A/N: My sincerest apologies for taking so long to put this chapter up. I was on a 'sabbatical'. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Thanks for reading! As always, feedbacks, comments, reviews are most welcome! Thank you.
Chapter 14
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Two months after…
Randy and Arianne's relationship got more intense and serious as the months passed, at least when it's just the two of them. They try really hard to limit their displays of affection to each other in public so as not to raise more suspicions than they already are generating in their circle.
But sometimes, it just gets really hard to control themselves.
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December 7, 2009 Dallas TX – Monday Night Raw
"Where's Randy?" Ted asked, "We're supposed to open the show."
"He's probably taking a nap in the TV room. Did you check?" Cody offered.
"Yeah, he's not there." Ted said, "Call him. We got ten minutes."
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In the parking area…
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Randy and Arianne were making out in the backseat of his rental car. He was on top of her, with one hand running up and down her thighs, under her hike up skirt, and the other inside her unbuttoned blouse.
She was leaning on the door, with her legs wrapped around his hips, one hand on the back of his head and the other, gripping at the handle above the window.
They were so into it, especially Randy that he wouldn't have picked up his phone if Arianne hadn't told him to.
"Uhh…Randy…your phone…" She said, breathlessly in between kisses. "It's vibrating."
His phone was inside the back pocket of his lounge pants, and she felt it vibrate under her calf.
"What?" He asked.
He heard her, but he didn't understand what she said. He moved his mouth to her neck nibbling at her skin, growling, rumbling a little which made her gasp and made her forget.
But then it vibrated again, and she had to come back to earth.
"Randy, stop!" She said, pushing him back a little, putting her legs down on the seat, releasing him. "You're phone's vibrating…they must be looking for you. You're supposed to open the show."
He grumbled a little, but still got off her. "You're right." He said, taking a deep breath. "I should go…"
He looked at her as she was buttoning her shirt. "Damn it…" He smirked in a mix of amusement and a bit of frustration.
He was amused at himself for getting so caught up so fast, and frustrated for having to let go as quick.
"Go!" She said, reading what's on his mind. "You can have me later."
He reached for a kiss again, softly on the lips. "I'm going, I'm going!" He said, "I'll see you later." Then he slipped out.
"Later, Viper." She giggled, as she playfully kicked his butt out of the car.
He turned and looked at her, squinting evilly. "You're gonna pay for that." He told her.
"Oh, yeah?" She said, "How're you gonna make me?"
"You'll see later." He said, licking his lips before he got out and closed the car door behind him.
"Hot damn! That was hot." Arianne said under her breath, giggling a little.
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At a nursing home for disabled people somewhere…
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"What's in it for me?" Joseph asked.
"You get your revenge, and get paid at the same time." The man said.
The man had contacted him via phone a few days ago, confirming if he was indeed Arianne's brother, and then asked to meet him.
He didn't even know how this man found him, since he had no other contacts since Arianne abandoned him. His neighbors took him to that place because no one was going to take care of him, and he can't survive on his own.
He thought Arianne might have changed her mind and had someone to look for him, but when he asked the man what it was all about, he was more interested by the offer he got.
The man said he was going to help him, with the help of a financier who was behind all of it.
"What's his beef with my sister anyway?" He asked. "And while you're at it, what's yours?"
He almost laughed at the irony of calling Arianne his sister, while plotting her and Randy's demise.
The man laughed, "Let's just say your sister has the ability to bring the worst out in people."
"Especially those who are already evil to begin with." Joseph added.
The man looked at him dead in the eye, but he did not bat. He thought he might have offended him, but then the man gave a little laugh.
"You're right." The man said. "So, are you in or out?"
He thought about for a minute. He had been aching to get back at Arianne and Randy for all that's happened to him, including being stuck in that hell hole of a nursing home.
He'd been plotting ways to exact his revenge the worst possible way, but then he lacked the resources and the manpower. Hell he can't even get off his wheelchair by himself.
"I'm in." He said. "And I know exactly…what to do."
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Dec. 16, 2009 – Stamford, CT. Arianne's apartment.
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Arianne was cleaning her apartment that morning, putting up decorations for Christmas. She didn't exactly plan on celebrating it, knowing she'd spend it alone since Randy would be home with his family.
She's accepted that, and she did tell him she'd be content with whatever he could give her. She knows and firmly believes he loves her, and that's all she could really ask for.
Still she didn't want to be all depressed, so she thought she'd at least make her surrounding as festive as she can. She remembered when she was a kid she used to help her mom decorate their home.
They use to string popcorn together to make fake snow to put on the Christmas tree, and her dad would lift her up to put the star on top of it.
Those were the good days, back when she and Joseph were still close. Before cracks in their relationship as siblings started to form.
He wasn't always like the way he turned out. He used to be nice and he loved her. She loved him too, and sometimes she does think about and miss him, like now.
Suddenly her phone rang. She'd hoped it was Randy but she was surprised when she recognized who it was.
"Joseph?"
"Ari…" He said. "How have you been?"
She couldn't talk in shock and confusion. Why is he calling her, and how did he even know her number? What could he possibly want now?
"Listen, Arianne…I know we've had a lot of misunderstandings in the past." Joseph said, "Well, misunderstanding is an understatement, but I just…I just want to apologize…for everything I've done to you."
She still didn't speak. She just doesn't know what to do or say to him. She's also trying to read through what he was saying, if he was being sincere or not.
She had grown wary of him and what he's capable of even in his situation.
"I know you may not believe me." Joseph continued, as if knowing what's in her mind. "But, Ari, please believe me. I really am sorry. Being alone…I've had the time to realize how bad I've been as a brother to you. You are my only family now, after mom and dad's deaths, and I shouldn't have done what I did. I realize that now, and I'm really, really sorry." He said.
"Arianne, that's all I'm asking for this Christmas—that you forgive me. I beg you…won't you please forgive me? It's never too late to ask for forgiveness right?"
"I…I guess…" She said, softly. "W-where are you? How did you know my number?"
"It's not important…just know that I've made the effort to find you, because I really want to make amends for what I've done to you."
In her mind there was still doubt, and she was reluctant to believe him. But her heart was saying otherwise. Maybe he is being sincere. Maybe he really has changed, and realized how terrible he was as a brother, maybe he just really wants to fix things.
"You're right…I'm glad you called." She said, "So, how have you been? Where are you staying?"
"Will you come visit me?" He asked, hopeful.
"Um…I'll…I'll think about it." She said.
"That's good enough." Joseph said.
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December 21, 2009
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Arianne asked for a week long leave and didn't come to Tampa with the rest of the Raw crew. She went to visit her brother Joseph at the nursing home, but she didn't tell anyone that was where she was going.
She didn't tell Randy either, because she thought she was going to have to explain a lot of things to him. He didn't even know she had a brother.
It was the last show before Christmas and Randy thought she'd be there so they could spend some time together. He was a bit disappointed to know she wasn't coming.
He decided to call her then, but he couldn't reach her phone. It could've been turned off because he keeps getting her voice mail box.
Her visit went well though, and Joseph really seemed to have changed in the way he treated her, although she couldn't help but feel a bit wary still.
It's going to take a lot of convincing because she just knows him all too well. Nonetheless, he was trying his best.
She was there for three days, staying in a motel near the nursing home. She also visited her parents' grave. She would've stayed until after Christmas but didn't really feel like spending it with Joseph. She'd felt like she'd be lying to herself and it all would seem fake.
But then when she got home to her apartment in Stamford, loneliness hit right back, especially when she listened to all of Randy's messages on her phone the past two days.
She figured he's be with his family by then, while here she is celebrating—no, going through Christmas eve all by herself. She decided to just sleep through it.
She doesn't have any gift to open by midnight, because she knew she couldn't have the only thing she'd have wished for.
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December 25, 2009 1:15AM Stamford, CT
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Arianne woke up to the sound of her phone ringing. She searched for it blindly under her pillow, and then peered at the screen to see who it was. It was Randy.
"Randy!" She said, sitting up quickly on her bed, suddenly energized. "Hi."
"Finally!" Randy said, whispering. "Where were you? You had me worried."
"I'm sorry…I…ah…I went to visit my parent's grave." She said. "I should've told you…"
"Oh…well, where are you now? Are you with your friends?"
"No." She said, "I'm in my apartment, actually. I was already sleeping."
Randy felt sorry for her then. He knew she didn't have any one to call family anymore, but he didn't think she'd be spending Christmas alone.
He thought she'd at least be with her friends. He was silent for a while, but she felt what he must be feeling.
"Hey, it's okay." She said, "I chose this…it's not your fault."
He sat down on a couch in his den, "Are you…gonna come to New York for Raw?" He wanted to tell her that he wanted to see her, but he didn't want to be obliging her.
"I'm kind of still on leave…but I could come if you want." She said. She kind of hoped he'd tell her to come because she didn't want to sound desperate.
"No, it's okay." He said instead. "That would defeat the purpose of your leave."
"Right…" She said softly. She was disappointed, but tried not to feel bad about it and be emotional. Either way, he still sensed it.
"I miss…"
But before he could finish what he was going to say, Sam came in the den looking for him and saw him talking on his phone. Arianne heard her in the background.
"Randy? What are you doing here?" Sam asked, "Everyone's looking for you…Who are you talking to on your phone?"
"Umm…it's just Cody, hon. I'll be right out." He said, "I got to go, man. I'll see you."
Then the line went dead, but she had the phone over her ear for a bit longer. She had so much she wanted to tell him, she wanted to talk to him longer—she just wanted to hear his voice, really.
She sighed, "I miss you." She whispered before she turned her phone off.
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St. Louis, MO 2:35AM
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Randy was already in the bedroom, getting ready to go to sleep. He was brushing his teeth, staring at himself in the mirror, recalling his conversation with Arianne on the phone.
He hated that he had to end the call the way he did, especially when she sounded so disconsolate.
If he was there with her, he'd have held her in his arms until she felt better. But he was miles away, and there was nothing he could do from where he is. He probably shouldn't even call her again until after he flies to New York for Raw.
Fact is he's just really been missing her. It's funny how in the past days that he hasn't seen her, he keeps remembering the little things she does, her mannerisms, gestures and nervous ticks.
But most especially the way she would always look at him across a room full of people that makes him feel a certain way, like there was no one else in her world.
He'd been standing in front of the sink, staring at himself for quite a bit absentmindedly when Sam came in, and that's really when he snapped out of his day dream.
"Hon, are you done yet?" Sam asked.
"Huh?" He saw himself in the mirror and he still had toothpaste on his mouth. "Yeah, almost done." He said, before he gargled.
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Outside Arianne's apartment, there was a tinted car parked across the street. It was a rental car and the man sitting inside it had been following her since she left the nursing home from her last visit to Joseph.
It was the same man Joseph had been in contact with.
The man took his phone in the car compartment and made a call to a secured number.
"I've located her apartment, sir." He said.
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December 27, 2009 3:15 AM
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It was a very cold morning and Arianne decided to just sleep in instead of getting up and going for a jog as per her usual routine.
Most of her neighbors hasn't returned from their holiday vacation yet and the street was practically empty, so there no one to jog with either.
Other than that, she's just doesn't have the energy. Being away and not seeing Randy had kind of made her lethargic.
Suddenly, her door bell rang. She didn't get up immediately and it took a while before it rang again, so that's only when she got up to get the door.
She was so surprised at who she saw standing in front of her door step that she couldn't speak at first, thinking she might be just dreaming.
"Randy…?" She said, stunned.
He looked up with a smile, hugging himself because it was very cold outside. "Hey, stranger!" He said, smiling as he saw her. "Mind if I come in? It's cold out here."
"Come in, come in…" She said, stepping out of the way. "W-what are you doing here?"
He walked in pulling his luggage, "Well…I had a choice to stay until this afternoon in Albany or drive all night to get here. It's three hours away, I decided to leave."
He closed the door behind him and looked at her. "Besides, there's a company Christmas party tonight and show in Hartford tomorrow so I thought I'd come in earlier, get rested."
She just smiled coyly, but her eyes spoke volumes and he immediately read through it. "Let me help you with those…" She said.
But as she reached for his bag, he caught her hand. "And also…I wanted to spend more time with you." He said. "I missed you."
She just hugged him then and buried her face on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her too and held her close. They just stood there like that for a couple of minutes, just holding each other.
"You know your way around me, don't you?" She asked, her voice muffled as she spoke through his chest.
"Not as much as you know yours around me." He said.
"Are you hungry? Do you want me to make you something?" She asked, letting go of him momentarily.
"Nah…maybe later." He said, "I'm more tired and sleepy than hungry…I was anxious to get here."
She laughed a little, "Well, I was already in bed when you rang the bell." She pulled at his arm, "Come on, bed's still pretty warm."
"What about my stuff?" He said, acting reluctant.
"Leave it there, it's not going anywhere." She said. "We'll take care of it later."