Alexa's first teacher's in-service meeting started early and dragged on a lot longer than it needed to. Three hours to talk about policy change regarding making the full switch over from chalkboards to dry erase markers and smartboards seemed very taxing and not worth it, especially considering that she wasn't guaranteed to be hired by PT Barnum following graduation. She thought about chancing a nap when the lights dimmed and Principal O'Shaughnessy started a PowerPoint presentation, but Miss Tessmacher's jokes and the warm cup of coffee she treated Alexa with kept the sleepy brunette awake and alert.
"Baby, fuck!"
Then there was Alexa's home life. She barely remembered what happened during the day that ground her gears to the point of major machine disfunction because of the man she met each time she stepped through the door. Dean was always happy to see her, no matter how bad school was or how much pain his knee caused him. It may have been cliche to say that she fell in love with him all over again each day, but it was true and she didn't shy away from telling him.
"Ahhhhh! Don't tickle me, fucker!"
And days like this, where Alexa had been thinking about her future husband to make the clock tick faster, Dean's fingers dug into her thighs leaving red welts, her legs pressing together so hard they threatened to crush Dean's skull. Alexa's pencil skirt wrinkled and pushed up her legs, her panties thrown somewhere in the room.
Dean grinned to himself, tasting the last wave of Alexa's orgasm settling her petite body.
"Love you, baby," his voice was low and gravely, probably on purpose to entice Alexa into more 'alone time'.
Dean's sticky lips kissed a pattern down his girl's thighs. As he snaked backward, his fingers pulled at the fabric covering her belly until it settled on its intended place just below her knees.
"I fucking love you so much..." Alexa croaked. A little pinch of embarrassment always flared in her chest whenever her voice broke after sex. Dean loved it, as he told her many times, so it wasn't a major hurdle during or after.
Dean rolled over from his stomach to sit upright at the edge of the bed. For maybe the first time in months his knee didn't hurt after lying down. He still needed his crutches to guide him as he didn't feel fully confident to walk without them, but this surgery may have been the best decision he ever made in his life.
Dean heard Alexa's breathing slow down. "Well... second best," he thought to himself with a chuckle.
"This doesn't get you out of counseling," Alexa said.
"Shit!"
A giggle followed Dean's expletive. "You know you love it, babe. Besides..."
Alexa paused to crawl behind her boyfriend. She draped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek.
"...we'll only have to do monthly visits in a few weeks. You'll live."
Dean shrugged. "If you think so. I'm just worried I'll end up in a freezer cuz ol' Maddox is obsessing over you."
"Well, he did ask me to wear my nurse uniform to the session today..."
Dean connected his gaze with Alexa's. "Could... could you?"
Alexa lightly shook her head. "No, sir. Sorry, but only my husband is allowed to see me in anything less than normal clothes."
Dean pecked his tiny girlfriend on the lips. He grabbed a crutch to help stand him up, then hobbled across the room to his closet. After spending most of the week on the couch, he knew a shower was far past due and Alexa would appreciate it. Besides, she was probably going to take one too after their moment together, and Dean didn't mind at all seeing his naked woman while he showered.
"Did y'all get your Halloween costumes ready?" He asked over his shoulder.
Alexa spoke as she stripped away from her work clothes. "Yeah, AJ and Dana bought some fake blood and Halloween make-up. I think I'm going to go with the typical 'dead cheerleader' in a slasher movie."
"Cool, cool."
Alexa started collecting a new outfit suited for therapy. "Do you think the party will still go on even though that Max asshole is snooping around?"
Dean sighed, heavily. Kevin was none-too-thrilled to learn that BPO had yet another visit from a pain in their ass that they didn't need. This was obviously all just a ploy from Mr. Laurinaitis to shut down, or at least muffle all Greek row activity. Nobody knew why the Dean was so dead set on ruining Greek life for everyone, but most of the fraternities and sororities agreed that they weren't going to let it ruin their plans.
"We're gonna fuckin' try," he said, shaking his head.
If BPO was doing anything evil he'd understand why the restrictions were in place. But apart from underage drinking and some recreational drug use, what was the crime for wanting to throw a party every week?
Dean felt his temper flare, but he took a deep breath to keep it at bay. "Who knows? Maybe we'll go the whole night without Johnny boy fucking anything up."
Alexa offered her fiance a warm smile. Dean kissed her lips, sucking lightly on her tongue just to get the stress out of his head before their appointment.
"I love you," Alexa promised, looking her dearest in the eyes. "No matter what happens tomorrow night, you're still stuck with me."
"Like herpes?" Dean quipped.
Alexa playfully rolled her eyes. "Mmm, more like syphilis."
Dean's face twisted in disgust. "Oh god... you're gonna sting and burn for weeks and eventually damage my internal organs?"
"Yes, let's go with that."
Dean nodded, showing like he was ok with that. Alexa giggled, still finding Dean's sense of humor immature but adorable at the same time.
PUNCH, PUNCH, KICK! PUNCH, PUNCH, KICK! PUNCH, PUNCH, KICK!
Keeping a rhythm wasn't as hard as screaming at her limbs to cooperate with her brain. What started as frantic punches and kicks quickly turned into something sort of resembling a one-two-kick combo that could send Connor McGregor screaming and running away, or so AJ liked to think.
Rob, Dana's kick-boxing instructor, was impressed with AJ's ability to learn things on the fly. Her stance was perfect, her intensity scared the crap out of him half the time, and her footwork was damn near professional levels.
"Alright, take a break," Rob pulled the practice dummy back against the wall, giving AJ an impressed smirk. "Dude, is this really your first time kick-boxing?"
AJ breathed quickly, resting her hands atop her head. "Uh, legally? Yeah, I think so."
Rob shook his head, but his smile remained. "I gotta say, you did a fantastic job. I don't have anything to say really. Maybe just watch your footwork. I think we can probably move on to some more advanced shit on Friday if you want."
AJ's lips curled back in a proud grin. "Yeah, that sounds fuckin' awesome! I'll for sure be here."
The woman who convinced AJ to come to the dojo sat against the back wall. Dana, excitedly following AJ with her eyes, thanked Rob tremendously for letting AJ practice with her without asking for any form of extra payment. Rob simply thanked Dana for bringing her friend before stepping into his office.
"Well, what'd you think?" Dana asked the tinier girl.
"I'm a freakin' weaponized penguin, Dana," snickered AJ with fire in her eyes. "I wanna do this every day! I wanna go kick someone in the face now."
"You can't do that, AJ. Besides, you don't learn head kicks until week five."
AJ shrugged, still picturing a scenario in her head where she superkicked a mugger in the head to save her wallet and Dana from any potential harm.
Dana collected her water bottle and headed for the locker room, her pint-sized best friend following close behind her.
AJ's sense of fulfillment and glee wouldn't rest. The adrenaline pumped through her veins, making the tips of her ears burn pink. Something about learning the basics to what would ultimately become a great defense mechanism and possibly a hobby to help with her pent-up anger and confusion just made her feel unstoppable and, for once, somewhat normal.
Dana felt exhausted after her lesson. She was a little more advanced than AJ, having started to learn a little bit of the Jiu-Jitsu that Rob was more famous for. Takedowns and limb control was a bitch to learn, and especially to take, but Rob was a legend in the sport and she was ecstatic that he happened to own a gym near the campus.
AJ bounced on her toes, trying to alleviate some of the excitement from her chest. "Is it normal that I'm so wired right now?"
"Normal for you? Yeah," giggled Dana, pulling a bottle of body wash from her bag.
As Dana emptied the supplies she needed for her shower, AJ found her heart beating ten times as fast when she looked at her ex. Having not seen her since the lakehouse and only a few weeks later standing in front of her in the women's locker room at RVD's Dojo had the tiny girl reminiscing old times.
Denny's at two a.m... NYC... beating the holy hell out of Seth's Impala... those delicious pouty lips...
"Hey, do you have any-"
AJ firmly pressed her lips against Dana's, cutting the platinum-blonde's sentence off. The smaller of the two girls pulled back almost as soon as they made contact.
"Fuck! Dana, I'm so sorry!"
Dana didn't verbally respond to AJ's apology. She stared hard at the floor, unsure what to do. Part of her told her to leave and shower at home, while the other didn't want to upset AJ anymore than she was.
AJ's heart was near panic. She royally fucked up, yet again, a mere day after she apologized to Dana and begged for their friendship. Everything was fine and dandy until AJ went and fucked everything up.
"Dana?"
The aforementioned young woman gazed at her friend. AJ held herself, the fingers on her right hand anxiously rubbing at her neck.
"Come here, please," Dana instructed calmly.
AJ hesitated for a moment, half expecting the ass-kicking of the century, but stepped forward. Dana opened her arms and pulled AJ into her lap, setting the cheerleader's plump bottom on her thigh.
Dana leaned closer. "Keep it second base, ok?"
AJ's heart skipped a beat as she smelled sweat and lilac. "O-ok..."
The former lovers locked lips, eyes shut tight. AJ's pink tongue rolled from her mouth between Dana's lips. Dana took things up another notch with her fingers nimbly tracing the outline of AJ's bra over her t-shirt. AJ moaned into the kiss, unsure why this was happening, but felt no desire to stop.
The unbelievable sight of twelve exhausted jurors returning to their seats brought a collective sigh from those who were watching the case play out on TV. Charlotte Flair was one of those people, watching with bated breath as a dozen strangers held her father's future, and quite literally his life, in their hands.
Months of suffering through paparazzi and mistreatment by people she never met, both online and in the real world, finally came to this. Charlotte's heart thumped in her chest. She just wanted to hold Becky, but she stepped out to get food about an hour ago. Charlotte didn't expect to find the jury deciding its verdict after her shower, but here they were. There wasn't so much as a warning that they were done delegating the verdict, but here they were.
Twelve people. Maybe one of them was fucked over in Ric's bullshit. Would the court have caught that ahead of time and replaced them? Was the judge going to let Ric completely off the hook if things looked in his light? God, why was the room suddenly so hot? And since when was Charlotte sweating? For maybe the first time in her life, she actually wanted her dad to be ok after this. Sure, he wasn't the best dad, but his intentions were always in his family's favor... most of the time.
The camera focused on Ric and his legal team. Seeing her father surrounded by lawyers scared Charlotte. Ric had this coming to him, so why did she feel her heart breaking at the thought of the old man going to prison? Ric fucked over a lot of people with what he did. There was no way he didn't deserve spending the rest of his life behind bars... but Charlotte felt like crying at the thought.
"Has the jury come to a decision?"
"Yes, your honor..."
There were a few happy memories with Ric. It wasn't all embezzlement and lady-hounding from her old man. Ric loved his kids (and whoever his wife was that week) and would most certainly move the world for them if they asked. Every Summer, after school let out for the break, they always had a few weeks together visiting some foreign country or sightseeing one of the better parts of America. Charlotte, her older brother David, older sister Megan, and little brother Reid.
When she thought about it, Ric didn't really change until Reid died. Charlotte was there when the police arrived to tell her parents that they found Reid's Corvette wrapped around a tree under the suspicion that he'd been coming home drunk from a party. That was the first real heartbreak Charlotte felt. In a way, Reid was the glue that held the family together through the worst times. As soon as he died, David never visited, Megan moved across the country, Ric distanced himself from his children in favor of his word, and Sheila just shut off for a few years. Charlotte took off for a college that was far enough away from everything to get a fresh start but closer so she was at least a car ride away for her mom.
"We find the defendant, Richard Morgan Flair..."
Charlotte's face rested in her hands. She thought that maybe if she didn't look that it wouldn't freak her out as much, like a child watching a horror movie; Charlotte would much rather be watching a terrible slasher flick than the news.
"Everything happens for a reason..." or some shit like that. Charlotte didn't believe in luck or karma. She sometimes doubted the existence of a god simply because everything in her life had fallen apart sooner or later. But of course, with things like meeting Becky and finding success in college, she often contradicted her past speculation and sent a prayer or two just in case someone, or something was listening.
"Not guilty, on charges of embezzlement and fraud."
"WHAT THE FUCK!" Charlotte cried out, the tears rolling down her face.
Ric's tired eyes leaked with joy, his wrinkled cheeks caked in tear trails. Nora nearly trampled the bailiff running to Ric's side to hug him. Those in the audience murmured with each other, their expressions ranging from relieved to fifty-shades of pissed. Charlotte recognized a few sharp-dressed businessmen peppered in the room; Whether they were for or against Ric was still up for debate.
"How the fuck..." Charlotte couldn't believe that her father got himself out of more shit. That all-knowing force in the universe finally had the man by the coattails, and fucking fumbled him as the clock struck midnight.
The front door opened.
"Hello, my lovely petunia," Becky chirped, completely oblivious to the situation. She set their dinner on the kitchen counter with an exaggerated huff.
Charlotte was on her girlfriend before the redhead had a chance to take her jacket off. Becky's arms wrapped around her waist, a giggle escaped her throat when Charlotte's tongue slipped into her mouth.
"Good mornin' to you too..."
Charlotte pecked Becky's chin. "Can we go out? I could use a drink."
Becky's brow raised. Charlotte had refused to go anywhere since God-knows-when. Going out did sound like a great idea, especially since Becky was almost certain Roadies was having a special going on for fryer food and well drinks.
"Your car?"
Charlotte nodded. "Yeah. I'll let you drive, 'kay?"
Becky was excited, but she still felt Charlotte was hiding something. "Are you alright, love?"
Charlotte sighed heavily, an uneasy smile crossing her lips. "Yeah... I'm great, baby."
Zack wasn't sure why he needed to be at Sammartino Hall after football practice with his wife, but here he was anyway. Mr. Ryder followed Mrs. Ryder from the elevator to the door across the hall of her old apartment.
"Are you really sure it's here?" Zack asked.
Bayley nodded. "Yes, my Zackary. If I don't have my Chargers hoodie at home, then I must've left it at Roman's."
After unlocking the door with her spare key, Bayley led Zack into the dorm room. No one was home, or at least in the living room. Bayley made a beeline for Roman's bedroom. Zack wandered into the kitchen, figuring nobody would notice if he swiped a beer or two while he waited for his wife.
"DARN IT!"
Bayley marched out of one bedroom and went into the next. Zack popped the tab on his beer.
Speaking of missing personal items, Zack recalled bringing a Bluetooth speaker along with him to the lakehouse. Dean swore he didn't have it, but Zack wasn't sure what he did with it. Zack opened the connection list for his Bluetooth setting.
A gentle tone would play if he connected correctly. He tapped the string of letters and numbers for his speaker. He disconnected and tried again, but no sound played.
"Found it!"
Bayley proudly held her missing sweatshirt in her arms. She playfully rolled her eyes at the beer in her husband's hand but didn't at all feel any negativity about it. Bayley embraced her beloved from behind and kissed the back of his neck.
"Found it, babe?" Zack asked.
Bayley nodded happily. "Yep. Now we can go to dinner!"
The hugger's eyes fell to her husband's phone. She tutted her tongue seeing that Zack was still looking for his speaker; Having heard his questions about it for weeks since leaving the Poconos was the most annoying thing he'd ever done, but she still loved him.
"MCF-665, John's phone, Nan-cam432, Terry's Phone, BBC Speaker, Sony MegaBoom..."
Zack read along with his wife's mock baritone narration. He glanced over his shoulder and kissed the bubbly young woman.
"Nan-cam432?" Zack asked.
Bayley nodded once. "Yep. Nanny cam, model four-thirty-two. We should get one for the kid's room."
Zack chuckled. "Maybe one that looks like a stuffed duck or something?"
Bayley giggled as she followed her husband out of the apartment. "Or maybe an elephant! Ooh! Or what about a bear? Can't beat the classics, Zackary."
"Am I a bad person?"
It was a fairly simple question. Everyone has a different walk of life compared to the next person, but the overall difference between "good" and "evil" more or less remained similar. Providing the best for those held dearest seemed to be the general consensus of a "good" person.
AJ Lee mostly acted on impulse and what she wanted at the moment. She thought she kicked that addiction during her stint in rehab. Months of talking about her stupid feelings and why she needed to use sex as a bargaining device felt like something she needed to do. It worked... for about a month before she sexually assaulted one of her closest friends based solely on a feeling of jealousy that sparked from him moving on while she still had leftover affection.
"Of course not, AJ. Why would you think that?"
AJ almost didn't hear Dana's response. The hot water bubbling in seven separate coffee machines took up most of her attention and ear space. Her own cup of joe radiated enough heat that AJ's palm started to feel a little numb. Plus, the third guy in line was wearing socks with his sandals and AJ already mentally decided that he couldn't be trusted.
"We just face-battled at the gym..." AJ muttered, staring off into space. "You have a boyfriend... a fucking monster who could rip me in half in his sleep."
Dana set her hand over AJ's wrist. She looked to try to make eye contact with a soft squeeze.
"It's not your fault, honey. Trust me," said Dana, rubbing the back of AJ's hand with her thumb.
AJ chuckled dryly. "You said to keep it second base... it was until we got in the shower..."
Dana inhaled deeply and sighed. Back at Rob's dojo, sometime after Dana pulled AJ close and kissed her, they joined each other in the shower room and continued their affair. Nothing more than heavy touching happened, but both girls would be lying if they said they didn't think about going further or thought about all the similar moments they shared.
"AJ..." Dana thought of what to say next.
She couldn't tell her friend that she didn't still care about her more than a friend. She did, and she most likely always would, which was most likely why she couldn't bring herself to completely remove AJ from her life.
"...I love you. I do. So much."
"I know," AJ muttered, her eyes locked on something across the room but unfocused on what it was.
"Brian... he wanted me to ask you something about us. Me and you, specifically."
AJ blinked, giving her eyes a little reprieve. She turned her focus back to Dana, locking her eyes with the shade of coal-black that held the key to her very fucking soul.
Dana chuckled, breaking some of the tension.
"It's a fucking crazy idea..."
"What is?" AJ asked.
Dana sighed, then nodded her head again.
"He... when we talked last night, I told him everything about you. Everything. Your favorite foods, movies, beer. I guess I rambled for a while because he asked if I still loved you but like a girlfriend. And I told him I do."
"Did you guys break up?" AJ asked. If they had, it would've made Brian's kiss goodbye that morning a lot stranger.
Dana shook her head. "No. He came up with an idea, and I wanted to ask if you'd be ok with it. If you're not, that's perfectly ok. I just want to know your perspective."
AJ sat forward, her interest fully piqued by Dana's vague, yet oddly intriguing sentence structure.
"How would you like to be in a polyamorous relationship with us?" Dana asked, smiling shyly yet pinching her bottom lip between her teeth.
AJ blinked. "Come again?"
"Polyamorous," Dana repeated.
AJ furrowed her brow. "Like, we all date each other? I fuck you, you fuck him and we're all happy sort of thing?"
"That's one way of putting it, but yes," Dana nodded. "He was very excited to meet you properly after I told him about you. He said he isn't angry or upset about us being friends and gave me the idea last night. I wanted to bring it up now, but..."
"I tried to monkey fuck you," AJ said.
Dana playfully rolled her eyes. "Yes. You did."
AJ wasn't entirely sure what this meant for her as a person. "Dating" two people at once seemed like a recipe for disaster, but she'd have Dana whenever she wanted. Did that mean that she would have to have sex with Brian? He was a nice enough guy, based on the brief time AJ knew him, but to think about being fucked by a literal walking mountain range had AJ a little nervous.
AJ lowered her voice. "Do I have to fuck him?"
Dana giggled. "Eventually, I'm sure. He'll get jealous if I'm the only one allowed to."
"What about when I'm on tour with Punk?" AJ asked.
Dana raised her brow. "Are you planning on having sex with him?"
AJ looked away shamefully. "I... may have sent him a few pictures of my sexy bits."
"AJ!"
"Oh, like you haven't Miss "Lemme-Sext-You-During-My-Workout?"
Dana grinned. "You can be with Punk while you're with him. But you're all mine when you come back."
AJ furrowed her brow. "Are you really sure about this?"
Dana nodded. "One-hundred percent."
AJ wasn't sure how to feel. She had Dana back, in a sense of the word. But now she had to interact and get along with Brian, who was nice enough to essentially share his girlfriend with a stranger. Where did this leave Seth? And Punk? What would her friends say about this new development? What the hell was that smell? Cinnamon? Paprika? Was it a fucking cheeseburger? In Nitro Coffee?
AJ spoke before her mind went completely off the rails. "Dana, as insane as this sounds, I would love to be the especia (spice) to your meat sandwich."
Dana beamed with joy. "Really? I'm so glad, AJ! Brian's walking in right now, so act normal, ok?"
Before AJ had time to panic, Dana's, and apparently AJ's, boyfriend walked into the cafe. Brian looked around the room a moment before spotting the two women and joining them.
"Hello, girls," Brian greeted the two women. He leaned into Dana and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.
Sensing a little unspoken tension, Brian looked back and forth between AJ and Dana. The fearful look on AJ's face and the smirk stretching Dana's lips were telling him everything he needed to know without actually have to say any words.
"Everything cool?" Brian asked with a chuckle.
AJ blurted out. "You look good!"
Brian grinned. "You told her about the thing?" He asked Dana.
Dana shrugged. "Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe you should say hi to your new girlfriend."
AJ offered a muted finger wave. Brian smiled softly and held out his fist towards the tinier woman. AJ, taken by surprise by how massive Brian's fist was, touched her knuckles to his.
"You guys wanna head back?" Brian asked.
AJ gulped. "Are we fucking already?"
Brian and Dana burst out laughing. AJ tried melting into the floor out of embarrassment.
"No, I have UberEats bringing sushi to my place," Brian revealed.
AJ's eyes went wide. "Sushi you said?"
Dana winked. "Yep. Brian loves sushi too."
"Well, who doesn't, babe?" Brian chuckled.
AJ shrugged. "Well if sushi is involved, then I think I can get behind this 'thrupple' thing. But I don't put out that easy, Brian."
Brian raised his hands in mock surrender. "I'll keep my hands to myself until you decide if I'm worthy or not."
AJ's mind started to rest a little. It appeared that Dana's beau was as soft-hearted as she'd talked him up to be. That was a relief since AJ was expecting major douchebag vibes to radiate off this guy like his aura.
At Dana's car, the buxom blonde leaned into her tiny friend and kissed her lips. AJ, heart skipping a beat, kissed back just as gently with a tug at the hem of Dana's top. Dana spun on her heels and practically jumped into Brian's arms as they kissed. AJ felt it was her turn next when both looked at her, but the most she did was jump a little and peck Brian on the cheek. Brian smiled and held out his fist for AJ to bump again, figuring that was a good enough show of affection for now.
Roman Reigns liked to think he was an alert predator that would be ready for any and all attacks from any side from any point in time. Years of working out and strengthening his reflexes to keep the edge on and off the gridiron made him a force to be reckoned with.
"What the shit?" Roman cursed out loud, watching his character crumple to the ground.
"Problem, Roman?" Sasha sassily taunted, pursing her lips together with a subtle smirk.
Somehow, despite Roman's great attention to detail, Sasha's on-screen character snuck up on him yet again and sent him to an early grave (until he respawned back in). He took the beating with no hard feelings though. After their lunch together, Sasha and Roman started seeing each other a little more around campus. He might've taken it less personal if it were Charlotte or Tessa, but Sasha was proving to be a worthy competitor and Roman couldn't have that, not in his apartment on his gaming console.
Sasha pushed the frame of her glasses further up the bridge of her nose.
"You know I'm three kills from cap, right?"
"You know I can kick your ass, right?"
"You know I've been doing martial arts since I was seven, right?"
"You know I can ban you from the Xbox, right?"
Sasha gasped in shock, baiting a laugh from Roman. "You wouldn't dare, you mother fucker!"
"Try me," Roman dared.
In-game, Sasha ran up on Roman and shot him point-blank in the head with a grenade launcher. Roman muttered under his breath a few expletives, but shook it off and went back into it.
"I'm glad your girl isn't here to watch you get your ass kicked all over Yemen." Sasha quipped.
"And I'm glad Sigma Nu isn't here to watch you get wrecked by SU's star lineman," Roman shot back.
Sasha giggled, knowing Roman's words were in good spirit. "We'll see, Ro."
Seth and Toni were also in the apartment. The two arrived before Sasha with their Halloween costumes for BPO's party. Seth had purchased a ratty green and red striped sweater for his portrayal of Freddy Kruger. Toni was planning on wearing a ghostly-white nightgown with the midsection clawed up and covered in blood, much like the first kill in the iconic series involving nightmare demons.
"How many more minutes?" Seth asked.
Toni stole a quick glance at her phone. "Two."
With Roman and Sasha distracted trying to destroy each other digitally, neither noticed Toni slip into the bathroom, pregnancy test in hand. Seth wasn't aware of what his girlfriend was doing until he received a text from her asking him to join her in the bathroom. Seth expected a little discreet fun, but his stomach hit his shoes when he saw the little plastic test sitting on the sink.
Seth sat on the edge of the tub, trying to act like he wasn't picturing every possible scenario that could come out of this. Toni paced around the room, nibbling her thumbnail while simultaneously trying not to lose her mind at the thought of possibly fucking up everything she worked so hard for.
"Has it been late before?" Seth asked, trying to find a logical explanation in the madness.
Toni shook her head. "No. Never. It's been on time ever since I was twelve, Seth."
"Ok. That doesn't really mean anything."
"I hate how calm you are."
Seth smirked up at his girl. "I've shit myself twice in the last two minutes."
Toni's phone started to beep. Seth glanced over her shoulder as she picked the little piece of plastic from its spot.
Toni sighed in relief. "One line. It's negative."
"Holy fuck!" Seth quietly exclaimed.
Toni turned into Seth for comfort, burying her face in his chest while he wrapped his arms around her.
"I swear I've always worn protection," Seth tallied each time he and Toni were intimate. He never recalled an instance, except maybe twice, where he didn't wear a condom.
The only exception when Seth didn't "wrap it before he tapped it" being their first time together and once in Baby. Toni was on birth control and had been since she was in high school, but the idea of her being pregnant wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility after everything Seth recalled happening to Dean and Alexa.
"Gave me quite the fright there," Toni clung to Seth like he was about to take off if she let go. She had the idea that a baby would chase Seth off, and she wasn't planning on losing him like that any time soon.
"You should be more careful." Seth quipped.
"Oi!" Toni lightly shoved her boyfriend back. "You hold yer tongue, mate! It's you with the gun, not me!"
Seth shrugged. "I'm just saying if you'd let me finish somewhere else..."
He trailed off instead of ending his sentence. Toni rolled her eyes, knowing full well that he was joking.
"Can't imagine us as parents," Toni commentated, tracing the decal on Seth's shirt with her fingertips.
"Maybe one day," Seth said, almost unbelieving how honest he was speaking. He wasn't going to say it now, but a small part of him hoped the test turned out positive.
Toni chuckled. "Oh, you crazed fool."
Seth grinned. "What? You don't want a baby with me?"
"Now? Of course not!"
"But someday?"
"I never said that."
"You're not denying it."
Toni tilted her head back, looking Seth in the eye. Rollins smiled softly, gazing deeply into his woman's eyes. They exchanged a soft but affectionate kiss and stayed close after they broke apart.
"You know I love you, right?" Seth said so only Toni could hear him. "I don't want a kid right now. Just you."
"That won't work on me, mate," Toni insisted with a giggle.
"Is that why I can feel your heart beating so fast right now?" Seth chuckled.
Toni stepped back, taking Seth's hand in hers. "It is. Because I love you too. But you know I don't go fer fluff, mate. Take me out fer beers and show me off. Let's beat the hell out of each other on the field, then break the bed at home. Right?"
"Double check that I'm 'wrapped up'," Seth added.
"Aye. That would help," before she stepped out of the bathroom, Toni lifted herself onto her toes and brushed her lips over Seth's. She leaned beside his ear and, in a volume like he had a moment before, whispered "I love you too."
Seth followed his girl back into the living room, a telling, goofy smirk on his face.
Luckily, Roman and Sasha had been none-the-wiser about the other two leaving for a private meeting in the bathroom. Seth returned to the kitchen as casually as possible while Toni returned to her spot on the couch as if she never left in the first place.
"Who's up?" Toni asked.
"Don't ask," Roman rumbled, shaking his head slowly.
Toni grinned. "Ah, I see. Good job, Sasha."
"Thank you, my friend," Sasha giggled.
Seth didn't need to notice the look from his girlfriend to know she wanted a beer when he cracked one open. Roman didn't notice the texts he sent to Tessa asking where she was had been read over twenty minutes beforehand. Sasha didn't notice that she was leaning a little closer to Roman each time she settled after jumping up from a kill to celebrate. Toni didn't notice that she was starting to think of a future after SU with Seth if they could move past the issue with AJ.
And collectively, neither of the four students noticed the bear Tessa gifted Roman was no longer sitting on the kitchen island.
Roadies. If heaven was a place on Earth, then why couldn't it be the main attraction to SU's student body for all things involving deep-friend goodness, debauchery, and endless streams of alcohol?
Charlotte threw back another shot of tequila mixed with pickle juice, a "Puerto Rican hooker" as some liked to call it. The drink came off a recommendation from the bartender and Charlotte took an immediate liking to it.
In hindsight, Becky should've remembered that when Charlotte drank that there was no middle ground between "sober" and "blackout wasted." When Charlotte drank, she went hard until she needed to be carried home. With all the stress in her life, Becky didn't blame her girlfriend for wanting a few hours of freedom, but she wished she didn't loudly declare she was "super gay for Irish pussy" to the half-empty bar after each shot.
"Yer suddenly very open about t'ings," Becky commented after a sip of her whiskey sour.
Charlotte hiccuped, then giggled. Her eyes were hardly open at this point. Becky was already thinking about switching out Charlotte shots for glasses of diet soda, but the worried looks from the bartender said that it might be happening sooner rather than later.
"Life is good!" Charlotte giggled. "So super-duper diddly-doo good, my lovely potato."
"Uh... thank you?" Becky chuckled.
Once the half-priced fryer food arrived, Charlotte actually settled down enough to properly enjoy her poppers and stuffed mushrooms. Becky swapped Charlotte's drinks for water and soda, to which Charlotte gave no protest.
"Thanks, sweetie," Charlotte slurred, swaying in her seat. "I know I'm being obnoxious right now. I'll make it up to you later..." As if the hint wasn't already clear, she leaned into Becky's ear and whispered "I'm talking about sex, Bex!"
Becky laughed. "Good. I thought you meant that."
Becky still had no idea why Charlotte had the sudden urge to go out and be among the paparazzi and watchful eyes of SU's student body. She didn't have long to dwell on the topic very long before Charlotte pulled her in for a kiss or said something that required Becky's full attention.
Over the brim of her glass, Becky noticed a rough-looking woman sitting across the bar. She honestly would've blended in with the few people around the bar, but she seemed terribly familiar. Her leather jacket, aviators, and dark eyeliner all seemed to be...
"Oh, fuck," Becky knew who the woman was. And judging by her eye contact with Becky, she heard her curse and knew who she was too.
"Shit..." Shayna muttered, polishing off her poison of choice, then signaling over the bartender for another round.
How long had it been since the night where Becky almost came to blows with the witch sitting across the bar? The night where she grabbed Sonya and threatened Becky to her face before Charlotte stepped in. After that, Becky hadn't heard a word from Shayna until Sonya told her that Charlotte was trying to hook up with her. Did this mean that Sonya was nearby? Roadies wasn't on campus so it was entirely possible that Becky's ex was stalking the establishment ready to ruin another girl's life.
Becky excused herself to the restroom after a kiss on her girl's cheek. Charlotte's troubles were drowning in melting cheese and spicy peppers, being the happiest she'd been in a number of days.
Becky didn't need to use a stall. She stood in front of one of the mirrors and splashed cold water over her face. Self-meditating didn't always work in the past, but she needed a way to cool off fast so she didn't end up in another heated argument with Sonya's mistress.
"Just ignore her, ok?" Becky's inner monologue asked, practically begging her. With cameramen loitering around the grounds the last thing anyone needed was Becky to come face-to-face with someone she wanted to pummel into a heap.
The bathroom door swung open. Shayna walked in, only noticing Becky when she was about to reach a stall.
"Shite..." Becky thought, staring at the other woman through the mirror.
Shayna stopped reaching for the stall and sighed. "I don't want any trouble, ok? I'll leave you and blondie alone tonight."
Becky clenched and unclenched her jaw. Shayna had some nerve to assume that Becky was out looking for trouble while she had Charlotte by her side. Granted, if Shayna felt she needed to take a few swings then Becky was more than willing to oblige and take the supposed MMA fighter down a peg.
"Where's Sonya?" Becky asked over her shoulder, still locking her eyes through the reflective glass.
Sonya shrugged. "Fuck if I know. I haven't seen her since Bossman kicked her off-campus."
Becky turned away from the sink. "Yer serious?"
Shayna nodded. "Yeah. I'm not her fuckin' keeper. I couldn't give two shits what she does."
"Care enough to fuck her."
"I'M NOT G..."
The bathroom door swinging open cut Shayna off mid-sentence. The sheepish brunette who poked her head in apologized and quickly left, leaving Becky and Shayna alone again.
Shayna sighed. "I'm not gay," she repeated in a calmer tone.
"Never said you were," Becky replied.
"Well, I'm not. I fuck guys too."
"Ok."
Shayna shook her head, chuckling dryly. "Right. I forgot. You're the star soccer player that's out with everyone and they all love you because of it. Fucking lucky you for being a superhero for all the little dykes out there."
Instead of taking her usual route of leaving or throwing out a warning about using those slurs, Becky stayed rooted to her spot on the floor. Behind Shayna's anger, Becky saw a lot of fear. A fear that reminded her of a certain redhead from Ohio that refused to go to school after a nasty rumor had been spread about her and another girl.
"You don't 'ave to be open with everybody," Becky hated to think that Shayna and she had something in common. But she knew how hard it was to accept a lot of things about oneself when society, and oftentimes parents and relatives, had been teaching her one thing her whole life. "It's no one's business. But ya can't lie to yerself, ok?"
Shayna didn't say anything in return, for once not spouting a petty insult or homophobic remark. Her dark eyes shifted to the floor, her jaw flexing each time she chewed her tongue. She was deep in thought from the looks of it; Becky was just relieved she didn't have to find out if this woman really was into MMA or not.
"I'm not," Shyana kept her gaze low. "I'm not like you. Labels are fucking stupid anyway. Why can't I just be with a person because they're a good person?"
"You can be," Becky agreed. "I never said you couldn't. Just wish it wasn't with me girlfriend."
Shayna sighed. "Sonya told me y'all broke up. I came to her place to talk to her and we started fucking around. Then blonde tits out there walked in and I took off because I thought you were there too."
"I thought you hated Sonya?" Becky asked.
"Sonya's my ex-girlfriend," Shayna scoffed. "We dated senior year. She took me up to her dad's hunting cabin, then went to school the next week and told everyone that I was stalking her. So, yeah, I kinda hate the fucking cunt."
"Then why'd you go see her at her apartment?" Becky asked.
Shayna shrugged, shaking her head. "To get laid. Not the most honorable reason, but it's been a while."
Becky shook her head. A month ago, Shayna was supposed to be this evil, vile villain that was hellbent on destroying her relationship with Sonya, and now, in a matter of seconds, she was just a normal in-the-closet girl who was as much of a victim in Sonya's bullshit as much as Becky or Charlotte were.
Shayna spoke again. "I'm not an asshole, ok? I just hate people who think they're better than me because they think what I do in private should be used against me."
"It shouldn't," Becky assured. "Fook who you wanna fook."
For the first time, Becky watched Shayna chuckle in a non-sarcastic or threatening manner. "You're probably right, Lucky Charms. But I'm not going to admit that shit. I'm still not gay and I'm not about to fucking tell the whole soccer team either."
Becky rolled her eyes. Of course, Sonya would tell Shayna about that story just to get some pity leverage over her.
"Can I ask you something?" Becky asked.
Shayna shrugged. "Yeah, man."
"Did you tag Charlotte's car last week?"
Shayna snorted. "What am I, fucking twelve? No. If I had a problem with blondie I'd tell her to her face."
Becky nodded. Shayna could be lying, but after what she said about Sonya and herself why would she have any reason to?
"Can I ask you something?" Shayna questioned.
Becky nodded but didn't say anything.
"Being 'out'... is that as cracked up to be as it sounds?"
Becky shrugged. "I don't get hit on as much by t'e boys."
Shayna turned away to hide a laugh. She chased away her smile, thinking over her response before turning back to Becky.
"Cool. But if one mother fucker calls me Shayna Bi-szler like in high school..."
"I'll break their legs so they can't run from ya," Becky said.
Shayna smirked. "Good. You're not too bad, Beck. Hit me up sometime. We can kick it or get a few beers."
The hatchet had apparently been buried here. Shayna stepped into the stall and locked the door. Becky didn't feel an ounce of hatred for the girl now that she knew her side of the story. Could it have been bullshit? Perhaps, but it wasn't unbelievable to think that Sonya was lying the whole time and had been playing both of them; She showed her true colors the day she grabbed Becky and threatened her not to leave.
Shaking her head at the development, but not in a negative way, Becky left the room with a slight smile on her lips.