Chapter 6—Job Offer

A/N: SURPRISE! (AGAIN, HA) I was in the mood to throw out another update. Review for a sneak peek at chapter 7! :)

[that night]

Randy and Liz walked through the backstage area to Randy's locker room. Randy pretended he didn't see the way some of the other Superstars were ogling Liz. She was wearing the Sleeveless Illusion Lace A-Line dress and Carrie Platform Pumps Randy bought for her earlier that day. She had let her hair flow in its natural way; the long, kinky curls bounced as she strutted down through the hallways.

Before Randy and Liz could make it to the locker room, Liz was stopped.

"Hey, Lizzy!" they heard.

Liz smiled at the man who caught her attention. "Hey, Phil!" she said as she hugged him.

"You look amazing! Way better than most of these hookers who call themselves wrestlers," he said.

Liz giggled and blushed. "Thanks, Phil," she said. Randy was getting impatient; Liz looked at him with pleading eyes. "I'll be fine, Randy." She said.

Randy sighed and hugged her. "Be safe, Elizabeth," he said before kissing the top of her head.

She nodded. "I will," she said. She and Punk watched him walk off. Punk laughed.

"What's so funny," Liz asked.

"Your little guard dog doesn't like you hanging out with me, does he," Punk asked.

Liz shook her head. "It's not just you. It's everybody." She said. Punk nodded and walked around with Liz until they were interrupted by a stage hand.

"There you are! We've been looking all over for you! Stephanie and Hunter want you in their office right now! Come on!" the stagehand said as he dragged Liz by her hand. She was too confused to even ask what was going on.

She was practically pushed into the office where Stephanie and Hunter were standing. "Good, you're here. We hoped you would change your mind," Stephanie said.

Liz stammered. "I'm so confused." She said.

"Don't you remember? You emailed us and turned down the offer," Hunter said.

Liz shook her head. "I have no clue what you're talking about." She said.

"It's okay, Cassidy. We're willing to overlook your hesitance. We're just glad you decided to take the job." Stephanie said.

"My name isn't Cassidy," Liz said.

Stephanie looked through the file she held in her hands. "Right here, it says that you're Cassidy Somers. You just got out of hair and make-up, didn't you?" she said.

Liz shook her head. "Nope. I'm Elizabeth Caro. And I dressed myself and did my own hair and make up." She said.

Hunter frowned. "Then who are you and why are you here?" he asked.

"I'm Randy Orton's friend. He brought me with him tonight," she said.

Suddenly, Stephanie and Hunter's faces changed completely. Their expressions went from angry scowls to knowing smirks. Stephanie grinned. "So, you're the famous Liz we hear so much about!" she said.

Liz got nervous. "What? He talks about me?" she asked.

Stephanie's eyes went wide. "Forget I said anything," she said.

Hunter stepped in and diverged the topic. "So, apparently Cassidy really did turn down the job. We really need a backstage interviewer tonight. We would really appreciate it if you could step in." he said.

Liz thought about it; she figured Randy wouldn't mind. "Sure! What do I have to do?" she asked.

Stephanie smiled. "You'll just be interviewing the superstars and divas backstage like Renee Young used to do. She got a promotion and she's doing bigger and better things. You would be her replacement." She said.

Liz nodded. "That sounds great. Just lead the way and I'll do the best I can." She said.

Hunter's cell phone rang and he excused himself leaving Stephanie and Liz to talk about the show.

Later that night, Randy was sitting in his locker room lacing up his boots when he heard Liz on the monitor.

Good evening, WWE Universe, I'm Liz Caro and I'll be filling in for Renee Young tonight. I'm here with CM Punk. So, CM Punk, how do you feel about your revenge on Paul Heyman last week on Raw?

You know what, Liz, it's like the weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Heyman got what was coming to him. And maybe if you play your cards right, you could get what's coming to you, too. Punk winked and walked off.

Well, then. Up next is CM Punk and Daniel Bryan versus The Shield.

Randy clenched his jaws so hard that he got a cramp. He quickly finished lacing his boots and went in search of Liz. When he found her, one of stage hands was giving her a rundown of the other interviews she was going to be doing that night. Randy ignored the stage hand and tore into Liz.

"What the fuck was that?" he asked.

Liz was surprised that Randy was angry. "Stephanie and Hunter needed a last minute replacement. They thought I was some other girl, but I told them who I was and they offered me the position," she explained innocently.

Another stage hand walked up. "You're on in 20, Orton," he said. Randy nodded and turned back to Liz. "We aren't done talking about this." He said.

Liz rolled her eyes. "You say that like it's up for discussion. What if they have offered me the permanent position? What if I have already accepted? I'm a grown woman, Randy. You really need to get that through your thick skull." she said.

Before Randy could say anything, Liz had already walked away. He stormed to Stephanie and Hunter's office; he didn't even knock.

"This thing with Liz better not be permanent!" he barked upon entrance.

Stephanie frowned. "I thought you would be happy about it,"

"What makes you think I would be happy?!" he asked.

She shrugged. "I mean, you kept talking about how much you missed spending time with her," Stephanie said.

Randy shook his head. "That didn't mean that I wanted her here!" he said.

Hunter had an epiphany. "Why not?" he asked before jumping to conclusions.

"Because— I don't know! Just because," he said.

Hunter chuckled and shook his head. "You can either do something about it, or you need to let her go," he said. "But you can't just be a dictator over her life and expect her to do everything you say."

Randy sighed and left the office.

Stephanie stood there in confusion. "What was that?" she asked her husband.

Hunter shook his head. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it," he said.

She nodded and dropped the subject.

Liz was in the middle of another interview when Randy went to the curtain to wait for his entrance. He watched her intently as she interviewed Wade Barrett. Wade was the one Superstar Randy didn't want Liz to ever meet. She looked so… happy with him. Randy sighed and cleared his mind for his match.

Hours later, Randy was looking for Liz so that they could leave the arena since the show was over; he couldn't find her anywhere. He tried calling her cell, but there was no answer. Just before Randy was going to physically tear the area apart looking for her, Liz sent him a text message.

10:27pm Lizard going out. don't wait up. ttyl

Randy called her immediately.

Hello? It was Wade.

Randy clenched his jaws. Give Liz the phone.

She's a bit preoccupied at the moment. Can I take a message?

Randy could practically hear the smug expression on Wade's face. Preoccupied with what, exactly?

Settle down, Randal. She went to the bathroom. She just came out. Wade spoke directly to Liz. "Your owner called," he said as he handed Liz her cell phone.

What do you want, Randy? She asked irritably.

Where are you and why are you with Wade?

Well, father, I am back at the hotel because Wade wanted to take me out for a drink but—

Randy interrupted her. You're not old enough to drink! What the fuck is wrong with you?

Wade wanted to take me out for a drink but I told him I'm not legally able to drink.

… oh. Well then what are you doing?

Does it even matter, Randy? You're just going to tell me not to do whatever it is I'm doing. Then you're going to tell me that Wade is evil and that I wouldn't be around him. After that, I'm going to tell you to mind your own business and leave me alone. Then you're going to apologize and tell me how grown up I am, how responsible I am, and how much you trust that I'll make good decisions. Then I'll forgive you and we'll be best friends forever. There; I just saved us a whole hour of bullshit. I'll be back before you leave in the morning. Bye.

Randy just held the phone even after Liz hung up on him. Eventually, he sighed and went out to the car. "Back to the hotel," Randy said simply as he got situated in the SUV. The driver nodded and pulled off.

[the next day]

Liz and Randy were riding quietly in the SUV on their way to the airport. They had just had their last squabble.

A few hours earlier, Randy woke up in the hotel room and immediately searched for Liz since she didn't ever return to the hotel room she was sharing with Randy. The second bed was empty and it didn't look to have been slept in. Randy checked his phone and didn't see any missed calls or text messages from Liz. He called her, but she didn't answer. He even resorted to calling Wade; he didn't answer either.

Out of sheer concern, Randy went in search of Liz. As soon as he opened the hotel door, Liz was about to swipe her key card. Randy let out a sigh of relief. Liz squeezed by him without saying a word. Randy noticed that she had changed clothes and he got a whiff of what he assumed to be Wade's personal man stink.

"Where were you?" Randy asked. Liz didn't answer; she just gathered some supplies for a shower and disappeared into the bathroom. When she came out 30 minutes later, Randy was still there; he was sitting on one of the queen sized beds with his back against the headboard. "Are you doing to tell me where you were last night?" he asked.

Liz scoffed. "Obviously not," she said under her breath.

"And why not? What happened to us not keeping secrets?" Randy asked.

"Really? You won't tell me why you've turned into a raging asshole, but you want me to tell you about last night?" she asked rhetorically.

"Did you fuck him?" Randy asked blatantly.

Liz glared at him; she was beyond pissed off by the accusation. Randy immediately knew he made a mistake in asking because Liz had never been the kind of girl to have promiscuous sex.

"You know what, Randy? Let's say I did. Let's say that me and Wade got all tangled up in his sheets while he fucked me all night long; hypothetically, of course. If that happened, how long would it take for you to make me wear some kind of GPS monitor?" She asked as she threw her belongings into her suitcase.

Randy shook his head. "I'm sorry for asking. The thought should have never crossed my mind," he said sympathetically.

"NO, Randy! NO! Stop apologizing for doing the same thing over and over again. When a person apologizes, it means that they won't do whatever they're apologizing for again." She said. "And for the record, I didn't sleep with Wade last night. We watched a movie and fell asleep." She said.

Randy frowned. "But why did you change clothes?" he asked.

"Wade offered me one of his shirts to sleep in so I wouldn't have to sleep in my dress," she answered.

"Oh," he said. He felt like an ass for assuming the worst.

Liz sighed. "I accepted the backstage interviewing job, Randy." She said.

Randy nodded. "I know. Congratulations."

"I checked and we have the exact same travel schedule. That means we'll be together all the time," she said. Randy nodded as she continued. "The thing is, Randy, I don't think we can be friends anymore." Liz said softly.

"Why not?" Randy asked.

"Because. Because I can't risk your overprotective attitude ruining my opportunities in this business." She said.

Randy remained quiet; he was recapping his actions over the last few days only to realize that he had lost his best friend all because he was trying to protect her.

Liz didn't say anything more, either. Once she was fully packed and ready to go, she waited quietly for Randy to take a shower and pack his belongings so that they could leave for the airport.

Now, as the SUV rolls on, Liz is sending text messages to Wade, and Randy is falling asleep. Soon enough, the SUV pulled up to the airport. Liz and Randy grabbed their bags and walked in silence through the airport. As expected, there were fans waiting for Randy. He was relieved to see that he had a temporary distraction from Liz. As he was preparing to sighed autographs, the fans started yelling for Liz.

"Liz! Can I have your autograph?" a young man asked. Liz smiled and signed the small notebook the boy had. She signed several other items as she walked through the airport. She was really starting to understand what it meant to become famous overnight.

After Randy and Liz went through bag checks and security, they waited at the gate for their flight to be called. Liz sat away from Randy because she was waiting for Wade; they decided to meet up and talk before the flight.

Randy watched as Liz's face lit up when she saw Wade. He was too distracted to notice that John and Cody had sat next to him. He turned away when he saw Wade kiss Liz's lips passionately. That was when he noticed his friends next to him.

"You alright, Randy?" Cody asked.

Randy nodded. "I'm fine. What's going on with you two?" he asked in an attempt to take the focus off of him. Until the flight was called, Randy held a conversation with John and Cody.

As everyone boarded the plane, Randy sat alone only to realize that Liz was supposed to sit in the seat next to him. It was going to give him an opportunity to change Liz's mind about their friendship. As he was mentally reviewing everything he was going to say, Justin Gabriel sat next to him.

"Hey, Orton. Liz asked to switch seats. I hope you don't mind," he said.

Randy looked around and saw that Liz and Wade were sitting together. He sighed and shook his head. "I don't mind," he said.

Truthfully, Randy was excited that Liz had gotten the job; he knew that she had always loved WWE and everything related to it. He just hated that their friendship had to be compromised for it to happen.

The flight to Orlando, Florida, was only a few hours. The Superstars and Divas were ecstatic to be back in Florida mainly because most of them lived in the surrounding cities of Tampa and Miami. Randy was one of the few who had planned to check into a hotel.

The superstars and divas stepped off the plane and grabbed their bags from baggage claim. Most of them only had to call a taxi to take them to their own homes. Randy caught a glimpse of Liz getting into a taxi with Wade. He tried to look at the bright side. "At least I'll have the hotel room to myself." He said under his breath.

[the next day]

Randy walked into the performance center for his training session and saw Liz stretching. He sighed and swallowed his pride before he approached her.

"Hey, Lizard," Randy said softly.

Liz sighed and looked at him for a moment. "Hey," she said eventually. She turned back to her own business as Randy just stood there.

"Can we talk?" he asked.

"I really don't feel like talking to you right now, Randy. I just don't know what to expect from you. You could either be really kind or really mean and I don't feel like seeing either side of you at this point," she said.

Randy nodded. "I understand that, Liz, but I really need to talk to you."

"You don't need my permission to talk, Randy. Just open your mouth and let the words come out. It's easy, really," she said as she walked away to the treadmills. Randy followed her and watched as she started a jog. "Well?" she asked.

"This is really hard for me, but here it goes. I'm sorry for the way I've been acting lately. I know you don't want to hear any more apologies, but this is the last one. I just can't handle you hanging out with these guys because…" he trailed off.

"Because what?" Liz asked.

Randy took a deep breath. "Because I'm in love with you." he said with his eyes closed.

Liz tripped over her feet at the confession and fell off the treadmill. Randy tried to help her up, but Liz pushed him away. "Don't touch me!" she screeched. She stood up and dusted herself off and briskly walked away. Everyone in the performance center looked at Randy after Liz's outburst. Randy sighed and walked away; he was intercepted by Cody.

"What was that about?" Cody asked.

Randy shook his head. "Nothing. Just leave me alone," he said.

"But, we need to go over the match for tonight," Cody said.

"Fine. Give me 15 minutes," Randy said as he walked away.

PLEASE REVIEW for a sneak peek at chapter 7.