A/N: Back by popular demand, I'm writing chapters to this story again! Thanks to all who have been writing me during the near two year long intermission. I guess Dean Ambrose winning the championship a couple of weeks ago made me realize that I shouldn't have abandoned this project. Congrats to him! Just a reminder, some of the things in this story are not quite on the same timeline as the real progression.

Two weeks later...

Aidan nudged her apartment door open, backing in, arms full of bags that she'd just carried up two flights of stairs. She sat them all down inside the doorway and shut the door behind her. She paused a moment to catch her breath, looking around at the mostly bare apartment. There was a worn out couch in the living room, a card table with a single folding chair, and, she was happy to see, her newly purchased mattress was leaning against the wall.

Her modest apartment had only been leased a week ago, and since she'd been on the road for the past few days, she hadn't had much time to settle in. She pushed the unwieldy mattress down the hallway and into the only bedroom, shoving it over so that it lay flat on the floor. There wasn't a bed frame to put it in yet, so she flopped down on it as it lay. She lay there a moment, staring up at the ceiling. The quiet was unsettling; she was still adjusting to the newness of the first apartment she'd lived in on her own.

The decision to rent her own place was one that was made fairly quickly after her fiance had decided that he'd "rushed into things". The night her engagement had ended, she packed up what she could fit into a suitcase and headed straight for the airport. She remembered standing in the entrance, looking up at the board that showed the departures, ready to go anywhere other than Chicago, Illinois. As fate would have it, one of the first flights leaving Chicago was headed for Tampa, Florida. She felt like it was the best choice considering she knew people there, and that it would potentially irk Punk that she was heading to the place that Dean Ambrose lived.

Though she knew it was foolish, part of her hoped that if she went to Tampa, she would somehow cross paths with Dean. She'd half expected to hear from him once word got around that Punk had suspended their engagement. However, as the days passed, she gave up hope. Of course, if she wanted to she could call him, but the warning uttered by Vince weeks back the night Dean had walked out on NXT was enough to put that option away. She found herself wondering about him now and then; she'd never found out if he'd been disciplined over his walk-out, but at the very least she knew he hadn't been released as news of that would have travelled fast.

Thinking of discipline, she still hadn't received any kind of notice of what her's would be. She was beginning to wonder if Vince had forgotten about it. However, once she returned to work the following Tuesday, she found that was not the case.

She'd been called into a meeting with Vince and a couple of writers from the creative team. She was surprised to see Vince there as he rarely came on set for Smackdown.

"Come in and have a seat, Aidan."

Aidan nervously approached the table he sat at and pulled up a chair.

"I wanted to talk to you this evening because there are going to be some changes coming up soon. We are looking at promoting a new diva to the main roster."

Aidan, unsure of where he was going, simply nodded.

"I think she's going to bring an interesting dynamic to the Smackdown brand, and we want to put her over quickly. In order to do so, you will lose the Diva's Championship to her at TLC."

She tried to appear unphased by the news that she'd lose the title, but it was a hard pill to swallow, especially considering the timing.

"So, is this my punishment for what happened at NXT?"

He smiled in a knowing way.

"I thought you might think that, and that's why I wanted to talk to you in person. I decided not to take any disciplinary action against you. I don't think what happened with Dean Ambrose should be blamed on you regardless of what happened between you two. No, I think Dean has to mature a little before he's ready for RAW or Smackdown. In fact, I've talked to him and we've agreed that he should stay with FCW. But, as far as the Diva's Championship is concerned, I want you to know that this has nothing to do with that. It's only a matter of moving this new story arc forward, which you will be a part of."

She weighed this information in her mind. Of course, she knew she wouldn't keep the title forever, but it had been such a huge moment in her career that she was sad to have to let it go now. She was relieved at least to hear it from Vince that this was not some kind of punishment, and that Dean also seemed to be in the clear.

"So, who's being promoted?"

"Well, we've considered several of the women in FCW, but the unanimous decision was to promote AJ Lee to the roster."

Aidan's jaw dropped.

"Is there something wrong with that?" Vince asked, obviously baffled by her expression of disbelief.

"No-no, sir. I-I just didn't expect.."

"We have a lot of confidence that she will do well. However, we do think she needs a little help from someone a little more experienced. I was hoping you wouldn't mind meeting with her at the FCW facility a few times over the next couple of weeks just to guide her into this new role. I understand you live close by now, so hopefully it won't be too much of a burden."

Aidan swallowed hard, trying to remain neutral.

"Yes, of course," she said with a forced smile.

"Good. I'll let her know and we'll put you in touch with her."

As the meeting ended and Vince and the others left the room, she hung back so that she was the last one left. She sat at the table, still in disbelief. Not only was she to lose the title, but she would also be handing it to the person she held majorly responsible for ruining her engagement. Maybe Vince hadn't meant it as a punishment, but, apart from being fired perhaps, this was the worst punishment imaginable.

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

"You're not going to kill her or anything, are you? I don't want to see you on the news."

Aidan rolled her eyes. She and Kaitlyn were walking to the FCW arena in Tampa. She'd agreed to accompany her in case things got too heavy.

"Probably not. When I talked to her about meeting she was super nice. I guess we're just pretending we don't know each other right now."

Kaitlyn grinned and said, "That's probably the best you can do. I have to say, you're pretty brave for doing this. I don't know if I could even look her in the eye without wanting to beat her if she'd cheated with my fiance."

"I've thought about it, but I want to keep my job," Aidan said nonchalantly.

Kaitlyn looked around and then quietly asked, "Have you talked with Punk since…"

"Yeah. I'm supposed to go collect the rest of my stuff next week."

"Oh…" she said, a pitying look on her face.

Aidan shrugged.

"It was my idea. I just think, regardless of what happens, I want to move out. I've got my own place now anyway. Maybe once I'm completely gone, what he's done will hit him. Or, he might just go on being a son of a bitch."

As they entered the building, Aidan dropped her gear off in the locker room where she left Kaitlyn who was greeting some of her other friends. She headed toward the floor of the arena where she'd agreed to meet AJ. There were some other members from the FCW roster gathered around the ring, watching two of their fellow wrestlers practicing. Aidan approached and she was hailed by Derrick Bateman.

"Hey, Aidan!"

She smiled and walked over to stand by him.

"How's it going?" she asked.

"Can't complain. What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for AJ." Derrick's eyes widened. She smiled and added, "Vince asked me to come by. She's being promoted soon and he wants me to help her out."

"Oh...that must be awkward."

"Definitely. But, what can you do?"

She looked up into the ring and for the first time noticed who was in there. She felt her heart skip a beat. It was Dean. From the looks of it, he hadn't noticed her standing there. He was engaged in a lockup with a wrestler she'd never seen before.

Derrick noticed her watching him. He looked as if he were going to say something, but thought better of it.

The FCW coach in the ring called for the two men to break it up and asked for the next set to enter the ring.

"See you later," Derrick said as he joined Byron Saxton in the ring.

Aidan's eyes were still following Dean, who had joined ranks with the others on the opposite side of the ring. His eyes briefly met hers and he stared at her for a moment, his expression unfathomable. At last he inclined his head in greeting. She smiled and waved to him. Her concentration was broken when she heard a voice from behind her.

"Aidan?"

She turned to see AJ approaching her slowly. From the looks of it she was nervous. Aidan took this as a good sign and held out a hand.

"Hi. Glad you could make it."

AJ awkwardly took her hand and gave it a feeble shake. She wasn't sure what she'd expected out of her, but Aidan imagined she'd be a little more confident, especially since she had the nerve to go spreading rumors about her throughout the whole company. Suddenly, she had an idea.

"Why don't we let them finish up and then we'll begin. Excuse me for just a second."

She left AJ standing by herself and approached Dean who was still eyeing her. He backed away from the group a little, leaving some distance between them. Aidan stood beside him, suddenly unsure of what to say, a mixture of feelings running through her that she hadn't felt in some time.

"Hey," she said dumbly.

He looked at her out of the side of his eye. He seemed strangely unsure of himself, a mannerism she'd never witnessed from him.

"Wasn't expecting to see you here" Dean said in a low gruff voice.

"It's a long story. Do you want to talk later?"

He hesitated. "Yeah, sure."

"I'll text you later, ok?"

He nodded and she walked away from him, rejoining AJ on the other side of the ring. As she stood there watching the practice session winding down, she suddenly felt very confident that after a huge downturn in her luck, things were on the rise again.