Author's Notes: Thanks again to all my reviewers. I'm so amazed that I've had this many people review my fic. For the next several chapters or so with regards to Samia and Rob, remember that history has a way of being circular.

For disclaimers, warnings, list of characters, etc., see chapter one.

Chapter XII: Carrying Watermelons

SmackDown! was easier only because the show's wrestlers didn't work as closely with the nWo and RVD. Of course, not all were indifferent to the situation and there were still the glares and laughs. The only thing that kept her going was that it would eventually be yesterday's news or she would be back with Rob and her "honor" restored.

RAW came around too quickly and Samia jumped in head first. Shawn, Kevin, and Hunter stopped by to tease her and disappear for the rest of the night. She felt she was doing fine until Margaret handed her an envelope that had to be delivered to RVD. She tried to find Adrienne to see if the other woman would do it for her as she didn't know what exactly to say to him yet. However, she resigned herself to the fact that she would have to do it and hoped that it would be the first step towards getting back on his good side.

Samia found Adrienne first, only to find Rob with her. Rob was lounged out in a chair with Adrienne, wearing one of Dawn Marie's more 'classy' numbers. They were laughing when she stumbled upon them but quickly shut up when Samia was within steps of them. To make some extra cash in college, she had delivered summons to some extremely uncooperative people but this was worse than any subpoena she had ever delivered. Finding the courage, she stepped forward and held out the envelope.

"Rob…this…this is for you…Margaret—Ms. Salley…she sent it," Samia stuttered, her well-rehearsed speech on the way there falling by the wayside. She took a few steps backward, nodded, and turned to go. That was as bad as Baby saying "I carried a watermelon" in Dirty Dancing, she tearfully thought and hurried away.But before she turned the corner, she heard Adrienne and RVD bust out laughing. The stinging tears came back and she collided with Shawn, hardly resisting when he hugged her to him to comfort her.

"Shhh, it's alright, Mia," he cooed, rocking her back and forth and stroking her hair. "I know, I know. Don't let him do this to you." Finally, she got a hold of herself and began wiping the tears away. Shawn offered her his sleeve but she declined. He didn't prod her any farther and they parted ways when the woman convinced him that she would be alright.

Samia thankfully didn't have time to think about the encounter as she was sent on a mission to find more ice. With two buckets in tow, she returned to pass them off and ended up dishing out cups of ice, thinking about how she had gone from being in front of the cameras to being a servant to the wrestlers. She handed a cup away without looking up to hear a nasal voice scoff, "And I thought Nidia was the epitome of trailer trash. At least she sticks with her man." Samia wouldn't give Heyman the pleasure of a comment but her red cheeks were enough to prove to him that his remark hit home without having to see the reaction in her eyes. She glanced around to see if there was another "needy" person to be served. Undertaker was fast approaching, so she dropped her eyes and waited for his command.

"Don't let that idiot get to you. You know, you can look at me. I won't kill you, I promise," he said, ducking his head down to catch her line of vision.

"Sorry," she replied, looking up and giving him a weak smile, one he returned more fully. "I'm just not at the top of everybody's list at the moment…Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Nah, just hang in there. Everything will turn around," he said, adjusting his red bandana and picking up a bottle of water before heading off in the direction he came. To have one of her favorite wrestlers that she still idolized seem to be on her side lifted her spirits and she felt as if she might be able to make it through the abuse until she had Rob back—that was until the next week.

The crack comments never ended and the nWo never went away. In a manner of speaking, she really didn't want to them to go away. The faction and Margaret were about the only friendly faces she saw each week. Margaret was still a little wary of her but at least she treated her as if nothing ever happened. The elder woman was so altruistic that she had no doubt of why Ms. Salley treated her the way she did. As to the nWo, that was a-whole-nother ballgame. While they may have been mollifying to her troubled soul, she had severe doubts about their motivation. She had been down this road before when it involved both her and RVD. Even with them broken up, they, or more specifically Shawn, still tried to inveigle her—into what was the question. Why were they still pursuing her without her ties to Rob? What did she alone have that they wanted? Whatever it was, she couldn't help but be glad to see their smiling faces in the sea of scowls each week.

For the time being, Samia resigned herself to just staying out of everybody's way, speaking only when spoken to, and trying not to be seen at all. She never had another business reason to speak to Rob and had yet to formulate a personal one. He seemed to always be talking with one of his close friends or with Adrienne. Samia wanted to hate the other blonde but she didn't have the energy. There was some jealousy as she realized that she was losing Rob to Adrienne. It wasn't the other woman's fault if he chose her but that didn't mean she had to like him moving on. It wasn't so much that she was losing him to Adrienne since she had really lost him weeks ago after the incident with Benoit and Guerrero.

Either way, she couldn't compete with the senior staffer. She felt Adrienne to be much prettier than she, along with the fact that she didn't have a lot of baggage between her and Rob—by the name of the nWo. Samia really wanted to hate them but just couldn't. There was this uncanny feeling of trust with them but then she wondered if she wanted to fall for them, a way out of this reality into a fantasy world. A healthy dose of escapism was a philosophy she certainly espoused.

The nWo was relentless in their picking at Rob Van Dam and she wasn't surprised if he blamed her for that too. He wouldn't come within twenty-five feet of her. RVD became the Big Show's and X-Pac's pet project and Triple H began needling the Undertaker. Thanks, Hunter, she thought after a particular incident with the Dead Man, piss him off too and there's no one else left that wouldn't eat me alive. As to the last two members of the nWo, Nash set his sights on Benoit and Guerrero and Shawn just ran around doing what he did best—helping them and pissing off everybody else around in the process.

Within about two months, Samia had fallen into a routine of work and travel—and watching, watching the nWo try to dismantle whoever they wanted. Eventually, they all began ganging up on Benoit and Guerrero and it wasn't a pretty sight. At times, she was extremely grateful she didn't know Spanish because they would have Guerrero so hacked off that words flew from his mouth like water rolling off a duck's back. Benoit and Guerrero and the nWo went back and forth and Samia kicked back for the ride. It broke up her rote week—even turning Shawn down for drinks and dinner was everyday.

During those eight weeks, her ache over losing Rob was slowly dulling. She would never be over him but it was getting easier to see him weekly—until she was sent with a message for him. It had been a while and she thought maybe this could be a moment in which they could begin again. Without him being so angry, he might eventually listen to her and hear the truth, especially now that the nWo was leaving him alone. She knocked on his dressing room door and Rob wasted little time in answering. He held the door open and leaned up against the frame.

"Something you need?" he asked, folding his arms across his chest and staring down at her.

"Hi," Samia weakly smiled. "I have a message for you." She handed the paper over to him. "I'm supposed to wait for your reply." Rob unfolded the paper and perused it.

"Sure," he looked up and started to hand the paper back to her.

"Thanks, I'll pass it on," the blonde replied, her mind churning as to how to begin what she needed to say about them. She reached out to take it from him and opened her mouth to speak again but, from out of nowhere, Adrienne broke in between them.

"Hi, Angel," she drawled, glaring at the other woman. Samia was taken aback at the hostility in her eyes—she had always treated civilly, if not cordially. Adrienne quickly turned to Rob and ran her hands over his bare chest. "I'm running late. Mind if I change in your dressing room? I've got something you'll really like." Then, putting her arms around him, she laid a smacker on his lips. Samia was too inflamed to see the surprised look on his face. "Move on," Adrienne said, flicking her wrist to wave the other blonde off. She then mouthed the words "white trash" and adjusted her sweatshirt.

Then it hit Samia. Adrienne had on a black hooded sweatshirt that was just like hers, this time with her blonde hair pulled back in a pony tail. Samia might not have realized it if she hadn't become accustomed to Adrienne's new tasteless attire, or lack of attire, since her association with Van Dam. The sweatshirt was obviously uncharacteristic for her recently, which she easily called to attention when she asked to use Rob's room to change. The realization almost bowled her over. Adrienne was the third party that helped Benoit and Guerrero. She was the one who pulled the wool over their eyes posing as Samia and she was the last person she remembered seeing with Benoit before the room went black.

Samia threw a punch that sent Adrienne flying into Rob and throwing him off balance. Adrienne came back instantly and Samia was speared to the ground on her back. She remembered her "lessons" from Rob and had Adrienne flipped over and pinned on her back. Before she could take out her anger, someone was dragging her off Adrienne. She fought desperately to free herself to attack Adrienne again. It was going to end here and now. Once Adrienne was free, she was quickly up off the floor and darted after Samia. Rob grabbed her by the waist before she could get to Samia. Whoever had Samia spun her around to face himself. "Shawn! What are you doing?" she exclaimed.

"Saving your ass…again."

"I had it under control this time," she huffed and tried to shrug out of his grip, even though it was impossible.

"Samia, you okay?" Rob asked, putting himself between her and Adrienne. She nodded but focused on Adrienne.

"I swear to God, woman," Samia spat through clenched teeth, "I will come after you with a vengeance. I know exactly what you did to me. You do one thing to hurt this man again and I won't stop until you're nothing but dirt on the bottom of my shoe." Adrienne pivoted around Rob and darted back after her but he had her in his grip again. "Don't try me," she shouted as HBK dragged her off.

"What were you doing?" he asked, pinning her against a wall.

"Wreaking havoc and defending my honor—which you totally screwed up!" she yelled at him. Shawn just sighed, shaking his head, and let his grip on her go. "That was her!" Samia continued, her voice loud and angry as she pointed in the direction from which they had come. "She was the one impersonating me, I know it! That's how Benoit pulled it off! I will kill her!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Kevin said it exactly. How could I be in two places at one time? She's how. Benoit knocked me out, she stole me ring, and they dumped me at your door to put me in the wrong place at the wrong time. All she had to do was hide her face and bam! Samia number two! I will kill her when I get my hands on her! Get out of my way!" she ordered, her voice rising as she neared the end of her tirade before pushing past him.

Shawn grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back around. "No, not like this," he quietly asserted. "Let us help. We'll take out Benoit and Guerrero and pull her down with them."

"I don't know," she snapped.

"Come on. You want revenge, don't you?" he asked, pushing loose hair out of her face and caressing her cheek.

"Well, yes, but…I'll think about it," Samia replied, her voice much quieter and calmer.

"Let me know soon. Guerrero is gonna lose the belt next week if it's the last thing we do. Let's make it worth it."

"I don't know," she replied again and shook her head. "I'll sleep on it."

"Sure," he responded, then took her hand and kissed it. "Now, are you done trying to work things out with your fists?"

"I guess," she mumbled and looked away. Shawn cocked his head sideways and squinted his eyes at her, not satisfied with her answer. "Okay, yes…I won't exact my revenge tonight." He kissed her hand again and disappeared down the hall. She watched him go and wondered where this Shawn came from. He was an absolute gentleman, unlike what he was known for in D-X. He was still ruthless when it came to the business and it made her wonder how he could be so sweet to her and so evil to others.

TBC…