Chapter 16
Alyssa skipped down the hallway, on her way to Mark's room to inform him he was dealing wither since her mother had gotten swamped with scripts. She shrieked when she was knocked into a wall, a blur of hair passing her by. "Ow!" She whimpered, having lightly cracked her head and reached up to rub it. Her blue eyes widened when she was picked up and set on a table on her feet as another charge came flying by. "Thanks-" Alyssa hesitated, seeing who it was.
John stared down at Nicoya's daughter, meeting her eyes. "Not a problem, kid." He said, smiling slightly thought he more he stared, the more the smile sort of faded from his lips.
Alyssa shifted uncomfortably under John's intense gaze. "Um, I think it's safe for me to go now, sir." She said, sounding a bit apprehensive.
John blinked, coming out of whatever thoughts he lost himself in and nodded, his eyes once again meeting hers before raking her face. "Here you go." He set her down on the floor slowly. John watched as she practically flew down the hallway, disappearing into Mark's dressing room before turning around, squaring his shoulders and heading off to have a little chat with his ex-girlfriend.
Nicoya sighed heavily, raking a hand through her hair, and wanted to rip it out of her skull. Vince had doubled er work load this week, due to him signing new talent, and felt herself wanting to walk out at that moment. She was so busy that she'd basically told her daughter to go down to Mark's dressing room so she could finish her work. She promised Alyssa they would spend time together later on at the hotel. Though, she hoped she could stay awake long enough to spend any half decent enough time with her daughter.
Sighing heavily when she heard a knock on her office door and wasn't surprised when she seen John walk in. She seen the angry look in his eyes and instantly rose out of her chair, raising an eyebrow in his direction, and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Judging by your body posture, I can already tell this isn't going to be a social call. What do you want, Cena?" She demanded, cutting to the chase.
John was behind the desk, grabbing her arms, pinning her roughly to the wall in seconds, moving faster then a man his size had the right too. John blocked her legs so she couldn't kick him, his blue eyes spitting fire. "You kept my own daughter from me." He stated coldly. "FOR ALL THESE YEARS YOU FUCKING KEPT HER HIDDEN FROM ME, COYA!"
"What the fuck are you talking about, you lunatic?!" Nicoya cried out back at him, fear entering her midnight blue eyes, and groaned when he tightened his grip on her upper arms, tears pooling in her orbs. "Alyssa is not yours! I told you, I had a fucking fling back then! She's not yours, she has no blood yours inside of her, you fucking asshole! NOW LET ME GO!"
"Bullshit, Coya!" John snapped, shaking her so hard, her teeth began to rattle. "I just SEEN her, and got a really good look. Alyssa's mine and you fucking didn't tell me!" He looked like he was about to slap her at any second.
"No, she's not! She's MINE! You hear me, you motherfucker? She's MY daughter and you won't come near her!" Nicoya spat back at him hatefully, not caring how much pain her mouth was in, or how tight his grip had become on her upper arms. She stared back at him with equal fire in her own eyes, refusing to show weakness. "She's MY child, PERIOD!"
"Wrong Nicoya, she's OUR daughter." John said firmly. "You realize you purposely kept her from me, didn't tell me or anything. The COURTS are going to have a fucking field day with that!" He let her go, stepping away and giving her space, hands up.
Nicoya groaned as she rubbed her arms with her hand, staring back at him hatefully, and shook her head. "I was prepared for this just incase you ever did find out about her…" She trailed off and took something out of her briefcase, handing it to him. "That is a protection order from the courts themselves. It's for life, which means you are NOT allowed near MY daughter EVER. Due to your physical abuse inflicted on me in the past and now," She paused, looking down at her arms and shrugged absentmindedly. "The courts felt it was necessary not to endanger a little girl."
John, at first, looked royally pissed off, but that quickly changed to a look of cunning, his eyes studying her. "Oh really?" He shook his head. "Nicoya, you should catch up a bit more sweetheart. YOU broke your own protection order by having Alyssa around me then. I didn't know she was mine until just tonight so you KNOWINGLY put your daughter in DANGER. I'll see you in court." He bowed mockingly to her before walking out.
Nicoya heard that and instantly calmed down, trying to slow down her racing heart, and groaned as she slid down the wall of her office. Her mouth was killing her and so were her arms. She knew John didn't have anything because if the asshole read the papers, which he didn't. It CLEARLY stated that the protection order wasn't put into effect until AFTER he found out Alyssa was his. So therefore, Nicoya never broke anything. She wasn't stupid. She was highly intelligent and knew the courts well. After taking a few more deep breaths, she finally managed to pull herself up and rushed out the door, needing to get to her daughter before John could.
~!~
"I said no Cena!" Mark growled, having a Hell of a time keeping John out of the dressing room. John had burst in there like a pissed off bull and Mark had instantly shoved him right back out. Right now, he had his hands on John's forearms, trying to push him away. "GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!"
"I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE WITHOUT SEEING MY GODDAMN DAUGHTER!" John roared right back, going to punch Mark in the face as he brought his fist forward.
Alyssa was crouched in a corner, crying her eyes out, her hands over her ears, watching as Mark stumbled back a little before charging John again. This time shoving him out into the hallway. Nicoya heard Alyssa scream and instantly bolted down the hallway, taking off her heels, and skidded to a halt when she seen John and Mark fighting. She covered her mouth with her hand, looking around frantically for her daughter, and immediately shouted, "ALYSSA?" Tears were streaming down her cheeks as both John and Mark stopped to stare at her, but she didn't notice. She bolted inside the dressing room, past Mark, and instantly picked her precious baby girl up in her arms, holding her like her life depended on it, and buried her face in her hair. "Shhh it's okay, sweetheart. Momma's here. Momma's here, Aly." She cooed to her, knowing John probably scared the Hell out of her, and glared back at him hatefully, but focused her attention on her daughter.
"Mommy! He came in and-" Alyssa screamed when Mark dropped to one knee, catching himself with a hand on the floor so he didn't topple. "John's got a chair!" She shrieked, clinging to her mother frantically. "Mark, get up!"
"Mark? Raising her to call someone else Dad since you fucking denied me, you bitch?" John was past livid, he was in something entirely different right now, tossing the chair aside. The minute he tried to move past Mark though was his mistake.
"Lock the door." Mark advised before literally tossing John out into the hallway, closing the door behind him as he followed.
Nicoya instantly did as he said, rushing over with her daughter still in her arms, and locked the door after closing it. She was crying as hard as her daughter, not believing how cruel John was being toward her in front of Alyssa, which proved her point even further that he wasn't fit to be her father. "Alyssa, it's okay sweetheart. It's alright. Mark will take care of him." She assured her softly, kissing her forehead repeatedly, and held her tightly as she walked over and sat on the couch, her heart breaking when Alyssa began trembling. "Calm down, baby girl. Momma's here now."
"He-he said he was my Dad…" Alyssa cried, tears streaking down her cheeks. "He wanted to see me and Mark told him no! Then he attacked Mark. Mommy, he's not is he? He's not really my Dad?" Alyssa sounded like she was going to go full blown hysterical in a minute.
Nicoya felt her heart shatter in her chest, hearing the pleading in her daughter's question, mixed with the hysterical note. She sighed heavily, rubbing her back, and knew she had to tell her the truth. Slowly pulling her back to stare into her eyes, Nicoya finally broke down in tears as they slid down her cheeks and simply nodded. "He is, Aly. That monster is your father. I'm so sorry, baby girl." She whispered heartbrokenly and instantly buried her face in her hands, her entire body racking with sobs, not believing this was happening. She'd been so careful, but knew one day, it would come down to this.
Alyssa just stared at her mother, her blue eyes wide with horror. "He can't be…not him…he's…" She started bawling all over again. She started screaming when there was a light knock on the door suddenly, causing her little form to jump.
Nicoya was sobbing so hard as she shook her head, holding her daughter's trembling body against hers, and buried her face in Alyssa's neck, wishing this wasn't happening. "I kept him from you for your own good, Aly. That man is not fit to be your father. He's mean and cruel. He doesn't deserve you to be his daughter." She was crying just as hard as her daughter was and didn't know what she was going to do now that John knew. She knew John was going to try and take Alyssa away from her and that wasn't going to happen. Nobody was going to take her baby girl from her unless she was buried six feet under.
"I don't want him to be my Dad!" Alyssa exclaimed, jumping again when the knock on the door got louder. "Mom…who is it?" She whispered fearfully. "Don't let that bad man back in!" Mark stared at the door, hearing the crying going on inside and felt his heart break in two. He spared a glance at the unconscious John, knowing people were on the way to drag his ass off to be checked and sighed. Wondering if this was it or just the prelude to something worse.
Sighing deeply, Nicoya shook her head as she cupped her daughter's face in her hands and pressed her forehead to hers. "I won't sweetheart. That bad man isn't coming near you, I promise." She confidently before standing up, setting her daughter down on the couch, and walked over to the door. She took a chance and cleared her throat before unlocking it, ready to fight John if necessary to protect her daughter. She sighed with relief when she opened the door to reveal Mark and instantly went back to her daughter, who was trembling and shaking like a leaf as she sat down beside her. "Alyssa, I'm so sorry." She started crying again, burying her face in her hands, and wished she would've never met John Cena in the first place.
Mark took in the scene before him and closed the door behind him. He didn't interrupt them, his fists clenching when he heard Alyssa's heart wrenching sobs. Knowing John had really frightened her. "I want to go, I don't wanna stay here!" Alyssa said in a high pitched voice. "I wanna go home right now!"
"Calm down, darlin'." Mark soothed, kneeling down besides the two. "You don't have to stay here, angel. You and momma are leavin'." He looked at Nicoya, his green eyes studying hers, knowing she was in no condition to work tonight.
"I can't leave. I have so much work to get done." Nicoya choked out, coughing a little, and wiped her tears away quickly, not wanting her daughter to see her cry anymore. "Alyssa, you can stay in mommy's office with me until we leave, but I have too much work to get done for Vince to leave right now, sweetheart." She hated this. She hated that John somehow found out that Alyssa was his and felt her heart breaking at her daughter's heart wrenching sobs, causing her to cry harder as she stood up, getting some tissues.
Alyssa tossed herself into Mark's arms, burying her face in his shoulder, her body trembling violently with her sobs. Mark frowned, cradling her in his arms, standing up and turning to look at Nicoya. "Your daughter needs you, Nico." He said in a soft, but firm tone of voice. "She needs to be somewhere she feels safe with you, yer work will have to wait."
"Mark, don't start with me right now." She held her finger up at him, raking a hand through her black hair, and could see Alyssa sobbing violently, which broke her heart even more. "I can't leave! I have so much fucking work to get done! Don't give me that look!" She snapped, tears spilling down her cheeks, and hated the disappointment in Mark's eyes as she shook her head, wrapping her arms around herself. "It's not an easy decision, but I'm the only fucking script writer here and my work loud is big enough as it is! I'm behind as it is!"
"Hey sweetheart, calm down." Mark soothed, stroking Alyssa's hair with one hand. "Then I'm takin' her back to the hotel." He announced, daring Nicoya with his eyes to challenge him. Alyssa started nodding, shifting so she could see her mother, her eyes pleading with her to say yes.
"Give me my fucking daughter." She stated angrily, prying Alyssa from Mark's arms, and sighed heavily when she started reaching for him again. "Alyssa Marie, stop it right now! We're going back to the hotel since you cant' seem to let your mother get back to work." She stated angrily, glaring back at Mark, and stormed out of his dressing room, carrying her daughter with her in the process. 'Fuckin' asshole.' She thought, her heels clicking violently against the arena flooring.
Mark frowned and shook his head, darting after them when he heard Alyssa's harsh cries. He caught up and removed Alyssa from Nicoya, wrapping his arms around her, burying his face in her hair. He actually growled when Nicoya opened her mouth. "Listen to me, Nico you're in no damned condition to be drivin', yer physically shakin' and yer too damned pissed! Pull yer head outta yer ass long enough to realize that Alyssa needs you more tonight then this fuckin' company does and quit bein' angry with her! She's a child who's afraid and seen somethin' that terrified her, she needs yer love and time, not yer attention and anger!"
Nicoya was shocked as her eyes went as wide as potatoes, not believing Mark just snatched HER daughter from HER arms like that! She wanted to smack him, hit him, kick him, something, but she couldn't even find the energy to do so. She just felt the silent tears slide down her cheeks and raked a hand through her hair before clearing her throat. "Give me my daughter, Mark right now." She ordered in a low, quiet tone of voice, the anger draining from her body. Though she knew she'd feel it surface later on after Alyssa was asleep. "I've had a rotten night and the last thing I need is another man trying to control my life and telling me how to raise MY daughter." She then pulled Alyssa from his arms and walked away from him, hold her close to her body before walking inside her office, grabbed her things, and rushed out of there, heading back to the hotel.
Mark shook his head going to gather his own things. Trying to control her life? Hardly. The woman needed the Hell knocked out of her though for what she'd said and done tonight. Mark sighed, knowing Nicoya had been emotion, but damn it-was her work really that goddamn important? Alyssa needed her mother and Nicoya had gone off on the poor kid. Mark slowly headed out to the parking lot, knowing he'd just been blackballed from Alyssa's life and all because he cared.
Nicoya shook her head as she pulled into the hotel parking lot space, taking her time driving back, not wanting to get into a car accident, and unbuckled herself. She looked in the rearview mirror at her daughter and sighed, her heart breaking seeing her tear streaked face. She silently cried as she picked her daughter up from the car, carrying her inside, her black bag slung over her shoulder and took the back staircase. She stroked her daughter's hair the entire way up and finally arrived at her room number.
She slid the key card inside the slot and opened the door, walking inside, and closed it behind her. She then walked Alyssa to her bedroom, gently placing her in bed, and took her shoes off before sitting on the edge of the bed. Everything she'd done was for her daughter and for her to even consider choosing her job or Alyssa made Nicoya physically sick. Nobody and nothing was more important than her and Mark made her realize that tonight. She started crying, knowing Alyssa was out for the night, and finally walked out after kissing her forehead softly, whispering heartbrokenly.
"I'm so sorry, Alyssa…for everything." She then walked out and went straight to the liquor, pouring herself a glass of Tequila Rose, and collapsed on the bed after downing the shot, tears streaking down her cheeks like two rapid streams.
Mark made it to the hotel in one piece barely, having nearly wrecked on his motorcycle when some moron ran a red light. He wasn't in the best of moods needless to say when he arrived. He took the second to change into black pajama pants and bust out of the Jack Daniels before heading out into the hallway. Quickly locating the vending machine, Mark got his normal coke for his chaser. He rested his head against the machine, listening as the pop dropped with a thud out of the machine. The sound of his heart had made when Nicoya spat her last words at him.