Seth Rollins' music kicked off the episode of Mixed Match Challenge 2. It was greeted with a loud ovation. Seth and his partner Bayley walked out into the arena side by side. While it was Seth's music that was playing, the Bayley Buddies were still in place at the side of the entrance ramp. Seth joined in with Bayley's familiar pose as her inflatable friends rose from the ground.
"It's time for the first semi-final in the Mixed Match Challenge," Tom Phillips said on commentary, hyping it up. "It's going to be Seth Rollins and Bayley against Alexa Bliss and Braun Strowman. We're guaranteed to see a team from Monday Night Raw in the finals."
"That's true, Tom," Byron Saxton said. "But we're also going to have a team from Smackdown in the finals, after next week's second semi-final."
"It's difficult to pick a fan favourite team from the two we're about to see," Graves said. "Listen to the reaction Seth and Bayley are getting, and we know for sure Team Little Big will be received in a similar way."
"Seth and Bayley were impressive in the previous round, but it's going to be a much greater challenge to get by Team Little Big," Phillips said. "We saw them training last week, and Braun was doing his best to turn Alexa into a monster."
Graves couldn't help laughing. "I'm not sure how successful he was, but yes, he was trying."
Seth and Bayley entered the ring and his music faded out. Even though they had been cheered during their entrance, a chant of "Little Big" now began to fill the arena.
"This is quite remarkable," Saxton commented. "I'm not sure I would ever have imagined a crowd cheering for Alexa Bliss like this. Usually on Raw, everyone hates her, and for good reason."
"They're not cheering for Bliss, you idiot," Graves said. "They're cheering for Team Little Big."
"Braun!"
The fans roared their approval of the entrance music for what they expected to be one half of their favourite team. They soon received a surprise. Braun walked out onto the stage with Alexa sitting on his shoulder. They were both wearing their Team Little Big shirts with the cartoon characters the wrong way around.
"Look at those shirts!" Graves exclaimed. "I'm not sure why Alexa is on Braun's shirt and he's on hers, but I love the designs!"
Phillips said, "Last time out, we saw Andrade 'Cien' Almas and Zelina Vega look fairly dominant over Team Little Big, only for Braun to turn the tables and put an end to the match with one running powerslam. That's what Seth and Bayley are up against here. Somehow, Seth's going to have to pin the monster, or Bayley's going to have to pin the Raw Women's Champion."
Reaching the ring, Braun crouched down so that Alexa could hop off his shoulder, onto the ring apron. When she had done that, she entered the ring and he followed behind, climbing over the top rope.
"Braun!" everyone shouted along with him as he raised his arms in the air. Standing in front of him, tiny Alexa did the same. Turning around, she watched in horror as he tore his shirt clean in half and threw it out into the crowd.
"What are you doing?" she demanded angrily, standing with her hands on her hips. "I paid good money for that shirt!"
"Sorry, little one," he replied gruffly.
They didn't get the chance to argue any further because Bayley came rushing over and clotheslined Alexa in the back of the head, knocking her down. The referee immediately called for the bell to start the match as the fans booed the attack.
"Oh, Bayley from behind!" Saxton had called. "She had no intention of standing there while Team Little Big worked their issues out; there's a semi-final to be won!"
Since they were the less popular of the two teams on show, Seth and Bayley worked the match as heels. Bayley managed to keep Alexa isolated in the ring for a few minutes, until Braun came into the ring to threaten the referee before he could count a cover that Bayley was making.
Seth came flying off the top rope in his team's corner, taking the huge monster out with a cross body, sending him crashing to the mat. The remarkable feat was cheered by the crowd as the referee tried to get Rollins out of the ring to restore order.
Meanwhile, Alexa had struggled back to her feet. Bayley hit Bliss with a standing dropkick, causing her to spin around and fall face first on top of Braun. The fans erupted again.
Despite the pain from the beating she had been taking, Alexa felt spellbound as she looked down into Strowman's eyes. She saw the same emotion from him. There could be no doubt about it at all: he was attracted to her. He wanted her to kiss him. The temptation to do so was so strong. On autopilot, her hands had moved to cup his cheeks. All she had to do was lean forward and…
Alexa felt Bayley grab her, hauling her over into a pinning predicament.
"One!"
"Two!"
"Oh, that was so close!" Phillips called as Alexa managed to get a shoulder up.
The match proceeded for another couple of minutes before Alexa finally managed to make a hot tag to Braun. The monster and Seth both charged into the ring, and Strowman began taking Rollins apart with some seriously powerful offense.
Alexa and Bayley ended up back on their feet, also fighting in the ring. The referee had lost all control of the contest. The chaos went on for a couple of minutes, until the women finally returned to their corners.
"Tag," Saxton called as Braun slapped Alexa's hand, trying his best to be delicate about it.
Bliss hit the ring, taking Bayley down with a clothesline, then again with a back body drop. Bayley countered an attempted vertical suplex with one of her own, then grabbed Alexa around the waist, wanting to go for a Bayley-to-Belly.
Alexa fought back, elbowing Bayley a couple of times in the side of the head to break the hold. After they separated, Bayley spun around, only to take a kick in the stomach.
"DDT!" Graves cried as the crowd came to their feet, expecting that to be the finishing move. Simultaneously, Braun had hit Seth with a big boot to the face, taking him well and truly out of the equation.
"But there's no cover," Phillips pointed out.
The reason soon became apparent. Team Little Big had come into the match with plan for a finishing move. Alexa hurried over to the corner and climbed up to the top turnbuckle. Braun followed her to the corner and crouched down slightly so that she could step onto his shoulders.
"Alexa Bliss is up on Strowman's shoulders. What's going on here?" Graves asked.
Walking slowly, carefully, Braun made his way closer to Bayley, who lay prone on her back. Alexa teetered a couple of times, but managed to keep her balance. The fans cheered them on, having figured out what was coming.
Once Braun was correctly positioned beside Bayley, Alexa raised her hands and posed for a second before launching herself into the air.
"Twisted Bliss from Braun Strowman's shoulders!" Phillips called. "Bliss for the win…"
"One!"
"Two!"
"Three!"
"Bliss and Strowman advance to the finals," Saxton announced over another cheer of approval. Alexa's music began to play. "Seth Rollins and Bayley are eliminated."
Getting up after securing the victory, Alexa celebrated by jumping up and giving her enormous partner a high five. They had finally mastered it, with Braun figured out the right height to hold his hand at where she could reach it.
"Well done, little one," he told her happily. "Only one more match, and we'll win this thing!"
"No doubt about it," she replied. "No one's going to stop Team Little Big. But I'm not happy about what you did to the shirt I bought you," she added sternly. "We're going to have to talk about your violent tendencies."
Strowman didn't seen keen on that idea. He looked away from her and raised his arms in the air. "Braun!" everyone shouted, including Alexa, who joined in with the celebration.
A/N: Many thanks to everyone who left suggestions for the semi-final opponents for Team Little Big. I just had to go with Seth and Bayley as soon as I saw them mentioned! Shout out to Forza Azzurra, espeon44 and 76ers.
Next time, the final chapter of this short story. We'll see Alexa trying to teach Braun to control his rage, followed by the final match of Mixed Match Challenge 2. As before, you guys are going to decide who they face. This time, we know that they are set to face a team from Smackdown, so you need to pair two Smackdown stars, please. Leave your suggestions in a review.