Chapter 5
Matt calmly walked over to Jeff, who was still doing the chicken dance, and poured the contents of his bottle on his brother's head, grinning when Jeff started sputtering. "That ought to cool down your jets there, Fruity." He stated, causing the twins to start bursting out in more giggles.
Before Nicoya could even respond to her daughter's question, a knock sounded at her office door, followed by Mark poking his head in. She sighed when Alyssa instantly bounded off her lap over to him. "Hello Mark." She greeted softly, standing up from the couch, and couldn't stop smiling at how flirtatious her daughter could be. 'Like father like daughter.' She thought bitterly, but hid it well as she sat down at her desk, beginning her work for the night.
"You know what? You all SUCK!" Jeff grumbled and stomped out of the door, groaning when he was tripped, and ended up colliding into a tray full of cables. "Goddamn it!"
Mark caught Alyssa, placing her on his hip, his green eyes taking in the rest of the people, shaking his head when he heard Jeff. "Kid always did have two left feet till he hit the ropes." He said evenly, grinning when Alyssa started chanting the word 'Fruit' in a sing song voice. "What's that about?"
Matt cleared his throat, moving over to stand next to Nicoya. "You going to be alright?" He asked her softly, watching as Alyssa and Mark chatted.
"I'll be fine. Go on, Matthew." She replied softly, patting his hand in reassurance, and turned around fully in her chair, ready to get busy on her work as Matt and the twins vacated her office. "What can I do for you, Mark or did you come here to see my daughter?" She asked casually, not looking up, and leaned back in her chair as she looked over a script.
Mark chuckled, looking at her before gently setting Alyssa down. "Actually, I came to see you." He said, moving to sit down in the chair opposite her, clucking his tongue when Alyssa scrambled onto his lap.
"What about me?" Alyssa demanded, sounding a little jealous.
"Well you already knew I was here to see you." He whispered in her ear. "But I can't leave yer momma out now can I?"
"Ohhhh…" She understood now and snuggled into his lap.
Nicoya raised an eyebrow over at Mark curiously and slowly looked up from her papers so she was staring at him. "What can I do for you?" She asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest, and smirked as her daughter became jealous. She had more than a few traits from her father, but she wasn't about to let that bother her. She had to stay focused and not worry about her brother or her ex-boyfriend. "If this is about your script, it's not ready yet." She informed him in a professional tone of voice.
Mark groaned softly upon hearing that. "Any chance it'll be done before Vince can decide to toy with my night?" He asked finally, not liking his boss's habit of suddenly giving Mark a 'line' to do when he'd yet to receive his script.
"Unfortunately I'm a little behind, but I promise to have it done by the end of the night for you." She replied and turned her attention back to the paperwork, picking up her pen, and stared the task, deciding to do Mark's first. Since he was so eager to have it. She didn't blame him, but at the same time, she knew her work load was doubled do to the merge of both brands.
Mark went to stand up only to find Alyssa crawling up on his shoulders, grunting when her heel got in his eye. "Careful, angel." He cautioned, feeling his hair going everywhere as she settled on his shoulders.
"Hey, you got grays coming in!" She pointed out, her blue eyes widened in wonder.
Mark groaned, "Thanks angel…" Though he didn't sound thrilled about that revelation.
"I told you she was a handful." Nicoya giggled as she reminded him, shaking her head, and leaned back in her chair, reading over the script. Something wasn't quite fitting this so she erased it and proceeded to try again while Alyssa was pestering Mark. "Just say the word if you want her to leave you alone and I'll make it happen, Mark." She assured him with a smile before going back to her task.
"Nah…she's fine." Mark replied, growling when Alyssa started braiding his hair into tiny braids. "Alright angel, that's where I draw the line."
"But you have such pretty hair!" Alyssa protested, giggling when he grabbed her by the waist and raised her up so she was touching the ceiling. "Wow…you are really tall! Mom, look!"
"No thank you. Mom is trying to work, Aly." Nicoya replied, her eyes glued on the paperwork, and sighed as she once again erased it before going back to her original idea. She decided it would have to do since her brain wasn't working at the moment and went to the next part of the script, which was easier than the first part.
"MOM!" Alyssa protested, shrieking when she started falling only to be caught in a firm, but gentle grip. "That…was…AWESOME!" She grinned broadly, her knees shaking only a little bit when Mark set her on her feet on the floor. "Can we do that again?"
Mark snuck a look at Nicoya before shaking his head. "I don't think so, angel. She might see." He teased.
Nicoya shook her head as she stopped writing and peered over her paperwork, her midnight blue eyes filled with wonder and amusement. "Fine, I'm watching." She laughed when Mark did it to her daughter again and felt her heart lodge in her throat when she seen him almost drop Alyssa. "Okay enough of that. I've had enough heart attacks for one day." Mark cleared his throat, instantly setting Alyssa down, not wanting to upset her mother.
"Mom, that was so cool, like being on a ride at an amusement park or something. You sure-" Alyssa didn't finish that, deciding she had tested her mother's patience enough for one night already. "Can Mark take me to get something to drink?"
"I'm not angry or upset with either of you." She assured her daughter, as if reading her mind, and peeked up at Mark before staring back at her daughter, nodding in approval. "Go ahead, honey, ask Mark first though." She stated, kissing her forehead, and turned back to stare down at her paperwork.
Alyssa turned her suddenly big blue eyes onto Mark, batting her black eyelashes at him. "Please Mark, will you take me to the cafeteria for something to drink?" She asked in that over-the-top, too adorable for words, sweet voice.
Mark arched an eyebrow, appearing to think about it. "I don't know…" He drawled, laughing when she puckered her forehead into a frown. "I'll take ya, angel, only cause I'm feelin' a bit parched myself." He said finally, smirking when she snorted. "Now…what is she allowed to have to drink, Ms. Harris?"
"I gave her a really hard time tonight so anything she wants, Mr. Calaway." She replied solemnly, feeling horrible for causing her daughter's temper to flare, and sighed as she raked a hand through her hair. She smirked when Mark raised an eyebrow up at her and crossed her arms in front of her chest, having turned her attention on them.
"Anythin' she wants?" Mark questioned, wanting to clarify what Nicoya just said.
"Ohhh-A Mountain Dew?" Alyssa suggested gleefully, looking back and forth between the two. "Or an energy drink?"
Mark arched an eyebrow at Nicoya. "Well Nico…" Her name just rolled off his tongue in a fine caress. "It's up to you."
Sighing, Nicoya finally nodded her approval, surprised when she felt a shiver course down her spine from him saying her nickname, but she hid it exceptionally well. "I hope you're ready for her to be bouncing off the walls tonight, Mark." She warned with a smirk and waved her fingers at them. "Have fun you two. Mark, bring my daughter back safely or you'll answer to me." She threatened, meaning what she said, and turned back to her paperwork.
"Wait-does this mean he don't have to bring me back right away?" Alyssa asked excitedly, already bouncing off the walls.
Mark shook his head, trying to suppress a grin, and failed miserably. "I'll make sure to load her up on caffeine and bring her back straight to you." He teased.
"You do and she's staying with YOU tonight, Mark." Nicoya informed him, causing Mark's green eyes to widen, and smirked wickedly as she shook her head with a small laugh. "So if I were you, I'd think CAREFULLY about allowing her to choose the type of drink she wants." She tried not to snicker and wrote something else down for his script.
Alyssa was already dragging Mark to the door and called out, "See ya, Mom!"
Mark shot Nicoya one last look before being pulled out into the hallway, immediately scooping Alyssa up into his arms when he seen how packed it was. "Christ…" He placed her on his shoulders.
"Wow…now that is a LOT of people." The eight year old commented, her big blue eyes widened in wonder.
Nicoya sighed heavily as she leaned back in her chair, tapping her pen thoughtfully on the desk, and sighed when she heard a knock sound at her door. "Come in!" She called, not taking her eyes from the script, and leaned forward on her desk, her eyes closed, rubbing her temples as the door opened and shut.
"Hey-Vince said to report here bout my script…" The words died on John Cena's lips when he seen who was sitting behind the desk, for some reason not expecting to see her. Even though he knew better. "Coya…"
Her eyes instantly shot open when she heard his voice and took a deep, silent breath, exhaling it slowly, and rose from her chair, staring at her ex-boyfriend for the first time in eight months. "The name is Ms. Harris to you, Mr. Cena." She stated evenly, her midnight blue eyes iced over. "And your script is not finished yet. I will get it done and send it to you." Her tone remained even.
John arched an eyebrow at her. "Ms. Harris? Mr. Cena? Since when are we so formal with each other?" He asked, looking her over. Eight months hadn't done much to change her. If anything, she was looking better than ever. Though, he easily attributed that to the fact that it'd been so long since he last seen her.
"We became formal when you decided to end us for good." She replied simply, her tone still even, and her eyes narrowed a little. "I refuse to call you by your first name because I don't respect you or know you. Now then, as long as we're on the same page, everything should be fine, Mr. Cena. Your script will be finished when it's finished. Now please vacate my office so I can get back to doing my job."
John nodded his head, blue eyes suddenly growing cold. He walked over to the desk, placing his hands on it, leaning down so they were face to face. He studied her expression, a disdainful look in her own iced over eyes, and smirked a little. "I know you, Nicoya Harris." He murmured before straightening up. "Don't be too long with that script, sweets." He said before walking out.
As soon as he left, tears instantly slid down her cheeks as she hit her desk in frustration, not believing what just happened, and swallowed hard. She couldn't believe how cold John was toward her when he was the one who cheated on her in the first damned place! "Screw him, he's not worth it." She whispered angrily, wiping her tears away, and sniffled a little before getting back to doing the scripts.
~!~
Mark watched curiously as Alyssa sucked down two Mountain Dews in a row, wondering how someone her size could hold that much pop without needing a call of nature break. He flinched when she announced she had to pee, knowing he'd thought that way too soon. "Um…Bathroom is right there." He pointed.
Alyssa looked at him, crossing one leg over the other. "But there's a line!" She whimpered.
Mark cursed under his breath before carefully picking her up and heading over to the line. "Ladies, this little girl needs to get in there. Is there anyway she can-"
"She has to wait like everyone else, 'Taker." Torrie said coldly, chuckling when Melina started snickering at her agreement.
Mark's green eyes narrowed to slits at the Divas. "GET THE HELL TO STEPPIN' ALL OF YA!" He bellowed at them, watching them all scamper.
Alyssa whistled when the line suddenly vanished and commented, "Now THAT'S service."
Mark was waiting against the wall, his cool green eyes taking in the suddenly woman free zone when Alyssa came walking out, wiping her still wet and slightly soapy hands on her jeans. "Ready to head back to yer momma?" He asked, looking down at her.
"Not really." Alyssa admitted. "Can't I just stay with you?"
"Maybe we oughta check with her first." Mark said, not sure if Nicoya would really approve of that, and lead Alyssa by the hand back to Nicoya's office.
Nicoya was hard at work, her entire focus on the scripts, trying to get them done. She'd finished Mark's so whenever he brought her daughter back, he could retrieve it. She was saving John's for last, just to spite him, wanting to show him she wasn't intimidated or scared of him. She also put her brother's aside, not in the mood to even stare at it, and was working on Jeff's. She decided to teach him a lesson and put him in a match against Glen, who was known to most wrestling fans as Kane. It would serve him right after what he did to her best friend, Kyra, earlier and what he'd said. Kyra and Glen used to date way back in the day, so when Jeff told her she could go suck his cock…that was the last straw for Nicoya. Even though she despised Glen, she knew he could get the job done.
She was busy finishing up the script for Matt when her office door opened, followed by her bouncing daughter and Mark, smiling softly back at them. "Did you two have fun?" She teased gently, crossing her arms in front of her chest, and leaned back in her chair, propping her feet on the table.
"I had two Mountain Dews and then I really, really, really had to pee!' Alyssa informed her mother, running over to hug her. "I went to go to the bathroom and there was a LINE! A really, really, really long line!" Mark leaned against the wall, folding his arms across his chest, chuckling softly. "So Mark asked this blonde hair woman with some kinda dog to let me cut and she got snotty!" Alyssa made a face. "Then another woman laughed at me and he went 'GET THE HELL TO STEPPIN ALL OF YA! And wham! No more line."
"Wait a minute…" Nicoya's eyes suddenly got a deep, angry blue as she slowly rose to her feet, staring over at Mark then her daughter. There was only ONE Diva on the ENTIRE roster that carried a stupid dog with her everywhere and Nicoya felt her blood boiling as she began to tremble. "Alyssa, what did she say to you, sweetheart?" She managed to ask, her tone deceptively calm.