A/N: Hi, awesome reviews guys. I have now officially caught up with every bit of Wrestling over the weekend. And then it'll begin again with TNAon Saturday. The Draft was riveting. Several of the predictions I made came true and I hope everyone thought the show was good. Enjoy the chapter, we'll be moving fast with this one. XxX

Disclaimer:I own Noah. Unfortunately I do not own anything affiliated with the WWE and I do not maintain to have any knowledge of the wrestlers personal lives whilst anything used in this fic is for the purpose of the story. Thank you!

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

Recuperating from the emotional roller-coaster my body had been on over the following few weeks was rather difficult. Especially since I didn't take the full 4 weeks prior to Wrestlemania off. I spent two weeks in my home town before meeting up with Phil and travelling with Smackdown for the last two weeks, spending most of my nights curled up in a hotel room, refusing to socialise with anyone.

At one point, Phil had to drag me from the room, almost kicking and screaming, just to get me something decent to eat other than hotel food. I was angry that I'd let my life spiral out of control like that, upset that I didn't have control over my own emotions and had lost myself in that fleeting moment with Randy in the locker room. Without even thinking of the consequences, without thinking of Ted.

Speaking of Ted, he had been great, phoning and texting me to ask how I was and making sure I was okay. I'd replied to a few of them with one or two word answers but had left the majority of them unanswered much to Phil's annoyance.

Watching episodes of RAW made things much worse, seeing Randy cement his 'face' turn and watching the collapse of Legacy, seeing the match being made for the biggest night of the year was tearing at my heart inside. I stared at Randy's cold, calculating eyes in the ring over and over again, placing my palm against the screen, touching his face when the camera would close in to gouge his reaction from the turn of events that each episode would take.

To top off the roller-coaster I was riding with Randy and Ted, I had to deal with Shawn taking on another match with 'The Undertaker' and putting his whole career on the line.

And then to add to the further stress on me, Vince contacted me and told me I was to be at the Wrestlemania: Hall of Fame ceremony, so I had to find something to wear to the event.


When the night before Wrestlemania came, my nerves were frazzled, my emotions were running on a high and I was scared to death about returning to the firing zone that my life had become within the WWE.

Phil had agreed to accompany me to the ceremony as well as bringing along his off-screen girlfriend, former WWE wrestler and singer Amy Dumas. I'd met her on a few occasions and she was very friendly and spoke to me about my situation with Randy. She knew Randy and encouraged me to be honest with him and tell him how I felt. She told me to go about it the proper way and not to hide things or I would end up on my ass in the gutter.


I was ready for 4pm, waiting for Phil and Amy to come and collect me from the hotel room. I took a deep breath as I sat in front of the mirror, dabbing a blusher brush against my cheeks. My glowing reflection stared back at me but the light didn't reach my eyes. I was nervous about Randy and Ted and hoped the night would go without any trouble.

I stood up and walked over to the full length mirror, adjusting the hem of my dress until it brushed against the floor without folding. It was a nude one shouldered dress made of draped tulle, tight down to just below the knee before flaring out in a mermaid tail finish. Along the shoulder, down over the one breast and down the side, the dress was embroidered with ebony lace flowers.

My hair was freshly cut, having had it restyled into a smooth shoulder length cut. The heavy bangs had been reduced to sleek side bangs, covering half of my face and the red and purple flashes had been coloured to add vibrancy to my hair. I added some hairspray, curling my hair around my shoulders to give it some life and transforming it into a makeshift bob.

Hanging from my wrist was a pale pink clutch bag with a jewelled clip and my feet were clad in nude 4 inch high heels, the toes covered by a single jeweled strap, and a similar strap around the ankle, holding them on my feet.

The door was knocked before being opened and I jumped, turning around to see Amy poking her head around the door. She was dressed in a silk satin charmeuse gown in a deep royal blue colour. The front of it had silk chiffon ruffles cascading down the front, framing the shoulder and neckline. She stepped into the room and smiled at me and I appraised her own dress with a smile of my own.

"Nervous?" she asked, I suppose she could tell from the 'scared shitless' look on my face. I nodded and took a deep breath, lifting the hem of my dress as I walked towards her. She wrapped her arm around my shoulders saying "You'll be fine. Everything will go great. Phil will be there to help and so will I".

"Thank you" I smiled as we left the hotel, closing the door behind us and heading downstairs to meet Phil at the car.

The car ride was long and stressful as I sat nervously on the plush seats of the limousine, my mind agonising over what would happen at the ceremony. Would Randy approach me? If so, what would he say? How would I react? How would Ted react? Should I tell Ted what happened between Randy and I?


The limousine pulled up to the crowded Dodge Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona. Limousines, cars and trucks were parked all around and fans were crowded out in the thousands to get a glimpse of their favourite WWE superstars as they entered the Hall of Fame Ceremony.

I smiled at the roar of the fans as I spotted John Cena and Kofi Kingston walking along the makeshift red carpet outside of the theatre. John was in his element, signing everything he could get his hands on and chatting amiably with his fans. Kofi was jumping about, taking pictures with the fans.

The car door opened and the sunlight shone into the car, blinding me for a split second before a hand grasped my own and pulled me graciously out of the car. I stepped out of the car, hearing the roar of the fans louder than before. Phil took my hand and then grasped Amy's hand in his other as he lead us towards the entrance of the theatre. The roar of the fans died as we walked the carpet. Phil's fans cheered for him and some asked me to sign a few things but because I'd spent the majority of my career in the WWE as a 'heel', I didn't have that many fans. I smiled, posed for a few pictures and signed numerous pieces of 'Legacy' and 'Diva' merchandise that I was handed, all the while, talking to some of the fans.

Phil cupped my elbow and I finished off signing a poster before saying goodbye to the fans and then heading inside the theatre with Phil and Amy. We signed in to let the security staff know we were there before we were handed out seating numbers and dinner table arrangements.

I looked about for a few moments in the lobby, seeing a few familiar faces along with the theatre staff, backstage staff, corporate members from the board, techies and security staff bustling about, making sure everything was in its place for the event.

Phil looked back to check I was okay and I smiled and nodded as he escorted Amy into the hall just ahead of me. I stepped in, holding the hem of my dress up gently, looking up at the vast ceiling of the theatre, to the top where the seats were beginning to fill up with fans who had bought tickets to see the ceremony. My eyes followed all the way back down to the front of the stage, where some of the superstars were taking their own seats.

I about to head to my seat in the hall when a warm hand touched my bare shoulder and I turned to see Barbie Blank aka Kelly Kelly smiling at me. She was dressed in a golden shimmery floor length gown with thin straps holding it up.

"Its nice to see you back. I wasn't sure if you were going to be here but well now you are, I thought I'd ask how you were? Randy, Ted and Cody haven't really been the same since you've been out on 'injury' and well then there's the whole Shawn retiring thing and I don't think Hunter was taking that too well without someone to talk to. And you're dress is so gorgeous? Where did you get....?"

"Whoa, back up Barbie. Shawn's retiring? Is that what you said?". She raised an eyebrow at me and tilted her head to the side slightly before nodding with a wide smile. Her smile then faded from her face and her mouth fell open in a gasp.

"You didn't know?" she asked covering her hand with her mouth "Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to upset you Noah. I just thought...I thought" she babbled. I sighed and held my hand up and shook my head, trying to stop the tears spilling down my cheeks.

"Just tell me where to find him".

"I...I'm not sure. He might be backstage. That'll be the best place....." she faded off as I stormed away, my dress catching around my legs. I tugged it up further and followed the direction for backstage, asking a few people as I passed. A theatre staff member touched my arm to stop me.

"Shawn's with the hall of fame inductees in the the green room sweetheart" she pointed me in the right direction and I thanked her before following the hall that she pointed down. I came to the green room and grabbed the door handle, took a deep breath and threw it open.


I stepped inside the large room, seeing all the inductees and quite a few of the superstars celebrating inside the room. There were glasses of champagne being passed around and plenty of laughs throughout the room. I heard Ted Dibiase's laugh from half way across the room, my eyes were drawn in that direction.

Moving my way through the crowd, I found Ted Dibiase sat with Ted Jr, Cody, Paul, Shawn, John Hennigan, Bret Hart, David Hart Smith, Nattie Neidhart and Tyson Kidd along with Paul Wight and John Cena as well.

I sighed as I stood behind the circle of them, staring at them as they were all engrossed in conversation.

I cleared my throat and moved closer.

"Shawn?" I spoke lowly, my voice shaking a little. Everyone from the circle looked up at me and Ted stood up instantly, moving his way towards me, his arms engulfing me in a hug so tight I almost couldn't breathe. It felt good to be back in his arms, somewhere safe, away from all my worries. He pulled back, his hands cupping my face.

"You look gorgeous" he murmured, pressing a kiss to my cheek. I smiled inspite of how I was feeling.

Shawn stood up, his fist curled around a glass of champagne. I sighed as he looked at me, his head tilted to the side.

"You know Baby Girl?" he asked and I nodded. I looked away, my lower lip quivering before turning back, my eyes angry.

"You're damn right I do!!" I snapped "Why? Why am I the last to know?" Ted's hands curled around my shoulders, his hands rubbing back and forth.

"Noah, don't start a fight. C'mon...." Ted whispered, trying to pull me away. I looked around at all the faces staring back at me, most with sympathy in their eyes.

"You all knew well before me and yet you kept it a secret. Why? Why didn't you tell me you were leaving?!" I stammered. I was fighting back the tears that were threatening to spill over and roll down my cheeks. Shawn handed his glass to Paul who was standing back and letting the two of us deal with the situation. Shawn stepped forward, coming towards me but I stepped back, Ted's front coming up against my back. I became rigid and shrugged his hands of my shoulders, stepping to the side and moving back.

"Noah, honey...please...just listen...."

"Why should I? You could have told me months ago. This isn't just an overnight decision. You've had a long time to tell me and yet you kept me in the dark just like all the fans. I thought we were close Shawn, I considered you like a father to me. I just, I can't...I need to....I need to get out of here".

I turned and began to push my way through the crowd, ignoring the groups cries of my name. I stumbled to the door of the green room and pulled it open, stepping out and slamming it behind me before heading down the corridor.


SHAWN'S POV

Why the hell didn't I tell her? I guess I just knew she had a lot on her plate, building up her character and dealing with Randy and Ted. Damn it! I should go after her.#

"I...I think I should go after her" I stammered, watching her flee from the room.

"I'll go" Ted cut in "She needs to see a familiar face.

"None of you will go. I'll do it" a thick voice cut through the conversation between Junior and myself. I looked behind Ted to see Randy standing there. His lips were pressed together before they formed a frown as he scratched his lips with his thumb. He tilted his head to the side and then took off from the room without another word.

"I hope she'll be okay".

"Yeah, man, Orton will sort her out. She'll be back, celebrating with us in no time. She just needs to get used to Papa Shawn not being around" Hunter laughed as he wrapped his arm around my shoulder, thrusting the glass of cool champagne back into my hand and pulling me to sit down.


NOAH'S POV

I wondered aimlessly backstage, losing my way around the maze of corridors along the way. One tear rolled down my cheek and I wiped it away gently, hoping that it hadn't made too much of a distinctive track on my face.

Deciding to retrace my paths, wanting to get into the theatre and get seated before anyone else could see me, I headed back, passing the green room on the way, not noticing the familiar figure coming out of the room and trailing after me. I turned the corner and began to walk down the hall, back towards the backstage entrance from the foyer of the theatre.

"You do know, a beautiful girl such as yourself, should not be wondering around backstage all by herself?" a voice caught me offguard from behind. I froze on the spot, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. A shaky breath left my lips and I turned around to see Randy standing in a black suit, open neck baby blue shirt which made his eyes pop and black shiny shoes. His hair was freshly sheared, he had a diamond stud in one ear and his collar was open at the top, allowing me a teasing glimpse of his chest. His hands were covered by the pockets of his trousers and he smiled at me, flashing his pearly white teeth and making my insides turn to goo, just at the sight of him.

"Randy" I breathed out softly with a small smile.

The next thing I knew, I was walking towads him, standing on my tiptoes, my nails scraping along his shaved scalp as I kissed him eagerly. Tingles exploded in the pit of my stomach as he kissed me back without a second's hesitation, pushing me back, till my heels were flat on the floor. His arms came around me, his hands moving to my back, one molding against my lower back, the other around the top of my shoulders, supporting me as he bent me back to get more leverage in the kiss.

His hot tongue, slipped past my own lips, earning a mewl from the back of my throat, my hands moving down to grasp at his shirt collar, my body pressing further against him, needing to feel him to assure myself that it was real.

Breaking the kiss, I breathlessly panted, earning a smirk from Randy.

"You have no idea how beautiful you look right now" he traced his thumb along my swollen lower lip and I wrapped my lips around it, sucking on it playfully.

"There's something I have to tell you" I spoke, moving back to my tiptoes to hug him, my lips pressing to his neck, just beneath his ear.

"Mmmm...what is it Princess?" he asked, one hand still on my back, the other playing with the ebony lace flowers across my shoulder. I opened my eyes, looking behind Randy as I heard the scuffing of feet.

"Teddy...." I breathed out.

"What about Ted?" Randy asked, before pulling back, sensing the tension in my body. He looked down at me, his hand framing my cheek gently "Noah? What about Ted?"

"He's behind you" I pointed over Randy's shoulder before he turned around, his arm winding around my waist to pull me flush against him, a gesture of possession, and we both stared at Ted, his eyes wandering over us, lips marred in an angry frown.

END OF CHAPTER

A/N2:There's another chapter. I made a change to the dress, I'd originally chosen for Noah and chose this one instead. I'll put a picture of both Noah's and Amy's dresses on my profile page and you can take a look at them. Thanks!! XxX