Warning: This story contains contents not suitable for individuals who have had been sexually harassed, or abused. Trigger warnings have been used.
Chapter 1: Predator at Double or Nothing
Zoe Webster had just leaned over a crate in the hall of the MGM Garden Arena looking for one of those stupid cable junction boxes that had been misplaced. The curse of being short proved difficult since the stupid box had fallen on the floor, got wedged between the cement wall and the wheels of the transit case the Production company was using.
She was only ever a runner, or a PA for people at Daily's Place before this whole new wrestling show came into existence. Some of the people working at Daily's ended up as road crew for the show as well, which meant a hefty pay raise but less chill time. Through most of the early part of the year of 2019, she was going to be working their pay-per-views. It had started with that first big show called Double or Nothing and she would be working every show after until AEW had gotten the rights to their own television series.
As she bent over a little further, her hand brushed the box but at the same time a different hand brushed up against her backside. This caused her to almost face plant into the rolling crate and the electrical box that she needed to get. She jerked back so fast to look at who had done the one thing that could make her recall her childhood only to come face to almost face with a man that was no taller than 5'10''.
"Hey there, sweetheart." The guy said, his shit brown eyes swept over her. "Name's Sammy, what's yours?"
Zoe backed up against the wall, trying to protect what had been violated in her mind. She continued to stare only because the guy was wearing a black leather jacket that had nothing on underneath, he wore tiny trunks and wrestling boots. It had to be one of the wrestlers but she had no clue which one it was. Her gut twisted painfully, even trying to press a hand into her stomach didn't help the vile feeling the guy oozed out of himself.
"Oh, come on. I'm not that bad. Just a little." He held up a thumb and his index finger to indicate a size or whatever.
Before she had a chance to respond, someone else was coming down that back hall.
"Guevara, roster meeting, now." The man with the two-toned curly hair that stuck up in odd places approached.
This guy was twice the size of whoever Guevara was. Twice the muscle, taller, broader, and better looking. Zoe vaguely remembered this guy from somewhere but she couldn't place it. Not that in her panicked state of fight or flee allowed her to think of such things. Even as he got closer she couldn't remember where she had seen him before. Not that she was a wrestling fan in the first place.
"Oh come on, man. I was just getting good with a gorgeous woman."
The bigger guy looked at Zoe and then shifted his gaze back to Guevara. "Roster meeting, now." Even Zoe gulped at the dangerous tone the man emitted from deep within his throat.
"Look, I gotta go, babe. I'll find you later. Promise." Guevara stuck the tip of his tongue out, wiggled his eyebrows at her, and then started off in the direction the other man came from.
The man stayed the six feet from her as the other man sauntered off. Once Guevara disappeared around the corner, the curly-haired man turned to her.
"Was he bothering you, ma'am?"
"Just a little. I was looking for something for Production." She fiddled with her pinky, twisting it almost painfully.
"If he ever bothers you again, either tell your supervisor or me personally. We'll handle him." He did some sort of bow gesture towards her before he too started to leave.
"Wait, I don't even know who you are." She found herself speaking up.
The man turned, his brows raised ever so slightly. "Really? You don't know who I am?"
She shook her head.
He walked back towards her, this time he came to about three feet from her. Already pinned up against a wall with a case cutting into her side, she couldn't move even if she willed herself to do so. Besides a slightly scruffy face, which the other guy didn't appear to have much facial hair, this guy did. With the most striking blue eyes she had ever seen, the guy looked down at her as if she said something in a different language. The twist in her gut sort of subsided as he started to talk.
"I'm one of the Executive Vice Presidents for AEW, Kenny Omega. I thought you remembered me, you served us food at Daily's Place during a long meeting. I believe your name is Zoe, right?"
She squinted her eyes a little. Did he? Did he know her? How did she know him? She thought back to her Daily's Place work jobs, one of them having been to help with a catered meeting of some sort, like a dinner. Most of her jobs detailed catering as of late. There seemed to be a lot of celebrations going on.
"Oh, you're one of the no wine, whiskey, or beer guys. I'm sorry, I should have remembered because I don't drink either." She said and offered as best of a smile as she could. "I should have remembered you for that reason. Again, so sorry, sir."
He chuckled, a breathy kind of laugh. "Well, now you know who I am. Look for me if you need anything."
"Maybe, I don't want to be a pain in the side, sir. I just want to do my job and go to bed."
He shook his head. "No need for that kind of formal talking. I don't think I'm that much older than you. If I'm not busy, you should stop by and talk if you need to. I wouldn't mind the distraction."
"I'll let you get back to work, sir. I mean, Kenny."
The man had an almost perpetual smile any time he looked at her. It was the total opposite of how Guevara treated her. It was less threatening than anything she had to deal with in her life. Pleasing, serene. Safe almost.
"See you around, Zoe-san." He bowed a little more this time before sweeping off down the hall.
With her heart still lodged firmly in her throat, Zoe watched him. He was wearing skin-tight, well tights. And a leather sort of jacket thing that was sleeveless hadn't hidden the fact he wore no shirt over the expanse of a broad chest that seemed carved right into him. She definitely noticed muscle definitions in his lower half, which only made the blush flare more in her cheeks, and her stomach flutter with unusual nerves.
He was the 180 Degree difference to Guevara, and she could respect that.
Kenny was working in between matches for Double or Nothing. The pre-show Buy In had kicked off with a blast. The fans were doing great and the energy was through the roof. Nothing could have been better.
In catering, he went to get a bottle of water when he saw the woman from earlier. Zoe-san was sitting in the corner of the room with a bottle of water and reading a book. She was wearing glasses, which was something that he had not seen her wearing before. Her left leg was crossed over her right knee and she was slouched slightly with the book hovering in front of her.
It wasn't every day he saw a woman with a book. Most anyone stared at their phones these days. It was a welcoming sight, considering what the title of the book said.
"Asian Mythology and Creatures," he read out loud as he walked up to her table.
The small woman jerked, gasped and she stared up at him for a long moment. Her glasses were a little skewed as she registered it was him that was talking.
"Konnichiwa, Zoe-san." He pulled out a chair from the other end of the table. "Are you on break?"
"Yes," she closed her book and placed it on the table. She craned her neck up at the wall over her head. "I have about five minutes left of it. Then it's more running."
"Do they make you run a lot?"
"Not always. Sometimes, but not always. It usually consists of small things. A lot of menial tasks like coffee delivery to the media truck, snacks because they can't leave it. Wires and stuff. I have actually had to help wrangle the mat covering once tonight for a ring change."
"What are you doing after the show?"
"Sleeping. Then I come in here tomorrow and help tear down. All this stuff is going back to Florida."
He nodded as he twisted off the top to his water bottle. "Before I go, has Guevara bothered you anymore?"
"No, I haven't actually seen him." She glanced around him. "I guess being small helps so I don't stand out don't as much."
"You stood out to me, Zoe-san." He said before taking a sip of his water.
Kenny saw her eyes widen just a fraction. Her deep blue eyes stared back at his much lighter ones as if he had grown three heads. It was pleasant, in a way, that he could make her flustered.
"I'll let you finish up and get back to work. I have to meet up with the women for their match later. A few of them don't speak English" He stood up. "You'll let me or your boss know if someone is bothering you, right?" He asked.
She nodded. She obviously was thinking of something but he was sure she would say what it was if it really mattered.
Before Kenny fully left the catering area, he looked behind his shoulder to where the woman sat. She flicked the edges of her book, lost in thought about something. Hopefully, that something was a good thing and not something horrible. He'd hate to have to dive too far into her personal life if she didn't want him around.
Yes, I know another AEW story. Sorry, I can't help it. I really like their stuff.