Chapter Eight

A Welcome Face to SmackDown!

Dave Batista entered the arena with a wide grin on his face. Only four days before he had handed Triple H his first-ever Hell In A Cell defeat at Vengeance. He felt like he was on top of the world, and the World Heavyweight Championship over his right shoulder did nothing to dispel those feelings. Dressed in a grey pinstripe suit, he walked down the hallway, scanning the area, looking for a sign of her.

He ran into Diva Torrie Wilson. She was talking to Jane, the makeup lady, dressed in a hot pink mini-dress and matching heels. It was strapless, so she was going bra-less. Her bleached blonde hair was around her face in waves. "Hey, Torrie," Dave greeted. She turned to him and smiled. "I wanted to know if you had any idea where Cassie was."

"She's probably in the Divas locker room," Torrie told him. She knew there was something going on between the two of them. She was one of the few not teasing Cassie about it. Dawn Marie was being downright brutal. "She's kind of upset. I mean, losing Cena, Angle and Carlito in replacement of Christian, Muhammad Hassan and Daivari and Randy Orton? It's enough to make me depressed." Dave nodded. He could understand. Cassie had lost two of her friends during this Draft Lottery, and she had been left behind. Torrie smiled. "I'm sure she'll be really happy to see you. I know you two are becoming really good friends."

"Thanks, Torrie," he said to her. He continued down the hallway, looking for the door with the Divas logo on it.

In the Divas locker room, Cassie was packing her bag. She had shut off the TV during the main event. She was pretty sure that there was nothing that could salvage her night. She didn't care who the last draft pick was. She was pretty sure it was going to just end up being someone like Ric Flair or Triple H. Then, after some negotiating and whining, she was sure they'd end up back at Raw and it would be like it never happened. That's what happened last time Triple H got drafted.

She slung her bag over her shoulder and turned to leave, stunned to find Dave in the doorway. "Dave! What are you doing here?" she asked him. Her bag fell off her shoulder and hit the floor.

"You didn't see what I just did to JBL?" he asked.

"No. To be honest, I shut it off when Muhammad and Daivari came out."

"I'm SmackDown's last draft pick and you shut the TV off?" he teased her, his face incredulous. Cassie's face lit up.

"You're the last pick?" she asked excitedly. He nodded. A loud and delighted squeal left her lips. She ran to him, hugging him tightly. "Welcome home, Dave," she told him. He laughed, rubbing her back. She was dressed in blue jeans and a white sweater, her caramel hair pulled back in a ponytail. She felt so warm under his fingertips, so soft. He knew she was happy to have a friend backstage.

"Torrie says you've been upset. What's up?" he asked. She sighed, pulling back from him.

"It's just...John and Kurt are gone. They left me, you know?" Dave shook his head, drawing her in for another hug. She smelled like lavender.

"They didn't want to, Cassie. It's just the way the draft works. Well, maybe Kurt did. I'd want to get out of Dodge if I had Booker T on my ass," Dave commented. She nodded. "But John? He loves this brand. He made his name here and he promised he'd keep in touch, right?" She nodded. He pulled away from her. "What are you doing tonight, beautiful?"

She felt herself flush. He called her beautiful. "I, uh, I just thought I'd head back to the hotel and watch some TV. What about you?"

"I just gave JBL a heart attack. I think that's cause for celebration," he announced. She giggled. "You should come with me, Cassie."

"I don't know, Dave. I'm really tired," she told him with a yawn. She did want to join him. "I have been on the go since three o'clock this morning. I don't know how good of a companion I'd be. I had radio and..."

"Say no more. You just rest up. If you change your mind..." He reached into the breast pocket of his suit and handed her a card. "Here's my hotel number. Room six-twenty. Just make it to me by one." She nodded and he left, leaving her to stare down at the number. She contemplated reneging on her refusal to go with him.

When Cassie got back to her hotel room, she lay down on her bed, exhausted. She didn't think she would be able to survive a round of partying with "The Animal" on this night. She could barely keep her eyes open in the car. She looked up at the ceiling and sighed. She was in love. More than in love; she was downright head over heels for the World Heavyweight Champion, and she had no idea what he felt about her. She loved every feeling he invoked in her, from her admiration of how he filled out a suit and those beautiful sunglasses that always accessorized them, and his smile...His smile never failed to make her heart melt.

Losing John had been devastating. Like a thief in the night, Eric had gone and gotten the WWE Champion and brought him to Raw. Talk about a crippling shot to SmackDown and Theodore Long, who had no champion for about a month. It had fallen into some state of a disarray. Cassie could see Theodore trying to come up with a great idea that would hurt Raw just as badly. What better way than to take the World Heavyweight Champion on the last night of the draft? Then Eric had no chance whatsoever of bringing him back.

And what a lovely World Heavyweight Champion he is, Cassie thought to herself, blushing and getting comfortable in bed. She couldn't properly put into words just how happy she was to have a familiar face on SmackDown with her. And it was Dave, no less!

He was the only thing running through her mind as she fell asleep, her mind taking her to a peaceful paradise for the rest of the night.