Disclaimer: I own nothing, except the storyline.

Chapter 4

Nikki Bella stood in front of the mirror in her hotel room, looking at her reflection and wondering what to wear. If you hadn't been so stupid as to get yourself in this horrible situation, none of this would be your problem right now, she thought, and let out a sigh. And now there's no turning back. She was right: No matter in what transfixed state of mind she might have been in at that moment, she had, in fact, agreed to going on a date with Seth Rollins, for reasons that were unknown to herself, or, at least, reasons she didn't want to admit to herself.
She turned away from the mirror and sat down on her bed, grabbing her phone. But who am I supposed to talk to?, she asked herself, frowning. Naturally, Brie had always been the first person she would talk to when something bothered her. But, of course, that was no option now. It's better this way, Nikki thought. All Brie ever did was try to judge me anyway.
Still, that didn't solve her problem of having to talk to someone about the whole Seth Rollins-issue. She scrolled through her contact list on her phone. Cameron? No, she probably wouldn't take this seriously enough. Besides, Nikki knew that her friend currently had relationship issues with her boyfriend Vincent, so she didn't really want to bother Cameron with her problems.
Summer and Layla weren't smart options either, as Nikki was quite sure they would spread the gossip as soon as she would tell them.
That left… Nattie. Nikki wasn't sure where she and Natalya stood in their friendship. Although the Canadian had never openly judged Nikki on her actions at SummerSlam, the two of them hadn't really interacted as much as they did before her betrayal of Brie. Natalya had mentioned several times that she didn't want to take any sides in the fight between Nikki and Brie, so Nikki had refrained from forcing her to choose.
But this time was different, this time she desperately needed someone to talk to, otherwise Nikki was fairly sure she'd go insane.
She dialed Natalya's number and waited, until her slightly older friend picked up.
"Hello? Nikki, is this you?" Nattie asked.
"Yes, it's me, Nattie. Look, if this isn't a good time, it's no problem, I can call you back-"
"No no, I've got some time to myself at the moment, and it's nice to hear from you. How is everything going? You know, I heard about… John and you…" Natalya said, apparently not unsure how to continue her sentence.
"Everything's alright, I guess", Nikki replied. "Don't worry about John and me, though. It was pretty hard for the first few days after the break-up, but I'm pretty sure that it was for the better."
"I am so relieved to hear that. You know, I was worried about you, but I didn't really know if I should come up to you, because… well, I hope you understand this whole fight between you and Brie hasn't been exactly easy for me. I really don't want to disappoint either of you guys since both of you are my friends", Nattie said, and Nikki knew by the sound of her friend's voice that she was being honest.
"I understand, Nattie. Thank you for not picking sides, I honestly appreciate it. But the reason I was actually calling you was because… well, I guess I need to talk to someone about something that's been on my mind for the past few days and I don't really know how to deal with it, exactly", Nikki said, biting her lip.
"Well of course you can tell me. What's on your mind? Has something happened?"
"Well…", Nikki replied, unsure what to say. "It's not like anything specific happened, it's just… let's just say I've met someone. And while on the one hand he's basically everything I dislike in a guy, on the other hand I think there might be something more to him, I know how weird that sounds but sometimes when he's around I just… I feel like there's something about him, I don't know what exactly, but somehow I just can't seem to get him out of my mind. Nattie, please tell me I'm not insane…"
Natalya gave a small laugh, then answered: "No, I don't think you're going insane. Even though I've really only ever been with TJ in my life, I think I understand what you're saying, somehow. So what's the plan, do you want to get to know the guy or just try to forget him?"
"That's the thing. He's asked me out for dinner. For tonight. And I'm just really unsure what to expect, or whether I should just cancel the whole thing or…"
"I say you should give it a try. Nikki, it's one date, right? It's certainly not your first and it almost certainly won't be your last. And if he behaves horribly or you realize halfway through the evening he's basically not your type at all, then it will be much easier for you to move on from this whole thing than if you cancel and spend the evening thinking about how it could've been."
Nikki let out a sigh of relief. "You're so right Nattie, thank you. I guess I was just overreacting since my last date was with John, months ago. And… I just realized I really missed you. Thank you for helping me out, really. If you'd like, maybe we could go for a coffee together sometime soon…?"
"Anytime Nikki. I really missed you, too, and I would really like to see you soon and catch up. But unfortunately, I think I have to go now, TJ just got home and I'm pretty sure he wants something to eat." The Canadian let out a soft laugh.
"No problem. See you soon and have a nice evening with TJ!" Nikki replied.
"And you have a nice evening with Mr. X", Natalya replied, making Nikki laugh. "Tell me how it went tomorrow! See you, bye!"
Nikki hung up and put her phone back in her bag. She definitely felt much better now.
Nattie's right. If it turns out he's a complete asshole, I'll just leave and forget about the whole thing, she told herself, and as she stood in front of the mirror this time, she felt much more confident than just minutes before.
She picked out her outfit – Louboutins and her favorite red dress – and went to the bathroom to put on make-up and perfume.

About one hour later

Nikki quickly looked in the mirror one last time, grabbed her purse and then left her hotel room. She took a deep breath and walked to the elevator. He had told her to meet up in the lobby at 8, so she was a little late, because she didn't want to be totally punctual. Otherwise he might think I'm so excited to go out with him that I can hardly wait, she thought. And since that would probably only add to Seth's cockiness, she decided to show up just a few minutes after the arranged time.
The moment the elevator arrived at the lobby and its door opened, Nikki felt a feeling of nervousness form in her stomach and her throat go dry. She swallowed and kept her head up. She wasn't going to let him see her struggling to retain her composure.
Seth was already standing near the reception desk, and as if he had sensed it must've been Nikki who had arrived, he turned around to face her, smiling at her as she walked up to him.
He was dressed all in black, from jacket to shoes, and held his Money in the Bank-briefcase firmly in his left hand. She could see him opening his mouth, but before he could say anything, she asked him, with a grin on her face: "Do you really have to take that god-damn briefcase everywhere you go, Rollins?"
He smiled. "Well, I'm the future of our company, and that must be represented at all times. You never know who you're going to meet. However…" she could see his eyes quickly roam over her body, and if she wasn't mistaken – and she almost never was – she could see them lingering just a moment longer on her chest – "You look… stunning", he said, smirking. "Red suits you, I have to say."
"Watch your eyes, Rollins. You know what they say, you can look, but you can't touch", Nikki said, smiling. Seth chuckled. "Anyway", Nikki said, "where are we going? You mentioned dinner and told me to meet up here, but you didn't exactly say what you had in mind."
"Just wait and see. Anyway, the limo's waiting, so we should get going."
While they were doing just that, Nikki tried to hide the rush of excitement that was coming over her. A limo!, she thought. When has John ever picked me up in a limo for date? Once or twice, at the most. Then again, this is probably all part of Seth's arrogant attitude.
After a short drive in the limo, they arrived at the bar Seth chose for the night. To her surprise, he not only helped her out of the car, but also opened the door for her and ordered drinks for the two of them right away before joining her at their table.
"I have to say, I'm the surprised", Nikki said. "The last man on this earth that I assumed to be a gentleman was,... well, you, Rollins." She feigned a smile.
"Ouch. That hurt", he grinned.
"What did you order for me, anyway? You don't know me, how would you know what I like to drink?" Nikki asked.
"I thought I invited you for us to get to know each other better, not for you to insult me all evening", he said, still grinning. "I ordered a Margarita for you, since I figured you would like that. Was I wrong?"
Nikki let out a sigh, but had to smile nonetheless. "No, you were not wrong, Rollins. Happy now?" She raised her eyebrows.
"Yes, very happy", Seth replied. The look on his face was so incredibly self-satisfied that Nikki had to let out a laugh.
"So, are you really this full of yourself all the time or is that part of your shtick?" she asked, and for a moment she thought that she might have crossed a line and he would feel insulted. Her concern formed into relieve when she saw a small smirk cross his face. He leaned towards her side of the table now, looking her straight in the eyes. Nikki felt herself beginning to blush at his intense gaze, and internally railed at her body for reacting this way.
"Why don't you find out for yourself?" he asked, still looking at her.
Fortunately for Nikki, their drinks arrived at that moment, and he leaned back in his seat. I just can't figure him out when he's staring at me like that, she thought, letting out a small sigh.
She took a sip from her drink, trying to regain her composure.
"So, tell me about you", he said. "Of course, I already know some stuff – we work together after all – but I want to get to know you."
Nikki took a breath, and wondered how she should start.
And then she told him – about how she got into WWE, why she and Brie had departed with the company in 2012 and why they came back, what kind of workout she mostly liked to do, and about her real estate work, which she was really proud of.
To her surprise, Seth stayed quiet most of the time she was talking, only interrupting her when he wanted to ask her a question. He seemed genuinely interested in what she told him, and there was not one of his usual smart-ass remarks. She did not mention her relationship with Brie, however, and she also did not talk about John Cena. Those were two topics that she wanted to keep to herself for now. Nikki wasn't yet sure if she could really trust the man sitting across from her, or if all of this was just a show he arranged for his amusement.
Seth did seem to understand, as he did not question her about either one of the subjects. Or he simply doesn't care, she thought, although she didn't say it out loud.
When she was finished, Nikki raised her eyebrows and asked him to tell her about him in return.
Although he did start off with some smug comments about himself and his accomplishments and features, which mostly made Nikki role her eyes at him, as he continued talking, his tone got more serious and it seemed to her like he was showing her the real Seth Rollins for once, not just Mr. Money in the Bank.
She understood he didn't want to talk about his past in The Shield, and his motives for "buying in", as he had called it, and she didn't ask him any questions about it.
Just like her issues with her twin sister, his relations with his former brothers was something one did not talk about on a first date.

When they drove back to their hotel in the limo, Nikki was conflicted about what to feel. He had surprised her, as he had promised, but she wasn't sure if she should like it or not.
His attitude and the way he behaved most of the time had always made it easy for her to despise him, no matter if she found him attractive or not.
But the side of him he had shown her today made things much more difficult. Nikki had liked talking to him, and every once in a while throughout the evening, he had sent her one of his intense glares that made her knees get weak, whether she wanted to admit it or not.
They sat in the limo in uncomfortable silence, and after a while, Nikki could feel his gaze on her, which unnerved her. She turned around and their eyes locked, and suddenly, all insults and bad thoughts Nikki had had in mind died, at least for that moment. She felt a prickle creeping up her stomach as he slowly leaned towards her. For a moment, they simply looked each other in the eyes, and Nikki noticed she actually wanted him to kiss her, which scared her and excited her at the same time.
"We should probably get out of the car", he whispered in a barely audible voice.
"W-what?", Nikki replied, awakening from her transfixed state of mind.
"The limo has been standing in front of the hotel for almost 5 minutes now", he replied, his lips forming into a small smile.
"Oh", was the only thing Nikki managed to say, feeling herself blush.
"I'll see you tomorrow, Nikki. It has been a very interesting evening, I have to say", Seth said.
"Yes, I'll uhm… see you tomorrow", she smiled, and got out of the car. She felt like running to her room as fast as she could, but she managed to stay as calm as possible without letting her excitement and confusion show.
As soon as she got back to her room, she let herself fall on the bed and let out a huge sigh.
Holy sh*t, when was the last time I felt like this?! Nikki thought, before she changed and got ready to go to sleep.
Although she hardly got any sleep that night.

Thank you guys so much for all the favs and follows, you have no idea how much this means to me, especially considering that this is my very first fanfiction :)
I was really unsure writing this chapter, and I still am, because this is definitely the most personal chapter yet, so please let me know if you liked it or not :)

Cheers!