Chapter 3—Shattered
A/N: I'm really heartbroken by the lack of reviews. At least one review would be nice. I love y'all and I really want to know if this story is crap or not. That's why I want y'all to review. Your input is crucial to me. Thanks. Please review.
The next morning, Randy woke up early for a jog around the neighborhood; it was a little after five o'clock. He pulled on a pair of basketball shorts and an old RKO shirt he wore specifically for workouts. He made sure to keep quiet because he thought Liz was still sleeping. When he got downstairs, however, he saw that she was in the living room watching a movie. She was curled up under a blanket with a pint of ice cream; Randy could tell she had been crying. He sighed and slowly approached her.
"Hey, Liz," he said softly. Liz was a bit startled; she flinched and tried to quickly wipe the traces of tears from her face. She sniffled.
"Hey," she said quietly with a forced smile. She tried so hard to hide her sadness, but Randy saw right through her. He gave a small smile and sat next to her on the sofa; he wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. She broke down and sobbed into his chest; she was taking the breakup with Tucker much harder than Randy expected her to. She had always been a very emotionally strong person. That's how Randy knew she was truly in love with Tucker before he broke her heart.
After a few minutes, Liz had stopped crying; Randy looked down and saw that she had fallen asleep. She was stunningly beautiful. Randy just couldn't understand how someone could break up with her out of the blue. He figured Liz needed some undisturbed sleep so he dismissed the idea of going for a jog. She was nuzzled so deep into his body that if he moved, she would wake up.
Instead of going for his intended jog, Randy flipped through the channels on the TV and landed on a comedy film. It wasn't as funny as he had hoped; the jokes weren't funny, and the acting was terrible. The movie that aired following the failed attempt at comedy was much better. There were several moments in the second movie that Randy thought was hilarious. He laughed heartily and Liz woke up. "Shit," he said under his breath.
She yawned and stretched. "What time is it?" she asked sleepily. Randy checked TV's guide for the time. "Almost 8:30," he said. Liz nodded and returned to her position on Randy's chest, but she stayed awake.
"What are you doing today?" she asked Randy.
"I was hoping to go for a run sometime today. Other than that, I'm free." He said.
Liz nodded. She wanted to get out of the house and do something besides wallow in her own self-pity. "There's a car show in town today. Maybe we could go and invite John to come, too," she said.
Randy sighed. "I don't think that's such a good idea after what happened with Tucker" he said.
"I'm not interested in him, Randy," Liz said as she sat up. "He said he likes cars when I talked to him last night," she said.
"Oh. Yeah, he does." Randy said quietly. "Maybe we can make it a big WWE thing," he recommended.
"That sounds like a good idea. Will Vince be okay with that?" she asked. She knew Vince McMahon, WWE's CEO, needed to approve anything the WWE Superstars and Divas did for the public.
Randy thought for a moment. "It shouldn't be a problem. I'll give him a call."
Liz smiled and waited for Randy to call his boss.
Hey, Mr. McMahon. I heard there's a great car show in Madison today. I thought it would be a good idea for some of the superstars and divas to go. Maybe we could sign autographs for the first 50 people who show up and promote the upcoming pay-per-view. What do you think? … Yeah. I think so. … Great! Thank you so much! … Alright. See you then.
"So, what did he say?" Liz asked.
"He was just asking if the car show was just for one day." Randy answered.
Liz nodded. "Yep. It's only for today." She said. "If you still wanted to go jogging, you can. By the time you get back and take a shower, breakfast should be ready." She said.
Randy nodded. "Awesome. I should be back in about an hour." He said.
"Okay. Enjoy your run." Liz said as Randy left out the door.
When Randy left, Liz went up to her room and took a shower; she shaved her legs and washed her hair, too. When she was done with the shower, she dried off and smoothed lotion on her body, then spritzed on perfume. She slipped into a pair of panties and her bra before she did her makeup. Her makeup was very simple; she only put on pressed powder, mascara, and lipstick. She dressed in high-waisted denim shorts, a pink and white striped tank-top, and black wedge peep toe booties. She double checked herself in the mirror and was satisfied. She searched her trunk of accessories until she found the perfect cross-body bag for her outfit. She put all of her necessities in it: her phone, wallet, lipstick, and keys. Then she searched through the trunk for the exact pair of sunglasses she wanted to wear for the day. When she was all put-together, Liz made her way downstairs into the kitchen where she started cooking breakfast.
Liz started with homemade pancakes batter. When the batter was made, she let it sit to rise a little while she laid out some bacon on a pan to put in the oven. Liz knew the bacon worked like an alarm clock; as if on cue, John and Cody had come from the guest rooms looking for breakfast. Liz quickly turned them away.
"Nope! In this house, you take a shower before eating breakfast. I don't know who thought it was a good idea to eat before cleaning their body first. It's weird and I don't like it. Now, git!" she said almost jokingly. In reality, Liz was completely serious about them taking a shower first. The two guests seemed to be utterly confused.
"I don't think I stuttered. Shower first. Food second." She said in broken sentences. John and Cody looked at each other before heading back upstairs.
Fifteen minutes later, Randy came through the door. He smiled when he smelled breakfast from the kitchen; he followed the smell and saw Liz behind the island setting the kitchen bar with plates and glasses. Liz saw him and groaned. "Out of the kitchen! Take a shower and come back!" she yelled.
Randy held up his hands in defense. "Sorry. I just want a bottle of water," he said innocently.
"Well get out of the kitchen and I'll bring you a bottle of water." She said pointed to the area that separated the kitchen from the foyer. Randy stepped behind the imaginary line and waited for Liz to bring him a cold bottle of water. When she finally showed up with the water, Randy got a full look at what she had on. He shook his head at how little clothes she had on.
Liz handed Randy the cold water; Randy quickly grabbed her for a tight, sweaty hug. Liz struggled to escape the hold, but it was no uses; she was trapped. When Randy finally let her go, she was more than upset.
She groaned. "Now, I have to go change clothes!" she said as she looked at her sweat stained outfit.
Randy nodded. "Maybe this time you could try to find actual clothes that cover you up," he said.
Liz scoffed. "Really? You did all that just to tell me to change clothes?!" she asked angrily.
"What did you expect me to do? You might as well be naked; you look like a twenty-five cent hooker!" he yelled at her.
She got quiet; her eyes started to water. Randy sighed. "I didn't mean it like that, Lizard. I'm so sorry."
"Fuck you, Randy!" she yelled before stomping away. She passed John and Cody on the way; they had both taken showers and gotten dressed for the day.
Randy kicked himself for being so harsh with Liz. He took a deep breath and went up the stairs to take a shower of his own when he passed John and Cody.
Cody saw him first. "What's up with Liz?" he asked Randy.
Randy sighed. "I said something I shouldn't have said," he said. Cody accepted that answer and went to the kitchen for his breakfast. John didn't accept Randy's answer that easily.
"What did you say, man?" John asked.
Randy shook his head. "I don't want to repeat it. I shouldn't have said it in the first place," he said; he truly regretted his harsh words. John only nodded and walked away as he followed Cody into the kitchen.
Randy continued up the stairs and went to the guest room he had been sleeping in to take a shower. Once he was cleaned up, he dressed in his vintage RKO t-shirt and jeans. He sighed knowing how badly he had hurt Liz's feelings. He collected his thoughts and went to Liz's room. The door was closed so he knocked.
"Liz?" he called out as he pushed the door opened. "Lizard?" he called out again. Randy saw didn't see Liz but he heard her quietly crying in her closet; he followed the sounds. Liz was sitting on the floor of her closet with her head in her hands; she had changed clothes. Randy sighed and sat next to her.
"I didn't mean what I said." He said as he pulled Liz into his chest.
She sniffled. "Then why did you say it?" she asked.
Randy took a deep breath. "It's just that I get so angry to see you like this; you're better than dressing like that, Elizabeth. What Tucker did to you has nothing to do with you; that was his decision. There is absolutely nothing wrong with you."
Liz shook her head. "You don't know that," she said.
"Neither do you." Randy said.
She nodded. "Yes, I do. I told him I was a virgin and that I didn't want to have sex until I get married," she said.
"Really?" he asked. "That's an even bigger loss for him! If he didn't see how special you are for wanting to wait, he wasn't good enough for you in the first place."
Liz stayed quiet; she had stopped crying, but she just wanted to be held for a few minutes before she was ready.
"I really didn't mean to hurt your feelings, Liz," Randy said. He chuckled. "I really need to stop being so protective, huh?" he asked.
Liz laughed and nodded. "Yeah. I think that would be best for everyone involved." She said half-jokingly. Randy helped her up and hugged her tightly. "Thanks, Randy. You always know exactly what to say. If I could find a boyfriend who was like you, I'd be set for life." She said with a light chuckled. Randy forced a laughed and watched Liz leave the closet. He sighed and followed her to the kitchen.
Downstairs, John and Cody had eaten all of the pancakes and bacon Liz had made for everyone.
"Seriously, guys? You ate all the food? You could have saved at least four pancakes for me and Randy to eat."
Cody shrugged. "We're sorry. We just got carried away. I can make more if you want." He offered.
Liz shook her head. "No, thanks. I'll do it." She said as she took out all the pancakes ingredients and bacon again.
"How many pancakes did you make anyway?" Randy asked.
"More than 15, I know that much." She said.
Randy's eyes widened. "How much bacon?" he asked; he was almost afraid to even know.
Liz thought for a moment. "A hell of a lot more than 15 strips." She said.
Randy shook his head. "You two really ate fifteen pancakes and all that bacon together?" he asked.
John and Cody nodded. Liz laughed; she really didn't mind that the guys had eaten all the food. It meant that they enjoyed her cooking and what woman doesn't like it when men eat her food? She didn't have a problem with making more food for her and Randy.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Randy asked.
"Nope. I've got it. Thanks anyway." She said with a smile. Randy nodded and went to the living room.
John and Cody followed Randy to the living room. Randy sat on the couch and sighed. Cody and John each sat on one side of him.
"Is everything okay, man?" Cody asked. Randy nodded.
"You sure?" John asked.
Randy sighed. "Liz is just going through some stuff right now. It'll be okay." He said.
Cody shook his head. "No, man. I meant is everything okay with you? You seem a little off." The youngest man clarified.
Randy shrugged. "I guess I'm okay. I just don't know how to start. It's hard to explain." He said.
John sat up. "Try to explain it the best you can." He said.
"I think I—" Randy was inturreped when Liz walked in.
"Do you want blueberry pancakes, chocolate chip pancakes, or regular pancakes?" she asked.
Randy smiled. "It doesn't matter. Regular is fine." He said. Liz nodded and walked away.
John and Cody saw the look in Randy's eyes when he was talking to Liz. John and Cody looked at each other and decided to drop the subject.
"So, what are we doing today?" Cody asked in an attempt to change the subject.
"Oh, yeah! We're all going to a car show a few minutes away. Liz told me about it; she said it'll be fun. I called Vince and told him about it. He thought it was a great idea for everybody to go." Randy said.
"That sounds like fun. Is Liz coming, too?" John asked with hope.
Randy glared at him. "She already told me that she's not interested." He said.
John frowned. "I never said I was interested. I was just curious. I don't know about you, but I would hate to walk around a city I've never been in without someone who lives here." He said.
Randy nodded and understood. "That makes sense." He said.
The three men decided to watch some TV until the pancakes were ready.
Liz called Randy from the kitchen. "Randy!" she yelled.
Randy rubbed his belly and jumped up; he though the pancakes were ready, but he was shocked to see Liz standing on the counter top.
"What the hell." he said.
"Randy…" she wined.
"What is going on?" Randy asked.
Liz shakily pointed across the room.
Randy looked towards the direction Liz was pointing.
"Holy shit, that's a big ass spider!" He yelled as he crawled up onto the kitchen bar.
"I called you in here to kill the fucking thing!" Liz yelled at him.
"I can't kill that goddamn thing! It's fucking huge!" Randy shouted.
John and Cody came around the corner to see what all the commotion was about.
"Spider!" Liz and Randy yelled and pointed simultaneously.
John and Cody laughed; John walked up to the spider before stepping on it.
Liz breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much, John. Randy was being a little bitch about the spider." She said.
"You were up on the counter top to get away from the damn thing." Randy accused.
"Yeah, and I called a man to help me! You're so freaking useless." She joked.
Randy shook his head and jumped off the bar.
"So is the food ready?" Randy asked.
Liz glared at him. "Yeah. But I ought not to give you anything. You don't deserve to eat." She joked.
"Oh, you know you love me, Lizard." Randy said with a smile.
Liz chuckled and handed him an empty plate before serving the pancakes and bacon. Randy licked his lips at the thick, fluffy pancakes; he poured syrup on the pancakes and cut into them. His eyes rolled as he tasted the sweet breakfast. "What do you want to drink?" she asked.
Randy continued to revel in the taste; he didn't even hear Liz question. She waited until his exaggerated reaction was done before asking again. "What do you want to drink, Randy?" she reiterated.
"Oh… um, do you have milk?" he asked shyly; he had always loved milk but he saw milk as something only for children. He never thought it was acceptable for fully grown men to drink milk just to drink it. He couldn't help it, though; milk was his favorite beverage…aside from any alcohol, of course.
Liz nodded and poured Randy a glass of milk.
"Thanks, Liz," he said.
She smiled. "You're welcome."
The two made light conversation as they ate; John and Cody joined only in the conversation since they had already eaten.
"So," Randy started with his mouth full. "What kind of cars are going to be at this supposed car show?" she asked.
Liz shrugged. "I don't know. Just cars." She answered simply. "I don't know how long the show is going to last, but I need to go by the mall after." She continued.
"The mall? For what?" Randy asked.
"I just need to go to the mall for something." She said vaguely.
"Why are you being so suspicious all of a sudden?" John asked.
Liz rolled her eyes. "If you must know, I need to get some bras and panties," she said.
Randy choked on his food. Liz laughed.
"I don't need to hear about you getting bras and panties!" he said once he cleared his throat.
"Not my fault; John asked." She said as she stood to wash out her now empty plate.
John and Cody laughed at Randy.
"What's so funny?" Randy asked.
Cody shook his head. "Nothing. Nothing at all," Cody said.
Randy was befuddled by Cody and John's sudden chuckles. "Whatever," he said as he stood with his empty plate as well. He was going to give it to Liz when he saw her washing out her syrup laced plate. He stared at her; he didn't realize he was staring, but John and Cody noticed. Her toned legs were longer than ever, her hips were wide and curvy; her waist curved in perfectly; her soft, kinky hair was pulled up but there were small curls that had escaped from the bun; and the tank top she wore showed off her tattoo. "To infinity…" was permanently inked slightly below her shoulder blade. Randy absentmindedly looked at the "…and beyond" tattoo on his forearm.
"…like that?" Liz said.
"Huh?" Randy ask after he cleared his mind.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked again.
"Oh, nothing." He said as he handed Liz his plate. He then quickly left the kitchen.
Liz frowned at Randy's strange behavior. She eventually shrugged it off and washed out his plate.
John and Cody followed Randy to the living room. Just as they walked in, Randy sighed heavily and sat in a recliner.
"Dude." Cody said.
"What?" Randy asked sharply; it was an indication for Cody not to continue with whatever he was going to say unless he wanted to be injured in some way.
Cody knew exactly what the tone of voice meant; they had been friends for just as long as Liz and Randy had, if not longer. He kept his mouth shut and shook his head.
Randy just sat there with his eyes closed until Liz came from the kitchen. "So, are you guys ready to go?" she asked.
John and Cody nodded, but Randy sighed.
"You okay, Sugar?" Liz asked.
Randy nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." He said. Liz didn't believe him; she knew something was bothering him, but she knew better than to push the subject.
"You up for driving?" she asked.
"Nah. I'm good; you can drive." He said.
Liz knew something was definitely bothering Randy if he didn't want to drive the Hummer. She made a note to address the situation later on when she and Randy could get alone.
"Alright! Let's head out!" Liz said excitedly. "I can't drive in heels, so John? Cody? Either of you want to drive?" she asked. John and Cody raised their hands at the same time.
Liz chuckled. "Fight amongst yourselves." She said.
"Rock, Paper, Scissors?" John asked. Cody nodded. The men pounded the palms of their hands with their fists until someone finally won. John, the oldest of the men, won. He raised his fists in victory and held out his hands for the keys. Liz tossed them to him and locked up the house and made sure everything was turned off.
When all four of them got outside, Cody called shotgun. Liz was shocked; she was planning on riding shotgun, but Cody won it fair and square.
She and Randy sat in the back and rode quietly. Liz was confused; Randy was usually really talkative during car rides. "Are you okay, Randy?" she asked quietly so that John and Cody couldn't hear her. Randy ignored her and looked out the window. Liz was offended by the gesture so she just ignored him the rest of the way. All that could be heard was the GPS system telling John where to go and the music that was playing softly.
Eventually, John pulled into a parking lot designated for people attending the car show. Once he parked the Hummer, everyone got out and wondered towards the growing group of WWE Superstars and Divas. The Divas were dressed in short, tight dresses and extremely high heels; Liz thought they looked beautiful. The Superstars, however, seemed to have dressed in whatever was on top of the pile of clothes in their suitcases. Liz chuckled to herself at their unkemptness.
Together, they all walked to the lot of old, new, and remodeled cars for the car show. Music blared through the speakers that were posted around lot of cars. Each section of cars had a specific kind of music playing to match the decade of the car. Classic rock was played for cars made in the 70s; groovy jams played for cars that were made in the 80s; classic R&B and hip-hop from that era played for cars that rolled off the assembly line in the 90s. Current dance music played for cars made in the 21st century.
John migrated to the 70s cars for their builds; they were his favorite kinds of cars; after he looked at all of them, he went to the section for 90s cars just to listen to the music. He knew just about every song that came on; he rapped to them all.
Cody didn't know much about cars, so he just followed friends like Punk and John around.
Randy didn't care much for cars at all; he was much more interested in motorcycles. Since he wasn't concerned with the cars, he kept an eye on Liz. He noticed a few guys around her age looking at her when they arrived.
Liz was looking at the cars from the 21st century. She was gazing at a red-orange sports car; the butterfly doors were already open. The interior was advertised as 100% leather. The electronics on the inside looked like they were from the future; the car itself looked that way, too. Liz didn't know much about the car; she was really only listening to the music that was playing. Her hips swayed involuntarily at the music; being a dancer, it was natural for her body to move to music. Across the lot, there was a man watching Liz's moves; she noticed him and smiled. He offered a smile in return and approached her.
"Hey," he said.
Liz smiled and batted her lashes. "Hi." she said.
"You like this car, huh?" He asked; his Italian accent practically shined.
She giggled at the accent and shrugged. "I have no idea what kind of car this is, but it looks good," she said.
The man laughed. "This is a 2014 Potenza P1. It has over 2000 horsepower; it goes from 0 to 100 in less than 2 seconds," he explained. "The doors open 3 ways; butterfly, backwards, and the original old-timey way." He said with a slight chuckle.
"Wow. Is all that really necessary for a car? Whoever came up with the design sounds like some egotistical douche." Liz said.
The man gasped. "Really? I'm offended." He said with his hand on his chest.
Liz frowned. "Why?" she asked.
He laughed. "I designed this car, but my father is the big shot who got it made. I'm Nicholas Potenza." He said as he offered his hand in a greeting.
Liz blushed in embarrassment. "I'm so sorry." She said quietly.
Nicholas laughed. "No need to apologize. I don't think you ever told me your name," he said.
"Oh, I'm Liz. It's good to meet you Nicholas." She said.
He smiled. "Good to meet you, too. I hear a slight accent." He said.
Liz chuckled and nodded. "Yeah. My dad was born in Italy. He lived there his whole life until he married my mom. I didn't think I had an accent; I've been in America my entire life." She said.
Nicholas nodded. "I guess we Italians can spot our own in strange ways." He said.
She giggled and nodded.
"So, would you be interested in taking a ride in the Potenza?" Nicholas asked.
"Are you sure no one would mind?" she asked skeptically.
Nicholas shrugged. "Why would they? It's my name on the car." He said.
Liz laughed. "True… I'd love to go for a ride." She said.
He nodded and led Liz to the passenger side and helped her inside the car. As he closed the butterfly doors, he winked at Liz; she blushed. Nicholas then pulled a set of keys from his pocket; he ducked into the driver seat, closed the door, and started the car. He revved the engine a bit.
"You hear how it purrs?" he asked Liz. She nodded. "Well, that's not the only thing I can make purr." He said sensuously.
Liz raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Oh, really?" she asked.
Nicholas smirked and pulled off. There had been a designated strip of road that was blocked off for people to test drive the cars at the show. He sped down the road, giving the car all it could take. He made sharp turns as he drifted into them. The car vibrated softly as the driver manhandled it. When the ride was done, Nicholas returned the car to its spot in the car show's display lot. It was where Randy was waiting impatiently; Liz could tell that he was angry, but she didn't say anything to Nicholas about it.
Before Nicholas could even get out of the car, Randy had opened the door and dragged him out. He grabbed Nicholas' collar and slammed him up against the car; Randy threw punch after punch to Nicholas' face. Liz screamed for Randy to stop.
"What are you doing, Randy?! Stop it! Leave him alone!" she yelled. It was no use; Randy kept at it. It took John and Cody to pull Randy away from Nicholas. Even still, Randy kept lunging towards the car designer. John and Cody's combined strength wasn't enough; Randy broke free and went to attack Nicholas yet again.
This time, Nicholas was prepared; he kicked Randy in the stomach to slow him down. Randy was like an animal; he wasn't even affected by the kick. He returned by smashing Nicholas' head into the car's driver side window; the glass shattered to the ground.
Liz screamed and covered her mouth. She tried to get Randy to stop yet again. "Please, Randy! Let him go! He didn't do anything!" she screamed at her best friend.
Randy seemed not to hear her at all; he continued the assault. He punched Nicholas across the face; sending him to the ground. Randy kicked and stomped him as he lay defenseless on the ground.
He took a break from destroying Nicholas to catch his breath; Liz saw the opportunity to save Nicholas from further attack. She stepped in front of Nicholas in an attempt to protect him, but it was a failed attempt. Randy pushed her out of the way; she fell to the ground and cried out in pain.
Punk ran to her side to check on her. "Are you okay, Lizzy?" he asked.
Liz winced as she raised her arm from the pavement. Shards of glass from the Potenza's window were lodged into her arm. While Randy continued the attack on Nicholas, Punk helped her to her feet. "Come on. Let's get you cleaned up." He said.
She nodded and groaned as Punk lead her away. He grabbed a bottle of water and some napkins from the refreshments table before he took her to the Hummer where she sat on the passenger side while he fished out all the glass shards.
"So, uh, how have you been?" Punk asked in an effort to make conversation during the high stress situation.
Liz sighed. "I've been better," she said.
Punk laughed. "I bet. What has gotten into Randal?" he asked.
She chuckled at the use of Randy's name. "I really don't know. He has always been really protective of me, but he doesn't usually attack people like that. Even what he said to you yesterday was out of the ordinary for him," she said.
He shook his head. "Nah. Randal is always bitchy with me. I've gotten used to it, but I have never seen him so mad like that out there." He said referring to Randy's attack on Nicholas.
"Me, either," she said.
"This might sting a little," Punk said. Liz nodded and squeezed her eyes shut. Punk poured the water down her arm onto the wounds.
"Shit," Liz breathed.
"I told you it was going to hurt," Punk said with a chuckle.
Liz smiled through the pain. "No, you said it was going to sting. Big difference, Phil." She said.
He laughed. "Alright. It should heal in maybe 2 days," he said.
Liz nodded. "Thanks, Phil. I really appreciate it." She said.
Punk smiled. "You're welcome; it was no problem. You ready to go back to the show?" he asked.
She shook her head. "No. I want to go home." She said.
"Um, okay. I'll get Randal to drive you back." He said.
"No. John has the keys." She said.
Punk nodded. "I'll go get John. I'll be right back," he said.
Liz nodded and watched him walk away.
After a few minutes, Punk returned with John and Cody in tow.
"You okay, Liz?" John asked.
Liz nodded. "I'm fine. I just want to go home." She said.
John nodded. "Would it be okay if we dropped you off, got our bags, and brought the car back here to Randy?" John asked.
Liz sighed. She knew that John and Cody were trying to avoid the impending fight between Randy and Liz that was sure to go down when they got together. "Yeah. That's fine." She said.
John and Cody said their goodbyes to Punk and got into the car; Liz stayed put in the passenger seat. The drive back to Liz's house was quiet. Everyone expected it to be quiet, so it wasn't at all awkward. When they arrived at Liz's house, John and Cody grabbed their bags and said goodbye to Liz before leaving.
Liz went up to her room and changed into comfortable lounge clothes after they left. She crawled into her bed and took a nap; she didn't want to be awake if Randy was to return anytime soon. Hours later, Liz was awakened by her growling stomach. She yawned and stretched as she checked her cell phone for the time. It was almost 3pm; she had slept for just about 3 hours. Also on her phone were missed calls and text messages from Randy.
12:14 Missed Call-Randy
12:25 Randy—Where are you?
12:29 Randy—Call me.
1:11 Missed Call—Randy
1:14 Missed Call—Randy
1:48 Missed Call—Randy
2:02 Randy—I'm getting really worried. Please call me just to let me know you're okay.
2:16 Randy—I know you're mad, but please call me.
2:21 Randy—I'm on my way back to your place. Call me.
That was the last of the messages and missed calls form Randy. Liz sighed and rolled out of bed in a rush to get to the kitchen and find something to eat. She first checked the garage to see if Randy had come back. She peered out the door and saw that the Hummer was indeed there. She sighed and returned to her previous agenda of finding food. She padded to the kitchen and saw Randy in the living room as she passed. She looked at him and said nothing. She pretended like he wasn't even there.
"Liz?" he called out.
She shook her head. "I don't want to talk to you," she said.
Randy got up from where he sat on the recliner and followed her to the kitchen. "I'm sorry, Liz. I really am. I just- I don't know. I just don't like you hanging around random guys like that," he said.
She sighed. "I don't care about what you did to Nicholas. It was wrong, but that's not why I'm upset," she said.
Randy frowned. "Then why didn't you return my calls and text messages?" he asked.
Liz raised her arm and showed Randy the marks from the glass shards. "You pushed me into the glass from the window, Randy. You have never been violent with me like that before. Not only that, but you didn't even care," she said teary-eyed.
"Oh, my god," he said under his breath upon seeing the angry cuts. "I am so sorry, Elizabeth. I had no idea that even happened," he apologized.
She shook her head and turned away from him. She prepared lunch for one and went to her room with the meal. Randy was left downstairs beating himself up for what he had done to Liz. He hadn't noticed that he had pushed her; he didn't remember it at all. Randy, himself, also got hungry; he looked around the kitchen and made himself a simple lunch. He sat at the kitchen bar and slowly ate.
Fifteen minutes later, Liz returned with her empty container. Randy only watched her; he figured she wouldn't want to hear anything he had to say. As Liz washed out her dishes, Randy eyed her body for the second time that day. Her wonderfully sculpted caramel legs seemed to go on for days under her black Nike shorts. Her round, plump bum was fitting perfectly inside the shorts; her curvy hips and thick thighs were intoxicating. Her tiny waist was the perfect pedestal for her well-endowed breast. Liz's pretty, curly hair was a now flowing; maybe even glowing. Randy couldn't tell.
Before Liz could notice that Randy was staring, he broke his concentration on her and looked elsewhere.
"Randy?" she called out from where she stood at the sink; now facing him.
He looked at her, ready to listen.
"Do you love me?" she asked quietly.
Randy choked on his food.
"Because if you do, you would the friend I need and stop being so controlling. I love you like the brother I never had. You mean a lot to me and I would hate to end our friendship all because you think that you have to protect me from every single person and thing. Not everyone is a threat to me. Take Phil for example. When my arm got shredded today, Phil took me back to the car and picked out every single piece of glass by hand. He cleaned out the scratches and everything. He's a really sweet guy. Did you ever think that he doesn't like you because you hate him for no reason at all?" she asked.
Randy remained silent and thought about what she said.
Liz continued. "Nicholas, the guy from the car show today, was being a regular 20-something year old. We were flirting. It's not like he kidnapped me. I willingly got into his car and we drove for maybe 10 minutes. He was a great guy. Then you attacked him. And for what? Tell me that. Tell me why you nearly killed him." She said.
Randy sighed. "I don't like seeing you with guys like that. You deserve someone better than some snot nosed car designer. You deserve someone like a doctor, or a lawyer, or business man who will be able to provide for you in the future. Punk and that other guy aren't good enough for my baby sis—" he trailed off when he realized what he was going to say next.
Liz gasped. She finally realized why Randy was being so extremely protective. "Randy, I'm not Becky. I'm not your little sister," she said.
Randy nodded and started to cry. "I think about her every day. I try so hard not to see her in you, but sometimes it just happens. It's like at one moment you're my baby sister, but at other moments you're you. I can't help but protect you from what happened to Becky." He said as he sobbed.
Liz went to him and hugged him tightly. "It's okay to miss her, Randy. I miss her too, but we have to find other outlets of grief. We have to move forward. I'm not saying we have to forget about her because she'll always be with us. We have to try to move forward." She said.
Randy wept as his chin rested on Liz's head. They stayed like that for nearly half an hour; just crying together and mourning the loss of a sister and a best friend. It may have happened 14 years ago, but the wounds were still fresh because of the constant reminders. Randy saw Becky when he looked at Liz and Liz saw Becky when she looked at Randy. They knew that the thought of Becky wouldn't just disappear; they didn't want it to. Liz and Randy just wanted to live a regular life without Becky's memory compromising everything they did.
When the hug was broken, Liz and Randy dried each other's tears. "I'm so sorry, Liz. Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?" Randy said.
Liz smiled. "Of course, Sugar. I forgive you; I always have and I always will." She said. Randy smiled and hugged his best friend.
"I swear, I'd be set for life if I could find a girlfriend like you," he said.
Liz chuckled. "That girl is going to be hard to find, Sugar. I'm one of a kind." She said.
Randy chuckled. "Do you still need to go to the mall?" he asked.
"Dammit. I forgot about that. I guess I can go right now. You can come, too, if you want. That way we can have some Randy and Liz time," she said.
Randy smiled and nodded. "Sure." He said. Liz smiled and went upstairs to change.
PLEASE REVIEW
A/N: I'm really heartbroken by the lack of reviews. At least one review would be nice. I love y'all and I really want to know if this story is crap or not. That's why I want y'all to review. Your input is crucial to me. Thanks. Please review.