A/N: I just wanted to say thanks for all the reviews and follows this story has been getting, and a special thanks to those of you who review every chapter. All this support makes me a happy lady! Anywho, I have another chapter ready, and I hope you all enjoy!

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With the start of the new season of NXT upon them, Aidan and the other pros were waiting around backstage. The creative team had gathered their rookies for a meeting before the start of the show. She observed the other pros conversing from a distance. Most of them were discussing how well they were getting along with their assigned pupils. Aidan was still trying to overcome the hatred that she'd built up for hers.

Since their lovely car trip a few nights back, Aidan had not seen or spoke to Dean. The thing that bothered her most was that no matter how she tried to forget about him, he still managed to invade her thoughts. On the outside he was rude, obnoxious, abrasive, and he had the special talent of disgusting her like no one else could. Despite all of this, he'd seen through the façade she'd built around herself and brought to the surface all of the things she'd tried to forget. He seemed to know her better than anyone, even herself. This scared her, especially since she knew so little about him. So on her day off, she took some time and did a little research on Mr. Ambrose. The results were unsettling.

She'd watched countless matches and promos with a morbid fascination. He'd wrestled through broken glass and barbwire, dog collar matches, street fights, but no matter how violent—or bloody—things got, he never backed down. It was like he was driven by the pain. He even seemed to enjoy it. Beside all the death matches, she could see real talent in his wrestling. Perhaps even more impressive was his skill at talking. She'd seen him look straight into the camera and show everything down to his warped mind, his twisted heart, and his dark soul. In the last video she watched he recounted vividly a scene from his childhood of abuse and neglect. The tale struck too close to home. She turned off the computer and hadn't turned it on since.

"Aidan!"

A nervous writer was running up to her. He looked like he was about two seconds away from a heart attack.

"What's wrong?"

"Dean. We can't find him. He missed the meeting and now the show is about to start."

Aidan rolled her eyes. She should have seen this coming.

"I'll go look for him," she said.

She immediately and begrudgingly went searching for her wayward rookie, not having the slightest clue as to where he could be. The backstage area was large and convoluted, and the show was scheduled to start in ten minutes. She stopped and thought back to the videos she'd watched. When he was seen backstage, he was usually somewhere out of the way. She took off running, heading for the darkest, most unused areas of the building.

It wasn't long before she feared she'd be lost as well. She found herself in an area that seemed older than the rest of the building. The walls were made of brick and the tile on the floor looked like it had seen many years of traffic. An unnatural quiet had settled over the place; she couldn't even hear the sounds of the arena. She slowed to a stop and gazed helplessly around. This was useless. For all she knew, he wasn't even in the building.

"Looking for someone?"

The gravelly voice was instantly recognizable. She looked all around until she spotted him sitting on an old staircase that was partially concealed in darkness. Seeing him there sent a cold chill through her body, a rash of goose bumps breaking out on her skin.

"Dean…what the hell are you doing? You skipped the meeting and now the show is about to start and nobody can find you."

He stood up from his roost on the stairs and walked slowly towards her, each footstep puncturing the thick silence.

"You found me. I knew you cared."

"This isn't a game. They'll have both of our asses if we cause the show to be delayed."

He clapped a hand on her shoulder, his grip tight.

"Relax. You're always worrying."

She shrugged him off and started walking.

"Let's go."

He walked along behind her, silent for a while. It didn't last very long.

"You've been thinking about me, haven't you?"

She glanced back at him. He had a nauseating grin on his face.

"I've been thinking about how much you piss me off," she said.

"That may be true. But it's only because deep down you know that I'm a part of you."

She stopped in her tracks and spun around to face him.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm the part of you that you want to ignore."

"Well, you've got that right."

She tried to walk away but he caught her arm and spun her around. He held her there close to him, her body pressed uncomfortably to his.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking since our little chat the other night. I didn't want to think about you but I couldn't help it. You piss me off till my blood boils because you won't just be yourself. The worst part about it is I don't even know why I care." He laughed in disbelief of himself. "So I keep asking myself what is it about this woman? Why has she been able to do what no one else has done in my entire fucking life? Why does she make me care about her?"

He went quiet, staring into her eyes as if he was expecting her to give him the answers.

"If this is your deluded idea of a romantic gesture, or a profession of love, you can forget about it," she said darkly.

He let out one short derisive laugh.

"I didn't say that, sunshine. You were just another notch in my belt back then and love is something I'm incapable of. I'm saying that we share some kind of connection. I can feel it. I fucking hate it, but I know it's there. You and I are one in the same."

"I'm nothing like you," she spat.

He took her jaw in his hand. She flinched and his grip grew painfully tight, forcing her to look at him.

"That's what you say now. I'm going to show you just how wrong you are."

"Let her go."

The singular statement came from Daniel Bryan. He was observing Dean with fury in his eyes, his body tense and ready to fight. Dean's grip loosened. He gave her a meaningful look before slouching away. Daniel's eyes followed him until he was out of sight.

"Are you ok?" he asked, concern softening his expression.

She absentmindedly massaged her jaw, staring into the space Dean had just been standing.

"Yeah, I'm okay," she said

"What the hell was that about?"

"It's nothing."

"It looked like something to me. You should report that guy. He can't put his hands on you."

"I don't want to cause a big stir over nothing. Dean is…temperamental…but he's nothing I can't handle."

"You don't know what he's capable of. This needs to stop now."

She considered his plea. This partnership with Dean could very well be over if she complained that he was violent toward her. However, something at the core of her was pushing her forward. She didn't want to walk away. Straightening herself up, she looked at Daniel with steely resolve in her icy blue eyes.

"I'm beginning to understand Mr. Ambrose very well. I look like an easy target and he thinks he can bring me down to his level. Backing out now will only prove him right."

"I still think you should tell somebody. What would Punk think if he found out about this? He'd kick my ass for not stopping it."

The mention of her fiancé filled her with the sting of regret. Once again, she was hiding something from him, but she knew if he found out about this he'd come running to her rescue. She had to handle Dean on her own or else he would never respect her.

"Please, Daniel. I ask you as my friend to let this go."

A stage hand came running up with a microphone.

"We've been looking for you two. The show has already started! Daniel, it's your turn to introduce your rookie. Aidan, you're next."

He shoved the microphone into Daniel's hand and ushered him away. Daniel looked back at Aidan and gave her a quick nod, a sign that he would do as she wished.

Aidan hurried to catch up. Daniel was already walking through the curtain, introducing his rookie Derrick Bateman. She spotted Dean leaning against the wall, his arms folded. He regarded her coolly, his lips pursed. She walked right over and stood beside him. His expression changed to one of mild interest.

"I think short stack wants to tattle on me. He shot me an 'eat shit' look on the way out."

"I told him not to say anything," Aidan said.

"You're protecting me? I'm shocked."

"I just want to do my job. Besides, if you think squeezing on my jaw is going to scare me, you don't know who you're dealing with."

A devious grin grew on his lips.

"I knew I was right about you, sunshine."