Disclaimer: I do not own anyone you see in this fiction. They are the property of WWE and to themselves. So please do not sue me. Because all you will get from me is student loans and a very fat black and white cat named Max.

Thank you for all your suggestions for the poll, I think I pretty much got a good idea just who is going to get with who. But I am going to be mean and make you guys wait for the last three chapters to them hehe. Evil I know.

Now on to this chapter

Home For Christmas

I stare at the empty shelf before me in dismay. This is the third toy store I've been at in the last four hours. Ten minutes ago, when I called from the parking lot to see if they had the newest set of Barbie's that my niece just had to have they had reassured me that there was an entire shelf of them. Considering that there really aren't that many people in the store to have swiped them all away that fast, I think the salesman lied to me. I don't understand why he would bother – if he'd told me the truth I just would have hung up and not bothered to park the car and lock the bags in the trunk and trudge the eleven miles from the car to the store. I see a saleswoman approaching me and I'm about to take out my frustrations on her, but some other mother grabs her first. Literally. Hmmm… maybe clerks should be able to body slam frantic parents. I mean that would stop all the grabbing. But then again that would just cause more trouble, the poor mother is hysterical, it's like it would be the end of the world if she couldn't get her child the ugly little Furbies that everyone wanted this year.

Maria sighed as she pushed her light brown hair out of her way; she knew shopping today would have been a bad idea.

Nothing seemed good enough, how would she make it up to her family? This year would be her first time away from the Christmas parties, the family get together's and the many traditions the Kanellis Family had set up a long time ago.

She would never be able to forget the supreme disappointment in her mother's voice when Maria had informed her that instead of going home she would have to stay in Ohio to keep training. Mr. McMahon wanted her to be able to take a few more bumps in the next few weeks.

But Maria wanted this, she wanted to become not just eye candy she wanted to be a part of the real WWE. She had fallen in love fast when she first signed up for the contest. At first she had just saw it as attempt for people to see her and recognize her on the street, but after the first week on the road she had fallen in love the backstage family. She had wanted to be a part of the backstage family.

But she was so homesick, she wanted to jump on the next plane and snuggle up against her grandmother's side a listen to her read the silly little Christmas stories she had always read since Maria was a child.

She wanted to go home.

She was jolted out of her thoughts when a pair of arms wrapped around her waist. She had to really talk him into coming with her today, he had whined throughout the whole shopping excursion and only stopped when they had arrived at the toy store when she shooed him off into the video game area where he had been until now.

"Are we done now?" His accented voiced asked as he leaned his forehead into her neck.

"I guess." She sighed and turned slightly allowing him to pull her further into his arms. "I just really wanted to get Maggie the Barbie."

"I know you did."

"I guess she'll like this one as much as the others." Maria sighed as she pulled out a roll of wrapping paper as she sat the Bratz doll on the bed. It wasn't the Barbie with the fairy wings but it was the only doll she had been able to find in the barren store.

"Sweets you tried. I mean we were out all day and got everyone else exactly what they wanted." He reassured her from his side of the bed.

"I know it just, I am her favorite Aunt, her godmother and she cried when I told her no I wouldn't be there for Christmas."

When he said nothing she brought her hands up to cover her face, as another wave of homesickness washed over her and she let her shoulders slump.

"I think I'll leave this till tomorrow I just want to sleep."

Carlito rubbed her shoulders to soothe her as she lay down next to him and snuggled into the covers he waited until her breath evened out before he stood and went to his cell phone.

"Yes Hello, I wanted to talk to you about something." He whispered quietly and moved to the end of the room as to not wake his sleeping girlfriend.

"Carlito why are we here it's Christmas I don't want to train today." Maria muttered as she let him drag her to the large building that had somewhat become a second home for her the last few months.

"No, I just forgot your present in there when I came last week."

"My present really? What you get me? Will I like it?" She giggled as he pulled open the large doors.

"I hope you do it took all the favors I had left to actually pull it off."

"Really?"

"Ok, now close your eyes." He smiled slightly when she did exactly that, trusting him completely.

"Merry Christmas Baby."

He said softly as he pushed her into the main part of the training area and watched with a large smile as she gaped at the sight of all her relatives standing in front of her.

"Auntie Maria." Maggie cried rushing forward. "Thank you for the Barbie! It is exactly what I wanted."

Maria only stood shocked at turned to meet Carlito's eyes. After her whole family got down passing her around she finally had the chance to speak to him privately.

"You did this for me?"

"I don't like seeing you unhappy. It's not cool." He joked.

"No your cool." She giggled and laughed herself into his arms.

Jules.

Ok many of you may be wondering why I like Maria. Well she has grown on me and I met her in person and she pretty much is the nicest diva I have ever met, discounting Molly, So I had to write a chapter for her.