A huge thanks to my amazing beta crazy-wild-and-free, this story wouldn't be where it is without her!
Canary and the Coal Mine has a tumblr, and you should really check it out! Mainly because I post details that can't make it into the story, like info about Jamie and - most recently - her most popular moves so that you can get a better idea of what she does in the ring!
I've also picked up a twitter as well, just to announce updates for the story, if I go on hiatus, and when I post important things to tumblr!
Tumblr - jonmoxbrose
Twitter - lunaticfinch
Sheesh, it was like the twins didn't trust me alone in the arena.
Nikki leaned out of the car as Brie slowly pulled out of the parking lot; her dark eyes narrowed as I gave a grin and a wave. Her lips twisted into a scowl, watching me as they pulled back onto the road.
I stayed waving until I couldn't see the car anymore, and then ran for the door. Y'know, just in case they got their common sense back. The duffel on my shoulder bounced against my hip, heavy with my mass tools of chaos. The grin on my face could only be described as dangerous; even the guard that swiped my (okay, Damien's) badge gave me a wary once-over.
All that didn't matter though, because I was finally back, and I was alone with a week's worth of trouble to start. Without even seeing them, I knew Dames and Cody had gotten too comfortable. They were at the top of my list, just a hint behind the other tag-team I liked to terrorize.
The last time I'd talked to Dean was Christmas. We were on good terms and I was cleared to wrestle, so there just had to be a Shield run-in at some point today. Or, okay, even just a Dean run-in. I'd settle for either at this point. I was too pent-up from being forced on medical leave to care what happened as long as it was unplanned chaos and I was in the middle of it.
As I bumped open the door to John's locker room - the one he graciously shared with Bryan and I - my trouble-making thoughts got put on pause. A box wrapped in teal paper was sitting on the far bench, the one I usually parked my bags at, with a folded note resting on top.
Tossing my bag at the door, I jogged over and settled on the bench, pulling the box to my lap and picking up the paper.
For Finch was scrawled across it in surprisingly neat handwriting; my heart skipped a beat. Who else but Dean called me Finch? With a smile I couldn't resist flickering onto my face, I unwrapped the present and opened the gift box. Laying on a black velvet cushion was a delicate golden bird on a thin bracelet. No, not just a bird. A finch. My breath caught in my throat as I gingerly lifted it off the cushion to study it.
The bracelet was beautiful. Simple and elegant, and the last thing I'd expect Dean to get me. Hell, I hadn't even thought he'd get me anything. I hooked the bracelet onto my wrist and turned my hand around. It fit me perfectly; I grinned as studied it. It struck me that once again, I'd received a better gift than the one I was giving.
For close to two minutes I sat there like an idiot, holding my wrist up to the light and turning it around to take in the bracelet. The grin on my face had to look pretty stupid; thank god I was alone right now. Once I had successfully studied all angles of my new bracelet, I finally forced myself up. I was on borrowed time here, after all, and I didn't want to spend it staring at my wrist.
I was actually humming to myself, fishing out my tools of destruction, when a hand snagged my wrist. I'd recognize those alarmingly large fingers anywhere. I peeked up at John and offered a cheeky smile as he gave me a stern look, trying to peek into the bag. I shifted to hide the paraphernalia I'd smuggled inside.
"With great power, comes great responsibility," he warned. Holding his gaze, I slowly pulled out the bedazzler and tucked it into my back pocket. His eyes narrowed minutely. "Don't make me regret giving that to you."
"I'm pretty sure you already do," I pointed out as he dropped his hold. I began to inch towards the door. "In all fairness, you knew you were arming the warhead when you bought it."
He crossed his arms and I paused with one foot in the hall.
"I'm serious. I don't want it coming back to me that you're abusing that thing."
With a shrug, I offered casually,
"What if I can guarantee it won't get back to you?"
He studied me for a moment, finger coming up to tap his chin. After another few moments - and now that I'd inched myself almost out of his sight - he let out a huff.
"Deal. Get out of here so I can pretend I didn't see you yet today. I'm not an accomplice."
"Roger that, Papa John," I called, already sprinting down the hall. As I rounded the corner, I slipped the container of glitter out of the waist of my pants. What Johnny boy didn't know wouldn't hurt him.
As mysterious as the Shield claimed to be, it was surprisingly easy to find their hideout. Dreary basement locker room tucked away from the public, with various types of black clothing and a few tactical vests strewn about.
It was my chaotic playground with Shield member in sight. Bingo.
Admittedly, I hadn't let myself believe I'd get this far. Between my knack for attracting trouble and my natural ability to sidetrack myself, I hadn't planned for a quick success. So now, standing in the middle of the empty locker room, I was overwhelmed with possibilities. I tossed the glitter up in the air; I'd start with that, and work my way up to the bedazzler. A warm-up to the workout, so to speak.
Now, Seth or Roman? Seth or Roman...? I glanced between the two bags on either bench, and played a quick game of eenie-meenie-miney-Seth. With a devilish grin, I scampered to his duffel and rifled through, looking for anything he wouldn't want glitter in. Which, admittedly, would probably be anything. But I wanted to aim high, so I dug a little deeper than his shirts and pants.
Shampoo! Yes. Half a bottle of glitter will look great in his hair, I decided while unscrewing the lid and carefully dumping it into the bottle. A bit of it sprinkled down onto his Shield uniform, and I shrugged. Win-win. I gave the bottle a few good shakes, and then sat the glitter aside, digging further. He had to have conditioner, or mousse, or something –
"Didn't take you long t' start meddlin', did it?" Dean noted from behind me. With a startled squeak I spun to face him, bumping into the bench and dropping down onto it. He snorted in amusement as I glared at him.
"It's not nice to sneak up on people," I pointed out, shoving to my feet as I subtly grabbed the container of glitter and shoved it into the pocket with my bedazzler. He strolled into the locker room, one hand rubbing at his jaw as he studied me. I did my best to keep from looking as suspicious as I was.
"It ain't nice snoopin' around other people's stuff."
"I wasn't snooping!" I defended; I mean, technically I was telling the truth. He pointedly looked down at Seth's bag, back to me, and then to the bag again.
"Really? 'Cause you sure seem a little on edge, Finch."
"I was - I just wanted to see what, uh, what size shirt he wore. Y'know, now that my new merch is out, I was gonna hook you guys up." I pointedly tapped my shirt, showcasing my outfit for the night. Dean's eyes flickered to my chest, and when his gaze lingered I felt my cheeks begin to heat up.
I went to move my hand and his own flashed out to catch my wrist gently. He tugged my arm to him and turned it over; my new bracelet glinted against the locker room lights. His lips twitched for a heartbeat before his eyes went to my own.
"This is new."
"It is," I told him, stomach fluttering as I gave an almost shy smile. I didn't miss the twitch of his lips as he fought to hide a smile. God he was adorable. I forced the infatuation out of my mind as I said, "I wanted to thank you, by the way. It's really beautiful -"
"What, you think this came from me?" When I gave him a slow nod, he made a face. "Nah. I don't do shit like buy jewelry."
I stared at him in perplexed amusement. What, he was really trying to pull the tough guy persona on me? He rolled his shoulders and set up a terrible poker face. I couldn't help but laugh.
"You're gonna look me in the eye and tell me you didn't get me this bracelet?"
"Yep," he said, popping the 'p' as his lips flickered into a smirk. I snorted and stared up at him, enjoying the terrible show of denial I was getting.
"It's a finch bracelet, with a note saying 'for Finch'. You're the only one that calls me Finch. And you're saying you didn't get this for me."
"Nope." He popped the 'p' again, and I rolled my eyes. His hand slid down over mine as he let me go, and instead of letting my arm drop I snagged his wrist instead. He raised his brows in question, and I grabbed his present from my back pocket, setting it in his hand.
Dean's body tensed, and immediately I dropped my hold on him. He stared down at his hand; I'd been a little overzealous with his present, admittedly. I'd gotten a tiny little gift box, wrapped it in black paper, and stuck a small blue bow in the corner.
He studied it intently for so long that I began to wonder if I'd crossed another line with him. As cocky as we were being with the bracelet, what if he really hadn't gotten it for me, and I'd ended up getting him something? My hands came together in front of me, and nervously I twisted my fingers together.
Finally, after what felt like hours, Dean's eyes trailed back up to my own. He didn't look angry, he looked... genuinely surprised. He swallowed hard, and then asked in a quiet voice,
"You uh, you got me somethin'?"
"Yeah," I said quickly, watching as he went back to studying the box. Out of habit my hand came up to rub nervously at the back of my neck. "It uh, I'm sorry if that's weird. I just, I saw it and I couldn't pass it up. I'm sorry -"
"Nah, Finch, you don't gotta apologize," he said, his voice still softer than I was used to. "Just, uh... I don't - don't uh, really get presents, is all."
It was my turn to stare up at him surprised. He was pointedly avoiding my eyes as he turned the box over in his hands, emotions still playing across his face.
"You don't... what about Roman and Seth?"
"Well, yeah. We get each other stupid shit," he said with a shrug. "'Course we do. But I ain't really done that with anyone else."
"Merry Christmas then," I told him, reaching out and cupping his hand, folding his fingers over the box and pushing it towards him. As I did, a warm, genuine smile spread across his face, and he gingerly undid the wrapping. He lifted the lid off the box, and his entire face lit up.
"You gotta be kiddin' me," he laughed, full-out grinning as he pulled the keychain out. "Fuck, I completely forgot about this."
He laughed harder, actually dropping his head back and squeezing his eyes shut for a moment. His enjoyment was contagious, and I found myself giggling with him as he dropped his head back down and turned the keychain over.
His eyes met mine, crinkling with his grin and bright with his smile, and my breath caught in my throat. He was incredibly attractive normally, but seeing his face lit up like this... round cheeks, toothy grin, tongue poking out just a bit, it was just unfair.
"It's like the first time I saw you in the ring, and it made me laugh. I couldn't pass it up," I explained; Dean chuckled again and it made my stomach twist with happiness. He was so thrilled about something so simple. He genuinely liked what I'd gotten him, as corny as it was.
"It's great. Thanks, Finch. Really. I love it."
Taking a chance, I moved forward and got on tip-toe to wrap my arms around his neck. He bent and wrapped his arms around my waist, hugging me tight to him, no hesitation whatsoever. We melded together seamlessly, naturally, fitting against one another like this is where we were both meant to be. Out of hugging habit I tucked my head to his neck, nestling in just a hint closer.
Dean didn't seem to mind, even copying the move and hugging just a hint tighter. Damn, he was a good hugger. I could feel the muscles of his arms flexing against my back, sending a chill through me as I took a breath of him. Mint-and-musk, with just a touch of his shampoo. His arms criss-crossed my back, hands wrapping over my sides, secured to me like he never wanted to let go.
I had to pull away for my own good - this wasn't helping the 'still fawning over him' thing. I really didn't want the hug to end, but if it didn't… He looked just as flustered as I felt, clearing his throat as he tucked the keychain into his pocket.
"Thank you again for the bracelet," I started, and Dean waived his hand in dismissal.
"I didn't give it t'you, Finch," he argued again; I rolled my eyes.
"That's really what you're sticking with?" when he just raised his brows pointedly at me, I snorted. "You're a terrible liar."
"You ain't got room t' talk." I scoffed and folded my arms over my chest, doing my best to look offended.
"What do you -"
"Wanna tell me what you're really doin' with Seth's shit, or do I need to force it outta ya?"
Well, I mean, when he gave me that kind of option… He took a step towards me, and though I had to tip my head back to meet his eyes, I didn't budge.
Slowly, Dean leaned down towards me. He tilted his head just a hint to the side, nose brushing my own, as his arms went to encircle me. Just as my breath hitched, just as that damn shiver ran down my spine again, his hand snagged the bottle of glitter and he pulled back.
How did he even - how had he seen that?!
"This isn't what it looks like!" I squeaked, surging forward to grab it back; he put his hand on my shoulder, easily holding me back as I scrabbled for the bottle.
"Glitter? Really?" he sighed, turning it over in his hand as I surged again. His hand moved off my shoulder and I stumbled into his chest. He looked down at me, amused, as I gave him a cheeky smile.
"Does it help if I promise I wasn't gonna use it on you?"
"Can you blame me if I don't believe that?"
With a huff, I pushed off him and reluctantly gave us some distance. He watched me, bemused as I gave him my best hurt expression.
"I can't believe you'd really think -"
"What's in your other pocket?"
My words cut off, and the devilish smirk that spread across Dean's face made me fight the blush creeping onto my cheeks.
"What makes you think -" he moved for me again and I jumped back, hands immediately going to cover the bedazzler. "Okay, okay, fine. Maybe I was meddling."
"If that's silly string or some shit," he began in warning; with a playful grin, I pulled out my Christmas present.
"Actually it isn't. But that's a good idea," I added as an afterthought. He snorted, and nodded to the tool in my hand.
"Do I even wanna know what that is?"
An idea popped into my head, and I glanced around the locker room. Nodding to the vest on one of the locker doors, I gave Dean a devlish grin and asked,
"Is that yours?"
He met my grin with one of his own as he stepped over the bench, grabbing it and tossing it to me.
"Nah, Roman's."
I held up the bedazzler and wiggled my brows at him. John may not want to be my accomplice, but something told me Ambrose would be easier to crack.
"Wanna see what this baby can do?"
"This is fuckin' hideous," he laughed, letting me take the vest to examine his work. In the span of just twenty minutes he'd managed to bedazzle the entire backside of the vest in bright pink and green gems.
"You're a natural," I teased, running my fingers over his handy work, giving him a wide smile as we both got up off the bench. Dean took the vest to stuff it in what I assumed was Roman's locker. "You better record his reaction for me."
"With what?" he asked, helping me clean up the gems and glitter that we'd scattered around. As I dumped the evidence in the trash and dusted my hands, I gave him a playful look.
"Gee, I dunno… Maybe your phone?"
Dean, meeting my eyes, dropped his hand into his own duffel, rooted around for a moment and then pulled out one of the oldest phones I'd seen this side of 2010. The laugh that came out of me was unexpected. Dean scowled as I tried to swallow my snickering.
"You have a flip phone?!"
"There ain't nothin' wrong with it," he scowled defensively, throwing it back down. "Sturdy, reliable, an' -"
"Completely outdated," I added, giggling some more. Dean crossed his arms. I pointedly ignored the beautiful display in front of me as I held up my own phone for comparison.
"No it ain't. I don't need those stupid phones that do everythin' but make a fuckin' call."
"You sound like a grumpy old man," I told him, earning an agitated roll of his eyes. I rested my hand on his bicep - good god those arms - and patted affectionately. Though he scowled, he didn't swat me away. I let my hand linger a second, and neither of us seemed to mind.
"Yeah? Well this grumpy old man has'ta go warm up, so you take your trouble-makin' ass back to your own locker room."
"Warm up? You mean break in those old joints, right?" He narrowed his eyes and I gave a cheeky grin; he finally plucked my hand up off his arm and dropped it down, stepping around me and snagging his bag as he headed out of the locker room. I fell into step beside him; I mean, what else did I have to do?
"You couldn't keep up with our warm ups, darlin', so I'd watch the sass."
"Please," I scoffed, looking up at Dean, who was still smirking. "I can run circles around all of you in the ring. I think I can keep up with the Golden Girls and their beginner's yoga."
Dean, again, tipped his head back and laughed, obviously not expecting my quip. Seriously, he shouldn't be this irresistibly attractive. Even just watching that toothy smile peek out as he looked back down at me was enough to send my stomach flipping.
"That trash talk comin' outta little Finch?"
"What, you afraid of me, Ambrose?" I challenged, moving to stand in front of him and making him come to a stop. The smile dropped off his face dangerously fast as he purposely made himself tower over me. He rolled his muscular shoulders back and gave a low, cold chuckle, eyeing me like prey.
"Think you're the one who oughta be afraid, darlin'."
"Oh yeah?" I threw back, fighting the shiver trying to rush down my spine; his smirk widened and he added,
"How 'bout you come work out with us then, see if your little chicken legs can keep up with the big boys."
"You're on, Ambrose," I promised, and he flashed me one of those rare, genuine smiles that took my breath away. As Raw's opening music hit, he turned around and started to back down the hall, off to find his boys. I threw him a smile to match his and added, "I'll see you around. Don't beat up my friends."
"Don't get into trouble," he teased, and I scoffed, making a 'who, me?!' face as he rolled his eyes and turned to jog out of sight. I, unashamedly, watched him go until he was around the corner. So sue me.
I really considered his request - and the unspoken pleas of everyone else that knew me - and figured I'd lay low tonight. Stay backstage, sit on my thumbs, behave for once and see how the night went. That lasted for a whole four minutes, until I heard the Rhodes Scholars entrance music start up.
I mean, I didn't have to go out. I could just, y'know, watch from the hall. Be on standby. What if the Shield jumped them, or they jumped my friends? I mean, it didn't hurt to be prepared, right? Besides, I was already nearby gorilla position.
I could hear the Cody's Mustache chants fill the arena, and to my complete surprise, I heard John's voice as he started to bicker with Rhodes Scholars. On the monitor, I saw the sign for Miz TV and grinned. I mean come on, this was practically an invitation!
"And Miz, you mouth-breathing miscreant, once again -"
Damien cut off, and I actually snorted in laughter. The crowd was chanting 'Lawless! Lawless! Lawless! ', so loud they'd drowned him out. How could I deny a request like that? I rubbed my hands together, smothering my excited giggling, and headed onto the stage.
"Silence!" Damien snarled; the crowd - catching sight of me - erupted into cheers of 'Sandless! Sandless! Sandless!' and he made a noise of disgust. "Silence! Once again, you ignoramuses choose to spotlight this disgusting tabloid scandal! Jamien Sandless is a filthy, falsified tag-team that never has, nor ever will exist!"
John and Miz caught sight of me behind the boys, and they both tried to hide their smiles. I waited patiently as John shot me a wink; 'not an accomplice' my ass.
"You know what? I'm with you on this. I think we should get our facts straight. Maybe there's someone else we should ask. The other half of that scandalous tag-team."
"Well," Damien scoffed, straightening himself up and adjusting his robe. "I'm pleased to inform you that heathen Jamie Lawless is not here tonight!"
"Well, Damien," John said, grinning ear-to-ear now as he mocked Damien's voice. I saw both men in front of me tense. "I'm pleased to inform you, you're wrong."
Cody was too caught up in a retort to John's smart-ass tone to realize what he'd just said, but the robed man at his side spun on instinct and screamed at the sight of me. He dropped the mic and stumbled back, falling onto the couches that had been dragged out for Miz TV. Cody spun and let out a groan of disbelief.
I snatched Damien's abandoned microphone and held out my arm to him.
"Dames! Man, it's been too long. I knew you missed me as much as I missed you, so I figured I'd come back early and surprise you!"
"You're on medical!" Cody argued, jamming a finger at me. "You're not allowed to wrestle!"
"That's old news, Codester. Good as new," I assured, rolling my once-injured shoulder. Damien made a noise of distress and my (admittedly malicious) grin widened.
Cody pulled Damien to his feet and I sauntered over to stand with John. He looked down at me, his face as sober as he could get, and he said,
"Jay, as great as it is having you back, I think we've got something else we need to focus on." He twitched his upper lip just a hint, and I sobered up immediately as I caught on.
"I completely agree, John. There's… something… we should just totally focus on."
We both slowly turned to stare at Cody; he looked at us with guarded curiosity as John hinted,
"Because you know, we've got another issue… facing us."
"Oh yes." We both began to move forward, crowding around Cody. His face fell into an unamused scowl as he figured out what we were doing. John and I slowly inched closer and closer. "It's totally growing out of proportion."
The crowd was cheering wildly. Damien watched us with a mixture of fear and disgust, and Cody looked about ready to hit the both of us. We got even closer.
"It's everywhere," John said, taking on a tone of rapt awe, leaning in closer at his side. I got in front of Cody and stood on my tip-toes, inching towards his face. More chants of 'Cody's Mustache' rose up around us. He started to lean back and I caught his shirt.
"No! Don't move! Just pretend I'm not even here. I just want to see it up close -"
"Stop that! Stop! How dare you!" he snapped, swatting my hands off him and batting John away as he backed up from us. Oh, we'd struck a cord. A man and his mustache was apparently something you didn't harass. "You think you're so funny, John!?"
He made a face that implied yes, he did. I tried to stifle my snort of amusement.
"You know what sucked, as you so eloquently put it? When you and Miz went up against Big E and Dolph and both ended up being laid out." I felt the irritation burst through John. "That sucked, for you at least!"
Cody and Damien laughed together, Dames even clapping him on the shoulder.
"Oh, I agree, Cody. And our delinquent Jamie Lawless, she wasn't even able to climb a ladder correctly!" Admittedly, Damien had had better comebacks before. I gave him an unamused glance and he chortled to himself.
"It's a shame," Cody agreed, pretending to wipe tears from his eyes as he surveyed us. "The two of you went from being hot-shot somebodies to being cockroaches living in the brilliant shadow of Team Rhodes Scholars!"
John and I exchanged looks of 'oh hell no' as Damien held up a hand and announced,
"I propose a New Years resolution to the both of you! I propose we -"
"A New Years resolution, that's a good idea!" John agreed; as Damien went to keep talking, John held up a finger. "No, that's a great idea. Hold on, boys. Watch me work, here. Watch me work."
John spun me around and then slung an arm over my shoulders, tucking me in for a huddle. Miz, having accepted his show was completely hijacked at this point, dropped onto the couch to watch us go at it. John was looking down at me with a conspiratorial grin on his face, knowing I'd go along with anything he came up with.
"Now, I know you're fresh off medical, and I'm a washed-up has-been, but how about this for a New Year's Resolution? How about we resolve not to let a couple of crazies run away with their egos? Let's say we get Gandalf and Magnum P.I. to lace up their sunday heels and meet us in that ring right now?!"
Damien and Cody made noises of disgust as we turned to the crowd. I lifted my mic, grinning, and asked excitedly,
"Are you suggesting we start off the night proper with a tag match between the Rhodes Scholars and John Cena and Jamie Lawless!?"
The cheers from the crowd around us drowned out the angry shouts from the men behind us. John and I threw our mics down and stormed to the ramp, ready for a fight.
"You ready?" John asked as we both sprung to our feet. In answer, I threw up my hand for a high five. We slapped hands and turned to face Rhodes Scholars. Damien and Cody stared down the ramp at us in horror, still trying to wrap their heads around the tag match they'd just caused.
John threw off his shirt and I ran a hand through my hair, pushing it back as we watched Cody and Damien approach the ring. As they climbed the steps, I turned to John and held a fist out. He met my eyes and I lifted a brow in challenge.
"Rock, paper, scissors? Really, kid?" he snorted, and I heightened my stare. He matched me, and we mouthed one, two, three! We threw out shapes, and I dropped my head back in disbelief. He pointedly covered my rock with his paper and jerked his head aside for me to get on the apron as the bell rang.
As Cody squared up with John, an idea came to mind. As they locked up, I turned around and shouted,
"Cody's mustache!" the fans right behind me cheered and immediately picked up on it. Pumping my fist in the air this time, I hollered, "Cody's mustache!"
John leveled Cody and we all ooh'd; that is, until John caught on to the chants. His head snapped up and a wicked grin spread over his face. He caught my eye and I cheered one more time,
"Cody's mustache!"
"Quiet!" Damien shrieked, first at me and then turning to yell at the crowd. "Silence! Show him your respect!"
The chant was doing what I had hoped – it was throwing Cody off. He let out a shout of frustration and spun to lash out at John. He threw a sloppy punch and John dodged easily, knocking him aside into the ropes and then leveling him to the mat. He tugged Cody up by his arm and then twisted, holding him in place and reaching out to tag me in.
We slapped hands and I climbed onto the top rope. John moved back and shoved Cody at me as I threw myself feet-first into the ring. Ankles locked around Cody's neck, I swung my self around and slammed him to the ground. As I hit the mat I rolled with my momentum and sprung to my feet, grin on my face.
Damn, it felt good to be back!
As I spun for Cody he actually skittered back, into the corner, clearly dazed. He gasped for breath, hand to his head, and okay. I went a little easy. Damien slapped Cody's shoulder as I danced back to my side; the crowd was wild tonight. They'd transitioned into the usual 'LET'S GO CENA! CENA SUCKS!' chants, so we played along.
"Let's go Cena!" I jeered, pointing at my tag-team partner. He threw his arms out and shouted back,
"Cena sucks!"
I snorted as he whipped back and forth, listening to the fans shout his name. My attention went to Damien as he climbed into the ring, squaring up in the corner. A smile twitched across my lips; as dramatically as possible, I swept my arm out and ducked into a deep bow.
"Jamien Sandless, I presume."
Damien made a noise of alarm and scoffed at me as we circled. Giving a quick wink, I shot forward and we locked up. For as much crap as I gave them, both guys were actually great wrestlers. Damien's power was no surprise, it was his agility that caught me off guard.
He twisted nimbly out of our lockup and hooked my leg, hitting a hard Russian leg sweep. The mat was unforgiving, slamming into my chest and face, knocking the breath out of me. Damien bolted up to his knees and wrangled me into a tight headlock.
Okay, props to Mr. Sandow.
He would've hit a hard running bull dog on me too, had he not forgotten the height difference. He was even taller than John, which meant nearly a foot over me. So when he righted us and turned to run, his arm slipped up over my head and he lost his hold.
He bounced off the far ropes and turned to catch me again, so I ducked and grabbed a hold of his legs. With all my strength I hoisted him up and let us both fall back, slamming him face-first against the mat.
Damien let out a moan of pain and skittered away from me, rolling out of the ring. Cody, of course, was at his side instantly so I took a moment to catch my breath and nod to John that I was alright. Damien was clutching his nose, and okay I felt bad. I leaned on the ropes and caught his eye.
"You good?"
Cody turned and threw a nasty glare over his shoulder, snarling 'back up' as he coddled his tag partner. I rolled my eyes and shoved back, moving to our corner. John snorted in amusement and I made a face.
"What? I'm not a monster," I argued.
"This is wrestling, he's gonna get banged up."
"Oh stuff it, Cena," I threw out, earning a cheeky grin from my friend as Damien finally climbed to the apron. "You want in?"
He held out his hand and I slapped for a tag, ducking out as John went after our opponent. The chants for John started up again but I focused on the match, watching one of wrestling veterans go to work. I took Bryan's advice of you always have time to watch as seriously as I could, so I studied John's moves.
John fought like the powerhouse he was, slamming his ridiculously solid body into Damien at every turn. The poor guy could barely get to his feet before John was rocketing off the ropes to level him back down. After four or five more body slams and an AA for good measure, Damien flopped to Cody for a tag, and John turned to me.
"Ready, Jay?" John asked, glancing back. The crowd cheered as we locked eyes, and I gave an enthused nod, holding my hand out. Tagged in now, I vaulted the ropes and launched at Cody, taking him down with a hard Thesz press. The breath wooshed out of him and I went to town, throwing forearms into his face as hard and as fast as I could.
His hands came up under me and slammed into my stomach, launching me back. I landed on my ass and slumped into the ropes, barely rolling aside to miss an incoming knee. Cody came after me again and I tucked into a roll, springing to my feet across the mat. He turned, and we dove at one another.
He went to lock up on me like Dames had, but he was missing one crucial point: agility. He was smaller, but not nimble enough to twist around my smaller body. He made the mistake that most did when fighting me: they forgot to downsize. Cody put too much emphasis on his upper body, trying to hold me in place, making it way too easy to drop and sweep his legs out from under him.
The second his back hit the mat I went for the cover, but it wasn't enough. He shoved his shoulder up and rolled away, angry. Before I could get my feet under me, he snagged me around the neck and threw me into his corner. I let out a squeak of pain as Damien's arm caught me in the back of the head, only to be cut off as Cody did the same into my jaw.
Again and again, both men battered me. I could hear John shouting at the ref to get them to back off the illegal team up, but the boys got a few more good hits - and a couple knees to the stomach - before Cody finally backed off.
The second I was free I slammed my hands into Cody's chest and stumbled free from the corner. I was too dizzy to even keep myself upright; I needed to tag now. Cody was in the corner, and my path was free. I lunged for John and an arm wrapped around my middle, towing me back.
Apparently, Damien had gotten the tag. Rookie mistake on me for not noticing, and now I was gonna pay for it. Keeping the arm around my waist, Damien lifted me up, spun around, and then slammed me face-first into the mat. A second later his hand was fisted in my hair and he scrubbed my face against the mat, laughing.
"Oi!" I gasped, pushing myself up and swatting his hand away. He laughed and rolled onto his shoulders, slamming his feet into my side. My breath left me and I curled in on myself, trying to breathe. At the last second I realized Damien had scooped up my legs, getting me to my shoulders.
"Two, thr-"
Barely, I jerked myself to the side and broke the pin, half-heartedly swatting Damien's hand away as he went to grab me again. That had been too close, and apparently my beat down wasn't over. Damien wrapped his arm around my neck and towed me to my feet, dragging me back to my corner before I could even think to go for a tag of my own. If I didn't get myself out soon, the match would be over.
Damien pinned me in his corner, but this time I was ready. Cody reached for me and I threw an elbow to his face, knocking him off the apron. The crowd cheered wildly as I brought a knee to Damien's stomach, making him back off and giving me room to separate.
As Damien stumbled and the ref checked on the overdramatic man-baby whining against the far ropes, I lunged for John again. Hands caught my ankles and my legs jerked out from under me. Barely, I caught myself on the mat before my face hit again, but they'd gotten the distraction they needed.
Damien dove to the corner to tag Cody before I even scrambled to my feet. John lunged for me but Cody wasn't having it. He grabbed me by the arms and literally threw me into the turnbuckle in front of me, stunning me long enough to tag Damien back in. Damn it! They were kicking my ass!
If I didn't turn this around, I'd lose all rights to torment them, and I was not giving that privilege up. As I turned, Damien caught me in a front full nelson and went to swing me into a facebuster. As he moved to do so I used his momentum against him.
Tucking us down, I hooked an ankle around his and then let us drop, twisting us easily up into a jumble of limbs. My arm hooked his far leg and I pulled myself together, holding Damien tight in a small package pin.
He made a noise of surprise and surged against me. The ref dropped for a count, and I clung tighter. Again, my small size worked against me, and I cursed as Damien twisted and broke my hold. I went sprawling onto my stomach and he on his back; my heart surged when I saw a clear path to John.
"Let's go Jay!" he hollered, leaning down and holding his hand out. Scrambling to my knees, I surged forward and threw my hand out. A hand caught my ankle and towed me back on my knee. A quick glance over my shoulder confirmed Damien was actually holding my leg and pulling me back.
"Seriously?!" I snarled, trying to kick him off. I scrambled again for John as Damien skittered back for his corner. Another growl of frustration burst from me as I tried to shake the damn attack dog on my leg. He rolled onto his back and actually scissored my upper leg with both of his as he leaned back to tag Cody.
His tag partner got into the ring and I actually groaned; this had to be some kind of a joke. Just as Damien let me go, Cody was on me. Desperation kicked in - I was not losing this for us. John was pumped up, jumping up and down on the apron as Cody hooked an arm around my neck.
Again, though, he was planning on a bigger opponent. He swung himself up for a swinging DDT, but he couldn't brace himself right and went too far away from my body. I capitalized and slammed my hands into his side as he was up in the air. He let out a yelp and we both pitched forward. I hit my stomach, and Cody hit his back hard enough to knock the wind from him.
We were both down. We both had a chance to tag if I could just get my ass in gear. Still disoriented, I struggled getting to my knees. Both John and Damien were cheering for Cody and I, urging us for the tag. The crowd was on my side, though, chanting Lawless! as I struggled towards John. I let their energy overtake me; just as Cody tagged Damien, I threw myself forward, praying I was close enough.
My hand slapped John's, and the crowd ignited. He launched over me as I rolled myself to the apron, letting my body get oriented and catching my breath. The fight was vicious, both men out for blood, looking for the win.
As I finally sat up, I caught sight of Cody ducking under the ropes. For fuck's sake! Shoving to my feet, I scrambled in and launched at the mustache'd man as he went to break John's hold on Damien.
Hitting him with all I got was surprisingly a hard shot; my forearm was powerful enough to launch him into the turnbuckle, and he slumped as John threw Damien down. I scrambled back to my side as the ref dropped.
"One… two…THREE!"
John's music blasted through the ring as he sprung up, throwing his arms up in victory. A laugh of surprise burst out of me; after all that we got the win! As Damien and Cody both rolled out of the ring - casting us angry scowls as they went - I got in the ring and cheered with the crowd.
The ref took both our arms and threw them up in the air, earning even more cheers. The grin on my face was almost painful, but hey, it was one hell of a match! Fighting with my friend against two of my favorite victims. What could be better.
As the ref dropped our arms and went to check on Rhodes Scholars, John turned to me, giving an appraising look. He made a face to say 'huh, not bad'. The crowd, of course, had no idea we were close outside the ring. So John made a show of 'accepting' me by sticking out his hand and grinning. Matching his look with one of my own, I took his hand heartily and we shook enthusiastically.
He dropped our shake and grabbed my wrist, lifting my arm up in victory and pointing to me. The crowd met the move with even louder cheers, and another chant of 'Lawless!' started up. John turned and threw up his fingers for the crowd as I jogged forward and jumped onto the middle rope. I leaned out to the crowd and threw up a peace sign, grinning wider when the fans in front of me matched it.
Talk about one hell of a return.
"Really?" Brie chastised as John and I burst into the locker room. The two of us froze, staring up at the twins wide-eyed. Bryan, on the couch behind them, skillfully pretended he wasn't in the room. John and I slid a look to each other as I plastered a shit-eating grin on my face.
"Hey, you're here," I said slowly, dragging out my words as I thought about how to explain myself. "Ah, I thought you weren't gonna come by until the end of the show…"
Smooth, Nikki mouthed to me as John stifled a sigh. Brie, still unamused, crossed her arms over her chest.
"Really?"
"Really what?" I hedged; John snorted in spite of the trouble we were in as Nikki rolled eyes. Neither of them were any help. No way I was helping Nikki the next time Brie and Bryan ganged up on her.
"The second you're off medical, you go pick a fight with Damien and Cody?" Brie asked incredulously, now jamming her hands on her hips. Sheesh, when she went into Mama Brie mode…
"To be fair, I wasn't picking the fight. I was just an accomplice to the fight picking."
"Fight pickee?" John tried; I nodded enthusiastically. "So wait, then I'm the one that started it?"
"But how about THIS proposal," Nikki and I mocked, and then burst into laughter at each other; saying the same thing was a habit of ours. John rolled his eyes and playfully shoved me aside, using the giggling to skirt past Brie.
"Okay, okay. I take the blame for the bad decisions this time."
Nikki shot me a wink and then turned to follow John to the showers – ew – and I scampered to the couch and dropped down next to Bryan before his girlfriend could get going again.
"Got a match tonight?" I asked, snaking a handful of pretzels out of the bag on his lap. He swatted my hands and tugged the bag away, mumbling,
"Yeah, so quit eating my protein."
I snorted and shoved my handful into my mouth.
"Pretzels aren't protein."
"Uh, they give me the protein I need," he bantered, giving me a snotty look. Without warning I threw myself onto him and pinned his arm on the couch. "Ah! Quit! You're gonna crush them –"
"Gimmie the bag!"
"Get off you damn sack of potatoes!"
"I probably have more protein than these damn pretzels," I huffed, snatching them out of his hand and letting him push me back onto the cushion. "There's like, 2.9 grams of protein. Really, Bry?"
He snatched them back and stuck his tongue out as Brie settled onto the couch beside him. She rolled her eyes at us and he patted her leg.
"Sweetheart, tell Jamie she doesn't know anything about protein."
"As a sack of potatoes, I think I have some basic knowledge," I shot back stretching across the couch and propping my feet in his lap. I nudged his arm with my toes and he glanced at me. "Who's your match against, protein king?"
"Kane and I are taking on 3MB," he started, and immediately held up his finger. "Just Kane and I, against Heath and Drew. Neither one of us is gonna have a third wheel."
"Oh come on, like they won't try and pull a fast one and have Jinder jump in too!"
"You already had your match tonight, and you used your one golden ticket on Rhodes Scholars," Bryan reminded, and I stuck my lip out, pouting. Even crossed my arms over my chest as Bryan gave me an unamused look.
"If I'd have known I'd only get one match tonight I wouldn't have used it for that," I mumbled. Both of them gave me disbelieving looks and Brie scoffed,
"Oh really? You would've taken 3MB over Damien and Cody?"
After another few moments of glowering at the TV like a six year old I blew out a breath and slumped even further into the couch.
"No," I admitted. "I just miss being Team No Less."
"What, you got a problem against Team John-less?"
John's head popped over the back of the couch as he grinned down at me, purposely dripping water from his hair onto me. Squeaking in alarm, I swatted him away as I shrunk into the cushions. Nikki snickered from behind him and I threw up a middle finger in her direction.
As we settled into watching the match between Cesaro and Sgt. Slaughter, I tugged my phone out. Still no call or text from Randy. Slowly, I lifted onto my elbows and checked around me. Nikki and John were on the benches, giggling with each other, and Brie and Bryan were joking about Cesaro as the match rolled on.
I dropped back onto the couch and hit Randy's name in my phone, and casually lifted it to my ear. Four rings later, I was getting 'Can't take your call right now, leave a message…' and I barely stifled my sigh. As quietly as I could, I mumbled,
"Hey, it's Jay. Call me when you get this."
As the match came to an end, a new shadow fell across the couch. The three of us looked back and Brie actually jumped in surprise; Kane was leaning over us, a scowl on his face.
"Our match is next," he growled to Bryan, side-eyeing me as the goat at my feet got up. "Or did you already forget?"
"Why do you always assume I'll forget? Have I ever forgotten?" he bickered, holding up his hand to me in goodbye as he kissed Brie and then followed the big red monster into the hall. Before the others in the room could stop me I jumped up and raced out after them.
"You forget everything," Kane barked at Bryan, narrowing his eyes at me as I came up on his other side. "Like telling the little girl she has to stay home for this one."
"What?" Bryan asked, whipping around. I gave him a cheeky smile and he dropped his head back. "Jay. I told you it's just Kane and I!"
"I'll stay ringside, I won't interfere!" I said quickly. "I'm so bored, and I can actually help –"
"Little girl," Kane cut in, leaning in front of Bryan to meet my eyes. "This is a title match. You are not coming ringside. I don't want any distractions. Do you understand me?"
"Look, just go to the break room and have fun at the party, okay?" Bryan urged, pausing long enough to put a hand on my shoulder and stop me. "The Christmas party is in full swing, and we'll be up after the match. Just take a night off. Please?"
My excitement dropped out of me and I let out a breath, staring up at him. He didn't have time to argue, and I knew better to come out after Bryan and Kane made it clear I wasn't wanted.
"Yeah, okay," I said as dejectedly as I could. Bryan gave me one last apologetic half-smile before he took off after his tag partner. The hallway was virtually empty; like Bryan had said, the party was a big hit. I had a feeling the twins and John would be heading up soon, but I wasn't here to eat and dance. I was here to fight. To do something.
As I stood in the middle of the hall, debating on what I wanted to do, commotion caught my attention and my head snapped up. Sheamus was being helped backstage from the stage, limping heavily, bleeding from his shoulder and forehead.
"Sheamus!" I called, running down the hall to catch up with his entourage. He gave a grunt of pain in acknowledgement as I came to his side. "What happened!?"
"The Shield," he spat out, grimacing as he was stopped outside the medic's room. "Jumped me, middle o' the match. Triple powerbomb."
Of course. I gave a sympathetic grimace and rubbed his shoulder apologetically as he was towed inside.
"He okay?" Kofi asked, hurrying around the corner. "That damn Shield got 'im good."
"He's hurting, but he'll be –"
"Scram," a voice said behind me; I turned and glared up at Wade Barrett, already feeling my hackles raise. He towered over me, scowl on his face, and jerked his head to motion for my exit. I crossed my arms and met his angry stare.
"Why should I?"
"Because I have a score to settle with Kingston, and I don't have time to deal with a petulant little brat."
I made to throw back a remark as Kofi rested his hand on my shoulder.
"It's good, Jamie. I got this. It's just Barrett."
After meeting his eyes and getting a reassuring nod, I reluctantly backed down and let Kofi step up to his rival. Besides, I had other places to be. Namely, the Shield locker room.
I could hear Seth shouting from the hall, his high-pitched voice bouncing around me as I came to the doorway. Dean, sitting on one of the benches and unwrapping his wrists, snorted at the tail end of,
"It's fucking everywhere! Are you kidding me?!"
"Well Seth sure sounds upset," I noted idly, leaning on the doorway of the Shield's locker room. Dean's eyes flashed up to mine, and a grin twisted up his lips, tongue poking through his teeth. Before he could answer, though, the nasally voice from the showers called out,
"Hey!" Dean and I both looked back as Seth's head poked around the corner. He didn't look too pleased to see me, so I flashed a wide smile. Dean chuckled. "You think it's funny to put glitter in people's shit, Barbie?" he griped, waving his shampoo bottle at me as he stalked across the room.
His hair shimmered in the light and I busted out laughing. Dean barely smothered his own snickering, ducking his head as Seth passed. The fuming Shield member stood in front of me, not as amused as Dean and I were.
"You're just shining today, Seth. You do something to your hair?"
His scowl deepened as he pointedly held out his arm.
"Body wash too?"
"You have no proof that that was me," I pointed out mildly, ducking past his glittery arm to saunter inside. He turned and crossed his arms, glaring after me.
"I think it's a pretty good assumption."
"Well, you know what happens when you assume," I hinted, and to my surprise, Dean stood up and added,
"Makes an ass outta you."
Seth narrowed his eyes at us as I grinned up at Dean. He tugged his vest on and made himself busy with securing the straps as Seth moved towards him.
"Don't tell me you're in on this, Ambrose."
Dean said nothing, rolling his shoulders to get his vest settled before turning to grab fresh wrist tape. Seth made a noise of disbelief as I settled myself on the end of the bench, crossing my legs and smiling innocently up at him. Seth sneered at me and turned back to Dean.
"Really? You're buddy-buddy with the brat now?"
"He's always been friends with you, I don't see why you're so surprised," I cut in; Dean did snort this time as Seth rolled his eyes.
"I'm gonna go get this off," he mumbled, stalking for the showers; at the last second, he turned and jammed a finger at me. "Don't touch my shit."
I held my hands up innocently as he inched back around the corner. Once I heard the water start, I turned my attention to Dean.
"Nice poker face. Thanks for having my back."
"It ain't hard to tell him I didn't do it since I didn't," Dean pointed out, but he gave me a smile nonetheless. "What're you doin' here?"
"You have a reason for going after Sheamus, or…?"
"What, Scottish Casper's a friend a yours?"
"He's irish," I corrected, earning an eye-roll from Dean as he finished off his wrists. "And he is, actually. What'd he even do to get himself jumped?"
"What, you the conscience police or somethin'?" Dean glanced back as shrugged my shoulders, and he studied me for a moment. "Why d'you care?"
"One, he's my friend," I reminded, ticking up my fingers as I counted off. "Two, I'm trying to figure you guys out. And three, that was a cheap jump, and I kinda thought the Shield were better than that."
"You thought wrong, Finch," he told me with a smirk. Seth, still noticeably glittery and scowling, came out of the showers and added,
"Sheamus had it coming. We don't have to tell you why. We've got an agenda we're following, and you'll do yourself a favor keeping your nose out of it."
After another look at Dean, and a few moments watching Seth begin to wipe glitter off his Shield attire, I sighed and shoved to my feet.
"You guys gonna jump someone else tonight?"
"Like I said, Barbie, stay out of it," Seth threw out; Dean met my eyes, giving an amused smile. I raised a brow, challenging him to chastise me too. Instead, he gave me wink that sent my brain scrambling to think of a witty comeback. Just as I went to throw something else out to Seth, a furious voice snarled,
"What the hell is this shit on my vest?!"
Seth shot me a look and Dean actually laughed; my eyes widened and I skirted for the door, but the half-bleached glitter man snagged me around the waist and towed me back.
Roman came out of the back changing room and immediately his eyes locked onto me. He stalked forward, and okay, there was a brief flicker of alarm that shivered through me.
"You do this shit?" he demanded, spinning and showing off the vest Dean had decorated. As Dean had done for me earlier, I played stupid. My eyes widened and I sucked in a breath, skillfully elbowing myself out of Seth's hold to walk forward.
"Roman, that's beautiful. Wow. It really compliments your skin tone. Oh, you know what would look great with that?" I snapped my fingers and pointed at him. "Some pink high tops. I have a pair. Let me go grab –"
To my complete surprise, Roman's lips flicked up into an amused smile. He ripped the vest off, but threw it at Dean instead of me.
"Quit fuckin' laughing and go grab me one of yours," he barked over my shoulder. To me, he did his best to shoot me a glare. "Don't think this is over. Payback's a bitch."
"C'mon, threaten Finch some other time," Dean said, shoving a vest into Roman's hands and jerking his head to the door. "We gotta go."
As the boys headed out I fell into step. Seth, not as amused with me as the other two were, came to a stop and put a hand on my shoulder.
"Uh-uh. You're not coming with us, Barbie. You've done enough."
Dean, to my surprise, gave Seth something that looked an awful lot like an unamused frown. It was gone in half a second as I sighed,
"Fine. Might as well stay back here. Unsupervised. In your unlocked hideaway. With everything out in plain sight." The boys exchanged a look. "Hey, where do you keep your boots?"
"Fine. Whatever. We got a match to start," Seth sighed, storming off. Roman smirked and fell into step with him as Dean hung back to walk with me. He nudged me and I looked up as he threw me a wink. As we climbed the steps to the top of the seating area – Shield's usual entrance – I asked,
"Do I get to know your opponent?"
"Nope."
"That's not fair," I griped, earning another brief smile. Man, that was a good look on him. "Will I be okay with who it is?"
He glanced at me as we reached the top, and shrugged his shoulders.
"Nope."
"You gonna tell me not to interfere?"
As the boys got in position, waiting for their music, Dean turned to me and playfully took my shoulders, moving me back a few steps.
"Always will. Much as I love puttin' you in your place, I don't like you gettin' hurt. 'Specially when it ain't your fight in the first place."
"Quit jumping my friends, and it wouldn't be an issue," I pointed out; Dean rolled his eyes and moved back to the other two.
"Stay back, Finch."
SIERRA. HOTEL. INDIA. ECHO. LIMA. DELTA. SHIELD.
All three boys threw winks my direction before they turned and started down the stairs, into the audience. With a huff of frustration, I turned and trudged back downstairs to the main staging area.
My mind was racing, trying to piece together who their opponent would be. Bryan and John both already had their matches tonight, and I highly doubted the twins were in danger. Randy wasn't even here, so that left Ryback. Who else? Maybe Sheamus, round two?
As I reached the bottom of the stairs and turned, Raw was just coming back from break, and I heard Ryback's entrance. Alright, score one for Jamie! Just call me Sherlock Holmes I mused, heading for the locker room as I tried to figure out his tag partners. So long as he had decent partners, I'd let the match go. Brie had a point – I was just coming off medical, and I didn't need to intervene all the time.
As I made peace with my inner meddling desires, I came around the corner and saw the match advertised on the screen.
The Shield vs Ryback, 3-on-1 handicap.
So much for letting that match go. I wasn't gonna let my friend walk into an ambush! Vickie, that bitch, must've put this together for how Ryback had talked to her before TLC! Oh hell no. Not on my watch.
I could hear the crowd screaming and booing. Ryback was already out there. As fast as I could I tore for gorilla position. I didn't give the manager any time to even queue up my music as I shot onto stage. The boos shifted to cheers as I sprinted down the ramp.
Shield had Ryback on his stomach, curled to protect himself, as they beat him relentlessly. The boys were too preoccupied on their attack they didn't pay attention to the crowd. I slid under the bottom rope and, just as Roman turned, I hooked his legs and pulled, dropping him onto his back.
"Look at this, look at this! Jamie Lawless, coming to Ryback's aid! Team Squeakback is reunited in the ring!" Michael Cole cried as I jumped to my feet.
Instantly, Dean and Seth were on me, and Ryback had a moment to catch his breath. Just a little more recovery time, I chanted to myself as the boys tried to take me down. I threw us left, knocking Dean into the turnbuckle, and kneed Seth as hard as I could in the stomach.
He fell back, and I turned to intercept Dean as he flew at me. He was ready, though, and dropped to wrap up my legs. Roman, recovered now, slammed into me and brought me down. Dean slithered up to pin me as Roman slammed his forearms into my neck and jaw.
"What part'a stay back don't you understand, Finch?" Dean hissed as Roman grabbed my arms. He hauled me up and Dean shifted to stand, wrapping up my arms behind me and holding me for Roman to punch.
Ryback was in the corner with Seth kicking him hard in the stomach; I only had a second to worry before Roman's huge fist slammed into my own. I doubled and Dean jerked me back upright. I was so lost for breath I couldn't even focus on the excitement of being at Dean's mercy. Again.
All I could think about was how screwed we were. The rest of the roster was up partying, probably not even watching the match. And here Ryback and I were, probably more handicapped than before. I made a meager attempt to kick at Roman as he punched me again, but as the breath was forced out again, I slumped and couldn't force my legs under me.
Roman lifted his fist again and I grimaced, ready for the hit.
I hear voices in my head, they council me, they understand, they talk to me…
My head snapped up and a laugh of excited disbelief left me.
Randy was back! Sprinting down the ramp, eyes locked on me. Dean dropped his hold and I slumped in time to miss Roman's hit. Randy slid into the ring and Dean dove for him, getting thrown through the ropes as Randy side-stepped him.
Seth jumped off Ryback and turned for him, and Randy leveled him with a hard clothesline. Roman snarled, shoving off me and going to help his boys. I pushed myself up in the corner and scrambled to check on Ryback. He was bleeding and panting, but he was okay.
"Thanks, Squeak," he managed, clapping a hand on my shoulder. I turned to help Randy, but he actually had the Shield under control. He was crouched over Roman, throwing arms into his face as ruthlessly as he could. He shoved off Roman and turned, taking out Dean as he lunged back into the ring.
Roman was up, going for an unsuspecting Randy. Shoving to my feet, I threw myself forward and leveled a shoulder into his back, knocking him into the ropes. He slumped to his knees, and I kicked him under the ropes as Randy did the same with Dean.
We both turned, ready for Seth, and watched in surprise as Ryback literally picked up the smallest of the Shield and held him over his head. I scrambled out of his way as he threw Seth over the ropes and into Roman, leveling them both out of the ring.
The ring shifted, and I turned. Dean had his eyes locked on me and I had no time to brace. He snagged me, going for another German suplex. Randy was in front of me with no warning, ripping me from Dean's hold. In one swift move he bundled me to the corner and spun around, slamming Dean into a hard RKO. He dropped, and as Randy went for more, Seth snagged his ankle and dragged him out of the ring.
Ryback, Randy, and I came up to the ropes, all three of us grinning dangerously down at the Shield. Seth, the most coherent of the three, glared up at us as he tried desperately to pull the other two to their feet.
Randy's music hit as Seth dumped his friends back over the barricade. Randy, still between the Shield and I, moved to vault the ropes. I barely snagged his elbow in time; he looked back at me and reluctantly stepped back.
There were a thousand emotions in his eyes as he studied me; to keep from jumping him right there, I went for a hug. An arm wrapped around his waist, and I tugged Ryback in to me as well. Y'know, playing it subtle. He held me tight to him, watching their retreat with smug satisfaction as Ryback cheered with the crowd.
For once, we stood victorious over the Shield.
Dean
The keychain in Dean's hand sent a spark of warmth through him as he hooked it onto his keyring. 27 Christmas's, and that was the best fuckin' gift he'd ever gotten. That, an' seein' his bracelet on Finch's arm.
Yeah, okay, he'd denied it. Couldn't look like he was goin' soft; not like she believed him anyways. No way he was tellin' her he'd gone to six fuckin' stores, even had Roman help him look online for just the right bracelet. Or that there were two more he'd bought stuffed in the bottom of his duffel, that he'd deliberated over the entire flight this morning.
It'd been the right choice, though. He'd watched her open it from the hall. That little gasp of surprise had stuck with him all damn night. Watchin' her admire it, seein' the grin on her face… Like he said, that was almost a present in itself.
"What're you smiling about?" Seth griped, still in a mood over the fuckin' glitter. Dean shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"Seein' you sparkle like a fuckin' christmas tree is pretty upliftin'," he threw out, earning a snort from Roman on his other side. Seth glared at both of them, flipping his hood up to hide his glittering hair.
"I still think you helped her," he muttered, and Dean shrugged his shoulders.
"Think what y'want. Don't get pissed cause it was fuckin' hilarious. You'da laughed if it was me."
"Barbie wouldn't think about messing with you," Seth argued, but stopped short before he could finish his sentence. The guys on either side of him knew Finch was still a sore subject. Roman, subtle fucker he was, cleared his throat and added,
"You ever get around inviting her to work out with us?"
"Yeah," he said, chuckling. "Started trash talkin' an' everythin'. I'll call her later an' see when she wants -"
"Dude you gotta learn how to text," Seth sighed, nudging his arm. "Just send her a message. It'll be so much easier -"
"I don't have a textin' plan," he growled as they snickered. "Shit, you guys sound jus' like her."
"Just go find her then and ask her now," Roman suggested; seeing as he was the one in a commited relationship, Dean leaned towards his advice over the bachelor on his left. "She was still inside with her friends when we left. Bet you can still catch her."
"Yeah?" he asked, raising his brows. Roman jerked his head towards the parking garage, and Dean let a smile flicker over his lips. "Alright. Uh, y'mind if I ask if she wants t' eat with us?"
Seth made a face of annoyance and Roman smacked him across the chest.
"Go for it, man."
Dean turned and hauled ass back the way they'd come; his heart was hammering in his chest. I mean, he'd never fuckin' asked a girl to eat, let alone fuckin' hang out. But shit, this was Finch, and after today, he'd look as fuckin' corny as he had to just to hang out with her a little more.
He heard her voice as he rounded the corner, delving deeper to where the busses and personal cars were parked. The Wonder Twins, super Cena, and goat man all had their vehicles out this way; finding his Finch was almost second nature, if he was bein' honest.
He was just opening his mouth to call out to her when a thud echoed around them. Dean's whole body tensed, and he sped up, straining his ears as he jogged past the row of busses.
"I don't fucking care," he heard Orton growl and Dean skids around the corner of the farthest bus in time to see the Viper grab Finch and press her rough against the side of the building.
That motherfucker was puttin' his hands on his girl.
Dean's vision went red, his body burning with white-hot rage. He took a step forward, taking a breath to snarl out Orton's name, and his anger shattered.
Finch let out a laugh and wrapped her arms around his neck, tugging Orton even closer to deepen the kiss. He took a step back and slumped against the side of the bus, his body numb and his mind at a jarring halt.
Finch was with Orton.
His girl was with one'a the worst assholes in the business.
He didn't remember the walk back to Seth an' Roman. Didn't remember what he muttered, or even the ride to dinner. Didn't taste the bit of food that slid down his throat, didn't feel the achingly cold water on his back for nearly half an hour as he sat on the floor of the shower, still reeling from what he'd seen.
Every time he shut his eyes to sleep, he saw it again; the way her body twisted to fit to his, way his hands ran down her sides, tugging her closer.
Shoulda been me, he snarled to himself, over and over as he stood on the hotel balcony, watching the sun rise and fighting off the lingering chill. Whether it was from the freezing Pennsylvania morning or the ache of losing Finch, he didn't care. Didn't matter.
He'd wrecked the best thing he'd had goin, just like he knew he would.
Only goddamn thing Dean Ambrose could get right was makin' himself miserable, and he'd surpassed his own fuckin' expectations once again.
He took one last swig of the beer he couldn't even taste and let out a snarl, throwing the bottle as hard as he could off the balcony. He heaved a few furious, hateful breaths as he watched it fall and shatter against the pavement below.
With one last spiteful laugh at himself he stubbed out his cigarette and finally shuffled back inside, numb enough, at least for the moment, to try and get on with his fuckin' life.
Guys... thanks so much for being so patient! I know that was a crazy long break, and I'm so grateful you were understanding! I know this is super long but I hope it makes up for being gone for three months. I loved writing this and hope you liked it too! I am so thankful to all of you that commented, you have no idea how much it means to me! I was so happy to come back to all your wonderful words. Thank you so much!
A special thanks to Ash and Tara, both of you let me bounce ideas off you 24/7 and I love the support and love you have for Jamie and this story! Thank you guys so much!
Whether you loved it or hated it, I want to know! I love hearing from you guys, so leave a comment and let me know!