Pretty When You Cry
(a sequel)
an Indigo X joint
Author Notes: This is the true sequel to Gilded Nightmares. Blistering Daydream was sort of a 'based off' thing... in this story, the events of BD never occurred. Confused? I am. ANY-way, y'know that little thing called chronological order? Where things begin at the beginning and end at, well, the end, in a straight timeline? Forget it. The time of each event will be noted at the beginning of the chapter. Best look at that, or you'll get real lost. Let's see, what else... oh, yes. Person also changes... some chapters are told by a character, who will be named at the chapter start with the time (unless the narrator is a mystery person, i.e. the bad guy, in which case he or she will be simply identified as '?'. And some chapters'll just be told in good ol' fashioned 3rd person. Got all that? Cool, have a toffee.
Of course, you should probably read Gilded Nightmares before this. I also recommend reading Drowned World. Not a requirement, but it'll give you some idea of Rob's background in my WWE-verse. Same with the ever-awesome AmaraSidhe's story Fire Coloured Jewel, 'cuz that gives you the story of Rob's paramour SoCo and the cuddly tale of how they got together. Oh, and Kari and Fred are in it. Hee.
Virginia 'SoCo' Calloway is AmaraSidhe's. Kari Foley, Fred, Reggie Holloway, and Melinda Flair are all mine, though they may or may not show up in this story. I dunno yet. WWE guys involved are all property of themselves, the fans who love them, and the omnipotent Vince.
In the immortal words of the great Hannibal Lecter, 'Okee-Dokey, here we go.'
one.
backlash.
(one week after the Goldust incident.)
"Quit it, ya big moron!"
Virginia Calloway, more commonly called SoCo by everyone, laughed and screamed, pounding on the upper arms of the young man who'd, without warning, picked her up and began tickling her sides unmercifully. With her thick southern accent, it sounded like 'Quee-yat it' and 'moe-hron'. But even as she squealed and thrashed, even as she hit and insulted, her emerald eyes twinkled with laughter. Because not more than a week ago, she doubted (but only slightly, only for one moment when she was at her most desperate!) if she would ever get to play with this man again. And not more than three days ago, she'd wondered when or if she would ever see him smile or laugh again.
The loss of such, she mused, would be a sad thing indeed. For when Rob Van Dam laughed, the world seemed to laugh with him. When he smiled, everything seemed that much brighter. That was just his way- optimistic, happy, playful, kind-hearted to a fault... spacey, perhaps, but she could deal with that.
He laughed.
"No way, 'Gin! Not 'till you tap out! C'mon, say you give! I can do this alllll day..."
As much as she tried to get away, it was to no avail- Rob had been a martial artist almost all his life, and his reflexes were quick as lightning. He simply bended and twisted, preventing her from squirming out of his tickling grasp. His eyes, too- they were sort of green-gold right now, they were hazel and had a tendency to change color slightly with the lighting and sometimes his mood- danced with laughing glitter, and his laughter rang warmly through the room. The boiler room seemed a million years and just as many miles away.
SoCo squealed again, then smirked. She hadn't been with Rob this long without learning a few tricks. Twisting around, she swept out with her left foot, toppling Rob off balance and sending him falling to the floor on his rear, where his girl neatly turned the tides by tickling his side. When the surfer rolled over to try to block the ticklish spot, SoCo snickered, pushed him so he was laying on his stomach, and pounced onto his back with the intent of wrenching one of his arms (but not too hard- just enough to be playful) until he gave in.
The following effect was unintended and instantaneous.
"GET OFF! GET OFF ME, GETOFFGETOFFGETOFF..."
SoCo jumped about a foot in the air at the sudden, panicked onset of screaming. Rob's mindframe had taken a complete one-eighty- his tanned skin went a few shades paler, breath came in short little gasps, eyes (now darkened to a deep tan- a touch more gold-ish than straight brown) were widened in utter terror and partially hidden by a few loose strands of very dark blonde (sometimes brown- the hair tended to change color as well, deep brown at its darkest, and at its lightest a very pretty shade of sandy blonde), and his whole frame, curled up in a ball, shook with small but violent tremors.
"Just go away... please, just stop it... leave me alone... please..."
She blinked, and then sighed lightly. A flashback. Rob was having a flashback. Carefully, she wrapped her arms around him and held him close, close enough to smell her light jasmine perfume. She then took a lock of her flame-bright red hair and waved it in front of his eyes- sort of a signal flag that it was alright, he was safe, nothing or nobody was going to hurt him.
"It's okay... shh... don't worry, it's okay... calm down, baby. You're not in that place anymore. I'm here with you, you're safe, it's alright..."
It took a little bit, but soon Rob did calm down, his trembling body relaxing in a long sigh, falling even closer into her embrace, easing his screaming psyche with the gentle sound of SoCo's heartbeat.
"Well..."
He smiled then, not his shining, warm sunbeam grin, but a tiny, muted little smile. The self-reassuring smile of one who's re-grasping or trying to re-grasp some little shard of normalcy.
"...at least, y'know... nothing worse can happen t' me..."