different things going on. There was a nondescript building across the parking lot from the corporate offices that house the training facility for locally based wrestlers on staff to come and practice between shows. Cost free of course.

MJF was getting out of his car when Kenny did as well.

Pissed off was not what he would say when seeing MJF. After what he did to Ava, it still burnt like a hot iron in his chest just to see the guy.

"Got a staring problem?" MJF asked.

As long as the guy stayed away from Ava, he wasn't going to say anything. Kenny locked his car and went toward the corporate office.

Up on the floor where Cody had an office, Kenny saw Rae and Joy sitting in the waiting room for their meeting. Just them, no Ava.

"Hey, how are you guys doing?" He asked as he adjusted his blazer jacket.

"We're okay. Just curious as to why Tony Khan and Cody want to talk to us about a job offer when we've already got jobs." Rae said.

"You impressed them with what you did during Double or Nothing that they want to offer you a job. Come back with me, we'll get it started and over quick."

"So you can go check on Ava?" Rae asked.

"I..." he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Rae, don't be rude. It's kind of cute." Joy said in her lower tone. "She's with the guys right now as they're training. After the meeting you can come with us to go talk to them."

Kenny smiled. "Come on, let's get this meeting over with. I'm tired of these things."

"Is the cowboy going to be there?" Rae asked.

"No, he's not an executive. The Young Bucks might though."

The three of them walked down the hall toward the meeting office. Cody, Brandi, Tony and Mr. Khan was there waiting for them.

"Oh, good, you're all here." Mr. Khan said as he saw Kenny hold the door open for Rae and Joy. "Please, come in and sit down."

"I bet you're wondering why we've asked you here."

"Kenny told us you were going to offer us a job with the company." Rae looked at him, a slight smile pulled at her lips.

"Well, that was a surprise ruined." Cody said.

"At least I don't beat around the bush." He commented as he sat at the far end of the table.

"Yes, that's why we asked you hear. The man you helped quit. His small company couldn't handle the stress and some of the wrestlers. But you two seemed to handle it well enough." Tony said.

"Well, I worked in that sort of environment. Here is my portfolio of the various Hollywood projects that I worked on, some television stuff as well." Joy slid a black folder across the table to Brandi.

Kenny leaned back in his chair to listen. Considering that he was the head of the women's division, a lot of them had been requesting a change in some of the wrestling outfits. It would mean that Joy and Rae were the ones that would be in charge of that. Joy would be in charge of design, and creating these things. It was a hefty pay raise from just a standard PA, which the three of them all were.

"You seem well accomplished with this. Are you going to need a lot of help?" Cody asked Joy.

"Yes. I can design, but mundane rips and tears are far more frequent than just a t-shirt design or an outfit design. I can't do it on my own. At least one more seamstress. The supplies aren't that big of a problem. We'll need out own area to work from, maybe get a few PAs to help deliver items and stuff like that."

"Ava could do that." Kenny said.

"Who?" Mr. Khan asked.

"Trent's sister, she's a PA, along with us. She's mainly helping me with Orange since he's been injured." Joy said.

"Do you have any work experience with costuming, Ms. Taylor?" Tony asked Rae.

"No. I..." she sighed. "Well, here. This might clear up some things." She pulled a newspaper article from her shoulder bag. "I am actually a license Special Needs educator. But I lost my job due to something that happened in Pittsburg. This is a report I found on it." She slid the paper across the table to Cody and the other executives.

"What happened?" Kenny asked.

"I reported the school to CPS over undocumented child abuse cases, and tampering with evidence. You don't hurt children around me. I may have punched the Principle who would later be charged on various fraud crimes as well."

"And you attacked MJF after what happened with Trent's sister." Brandi said. "Now I understand you a little better. I like you a whole lot more."

"Thanks." Rae said. "I'm lucky I didn't lose my teaching license but I have been having a hard time trying to find work as a teacher. I don't mind the shift in work, but as you can see I don't take, um, disrespect from anyone without dishing out my own. You can be sure that if something happens to Joy or Ava or anyone in my friend group, I will fight for them."

"We'll keep that in mind." Tony said, though from the sound of his voice, he was either A) proud of her straightforward attitude, or B) impressed the woman had taken down the likes of MJF.

Ava hummed a tune to herself as she sat in a chair near where there were some exercise machines that the facility held for the performers. Even though the facility had it's own locker room, she had to stick around to make sure that Orange was doing okay on the treadmill.

The facility itself was large, it was big. There were at least two full scale wrestling rings in there, and an entire room dedicated to the weight benches and work out machines, like the treadmills and ellipticals.

And she was bored. Too bored. She had a phone to watch cute cat and dog videos, and watch a few news articles on upcoming games she wanted to play. But it only lasted long enough to get bored after an hour. So she sat in a chair near a wall of mirrors and watched Orange or glanced out the large bay windows to where the wrestling rings were and keep an eye on Trent and Chuck.

Joy and Rae were called to the offices of Cody and Tony for a job. She wasn't.

Of course she wasn't, she was just...too delicate. Trent had said that when the topic came up. Too delicate to do anything else with the company. Was she good enough for anything? Her parents didn't think so, not that they talked to her in the last thirteen or so years.

Had MJF did it worse than he did, she would have shattered several bones than be bruised for an entire month. The bruising had started to go away...

"Well look who decided to come around." She looked up at the man that had hurt her.

MJF had been working in the rings one room over. She had seen him, which was why she had stayed with Orange since he was in a different room all together. Ava gripped the edge of her skirt and looked around for help. Would someone see her? Of course not, her super power prevented people from seeing her.

Not Orange, though.

"Can you at least look at me?" The said in a weird tone that was a little off. "Geez, even a small little weirdo like you can do that."

"What do you want, MJF?" Orange asked as he stepped off the treadmill, he had to use of a cane for his recovery.

"Letting her know who runs this place."

"You don't." Orange said as he walked toward Ava and MJF. "You don't run anything around here."

"I out rank you because I'm in the Elite group."

"So you say."

Orange had a unique way of down playing things, and annoy people off at the same time. MJF's face got red, like his head was going to explode. Even though it was funny, Ava knew not to laugh, or do anything because if MJF was anything like her parents, he'd had gone after her for making fun.

Trent walked into the room. "You were told not to be anywhere near my sister." He said as he looked down at MJF.

Another good reason for having a big brother like Trent, he was taller than a lot of the other guys around. MJF was less than six feet tall. Trent and Chuck stood on either side of MJF as he stood in the work out room.

"I can have you all kicked out of here, no discussion needed," MJF said as he crossed his arms.

"Rich man syndrome." Chuck said. "Just because he has an in with The Elite like Cody Rhodes, he thinks he can tell everyone what to do around here."

"Damn right I can."

Ava stood beside Orange. There wasn't another door out of the room, she couldn't run away and hide like she had wanted to. She had to stand there and endure the pain of the panic the boiled inside of her.

"What's going on?" Cody Rhodes asked as he stood on the other side of the door.

Trent and Chuck backed up, not for MFJ but because Cody wasn't alone. Tony Khan was with him. Another man that looked like he was related to Tony was there. And then there was Kenny.

Kenny had a red shirt on, black slacks and a blazer jacket that he held in his hand. His hair was still, well a little wacky to the point a curl hung down over his forehead. He was the one that bypassed everyone and walked right up to her.

"Ava, are you okay?" Kenny asked her.

She nodded.

"Can you take her away, Omega?" Orange asked. "I don't think she needs to be here." Orange then pushed her towards Kenny. "Take her to the shopping area of Daily's Place."

"Sure. Let's go, Ava."

He held his elbow out to her, a trait she hadn't received in her life. Maybe if she just walked...

Kenny stopped her, took her hand and put it on the inside of his elbow. She looked up at him and only got a smile back. Luckily as they walked to the door where all the people were gathered, they all moved out of the way for Kenny and her. In the wrestling room of the facility, Kenny and Ava walked out the front main doors.

"Hey, you know," she glanced at Kenny as they walked towards the main building in the Daily's Place complex. "Do you like anime?"

She shook her head. "Not a lot."

"Well, would you like to see Attack on Titan?"

She didn't know that anime series. She only managed to watch any of the Pokémon shows when they were on television. She had seen Digimon or some of those things. But the major anime stuff she didn't watch.

"Do you know it?"

She shook her head.

"What sort of things do you like? I know you like animals and video games, there are several on those. So, Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, there is one named New Game." He listed off more anime that sounded interesting but the names weren't clicking in her head because he said their titles in Japanese.

She stared at his mouth when he spoke as if that was going to make a difference to what he was saying. The way he said the strange words were interesting to watch. It was like he came from the country whose language he spoke.

"How..." she spoke up and that made him stop talking. "Sorry."

"No, ask your question."

"How do you say hello in Japanese?" She looked down.

"Well, konnichiwa is how you say hello. But when you're talking to traditional Japanese people, you have to bow when you say it." He said. "Anything else?"

"Thank you?"

"Domo is more personal, like you're close to each other. Domo, Ava," he said, "this is a common thing to say between friends. Gozaimasu is a generic thank you that are often said to like store clerks."

Kenny stopped her. They were in an area where there were food stalls and merchant shops. He nodded over to a small shop that was tucked in a corner, between an Asian food stand and another merchant store dedicated to AEW merchandise.

"I wanted people to experience some of my stuff and requested a small merchandise store where we sell actual Japanese merchandise. So we have a collection of Manga, there are toys and DVDs of anime." Kenny said.

She pulled away from him and reached for the cat that looked like a loaf of bread. It was soft and squishy. Ava smiled at the softness. If these were the kind of stuffed animals that Japan had, she wanted one.

"Do you like that?" Kenny asked.

"I like it a lot." She hugged the toy to her chest. "What's that?" She pointed to another stuff toy that looked like a huge gray rabbit.

"That's Totoro, the anime I was telling you about."

"Why does he look like a rabbit?" She asked.

"Because Japanese folklore is different." He said that with a slight laugh. "Studio Ghibli is the creative company behind Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Princess Mononoke and others that aren't as popular. I have the entire collection over at my US based residence if you would like to come over and watch with me."

"Okay." She said without really thinking as she walked around the small little store.

Ava bought the stuffed animal. It was a ginger cat with an orange belly and a weird looking face that appeared to be smiling. As she walked out of the store, she turned around to see Kenny buying something as well.

"Here, I got you something." He said as he held the plastic bag out.

She looked at him and then took the bag and looked in. She pulled a book out. It was a book that had New Game on it. An anime could be a book as well?

"Don't worry, that manga is in English. It's a slice of life about the video game industry." Kenny said.

"Thank you." She said as she slid the book back into the bag. "I'll read it. Where is the Garden that I heard about?"

Ava couldn't believe that she was talking to him. She realized how much more than one word sentences she was using. Kenny didn't seem to realize it like she did.

Maybe this was a good thing. She didn't mind the anime stuff, and the video game stuff. Kenny was...he wasn't as scary as she thought he had been.

"Did MJF do anything before I got there?" Kenny asked as they walked through the building.

"Not really. He threatened to kick Orange and me out."

Kenny groaned. "Why would he do that?"

"He's in the Elite."

"Not for long if I have any say in it."

She didn't do anything that day in Vegas, maybe she was a little clumsy sometimes, and maybe her superpower had worked but at the wrong time when she spilt the coffee on MJF. But Kenny saw her, he kept seeing her and it was still a little unnerving to deal with. But he just wanted to have fun, and having fun was okay, but she didn't know if she could ever have that without Rae or one of the others being there.

"Can we play more games some day?" She asked as they walked back to the training facility where the group was standing outside of it.

"I would love that. Do you have a phone? I would like to give you my number."

So in the end, before the group left Daily's Place for the rest of the day, Ava got Kenny's cell phone number.

Sorry for the long update. Thanks to everyone who has been reading. I'll be back when I can. Something has been going on and I haven't been able to write much lately.