Hello, lovely readers!

Another day, another chapter. Holly and Dean are making some serious progress now. We've got to chapter 30 and they've only just decided they want to try a relationship! But the course of true love never did run smooth and a certain Mr Orton is still in the dark. So let's see what happens…

Also, we hit 300 reviews! I can't believe it! I'm so happy and excited and thankful to everyone who has left me feedback. I absolutely love my readers. They are the best!

Raquel the writer – Yes they are

LadyShadows410 – Yeah, we all know this isn't going to go as smoothly as Holly wants it too. There's going to be fireworks

Rileyjade – Aww, they are!

Lola – The sexual tension is off the chart! It's why they go together so perfectly. Randy will obviously be upset when the truth emerges but you will have to read on to see which of your theories is correct. As for Sheamus, wait and see…

Dutchangel1979 – It's only taken them 30 chapters to talk lol! And Raw will be a crazy one, I think!

DeeMarie426 – It's not going to be a fun talk no matter which way he takes the news. But this story is under the drama category, so I think we can all guess lol

Guest – It is, especially knowing how close Holly and Randy are and how he feels for her.

Tantoune – At least they've managed to actually admit some feelings now! Haha! It is a shame for Randy, and we know this talk with him will not be straight forward.

Ambrose-kohli-girl – Haha! Really, not really lol. Yeah, honesty is needed for Randy, especially as she is trying to make things work with Dean

Gostcat - Thank you and welcome to my little story! I hope you continue to enjoy it. This chapter will address the whole Randy situation so keep reading to find out. And as for Sheamus, you'll have to wait and see.

This chapter is named after 'Friend or Foe' by Tatu.

Holly Helmsley's Point Of View

That same night we flew out to LA for Raw. I liked LA. It was warm, sunny, and the beach was one of my most favourite places to go to relax and enjoy myself. Hunter and Steph also had a holiday home there, so LA meant no shitty hotels as I was able to stay with them. it meant a comfy bed, home made food, and some quality time with my brother and sister-in-law. But whilst I was excited to visit the place I loved so much, I was far from excited for the things I knew would happen there.

I needed to talk to Randy.

It was sadly a conversation that was long overdue and one that I wished I could avoid if I had the choice. But I needed to clear the air, tell him the truth and let him know once and for all that we in no way had a romantic future together. A friendship, yes. But romance, no.

It was gonna kill him, it was going to break his poor heart, and it was going to hurt him in a way that was unavoidable. I knew it was shit, and it made me feel like total crap, but sadly it was the truth. Romances can come and go and feelings can change over time, but the one thing that worried me the most about this conversation was how it was going to change the dynamic between Randy and myself.

Where would this leave us? How would this leave us? Would he hate me? Detest me? Freeze me out? I hardly wanted to consider the 'what ifs.' The last thing I wanted was to ruin our friendship, a friendship I'd held for almost half my life. It terrified me that things would not be as they once were due to some rejected and ejected feelings.

He was my best friend in the whole entire world, so I hoped this would go smoothly, calmly and leave us in a position where we could move forward with no bad feelings, no animosity and where we could continue our close friendship. A world without Randy in it was not one I wanted to consider, so I had to hope and pray that he wouldn't want to walk out of my life once he knew the truth. I had to keep faith that he would want to remain my friend.

I had to hold onto that wish otherwise the fear and anxiety of the conversation I was about to have with him would drive me mad.

I arrived at the arena apprehensively, dragging my case behind me. I'd travelled with The Shield boys but had decided to enter the arena alone in order to keep up pretences. Not only had Dean and I agreed to keep everything under wraps until I'd told Randy my feelings, but after that we knew we would have to remain secret and discreet until a time when we knew we could tell Hunter and Randy the complete truth without fear of them being upset or angry.

It was all still so new to us, but we both naturally knew how my brother would react. Dean knew the knife edge he already walked on with my brother due to his past actions and his personality traits. And I knew how protective Hunter was of his little sister, especially when she takes a romantic interest in a lunatic who threatens gangs and beats Irishmen to a pulp in alleyways! He would not want to accept it and I knew we wouldn't get his blessing yet.

We also both knew how Randy would react. He hated Dean at the best of times so to know he was the one who won my heart and affection would drive Randy up the wall. He'd lash out, get angry, and it could potentially ruin our friendship in the process. And that was the last thing either of us wanted. Even though they didn't get on, Dean knew of my history with Randy, and so he appreciated and respected the friendship I had with The Viper. He would never want to ruin that.

So we both decided to keep quiet and let our relationship blossom behind closed doors for now. We knew it would mean a lot of lies and a lot of sneaking around, but The Shield had our backs and so did Paige and Sasha.

We knew we could make it work.

So I walked to Hunter's office by myself, ready for the usual meeting before the show. Dean, Seth and Roman had already gone ahead so were probably now there. So I hurried to the office as quickly as I could.

I was the last to arrive, as usual. Hunter and Steph were sitting behind their desk, The Shield standing at the back of the room, resting against the wall. Kane, Big Show, J&J and Randy were in their seats, an empty one sitting there waiting for me.

I swallowed nervously as I looked at Randy, a soft smile gracing his face as he looked at me as I walked over to my chair. I offered him a half smile and quickly took my seat.

Hunter and Steph gave us the lowdown on the show tonight, what matches were taking place and what our rolls were throughout. It didn't take long to get through everything, so as everyone filed out of the room, I took the chance to grab Randy before he was out of sight.

"Hey, Randy?" I asked, grabbing his wrist as he was about to leave the room. He stopped and quickly turned to face me. "You got a second? I need to talk to you about something."

"Of course I have," he said sweetly. "What's wrong?"

I looked around as everyone either left the room or spoke to each other. "It's kinda personal. Can we go somewhere more private?"

"Sure," he replied. "My locker room is only down the corridor."

"That'd be perfect," I replied. So we left my brother's office and walked silently to his locker room, locking the door behind us once we were inside.

He went to stand by the wooden bench at the far side of the room as I remained by the door, clasping my clammy hands nervously together. My mouth was dry, my throat struggling to swallow as anxiety slowly hit me. I knew this was it, this was the moment, and I was terrified of what was about to happen. I knew it was never going to be an easy moment, but now I was here I realised how hard it was truly going to be.

He looked over at me, his eyes soft, his face friendly, his smile caring, and the usual pang of guilt hit me. He had no idea what was coming. He had no idea how quickly that friendly expression was about to be wiped from his face.

I hate myself right now…

"So what's the matter?" he asked me.

I gazed at him, my voice suddenly timid, almost afraid to come out. I was afraid of what could potentially happen here, but I knew my fear was selfish. I had to do what was best and what was right by my friend.

"I…I think you might want to sit down for this one," I finally said, and the smile on his face dropped.

"Holly, what's going on?" he asked, his voice full of concern. "You're scaring me."

"Please sit down," I said calmly. So he did. He backed up and took a seat on the wooden bench. I took my own advice and cautiously sat down beside him, making sure to keep a sensible distance between us.

"What's this about?" he asked, his voice a little more urgent.

I took a deep breath.

"I've been very wrong and very selfish lately," I began. "I've treated you in a way that you certainly don't deserve and given you a hope that shouldn't really be there. I hate myself for it and I can't put you through it any longer, Randy. It's not fair on you and you deserve to know the truth."

"The truth about what?" he asked and I could see the worry in his deep blue eyes.

My heart thumped in my chest but I ignored it.

"Us, Randy," I said. "The whole kiss thing, me thinking about it, you holding onto the hope that we could have a future."

He stared at me and I slowly saw realisation dawn on his face. It was like it happened in slow motion, the care in his eyes forming into confusion before it turned into recognition.

"No… Holly… please don't-"

"It's not gonna work, Randy," I finally finished.

"Don't say things you don't mean," he tried, clasping my hands suddenly in his, holding them tightly. I wanted to pull them away but his strength was far stronger than mine. "You can't mean what you're saying. You just can't."

"I do, Randy," I said, my friend suddenly letting my hands go so he could stand up. I watched him carefully as he began to pace the room. "There's too much of a friendship between us and I can't jeopardise that. It won't work between us."

"How do you know that?" he asked, his pacing continuing. "We could work. We have so much in common, we get on so well. Do you realise how good we could be together." He turned to look at me.

I stared at him sadly.

"But there's no romantic feelings there for me. If we tried a relationship I know I'd be lying to myself. And that's definitely not fair on you. You can't force these things."

"But… But you could learn. You could learn to love me," he said, his voice almost pleading now.

The sound shot through me painfully like a bullet to the chest. I'd never heard him sound so sad or desperate before. It was enough to make me want to cry. This shouldn't have been left for so long, I should not have let it continue after that first initial kiss. It had been wrong, it had been selfish and it should have been nipped in the bud long before this. Now I was having to deal with the consequences, now I was having to endure my friend's pain.

I simply shook my head. "I can't, Randy. I'm so sorry…." My voice trailed off.

He grabbed at his head as he paced back and forth in front of me, his head shaking in denial. His hands fell to his hips as his head looked down at the floor. Finally his pacing stopped and he turned to look at me.

I braced myself for whatever shit he deserved to throw at me.

"Is… Is this because of Ambrose?" he finally said.

All I could do was look at him. His eyes bore into mine so deeply I was afraid he'd burn a hole through them. Paige said to not even mention Dean, and Dean and I had agreed to not mention our relationship until things had settled more. But as I stared at him, as I looked at the hurt in his eyes and the betrayal on his face, I felt the urge to tell him the truth.

I'd lied to him enough, he'd been kept in the dark enough. Surely he deserved to know this one truth.

But as I saw flecks of anger within his blue eyes, I managed to stop myself. I knew now was not the time, now was not the best place to rub salt in the wound and make things even worse.

So I shook my head and looked down at the floor. "No," I lied. "This has nothing to do with Dean."

I quickly looked up when I heard him chuckling lightly to himself.

"Then why don't I believe you?" he asked me.

"You don't have to, but it's the truth," I lied. "Besides, this isn't about Dean. This is about you and me."

"But that's the thing," he said. "It isn't about you and me, is it? Because you've walked in here and told me there's no you and me."

My heart dropped. "I know… and it kills me that I've had to say this to you."

"It's killed me more," he murmured to himself.

I could feel the familiar sting of tears building up behind my eyes.

"Please don't be mad at me, Randy," I pleaded.

"I think I need you to leave," he said to me.

I gasped lightly and froze up, the sadness now slowly forming into anger. I hoped this wasn't his way of saying our friendship was over, I hoped this wasn't him turning his back on me. I knew this reaction was coming but it still didn't stop the worry or shock.

"I'm so sorry. Don't hate me, please," I begged as I stood up and made my way over to the door, knowing it was best to just do what he said right now.

"I just… I just need to time to think," he said without looking at me. "I'll see you during Raw, okay?"

I swallowed but nodded as I opened the door.

"Alright… I'll see you during the show."

And then I left the room, closing the door behind me, feeling more shit about myself than I ever had before.

xXx

I didn't see Randy after that, the show now in full swing. He seemed to be keeping himself to himself and after the damage I'd caused I knew it was best to respect his wishes and leave him alone for a while. I didn't have time to fret about him because, as worried as I was, I was at work and I had to remain professional. It was the perfect distraction.

I did my job and I did it without giving anything away. I went out to the ring when I had to and I made sure every employee was where they needed to be. The last thing the show needed was my personal life blowing up and ruining it. So I put it to one side until Raw was over.

I was in the gorilla, watching a match between Stardust and Neville when a stage hand announced he needed Randy and Del Rio here ready to go for their match. This was normal practice to have the next set of wrestlers here ready for when the match before finished, and whilst Del Rio was present and accounted for, Randy was nowhere in sight.

So the stage hand informed Hunter.

And I began to worry.

"Where the fuck is he?" asked Hunter once he'd arrived at the gorilla. "He should be here by now."

I stepped back, my breathing heavy, knowing it was probably my fault Randy was not present and accounted for. It was very out of character for him to disappear like this and I couldn't help the panic that rested in my heart. I hoped my words had not driven him to the point where he'd left the arena. I knew he said he needed time to think but surely he wouldn't just up and leave. I pulled at my hair, wondering why things had to get so fucked up.

"Is he in his locker room?" Hunter asked as the monitors indicated the match currently showing had finished with Neville as the winner.

"We've checked everywhere, sir," explained the stage hand. "Locker rooms, bathrooms, canteen, outside. We can't see him."

Hunter shook his head in frustration. "I'm gonna kill him when I see him," he mumbled under his breath. "He knows better than this. Get the fucking Shield out here. I still need to put a match on."

The stage hand rushed off to get them as I walked over to my brother.

"What are you going to do?" I asked him.

He sighed in annoyance, loosening his tie a little. "I still need to put on a match," he said. "I'll send Rollins out to fight Del Rio instead."

I looked at him sadly. "I suppose we have to keep up normality until we find him."

"Do you know where Randy could be?" Hunter asked.

I shook my head. "Not a clue."

"He's in trouble when I see him," he mumbled at The Shield came into view. They looked confused as to the meaning of this meeting.

"What's going on?" asked Roman.

"Orton is a no show," Hunter told them, Dean's eyes quickly darting over to me at the sound of his words. I subtly shook my head, Dean understanding immediately that now was not the time for questions. "I have Del Rio ready and the fans need a match. I need Rollins out there to fight. Reigns, Ambrose, you can watch from the sidelines. I need you up those stairs as quickly as you can because this match is about to start."

"Yes, sir," they said in unison, rushing off to prepare for the match. Del Rio's music sounded and he hit the stage as Hunter walked past me

"You get any word of where Randy is, you tell me right away, alright?" he said.

"Of course," I nodded as we both walked backstage, ready to watch the match.

xXx

I sat backstage, sipping on a glass of water as I watched the match on large monitors. A lot of the roster was here too, watching the fight as Seth and Del Rio fought hard, Roman and Dean supporting their brother from ringside.

Considering it had been an impromptu match made by Hunter only minutes before it began, it was a really good fight between the two men. They were evenly matched, their different fighting styles providing a challenge for each fighter. I was impressed because not only was it an excellent match but it showcased The Shield perfectly.

But I couldn't exactly say I was really concentrating because at the back of my mind was worry, concern and complete fear.

Where the fuck was Randy?

As much as I tried to deny it to myself, I knew it was my fault that he was MIA. Randy never did this. He was a constant professional, someone who abided by the rules and did his job to the best of his ability. Never had I seen him go missing like this with no explanation and no clear sign of where he was.

As I watched the match, I lifted my phone to my ear for the hundredth time that night as I attempted to call him again. No answer.

I knew my words would hurt him, but I didn't expect this. I didn't expect his work to be effected or for him to act in such a manner. I hoped he was alright, I hoped he was safe, and I hoped he didn't do anything stupid.

Though the answer to that hope was soon discovered…

It felt as if it all happened in slow motion really, my eyes not quite believing what I was seeing as it played out. But this was real, this was live, and the scene that unfolded before me was a true one.

Everyone in the room watched the match from the monitor, Roman and Dean standing at ringside, their backs to the crowd as they supported their brother. Everything seemed normal and fine when suddenly Randy appeared from nowhere. My eyes widened, my mouth agape in shock. I wasn't sure if he was hiding in the crowd, in the time keeper's area or under the ring, but all of a sudden he was in shot, his face red, rageful and full of anger.

What the fuck is he doing there…?

Where has he been all this time…?

My heart stopped as I watched him approach Dean at speed, the lunatic having absolutely no time to react. The crowd began to scream and make noise, indicating to him something was wrong. No sooner had Dean turned around to see Randy approach did he suddenly hit him with an RKO, Dean dropping to the ground unmoving.

I gasped.

My mouth hung agape.

No… please no…

Every breath I had left my body.

What had just happened…?

Randy stood over Dean menacingly, shouting at him, his words unreadable. I barely had time to make sense of it before Roman ran towards him, ready to attack and protect Dean. But Randy was quicker, running up the ramp before the powerhouse had chance to get to him.

My legs began to tremble as Roman knelt at Dean's side, checking on his friend, the camera zooming in on his face as he lay there.

I felt sick… I felt puzzled… astonished… hurt… confused… angry…

Why had he done this? Why had he lowered himself to such a level? Why had Randy done something so brutal?

This was not Dean's fault, it was mine. I hurt him, I broke his heart, I let him down. Not Dean.

And now, in front of the whole fucking world, he had attacked him, he had hurt him, and he had given the impression that The Authority was not united. He'd fucked up. He'd let his personal life jeopardise his professional one.

This wasn't right.

So I ran. I left the canteen, needing to talk to him, needing to see him, needing to know what the fuck he was playing at. Confusion and the need for answers fueled my legs to move quickly, my teeth gritted as my hands wiped silent tears away from my eyes.

I needed to know what the fuck he was playing that and why he had reacted in such a harsh manner. I wanted to hug him and tell him it was all alright, I wanted to kill him and scream until my lungs gave out. I just wanted to know why!

I knew Randy would need to leave after what he had done as security, The Shield and Hunter would be after him. So I ran to the loading bay at the back of the arena. The place was huge, but I knew where all the cars were parked. I searched manically, quickly spotting him by his car.

"RANDY!" I yelled as I ran towards him. "RANDY!"

He looked up at me as tears of anger slipped down my cheeks, a look of sternness on his face, but also one of sorrow.

"Get here now!" I yelled as he opened his car door. "Don't you dare fucking leave!"

"I'm sorry, Holly," he said as he slipped inside his car, driving off into the distance before I could reach him…

Again, a huge thanks to Raquel the writer, LadyShadows410, rileyjade, Lola, dutchangel1979, DeeMarie426, Tantoune, ambrose-kohli-girl, gostcat and my guest reviewer for their words about the last chapter.