May 7, 2013 Raleigh, North Carolina

Chris was surprised to find Yelena in bed, buried under all of the covers, half dead to the world when he returned to her hotel room after his media day. He wouldn't have known she was there if he hadn't seen her familiar black painted toes sticking out from beneath the comforter. Surely she hadn't been in bed the whole time he was gone? He'd left around eight a.m. and it was well past four in the afternoon.

He fought a chill that ran through his body. Why the hell was it so damn cold? He sat on the edge of the bed next to her and shook her gently then a little harder when she didn't stir

Her green eyes opened slowly, clouded with sleep "Hey." she smiled sleepily.

"Why does it feel like Canada in here woman? Its cold as balls."

"Sorry. I got hot." she yawned, stretching lazily "What time is it?"

"Four thirty. Have you been sleeping all day?"

She shot up in bed, snatching up the clock on the nightstand "Shit!" she swore, dashing out of bed to her suitcase "I have a meeting with Stephanie at five. Ugh, fuck me!" she swore again as she grabbed her clothes and scurried into the bathroom

"Ask me nicely and I might." he joked

"Shut up, you goof." she laughed

She was dressed in a wink, racing around the room, gathering everything she needed. She groaned when she checked her phone for the first time all day, noticing the four missed texts from Nikki. How had she forgotten that she was suppose to have lunch with her so she could help plan John's up and coming birthday bash? She made a mental note to find the twin after her meeting, hoping it stuck to her brain, which was good for nothing if it wasn't about food these days. She then went on about searching for her folder, growing agitated when she couldn't find it

"Damn it! Where the hell is it?" she whined, tearing through her bag, where she had sworn she'd seen it last

Chris cleared his throat loudly behind her and she looked up, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw what she was looking for in his hand.

"Thank you." she said, shoving the folder in her laptop bag, laying a kiss on him

He cupped her face in his hands, deepening the kiss with a moan of approval
The mood shifted and she forgot how to breathe for a second. She knew that if he kept this up, she would be late. She let him kiss her, her heart beating like crazy, her limbs tingling with excitement. Something had changed drastically between them the week of her sister's wedding. That night after it was over and they had fallen into bed, something was different. It wasn't like their usual animal- like lust. He took his time, undressing her slowly, kissing every inch of her. Every touch and kiss was done with the most care, making her body catch ablaze and when they'd had their fill of each other and he was asleep, snoring softly, she was still wide awake, her head resting on his chest, listening to the steady drum of his heart, trying to wrap her brain around what had just happened.

The next morning was quiet as she watched him pack up his things. He had to fly out to the next city. She wasn't due back to work until Tuesday, so she drove him to the airport, the silence filled with the word either of them dared to voice, but he surprised her tremendously when he kissed her tenderly before collecting his bags and saying goodbye.

She wasn't sure how long she sat in the parking lot, her mind boggled before she turned her car homeward bound. To say she was confused was an understatement.
And she was still very confused

"You're going to be late." he said, breaking her out of her thoughts, his crystal blue eyes scorching her with his studying gaze.

"I'll see you later." she said, not even hearing the words come out of her mouth over the beating of her heart in her ears.

"There she is!"

Yelena winced, the Oreo pausing halfway to her mouth when she heard Nikki's voice
Both twins slid into the seats on either sides of her

"I've been calling you all day, where the hell have you been?" Nikki asked

"I'm sorry, Nik. I literally just rolled out of bed two hours ago."

"That better be the reason Ulyanova. You know I need you to help me. If I have to plan this party with someone with half a brain, I'll go crazy."

"Thanks Nichole." Brie said, her sarcasm thick "What's got you so tired?"

"Must be the jet lag or something." Yelena shrugged, biting half a cookie

"Oh! I saw the pictures from your sister's wedding. They were beautiful. And you looked fantastic. How much weight did you drop?" Brie asked

"Nine pounds, but I'm sure I've gained it all back already."

"Oh stop,you look great. If you have gained it back, it must have all went to your boobs." Nikki told her "It must be nice, being born with those babies. I had to pay a pretty penny for my girls." she said, bushing her boobs up proudly in her super low-cut top.

Brie ducked behind Yelena "Ew, put those things away before you take someone's eye out.

"Oh, don't be jealous. I told you I can refer you to my surgeon when you're ready to come up in the world." Nikki informed

"No thanks. I think I'll stick to my natural form. Someone has to in this family." Brie said, rolling her brown eyes

"What's that suppose to mean, Brie?" Nikki said defensively

Yelena laughed as the sisters bickered back and forth before getting up "I've got to go. Nikki, I'll text you and let you know when I'm free so we can get started."

"Okay." she muttered, turning back to her sister, their war of words continuing

Yelena only shook her head and went on about her business, leaving the Bellas at the table.

She wasn't surprised to find Chris stretched out on her hotel room bed when she returned, wearing only a pair of basketball shorts and shirtless, an ice pack on his crotch.

"I think Junior is broken." was the first thing he spoke when she came through the door

She couldn't help but to laugh and then laugh harder until she was doubled over in a state of tears, her stomach burning.

Chris frowned at her from his spot on the bed "You're a twisted bitch, you know that?"

She gasped for air, crawling into the bed next to him "I'm sorry." she apologized, winding her arms around his his neck

"No, get away. I'm in pain and you think its funny." he pouted, trying to scoot away when she kept giggling

She threw a leg around his middle, preventing him from moving any further "I'm sorry Chris. I stop, I swear." she said, planting kisses all over his face to further her apology, not stopping until he ceased moving and she was forgiven. "How are you feeling?" she asked genuinely, stroking the stubble on his face.

"Like my family jewels got robbed."

She felt for him, she did. His match against Ryback had ended with him being rammed crotch first into a ring post, only to be clothes lined over the barricade with brute force. She couldn't imagine how much pain he was in. Hell, it had been painful for her to watch herself.

"Want me to kiss it better?" she joked

His lips twitched upward the slightest bit in amusement "As lovely as that sounds, I think a massage would be safer."

She crossed over him gently and slid off the large bed "I'll go get the lotion."

She went into the bathroom and dug a bottle of Aleeve out of her toilette bag before grabbing a bottle of lotion and returning to the bedroom. Chris was already laying on his stomach, his head towards the foot of the bed

"Here." she said, opening the Aleeve and shaking a blue pill into his hand.

He swallowed it dry and she climbed onto his back, squeezing a dollop of strawberry scented lotion into her hand before going to work on him. She started at his shoulders, working out all of his knots and tension and he hummed in approval

"God, what can't you do woman?" he groaned as she worked his lower back, her hands feeling like heaven.

"Hmmm... I don't knit." she joked, kneading away at a particularly stubborn knot

"I can live with that." he said closing his eyes

Yelena blinked at his choice of words. Its a good thing he couldn't see the shock on her face, but she shook it off.

An hour and a whole bottle of lotion later, she finished up and he turned over so that she was straddling him "Thank you. I feel brand new."

She leaned down and dropped a kiss in his lips "You're welcome. Now put some clothes on."

"Why?"

"I want Denny's."

He groaned "At this time of night?"

"Yes. Now get up."

He rolled out of bed, grabbing a random pair of sweats and a shirt, sliding them on "So demanding." he muttered, grabbing his keys

"My god, your ass in those jeans"

Yelena rolled her eyes at the sound of the Cincinnati native's voice "Fuck off Ambrose, I'm working." she said, fighting a smirk

"How do expect people to get to where they're suppose to be when you're all bent over like that?"

Yelena laughed, straightening up from her post where she was leaned over her station in front of her laptop.

"I think your choice of clothes are inappropriate for the workplace, wouldn't you agree Seth?"

Yelena folded her arms across her chest, raising an eyebrow at the two-toned haired man.

"They... Are a bit tight."

Yelena laughed "So you were looking at my ass too Rollins?" she asked, hands on her hips

A red blush stained his face

She couldn't help making him squirm just a little

"No! I just... I was... Erm..." he stammered

"He was the one who pointed it out! And since I'm finally allowed to say this now that you're not tied down to Randy and he can't rip my balls off and shove them down my throat." he said, waggling his eyebrows, his blue eyes shining mischievously "I'd serve some serious justice on that ass."

Yelena snorted, picking up the apple next to her laptop and launched it at him
He ducked, the fruit barely missing him by an inch, hitting the person who just so happened to be walking by in the head.

"Oh, fucking hell!" Punk cursed

Yelena gasped, covered her mouth.

Seth laughed and Ambrose smirked at her "Nice going Ulyanova."

She reached over and picked up a pear this time and they scurried away.

Phil approached her, rubbing the red spot on his forehead "I don't fucking appreciate being assaulted with fruit when I don't deserve it."

"I'm so sorry about that Phil, I was aiming for-"

He held his hand up with a smile to let her know he was only joking "Quite the arm you have on you. Ever think of playing baseball?"

"No, but if this whole photography thing doesn't work out, I'll keep that in mind." she said "Sorry about that. You okay?" she asked, moving his hand out of the way so she could examine the damage.

"I've been hit with worse."

She smiled gently, trying not to feel awkward. She hadn't spoken to him since their big blowup. She had to admit: She missed him dearly

"So... How's life?" he asked with a lopsided grin as if sensing her discomfort

"Pretty good. Pretty great actually." she said, fidgeting with the sunflower pendant around her neck

He nodded in response "He treating you okay?"

She smiled. She had missed his bluntness

"Yeah... Its... Its different this time. I'm actually... Happy. With our... Arrangement... If that means anything to you."

He closed the distance between them, crushing her small body to his "Of course it means something to me, you little twerp. You're one of my best friends, your happiness means everything to me. Its all I want for you." he said, pulling back, green eyes meeting green eyes "And if he's making you happy, then I'm happy. I might not like it, but I'm happy."

She grinned up at him "Thanks Punk."

"No problem." he said, wishing his words were true. He didn't trust Jericho with Yelena. He knew what he was trying to do and he wanted so badly to warn her again that Chris did not have good intentions, but obviously he was doing something right if Yelena was back to her old self after that ugly breakup with Randy.

"I'm sorry I was such a bitch to you." she apologized

"I forgive you this time. You just politely let Jericho know that I won't hesitate to tie his balls in a knot if he tries anything funny though."

She laughed "I'm sure he's aware of that. I'm hoping it won't come to that again." she said as he slipped an arm around her shoulder and they walked down the hall together.

"So how have you been?"

Yelena put her phone on speaker and set it next to her open suitcase as she folded her laundry. She was packing. She had an early flight tomorrow that she was dreading getting out of bed so early in the morning. She just didn't have the energy for anything these days and the thought of her four a.m. flight was giving her a headache.

"I've been pretty good. Can't complain." she said honestly

"How are things with Randy? Is he still avoiding you?"

She cringed at the mention of his name. Shed seen him around since that night in the elevator. He had been nothing but cordial with her, saying hello when they passed in the halls at work. He didn't glare at her or leave the room altogether when she entered anymore, so that was a plus.

"We haven't talked." she told her

"But you're going to talk to him right? To fix things?"

"I... I don't know. Maybe..."

"You do want to fix things with him, right?"

For the first time in a long time, she had to think before she spoke "I don't know Rosa. I just... Feel like things won't ever be the same between us. I mean, I messed up. I messed up pretty bad and I don't think there's any coming back from it."

As much as it hurt her soul to admit, she knew it was the truth. She had hurt Randy badly. A man who had done nothing but love her unconditionally and she had ruined that. Probably for good.

"Are you serious, you're giving up?" Rosa said

"I'm not giving up, I'm simply accepting the truth."

"But you can't! You guys were made for each other! Who else am I going to live my love life through?"

Yelena chuckled "Nikki and John seem to be getting pretty serious."

"Eww, god no. There is something seriously wrong with her little fairytale relationship."

"You know something I don't know?" Yelena asked

"It doesn't take a genius to figure out that it won't last."

Chris walked in and muttered a hello.

"Who is that?" Rosa asked upon hearing the voice in the background

Yelena winced, trying to turn the speaker off, fumbling with her phone like an idiot "Um, nothing, it was just-"

"How's it going Mendes?" Chris said loudly, scaring the crap out of her "They let you out the looney bin yet?"

She hadn't realized that he was standing right behind her and whirled around, smacking him in the chest forcefully "Damn it Jericho!"

He only grinned, dodging her attempts

"What the hell? Is that Chris? Yelena, what the fuck?"

Great, now they were caught. So much for no one knowing.

"I'm going to call you back." she said, hanging up the phone before the Latina could respond "Seriously Jericho? Not cool."

"What?" he asked innocently

"What happened to not telling anyone?" she asked, raising an eyebrow

"Oh come on, its not a big deal." he said, nonchalantly.

"And if she lets it slip to someone?" she asked.

"Then its out. Whoever doesn't like it, screw them." he said, his arms slithering around her waist.

She was completely taken aback. What the hell was going on with him? He seemed so content with going against everything that they'd agreed not to repeat.

But she couldn't deny the rush of excitement the thought gave her.

She squealed as he picked her up effortlessly and she laced her hands behind his neck

"Hibbidy dibbidy?" he asked, making her laugh

"You're such a child." she giggled

"You love me."

Usually she would have froze like a mouse in a trap at that slip, but surprisingly, she had a smooth comeback

"I love your dick, let's not get that confused."

He grinned, letting out an easy chuckle as he carried her over to the bed, knocking the suitcase off in one clean swipe.

She pouted "I just folded those."

He pulled his shirt over his head "Well fold them again."

"Seriously Nichole? A life size ice sculpture of John?" Yelena asked, shaking her head.
They were having lunch and trying to map out the plans for John's birthday party

"Yeah. I'm not budging either, so don't even try to change my mind." Nikki said stubbornly

Yelena rolled her eyes playfully. The Bella had counted off one outrageous thing after the other for the party, the craziest of them all being that she wanted order over fifteen thousand dollars worth of wine from France to give out in the party favor gift bags.

"You should be happy. I originally wanted it to be made out of real gold so we can put it in the house."

Yelena wrote the sculpture idea down at the top of the list, her mind boggled by the thought "Okay if you really want the sculpture, then I suggest you call it in now."

The Bella pulled out her phone "On it. Oh, and I need caterers. I've already sent out the save the date invites, there's going to be at least two hundred people."

"I'll call tomorrow and see what I can do. " Yelena promised, scribbling a reminder in the corner of her trusty notepad "Have you talked to his family?"

"They're flights are booked and they arrive the night before."

She pulled out her own phone, opening the Google search engine and looking up catering companies in Tampa. A photo message came though her phone, interrupting her.

She opened it, stifling a laugh. It was a picture of Phil, a frown on his face. Mike was in the back behind him, passed out on the ground, his face red and sweaty.
The caption read

If you value my sanity, please don't make me run with this buffoon again
XPhil

She snorted, typing in a reply

Name the time and place
XYelena

Tomorrow 5a.m. Don't be late.

XPhil

"What are you smiling about?" Nikki asked, glancing up from her phone "Who was that?"

"Phil. He wants me to go run with him in the morning."

"You two are getting pretty close."

"Don't even go there. He's like a brother." Yelena stated, stopping her right there

"What? You two would make an... Interesting couple."

"Yeah right. I think its safe to say a pig would fly out of my ass before that would happen."

"Well then who are you interested in?"

"What?" Yelena asked, cocking her head

"Oh come one. You can't be still stuck on Randy. I've seen the way you've been acting the past few months."

"I'm in a good place, yes." Yelena agreed

"And it has nothing to do with a man?"

She thought about telling. She thought about it twice, but she didn't. Not this time. As much as she loved Nikki to death, she had a big mouth.

And it wouldn't be hard for news to travel through her to John and from John to Randy.

She had hurt him enough. It was almost as if she could hear the whispers of "Slut" and "Tramp" starting up again.

She wouldn't humiliate Randy again. She owed him that much

"I don't have time to be evolved with anyone. Not right now."

"Well let me know when you're ready. I have the perfect guy in mind for you. Alicia and Wade broke up. I think you'd look good with him."

"Nikki! Alicia is a friend, I couldn't do that."

It was another scandal waiting to happen if she was that kind of girl

"Oh please, Alicia dropped you after your break up with Randy. Some damn friend. I like Foxy, but she's way to immature for him. Wade is the perfect gentleman. Not to mention, he fills out his trunks quit nicely." The Bella said, grinning

"Nichole!" Yelena said, her cheeks flaming. Great, now she had the image in her head
"What? Its the truth!"

"Oh my god, change the subject! Have you found an outfit and bikini for the party yet?" she asked, desperate to shift the topic

"Fine. I've been looking for bathing suits and I narrowed it down to three. What do you think?" Nikki asked,showing her the pictures on her Ipad.

Yelena stood in front of the full-length mirror in her hotel room in her bra and panties, her robe hanging off her shoulders. It had been a while since she had done this and she kinda wish she wasn't. This had become her way of picking at things she didn't like on her body. She definitely had gained her post- wedding weight back. Her arms looked bigger, her hips wider. Now that she was really looking, her thighs looked bigger too. God, when was the last time she hit the gym? Its been weeks and it was showing.

She frowned at her reflection, so deep in thought that she hadn't heard Chris slip into her room

"What are you doing?" he asked, making her jump

"I'm turning into a whale." she muttered more to herself

Chris's brow furrowed in confusion "What are you talking about? You look fine."

"I've gained all the weight I lost since the wedding back in two weeks." she said, going to her suitcase. The more she thought about it, the more the urge to sweat consumed her.

"So what?" he asked

She groaned in frustration "How would you feel if you got on a scale and gained almost eight pounds?" She found a pair of shorts and stepped into them, unclasping her bra and replacing it with a Nike sports bra. The realization of it made her want to burst in tears. All that hard work down the drain

"You were getting too skinny anyway." he told her, grabbing her the running shoes from her hands. He snatched her up from the bed, kissing her "You look fine." he told her

"My ass isn't huge?" she asked pouting

A hand slid southward to her ample rear "Your ass looks amazing." he promised, touching his forehead to hers, kissing the tip of her nose "You're beautiful. Stop worrying."

She sighed, the sound of those words like music to her ears coming out of his mouth.

"You want to go to Ihop?" he asked, grinning goofily

She smacked his chest lightly "No asshole." she laughed. Such a guy, offering her food after she told him she felt like Shamu.

"Ice cream?" he tried cheekily

She laughed, giving in "Fine!" she agreed, snatching her shoes from him "But you're buying."

May 14, 2013

Yelena slammed the door to her rental, waving at Phil

"I appreciate your punctuality." he greeted.

She caught it with ease "This is beautiful." she said, admiring the scenery

The sun was a glowing orange in the sky, two hours away from sinking behind the mountains. It was blazing hot out and she cursed herself for not putting on any sunscreen on her exposed legs and arms.

"I run here all the time. Thought it would be the perfect mood setter for the abuse to come." he said, leaning down to make sure his shoe laces were secure in place.

Yelena pulled her hair into a tight ponytail, the beads of sweat already gathering at the back of her neck. She could feel the heat beginning to get to her and she hadn't even started yet.

"You ready?" Punk asked

"Lead the way."

They started at an easy pace for the first thirty minutes

She could feel her muscles straining to warm up. Punk gradually picked up his speed and she was dripping with sweat in no time.

She was more out of shape than she had thought. It was no surprise that Phil ended up a few feet ahead of her.

He stopped, walking when they reached a split in the trail. When she caught up, she hunched over, her hands on her knees, gasping.

"You alright?" he asked,taking in her winded form

"Yeah... Fine... Its been a while. Where to?" she asked,looking at the split trail.

"This one continues on straight." he said, pointing to the right "That one." he said, referring to the left one "Goes uphill. Pick your poison."

She could tell by the grin on his face that he was testing her "How far does it go?"

"Six miles of inclined fun and then it smoothes out." he said, chuckling when her eyes grew wide

Holy hell, what had she gotten herself into? She body was already crying to be put out of her misery, but this was what she needed. Nothing like a fire lit under your ass to get you motivated and Phil's fire was a raging bull.

"Uphill it is." she finally agreed

"Bad ass. You've got more balls than Mike'll ever have." he said, pulling his Beats over his ears."Lets do this."

He didn't hold back.

The terrain was like the road to hell itself. She was giving it everything she had. Punk made it look like a cakewalk from what she could see from behind him the whole time. Every once in a while, he'd glance back and ask if she was doing okay and she'd huff out a yes and occasionally a thumbs up when her lungs wouldn't permit her speak.
She was drenched in sweat, but pulled through till the end, damn near crawling to the finish line.

"You good?" he asked, huffing

"Yeah... I'm..fine." she forced out, hunching over again, her voice hoarse. Her throat felt like sandpaper and she couldn't swallow.

"Well I'm proud of you kid. Not many people can keep up with the likes of me. I'm impressed."

She forced a smile, her chest feeling like it was going to cave in. She coughed,a choking sensation washing over her and she tried to gather the saliva in her mouth

With no success

"You sure you're okay?" he asked again when she started a coughing fest
She was full on dry heaving now and ran over to the row of green bushes, throwing up the contents of her stomach which wasn't much since she hadn't really eaten.

"Yelena-"

"I'm fine. I'm... okay." she breathed heavily, continuing to choke. Spots danced in front of her eyes, but she wiped her mouth, trying to walk it off

Phil saw her pale.

Knowing what was coming, he caught her just as her legs gave out from under her and the world went black around her.

Wow, its been a while peeps. I'm sorry about the wait. What did you think? Yelena is pushing herself a bit too far. What do you think is going on with Chris and his little slip up? Why is he so okay with everyone finding out about them? What's so different now? Coming up: Yelena wakes up in the hospital. You're not going to want to miss it. Keep your eyes pealed for the next update!