"Okay, Mom. I need to go now," Lilian told her mother, smiling wanly at her husband.
"Oh, so soon?" her mother asked.
"Mom, we've been on the phone for…" Lilian glanced at her cell phone, then spoke again, "An hour and fifty-six minutes."
"Wow. That long?"
"Yeah, Mom. I think Dave's a little bored with my end of the conversation, but I had fun," Lilian said with a small laugh.
"Oh, dear," Lilian's mom said. "I'm sorry. I should have let you and Dave alone."
"Mom, it's not a problem," Lilian said gently. "I spend all the time in the world with Dave and Sophia. I think I can afford to spend some time talking to you, especially since we haven't really talked the last six years."
"I'm sorry," her mother repeated.
"Mom, please." Lilian closed her eyes briefly, trying to keep her emotions in check. "Stop apologizing."
"Okay, Lilian," her mother replied softly. "Take care. I love you."
"I know," Lilian said softly, finding it difficult to relay the same salutations to her mother. "I'll talk to you later. Tell Dad I said hello."
"Okay. Bye."
Lilian shook her head as she shut her phone, looking over at Dave. "Sorry, baby. I didn't realize we were on the phone so long."
"It's okay," Dave replied. "I think I found a way to keep the little one asleep at night," Dave answered, glancing sideways at his wife as he maneuvered his truck through the gates of the arena where Raw was being held.
"Oh, yeah? What's that?"
"Have her listen to one of your conversations," Dave replied slyly, not surprised when Lilian's tiny hand connected with his bicep. "Ow!"
"They live in trees," Lilian replied sweetly. "Are you trying to say that I'm boring?"
"Well, if last night was any indication, I'd certainly say you are not boring," Dave answered, a mischievous grin on his face.
"Dave!" Lilian exclaimed, blushing slightly. "There are young ears in the car!"
Dave glanced behind him, smiling at his daughter. "Eh, she's sleeping."
"Okay, but if she ever does up to your mom and says, 'Daddy said Mommy isn't boring in bed,' YOU are the one explaining it to her," Lilian shot back, giggling at the horrified look on his face at the thought.
"Well, then," Dave began, again looking at his daughter, "We need to get that kid a pair of earplugs."
"Oh, my God! Look at how adorable you two are!" Trish squealed, taking in the matching outfits that Lilian and Sophia wore: the brown skirt and white sweater outfit, complete with matching brown boots.
Lilian grinned up at Dave, the big man shaking his head. "It's a girl thing I guess," he said to his wife. "Look, honey, I'm going to go talk to the guys. You and Sophia go visit the girls and I'll see you in a little bit, okay?"
"Okay," Lilian replied, kissing Dave on the cheek when he bent down.
"Bye Angel," he whispered to Sophia, kissing her forehead. "You enjoy your time with Momma and Auntie Trish. Don't let them corrupt you too much."
"Get out of here!" Trish said with a laugh, kicking at Dave as the big man lumbered away, laughing as well. She shook her head, turning to Lilian, her arms outstretched. "Gimme the baby… now."
Lilian giggled, holding her daughter protectively. "Nope, sorry. No one gets to hold her today unless their name is Lilian." Seeing the indignant look on her friend's face, she added, "Or Trish."
"Yay!" Trish squealed, holding out her arms for Sophia.
"Geez, Trish, you're worse than the seagulls in Nemo!" Lilian told her friend. "Mine! Mine! Mine!" she mimicked, handing over Sophia carefully.
"Okay, Lilian, quit being a nerd," Trish shot back, holding Sophia up in the air. "Look at you, Ms. Adorable One!" Trish squealed, tossing Sophia slightly. The baby giggled, Lilian shaking her head at the action.
"You know, Trish, you're the only one I trust to do that," Lilian told her, her heart slowing as Trish tucked Sophia into her hip. "Now come on. Let's visit all our girlfriends."
The two began walking towards the women's locker room, Lilian smiling as she saw Stephanie and Hunter walking to them.
"Hey, Lil. I thought you weren't back till two weeks from now," Stephanie said, tickling Sophia gently.
"I'm not. But I wanted to visit and try and get back into the routine before then."
"Oh. Are you going to bring Sophia with you on the road?" Hunter asked curiously.
"Nah," Lilian replied, looking up at Hunter. "Dave's mom is going to watch her Sunday nights until Tuesday when I get home."
"Well that works out well," Stephanie said.
"Yeah. I just know I'm going to miss her so much," Lilian answered, tears welling in her eyes. Blushing, she swiped at her eyes. "Look at me, I'm starting to cry and I haven't even left her for one show yet."
"It's okay, Super Mom," Trish said. "Here! Take the little one back. She's the insta-cure for sadness."
Lilian laughed, accepting her daughter back. "Aw, look at this beautiful little gal," Lilian cooed, kissing her daughter's forehead, delighted when her daughter giggled.
"Well, I hate to go, but Raw needs some rewriting," Stephanie said, kissing Sophia on the cheek. "Bye Baby Doll."
"Bye, sweetie," Hunter added, touching Sophia's cheek.
"Ahem… did everyone forget about me?" Lilian teased, pretending to be jealous.
"Uh, I would touch your cheek but I fear for my life," Hunter said playfully, cringing away when Stephanie swatted at his arm.
"Okay, okay," Lilian said. "See you later."
As the two blondes watched Stephanie and Hunter leave, they turned and began walking down the hall again. As they made their way, however, a tall figure met them in the hall.
"Lilian," Vince McMahon greeted the blonde with a smile. "It's good to see you back on WWE turf."
"Thank you, sir," Lilian replied, "But I'm not back yet. I'll be back in two weeks."
"Oh, okay," Vince answered, watching as Lilian shifted Sophia to her other hip. "Is this the future diva I've heard so much about?"
"Yes, sir," Lilian said, turning so Vince could see Sophia better. "Mr. McMahon, this is Sophia Anne Batista."
"She's precious. She has your eyes and Dave's hair," Vince said softly, smiling at the tiny baby.
"That's what everyone says," Lilian responded with a laugh. "Would you like to hold her?"
Vince's eyes widened slightly at the offer, and he swallowed before replying, "Um… sure."
Lilian carefully handed Sophia to Vince, watching as her daughter's eyes become larger as she was transferred into the large arms of Vince McMahon. "Shh, it's okay Baby Girl," Lilian soothed. Sophia brought her green eyes to Vince, who offered a wavering smile to the infant.
Less than a second later, Sophia burst into tears.
"Okay, okay," Vince soothed, looking desperately at Lilian. "Um, Lilian," he began, shifting Sophia in his arms.
"Okay, come here, Sopapilla," Lilian said softly, trying her best to ignore Trish's shaking form. She knew that if she glanced at her friend, the two of them would begin laughing in Vince McMahon's face.
And that was the last thing she wanted.
"It's okay, sweetie, Momma's here," Lilian soothed, relieved when her cries began to die down. "That's weird… she's never done that before," Lilian said aloud, nearly smacking her forehead at the crushed look that came over her bosses' face. "I mean… she… uh…" Lilian trailed off, resisting the urge to kick Trish when a giggle escaped the diva's mouth. "Would you like to try again?" she meekly offered.
"Uh, no thanks, Lilian. I need to do some things before Raw. Thanks, though," Vince said hastily. "Take care. I'll see you in a couple weeks."
"Okay, bye," Lilian replied, watching Vince walk away before turning to a nearly hysterical Trish. "I am going to kill you one of these days. Slowly and painfully, mind you."
"No, you won't," Trish answered. "Who would you have for entertainment?"
"True," Lilian said with a shrug, kissing Sophia's cheek. "Go see Auntie Trish again," Lilian said, handing her off to Trish as they once again started for the women's locker room.
"Come on, you little troublemaker," Trish said softly. "By the way, where in the world did the nickname 'Sopapilla' come from?"
Lilian frowned slightly, shrugging again. "I honestly have no clue," she told Trish. "I just started to call her that one day."
"What does Dave think of it?"
"Eh, he's clueless. I don't think he even knows I call her that. I had 'Ingredients for Sopapillas' written on my grocery list and he was like, "Sweetie, what are soap-uh-pie-la-las?'"
Trish snorted, shaking his head. "So he doesn't mind you call your daughter a name after a dessert?"
Lilian laughed, shaking her head. "Trish, he still doesn't even realize they ARE a dessert," she said. They came to the door of the women's locker room, and Lilian held the door open.
Before they even walked in, there was a resounding "Aw!" from the divas when they saw Trish carrying Sophia.
"Welcome back, Lil!" Victoria was the first to say, walking up to Lilian and hugging her. "You look awesome. Have you lost all the baby weight?" she asked, holding Lilian back and looking at her.
"Yes, I did," Lilian replied with a laugh. "Thankfully it wasn't hard."
"Yeah, it's easy to lose weight chasing Dave around the bed," Torrie called, the divas all laughing at Lilian's deep blush.
"Very funny," Lilian replied, sticking her tongue out at Torrie.
"Can I hold her?" Molly asked shyly, holding her arms out.
"Of course," Lilian replied.
"Just don't pull a Vince McMahon," Trish said as she handed off Sophia yet again.
"A Vince McMahon? What's that?" Victoria asked.
Lilian and Trish exchanged a glance and began giggling almost immediately. "Well," Lilian began, settling down in a chair. "You're not going to believe what happened to the two of us.
End Part 5.2