Chapter 9—Improvement?
A/N: WARNING: this chapter contains domestic violence.
[two months later]
Dolph was awakened by shrieking coming from the other room in the hotel suite. He looked at the clock on the bedside table and saw it was nearly 4am. He got out of bed, grabbed his phone that sat on the bedside table, and followed the screaming. He opened the door and saw Liz thrashing about on the hotel's bed; she was having another nightmare.
He sighed sadly and went to the bed and slipped into it with her and held her until she calmed down. She and Dolph had been spending extended amounts of time together outside of her training sessions. They clicked as friends; Liz was so grateful to have him in her life. As she stilled and drifted off into a deep sleep, Dolph tried for the umpteenth time to figure out what had Liz so rattled lately.
According to Liz, she had broken everything off with Wade. She wouldn't tell Dolph how; all she told him was that things had changed. Things had definitely changed; she was losing a drastic amount of weight and her wardrobe consisted of much less fabric than usual.
Wade hadn't contacted her in a few weeks and that was all that mattered but Liz started having terrible nightmares after the break up. When Liz first left Wade, Dolph insisted that he be her protector of sorts. At first, Liz blew him off as if the idea was a joke. When she started getting paranoid, she agreed to have Dolph as her shadow. The process was working well so far: on off days, Liz and Dolph had a system where they would be in contact every fifteen minutes. Sure it was tedious, but it kept her safe. Liz stayed with Dolph on working days; today was one of those days.
Dolph had been surprised that the Liz wasn't opposed to the fifteen minute calls and text messages. Randy didn't go that far when they were on speaking terms, but Liz was always upset with him for being as protective as he was. Dolph assumed it was because, with Randy, there was no actual threat. Now that Wade has come and gone, Liz was much more fearful; and rightfully so. After a while, Dolph fell asleep as he held her.
Almost three hours later, Liz whimpered in her sleep and mumbled pleas; it woke Dolph from his sleep. He couldn't understand most of it but he heard five words clearly and he finally knew exactly what had Liz spooked. He felt a tugging at his heart; the man felt bad for her. She was in so much pain and she hadn't shared the pain with anyone. The poor girl was taking on so much by herself; it was a miracle that she wasn't worse than she was at that moment.
As Dolph thought more on the subject, Liz jumped and gasped from her sleep and quickly sat up. She was panting as if she had been struggled into breathe. When she realized she was in the hotel with Dolph, she calmed down.
Dolph took a deep breath. "You had another nightmare," he said.
Liz sighed and lean up against the head board. She rubbed her swollen eyes.
"Is there anything you want to talk to me about, Liz?" Dolph asked and he looked at his hands that now rested in his lap.
She shook her head. "No," she murmured.
Dolph sighed and looked at Liz. There was so much horror behind her hazel eyes. "I know what happened, Liz," he said.
She frowned. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said.
He turned to sit directly in front of her. He took her hands in his own. "You were talking in your sleep. I heard what you said in the nightmare before you woke up," he said. He didn't want to repeat the words because he could only imagine how bad she felt about it.
Liz gasped slightly and hung her head. "People have bad dreams all the time. It doesn't mean anything," she said quietly.
He took a moment to find out how to better assess the situation. "You haven't sent me out to the drug store for your, um—" he motioned towards her crotch, "in a while, Liz. Something's wrong," he said.
She sighed. "I'm fine, Dolph. Just leave me along. It's normal for women my age under stress to miss a period," she said as she tried to get out of the bed.
Dolph pulled her back. "Just promise me that you will let me know if you start to feel bad," he said.
Liz nodded. "I will, Dolph. I promise." She said.
Dolph let her go and sighed. He watched her go into the bathroom and listened to the shower's water as it ran. He tried to think of the best way to tread around Liz and her condition. He was so deep in thought that the thirty minutes Liz used in the bathroom seemed to fly by.
When she emerged, she was wrapped in a towel; so was her hair.
"Since when are you an expert on women's health, anyway?" she asked randomly as she towel dried her hair.
Dolph shrugged as he looked at their work schedule on his phone. "I've had my fair share of encounters with women," he said.
Liz chuckled and nodded. "Oh yeah. I forgot how smooth you are with some of the ladies," she said.
Dolph's head shot up from his phone. "What do you mean some of the ladies," he asked.
Liz shrugged. "I haven't fallen under the spell that is Dolph Ziggler. Who knows how many other women are immune to that jawline of yours?" she asked rhetorically.
He chuckled. "Well, you've had a taste of Orton, so that automatically puts me out of the running with you," he said.
Liz frowned as she continued to dry her hair. "What are you talking about?" she asked. "I haven't had 'a taste' of Randy," she said using air quotes when she put the hair towel down.
"Really?" Dolph asked surprised.
"Really, Dolph. We've always just been friends. Why does everyone assume that we were sleeping together?" she asked.
"You and him were always cozy and tight lipped about what was going on between you two," he said.
Liz nodded. "Yeah, but that was because Randy didn't want me getting close to any of y'all," she said.
Dolph nodded. "And why do you think that is?" he asked with a knowing smirk.
"Can we not talk about that? You know why," she said.
He laughed. "I know why; but do you know why?" he asked cynically.
She sighed. "I know you know I know that I know,"
Dolph squinted at the complex statement and shook his head. "Whatever. You ready for the show tonight?" he asked. She smirked; she was proud of her attempt to get Dolph to change the subject.
It Liz's first night to be in the ring. She wasn't wrestling, but she was valeting Dolph for a match. "I guess," she said.
"Don't be nervous, Liz. You're going to do great. You had the best teacher, after all," he gloated.
Liz rolled her eyes. "Why don't you go take a shower and take care of your, ahem, problem," she said as she moved her eyes to the bulge in Dolph's shorts.
"I'll be thinking of you," he said jokingly as he left the room to return to his own space to take a shower.
Liz chuckled. "Yeah. You do that," she said with a platonic wink.
"I have one question, though," Dolph said as he double backed into the room.
"What now?" she asked pretending to be annoyed.
Dolph took a deep breath and tried to brace himself for the answer to the question he was about to ask. "How is everything between you and Randy?" he asked cautiously.
She sighed. "I haven't seen him in almost two months. Why?" she asked.
He shrugged. "I don't know. You just seem a little lost without him, I guess," he said. Dolph was secretly surprised at how calm Liz was on the topic of her and Randy's last encounter.
"Honestly… I am lost without him. I just wish I would have let him get to Wade. If he did…" she sighed. "I miss Randy. I really do, but I can't just ignore everything that happened. How would it look if I just popped up after a couple of months and said I wanted to be with him?" she asked.
Dolph smirked. "So you do want him! I knew it!" he said as if he had solved a criminal case.
Liz chuckled. "I never denied it," she said.
"Then why didn't you—" Liz interrupted him.
"Jump his bones when he said he loves me?"
Dolph nodded.
She sighed. "I don't know. I feel like I should have done that in the first place, but I was so wrapped up in Wade. I thought he was the one, but I was wrong," she said sadly as she thought about the violence that stomped though the relationship.
Dolph didn't know what to say, so he just listened.
"I mean, how can I go out with Randy now that…" she trailed off.
He frowned. "Now that what?" he asked.
Liz shook her head. "Nothing. Never mind." She said.
"Does it have anything to do with your nightmares?" he asked.
She bit her lip to contain the tears that threatened to stain her face. When her attempt failed, she looked to the floor to hide the tears that escaped. Dolph walked towards her but she waved him off. "I'm okay," she said.
He sighed. "No, you're not Liz," he said as he pulled her into a hug. She held him tightly and cried. She had given up on trying to pretend she was okay. The pain was too deep for her to ignore; her bruises may fade, but the pain her abuser caused will always be there. Sometimes, it could be invisible, but it would always make itself known to Liz and that's what hurt her the most. There was no point in her hiding what happened anymore; Dolph already knew.
"Is there anything I can do?" he asked sympathetically.
She sniffled but still clung to him. "No," she said quietly.
"At least let me buy you a—"
"No, Dolph," she said as she pulled herself from his arms.
He sighed at her stubbornness. "Maybe you could go see Doc tonight?" he suggested.
She shook her head. "I'll be okay eventually," she said.
Dolph shook his head, but accepted her answer. He had determined that Liz either already knew or she pretended that it wasn't true, but he knew full well what was happening. He wanted to respect whatever it was Liz was thinking, but it was hard for him.
"You should at least press charges, Liz," he said; he was almost begging.
Liz sighed. "What if—"
"It doesn't matter, Liz. What he did was against the law; you deserve so much better than that!" Dolph said sternly.
She nodded. "I know, but it's my word against his. Nothing good will ever come of it," she said quietly. Liz had truthfully thought about pressing charges, but she had been convinced that Wade would get away with it.
Dolph offered a comforting smile anyway. "You can come to me if you ever need anything, Liz, you know that," he said.
She nodded and dried the tears on her face.
She sighed once Dolph was gone. It was hard for her to trust what Dolph said. Randy once said the same thing but when she went to Randy for help, it always spiraled out of control. Liz knew that both Randy and Dolph meant well, but she was skeptical if anyone was really looking out for what was best for her. She tried to figure out how she ever learn to trust anyone ever again, but she was stumped.
Liz knew something wasn't right, but she had already chosen to ignore it. She pushed the thought from her mind and took off the towel she had wrapped around her body. As she stood in front of the full length mirror provided by the hotel, Liz looked over her body.
Most of her bruises had faded, but the most recent ones on her lower abdomen, upper thighs, and inner thighs were still noticeable. She ran her fingers over the blemishes and recalled the last time she saw Wade.
[flashback]
Liz was in the master bedroom of Wade's house, which she had moved into with hopes of Wade being less abusive, trying on the potential outfits she would be wearing for a taping of Smackdown while Wade sat on the king sized bed. She had just pulled on an A line royal blue and black striped cut out dress with mesh inset. Wade had been watching a movie but when the movie went off, he noticed Liz trying on the dress.
"What the fuck is that you have on?" he asked.
Liz smoothed out the front of the dress and twirled playfully. "It's a new dress," she said.
Wade raised an eyebrow. "New? When did you get it?" he asked.
She thought back to when she bought the dress. "Last week. Some friends and I went shopping and I saw this dress; I had to have it," she said.
"I don't remember seeing that on my bank statement," he said.
Liz looked towards the floor. She knew where this was heading.
"I'm sorry, Wade. I used my own money; I didn't have your card on me. I wanted this dress so badly. Please don't be mad," she begged.
Wade thought for a moment while he walked around Liz to examine the dress. He had already been upset by the cut out with mesh inset across her back, but he really got upset when he saw that there was also a huge cut out with the same mesh inset on her bust.
"So where do you plan on wearing this so called dress?" he asked.
"It's not definite, but I was thinking about wearing it for Smackdown tonight," she said.
Wade frowned. "Really? Did it ever occur to you that I don't want you to wear that?" he asked slightly upset.
"No, but I was going to ask you when I picked an outfit," she said hoping he wouldn't be angry.
He nodded. "I'm sure you would have," he said with a smirk. "but I'm going to save you some time," he said as he further examined Liz in the dress. "You'd have to lose at least fifty pounds to look good in this dress. Look at you! Your stomach is poking out, your ass is making the back of the dress higher than the front, your legs look fucking terrible, and your arms are flabby. You'll never make it look good. Nicole, on the other hand could do something with it," he said as he adjusted his package thinking about Nikki Bella.
Liz sighed. "I think I look just fine," she said innocently.
Suddenly, Wade charged at her. He grabbed her by the throat and slammed her against the full length mirror. It shattered.
"You look like shit, darling. You won't be wearing this dress tonight. Nor will you ever wear it," he said right before ripping the fabric as he tore the dress from her body. Liz was gasping for air in her bra and panties as Wade looked over her newly clad body.
Wade smirked. "Did you know you could burn up to 1500 calories just by having sex?" he asked.
Liz shook her head since she couldn't speak due to Wade's hand constricting her airway.
"ANSWER ME, BITCH!" he yelled in her face.
"N-No," she struggled to say.
He grinned evilly. "Let's find out," he said before forcing himself on her.
She shook her head vigorously and pleaded with as much effort as she could muster up. "Please! I'm still a virgin!" she pled tearfully.
Liz didn't realize it, but was crying into her hands after recalling the last terrible encounter with Wade that was causing her nightmares. She saw her reflection and she hit the mirror over and over again until it cracked and cut her hands. Liz slid down the wall and cried into her bleeding hands. She jumped when Dolph knocked on the door.
"Liz? Are you okay?" he asked through the door.
She wiped her face with the palms of her hands. She shook the thoughts from her head and sighed. Liz composed herself before answering. "I'm fine," she said though her emotions.
"Are you sure?" he asked. Dolph's voice was full of concern.
"Yeah. I'm just getting ready. I'll be out soon," she said.
Dolph sighed. "Alright, but I don't think you should be doing any intense training today," he said.
"Okay. That's fine," she said.
She didn't hear Dolph again so she assumed that he had left the suite. She stood up and got dressed for the day. She dressed in lounge clothes that consisted of Nike shorts and a t-shirt. Liz made herself some breakfast and lounged around the suite until Dolph got back from the gym.
When he showed up, they went over the plans for his match on Raw. Once everything was covered, they each got ready for the show.
[Raw]
When they arrived at the arena, Dolph and Liz went in search of their dressing rooms. Punk was the first person she saw. Liz quickly plastered on a fake smile as if everything was okay to hide the hurt.
"Phil!" she said excitedly. She hugged the tattooed superstar. "It's so good to see you!" she exclaimed.
He laughed. "It's good to see you, too, Lizzy. How've you been?" he asked.
She shrugged. "I've been better, I guess," she said.
He nodded. "I get it. You hungry? We could go get something to eat from catering," he suggested.
Liz shook her head. "I gotta go. I'm the valet for Dolph's match; it's first, so I have to go get ready," she said.
"No problem. Maybe some other time," Punk said.
Liz nodded and smiled before walking away.
Dolph's match was going as planned. Liz was cheering for him outside the ring until she got dizzy and fainted. Dolph noticed, and immediately went to check on her. The referee counted all the way to ten before calling for the bell. When Dolph felt her pulse was shallow, he carried Liz in his arms to the trainers' room.
When he got there, the trainers asked what happened.
"I don't know. I was in the middle of my match and she just passed out," he explained.
The doctor nodded. "Okay. You can wait outside while I run some tests," he said.
Dolph looked concerned and nervous.
"She'll be fine. Just let me do my job," the doctor said.
Dolph nodded and left. When he was outside the door, Dolph saw Randy.
"What happened out there?" Randy asked. He saw Liz pass out while he was watching on one of the monitors backstage.
Dolph shrugged. "I don't know. Doc just put me out. He said she's going to be fine, though," he said.
Randy nodded. "Probably dehydration," he said.
Dolph sighed and hoped Randy was right.
Eventually, Liz emerged from the trainers' room. She looked a bit lost, but still responsive. She was crying heavily as if she had just gotten some terrible news.
"What did he say?" Dolph and Randy asked simultaneously.
Liz didn't answer, she just pushed past her friends. She went to the locker room and took a shower. Dolph and Randy were left in the hallway full of confusion. Randy went back to the Doc to find out what was going on.
"Is Liz okay, Doc?" he asked.
The doctor sighed. "She's not injured or anything if that's what you're asking. You'll have to ask her about anything else," he said.
Randy frowned and left. What the hell does that mean? He thought.
PLEASE REVIEW for a sneak peek at chapter 10.