In the Open

"Hey shortie."
"Hey."
"How did your walk go with Jeff?"
"It was okay but I feel bad because we talked about his mom and he started crying so I feel bad for him."
"Oh."
"Yeah. But other than that we had a lot of fun and it was so nice just to be able to hang out with him."
"So do you like him now?"
"I don't know, I don't have anything else going on so I don't see why I couldn't eventually have feelings for him."
"Oh okay. Are you almost ready for your debut?"
"John that's not for like 4 hours."
"So it doesn't mean that you can't be ready. Hey I want to show you something."
"Okay." John went into his bag and grabbed his title. "It's so cute."
"Yeah it's cute and it's wicked cool too. It means that right now I am the best in this business."

"How long have you had it?"
"For about 2 months now. I want to talk to you about the show in a few weeks."
"Okay. So every year we go over to Iraq to entertain the troops before we go home for the holidays."
"Yeah I know that, and?"
"Well considering that you are under contract and that I could have you wrestling by then we could probably get you on the card over there."
"Yeah."
"And we are going to where Jake is stationed so you will get to see him for the holidays."
"Are you serious John? You can't be serious."
"Well I've been talking to Vince about stopping there and he said that we could have the show there."
"You've been working on this," she repeated after him as her eyes welled up in tears. She looked at John and gave him a huge kiss on the lips. "Thank you so much." Her tears fell freely as John wrapped his big arms around her and smiled. "I can't tell you how much it means to me to be able to see my big brother."
"I think that I could tell but in any case you are welcome."
"Does he know?"
"Well he knows that the WWE is coming and that I'm coming probably with messages from you guys but unless he watches the next two shows then he's not going to have any idea what hit him until he comes face to face with his sister."
"John I can't believe you did all of this."
"Well I just told him that I had a great friend over there and he agreed to it immediately. He knows what it's like to not have somebody around because of war."
"I just…I don't believe it. Can I call my mom and tell her?"
"Just wait until your home to see her in person okay shortie?"
"Alright."
"And your schuduele came it's over there."
She looked down at it and sure enough the trip over seas was on it. She smiled with tears still running down her face when she realized what else she had planned that week.

"Oh no."
"What?"
"I have to cancel my day at the beach."
"Why? What's going on?"
"Apparently I have a photoshoot with you and then I have my own separate photoshoot and I have to do my picture thing for when you have a match. I feel really bad because Jeff was looking forward to this."
"Well you guys can plan it for another time maybe."

"Yeah maybe. So we are looking at that apartment next week right?"
"Yeah."
"Give me your damn schuduele."
John handed her his schudele and she sat down at her lap top and opened her planner. She marked down what she had to do in baby blue and what John had to do in red. The events when they did the same thing was in black.

"What are you doing," John asked as she typed fastly on her computer.

"I may not officially be your assistant but as long as I am with you almost everyday it looks like I'm taking the job for free."
"Why would you do that?"
"I need to know when I can go home and pack and look at that apartment and when I can hang out with Jeff without something else being planned with it. This is going to be a whirl-wind isn't it?"
"Yep and it's not going to get any better, I promise you that. I mean, I have a lot of appearances because I am the champ but I don't know if you need to be there."
"I'm at a few of them, look."
John looked at the page which was mostly filled with black writing with a few specs of baby blue and red on the page.
"What do you have to do without me?"
"I need to do diva photo-shoots."
"Oh man, the one thing I actually want to go to."
"Excuse me."
"Man looking at hot girls in lingerie or bikinis all day, what a heaven?"
"Can you stop please?"
"No why? You keep talking about Jeff."
"Right now I'm getting to know Jeff," she said as she saved her work and turned off her lap-top. "If something happens between us then there is nothing that I can do."
"Sure you can, you can reject him."
"John he's your friend, why would you want me to hurt him?"
"Because if you don't hurt him you will hurt me."
"What are you saying?"
"Alexis."
"Why are you calling me that? What happened to shortie?"
"Okay, shortie, it would hurt me to no end to see you with Jeff, it hurts me now. I'm just sitting here listening to you talk about a guy who isn't me in that kind of way. It just really bugs me." Alex looked at him and nodded. "Al, I just…I've wanted to say that I've liked you for so many years but I've been too afraid because I didn't want to ruin our friendship. I'm really sorry that I've waited until now to ask you this but Alex, Shortie, will you go out on a date with me?"
Alexis looked at him with a puzzled look on her face. She knew he was going to say all of it and the scheme that her and Jeff planned had worked, a lot faster then she expected. But for some reason, she wanted to wait before telling John her answer. She looked into his eyes and she could sense the desperation of waiting for a reply.

'I tried everything,' John thought to himself. 'I gave her a beautiful necklace that cost a fortune and I told her that I arranged for her to see her brother at Christmas time. I don't know what else to do. Shawn told me that she had been talking to Ashley about me so I just don't understand why she's looking at me, all puzzled like she doesn't understand what I said.' "Shortie, will you go out on a date with me," John repeated but it seemed as if it was to himself. "Can you please say something so I don't feel like the biggest idiot in the world right now?"
Alexis looked up at him and into his eyes and she smiled at him. "Sure I would love to go out on a date with you."
He picked her up and spun her around, being just about the happiest that he had ever been. His smile is huge to begin with but with her saying yes it seemed to get so much bigger.

"Why did you wait so long?"
"I wanted to make sure that what you said was the real deal and that I heard everything correctly."

"Of course what I said was true, why wouldn't it be?"
"I didn't know if it was delusional or not, now leave me be. I said yes can't you leave it at that."

"If I left it at that I wouldn't be your Johnny now would I?"
"No I guess not. But come on Alex, you should get ready."
"I am ready."
"Oh."
"Why? Do I really look that bad?"
"No you don't look that bad but you should get your hair fixed because it's frizzed out a little bit."
"Thanks hun, really."
"It's not that you look bad but I mean, you're always so anal about your hair and I don't want you freaking out when you get to the ring and it looks like shit."
"Okay thanks for your honesty."
"Come on, I'll take you where to get your hair done."
"Okay. Do I need these shoes?"
"No."
Alex took off her black heeled combat boots and followed John to see Lacey, the hair stylist.
"Hi Lacey."
"Hi John, how are you?"
"I'm good but tonight is Alexis' first time out there and she wants to look perfect so can you help us out?"
"Yeah I can help you out. Do you want to stay John?"
"It's up to Alex."
Alex looked at John and smiled. "I would love for you to stay."
"Good because I was going to anyways."
"So Alex," Lacey said. "Do you want it curly, wavy or straight?"
"Do whatever you think will look best on me."
"I like it wavy," John said behind his hand almost in a whisper.

"Wavy it is," Lacey responed.

Alex sat and watched Lacey do her hair and it looked better that night then it ever had before. She looked at it in the mirror and absolutely loved it.

"Do you want me to do your make-up too?"
"If you have time to I would love it."
"Well I've got time right now so we can get it done."
As Lacey finished her make-up and spray one more spritz into her hair, John held Alex's hand in anticipation. Once everything was done, Alex thanked Lacey and Lacey told her that she looked beautiful. They said goodbye as John and Alex walked down the hall. He put his arm around her shoulder but this time she could feel the emotions pouring off of each other.

"You look fucking amazing," John whispered in her ear. She smiled up at him and put her head into his shoulder. "Do you want to grab some dinner?"
"Here?"
"Yeah here. We have a catering room."
"How come I didn't know about it?"
"Because everytime you're hungry you just go out to the store and buy something but once you debut and people know who you are you can't do that anymore."
"Well I'll eat there tonight and before the show I'm going to go outside for my last hoorah."
"Sounds good to me. I'll go with you."
"You don't have to, people will notice you. You're a little hard to miss."
"And what is that supposed to mean? Are you saying that I'm fat?"
"John you know more then anybody that you have no fat on your body."
"I do too. My thighs and my ass are huge."
"Now you sound like a woman. Would you stop?"
She playfully pushed him away before they walked into the catering room. They saw Shawn sitting by himself and Jeff, Matt and Ashley sitting at another table.

"Where do you want to sit," John asked Alex.

"Go and sit with Shawn, I'll be there in a minute. I have to talk to Jeff for a minute."
"Okay, do you want you food?"
"No just take it to the table please."
"Okay."
John kissed the top of her head and carried the two plates over to the table where Shawn was sitting.

"Hey John."
"What's up daddy-o?"
"Nothing much. I'm just thinking a little bit."
"Well have I got something to tell you."
"What," Shawn asked as if he knew what John was going to say.

"I asked Alex out on a date and she said yes."
"Are you serious? Congratulations."
"Thanks."
"Hey Jeff, can I talk to you for a minute?"
"Sure."
They walked out of the catering room and stood outside of the doors.

"What's up Alex?"
"It worked, the scheme, it worked."
"That didn't take too long."
"No but he asked me out on a date when I got back to the locker room."
"That's great for you," he said trying to be enthusiastic but sounding depressed anyways.

"Are you sure that it's okay?"
"Yeah that was our plan and it worked. I'm really happy for you I promise."

"Okay but I can't go to the beach with you this week. It's not because of the whole John thing but I just got my schedule and it's jammed back for a while."

"I understand how that it is."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes I am sure but we should go back in there. I'm starving and I want to finish eating."
"Me too."

Jeff and Alex went back in and went their separate ways.
"Bro," Matt asked when he saw the look on his face.
"What's wrong?"
"John finally stepped up."
"That's great for her," Ashley said.

"Yeah but not so great for me."
"Alex," John said when she got back. "How did he take it?"
"He was upset by it, I could tell. But honestly john, what am I supposed to do about it? I can't pick him over you. I've been waiting for you and he hasn't been in my life that long and I don't think that I could ever choose anybody over you. And I'm just hoping that we can still be friends because he really is a cool guy."
"I know that he is but I don't know, he needs to find somebody before he starts to freak out."
"I think he already is." They looked over and saw Jeff poking at his dinner, not even touching it. Alex sighed to herself but smiled the minute that John put his left hand on her leg.