A/N: Update. Big apologies for the length of time it has taken between updates. I hope this is worth the wait. Please read and review.

"My tummy's full." As if to put extra weight behind her point, Juliet belched softly. As soon as the sound came out, her delicate hands immediately clamped over her mouth, it being a visible 'O' behind the fingers. "Escuse me." Juliet blushed up at Randy, her perfect little mouth trying to suppress a smile.

Glancing down at Juliet as they exited the restaurant, Randy broke into a fit of sustained laughter. It was quite possibly the most heart-melting, funny thing he had ever seen in his life. Not only the way she burped, but how Juliet had tried to excuse herself and mispronounced the word.

Maybe being a father wouldn't be so bad at all, Randy reasoned. After all, if nothing else he could spend the rest of his life was just watching and listening to his little girl. Every time he thought Juliet had done or said to the cutest thing known to mankind, she would immediately out-do herself and do or say something to make him go weak at the knees all over again. Her little burp and excusing was the latest in a long line of antics that had been pulling on Randy's heart-strings all morning. In the space of less than forty-eight hours, Randy found himself consistently wondering if you could get a heart-attack from feeling pure joy.

That thought aside, Randy had no idea how much a child of Juliet's age could eat! Considering the size of her body, Randy honestly wondered where she had stored all that food. Obviously inheriting her appetite from her father, she had seen off a stack of six pancakes, followed by a round of toast and strawberry jam. Juliet had washed the calorie-saturated breakfast down with what Randy was sure had been a pint of chocolate milk. If nothing else, he admired the girl's stamina. He fondly re-called a time where he could eat just as much at breakfast, his mother's pride and joy.

Smiling contentedly, Juliet's hand rubbed lazy circles over her stomach, which was just a little rounder than it was normally. Her eyes fluttered with content, and Randy started to wonder if maybe she was sleepy. It was only ten thirty in the morning, but if she was anything like him, a good meal would knock her for six.

Smiling down at his daughter, Randy's hand rested on her head as he ruffled the golden blonde baby curls on the crown of her head. Juliet chuckled, and fell into step next to her father. Randy had explained they were going to go back to his apartment and maybe watch some television. His actual plan was to sit Juliet in front a kids' show and hope she fell back asleep so he could desperately try and call his mother again. He was rapidly feeling out of his depth, and his mother was his life line.

Without speaking, Juliet had stretched her hand up to reach Randy's. It was quite a stretch for her, considering their comparable heights, but she did it all the same. Her tiny digits did their best to grasp the long fingers on Randy's hand. Randy responded in kind, wrapping his hand around hers, stretching his arm so that she didn't have to reach as far.

The scene was almost surreal for Randy. Here he was, walking down the street hand in hand with a little angel that he had played a part in creating. Guys like Batista and Ric Flair had always told him having a kid changed your life. There was an instant bond between you, and whilst it may not be the same as mother and child, it was instinctive and powerful. Now that Randy had found her, it seemed Juliet had already found a place in his heart. As much as he tried to convince himself he couldn't be the parent she needed, somehow he wasn't sure how he could ever be complete again without her.

The buzzing on his cell-phone in his pocket jolted Randy back to the present. Using his free hand, he retrieved the handset and flipped it open. "Yo." He answered.

"Orton man, where the fuck are you?" The grunt on the other end made it quite clear it was John Cena, Randy's best friend. "We said we'd meet at the gym for a quarter to ten. Everyone else is here, where you at? Don't tell me you met some chick and took her back to bang her. What the hell did I tell you? No ass until you'd hit the gym."

"John, I completely forgot. I'm sorry man. Something…something major came up that I kinda needed to deal with right there and then." Randy bit down onto his bottom lip, his mind racing. What was he going to tell John? Should he reveal the truth? That he'd been introduced and charged with the care for his tiny daughter, and he was drowning right now in a sea of worry and responsibility?

Would it be better to lie? Somehow, Randy didn't see how he could keep someone like Juliet a secret for long. "I don't give a shit," John barked, "get your ass to the gym right now. Bring your shit, and be prepared to become my bitch. I'm gonna work you till you drop." Randy sighed into the phone. "No excuses Orton. Don't make me come find you."

The phone went dead in Randy's hand, and he snapped the handset shut. Randy knew John well enough to know that he wasn't one to make idle threats. His friend would come and find him if he didn't turn up. For some reason, the idea of explaining the story in a neutral setting seemed a better idea than letting John stumble on him and Juliet at his apartment. And maybe, if Randy was lucky, Batista would be there. Since transferring to the other brand, Randy had had little chance to talk to the older man. Usually, one of Batista's lectures would send Randy crawling up the walls with boredom. But now more than ever, Randy craved advice. Maybe Batista would know what to do - or at least what he was supposed to do with a kid.

Smiling down at Juliet, who had become enchanted with a pink stiletto she saw in the window, he squeezed her hand gently. "Hey Juliet, how would you like to come meet some of my friends?"

Randy noted with a fair amount of horror that the gym was full of his fellow WWE employees. On the running machines were Candice Michelle and Ashley Massaro, both girls lost in their own musical worlds with their iPods attached to their arms. In the far right corner were CM Punk, Mickie James and Jeff Hardy. Stretched out on the blue plastic mats, the three of them were each performing their own version of the splits. Mickie, the most flexible of them, had arched over so her right hand grasped her right foot, her left hand arching gracefully over her.

The opposite corner held the most amount of fear for Randy. Currently using the assorted weight machines were Batista, Hunter Helmsley, Ric Flair, Beth Phoenix and John Cena. Cena was on the stack machines, the intense stare of his eyes on the entrance but still not really seeing anything at all. Batista and Hunter were on the leg presses to his left, the two men in obvious competition for one another to see who could do the most repetitions. Beth was spotting Ric, who despite his age, was holding his own with a barbell.

No-one seemed to have noticed Randy yet. If they had, they certainly weren't giving anything away. Holding Juliet's hand a little tighter in the palm of his own, Randy gulped at air in an attempt to calm his nerves.

Honestly, if these people were his friends then they should support him in this, Randy reasoned. But he was realistic. Somehow, he knew this wasn't going to go well. To them, he was the immature, pot smoking, womanising, hotel wrecking young punk who was all about getting what he wanted. Petulant and aggressive, his own past indiscretions had been well document - both by the management and the online wrestling fan communities. He was, quite simply, know as a trouble maker. An image he seemed unable to shift.

Randy was suddenly reminded of the time when Torrie Wilson refused to take him up on his offer to watch her pet dog Chloe whilst she went for a photo shoot. When asked why, she had simply laughed and patted his face with a knowing a look. He couldn't even be trusted with Torrie's stupid dog who was, at least as far was Randy was concerned, a furry white rat.

Then again, maybe they were all right. Maybe Randy was getting in over his head and could constitute a real danger to Juliet. But this was seemingly going to be the way of things now. Randy had willingly accepted his daughter into his life. And he was prepared to at least learn how to be a decent father. He just hoped his friends would see it that way too.

Crossing the gym to the weights, Randy winced as John became obviously aware of him. The West Newbury native grinned almost manically as he registered his absent friend. Sitting forward of the bars of the machine, John arches his back, feeling the satisfying inner click as both of his shoulder blades cricked back into position. Grabbing his towel, he slapped it against his face as he stood up to face Randy, already planning to punish his friend for being late to the workout. He stopped short as his eyes fell on the tiny blonde girl staring in wonder around her.

With an eyebrow cocked, he smirked at Randy. "Damn Orton. I know you like 'em young but this is a little…"

"Shut up." Randy growled, consciously looking down at Juliet wondering if she understood what John was insinuating.

"Seriously man, where did you get the munchkin? She related to you or something?" Patting the towel against his face, John removed the beads of swear collecting over his forehead.

"That…is a long story." Randy offered. Now that he was here, he wasn't entirely sure how he was going to explain her to his friends. More than ever he realised his friends were going to think him insane for even considering taking on a responsibility like Juliet.

"She's mine John."

Randy didn't realise he'd spoken those last few words until he heard John's strangled yelp of incredulity. "You have got to be shittin' me. You? Of all people Orton, you have kid? Oh my god."

Wincing at John's reaction, Randy couldn't help but moan as the rest of his colleagues became interested in what was going on because of Cena's reaction. Batista and Flair were now flanking John as Jeff, Punk and Mickie came from the other corner to see what was going on.

"Guys, check this out." John shook his head in disbelief, pointing at Juliet. "Meet mini-Orton. Randy had a kid and held out on us."

Murmurs ranging from shock to obvious disapproval rippled through his friends. Randy half considered grabbing Juliet and making a run for the exit, hoping he could in some way gloss over this entire episode. Not that it would do him much good he reasoned. The entire roster was bound to know now that his friends did. And that it meant it wouldn't be too long before the management found out.

The management! Randy shuddered at the thought of what Vince McMahon would say about this indiscretion. He hadn't even considered them, and now realised things could turn out a lot worse than he had originally feared.

Disturbed from his thoughts, Randy glanced down at Juliet who had started to pant. Her tiny chest heaved up and down as her bottom lip trembled uncontrollably. She cowered against Randy's leg, burying her face away. With all these unfamiliar people staring down at her, she was quickly becoming distressed.

"Juliet? What's the matter?" Randy looked from his daughter to his friends, unsure of what was wrong, let alone what he was supposed to do.

Tutting behind John, Batista shook his head reproachfully. Having daughters of his own, it was obvious what was wrong. "Hold her you idiot. We're scaring her."

"Oh, right." Randy nodded. Reaching down, he swept Juliet up into his arms, holding her against his chest. Juliet responded by latching her arms around him, burying her head into the curve of his neck and shoulder. He stroked her back gently, angry at himself for not realising what was upsetting her.

"Randy, why didn't you tell me you had a daughter?" Ric enquired. Stepping around John, he moved to Randy's side. Grinning at Juliet, he stroked her hair gently. Risking raising her head, Juliet took one look at Flair an emitted a high pitched wail.

Caught by surprise, it was all Randy could do not to drop her. Flair and Batista chuckled at the girl's reaction, whilst Randy stared in wide-eyed terror between his friends. Juliet was crying now, sobbing against his neck and he had no clue what he was supposed to do. Punk, obviously moved by the sight slid his arm around Jeff's shoulders, holding his boyfriend close to him. "I want one." He whispered into Jeff's hair, planting a kiss on his temple.

Jeff smiled, trying not laugh at the look plastered over Randy's face. Getting more frantic, Randy practically spasmed with relief as Mickie stepped forward, holding her arms out. Juliet squealed as she was handed to Mickie, eyes wide with fear as she was handed to the unfamiliar woman.

Mickie smiled brightly, brushing the girl's fringe back from her face. "Hey sweetheart, there's nothing to be scared of. We're all friends here. My name is Mickie, what's yours?"

Juliet's answer wasn't heard as Mickie walked away with her in her arms, leaving Randy to explain exactly what was going on.

"Guys, I can explain." Randy held his hands up in defeat as his friends advanced on him. "I swear, I didn't know she existed till the other night. Her mom was killed in a car accident and the police called me. She's been staying with me because I didn't want her to go into care."

"Who's the mother?" Batista enquired, eyes narrowed. In the years he and Randy had been friends, he had consistently warned him about the dangers of having sex with random women. He had always said it would come back to bight Randy in the ass, and that proof was currently giggling in the arms of Mickie.

"Beth Mills." Randy sighed, sinking down to sit on the edge of a bench.

"Beth?" John repeated, obviously knowing the name. "Man, I'm sorry."

Taking a seat next to his friend, John put a protective arm around his shoulders. John was the only one who had been friendly with Randy back when he had first joined OVW. He remembered meeting Beth and had realised straight away how good she was for his friend. More than anything, he vividly recalled how cut up Randy had been when Beth had left him. He could only imagine how much it must be hurting Randy that Beth had had their child in secret and never told him.

"I don't know what I'm going to do." Randy admitted, hiding the tears filling his eyes behind his hands. "There's no way I can be responsible enough to be there for Juliet. I can barely keep myself out of trouble, not to mention Chase is totally against the idea."

"Chase? That trailer trash? Who cares what she thinks?" Jeff narrowed his eyes. "Whether you're ready or not Randy, that kid is here in your life. If you don't want her to go into care, you'd better figure out how to be a father. She's already lost her mother, she doesn't deserve to lose her father too."

"How? How am I supposed to do it Jeff?" Randy glared at his friend, not appreciating his opinion.

Realising he needed to back down; Jeff knelt down in front of his friend. "What other option do you have?"

"Her grandparents." Randy admitted. "The police are still trying to get in contact with them. Maybe they'd be a better option for Juliet. I mean what can I give that kid? She needs some kind of stability, even I know that. And I know I can't give that to her."

Having heard just about enough, Flair's nostrils exploded with an agitated sigh. "Are you kidding me Randy? You just found out you have a daughter you didn't know about, and you're all ready to hand her over? I bet that works out neatly for you, doesn't it? Pack the princess off with the grandparents and that'll be the end of it. Out of sight, out of mind."

"That's not what I meant." Randy fought weakly, not sure if he believed that or not.

"You are a father Randy. You have a responsibility to that girl to be in her life and raise her as best you can." Flair rested a fatherly hand on the younger man's shoulder.

"You mean like you did with your kids Ric?" He spat back.

Flair sighed. Randy was right. He had spent the majority of his life on the road in various wrestling promotions. He had never been a big part of his children's lives as they had grown up. The most they saw him was on their television sets, rather than in the family home.

"You're right kid. I wasn't there for any of my kids growing up, and it's something I bitterly regret now. Of course I see them more because they've grown up, but that can't make up for the years we lost. Trust me Randy; you don't want to be like me. Sure, I'm sixteen time World Heavyweight Champion. But I'm a lousy father, and no amount of gold can ever take away the guilt." Ric shook his head, feeling the bitterness inside him take hold.

"I'm sorry Ric, I didn't mean to say that." Randy offered. "I'm just scared. I don't know what to do."

"Well we'll help you." Batista said. "We know what its like to have kids, we'll help you get through this Randy. But it's important that you do this because you want to. Don't keep that beautiful little angel around just because you feel you have to. She deserves someone who loves her more than anything or anyone else in the world. If you can't be that person, give her to her grandparents."

"I…I don't know if I can be that guy." Randy's head sunk back into his hands again, a dull throb starting in his temples. Maybe that wasn't the answer his friends were expecting, but it was an honest one. There wasn't any point in lying to them or himself about this.

He still didn't know if he wanted to be a father to Juliet.

"I think someone is getting a little sleepy." Randy looked up from his twisting guilt to see Juliet resting quite comfortably on Mickie's shoulder, her little eyes heavy. "Maybe you should take her home for a nap?"

"Will you help me?" For the second time today, Randy vocalised what he was thinking before he had a chance to process that he was thinking it.

Mickie looked a little taken aback, but quickly nodded. "Sure. Just let me get my stuff and I'll meet you out front."

Randy carefully took Juliet from Mickie and cradled her in his arms. She looked softly up at him, a peaceful smile on her face. Getting to his feet, he looked at his friends who all nodded encouragingly.

Heading for the exit, he felt a renewed sense of hope. Maybe he wasn't cut out to be a father. Maybe he didn't want the responsibility. But Randy realised he owed it to himself and to Juliet to at least try.

He owed Beth that much. She must have known what she was doing when she chose Randy to become her legal guardian. Beth had been a notorious worrier. Randy knew there was no way she would risk something as precious as Juliet with just anyone. After all, Randy didn't know about Juliet. If Beth had done what she had, he would still be none the wiser. She had chosen him because she believed he could be all that their daughter needed.

It was an encouraging thought that settled his nerves.

Standing outside, he smiled as Mickie emerged, still in her shorts and vest top, a bag slung over her shoulders. She took Juliet from him and got into the car, the little girl slumbering comfortably against her chest. Randy was honestly glad Mickie had agreed to help him, considering that he didn't know her all that well. He took it to be another encouraging sign that someone like her would help in his hour of need.

Maybe Randy could get through this after all. At least he was sure he could, with a little help from his friends.