Another short one, I apologize, but this chapter had to end where it ends so the next chapter will come out the way I want it to..Now, before you read, I just want to say a big, huge thank you to everyone who reads and enjoys the story, especially those of you that leave such awesome reviews. You all kick some serious ass, major ass even...Yeah, i'm a little tired but even in my delirium, there is a point: When I get stressed, I write, I just got a promotion so I'm under a lot of stress, you all motivate me to write more, which, in turn, relieves my stress..So thank you for enjoying the story and keeping me stress-free. I'm sure my boyfriend would thank you too. Big hugs! Read, Enjoy, & Review!

Oh, and if there's anyone who wanted to read more of the story Lovesick that I briefly had on here, just let me know and I'll send it to you as I write it or something. Thanks!

Chapter 21...

John watched as Brooke excitedly hugged Brianna after she gave her the news. After Brooke let her go, Hulk pulled her into a hug and John laughed at the expression on Bri's face. From the looks of it, Hulk was squeezing the life out of her.

"Excuse me…Mr. Cena?"

John turned when he heard the voice behind him, seeing a young man with a headset on. He looked anxious and excited.

"Call me John," he said. "And you are..?"

"Max," the young man shook John's outstretched hand. "My name's Max. I'm a huge fan."

"Always nice to meet a fan," John smiled. "I take it you're working."

"I'm helping out with the lighting," Max explained. "What are you doing here? Are you gonna be in the video?"

John laughed, shaking his head, "Not to my knowledge. I'm just visiting. The choreographer is a good friend of mine."

"Yeah? How do you guys know each other?" Max asked.

"We grew up together," John shrugged.

"Cool," Max nodded. "Um..do you think maybe I could get your autograph or something?"

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Raquel looked around as Brianna talked to Brooke, Hulk, and Linda. She really didn't have anything to say about Brooke's performance so she didn't want to just stand there silent. After a few seconds, she spotted Jeff sitting alone at a table, cell phone pressed to his ear. She walked over, pulling out the chair adjacent to his.

"Listen, I'll call you back."

He hung up the phone, putting it in his pocket as he looked at her, "Hey."

"Hey," she smiled, sitting down.

"Can we talk?" she asked.

He shrugged, "Sure."

"It's about the other night," Raquel said, putting her purse down on the table.

"Our elevator adventure?" Jeff sighed, shaking his head. "What about it?"

"I was hoping that…" she looked down at her hands. "That you would keep my little claustrophobia issue to yourself?"

"Little?" Jeff gave her a look.

"Fine, my intense fear of enclosed spaces," she looked back up at him. "I just don't want you to tell anyone."

"Why would it matter?" Jeff asked, looking confused.

"I don't like for people to know my weaknesses. It's just a thing," Raquel shrugged.

Jeff shrugged, "Okay. I'll keep it between you and me."

Raquel smiled, feeling relieved. She'd expected more resistance from him.

"Thank you," she smiled.

"No problem," he said, leaning his elbows on the table.

"And thanks again for.." she ran a hand through her hair. "Keeping me calm that night. I felt like I was gonna have a heart attack."

"It was nothing," Jeff assured her. "I mean, everyone's afraid of something."

Raquel smirked, "And what are you afraid of?"

Jeff smiled, "I cant tell you that."

"Why not?" she laughed. "It's only fair."

"I don't think so," he smiled. "It's a secret."

"You're really not gonna tell me?" she asked.

He looked into her eyes, leaning closer to her.

She smiled. She wasn't sure why he was looking at her the way he was but she wasn't opposed to it, especially if it meant he was going to tell her. She got a great deal of joy out of knowing things that others didn't.

"Hey guys."

Raquel tried not to roll her eyes as Matt pulled up a chair across from her.

"What are you two talking about?" Matt asked.

Jeff winked at Raquel so quickly she was sure Matt didn't catch it, then leaned back in his chair, "Nothing."

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John looked down at his watch, realizing he'd been talking to this Max guy for 20 minutes. He was a nice enough kid but he seemed to have a lot of questions about him and Brianna. John answered most of them but it was starting to get a little..weird.

"So you two used to go out and then you didn't talk and now you're trying to be friends?" Max asked.

John nodded. He'd given Max a pretty watered down version of his relationship with Brianna, hoping that would be enough to stop his questions.

"This is new for us," John shrugged. "And it'll be interesting since I'm pretty sure she's gonna be on the road with us in a matter of days."

"Why?" John asked.

"Brooke Hogan is singing at Summerslam and she asked Brianna to choreograph her performance," John explained. "She's gonna be spend some time on the road with us to help her out."

"Are my ears burning?"

John smiled when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked down to see Brianna next to him.

"Hi," she smiled at Max. "I'm Brianna Kavner."

"I know," Max smiled. "Your choreography is really great."

"Thank you," she smiled, looking a little surprised. "Listen, I hate to interrupt but..can I borrow him for a minute?"

"Sure," Max shrugged.

"Thanks," Brianna took John's hand.

John followed her as she led him off the set and down the hall. She stopped walking when they were far enough away from the noise of the set, turning to face him.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Who was that?" she asked, curious."

"Max," John shrugged. "Apparently he works with the lighting. What did you wanna talk to me about?"

"Nothing," she shrugged, laughing a little. "You just looked like you needed an out."

"Has anyone ever told you you're an amazing human being?" he smirked, relieved to have gotten away from Max and his game of 20 questions.

"I've heard it once or twice," she smiled, taking his hand again and leading him around a corner and up a staircase.

"Where we goin'?"

"If we go out this way, we can go around the building to where everyone else is without having to pass your new BFF."

"I love you," he laughed as they reached the door.

She turned, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I mean, you know, for the save," John said. "Not-"

"I know," she laughed, pushing the door open. "Come on."

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"Is it my imagination or did I actually see you and Raquel talking?" Matt asked.

Jeff shrugged, "So we were talking..what's the big deal?"

"I just cant remember the last time I saw you talking without trying to kill each other," Matt laughed.

"We were just talking about the whole elevator thing," Jeff shrugged. "She still has my shirt, I was asking if I could get it when we go back to the hotel."

"She has your shirt?" Matt smirked.

"The floor was dirty so I put it down for her," Jeff explained. "And then when we were waiting for maintenance she got cold so she put it on."

"So chivalry isn't dead, huh?"

"Whatever," Jeff said. "It was nothing."

"That seems to be the theme around here today," Trish smiled, walking up to the table. "First Brianna, now you. Denial must be in these days."

"Give him a break Trish," Matt laughed. "I like givin' him a hard time but there's no way Jeff would have a thing for Raquel."

Trish raised a brow, "Oh really?"

She looked over at Jeff. Jeff stood up, "He's right."

Before Trish could say anything else, Jeff walked away.

"See?" Matt looked up at the blonde.

Trish crossed her arms over her chest, "I don't buy it."

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"Look at this one," Brianna giggled, holding her phone so John could see it. She was showing him pictures of Maya and Z.

"What's that on Z's nose?" John laughed.

"Cake frosting," Bri laughed. "It was Troy's birthday. Let's see what's next.."

She pressed the button to go to the next picture then her eyes went wide and she quickly pulled the phone to her chest so he couldn't see it.

John's curiosity was piqued.

"Now you know I have to see it," he reached for the phone.

"Uh uh," she shook her head. "Not this one."

"Oh come on," John reached again but she held it out of his reach.

"Okay fine," John sighed. Right when she seemed to relax, he poked her in the side. She squeaked and he grabbed the phone before she could recover.

"I almost forgot how ticklish you are," he laughed.

She narrowed her eyes at him and he gave her a triumphant smile before turning his attention to the phone, looking at the picture.

"Wow," was all he could manage to say. It was a picture of her in a black lace bra, dark, smoky makeup surrounding her green eyes. She had one eyebrow arched, gloss covering her pouty lips and her messy brown waves were flowing around her.

"Raquel, Troy, and I were joking around a couple weeks ago," she said, pulling the phone out of his hands. "Raquel has a picture of Troy in the same bra."

John smirked, "Something tells me he doesn't look as good in it."

She closed the phone, smiling up at him, looking a little surprised at his comment.

Once again, John found himself wrestling with the urge to kiss her. She was so close and it would be so easy.

She bit her bottom lip and, again, he got that feeling. The feeling that she wanted the same thing he did.

Before either of them could move though, his phone rang.

Son of a bitch

"You should answer it," she said, standing up. "I need to say bye to everybody before I get back into hair and makeup."

John pulled the phone out of his pocket, looking at the display.

PAULA

That woman had the worst timing in the world. She was currently the last thing on his mind.

"There's something I need to talk to you about," he said.

His phone stopped ringing and he was about to place it back in his pocket when it started ringing again.

Brianna took the phone out of his hand, looking to see who it was. She sighed, handing it back to him, "It's Paula..You should probably pick up."

He took the phone but before he could say anything, she turned, walking away.

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Brianna took a deep breath, rubbing her forehead as she walked. She almost kissed him. Again. What was her problem? It seemed like the only time she remembered she was engaged was when John wasn't around. Why did he have to be so good looking? And what was she going to do when she had to be around him more often?

She turned to look at him again. He was standing now, talking to Paula. It was hard not to smile when she looked at him. There was just something about him, she couldn't explain it. She had felt that way since the day she met him and she probably always would. Even if she didn't want to admit it, he was important to her. He was her first…everything. Her first crush. Her first kiss. The first boy to make her feel like the luckiest girl in the world. The first boy to make her cry herself to sleep. In the years that they knew each other John had made her feel the highest highs and the lowest lows and she wouldn't give up a single one of them. But she had to keep in mind that they weren't the people they were before. They weren't two teenagers in love, convinced that all they needed was each other. They were adults with careers and families and significant others. It irritated Brianna to no end that Paula was in his life but she was…and Nick was in hers. Nick and Maya. She had a responsibility to them and he did to Paula. Brianna was a big believer in fate, she always had been, and briefly, she'd allowed herself to think that fate brought she and John together again because they were meant to be together. But that couldn't be it. Not with all the other factors that came into play. She realized now that they didn't come into each others lives again to ride off into the sunset. It was time for them to be friends again. Just friends.

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