Chapter 7

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Karlee was stretching as best she could in the paint that she was in. Alice was running the ropes at 100mph whilst Dean and Roman were in the opposite ring trading moves and tips. Karlee was back in her workout gear and she felt amazing The adrenaline she was feeling was already exhilarating and she couldn't wait to be back in the ring back in front of a crowd. She had already had her 'talk' from Dean before coming out to the performance centre. Eva waltzed in half an hour late with flared pants on and her red bra showing through a skin tight crop top. She had a full face of make-up on and her hair was curled beautifully. Karlee had to admit, she was a gorgeous girl but her attitude made her ugly. Karlee had her hair pulled back into a tight ponytail with her side fringe long past her cheeks. Dean and Roman stopped what they were doing to both lean n the ropes as they watched Eva step in the ring. Karlee had offered Alice some ring gear but she was too tiny for any of it so in the end, she had borrowed one of Karlee's tank tops and tied it above her ribcage and had bought a pair of Nike Pro shorts on the way.

"Karlee! Over her a second!" Dean shouted and Karlee smirked as she made her way over to her boyfriend.

"Yes?" she teased.

"You aren't cleared to even train yet. At least not for another four days. Be careful." Karlee climbed up ever so carefully and pecked him on the cheek. Alice had asked her the night before if she would referee the upcoming match between her and Eva and Karlee had happily complied.

The doctor was on standby, mainly for Karlee and the two rookie divas were ready in the ring. Karlee motioned for the match to start and almost straight away, Alice flew straight in for a dropkick, sending Eva backwards through the ropes, her backside making contact with the padded mat. Alice gave a small chuckle but went over to see if she was okay anyway. As she peered over the side, her face received a sharp kick from the boot of Ms Marie and she went stumbling back as Eva climbed back in the ring. Karlee was quick to intervene and stepped between the two, putting a serious look on her face as she beckoned the two boys over from the other ring. More and more of the rookies from NXT had appeared and were surrounding the ring, most of them just surprised to see Karlee back in a ring only months after her incident.

"Right, Dean, Roman, partner up. Pick a girl." Dean and Roman both clambered up into the ring, Roman almost knocking Alice down in his haste to get to her first. Dean tried to hide his disgust in having to pair up with Eva but at least she was loving it. Karlee tried to hide her grin as Dean stared at her, slapping her ass as he walked past with some kind of promise that he would get her back later. Karlee signalled the start and Dean and Roman grappled whilst exchanging words. They both nodded and made eye contact with Karlee, meaning they were about to tag the girls in. Dean tagged Eva in and dropped down and out of the ring going to grab his things while Roman tagged in a very focused Alice who nearly snapped his wrist in an effort to tag him and get into the ring.

Eva and Alice went back and fourth for a long while and Karlee was very impressed with her in ring skills. Shame the same couldn't be said for Eva. Alice was a high-flier and she was quick and fast. Even Roman watched on in awe. In the end, Dean and Karlee left them rumbling about. She left Roman in charge. That had bad idea written all over it.

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Karlee took a deep breath and let the complete stranger prod her side with such force it made her want to kick him in the face.

"Still no pain?" He asked, lightly tapping the skin where her stitches had been with his index finger. Karlee relaxed as the pain subsided. She was in the middle of a medical exam and was moments away from being cleared.

"Well Miss Eckland, Your stab wound has healed quicker than we expected and the broken bone in your leg is perfect. I can't actually see anything stopping you from getting back into the ring..." Karlee shrieked and jumped up and hugged her physician.

"Karlee, I have watched you on TV for a long time now and I want you to take it easy. Start off training easy and slowly build it up. I don't want to see you on TV for another month though. Just take it easy." Karlee had it all back. She nodded and signed her release papers and walked out of the room with a grin on her face that would put a Cheshire cat to shame. Dean stood up after being left in the waiting room. He registered the look on her face and held his arms open for Karlee to run into.

"I'm cleared!" She squealed as she jumped into his arms, wrapping her legs around his toned torso and pulling him in for a kiss.

"I'm so happy for you baby. You deserve this." The doctor walked up to them, causing Karlee to get down off of Dean with a slight red tinge on her face.

"I'll forward these notes onto Steph and Paul. Remember Karlee, no in ring work for another few weeks and I'm afraid sex is off the cards for a while too." Dean groaned and sunk his face into the dip in Karlee's collarbone and she blushed.

"Thanks doc, for everything." She gave him a hug and grabbed Dean's hand, dragging him outside. She breathed a breath of fresh air and slumped against Deans truck.

"This is going to be our year Dean. I can feel it." Something seemed sweeter about the world. She had her life back. No-more moping around the packed arenas, longing to be back on her stage. As if on time, her phone rang, signalling her boss was trying to reach her. She answered, knowing straight away, Steph wanted a favour.

"Hey sweety. Just something really quick to ask you, well it's kinda on behalf of someone else."

"Yeah, okay?" Karlee was slightly confused.

"We have a group of wrestlers being inducted into the hall of fame this year. It's not ike we have done before and held a ceremony before WrestleMania. This one is going to be the night before the Battleground PPV."

"Oh that sounds great. So what do you want me to do exactly?" Stephanie sighed.

"We want you to induct someone, along with a little help from someone else." Karlee was becoming to get agitated.

"Who?"

"Paul Heyman." Karlee groaned.

"You know I hate him. He's a pig." Stephanie sighed on the other end. Karlee had been on Paul's nerves right the way through ECW and now she was in the same company as him where his power was limited to as much as a catering table.

"Who would be there to help me induct him?" Karlee asked, praying and hoping she didn't say Sofia.

"Dean of course.

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Our Karl is cleared! Woooo!

A HOF speech? What could possibly go wrong? You have no idea...

Holiday message from me will be up on my Tumblr on Christmas Eve (Probably at night!) A small Xmas one shot will be uploaded too... I may be even open to suggestions...

Lots of love, Amanda (Remember to review!) xoxoxoxoxox