The team of doctors attacked Robyn's cancer with every weapon at their disposal. As of right now, there was no change which was better than the alternative of getting worse. Her hair was beginning to shed when she brushed or ran her fingers through it and she'd lost a few pounds but none of it was noticeable yet; she expected that to change in the coming weeks.
The treatment made her weak so she slept most of the time and when she was awake, she missed being on the road with Joe. She didn't know how Galina and the other wives did this, not to mention the children of Superstars. If she was selfish, she could have him home all the time because while he was there, if she sneezed too hard he tried to stay and would be ready to skip live events at the drop of a hat if he thought she needed him. It was too close to Wrestlemania to allow him neglect his work. He was facing Goldberg but didn't seem to want to talk about it because of her losing out on her moment.
Today was his last day home before flying out to Smackdown tomorrow and he'd been gone most of the morning. When he returned, she noticed how strange and awkward he behaved. Now, late in the evening, he was slaving over a hot stove.
"Do you know what you're doing?" she asked from the sofa, getting ready to stand.
"Sit down," he demanded.
"You want me to ignore the fact that my kitchen can burst into flames at any second?" she replied.
"I haven't been on this earth for almost 35 years without knowing a little something about how to fend for myself," he shot back.
"Why do I have the feeling you're cooking everything that you're not supposed to have?"
"Because I am. It's a special occasion so who cares?" he shrugged.
"I care. Both of us can't be sick. Who's going to take care of us then? The dog?" she snorted. "And what's the occasion? We already celebrated our anniversary and it's neither of our birthdays. I don't know anything worth celebrating right now unless you have some good news from my doctor that I'm not aware of."
He froze, everything going quiet and still before he finally shook his head. "I wish but for now, just relax. I'll be done in a little while."
About twenty minutes went by before she heard him turning off burners and moving pots and pans around. He helped her up and then began escorting her over to the table. She didn't need it at the moment but on one of her weaker days, she was lightheaded and stumbled upon standing and he'd been paranoid ever since.
As she got closer, she noticed a large gift box on the table in front of her chair. "Oooh, a present. You were serious about this alleged special occasion."
"Alright, now I'm about to go over here and finish situating things while you deal with that," he said before going into cabinets and taking out plates.
"You got me a…" Robyn's excited tone trailed off as she lifted the top off of the box. Her smile quickly faded, replaced by a look of confusion as she stared down at an envelope. Maybe there was a gift card, tickets or something that would justify the large gimmicky box that it was housed in but once she broke the seal, the only thing inside was folded papers. "Joe, what is this?"
"Read it and see," he instructed and she unfolded the documents.
Final Judgement and Decree of Divorce.
Upon consideration of this case, upon evidence submitted as provided by law, it is the judgment of the Court that a total divorce be granted between the parties of this case.
It is hereby ordered and decreed by the court that the marriage contract entered into between the parties is set aside from this date and fully dissolved. Petitioner and Respondent in the future shall be held and considered as separate and distinct persons, unconnected by any nuptial union or civil contract whatsoever.
The Court Hereby finds that the parties have 3 minor children together, who are listed below:
Then it went into information about the custody and financial agreement with both signatures at the bottom.
Slowly, she folded the papers and stuffed them back into the envelope, feeling a mixture of shock and joy. He was finally hers without the dark cloud of 'he's still someone else's husband' following them around. This was the moment she'd been waiting on from the moment he said he was separated over a year ago.
"Before I tap into whatever energy I have left and do back flaps, I'll be considerate and ask how you're feeling? I'm sure it has to be bittersweet to some degree."
"It's definitely bittersweet because I never imagined this day happening when we got married but in the end I made the right decision and Galina and I are better off this way," he acknowledged.
"It's dated for today so I'm assuming that's where you were all morning. I was wondering why the heck it took you so long to drop the kids off at school. After 2 hours went by I was about to call but I didn't want to look needy as if you aren't allowed to have free time to do your own thing. Then another hour went by and another. When you were closing in on hour five, I was getting ready to call and ask you some questions but as soon as I grabbed my phone, I heard your car pulling up and decided to leave it alone..."
"You were asleep when Galina called last night and told me that we were due in court. I was going to tell you when you woke up this morning but then, I figured, why not make a surprise out of it," he said. "As soon as I signed the paperwork, I went out and bought everything I needed for tonight praying to God that TMZ didn't get a hold of the court records and ruin everything."
"You know, I really appreciate you putting so much thought and effort into this because really, you could've easily just walked back through the door and said, 'it's done' and I would've been just as happy," she replied as he sat a plate in front of her. "It smells good but I'm going to need you to take the first bite and if you don't gag, I'll eat the rest."
"Fine by me," he opened his mouth and she inserted the fork. He seemed pleasantly surprised by the taste, which prompted him to lower his head again for more and then again after he swallowed that.
"Okay, okay, that's enough. I believe you," she laughed before tasting it herself. "Hmm, you did good."
"I'm going to try to start doing more domestic things around the house while I'm home to take the load off of you. It's fine now since things are slow but the two week European tours begin after Mania and you already told me that you don't want me taking off. I know Galina wouldn't mind driving you to get treated but then what once you get home? Do you think we should hire a maid?" he asked.
Rob shook her head. The last thing she wanted was a stranger in the house. "I'll be fine. There's really nothing to do besides clean up after Midnight. I can just order meals and groceries and stuff. The way things are set up these days, I don't even have to leave the house anymore unless I have an appointment which may actually be a good thing with the Coronavirus making rounds."
"Can't argue with you there but seriously, please don't be afraid or ashamed to ask for help when you need it."
"I will...when I need it," she said. Her appetite wasn't where it once was so after a few bites, she was done.
"Wait!" he shouted, shooting to his feet after she pushed her chair back, bracing herself to stand.
"Joe, I know you mean well but I'm okay to do things on my own right now. The treatment I'm receiving is currently light which allows me to be active whenever I have the energy. When my doctor decides to go after this thing more aggressively, who knows, I may be bedridden so let me enjoy having my independence while I still can," she requested.
"Forgive me for being overbearing but even before this, I was protective of you," he apologized.
"I know and I love you for that," she leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. "Now sit back down and enjoy your food because I know you aren't through."
Robyn gasped in surprise as she almost lost her footing on the slick floor. Thankfully, she was close enough to the sink to grip the counter to steady herself.
"Uhm hmm…" Joe mumble. When she looked around, he was shaking his head.
"Actually, this is your fault for not cleaning up the water you dripped while cooking so blame yourself," she snorted.
The last Robyn checked, Joe was working out in the gym. She'd finished a movie on Netflix and browsed social media before showering. When she got out and slipped into a robe, he was sitting on the edge of the bed.
"Look at you, all sweaty and sexy," she took a moment to admire the sight before her. "You know, I'm just happy to not be dating a legally married man anymore."
"Finally!" Joe sighed in relief. "I've been waiting on you to say that all night."
"Why?" she raised a brow.
He paused for a moment as if he was trying to think of the right words to reply. "Because I wanted to know your opinion about dating an engaged man."
"Wait, what?"
"Like I said, I was expecting this to go down earlier over dinner so I'll be right back," and with that, he walked out of the bedroom.
Her heart was beating a mile a minute and the palms of her hands were starting to sweat. She knew what was coming as her body tensed with anticipation. Holding her breath, she listened as his loud footsteps pounded back up the stairs. When he hit the hallway, her eyes snapped shut. She listened as he entered and kneeled in front of her.
"Rob…" he called out.
"Yes?" she answered, still staring at the darkness behind her lids.
"Look at me," he coaxed and she did. The expression in his eyes was something no words could describe just like her feelings for him in this moment as he held open a ring box, revealing a huge teardrop shaped rock. She covered her face with her hands and shook her head. "Damn, I hope that's not a no already."
"Of course not! I'm just...I...I...I can't even talk right now," her voice choked up.
"How about I talk and you listen for now. Even though you tried to avoid me that first day,
from the moment I saw you, I was very intrigued and felt a need to get to know you. I can't even recall our first conversation but after it was over, I'd made up my mind that I was going to get you and this was before I found out that we had something in common. I've never met anyone like you before and within the first month, you became my first thought in the morning and my last thought at night. We've been through so much together and my feelings never changed...even after you betrayed me with Ricochet."
"Stop it!" she scoffed, clearly amused. "I wouldn't call it a betrayal especially considering what led me there in the first place and I thought you were over that."
"Never…" he grumbled. "Anyway, I think I'm in the middle of something here. We've been through so much and I wouldn't change a thing besides going back. I already knew you were the one but seeing how good you were with my kids, even Jojo when she rejected you, only confirmed this. Through hell and high water, we kept it together. Everything about us from top to bottom just feels right. Robyn, you are my soulmate."
"Soulmate. I feel the same way. Falling in love with you has been the most beautiful journey I've ever been on. I knew it was special and I never wanted it to end which is why I was so hurt when you left. Not only are you handsome, strong and thoughtful but you want to spend your life with me. A man like you is extremely rare, Joe. I'm very lucky."
"We both are," he nodded. "And yes, I want to spend my life with you so, with all that being said: will you marry me?"
"YES!" she exclaimed, grabbing him by the hand, forcing him up from his kneeling position.
He proceeded to slide the ring onto her finger. "Do you like it?"
"It's gorgeous, Joe," she held it up to her face, watching the diamond shine. "How long have you been shopping for this?"
"This morning after I left the courthouse. I narrowed it down to three and this one looked the most like you," he revealed.
"This morning?!" she suddenly plopped down on the bed.
"What?" he asked, confused.
"I can't help but wonder if you would've been out buying a ring while the ink was drying on the paperwork, if it wasn't for my...situation?"
Sighing, he sat down beside her. "Don't ruin the moment, Rob."
"So I guess that's a no…"
"Yes and no. Of course your situation made me reevaluate what's important in my life but I already told you before Christmas that I was going to marry you. Before your diagnosis, I was actually looking at Mania. Depending on the booking, imagine us both walking out as champs, everyone including our families congratulating us...and then I drop down to one knee. Wouldn't that have been perfect?"
"Yes…" Robyn burst into tears thinking about what could've been.
"I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't mean to upset you," he rubbed her back as she fell into his arms. "I was just trying to show you that regardless of the situation, a proposal was coming soon."
"I know. I thought I was over sitting out but hearing what could've been the perfect ending to what was supposed to be my big night hurts," she sniffed.
"Trust me, if no one else understands, I do. I've been there before. Relinquishing my title was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do in my career so far but I came back bigger than ever and so will you," he encouraged softly.
"We'll see," she wiped her eye on the sleeve of her robe. "Back to our engagement. I don't know how you feel but I want to keep it a secret for now because just like I thought about the timing, I don't want others saying, 'oh, the only reason he did it is because her cancer came back.' You know how people are."
"Yeah and I haven't talked to my family about it yet. You and Jojo are finally getting along and I don't want to reveal anything that may reignite the resentment especially during a time like this," he replied. "Let's give it a few months."
"Yeah and by then we can see how my condition is. If I'm doing better, I can start planning the wedding but if I'm doing the same or God forbid, worse, I'll have to continue focusing on my health which is obviously more important," Robyn stood and walked over to the dresser before dropping her robe to get dressed. As she glanced in the mirror, she could see him watching her naked figure as she moved. She felt bad because she knew that he had needs that she hadn't been able to fulfill due to treatment completely wiping out her sex drive. "We had two events in a row ruined. Wait, I forgot Valentine's Day so make that three."
"Ruined how?" his brows knitted.
"Come on now, Joe," she tilted her head. "Don't make me say it. You know how Valentine's Day, anniversary and engagement nights usually end for a couple."
"Oh that?" he waved it off. "When I proposed a few minutes ago, did I once mention sex? No because I love you for more than your body, Robyn. Don't get me wrong. You are the best I've ever had. You're incredible. I've never been with someone who was as sexually open and enthusiastic as you. Seriously, you walked around in front of a house full of people including your parents wearing a butt plug up your ass just for the sake of trying something new."
"Don't remind me," she cringed as she pulled a t-shirt over her head. "I'm glad to hear that though because that was something that worried me. I knew you wouldn't go out and cheat on me or anything but I figured you'd at least miss it."
"I'm a man so I'm not going to sit here and pretend like I don't miss it but sex is not my main concern right now, you being alive and well is…"
"Do you want me to order you one of those flesh light things to take on the road for hard times?" she joked.
"Only if it looks like yours," he smiled as she reapproached the bed.
"Actually, that can be arranged with a casting kit," she laughed, circling her arms around his shoulders. "I'm so happy."
"Me too," he nuzzled her neck.
