The rest of the week flew by quickly and with little incidence. On Sunday, Aidan completed her last stop with the RAW crew at a house show in Georgia. It was a short drive to Atlanta where the next Monday Night RAW would take place. She made the most of her time with Punk, trying not to let her melancholy ruin the night. Despite her best efforts, she knew he could sense her sadness. He was talking and joking more than normal, trying even harder to make her laugh or at least crack a smile, anything to take her mind away from what was coming.

She spent the following day hanging around with her friends from RAW. The show came and went and afterwards it was time for her to leave. She had already arranged to ride with Kaitlyn and Natalya to the next show where she would officially become part of the Smackdown roster. She watched as Punk loaded her bag into the trunk of the rental car. As he closed it up, he turned to her and smiled.

"Well, it was a tough job, but I managed to load your bag for you."

She forced a smile. "Thanks."

Punk placed his hands on her shoulders, looking her in the eyes.

"C'mon. You're going to have to cheer up just a little bit or I'm not going to be able to let you go."

"Promise?" she said sulkily.

"It's not going to be that bad. You're going to go and do a couple of shows and I'll see you in a few days."

"It wouldn't be so bad if I actually knew anybody on the Smackdown roster. I'm lucky Kaitlyn and Nattie are there or I wouldn't even have anyone to ride with."

"They're not a bunch of strangers, Aidan. You've met them all before."

"They might as well be. Sure, I've met them but I don't really know any of them."

Punk sighed, a knowing smile on his lips.

"You remember when you first came to RAW and you were all shy and nervous? Within two weeks you were everybody's friend. The same thing will happen here. You've got a way of making people love you. You sure hooked me."

"Oh, stop. You're making me blush," she said, playfully pushing him away.

"Seriously though, you will be alright. You'll be more than alright. I'll bet you'll even be enjoying yourself before it's all over with."

She wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly and rested her head against his chest, feeling it rise and fall with each breath. At last she pulled back and gave him a long, slow kiss on the lips.

"Something to remember me by," she said with a smile.

"Hey, Punk! You ready to go?"

It was Daniel calling from across the parking lot. AJ was leaning out of the passenger side doorway, watching them.

"Yeah, just a second," he called back. He rolled his eyes. "Some people."

"So you're riding with Daniel and AJ?"

"Yeah. They took pity on me and offered me a ride."

She felt a stab of jealousy, wishing she were riding with them instead.

"Ok. I don't want to hold you up. I'm pretty sure Kaitlyn and Nattie are probably tired of me stalling anyway. See you in a few days?"

"Yeah. Let me know how things go tomorrow, ok?"

"Sure. I'll call you tomorrow night."

He planted a lingering kiss on her lips.

"I'll see you soon."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

As Punk had predicted, things went very smoothly in her transition. Her first day now behind her, she could mark it as a success. She'd spent a lot of time that day meeting with and reacquainting herself with the Superstars and Divas of Smackdown. She'd also enjoyed being around Kaitlyn and Nattie, both good friends of hers that she hadn't had much time to spend with in the past because of their conflicting schedules. Above all, her match went well, a good start for her tenure on Smackdown.

Still in her wrestling gear, she walked through the backstage area heading toward the locker room. As she came closer, she became aware of the sound of quickly approaching footsteps. Layla rounded the corner and nearly bumped right into her.

"Oh, Aidan. You're just the girl I was looking for," she said. "You have a—a visitor." She pointed back towards the diva's locker room.

"A visitor? Who is it?"

"You'll see him. He's waiting outside the locker room."

She started to walk off but Aidan called after her.

"Are you ok? You seem upset."

Layla forced a smile.

"I'm fine. I'll see you later."

With that she was gone. Aidan continued on the path toward the locker room still wondering what had gotten Layla so worked up. Once the locker room door came into view, she had her answer. Dean Ambrose. He was leaning against the wall, his hands shoved into the pockets of his worn out jeans. His eyes were following each person that passed. Finally, they came to rest on her. A faint smile traced his lips.

"Sunshine, what took you so long? I've been waiting here all night."

Aidan could feel her stomach knotting up.

"What are you doing here?"
"I'm your rookie, aren't I? I need guidance."

"NXT doesn't start until next week. You're a little early."

He pushed himself away from the wall and walked in a slow, uneven gait, only stopping when they were standing toe to toe. He towered over her, making her feel very small. His eyes were looking her up and down. She crossed her arms over her chest, suddenly feeling self-conscious in her ring gear.

"I know for a fact that the other rookies and their pros are already spending time together. They're getting to know each other, becoming the best of pals even," he said, his hands gesturing wildly.

He bent over a little, bringing himself down to her level. His face inches from hers, he spoke in a low, even tone.

"You haven't made a move. Are you intimidated by me? Or do you simply wish I would go away?"

She swallowed hard, but she did not back away. She stared back at him, resolute in her will to show no fear.

"What do you want? Do you want me to be your friend?" she asked, anger seeping into her words.

That deranged smile came across his face. He straightened himself up and took a step backwards.

"There's no need to get angry, Sunshine. I just want what's best for us. After all, we're going to be working together for a long time."

She grimaced at the concept.

"If you're no good you could be out in a matter of weeks. Do you think you have what it takes?"

He chuckled in a guttural way.

"Do I have what it takes? Sunshine, I'm more than you can handle."

She closed her eyes and shook her head. Trying to ignore what she was sure was innuendo, she attempted to change the subject.

"Why do you keep calling me that?"

"You don't like it? It suits you, doesn't it? You're everybody's sweetheart."

He came closer again and again she fought the urge to back away.

"You've got that pretty blonde hair, that radiant smile, your sunny disposition." He chuckled at his own joke. Bringing his hand up, he caught a strand of her hair and twirled it around his finger. "I can see what Punk likes about you. You're pure and innocent—at least that's what he thinks. But he doesn't know you that well, does he? He doesn't know what I know."

Finally having had enough, she swatted his hand away from her and pushed him back.

"Whatever you think you know about me, you're wrong," she muttered through clenched teeth. "If we're going to get through the next few weeks, you're going to have to learn some rules. Don't touch me, don't show up unannounced, and quit spreading your bullshit lies or I will have your ass booted out of here so fast you won't even see it coming. Do you understand me?"

He wasn't smiling anymore. Instead, a sneer had twisted his mouth, his brows furrowing dangerously over his eyes.

"And here I was wanting to play nice. Have it your way, Aidan," he said, spitting out her name. He started to walk away. He was half way down the hall before it even had time to register.

"Where are you going?" she called out after him.

"Away. It's what you want, isn't it?" he yelled over his shoulder, not stopping.

She ran to catch up with him. She grabbed his arm and he spun around quick. The fury burning in his eyes made her think twice about going after him, but she didn't let go. Instead she stood there, gazing into his eyes. After a few moments, she could feel the anger slowly leaving his body.

"I didn't mean to upset you. My past is a touchy subject. No one knows about it except for Daniel Bryan who I only told a few days ago, and now, apparently, you."

He looked at her a moment longer before tugging his arm away from her.

"We've all got something we're hiding from. I quit hiding a long time ago. I think you should do the same."

He left her standing there, staring after him. His words weighing heavily on her, she sighed and walked into the locker room. She had a feeling that this was the beginning of something bigger than she'd ever imagined.