Chapter 8
Martina wasn't tired, but she also didn't want the guys seeing her cry, feeling more alone than ever. For a brief moment, Martina felt what it was like to be happy, to feel peaceful, and have fun. She hadn't felt those three things in so long and was actually regretting ever bringing up her mother.
She hated Roger with the fire of a thousand suns, wanting him to burn in the eighth circle of hell. Sighing heavily, Martina slid from the bed and walked into the bathroom, washing her face, staring in the mirror, immediately lowering her gaze. She didn't want to look at herself, feeling disgusted and went back to lie down in the darkness, the shades in her room drawn closed to block the sunlight out.
~!~
"Is keeping herself cooped up like that healthy?" Cody asked curiously, having moved back to the PS3, of course. He had been considering going and working out, but...there were raiders to kill and wastelands to explore. He had an addiction to Fallout 3.
"She's probably napping before we have to go. Leave her alone." Randy scowled, though, when he glanced at the clock, he realized lunch time was approaching. A late lunch to be sure, but they were constantly eating. "Ted, how bout you order up some food and I'll go get her up?"
"Okay, go wake the wifey."
~!~
A soft caress on her cheek caused Martina's eyes to slowly open, staring blurrily back at Randy, quickly adjusting to the dark room. "Hey, is it time to go?" She whispered softly, somehow falling asleep, and sighed when Randy nodded. She slowly sat up, being careful of her ribs and carefully stretched, before sliding out of the bed. "I'll be ready shortly." She said, knowing the outfit she wore wasn't appropriate. Apparently the wrestling business he worked for had a dress code, so Randy made sure to get her some dress pants when they went shopping.
"She's getting-" Randy turned to walk back into Martina's room. "Hey, we're eating first before we go." He added, she'd looked so beautiful half asleep he had almost forgotten the reason he'd been in there in the first place. Then he walked back out.
"I always knew you'd eventually lose your mind. It was only just a matter of time."
Nodding, Martina pulled out the clothes and sighed heavily, the outfit was a pair of black dress pants with a brown shimmery long sleeved shirt that had a V shaped neckline. Thankfully, there were no scars on her neck to hide so she was safe to wear them. Quickly dressing, Martina walked into the bathroom and did her makeup, keeping it natural with foundation, brown eyeliner and tan eye shadow with clear gloss on her lips. She pulled a brown head band on her head that matched the shirt, a few tendrils framing her face, and walked back out to pull her black pumps on. With one more glance in the mirror, that was attached to the dresser, Martina walked back out, knowing Randy would order her chicken strips for lunch.
"What are you playing?" She asked Cody from behind, raising an eyebrow, and picked the case up. "Fallout 3...interesting..."
"Have you ever played Oblivion? The same people who made that, made this. Awesome, awesome game." Cody was a gaming nerd and proud of it.
"Fallout is EXACTLY like Oblivion though. Same shit, different graphics."
"That's what I thought. Only Fallout is more adult orientated. You can actually sleep with the hooker in the beginning..." Ted trailed off when everyone just stared at him. "WHAT?"
Martina started laughing softly and shook her head, mumbling 'typical male' under her breath, before sitting down on the bed. "That's not my cup of tea, I prefer Grandia III."
She shrugged when the guys just raised an eyebrow at her, chewing her bottom lip. Whenever Roger left her home alone, Martina gamed on her PS2, not really familiar with the newer gaming systems, though Monopoly had been fun playing with Randy. She looked over at him, seeing he was trying to figure out what to wear, and turned her attention back to the game.
"Black slacks, black slacks, where the hell are my jeans?"
"Because we tend your laundry?" Ted snorted, shaking his head. "Man, how are we supposed to know? You're a slob, Randall."
"Don't call me that Teddy Bear."
"Kids..."
"Teddy Bear?" Martina started giggling uncontrollably, holding her side, not caring at the moment, with a smile on her face. "That's a cute nickname."
"I'm not SUPPOSED to be cute in front of hot chicks." Ted grumbled, groaning when Cody popped him upside the head. "What?"
"Dude, she's a married woman, have some respect."
"Oh please." Ted snorted and paid Cody back by slapping him upside the head. "I wasn't talking about her. She's gorgeous, but she's also like a sister to me."
Cody went back to playing his game, rolling his eyes.
Randy ALMOST pointed out it was a fake marriage and she wasn't technically married, but decided against it. He didn't want to hurt Martina's feelings or get the guys started again. "Just to be fair, Cody is called Mr. Coddles by the Divas." He added, evening out the playing field.
"SCREW YOU RANDALL!"
"Coddly Cody, the cuddly cutie."
Martina lost it as she leaned back on the bed, coughing because the laughing hurt her ribs, watching as Cody attacked Ted, putting him in a headlock. She managed to move out of harms way, walking over to Randy's bed and slid on top of it, while he searched through his bag. She was trying to stop laughing, but couldn't as they started calling each other names.
"They remind me of two five year olds." She commented, pulling out the jeans Randy had been looking for, and handed them over with an innocent smile. "Sorry, I just spotted them..."
"Ah my jeans." Randy took them from her, unfolding them and grinned, looking down at the faded denim. "Luckily, the dress code doesn't apply to me." He smirked, then raked his blue eyes over her, an eyebrow slowly raising. "You look beautiful, Jessie." He said softly.
"YOU EVER CALL ME THAT AGAIN AND I WILL KILL YOU!"
"Coddle? Cutie? OUCH, THAT'S MY NOSE!"
"Thanks." She murmured softly, wondering why the dress code didn't apply to him, honestly not caring.
Randy looked good in jeans, though she would never admit that openly. She watched him pick out a light grey dress shirt, with a black tank top to go underneath, before going in the bathroom to change, tilting her head thoughtfully for a moment. Martina's gaze turned from the door to Ted and Cody, who were still going at it, shaking her head. They were like big kids and she felt a little more at ease, knowing at a moment's notice they would protect her.
"Junior and Coddles, knock it off. You need to-"
"Food is here."
"I'll get it, you take care of the gaystation."
"Don't call it that, man, it can hear you." Cody said teasingly. "You'll hurt my baby's feelings."
Randy rolled his eyes; sometimes these two worried the hell out of him. And they said he was crazy sometimes. The four of them ate, making small chatter about what was going on that night, Martina remaining quiet.
"You nervous about tonight, Jess?"
"A little." Martina admitted, smiling when Randy wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her against him in a slight embrace, letting her know everything was going to be fine. Damn he smelled good. Martina had to get her focus back on something else and took another bite out of her food.
"It'll be a cakewalk. Just stay by us." Cody stated, knowing she was probably going to freak out the moment she stepped inside the arena.
"It'll be a little crazy, but you'll get used to it after awhile."
That was not reassuring.
"Honestly? The hallways are going to be packed and if you're not claustrophobic now, you probably will be. There will be guys BIGGER than us there, bitchy women who'll give you the evil eye and a shitload of people you'll want to run from, but...We'll be there with you. Nobody is going to mess with you and the majority of the people we work with are nice."
"Ish."
Now she was terrified, but tried not to show it as Martina simply nodded, finishing her food silently. She waited for Cody and Ted to get ready before all four headed out of the hotel, Randy holding her hand. She kept her head high and a smile on her face, taking deep, silent breaths to calm down, walking down the back staircase and into the parking garage.
"Take the back you two, I'll drive." Ted said, snatching the keys from Randy, and booked toward the SUV with Cody following suit.
Martina shook her head while Randy scowled, reaching the car and slid inside the backseat with her 'husband', feeling his arm wrap around her. "I'm alright." She whispered and stared out the window deep in thought, hoping it would be.
No she wasn't, but she would be, hopefully, in time. Martina would have to see that they -that he- would protect and not let anything happen to her. And that in itself would take time. "What's your favorite kind of music? Song? Band? Singer?" He asked, trying to get her mind off of whatever was wrong.
"I don't really have a particular favorite, I like all kinds of music. Though, if I had to narrow it down, it would be rock and country." She giggled when all three men groaned, having a feeling they weren't too fond with those choices, shrugging gently. "I like a little bit of everything so I'm sure whatever you listen too, I'll be fine with." She felt Randy's arm tighten a little around her in comfort, going to stare back out the window again at the fading sun.
He noted she hadn't answered the other questions and inwardly sighed. Getting to know Martina was going to be like having a tooth pulled. Hard as hell, painful, though in the end probably worth it.
"It could be worse...she could like Britney Spears."
"That is true."
The truth is she didn't have a favorite band, song or singer. There were too many genres, too many songs to choose from, though her favorite country singer was Martina McBride. Her eyes lit up when Ted turned country on and heard Independence Day sounding through the speakers, placing a hand on Cody's arm when he went to change it.
"Just this one song." She pleaded, closing her eyes as her head began moving to the beat. She sang softly to herself, closing her eyes, knowing one day she would get her revenge on Roger and he would pay for all the crimes committed against her.
This song probably had a lot of special meaning to her, even though Randy had never heard it before. Or if he had, he'd blocked it out. He wasn't a country music person. But he listened to the words, frowning deeply as he realized what the song was about. It was both sad and uplifting at the same time, though when he heard the end…not so good.
Granted, it wasn't one of the best songs to listen too, but this song lifted Martina's spirits, knowing one day she would find peace and independence. She missed having that feeling more than anything in the world. For the past two years, she had to rely on Roger for everything because he refused to let her work. Though, behind his back, Martina worked and scrounged every penny she could muster to leave him, which was that night.
She finally told him she couldn't take it anymore and ended up being cornered in the kitchen with a butcher knife. A cut on her thigh and arm, along with a backhand, sent Martina running for her life. She could hear his evil voice in her mind, telling her she would never leave him, that she couldn't live without him. Maybe she was broken now, but Martina was slowly piecing back together, and knew she would be fine because she was a survivor at heart.
"We're almost here. Anyone have to puke?" Randy asked jokingly, groaning when Cody promptly turned in his seat to throw a used napkin at him. "Man, that is gross."
"Mind your manners, your wife is present."
"Coddles…" Randy glanced at her. "Ready, Jessie?" He emphasized her name, knowing they'd have to switch from Martina for the moment.
She nodded, taking another deep breath and slid out of the SUV with Randy following, grabbing her hand, smiling as he brought it up to his lips. Her green eyes sparkled as he lead her away from the rental, heading toward the arena entrance. The building was huge as Martina took in her surroundings, feeling Randy's arm wrap around her shoulders, knowing she would have to remain by his side, and hoped she was enough for people to pass off as his wife. She wasn't that beautiful, though the makeup helped, even she admitted that much. Tiffany was a godsend as Cody and Ted walked in first, her and Randy following.
Randy nodded at people who called out congratulations, knowing his 'sudden' marriage was bound to take a few individuals by storm. He had solemnly sworn time and time again marriage was not in his near future. And yet...He glanced down quickly to make sure he was still wearing his wedding ring, sighing inwardly with relief. One base covered.
"You doing all right, sweetheart?" He asked, bending down so she could hear him.
"Yes, Randy, I'm fine." Martina assured him softly, feeling his arm wrap around her waist, her own diamond ring sparkling under the fluorescent lights above.
The golden streaks in her hair added to her beauty. She was slowly getting used to wearing the ring, since she never took it off, except when she took a shower. She didn't want to ruin it after all; it was a beautiful ring and she would have to return it once this mess with Roger was finished.
"Congratulations, Orton."
"Who the hell was dumb enough to marry your ass?"
"She's a knockout, you really nailed a good one, man."
Martina felt her cheeks turn a deep crimson red.
"Hey, I didn't just marry her for her looks. She's got a mind that matches and surpasses the face." Randy scowled, wondering where the hell...He sighed, glancing down at her, and grinned. "Jessie, meet the morons. Morons, meet Jessica Orton."
Martina giggled and shook their hands, feeling Randy caressing her side, stomach suddenly doing a flip flop at the thought of having to kiss Randy. Surely newlywed couples were normally all over each other, right? Martina didn't know; hell, she'd never been married in her life and had a feeling Randy hadn't been either.
"Nice meeting all of you." She said, once the introductions were over with, and smiled when Randy kissed her hand again. "I'm going to join Ted and Cody, meet you in a few minutes?" Randy nodded and released her hand as Martina joined the others.
"You're a great actress."
"No doubt, keep your voice down man."
"They can't hear me." Ted grunted, winking down at her, and lead her to Legacy's locker room.