Memphis cranked up the volume on her iPod a few more notches as she picked up the pace. She had about two hours before she needed to be at the arena for work and she had opted for a jog. Many of the venues were conveniently located in "downtown" areas or at least populated ones with plenty of sidewalks. She worked out pretty hard at the gym but runs were her favorite source of cardio. It felt good to get lost and take a jog with the fresh outside air beating against her face, music turned up, in some unfamiliar city. Once again, life had managed to calm down a little bit. Her emotions were on edge and had been for good reason. Even as great as things had been with Randy, there always loomed that little shadow of doubt in the back in her mind. Could Randy be trusted? Did they even have a legitimate chance?

From that first leap of faith when she had given her heart to him, he had been one pleasant and gentle surprise after another. It was nice to see the softer, sweeter side of Randy Orton. She wanted to love him but she knew they would never make it that far if she could not trust him. He had a knack and reputation for being a bit of a loose cannon and sure enough, the volcano had erupted at the most unexpected of times. His cavalier attitude and cold shoulder that followed had just added salt to an already oozing, open wound. It had taken a little over 24 hours for them to make up. Staying true to her strong nature, she had stood firmly on her ground and not caved in or begged him. He had waltzed back in her life and before accepting his apology and making amends, she had been sure to lay down some ground and communication were key.

Memphis had let him make love to her. That night Randy had been even more passionate than usual but it was a different kind of passion. It had nothing to do with his insatiable lust and physical want for her. It was more about a need to silently prove how much she meant to him and how sorry he was that he had hurt her. He held her closer than he ever had before. There was kissing the whole time and when he wasn't kissing her, he was looking intensely in her eyes. It was tender and slow and when a few silent tears fell down her cheeks, her boyfriend was right there to kiss them away.

They had fallen asleep wrapped in each other's arms. The next morning they had woken up and uncharacteristically, Randy had again apologized and promised to be more considerate of her feelings and less likely to launch into a tantrum and ignore her. That in itself had made her feel better. After a quick shower together, Randy had gone off to do media for the day. They had remained in contact via text messages and he had even extended an invite for her to join him to work out at the local gym. Memphis had politely declined and promised to catch up with him later. She didn't feel like doing any weight training and a street jog seemed like it would be more mind clearing than a treadmill or elliptical machine inside a crowded gym. And despite feeling calmer and more centered, a little extra mind clearing certainly never hurt anyone.

It had been a good day so far and Memphis had only positive thoughts that it would continue. Her run had gone well. She had made a little over three and a half miles without being noticed. Flashing her badge and a big smile to security, they let her in the rear entrance of the arena where the talent arrived and exited. She scoped out the scene and layout of a building she had never been in before and then grabbed some food in the Catering section. She had a salad and a water and then headed back to Randy's empty bus where her officiating gear had remained stored. Deciding to take a single carry on, she also slung a gym bag over her left shoulder and headed back in the building. Frowning, she noticed that it was a different entrance and all of a sudden, she was turned around. Finding what she thought was the women's dressing area, she opened the door but found the large room empty…almost.

He had been away for a few months and sitting around on a couch at home was driving him crazy. Though the debilitated piece of bone in his hip had desperately needed the rehab for which he had been sidelined for, plain and simple, he was a professional wrestler, an elite member of sports entertainment's most infamous traveling athletic circus. He was a bit of a loner, an outsider in the WWE but then again, he had lived his entire life as a man who moved to the beat of his own drum. He was anxious to get back to his livelihood and he was more focused than ever, despite the heaviness that weighed inside his heart. He would never allow anyone to see that though. With that oh so familiar fire in the eyes and ice water in the veins, CM Punk was back and ready for anything…almost.

"Sorry, wrong locker room. I didn't know anyone was in here," she stopped mid-sentence.

Her eyes grew wide and her heart caught in her throat. She got real butterflies in her stomach and not the good ones but the kind that made you want to throw up in fear, dread, and just plain old anxiety. It was the most unexpected of sights, something she could not have predicted and had not been prepared for. It was him. It was Punk. Phil.

He took one look at her and for one of the first times in his life, Phil Brooks was speechless. She looked smaller than he remembered. Standing in front of him was the woman he had given his heart to…the woman who had broken it. Since their breakup, he had been dealing with an onset of varied emotions. He was angry. He was confused. He was hurt, though it pained him as much to admit it. No one, not even he could foretell how their very first interaction would go when he rejoined the roster on the road. For a hair of a millisecond, his heart softened but then he quickly remembered her disloyalty, her filthy lies, her blatant betrayal. That was all it took. His blood pressure rose but on the outside he remained calm.

"Now you do."

Her heart skipped a beat. She didn't know what she had expected. Civility was obviously not in the cards.

"Phil…"

"Women's locker room is around the corner," he coolly chewed his gum, his eyes looking directly into hers.

He was looking right at her and right through her. Those strong arms had once cradled and protected her so lovingly. They had been a team, the best of friends…the closest of lovers. Now they were two strangers, just someone each used to know. It killed her.

"Um, hi…welcome, welcome back. It's really good to see you."

Was she being serious? Phil raised an eyebrow. He knew that she was. And sincere. A smirk crossed his lips.

"You've got balls the size of grapefruits," he sneered.

Her heart broke.

"I know you're angry…still upset with me. I get it. I expect it. I deserve it even. I have said it before and I will say it again. I'm sorry."

"I'm not."

"What?"

He shrugged.

"No need to be sorry. Life is about choices, Memphis, and you made yours. You made your bed, so to speak, with Orton's grimy ass still in it. If life isn't as grand and peachy as you thought it would be, you only have yourself to thank."

It was a defense mechanism. That was just his way. He had a hard time letting people get close and when they did and deceived him, he had the ability to cut one off cold turkey without a second thought or glance backwards.

"Please don't do this," she shook her head, her voice practically begging. "I messed up and I am sorry and I am willing to do anything to make it right. I know you may never trust me again or even want to be my friend and I respect how you feel but this…God. We can't have this between us."

He folded his arms.

"And what is that?"

"The animosity, this wall. We have to work together in this company and travel together and see each other four to five times a week. I don't want to spend that time arguing with you…or running away from you."

Phil rolled his eyes.

"What do you want me to do, shed a tear? Nice speech but it's not gonna happen. I am not worried about you. You don't even exist to me anymore and what doesn't exist cannot hurt or affect me. You fucked up. You lied. You cheated. You sold out. You were a whore. You were a bitch. You did all those things, not me. This isn't on me and if you feel bad or sad or nervous, well, kiddo, that one's on you, too. And you are smoking something from your boyfriend's stash if you think I am going to sit here and comfort and conjole you or do anything to make you feel better about the bullshit you are responsible for. This is life, Memphis. So why don't you go put your big girl panties on and grow up and grow a pair?"

Tears filled her eyes but she refused to let them fall.

"Please don't hate me," she whispered.

He chuckled coldly.

"You're not worth the time or effort. You never were. Now why don't you do us both a favor and run along? I'm sure it's time for Randy to get his dick sucked. Better hurry before one of the ring rats beats you to the punch."

His verbal jabs hit like iron fists. Scraping together what was left of her dignity, she gathered her belongings and left. She suddenly felt ill. It was her normal routine to be prepared and dressed early for the shows but at the moment, before she fainted, Memphis hurriedly made her way back to Randy's bus. She banged on the door and Randy's primary driver, Frank, let her in. She ignored his questions asking if she was okay. She went to the back main bedroom and collapsed on the bed crying, not even noticing that Randy, fresh from his workout, was exiting the bus' bathroom shower.

"Memphis?" he looked at her, blue eyes narrowing.

She was obviously upset.

"Ran, I, I didn't know you were here…"

"What's wrong with you?"

She shook her head. She was tempted to lie and tell him nothing, that everything was okay. But when she opened her mouth, only a small sob came out.

"Oh Randy…"

He secured the white towel around his chiseled waist, and still damp, walked over to the bed and sat beside her, wrapping his arm around her.

"Babe…"

"I'm sorry," she wiped her eyes.

"What happened? Why are you crying?"

"Phil is back," she could barely look at him.

"What did he say to you?" Randy hissed.

"I, um…I ran into him accidentally. He…God…I knew this was gonna be bad. I, I just wanted to talk to him, you know? I apologized. I feel like I should never stop apologizing and the last thing I want is bad blood, this hateful rift between any of us. And he, you know him," she sniffled. "He's not trying to hear it. He hates my guts and has absolutely no problem whatsoever letting me know that."

"Tell me exactly what he said."

"He took some pretty low blows but um, it's not important."

Randy stood up.

"He is a pathetic fucking douche bag. He's just mad because you don't want him. That freak can't handle rejection."

"It's alright…"

"The hell it is. If he wants to walk around with a chip on his shoulder, whatever, but I will be damned if he thinks he is gonna go around disrespecting my girl. He has another thing coming. And when I find his ass, I am gonna let him know about it."

"No!"

"Fuck that, Memphis. And fuck him. I don't who the hell he thinks he is."

"I am begging you. Please stop. Just calm down. I know you are mad. He is mad and this thing is going to blow up if we don't just walk away. Somehow it will blow over, it has to, but in the meantime, don't go starting anything with him and you have to give me your word that if he gets in your face, you will be the bigger man."

Randy smirked.

"You want me to lie to you?"

"Ran…"

"I'm serious. Do you?"

She sighed.

"No. Of course not," Memphis spoke softly.

"Then don't ask me to make promises I can't keep. That motherfucker has one time to look at you or me cross eyed and he's done. Plain and simple."

She knew he meant business. And she knew what would happen if a confrontation ensued. Punk would not back down, not by any means. A sickening feeling churned deep inside her belly. She had the sinking feeling things were about to get ugly.