Chapter 2
Alyssa was very, very well behaved and quiet for the next half hour, only looking up from her toys when there was a knock on the door. Her eyes widened when she seen JBL walk in, followed by the Undertaker. "Wow!"
"He has somethin' he'd like to say to you, angel." Mark said, discreetly pushing JBL towards Alyssa.
"Another bull crap lie?" Alyssa asked sarcastically, her lips pursed tightly together, looking somewhat like her mother.
"What is going on here?" Nicoya demanded, standing from her chair, and immediately went to protect her daughter, blocking her. Though, Alyssa peeked around her leg. Nicoya glared back at Layfield, crossing her arms in front of her chest, and looked positively livid. "Did you fill my daughter's head with that lie about Mr. Calaway?" She didn't give him time to answer as she looked down at her daughter and hesitantly pulled her to stand in front of her, her hands placed firmly on her shoulders. "Alyssa, what did Mr. Layfield say to you, sweetheart?"
JBL looked irritated when Alyssa, looking innocently adorable, started ratting him out. "Now really, it was just a joke." He said finally, trying to squirm his way out of this.
"Not a very funny one." Mark said, his tone neutral though his green eyes were blazing with anger. "You owe…Alyssa…an apology, Bradshaw."
"What? She's just a kid-" JBL groaned when he seen the look on Mark's face. "Alyssa, I'm-"
"Full of crap, I know." She piped up sweetly, showing those white teeth of hers.
"Alyssa, you know you're not aloud to say that word." She stated sternly, staring down at her daughter, and sighed heavily as she shook her head. She backed Alyssa up and glared spitefully at Layfield before pulling him down by the scruff of his necktie. "If you ever, and I do mean EVER, speak to my daughter again, Mr. Layfield, I will personally talk to Mrs. Levesque about terminating you for filling my daughter's head with lies about your co-worker. And don't even think I can't do it because Stephanie and I are VERY close friends and she considers Alyssa a niece. Do I make myself clear?" She didn't give him time to speak before releasing his toe and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Now please vacate my office before I change my mind and end up telling Stephanie about this anyway."
Mark looked away from Layfield, whistling softly, one long leg stretched out before the doorway. His green eyes widened innocently when JBL tripped and went flying out the door, yelping. "You alright, Miss…? You know, I don't think I ever caught yer last name."
"It's Ms. Harris." She responded softly, turning to look down at her daughter, and stroked her black hair from her face. "I'm sorry you had to deal with that man, baby girl. He won't be bothering you again, alright?" She hugged Alyssa close and sighed heavily. She'd tried so hard to keep her daughter away from the men of this business, but it was impossible since that's mostly what Nicoya worked with. She was the lead script writer for the Smackdown! brand and sometimes, the job just had its negatives.
Mark arched an eyebrow before crossing over to Alyssa, kneeling down in front of her again as he asked, "And you are, little angel?"
"Alyssa." She said promptly, clearly taken with him. "But you can call me Aly."
"That's pretty, darlin'." Mark replied, meaning what he said.
"Got a name or can I keep on callin' you Undie?" She asked, no fear shining in her blue eyes, which shocked Mark to say the least.
"Call me Mark." He replied with a grin, his green eyes shining back at her.
Nicoya chewed on her bottom lip, wondering if she really liked this man introducing himself to her daughter, and sighed. She couldn't stop it from happening, but she wasn't going to become friendly with this man either. That would only lead to problems. Problems she just didn't need right now as she walked back over and sat down at her desk. "Alyssa, gather your things, sweetheart. We're leaving shortly to head back to the hotel." She announced, raking a hand through her hair, and started writing down a few notes as reminders to herself for the following day.
"Aww, but Mom!" Alyssa whined, looking positively mutinous. She'd been herded away from the wrestlers except for a select few and it drove her nuts, especially since she had her favorites. "I want to keep talking to Mark!"
Mark cleared his throat, standing up. "I'll talk to you later, Aly, how bout that?"
"I want to talk now though! Mom will keep me hidden if you disappear!" She informed him, almost on the brink of hysterics and panic.
"Alyssa…" Nicoya held that warning tone for the third time that night and groaned when her daughter started going on and on, finally having enough. "That's it! I've had it! Get your fucking things packed up right now! Don't argue with me!" She shouted, her eyes narrowing at her daughter, and planted her hands on her hips after standing up from her chair abruptly.
Alyssa's blue eyes widened in surprise before filling with tears, her lower lip trembling, looking wounded. Mark cleared his throat and backed out of the room, quietly closing the door behind him. Definitely not about to get himself involved in this. The mother, Ms. Harris, seemed to be a bit neurotic. That would explain why Alyssa was so…not.
Just the look in her daughter's eyes broke Nicoya's heart as she immediately dropped down on her knees in front of her daughter and pulled her into her arms. "I'm sorry, baby girl. You know momma is only trying to protect you. You know what I've said about talking to people you don't know." She tried soothing her daughter, blinking her own tears back, and shook her head as she mentally cursed her ex-boyfriend for doing this to them. Even though he didn't know about Alyssa. Nicoya was going to keep it that way too if she could help it. "Alyssa, I love you, sweetheart." She pulled back to stare into her blue eyes that matched her father's, which made Nicoya's heart twinge. "Please don't cry. I just don't want you talking to anyone that you don't know, alright?" She was speaking softly to her daughter.
"Not-not even Mark?" Alyssa asked softly. "He was so nice and everything, momma. He got my pop out of the machine when it got stuck, showed me how to punch that red thingy, made JBL fall…" She giggled at that last one, looking wicked for a minute. "That was funny wasn't it, Mom?"
"Not even Mark, Alyssa. I'm sorry, but I don't know the man and neither do you. I don't want to get close to anyone else on this roster, do you understand me?" Nicoya asked in a soft, but firm voice, wiping her tears away from her eyes, and sighed heavily when Alyssa just looked away from her and began packing her things. She knew her daughter was upset with her, but she was doing this for their own good. Though somehow, deep down inside, Nicoya knew this was the beginning of something disastrous and groaned inwardly She'd done a great job hiding Alyssa from the roster, except Ashley and Matt over the past six months since transferring from the RAW brand and now this.
…Next Morning…
"Mom…Mom…Mom…Mom…" Alyssa sighed when her mom just rolled over on her bed and quickly climbed up onto it, beginning to jump. "MOMMY! Someone's at the door!"
Groaning, Nicoya slowly opened her eyes, sighing when the sunlight streamed through the room and hit her eyes, causing her to squeeze them tightly shut. She peered over at the clock, seeing it was just after nine in the morning, and groaned more. Who the Hell was there THIS early? "Alright, give momma a minute, honey." She softly said, and slid from the bed, wearing a red spaghetti strapped nightgown that went down past her knees. She pulled on her black silk robe, tying it around her waist, and headed for the door, Alyssa bouncing behind her.
Alyssa peeked out behind her mom when she opened the door, grinning broadly before tossing herself out into the hallway, "MATTIE!"
Matt groaned, catching her and falling backwards on the floor. "You're gettin' heavy!" He teased, getting to his feet, holding her. "I'm supposed to let you know Ashley won't be meeting you for lunch because she got herself stuck at an all day autograph session." He said, looking up at Nicoya. "However, I'm willing to take the munchkin here downstairs for breakfast since you look like you're dead on your feet." He offered with a smile.
"That's very kind of you, Matthew, but-" Nicoya stopped when Alyssa jutted out her lower lip and started pleading with her, wanting to spend some time with her Uncle Matt. Sighing resignedly, Nicoya rolled her eyes and pointed her thumb behind her shoulder. "Go get dressed." She stated and chuckled when Alyssa made a beeline for the bedroom, sighing heavily as she raked a hand through her black hair. "I really wish she didn't have his energy." She quietly whispered, knowing exactly where Alyssa got her energy from.
Matt clucked his tongue, reaching out to pat her arm gently. "She's a kid, Coya. Kids are just balls of energy." He said soothingly. "Hell…look at Jeff, he's still a ball of energy." He joked, sighing when he was rewarded with just a nod. "You ready then, Aly?"
Alyssa nodded, reappearing fully dressed and replied, "Yup. Want us to bring you something, Mom?" She asked sweetly.
"No, sweetheart. You mind Matthew though and don't give him a hard time." She stated and smiled when her daughter saluted her, that twinge once again entering her heart, and bent down. They hugged as she kissed Alyssa's head and allowed Matt to escort her away as she closed the door behind her. Nicoya sighed heavily and raked a hand through her hair before heading over to the balcony window, staring out of it. She didn't know why, but something was brewing inside of her. Telling her that trouble was coming.
~!~
Matt listened patiently as Alyssa chattered over breakfast, shaking his head when she started talking about her latest favorite wrestler. Wondering where the Hell this fascination with the Deadman came from. Then he looked up, blinking when he seen Mark. Speaking of the devil. Alyssa turned her head, smiling when she seen Mark ordering something, and shouted out, "Hey! Undie!" Mark started choking on his food.
~!~
Alyssa was staying with her grandparents for the first eight years of her life, which Nicoya didn't mind, considering she wanted her daughter to have a normal life. That quickly changed though when she found out her grandfather was hitting Alyssa, leaving marks on her. Nicoya quickly put a stop to her staying with them and brought her on the road, just before transferring to Smackdown!. So her boyfriend had no clue she even had a child that was by him. He never would either, not after all the pain and torment he'd put on her through the past eight years. The thought made tears spring to her eyes, but Nicoya blinked them back. Was it a wonder why she didn't want to get close to anyone on the Smackdown! roster?
Mark could only listen as Alyssa chattered away, sharing amused looks with Matt as they both walked Alyssa back to her mother. He'd only joined them at breakfast because she insisted, finding the little chatterbox adorable. Then got conned into joining them on the return trip, much to Matt's amusement. "Does she ever take a breath?" He asked amusedly.
"Not too often." Matt answered with a small chuckle.
Nicoya smiled when she heard a knock on her door and immediately rushed over to answer it. She was wearing a pair of blue jeans with a red tank top, her black hair framing her face and flowed down her back, hugging her waist perfectly. She opened the door and greeted, "Hey sweet-" Her words died when she seen Mark with her daughter and Matt, not believing this, and tucked a strand of hair behind her hair before bending down to hug her daughter. "Did you have fun?" She quietly asked, not looking at the two men before her, her eyes only for her little girl.
"Yeah! I had blueberry pancakes and French toast with orange juice!" Alyssa said, which was her usual breakfast anyway. "I made Mark sit with us." She confided, looking pleased with herself.
Matt looked downright amused. "She also commandeered him as an escort." He added for leverage, a smile on his face.
"Pleasure to be of service." Mark joked, winking down at Alyssa when she flashed him a sweet grin.
"I noticed." Nicoya replied wryly and slowly stood up, giving her daughter that stern look, and cleared her throat. "Go to your room, Alyssa." She ordered, crossing her arms in front of her chest, not looking pleased at all. When her daughter went to argue, Nicoya shot her the most stern, angry look she had yet and watched as her daughter zoomed into the bedroom, closing the door behind her. She then turned around to face Mark and took a deep breath. "I hope she wasn't that much trouble, Mr. Calaway." She shot Matt that same look she did to her daughter and pointed to the couch. "Inside. Now." Matt slinked into the room, looking like a scalded dog, and dropped down on the couch.
"She wasn't any trouble at all, Ms. Harris." Mark replied in the same tone of voice she used on him. He nodded at Matt before walking off.
Nicoya brushed off Mark's tone of voice, slamming the door behind her, and immediately spun around on Matt. "You are NEVER taking my daughter out to eat with you AGAIN! Do you have ANY idea what you just did?! Alyssa was already attached to him from last night and you made it worse! You know my policy, Matthew! My daughter is to go NOWHERE NEAR ANY of these wrestlers!" She shouted, her temper overtaking her, and raked her hands through her hair as she started pacing in front of him. "Now I have to reprimand my daughter because I already told her once to stay away from him!" She groaned in frustration and shook her head, not believing this mess.
"Coya, calm down." Matt said, standing up from the couch. "You work for the WWE, honey. You can't keep her from the guys forever, and Mark seems to like her just as much as she likes him." He didn't falter under the look she shot him. "Aly is a curious kid, you can't stifle that forever, Coya." He reasoned gently.
"Yes I fucking can!" She snapped, her lips pursed tightly together, and shook her head as the tears swelled in her eyes, turning around and staring out the window. "Matthew," She paused, sighing deeply, and lowered her voice considerably so her daughter couldn't overhear this part. "He doesn't know about her. The more secretive I can keep her, the better off I'll be." She raked a hand through her hair as she looked down into his dark eyes. "I didn't mean to snap on you, I just…I told her to stay away from him and she deliberately disobeyed me. So I'm going to have to punish her, not you because you obviously didn't know my feelings on the situation until now. She knew better and yet she did it anyway, just like her fucking father." She growled that last part in a low voice.
Matt cleared his throat, not sure what he could say to that. He raked a hand through his hair, looking at Nicoya sympathetically. "Being like him isn't something she can control exactly, Coya." He said gently.
"I know that." She whispered, wrapping her arms around herself, and rubbed them up and down. "But she is going to learn to listen to me or else I'll hire a babysitter to come on the road and keep her at the hotel. I made my decision after I left him that I wouldn't get attached to any of the other men on this roster and I'm keeping that vow, no matter what. You and Ashley are different, you're like my family and hers. But the rest of them I could care less about. I'm here to work and that's it, not to make friends." She sighed heavily and shook her head. "I'm sorry for snapping on you, Matthew." She apologized softly and walked over to stare out the window.
"I know you are and don't apologize, Coya. I should have known better." Matt admitted, shaking his head at himself. He did know better, but it was hard for anyone to do anything against the legendary Phenom, Matt included, awed of him. "There anything you need before I take off?"
"No, nothing else and don't beat yourself up over it." She stated softly, walking over and hugged him around the neck, kissing his cheek. "I'll see you tonight at the arena." She then walked him to the door and waved him off before closing the door behind her.