A/N: My apologies to any Miz fans. A SUPER HUGE shout-out goes out to my awesome, kick-ass, amazing twinny (purplefeather21) for all her help with this chapter. Thank you twinny!! R&R please, guys, and I hope you enjoy!

Additional note: Flashbacks and past events are in italics.

Chapter 3: Gluttony—The Miz

"Gluttony is an emotional escape, a sign something is eating us."—Peter De Vries

Extreme. There was no other word that properly described the young man from Ohio. Mike Mizanin lived his life to excess in every aspect, from his professional career to his personal life. He was a fairly easygoing guy off-screen—in fact, his loud, cocky, brash onscreen persona of the Miz was a complete 180 from the way he normally was around people—and many of the other Superstars viewed him as a guy that had his head on his shoulders and was very focused on his career. Contrary to what people believed, however, there was a more serious, darker side to Miz, one that he kept well-hidden from others. He really didn't associate with the other Superstars; instead he chose to keep to himself. The other Superstars noticed this, although they rarely called him on it. But one time, after a taping, Melina had cornered Mike and asked him, point blank, why he never wanted to hang around with the others.

"Hey Mike, I have a question for you." Melina asked him once, in a club. After much poking and prodding, she had been able to get the self-proclaimed Chick Magnet to join the rest of them for a post-show celebration. It hadn't been easy though—Melina had likened the experience to pulling teeth.

"Sure, go ahead," he replied with a nod.

"What do you do after house shows and television tapings? You never hang out with us." she noted.

"I uh..." he started, but Batista came to his defense.

"Baby, it's none of our business what he does in his spare time." he defended the young man, and made the young woman drop it.

Unfortunately though, that wasn't the first or last time someone brought up the subject. Mike didn't understand why the rest of the Superstars and Divas couldn't just let it drop. It wasn't that he didn't like them, or that he thought he was better than them, or anything like that. As The Miz, he was confident and always had a comeback for everything. But Mike was 100% different, in every way, shape, and form.

When his best friend and tag team partner, John Morrison, was around, none of the Superstars said a word about Mike's distaste for hanging around them. But as soon as John was gone, the whispers and the taunts began. Most of the guys tried to avoid the gossip, instead preferring to focus on their matches or other business. However, there were a few who just could not let the issue alone. The Legend Killer himself, Randy Orton, was one of the bullies in the back who loved to insinuate that Mizanin thought he was "too good" to spend time with them.

"Well, well, well, look at what we have here. Mike Mizanin. The guy that thinks he's too good to be seen with the rest of us." Randy Orton taunted. "What do you do anyways?"

"Shut up, Orton." he growled. "Besides, what are you? My nanny or something? It's none of your business." he replied coolly, making the locker room become quiet.

There were even times he heard the Divas speculate why he never spent more time than needed be at the arena, or he always seemed so jumpy and tense. His behavior over the past few months had changed drastically, and some suspected that this sudden change in behavior was due to drugs. Mike heard all the whispers, but he didn't speak up or defend himself. What was the point, really? No matter what he did or said, people were going to formulate their own opinions anyway.

"Why do you think he always seems so secretive?" The former WWE Divas' Champion, Michelle McCool guessed.

"Maybe he's you know….from the other side?" Brie Bella replied.

"Who knows." her twin shrugged. "It's not like he spends the little time he does with us talking about what he does outside of wrestling."

Then, because of his look, he had people second guessing him. How did he get bigger, muscle-wise when he was so skinny? That was one of the questions he got the most from both his co-workers and fans. In such a short amount of time, Mike had gained quite a bit of weight, almost to the point where he was unrecognizable. Gone was the buff physique that he had worked so hard for. It was heartbreaking to see Mike let himself go, and the saddest part of the entire ordeal was that no one even suspected how much he was suffering. His friends and co-workers knew that something was going on beneath the façade he tried to put on, but because he rarely spoke to anyone, the problem remained hidden. Even his family had been worried about him at one point or another, his sister Emily especially. At the post-party celebration for Wrestlemania 24, Emily had voiced her concern as gently as possible without sounding too questioning.

"Hey, baby bro, you know I love you, right?" his sister asked.

"Yeah." he responded, laughing at his sister's sudden serious tone.

"I love you, and I support you in every decision you take, and you know that. But," she started, "Are you okay? You seem to be eating a lot more than usual at mom's parties and stuff."

"It's nothing, really," the Ohio native responded. He smiled at his sister and chucked her under the chin playfully. "You don't need to worry, it's nothing. I just decided to stop working out as much." It was the perfect lie, one that Mike knew would be believable, and so his sibling reluctantly dropped the issue.

Mike struggled with confiding in someone about his problem, mainly because he really didn't know who he could trust not to judge him, and also because he wasn't really sure what to say. Was he addicted to drugs? Yes, but they weren't recreational or prescription drugs. His drugs of choice were food and drink, two of the most important things needed to survive. No one ever thought of food and drink as a drug, because one needed it and consumed them in their everyday life, but for Mike Mizanin, they were his worst enemy and completely detrimental to his health. The next question would be how to treat this addiction. With a typical drug addiction, such as cocaine, the solution was relatively simple: check into rehab, learn coping strategies to deal with the problem, and apply those in everyday life. Avoid the drug and situations where the drug will be present and everything should be fine. But how can one avoid food? If a person goes for very long without eating, he will surely starve to death.

For once in his life, Mike had hit a crossroads: he could either continue on his current path, eating and drinking to excess, letting his body take the punishment, or he could go seek help and tackle this problem with the help of another person. The latter option scared him to death, but after weeks of careful thinking, he decided that it was the healthier option. He wanted kids and a wife someday, and he knew that if he continued on this dangerous path, that would never happen.

Mike was nervous about seeking out treatment—actually, downright scared to death would be a more accurate description—but he was determined to beat this and once again be the life of the party, the man that his fellow Superstars loved to be around. Because after all, he resided at the Palace of Wisdom, and as he and his fellow Dirt Sheet host frequently stated, fatties were not allowed at the Palace of Wisdom. Mike knew the journey wasn't going to be easy, but he had faith that he could do it. Besides, he owed it to the hoard of Mizfits to once again become The Real Deal Sex Appeal. No longer would this disease eat away at his insides—he was going to become confident with himself again.

Thanks to my crazy awesome, wonderful reviewers: Missy, Vera, J, wrestlefan4, Dori, Robbells, Kennedy's Friday Night Delight, And, Liv, Sin, ChristianFever22, Sunny, Twinny, Kat, Chic (slut-faced ho-bag, LOL) and Gabbi.

You guys are AWESOME!