Author's Note: Okay, here is where the controversy begins….

I tend to use a lot of real-life drama for my stories. With that being said, this story is about to use many real-life occurrences from this moment out. (The opening chapter should've been an indication).

This is your warning. If you feel that I'm being disrespectful, you need to stop reading the story now.

And thank you to everyone who is reading the story not for the sexual content. It's my second story that focuses on the story itself and not the sexual interactions between characters. There's more to a good story than sex scenes and I'm glad the reviews are an indication of that. So thank you, thank you!

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Rae stood outside of Randy's front door for about five minutes, contemplating if she should really go inside. She didn't think Randy was joking about wanting to see her but she could never know. Randy was known to play practical jokes and Rae's gullibility was the perfect complement for him.

Finishing up her cigarette, Rae rang the doorbell. She brushed her hair out of her face and braced herself to get Punk'd from Mr. Orton. She figured she would tell him off after Dave would beat his face in. A minute passed and she rang the doorbell again.

Come on, Orton; the joke is over now, Rae thought to herself. She was getting ready to leave when she heard the slow creak of the door open. She turned around and saw a scene that was resembled a child losing his favorite puppy.

Randy's eyes were bloodshot and his face was somber. He sniffled a little. "Thanks for coming over, Rae."

"Randy, oh my God!" Rae rushed over to him and wrapped her arms around him. "What happened?"

"Grandpa died, Rae." He said between sniffles.

Rae sighed and held onto Randy a little tighter. He was very close to his grandfather and spent a lot of time with him when he was suspended. It was his grandfather who initially encouraged Randy to pursue professional wrestling when Randy had dishonorable discharge for the armed services. "I'm so sorry, Randy."

Randy wiped his nose and continued to hold onto Rae. "He passed this morning."

Rae was a little surprised by the developments. Bob Orton Sr. was sick for a while but he always managed to pull through any sickness. Rae was particularly fond of Bob because he always called her his "little penny." She wasn't sure if it was because of her skin color or because he couldn't remember her name. But it didn't matter as all of the Ortons took to referring to Rae as "Penny."

Rae pulled away from Randy and led him inside his town house. They both sat on the couch and she held his hands within hers. He looked over at the window, determined not to cry and show any emotion. After a few minutes, he wiped his cheeks and turned to Rae. "Um, I was wondering if you could come with me to the funeral. I know it's short notice but I would really like it if you came with me."

Rae nodded. "Yeah, sure. Not a problem."

Randy nodded and got up. "Um, that's it. I just didn't want to tell you in person."

"Are you sure you don't need anything? I could stay longer if you like."

"No, I'll be fine. I need to get on the phone and talk with Mom, Dad, and everyone." He shrugged. He then hugged Rae again, releasing any pent-up emotion in a long embrace. "Thanks for coming over, Rachel."

Rae was trying to contain her own emotional outpouring. She never seen Randy so distraught and it was definitely affecting her. "Anytime, Randy. You know this."

Slowly, Rae pulled away from Randy and looked into his sad blue eyes. "If you need me, just call me anytime, okay?"

"Okay." Randy mouthed.

Rae softly kissed Randy's lips and left his townhouse. On her way home, she thought about how the funeral came at very inconvenient time in her schedule. It was right before the Great American Bash and Rae was going to have hardly any time to spare. But Randy needed her and she couldn't just brush him off.

She could explain to Vince the circumstances and she was positive that he would understand and give her the time off. Whether Dave was going to understand that was the big question.

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When Rae arrived back at her apartment, the girls were already gone and Dave was laying on the couch, reading a mystery book. A lot of people suspected Dave would be engrossed in fitness and wrestling magazines and he was—to a certain extent. He also enjoyed the suspense and thriller of Stephen King.

Dave put the book down as Rae entered the living room. "Hey, how did it go?"

Rae walked over to her sofa and climbed onto of her boyfriend. "His grandfather died."

Dave sighed and caressed Rae's back. "I'm sorry to hear that. How's he holding up?"

"He's doing the best he can but he's pretty broken up." Rae paused before she looked at Dave. "I have a huge favor to ask."

"Yes?"

"Randy wanted me to go with him to the funeral. Is that alright with you?"

"Yeah, not a problem. I don't know why you had to ask me for permission."

"I just wanted to make sure it was cool with you, that's all."

"I respect that, but it wasn't necessary, Beautiful." Dave motioned her to rest her head against his. "Your best friend needs you and you need to be there for him."

Rae held Dave more tightly as he kept rubbing her back. "I'm so lucky to have you, David."

"We're both lucky." He replied.

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Two days later, Rae flew to St. Louis to meet up with Randy. She took a cab to his family's house, where there were a fleet of cars lined against the street. She got out of the cab and headed inside the home, where she was promptly greeted by Randy. "Hey Rae." He then gave her a hug.

Rae set her suitcase down and hugged him. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

Randy nodded. "Better. It's still hard, though." He pulled away from her and picked up her suitcase. "Let's go inside. Before some crazy fan takes a picture of us hugging and posts it on some message board."

Rae followed Randy into his parent's home and was a little surprised to see all of the Ortons spread out through the house. She was instantly greeted by Elaine, Randy's mother. "Rachel, it's so good to see you here. Are you hungry? Did you eat anything on the plane? Come over here and let me fix you a plate." Elaine then grabbed Rae's hand and led her to the kitchen, where Rae was greeted by more members of the Orton family. "Bobby, look who's here."

Bob Orton, Jr. turned around and smiled at Rae. He walked over to her and gave her a bear hug. "Dad's Little Penny….I'm so glad you were able to come."

"Hi, Mr. Orton." She said. "Thank you for your warm hospitality."

"Not a problem, sweetheart. Now I'm going to let Elaine take care of you. You just rest now." Bob said. "I'll let Nathan and Becky know that you're here."

Rae took a spot at the kitchen table as Elaine fixed her dinner. Every time she visited the Ortons, they always welcomed her with open arms. They were all so friendly and respectful, she often wondered if Randy was adopted.

After dinner, Rae sat around and listened to everyone sharing favorite stories of Bob Orton, Sr. Randy had such a gleam in his eyes as he relayed a memory of his grandfather critiquing his first wrestling match. "Man, he tore my ass up." Randy shook his head as other Orton family members laughed. "I couldn't catch a break with him!"

"But you listened?" Becky said.

"Yeah, after he told me how bad I sucked!" Randy shook his head.

Rae excused herself and went into the kitchen for something to drink. As she was gathering ice, she was disrupted by a deep voice. "Hey Penny." Bob Orton, Jr. greeted her.

The sudden greeting startled Rae and spill some ice cubes out from her glass. Bob smiled as he helped her pick up some of the cubes. "Didn't mean to scare you, Penny."

Rae smiled and brushed off the sudden scare. "It's nothing. How are you doing? You doing okay?"

"I'm hanging in there. Losing a family member is hard, even when you know it's coming." Bob said. "But Dad had a good life."

"That he did." Rae smiled.

Bob looked around to see if there was anyone within earshot distance. "Can I talk to you for a minute, Penny?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

Bob was struggling to find the right words to say. "I'm just going to come out with it; why aren't you and Randy dating?"

"I'm sorry?"

"You and Randy…you two are good together. You're the only one that keeps him in line and he needs that in his life."

"Um…um…" Rae felt like she was being interrogated. "Randy's a grown man, Bob."

"Yeah, but you know how he is." Bob pressed. "He will only listen to me and his mother for so long before he goes off to do his own thing. He'll listen to you."

Rae smiled for she knew it was true. Randy would listen to her before anyone else. It didn't necessarily mean that he would utilize whatever advice she gave him. But right now, Rae needed to end the uncomfortable situation before she hopped on the next flight back to Tampa. "I'm seeing someone." She blurted.

Bob shrugged off Rae's sudden admittance. "Are you happy with him?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Your boyfriend…or should I say…" Bob paused and made air-quotations. "Boyfriend."

"Bob, I don't understand where you're going with this…"

"You have a boyfriend and I'm sure you like him." Bob said as Rae nodded. "But if your boyfriend is so wonderful and great, why are you here?"

Rae felt the urge to throw something, anything at Randy's father. He wasn't making friendly observations about her personal life. He was invading her privacy. "I'm here to comfort my best friend, Bob." Rae said.

"I know that and Randy knows that." Bob said before he was beckoned back to the living room. "And dare I say, your boyfriend knows that. But I don't think you believe that. And I know how much you love your "boyfriend," there isn't a strong trust you have in him." He then left the kitchen.

Rae stood in the kitchen and was beyond pissed off. Bob was questioning her relationship with Dave when it was none of his business. However, that wasn't the reason that was making her upset.

It was the thought that everything that Bob said to her had some truth to it. And Rae wasn't liking that feeling one bit.