Hey everyone!
I am sooooo sorry for the delay! October is a BUSY month for me and its almost impossible to get anything done outside of work - pandemic or no pandemic.
I hope you guys all enjoy Chapter 8!
xoxo Grim.

Chapter 8: Paparazzi

I was a zombie as I left the bar that night.
My movements were stiff and I don't even recall how I'd gotten back to the hotel.
I'd already planned on leaving after my last performance... That Jason Mraz song had got me too emotional not to bail on the rest of the evening – I'd even approached Xavier to tell him I was giving him the win. I just couldn't pretend any longer. Being that close to Mox was effecting me as much as it usually did – enough that I couldn't ignore it but I was good at shoving the feeling back down to the pit of my stomach. But singing that particular song? I was still reeling from realization of exactly how much I still wanted him to be just as effected by my presence as I was by his...

And then the incident in the bathroom happened...

Needless to say I didn't sleep that night.

How could I?!

I couldn't wrap my head around how I felt from performing that song... So how was I supposed to process what had happened in the bathroom?! How was I supposed to sleep when I couldn't even get the moment out of my head? There was even a few minutes when I swore I was having a fucking heart attack but it turned out to just be a bad panic attack.

That was super fun to deal with at four in the morning...

I don't even know how it started... I'd just been cleaning out the glass from his hand like I'd done a hundred times before. But something had changed. It was like a switch had gone off in his head or something. One second he was being his stubborn ass self and trying to pretend that he didn't want my help even though he was never ever able to get glass out of his skin with his own fingers. His hands were too big – glass picking was a dainty job. There was one time in CZW where he was right pissed at me for getting a win when he had failed during his match. In fact he had ended up being thrown through a plate glass window instead of picking up a victory. So his grumpy ass just completely refused to let me help him. He'd suffered for a week – not in silence mind you, he was an irritable bitch the whole time. But when he finally caved and let me help him, he'd practically purred in response... Even though I'd had to cut his skin back open with a pair of medical scissors I found in the first aid kit in the car, and then I couldn't even dig the glass out with my fingers. I'd had to use the tweezers from my makeup bag. But the sound that came from him while I worked... That was engraved in my head forever. It was... intoxicating.

Hell even the memory of the sound that escaped his lips from my touch was enough to get my blood pumping again...

Not that I needed that particular memory to do so... oh no... Not when I had last night to think about.

The moment just kept replaying in my head... His muscular body pressed into mine... his rough hands on my skin and fisted into my hair... his hot breathe – the smell of whiskey and beer on my face... my heart ready to leap out of the confines of my chest... his knee parting my legs ready to have his way with me right then and there...

My god had I ever wanted to stay...

There was a time when I'd never have hesitated. I'd have never pushed him away- just pushed myself further into his hands. Pressed my own hands into his chest and melted into his embrace. I could practically hear him growling into my mouth as I moaned into his.

We'd have been ravenous in our actions... Not caring that we could probably be heard in the next room... Not caring that we were in a public bathroom...
Fuck I couldn't count how many time the two of us had gone off into an alley to quench our thirst for one another. But that was then...

And now... well... Now was a different set of circumstances...

I'd forced myself to speak up... Bit back the longing and made myself do it... All because a few words had gone through my head in surround sound as he pressed me into that door... And it was those words that brought me back to reality...

The last thing I will ever become is a homewrecker.

The words played over and over as I tossed and I turned... It wasn't until my phone dinged from its place on the table by the bed that I gave up on attempting sleep.

Which was fine as it was officially day light and I should probably just start the day.

I grabbed my phone to see that the ding was not the only notification on the screen – but it was the first one I hadn't tuned out apparently. My phone had an abundance of messages from Tye, AJ and Bobby asking if I got back okay – or asking where I'd gotten off to. As well as a slew of texts from a number I assumed was Renee's; the number wasn't already in my phone and the messages from the unknown number contained quite a few Canadian-isms. There was also a message from Seth; A longer text expressing concern that I hadn't returned or said goodbye but that he'd see me soon.

The ding itself was an email from Hunter reminding me of my flight this afternoon – not that I'd forgotten – he had also included a list of things I had to do in Minneapolis before the PPV on Sunday. I rolled my eyes at the reminders and turned my phone off in retaliation to give me a bit of peace for the rest of the morning.

I groaned as I pulled myself out of the bed that I'd been laying in for hours – trying to knock the feeling of Mox's muscles pressed into my body from my head to no avail. Having a flight to Minneapolis later this afternoon meant that I needed to be presentable. I had vowed early in my career to not be the person in the crowd that smelled like B.O. - there always seemed to be one - and that meant showering... and getting rid of the blood staining my blonde hair... His blood. Blood that when I looked at it, a burning rolled through my stomach...

"Yeah you brought this on yourself with that gory promo... you absolute idiot..." I muttered to myself as I dragged my ass to the bathroom in my hotel room. Looking at myself in the mirror didn't help my mental state. The blood in my hair was a more vibrant red under the fluorescent lights surrounding the vanity than it was in the subtle light coming from between the curtains in my room. I hadn't taken my makeup off the night before and the left over war paint that I'd adjusted into eyeliner after Smackdown had officially taken on a mind of its own – smearing itself across my face overnight. I sighed and rubbed some makeup remover into my face before turning on the shower.

I stood under the hottest water I could stand for what felt like an hour just off in my own world... scrubbing absentmindedly at my skin and my face... when it came to my hair however, I had to change my usual shampoo for a concoction that I put together early in my wrestling career. It was a mix of regular shampoo with baking soda and a touch of vinegar. It seemed to be the only thing that stripped the natural hue of blood from my blonde locks.

I stared at the drain to see the pinkish tint of the water as the blood washed out. Mesmerized by the swirls it made on the tiles of the shower floor. I sighed when the water began to run cold and turned the taps off. Grabbing the hotel provided bathrobe and a towel from the rack for my hair I wrapped myself up in the cozy fluff of the fabrics.

Today was one of those days where I didn't want to face the world. Where I'd much rather ignore everyone on the planet just to lay in bed and do nothing...

But I unfortunately couldn't miss my flight.

'Hopefully its a quiet trip...' I muttered to myself as I began to repack my belongings back into my suitcase – struggling to find my favorite pair of black motorcycle boots at one point even though I'd worn them out the night before. I pulled myself together once I'd found them (kicked off beneath the one side of the bed somehow) managing to get myself out of the fluffy confines of the towels and bathrobe and forcing myself into a pair of black leggings, tank top and zip up hoodie. I was just putting my boots on when I noticed the black and red smear of blood and make up that I'd left on the sheets during my lack of sleep. The two colors clashed against the clean white of the bedding and put me in a trance – Until my watch beeped at me causing me to notice the time for the first time since my four am panic attack.

I was already running late.

I cursed under my breathe and threw my still damp hair up into a messy bun. Zipping up my suitcase and heaving the thing down off the bed, I took one last look around the room before grabbing my duffle and yanking the suitcase towards the door. I pulled open the door and shoved the suitcase out into the hallway before making my way down to the lobby to checkout of the hotel.

"Jayna! Jayna Wait up!"

I was halfway across the parking lot when I heard my name being called out behind me. I turned my head to see Seth jogging up behind me with a bag over his shoulder and his suitcase pulling behind him. I flashed him a small smile as he caught up with me. "Hey, Whats going?"

"You headed to the airport?" He asked, returning my smile and adjusting the bag over his shoulder.

"Yep, you?" I responded quickly, continuing towards my rental.

"Course, gotta get to Minneapolis." I gave him an look of confusion in return. Everyone had to be in Minneapolis on Sunday for the pay per view... But he should have time off now so why was he going already?

My curiosity ate at me so I asked him as such, "Are you stalking me?"

Seth laughed in his gritty -almost evil- cackling way, "Of course not."

"Then why are you going?"

"For TLC. Obviously." He answered as if he wasn't going to be ridiculously early. I gave him another look of confusion and he laughed. "What part of 'Where you go – I go' did you not understand Frosty?"

"OH you do not get to call me that!" I pulled the handle up on the back of the SUV that was my rental to throw in my bags – but he beat me to it. The second the hatch was opened up he picked my case up and tossed it in as if it weighed nothing.

"But Styles can?" He tossed in his own bags as he spoke. "Whats the difference? Why can't I use the nickname?"

"Trust me, Styles only gets away with it because he taught me how to do – and then let me steal - his finisher back in Impact."

He nodded his head in understanding, "So that's how you got that Spiral Tap to be so perfect..."

I flashed him another smile and chuckled a little, "Also you know, I practiced a bunch so..."

"Right, I forgot..." He shrugged and gestured for me to get into the drivers seat. "You're a child flipping prodigy"

I looked at him for a second before asking, "Were you trying to swear there or do you mean I'm good at back flips?"

It was his turn to chuckle a bit this time, "Back flips obviously"

I climbed into the drivers seat and closed the door behind me. Once he was in the passengers seat I spoke again, "And here I thought it was the Midwest in you that was preventing you from cursing."

"Offense taken." Seth scoffed at me and I shoved him playfully. Starting up the engine and getting the SUV pulled out of the parking lot. Ten minutes into the drive however Seth tried to play with the music but I slapped his hand away; much to his annoyance.

"In the words of Dean Winchester, " I began, glaring at him slightly but still trying to keep my eyes on the road, "Driver picks the music; shotgun shuts his pie-hole."

"Isn't it cake-hole?" He questioned.

"Great, so you do know the rule." I grinned a little, "And yet you tried to touch the music... tsk tsk..."

"You know you're probably the only person I know who still had an old school Ipod with a damn click wheel." He picked up the ancient Ipod that I had tossed into the cup holder of the rental. It was attached to the stereo with an old aux cord. "How old is this thing anyways?"

I shrugged a little as I turned a corner "Who knows, I've had the thing forever."

"and you keep it because?"

"If you are this butt-hurt over an Ipod you would cringe at the sight of my CD collection." I stopped at a red light as I spoke and managed to turn my head to look at Seth in time to see him full on gawping at me. "What?"

"You know that it's 2017 right?" He was cautious in his chiding of me but the meaning came through.

"Am I not allowed to collect things? Are you policing my personal life Mr. Rollins?" I feigned hurt and he laughed at me – meaning I had to shove him a little. "Yeah, I am well aware of the year."

"So then why the old school music choices?"

"If you think CDs and an Ipod are old school then wait until you hear about vinyls buddy..." I could practically hear him roll his eyes at my comment this time and I couldn't help the slight laugh that escaped from my lips.

"No seriously. Why not switch to Spotify or something?" He pressed on.

"If you must know, I genuinely enjoy CDs."

"That doesn't exactly explain the Ipod though..." He held up my ancient music player, waving it slightly around as if to say 'tell me more'.

"I was getting there Mr. Impatient." I teased. "As I was saying, I genuinely enjoy CDs. So I take the time, and put them all on my hard drives back home. Then I put those files on my Ipod."

"You've been doing this for over a decade haven't you?"

"I have indeed. I find it really soothing if I'm honest." I went on, "It's something I was actually allowed to do when I was younger. It was the one thing that got my mind away from the extra curriculars that mother dearest put me in and let me do something for my own enjoyment. I can't see myself ever not getting my music this way..."

"Well I'll be damned."

"What?" I asked, taking a second to look at him with a furrowed brow.

"I just honestly didn't think anyone enjoyed getting their music that way. It was always so frustrating to me that I never really bothered."

"Well apparently you have the patience of a starving toddler."

"You starve toddlers?!" Seth asked appalled. This time it was my turn to roll my eyes.

"Ha ha, very funny." My sarcasm was practically dripping from my lips. "Now shut that cake-hole and let me listen to my music or I'll crank the volume so that it drowns out your voice."

He scoffed and shoved me a little but conceded and let my random ass music playlist continue on through the speakers. He did however give me looks of insanity whenever the random rock covers of Disney songs came on.

"What is this?" He asked confused when a cover of "I2I" from the Goofy Movie came on. "And why do I know it?"

"Because it's iconic and you should?"

"Okay, but what song is it?"

"Its I-2-I"

"Why do I know this song though?" He was genuinely confused – but from the corner of my eye I could see his head bopping to the beat as well as him dancing slightly in his seat.

We pulled up to a stop sign and I turned to him with a smile - "Because you clearly had a bright childhood."

He looked back and returned my smile, before it fell quickly; replaced by another look of confusion, "But you didn't... so how do you know it?"

"Hey, Hey, I had a bright childhood – just not a happy one." I corrected.

"Of course, my bad." He grinned at me in response and I flashed him one of my own in response. I let the music run through me as the song changed to an 80s ballad. I focused my eyes on the road after that, letting my smile fade and my face go blank.

We were silent for the rest of the trip – I even stopped myself from singing aloud when one of my favorite songs by The Arkells came on a few minutes later. Seth probably didn't mean to make my mood sour but its not like I was trying very hard to keep positive. I shouldn't be taking out my anxiety on him, but the silence stretched on for the entire trip to the airport – only ending when a particular song began to play through the speakers as we made our way into the parking structure for the airport.

The familiar guitar strumming began and I forgot my mood instantly. Losing myself in the lyrics and beginning to sing to myself... Even though I had an audience of one at my disposal.

"You never thought that I would make it this far..." Seth looked at me strangely, not recognizing the song – not that I expected him to. "Drove me to the road, then you tossed me out of your car..."

I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel as we paused in traffic. I continued to sing the familiar tune to myself – and to Seth. Not that he had much control over my doing so, "For fear of the traffic I walked through a forest of trees... It started getting darker as the city disappeared behind me..."

The lyrics continued to pour from me as we seemed to be stuck in traffic. But I changed up my tactic as the song quieted slightly, "and then I hear your voice yell... You're calling me... You said the bad mans coming... He's following me..."

"What is this?" Seth questioned but I cut him off and turned to look at him as I belted the words out as the chorus struck:

"So run, run, run; the wolves are coming for you! Be quiet as the wind cause he's tracking you..."

I continued singing the song aloud – allowing the sound of JJ and the Pillars to envelop me. "Run, run, run – remember what he said... You better tiptoe through the snow or you'll end up dead."

I let the song finish and then turned the music off. That particular band always put me at ease. I could feel my mood lifting. The tension I'd been feeling from the incident with Dean releasing from my shoulders and my body finally seemed to relax – making me yawn.

"Tired?" Seth questioned as the line of cars in front of us actually began to move.

"Very, didn't get much sleep last night." I answered honestly, shaking the exhaustion off to focus on the task at hand. We finally made it far enough into the parking garage and were able to handover the rental to the guy in the booth. "May have to take a power nap on the plane."

"Always a good choice." He agreed. "I get most of my sleep during travel days if I'm honest."

I did a final once over through the rental, making sure I didn't forget anything like I had once in my indy days during a weekend of shows in Atlanta; I never did get that Our Lady Peace hoodie back. I stashed my Ipod and all my cords in my carry on and went to grab the rest of my bags. After heaving our luggage out of the back of the rental – and Seth insisting on taking my duffle as well as his so I only had to drag along my suitcase through the airport – we began our trek through the maze of tunnels leaving the parking garage towards the main area of the airport. Making our way over to the automated check in kiosks, we checked our bags without much hassle and made our way towards security.

We were half way through the security line when Seth broke the silence, "So who was that last band? You seemed really into that song."

I smiled to myself, "I mean I dated the drummer once..."

"That explains why you knew all the words" He conceded and I laughed a little.

"But that's not why I love them."

"Oh?"

"It's JJ's band."

"Yes, of course." He nodded carefully, pausing for a moment before continuing: "And who is JJ?"

"You know for someone who is supposed to be seen by the fans as dating me, you really didn't do any homework at all, did you?"

Seth's face tinted a shade of red and we stepped forward as the line moved closer to the metal detectors. But he broke the tension by joking with me, "You're right, I'm the worst fake boyfriend ever."

The fading red on his cheeks combined with his joking manner caused me to laugh a little as I took my turn through the detector without issue. I waited for him as he took his turn and we picked back up our belongings from the security agents.

We were walking down a hallway towards where the gates were situated when he spoke again, "So are you going to tell me or?"

"Tell you what?" I responded feigning ignorance.

"Who is JJ?"

"Oh! No, yeah – he's my brother."

"What does that mean?" He laughed with a look of confusion on his face.

"What does what mean?" I questioned, not understanding where he could be lost by my words. "What could you possibly be confused by?"

"You said both no and yeah... So is he your brother or is he not?"

"Sorry, that's another Canadian-ism" I laughed, finally getting where I misspoke. "JJ is my brother. I call him Jesse though, even if he hates it."

"Gotcha. So JJ is your brother. That was his band we listened to in the car and 'No Yeah' means yes." Seth recapped. "You may as well be teaching me Canadian as a second language at this point."

"You keep following me around then you'll pick it up in no time."

"I told you, I'm not stalking you!" He was a lot louder than he expected himself to be with this statement and we got a few strange looks from a few people that we passed; much to my amusement and Seth's embarrassment – if the redness on his face was anything to go on. I laughed at his embarrassment and shoved at him to break the tension. When he looked down at me next with a look of annoyance in his eyes I shrugged at my actions. He changed his expression to a smile again – which helped to ease the red tint to his face – before he took the moment to adjust his hold on his carry-on bag. We turned another corner and he got a little closer to me as we walked. A moment later he pulled me flush against his side and put his free arm around my shoulders. When I looked up at him with a raised eyebrow at his actions he smirked, "Have to better sell that fake boyfriend thing..."

I was having déjà vu.

My first night on Smackdown Mox had done the same thing- putting an arm around me, pulling me against him. It brought back the feelings that JJ's music had washed from me...
That anxiousness about Mox pinning me to that door was back in full force. I could feel my heartbeat quicken, my face heat up and my mouth go dry at the thought of Mox's body pressed into mine...

Which was the worst possible reaction to have with Seth's arm around me. He grinned down at me and I knew he saw the flush in my face when the same redness appeared on his neck. I didn't want him to get the wrong idea... I wasn't interested in him like that...

It wasn't that Seth was unattractive - far from it actually... He just, wasn't what I wanted...

He wasn't Mox...

Maybe I was being stupid... Pining after a man I couldn't have... A married man... An old flame at that... But there was just something about him... About Mox or Dean or whatever he needed to be called theses days; that I just couldn't shake... Like he was supposed to be in my life and I'd fucked it up by not telling him exactly how I felt.

Still Feel.

The universe was clearly punishing me by throwing his best friend at me...

I tried to shake off my anxiousness over the situation by putting a smile on my face. I looked up at Seth and he returned my expression; but my smile didn't last long. As we rounded another corner, we were accosted by paparazzi. The group of photographers came up to us in a flurry of loud questions, quick clicks and flashes of light.

"How does it feel being in the WWE Jayna?"

"Seth how is your partnership with Dean Ambrose going?"

"Are you gonna turn on him again Seth?"

"Wait! Are the two of you a couple!?"

"Jayna, is that how you got your top spot in the company?"

"Seth! How long have the two of you been dating?"

"Is Jayna's championship match on Sunday because of your pull with the company?"

"Or did you actually manage to change the minds of the higher ups in the WWE?"

"Seth! How did you get Jayna free agent status in the company? Are you still teamed up with Triple H behind the scenes?"

The questions didn't stop until we managed to weasel our way away from the group of them and into a secure area of the airport where photographers and paparazzi were not allowed to enter.

I was absolutely fuming.

I'd stripped Seth's arm from my body as soon as we were out of their site. Storming over to the airport bar, I ordered myself three shots of tequila and silently slammed them back one after the other with a cringe.

"Fucking pricks. Absolute fucking assholes." I muttered under my breathe and motioned for the bartender to poor me another.

"Uhm... I thought you hated tequila," Seth put his bag down next to where I'd haphazardly thrown my duffle by the base of the bar.

"Yeah well I kind of want to forget the last twenty minutes, and frankly Gin just doesn't get the job done." I grumbled, taking the next shot so fast that the bartender barely had time to set it down in front of me. "Keep 'em coming thanks."

"I don't think she needs that." Seth spoke to the bartender and he looked between us like he was unsure who to listen to. I turned my iciest glare on the Kingslayer and watched as his Adams apple bobbed slightly as he gulped. I motioned for the bartender to listen to me and he placed a fifth shot in front of me on the bar top. "Do you think you maybe want to slow down a little?"

"Do I want to slow down? Hmm let me think about that..." I bit out my words at him and took the new shot that was before me in one fluid motion. He sighed at my actions but pulled up a stool next to me regardless. He took a second to look down at his phone before attempting to run his fingers through his hair; and failing when he realized it was up in a bun.

I turned my attention away from him. I couldn't look at the concern in his face whenever I noticed him looking at me from the corner of my eye. I knew he didn't deserve the sass that I'd thrown at him. Especially when I know he was only concerned; but I couldn't help it. Vince wanted me with Seth and from the very start I knew how it was going to look. That it was going to come across like I didn't earn my spot in the company at all. It was infuriating how right I was.

I stayed stewing in my thoughts for a little while longer, and after another two shots it clicked.

When I was going through the process of ironing out my contract with WWE there was always a little whisper in the back of my head - one that told me that I'd eventually have to deal with my history with Mox. But on the day that I signed that contract I hadn't been thinking about reuniting with him – or even how I felt about him in general...

I'd been thinking about how I could use my platform in the company to change the game. To work the system from the inside. To prove to the damn world that a woman could hang with the top competitors in the industry. That a woman my size, could succeed in this business without being a piece of fucking ass.

And the fact that the world seemed to think that I had done nothing in my life to earn my damn position and that I'd slept my way into the company.

That thought alone had me absolutely seething.

I took the next shot that was in front of me, and practically slammed a handful of bills onto the bar to pay for my drinks. Seth looking startled by the sound – and confused by my actions but wasn't complaining. I didn't give him any words for my choice to stop drowning out the memories of the paparazzi. Hell, it's not like I had a reason for my decision. I just knew it wasn't going to help my situation.

I continued to ignore Seth's confused expression and didn't say a word. Just grabbed my bag up off the floor and practically marched my tipsy ass towards the gate for our flight. I was just about there, hell I could even see the gate number ahead, when another photographer appeared.

Perfect timing.

"Jayna! Can I get a comment about the speculation going around that your match on Sunday is just a one off?" The balding man flashed his camera in a rapid fire motion, completely blinding me. The tequila in my system had my brain a little fuzzy and the light wasn't helping the situation. I had to pause to regain my vision. The man continued to click the camera in my face – making it impossible to do so.

"Hey man, if you want a comment you're going to have to let her breathe for a second." Seth's voice came from my left and as much as I wanted to praise him for getting the man to stop blinding me for a damn second – doing so in front of the guy wasn't going to help my case.

"I've got this." I shook the flashes from my vision and put my hand up to silence Seth as he looked like he was going to speak again. But he took my hint, and put his hands up in mock surrender and let me continue. I blinked slightly, and then turned on my wickedly heelish smirk on the pudgy paparazzi before speaking, "As for your question, If you did any damn research on me you'd know that what you asked is a very stupid question. Because if you'd done so, then you'd have known that I've earned everything I've ever achieved. Oh, and I've done so by kicking the absolute shit out of anyone that has ever stood in my way; regardless of my opponents gender. In fact! I started in this industry by beating up men. So this Sunday I'll be proving to the damn world that I could care less who is standing across the ring from me – I will always put up one hell of a fight."

The man looked taken aback at the way I was speaking to him, but the tequila in my system was fueling my attitude and had completely taken over at this point. I took a step towards him with what could only be seen as an absolutely sadistic smile on my face, my eyes alight- I'm sure I looked a little crazy – but I continued to talk to him as if he was everyone who had ever doubted me in my entire life. "I plan to decimate The Miz. I will hold that Intercontinental title above my head – and then you – and the rest of the world will realize that I can do whatever I set my damn mind to – REGARDLESS of what everyone thinks of me; or what stands in my way."

The man's balding head was visibly sweating now, the stubble on his neck moved as he gulped. He wasn't much taller than me and I was definitely being more than just rude at this point.

"Have you not figured out that you are, in fact: In. My. Way." I accentuated my words very carefully and it finally clicked in the mans head that he should move. I watched as the guy scurried off around the next corner and I tilted my head as he left my vision – taking a deep breathe. Seth took a step forward to stand next to me and it was only then that my in ring persona turned off. I looked at him expecting the worst but he surprised me by having a full grin on his bearded face.

"You went full heel on his ass." He laughed and a small smile broke my face. "You know someone probably got all that on video right?"

I shrugged a little, "And you're point?"

"Oh I'm not saying it's a bad thing – hell if no one recorded that and it's not out on the internet by tomorrow morning, you should try to recall everything you just said so that you can use it for pre-show interviews on Sunday. That was pure gold."

I agreed with his thoughts, but I also had one major concern about my actions; "You don't think Vince and Hunter will be mad that I basically cut a promo without company cameras?"

He nodded and threw his arm back around my shoulders, guiding me towards the gate that looking about ready to begin boarding. "Oh I'm sure Vince will be more mad that we won't control the narrative. But Hunter seems to freaking adore you so you'll be golden in his eyes regardless. Plus if it goes viral that you snapped and went crazy on a paparazzi then the media coverage for Sunday will be astronomical. So in the end it will all work out for the best."

"Bossman does like me more than you." I acknowledged.

Seth pulled his arm off me just to cross his arms across his chest and pout. "Well if I pulled my finisher on his brother in law he might like me too."

"No he wouldn't."

"How do you know?" He questioned, moving forward in the boarding line.

"Your finisher is a pedigree Seth – so I'm sure Hunter would rather hit Shane with that himself. Besides when you're not using that one, you pull out that weird ripcord high knee thing that you stole from Kenny Omega."

He rolled his eyes at me as he handed his boarding pass and ID to the woman guarding the gate, just as I thought he'd dropped the subject altogether he grumbled out: "I did not steal it from Omega."

"Sure you didn't." Sarcastic as ever I let my words trail off at the end and finished with the boarding process. I began my trek through the jet bridge towards the plane without another word. I'd just stashed my bag in the overhead and was pulling out my headphones from my hoodie for the flight when Seth seemed to appear behind me. He stepped right up flush against my back. The heat from his body permeated the air around me as he practically hovered over me. I stilled completely, not sure if moving was even an option for my tequila addled brain. I stood like that for seemingly far too long when I heard the overhead compartment click shut and he jabbed my in the side with one of his fingers.

"You gonna sit sometime today or did you expect for the plane to take off with you still standing in the aisle – and in my way?" His words seemed to light a fuse in my head and I shook the feeling of the heat from my body.

I moved myself forward and into the window seat and he took the seat next to me. It was a smaller plane so there was only the two seats in each row, meaning he could stretch his legs out into the aisle if needed. Being the smaller person in the row I was used to giving the aisle seat to someone who could benefit from the extra leg room.

"You good?" He asked, placing a hand on my forearm once the two of us were situated. The spot where his skin touched mine seemed to light with fire. What the hell is wrong with me right now? "You look a little flushed, are you a nervous flyer?"

I pulled my arm out from under his hand and pressed my palm to my forehead. I was rather clammy all of a sudden."Not usually."

"Told you those shots were a bad idea." His deep, guttural laugh ringing out.

"Just because there is tequila sloshing around in my gut, doesn't mean you were right. Besides, if you've never been drunk on a flight before, I really can't stress how much you need to live a little." I responded as I adjusted my seating while plugging my headphones into my Ipod for the flight.

"Hey now." He chuckled but was clearly trying to change the tone of our conversation. "I was only trying to look out for you. We have interviews later today, think you can shake off those shots before then?"

"Fuck..." I groaned, shutting my eyes and slamming my head back against the seat in annoyance. "I may or may not have forgotten about those..."

"Seriously though, I was only trying to make sure you were relatively sober for work. Don't want you to screw yourself out of your spot. You know you earned that, and I'd hate for you to fuck it up because some paparazzi assholes ruined your day." Seth's tone reminded me of the way Sami used to talk to me whenever he was trying to get my stubborn ass to see his side of things.

When he was legitimately trying to look out for me. Callihan always did have my back – even when he was being a right prick about things. So if Seth was anything like Sami... Well... I'd be better off if I actually paid attention to what he has to say.

I sighed and conceded to him that he was in fact right – and was rewarded by him pumping his fist in the air in a show of victory. His smug reaction had me punching him in the leg before I could stop myself.

"What was that for?!" He rubbed his hand over the spot on his thigh where I'd hit him. "You gave me a charlie horse!"

"Maybe calm the smug attitude Sethy."

"Sethy? There's a new nickname..." He seemed to be mulling the name over in his head for a second, before scrunching up his nose in distaste. "I don't think I like it."

"All the more reason to use it." I grinned at him and he shoved at my shoulder slightly in retaliation and I stuck my tongue out at him. I didn't get another word out though because my brain choose that moment to force a massive yawn out of me.

"Someone needs a nap" He teased.

"Someone needs to shut up." As the flight attendant began the security demonstrations I tuned out the world. Pulling my headphones on and preparing myself to take a power nap to sleep off the tequila as the thoughts beginning to return to my brain. I quickly squashed the flashes of Mox's face so close to mine with the noise of music. Seth gave me another look but I tuned him out too. Shuffling down in my seat a bit I focused on the flow of music into my ears and let my body relax. The lack of sleep from the night before finally allowing brain to stop overthinking every little thing. There was a warmth seeping through me despite the cold coming off the window and I tried my best to ignore it as my eyelids began to get heavy.

I waited until we were in the air before I fully let myself succumb to the sleep that I had missed out on the night before...