DISCLAIMER: As much as it breaks my heart to admit it, I do not own anyone or anything connected to Vince McMahon and his awesomeness. I can only claim property rights of OC.

Morning came all together too soon. Claire was awake long before the alarm clock sounded. She wasn't the only one. Turning on her side, Claire looked at the empty space beside her. She wasn't sure how long Randy had been awake but his pillow no longer held a trace of warmth. A sigh escaped her as she pulled his pillow close. Hugging it to her chest, she breathed in the lingering scent of his cologne. A fresh wave of tears welled up as she rubbed her cheek against the pillow. She hadn't even gotten out of bed yet and she already missed him so much she couldn't stand it. How the hell was she supposed to do this? The idea of leaving Randy brought back the ache in her chest.

Randy leaned against the door frame as he looked at Claire. The pained expression in her eyes made his gut clench. Today was the day they both dreaded. No amount of praying would stop this. It was too late. In just a few hours he would have to put her on a plane to Stamford. Once again Randy was struck by the unfairness of it all. He'd finally found the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Now she had to leave him. Didn't it just fucking figure? Life was a cruel bitch sometimes. Randy couldn't draw his eyes away from Claire. She blinked hard and he knew she was trying not to cry.

"You promised you wouldn't cry." Randy crossed the room and sat on the bed. He gathered her into his arms and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

Claire sniffed loudly as she wiped away a tear that streaked down her cheek, "I'm sorry. I can't help it."

Randy hugged her close and began rubbing her back in slow circles. He was hurting as much as she was. Hell, he was tempted to join in her a crying fit. Anything would be better than watching her suffer, "I know, baby. We'll make this work, I swear."

Claire took a deep breath as she pressed her cheek against his bare shoulder. She knew Randy was ever a man of his word. She just had to have a little faith. "I know we will. It just sucks."

Randy laughed softly. His Claire always did have a way with words. "I agree. This fucking sucks. At least we'll get to see each other in a couple of weeks."

Claire nodded slightly. The plan was for them to meet when the roster was in New York. Randy wouldn't be able to stay long, probably just over night. That was better than not seeing him at all.

"I've got something for you." Randy said. He pulled away from Claire and moved across the room. He opened the top drawer of his dresser and pulled out a small box. Coming back to the bed, he handed it to her.

"What's this?" Claire asked. She looked at the little silver box before shaking it gently. It didn't make a sound.

"Open it." Randy sat on the bed and pulled Claire into his lap. His chin dropped onto her shoulder as she slipped the ribbon free.

Claire gasped as she looked into the cottony interior of the box. She'd never expected something like this. A platinum heart-shaped locket sat on a fluffy bed of cotton. A small diamond was set in the center of the heart. Claire glanced at Randy, her eyes full of question.

"This is so we'll always be together." Randy took the locket from Claire and opened it before handing it back to her.

The photos inside brought a fresh wave of tears. On the right side was the photo of them from the Wrestlemania after party. They were both smiling into the camera, happiness shining in their eyes. On the right side was the picture Hannah had taken months ago. Claire stared at the picture, Randy's intense blue eyes staring back at her. It was like a miniature version of him had been captured in the heart-shaped frame. Randy looked at Claire in time to see her bottom begin to quiver. He knew she was going to get emotional when he gave it to her. But this was a little more than he was capable of dealing with.

"I swear if you start crying I'm gonna take it back." Randy said softly. He would never make good on the threat. But his words had the desired effect. Claire gave him an angry glare as she closed her hand over the necklace.

"Over my dead body." Claire said vehemently.

"That's my girl." Randy smiled as he stole a quick kiss. "Why don't you get dressed so we can have breakfast? Monica's getting impatient."

Randy finally pulled himself from the warmth of the bed. He'd love nothing more than to stay exactly where they were for the rest of life. Unfortunately, life had to go on, even when a man didn't want it to. That was just the way the world worked.

Claire tried to make breakfast last as long as possible. But there were only so many glasses of orange juice and only so many pancakes a girl could have. Randy finally coaxed her into leaving by promising he would stay with her until the absolute last second. Monica stood quietly in the kitchen, watching Randy gather the last of their things.

"I'll call you." Randy came to stand in front of Monica. He smiled a little as she twisted her handkerchief around her fingers. She hated good-byes more than he did. Monica took a deep breath. Looking into Randy's eyes she murmured something Claire couldn't hear. He pulled her gently into a hug. They embraced for a moment before Randy stepped away.

"You go now. No be late." Monica dabbed at her eyes with a corner of her handkerchief. Turning to Claire, Monica took a deep breath. She reached with her fingertips to brush a lock of hair away from Claire's face. "Randy's Claire. You come home soon." With a strength that was surprising, Monica pulled her into a tight hug. Claire awkwardly reached up and patted Monica on the back. Monica took both of Claire's hands in hers as she pressed a kiss to each cheek. "Tú eres su luz en la oscuridad." she whispered. You are his light in the dark.

Surprised, Claire pulled away to look at the little woman. Monica forced a smile and stepped toward the door. Randy picked up the last piece of luggage before moving slowly to the door. He paused to look at his home one last time. Walking out of the door was the hardest thing he ever had to do. Walking out meant life was never going to be the same again.

Stamford, Connecticut

A few hours later

The first thing Claire noticed when she walked into her apartment was the emptiness. The place was silent as the grave. The lingering stillness wrapped around her. She felt like she had stepped back in time. Everything was exactly as she had left it. Magazines were still neatly stacked on the coffee table. The remote controls were carefully arranged beside the lamp. Each item was exactly as it should be. The kitchen revealed more of the same. The appliances were precisely arranged. The red tea kettle sat on the stove. Every single item was exactly as it should be. And yet for some reason, Claire felt as if she were in a strange place. Nothing seemed familiar. It was like she was seeing everything for the first time.

Moving to the stove, Claire reached for the tea kettle. She filled it with water then replaced it on the burner. She leaned against the counter as she waited for the water to boil. Fatigue gripped her. Yet somehow Claire knew it was more than jet lag. The weariness she felt was deep inside her. She felt it gnawing at her bones. Closing her eyes, Claire rubbed a hand over her face. She was just so damn tired. All she wanted was to crawl into bed and tug the blankets over her head. It would be useless, though. Sleep would elude her. Her emotions were in turmoil. Thoughts of Randy kept plaguing her. It wouldn't take much to bring up another memory of him. They had been apart for a mere 12 hours but already she left as if it had been a life time.

It took every ounce of strength she had to board the plane. She waited until the absolute last second before turning away from Randy. As she walked down the tunnel towards the plane, she could feel his blue gaze burning into her. She still wasn't sure how she kept herself from turning around and going back to him. That was exactly what every single cell in her body wanted her to do. Yet somehow she had made herself keep walking, setting one foot in front of the other. The flight to Stamford had been uneventful; practically a text book flight. Claire thought she would feel better when the plane touched down in Stamford. But she didn't. In fact, she felt worse. No one was there to meet her. Slowly she moved through the airport and collected her luggage. A taxi brought her back to the quiet emptiness of home.

With a sigh, Claire reached for the whistling kettle. She pulled a cup from the carousel beside the stove and filled it. This was such bullshit. Home was where your heart was supposed to be. And her heart wasn't here in this small apartment. Her heart was with the blue-eyed Viper that had turned her world upside and shaken it apart. She used to be so secure in who she was. She knew what she wanted out of life and had a plan to get it. Now all she wanted was Randy. She wanted to be with him. She wanted to talk with him, hear him laugh, fall asleep in his arms. No matter how much it hurt, her home was wherever Randy was. They were on the road somewhere between St. Louis and Indiana. The roster was slowly making it's away across the east coast. In 9 days they would be in New York. Claire shook her head slowly as she turned off the light in the kitchen. Only 9 more days until she would have her heart back.

Meanwhile somewhere just outside of Terre Haute, IN

"Why are you so quiet?" The sound of Ted DiBiase's voice broke the silence that had settled in the car. They'd been on the road for four hours and a word had not been uttered in the last 45 minutes. Even Cody was silent. That in itself was unusual. Cody could be a Chatty Kathy when the mood struck him.

Randy's eyes remained on the road. He didn't spare his friend a glance. "Nothing to say."

Ted shot Randy a meaningful glance then turned back to staring out the windshield. God, Randy had been in total asshole mode since they'd left the airport. Ted knew Randy would take Claire's leaving hard. But he didn't realize how hard his friend was taking it. Randy was silent and Ted could feel the pissed off vibes pouring out of him. He knew Randy was not in a mood to be fucked with. Better they all suffer in silence than risk Randy's wrath. That was not something any of them would enjoy. Randy would just have to find someone else to take it out on. Ted was not fool enough to stick his neck on the chopping block. The relief in the car was palpable as Randy pulled into the parking lot of the hotel. The last four hours had been torture. As soon as the Randy turned the motor off Ted unbuckled his seat belt.

"I'll go check in." Ted didn't wait for a response. He opened the door and got out then quickly disappeared into the building.

Cody climbed out of the car. He stretched to work the kinks out of his back. He watched Randy slowly climb out of the car. Cody studied Randy's face. He looked like hell. There was a weariness in his eyes that hadn't been there before. And Randy was radiating a "Don't Fuck with Me" attitude. Randy hadn't been like that in as long as Cody could remember. Claire had tamed the beast that lurked just under the surface. Now that she was gone, the beast was rearing it's ugly head.

"You okay?" Cody asked as Randy came to stand beside him.

Randy took a deep breath as he looked at Cody. "I will be." That was as close to a denial as he was going to give.

"I'm sorry." Cody said softly. And he really was. He was very sorry, indeed, to see his friend hurting. The worst part was that he couldn't do a damn thing to make it better. Randy was just going to have to suffer through it. For some reason that pissed Cody off big time.

Surprised, Randy looked at Cody. Randy noticed for the first time that Cody didn't look so young and innocent anymore. There was a certain knowing look in his eyes. When had Cody grown up so much? And how the hell hadn't he noticed? It's amazing how much you missed out on when you had spent the last few years being a self-absorbed prick.

"What's going on with you, Code?" Randy studied his friend with intense blue eyes.

"Nothing." Cody glanced at Randy who was intently staring at him. He swallowed hard. That predatory look had been absent from Randy's gaze for months. Now it was back with a vengeance. It made Cody more than a little nervous.

"That night that you came to the house, what did you want to talk about?" Randy asked. He had wanted to talk to Cody since then but the time had never been right. Dealing with Claire leaving had sucked all of the energy out of him.

Cody shrugged a shoulder and looked at the ground. He kicked at a small rock, causing it to skip across the ground.

"Cody, you can talk to me." Randy said softly. Getting Cody to talk about anything serious was like tapping into a powder keg. As long as you knew what you were doing, you could get him to open up. However one false move would send him through the roof.

Cody was silent for a long time. He stood with his hands shoved deep in his pockets as he stared at the ground. Just when Randy was thinking Cody was going to go powder keg on him, he shook his head and looked up. "How do you know if you're man enough?"

Surprised, Randy locked eyes with Cody. This was a side of Cody he'd never seen before. Cody was the eternal fifteen year old boy. From the way he ate, to the video games he played, to the way he related to everyone around him, Cody was truly a little brother. "What do you mean? You're a man."

Cody sucked in a deep breath. "No, how do you know if you're ..."

"Spit it out, damn it." Randy crossed his arms over his chest as he looked at his friend. Whatever was bothering him had to be the mother of all problems.

"How do you know if a woman wants you?" Cody said the words in a rush. He hated how unsure he sounded. The last person in the world he ever expected to spill his guts to was turning out to be a valuable ally.

Randy arched a brow as he thought about what Cody was really asking. He knew Cody was asking more about the subtle ways a woman would let you know she was interested. Cody had been around the block enough to know the signs; how she would touch her face, she'd reach out to touch you, how you'd suddenly realize she was sending those little "fuck me" signals. What Cody was asking went way deeper than that.

"Is this about what Barbie said?"

Once again Cody couldn't look at his friend. He merely nodded in response.

"Man, you can't let that get to you. Women are picky." Randy tried not to smile at the ultra serious expression on Cody's face. The faint blush creeping into his cheeks told Randy just how embarrassed he was.

"It's not just Barbie."

"Then what is it?" Randy was suddenly very curious. Surely there had to be more to this than what he knew.

"I haven't been with anybody since before Thanksgiving."

Holy shit! Randy thought as he looked Cody over from head to toe. If he had been celibate for the last six months he would have slit his wrists and bled out. That was more than a lifetime of supply of blue balls. Poor Cody.

What the hell was he supposed to tell Cody? The old Randy would have told him to go to a bar and pick up a couple of hot blondes and bring them back to the hotel for a little action. And if that didn't cure the itch, keep doing exactly that until he couldn't see straight. A blow job a day kept the doctor way. What advice would the kinder, gentler RKO advise him?

"Do you really like Barbie?"

Cody nodded but didn't look at him.

"What do you have to lose? There's something to be said for an old-fashioned romance."

Startled, Cody looked at Randy. He expected to see laughter being held at bay. But what he saw left him speechless. Randy was completely serious, a sympathetic look in eyes.

"You're not going to tell me to sleep around?"

Randy shook his head. "Would that make you happy?"

Cody's answer was a soft, "No."

Randy took a deep breath and slowly uncrossed his arms. "Look, here's the truth. Nobody knows what makes people fall in love. Nobody knows why two people are attracted to each other. When you meet the right woman, you'll know."

"How?"

Randy laughed softly as he slapped Cody on the back, "'Cause you'll want to kill her and fuck her all at the same time."

Cody stared at Randy's broad back as he retreated. Oh God. No way in hell he meant that. Cody swallowed hard once, twice, a third time as Randy's words echoed in his brain 'you'll want to kill her and fuck her all at the same time'. The only thing Cody could think was a single word. Hannah.

***A/N – Please check back soon for the next update! Huge changes are coming! Please review!***