So, I wrote most of this really, really tired...if it doesn't make sense, just roll with it..I swear the next chapter will be completely coherent. Work is chaotic right now, the boyfriend is..well, possibly no longer the boyfriend..There's an ex coming back into the picture, plus a new guy...I'm tellin ya peeps, when it rains it pours. Too much drama in my life, I need a vacation. Big hugs to all of you who let me know what you think, I'll try to have at least one more update done this weekend since this one is short. As always, Read, Enjoy, & Review! Later!

Chapter 26...

Detroit, Michigan

Friday (4 Days Later…)

"Alright," Brianna stopped, slightly out of breath. She picked up the remote for the stereo and stopped Brooke's CD before it went to the next song. "Not too bad."

She turned to face Brooke and then 8 dancers they'd chosen. They were all looking at her expectantly. She'd promised them that she would think about ending rehearsal early if they nailed the two routines they learned so far.

She put on a serious face, "About Us was pretty good but I noticed some slip ups…My Space is getting there but you all need some work."

The dancers groaned. Marcus, Brianna's favorite of the male dancers, laid down on the floor, putting his hat over his face.

"And I know you've only been working on these for two days but I expect you to have these down by tomorrow and I'm not sure how that's gonna happen if I let you leave so early," she shook her head.

They looked crestfallen.

"But I'm sure I'll find a way, you can go," Brianna smiled, waving them away.

"Woohoo!" Brooke exclaimed, clapping her hands.

"But you better believe I'm gonna work all your asses to the bone tomorrow," she said, turning to pick up the hat she'd taken off and tossed on the floor earlier.

"Hey boss, why don't you come hang out with us tonight?" Marcus asked.

"Yeah, we're going out to celebrate our new jobs," Natalie smiled.

"Marcus, I told you about calling me boss," she laughed, turning and poking him in the chest. "And I would guys but I'm not exactly in a celebratory mood. You all go have fun."

"Well will you at least come eat with us now?" Lisette, another one of the dancers, asked. "We've been up since 6, we're all starving."

"As much as I'd love to, I cant," she said. "Seriously, you guys go, have fun. Get some rest."

Brooke and the rest of the dancers left the studio and Brianna walked around the room, picking up discarded towels. Matthew Monroe, one of her good friends, owned quite a few dance studios nationwide and agreed to give Brianna full access to them while she was training Brooke and her dancers, as long as she guest taught a few classes when she had time. She did one Wednesday, the day she arrived in Detroit and due to the huge response, she promised to do another one on Friday before they flew out. She tossed the towels in the laundry bin in the corner and then walked over to the mirrored wall, sitting down and picking up her water bottle. She held it against her forehead, taking a deep breath as it slowly cooled her down. She picked up the stereo remote with her other hand, quickly turning the CD back on and then putting it back down. She needed to get to work on some more choreography but she was starting to have a little trouble. There was a little too much going on in her head at once. Monday night she was informed that in addition to the one routine she was asked to choreograph, the label was hoping that she would develop routines for the entire CD to help with Brooke's promotional tour. Brianna was a little annoyed that they would ask her this with Brooke's first promotional appearance to take place in two weeks but she didn't feel right saying no so she agreed. Then, she got up at 4 Tuesday morning and went to the studio to come up with another routine before the final auditions. She was done by 7. The dancers arrived for the audition at 7:30. Brianna, along with Brooke and her representatives, picked Brooke's 8 tour dancers. During the individual auditions, Brianna had written her ideal final 8. Natalie, Lisette, Janna, and Toni were her favorite girls. Gregory, Marcus, Danny, and Sean were her favorite of the male dancers. After a little arguing, Brianna got all of the dancers she wanted. It was especially easy to get her way after she reminded them of the workload they were springing on her. They had rehearsals for 3 hours Wednesday morning, then during the day she actually managed to spend some time with her sister and her new friends. That night it was back to work. She had to fly back to LA to begin work on the group number she was to teach the final 8 for SYTYCD's results show for the next week. She arrived at the airport at 8 P.M. and Rob picked her up, taking her to her studio so that they could run through the number and work out all the kinks. They worked for 2 hours, then she went home and passed out. Gia woke her up at 6 to ask if she could borrow her car to go get her hair done and Bri vaguely remembered tossing the keys at her, face still buried in a pillow. Once she finally got back to sleep at 6:30, Nick came home and got on the phone with his brother. It was impossible for her to sleep through the noise so she got up, gave him her best evil eye and walked out, storming down the hall to the upstairs guest room. She slept for another hour before Nick knocked on the door, telling her the show's publicist was on the phone. She had another vague memory, this time of herself yelling 'what the hell does she want?' before Nick came in and pressed the phone to her ear. Brianna hung it up but Julia called back informing her that she had a bunch of satellite interviews to do in an hour. By the time she finished her shower, the limo was already outside for her. She had to have her hair and makeup done on the way there. The only good thing about the ride was that they also picked up her fellow judge/choreographer Mia Michaels, one of Brianna's closest friends. On the ride, Mia informed Brianna that she'd been asked by some fans and a few of the show's dancers, if there was any truth to the rumor that she was dating John Cena. Mia, of course, knew the truth, but she also knew John and Brianna's history and had some questions of her own when she found out how much time Bri had spent around him recently. Before she knew it, she'd spilled her guts to Mia, telling her everything that happened from her welcome back party to the kiss and her friend was staring at her in surprise. Before they could talk more, they were at the theater where the show was shot. Brianna, Mia, Mary Murphy and head judge Nigel Lythgoe sat at the judges table and answered questions from reports from various media outlets around the country. They playfully dodged questions about who their pick to win the contest was and promoted the show as best they could for two and a half hours. To Bri's surprise, she even had to answer some questions about her recent involvement with the WWE, which, of course, led to questions about her and John. Vince's plan had obviously worked the way he wanted it to. She tried to be coy about it but made sure to fit in plugs for Brooke and Summerslam when she got the chance. After the satellite interviews were done, Brianna went to her dressing room backstage and took a nap for 45 minutes. Then, the dancers arrived and she spent the rest of the day running through routines with them to make sure they were ready for the show that night. Then, she had 20 minutes to change clothes and get into the audience to watch. She called Nick to see if he was coming but he, of course, said he didn't feel like it. Brianna cheered on her 'babies' as she liked to call the show's contestants, though some of them were older than her. Once the show was over, she met up with the judges and dancers backstage and they gave the contestants their usual pep talk. Bri made sure to talk to her favorite of the dancers, a 19 year old by the name of Ainsley Scott, assuring the younger woman that she was doing great. Usually, Bri took all of the dancers out to dinner on Wednesday nights after the show but she apologized for not having time and went back home. She changed clothes, tossed everything out of her suitcases and packed all new items, hauled ass to the airport boarded yet another flight and got into Detroit at 2 A.M. She listened to Brooke's CD on the flight, making sure she clearly remembered the routines she had done and coming up with ideas for new ones. Once she got to the hotel, she sent Raquel a text to let her know she was there, went up to her room and fell asleep, not bothering to change into pajamas. Then she got up at 6 to meet the dancers at the studio by 7.

"And now it's noon," she sighed, looking up at the clock. She yawned, picking herself up and grabbing her bag and keys. The studio wasn't supposed to be open until 1 so she had to lock up on her way out.

20 Minutes Later…

Brianna smiled, waving at the young girl she'd just signed an autograph for as she and her mother walked to their car. Right when she got out of her rental car outside the hotel, the young girl ran up to her, telling her SYTYCD was her favorite show. Brianna thanked her for watching, took a few pictures, and signed an autograph. Now, she was on her way into the hotel, praying that there was nothing between her and at least a few hours of sleep. Then, just as she walked through the doors, she saw him. John was standing in the middle of the lobby, looking down at his watch. He'd barely said a word to her since Monday. She understood that he was bothered by what she said about kissing him but still…it was driving her crazy. She didn't like him being mad at her. She didn't like not talking to him, not being around him. Every time they saw each other he just looked at her like…like he didn't want her around. It hurt. It hurt a lot. Maria and Trish offered to talk to him for her but she asked them not to. Raquel kept telling her to just talk to him but she wasn't sure if she could. She was scared. Scared of what he would say. It hurt enough to assume that he didn't want her there but she wasn't sure she wanted to actually hear him say the words.

So just go upstairs and don't say anything to him

She took a deep breath and started walking again, not sure if he even saw her. The closer she got to John the more she wanted to just run up and beg him to end this silence. Maybe she should just talk to him. Maybe she needed to just get it over with.

Okay fine, I'll try to talk to him. What's the worst that could happen?

She squared her shoulders and started walking in his direction.

---------------------

John looked at his watch, wondering what the hell was taking Randy so long. He forgot his phone in the hotel restaurant and it had been a while since he went back to get it. Knowing Randy, some chick caught his eye.

John looked at the watch again, deciding to give Randy five minutes before he left him. He wasn't in a very patient mood. He wasn't in a good mood period. It started after his argument with Brianna on Monday and just never seemed to end. Now that he'd decided she was toying with him, having Brianna around was driving him crazy. He wasn't one to let things or people get to him like this and it bugged him that she was having such an effect on his demeanor. For months he'd had fans turning on him, people criticizing his ability in the ring, his musical talent, his acting ability even though his damn movie wouldn't be out for months and he still managed to stay positive and be happy. But one kiss with that damn woman and the resulting argument managed to make him a complete and total crab-ass for days. Randy tried, in his own way, to make him feel better by trying to hook him up with a few girls he knew. He humored his friend, going out to a few clubs and bars, trying to have a little fun but he wasn't really into it. He sighed, looking around for Randy, cutting his time down to 3 minutes. That was when he spotted her. Brianna was standing in the lobby, a gym bag thrown over her shoulder. Even in a white tank top, loose fitting jeans, and a Steelers hat she looked frustratingly beautiful. She started walking toward him and he sighed, not ready for this conversation. He wanted, needed, to be mad at her for a while. The anger he was feeling was clear and simple, nothing confusing about it. If he talked to Brianna, he'd slip into that gray area. The area where he wanted to be mad at her but just being close to her, looking into her eyes made it hard. Why did she have to make things so difficult?

"John," she said his name quietly as she approached. She looked nervous.

"Sorry that took so long," Randy finally reappeared. He looked back and forth between them, "You ready to go man?"

John looked down at his watch again, this time to avoid looking at her.

"Yeah," John agreed. "I'll see you later Bri."

---------------------

"That was fun," Raquel laughed as she and Jeff walked out of the theater. "I don't think I've ever seen a movie this early in the day before."

Jeff shrugged, finishing his bag of M&Ms, "Just don't tell Matt we saw a movie while he had a signing. He'd be pissed at us."

Raquel smirked, he was probably right. They had become quite the trio lately. They were a lot of fun to hang out with. And their occasional brotherly bickering was strangely cute. As fun as it was to be with both of them, she had to admit, it was nice spending a little time alone with Jeff. She'd finally gotten over her shock that they were actually friends all of a sudden. Now she was just enjoying getting to know him. And Matt..But maybe Jeff a little more than Matt. Maybe.

"You know, I've never spent so much money on food at the movies," he looked over at her and the bag she was carrying.

"I like candy," she shrugged. "And nachos."

"And pretzels," he reminded her.

"I only got one pretzel," she pointed. "And you ate half of it."

"I was hungry," he shrugged as they reached his rental car. He opened her door and made sure she got in before walking around to the driver's side. She smiled at the gentlemanly gesture.

He caught her smile and gave her a confused look as he started the car, "What?"

"Nothing," she shook her head.

"You sure?"

She nodded.

He still looked confused but he shrugged, pulling out of the parking space.

"So, I'm planning a little outing tonight," she said, putting her bag of candy in the backseat.

"What kind of an outing?"

"There's a club called Warehouse that's about 15 or 20 minutes from the hotel," Raquel explained. "I wanna check it out. Plus, I need to get Bri out of this miserable mood she's been in."

"That have anything to do with John being so damn cranky the past few days?" he laughed.

Raquel nodded, "It's got everything to do with that. I'm inviting a bunch of people. You wanna go?"

"Sure," Jeff shrugged. "Why not?"

Raquel smiled, "Good..So what time is Matt's signing over?"

Jeff looked at the clock, "About an hour. What do you wanna do 'til then?"

"Well," she thought about it for a second. Then, she smiled, "I could use a new dress for tonight."

Jeff shook his head, "I am not going shopping with you."

---------------------

"So he just walked off with Randy?"

Brianna nodded, curled up in bed, using the pillow to keep her phone pressed to her ear. She was planning on taking a nap but Maria called on the way back from her radio interview and she just had to tell someone about her brief encounter with John.

"He said 'See you later' and left," Brianna explained.

"I don't know what his deal is," Maria sighed. "Do you want me to talk some sense into him?"

"No, I don't think that's gonna help but thanks," Bri said. "I understand why he's mad I just..I don't know..This sucks. Maybe I just need to eat some ice cream and sleep for a few days"

"Eating yourself to sleep is not gonna make you feel better," Maria laughed. "Going out with us tonight will."

"I don't think I'm up for that," Brianna sighed.

"You're being mopey," Maria stated.

"I know," Bri said. "I'm okay with that."

"No you're not, I can tell you're not."

Brianna sighed. She hadn't known Maria for very long but they had were already getting to know each other pretty well.

"Come on now, I know you packed at least one hot dress," Maria said cheerfully.

"I always keep a few handy," Brianna confirmed. "But I'm not going. I told you, I've got a date with some peach ice cream and my slightly low thread count hotel sheets and prickly down feather pillows."

"You're so going," Maria laughed. "You can say no now but you'll change your tune when you have me, Raquel, and Trish ganging up on you."

"I don't think so," Brianna shook her head. "I'm really not in a clubbing mood."

"You will be."

---------------------

"How many dresses are you gonna try on?" Jeff asked, sitting in a chair, yelling back into the fitting rooms. The saleswoman gave him a look but he ignored it. He hated shopping and if he was gonna do it, then he was gonna complain all he wanted.

"Every one in the store if you don't quit whining," came Raquel's response.

He sighed, leaning his head against the wall. It wasn't exactly a hard day's work watching Raquel try on clothes. Virtually everything looked good on her, he just hated being in department stores. 90 percent of the time they were just too stuffy for him.

"Hey Jeff?"

"Yeah?" he perked up, praying she was about to tell him they could leave.

"I grabbed the wrong size in the pink one…Can you get me another one?"

"What pink one?" he asked. "Didn't you have like four pink ones?"

Raquel let out a frustrated sigh, "Nevermind."

After a few seconds, she came out of the dressing room wearing a green dress that he didn't even remember seeing her with. She didn't ask his opinion this time but he quickly decided that this one was his favorite. It had thin, straps and a bow at the bustline. It fit her waist perfectly and then the flowy fabric draped over her hips, stopping just above mid-thigh.

"You didn't show me that one," he pointed out as she walked over to the rack, putting back the pink dress and then flipping through them to find the right size.

She smiled over her shoulder, a smug glint in her green eyes, "You like it?"

Jeff shrugged, "It's not bad."

---------------------

"So we've got plans tonight," Randy said as he and John walked back into the hotel.

"We do?" John looked over at him, confused.

"With Jessica and Nikki," Randy nodded. "Trust me, I'm sure you'll like one of 'em."

"Where are we going?" John asked.

"It's a club called Warehouse," Randy answered. "It's not far from here."

"I don't know man, I think I might just chill here tonight," John said.

"Come on, how are you gonna get over Brianna sitting in your hotel room watching SportsCenter?" Randy asked. "We're going out."