Chapter 7
Stephanie was stunned when she found out everything that happened to Rajani, not believing how many attacks had gone down and they were all at the hands of Kane and John Cena. She wasn't surprised to find out that Rajani took the night off from the house show, honestly not blaming the woman. Though, when she tried faxing over her resignation, Stephanie decided she had to speak with Rajani, which ended her up standing outside of her intern's hotel room door. Rajani was not a quitter and, with everything that transpired at the Smackdown! taping, Stephanie honestly thought Rajani handled it the best she could.
Rajani looked up when a knock sounded at her door, busy packing her bags while trying to stop crying, wondering who it could be. She had to hurry up or she would miss her flight back to Miami. Sighing, Rajani zipped one of her bags up and walked over, looking through the peephole and blinked at the sight of Stephanie McMahon-Levesque staring back at her. She unlocked the door and opened it, not bothering to plaster on a smile, the dark circles under her eyes telling the entire story.
"You're not quitting or resigning, I refuse to let you." Stephanie informed her, taking in Rajani's appearance with a frown. "You can, however, take a few days off to rest because you look like the living dead. May I come in?" When Rajani pushed open the door, she stepped inside, eyes narrowing in on the luggage that was being packed. "I will be fining the hell out of Cena and Jacobs for this, Rajani, and after WrestleMania, they're both facing suspension. With WrestleMania looming, I can't suspend them right now."
At least that's what her father said. If they pulled another night like the one Rajani had suffered through, she'd do her best to see that those idiots didn't make it to the biggest event of the year. Rajani understood that because Kane and John were two of the company's top stars, there was no way WrestleMania could go on without them. It was all about business right now.
"Stephanie, will all due respect, I'm not sure sticking around here is in my best interest, especially after last night. 3 superstars ended up injured, 2 hospitalized and I ended up hurt too." Rajani slowly sat down on the bed, her eyes adverted to the floor. "The show was a complete disaster, I'm just not sure I'm cut out for this type of work..." Not to mention Rajani hadn't slept a wink due to having nightmares about Beth and Phil being murdered by Kane and Cena. "I let you down Stephanie, I'm sorry..."
"No, you didn't let me down, Rajani. You shouldn't have been put in that position to begin with, there were others who could have taken over for the night."
However, there was no precedent for something like this happening so...everyone had panicked and gone to Rajani. Which made sense, she spent a lot of time with Stephanie and was learning quickly, not to mention her...background. She knew this business pretty well. Knowing and then running it, however, were two separate ballgames.
"The injured superstars are not your fault, it would have happened on my watch too." Stephanie smiled gently, reaching out to place a hand on Rajani's shoulder. "At the very least, stay until after WrestleMania."
Stephanie was overwhelmed and Rajani knew it, how could she leave this woman alone with WrestleMania just weeks away? "Alright, after WrestleMania I will reassess the situation and make my ultimate decision if I want to stay on, fair enough?" When Stephanie beamed, Rajani cracked a very small smile that did not reach her tired eyes. "I'll have to call and cancel my flight, do you mind if I do my work from my hotel room for the next few days, just until I can get my mind back on track? Whatever you need, any errands, I'll run them for you. I just need to be away from the arenas, if that's alright."
"No, that's fine. I'll have Alex do any on the spot errands or work for me at the arenas. You definitely need a few days away, I can see that."
Stephanie was seriously considering suggesting that Rajani fill out a statement, just based on how she looked. However, there had already been enough paperwork filed on the situations and she was pretty sure the board wouldn't appreciate anything more. She still had to handle Cena and Jacobs yet, and possibly speak to Taker about getting Kane back in his right frame of mind, since the man knew Kane better than anyone else in the company.
"I know you and Alex both mentioned Mark being there at the end of the show, could you go over that one more time?"
Stephanie knew Taker had punched John. John had needed stitches on the inside of his lip from where it had cut on his teeth. Rajani visibly paled as the memory swept over her, screaming at the Undertaker of all people and John Cena, refusing to meet Stephanie's eyes.
"I uh...I sorta lost my temper with both of them. Undertaker walked up and said something to Cena about what Cena did to Kane, which I'm assuming you already know what he did. I umm..." Rajani blushed furiously, completely embarrassed. "It was very unprofessional of me with what I said."
"What did you say to them exactly?"
"Please for the love of fucking god just stop the fighting. What the fuck is going on with everyone? This is not good for the company or business and you are supposed to be locker room leaders, 2 of the top stars who should be setting examples for others instead of acting like 5 year old children." If Stephanie didn't want to fire her earlier, she would probably want to now. "I'm really sorry, I don't know what came over me..."
Stephanie was quiet for a full minute, just staring at Rajani before finally slowly blinking. "Is that, word for word, what you said?" She asked curiously, arching a perfectly groomed eyebrow when Rajani nodded sheepishly and could not, for the life of her, keep the amused smile from spreading across her lips. "How on earth did you manage to remember all that?" She demanded then began giggling, trying to picture Rajani screaming that at the Undertaker of all people. Trying to fight back the giggles, Stephanie managed to get out. "I can just IMAGINE Mark's reaction...oh my god, Raja...I really wish I had been there..."
Her dark eyes shot open when Stephanie began openly laughing at her, wondering if her boss was in the right mind frame "He just stood there...and didn't move a muscle...I stormed away and didn't give either man a chance to speak because I was fed up with everything else that had happened." Now that Rajani thought about it, she couldn't help letting small laughter echo along with Stephanie's. "I don't even want to think about what he did after finally moving, but...I guess maybe I shocked him into silence a little bit?" Both women laughed harder at the thought of Mark Calaway, the almighty Undertaker, speechless.
"God, that would have made a great YouTube clip..." Stephanie wiped away the tears of mirth, staring at Rajani with a silly grin on her face. "Of course, it would have completely ruined the Undertaker's credibility, but damn...I'm sure if it pissed him off I'll hear all about it. Mark's not one to just sit back and keep his mouth shut, never was." Sometimes that was a good thing, most of the time actually, and at others...well, not so good.
"That doesn't sound promising..." When Stephanie waved her off and assured that everything would be fine, Rajani could only hope for the best and trust her boss. "I really didn't mean to say what I did, but..." Rajani decided to change the subject. "So what all needs to get done or what all can I do in the hotel? Oh and by the way, Alex deserves a lot of praise for what he did for me last night. He did my running around and was really helpful. He put up with a lot, I wasn't the only one. I just thought you should know."
"I just have forms you can look over, you can do this in your sleep." Stephanie said automatically, reaching down into her rather large purse and pulling out a folder, extending it. "I'm more concerned with you resting then working."
The forms were mundane things like requests for time off, performance reports, things that were easy to go over, but also tended to be boring because of the lack of much brain power required. Not that she was trying to insult Rajani, she just figured rest was more important than work. Those circles under Rajani's eyes were rather alarming.
"And yes, I know Alex is great. That's why I'm making him my assistant at the arena while you're here and, when you come back, he'll be YOUR assistant. He can get the coffee and donuts while we sit in the office."
"Really?" Working alongside Alex would be great, but Rajani didn't want him to be her gopher. She would treat him well, especially after all the help he'd given her the previous night. "Thank you Steph, for convincing me to stay and checking up on me. Not a lot of bosses would do that."
She took the paperwork from Stephanie and set it aside, both of them discussing a few other things that were going down in the upcoming meeting with every employee of the company. It happened twice a month. Rajani had to be informed of everything going on being Stephanie's assistant and whatnot. Stephanie stayed for a few more minutes and then left Rajani to rest, making her promise to get rid of the bags under her eyes. Hopefully that would be easy to do.
Stephanie almost popped off a quip about how the WWE was one big family, but refrained. Sure, one big family, if one's definition of family meant: dysfunctional, violent, drama to the max... "I'm not just your boss, Rajani." She said sincerely. "I hope I'm also your friend. I think you can really go far in this business. Not to mention you are a total lifesaver for me when things get hairy, so of course I'm going to talk you into staying. But as your friend, if you really think you need to step back and out of the WWE, then I would accept your decision."
"Like I said, let's see how things progress on the road to WrestleMania and after the pay-per-view, I'll make my decision. I don't want to leave, last night was just...horrible. I thought you were gonna fire me because of the injuries and everything else." When Stephanie shook her head, Rajani smiled, hugging her boss. "I consider you my friend too, Stephanie. Thanks again for...understanding and hearing me out. Means a lot."
"That's what I'm here for, and to sign paychecks." Stephanie joked, her eyes catching the bedside clock on the nightstand and groaned. "I have to go. I have fines to go personally deliver along with threats of castration. Get some rest and, if you need anything, anything at all, don't hesitate to call." Stephanie met Rajani's eyes. "I mean it, call. Just don't call me asking for more work or something, because that's all I have for you." She gestured to the folder, already backing towards the door. "Rest!"
"I will, you have my word." Rajani chuckled when Stephanie gave her a look that clearly said if she didn't follow orders, there would be hell to pay. "Enjoy giving away those fines and threats."
They both laughed before Rajani shut the door, letting a sigh of relief escape her. Now that she decided to stay, Rajani had unpacking to do because they weren't leaving for the next town for two days...appearances and whatnot happening. After she unpacked, Rajani jumped in the shower, refusing to take a chance falling asleep in the tub. Just as she walked out of the bathroom, wrapping herself in a robe, a knock sounded at Rajani's door. Who the hell was it now? She went to investigate, thinking it was Stephanie once again checking on her to make sure she was resting.
It was a bellhop with a tray of food.
"Mrs. Levesque ordered for you." The bellhop called through the door, stepping back so she could see the cart through the peephole. Stephanie had ordered a little of everything, so the top of the tray as well as the second shelf were full. When she opened the door, he carefully pushed the trolley into the room. "When you're finished, just place it outside your door and someone will collect it, miss."
Taker arched an eyebrow when the bellhop jumped upon turning around, leaning in the open door with his arms folded over his bare chest. He wasn't scheduled for the night so he had seen no reason to dress in anything but his jeans. "Hungry, darlin'?"
Rajani was shocked by the amount of food Stephanie ordered her and couldn't help jumping slightly at the sight of Taker outside her hotel room door. "T-Thank you..." She handed over some money to the bellhop, sighing when he said it'd already been taken care of and took his leave. "I guess I am..."
She didn't meet Taker's eyes, pushing the tray into her room a little further and was glad she'd tied her robe tightly because she was completely naked underneath, her long hair wet and hanging over her shoulder. Rajani knew Taker hadn't forgotten about what she did the previous night. Wondering if it would be smart to apologize to him now or just leave it alone, Rajani suddenly just wanted him out of her room, period.
"My apologies for my outburst last night...Taker. I was completely unprofessional and shouldn't have said what I did. I hope you're not too upset with me over it?"
Taker had to step inside the room in order for the bellhop to get past him. Aware the other man was pulling the door shut behind them, that left him standing in Rajani's room with just her. It took him exactly .001 seconds to note that one: she had obviously just gotten out of the shower. Two: that robe might've been a color that wasn't see-through, but it was also made out of a fabric that reminded him a lot of silk. Three: she had very luscious curves, the silk clinging to her damp skin. Four: she was either cold or completely unaware. Taker felt the corners of his lips turning upwards.
"No, I'm not upset. Steph asked me to come talk to you about last night, darlin'. If I'd of know you were...occupied, I would've waited a bit longer." His voice had dropped from its normal pitch to a low rumbling baritone.
Taker was in her room instead of the doorway. Rajani hadn't even noticed because the smell of food had distracted her. Now she was regretting that distraction and turned around to face him, her throat going slightly dry.
"S-She did?"
Why hadn't Stephanie told her about that when she visited earlier? Something wasn't right here. Rajani was highly intelligent, but decided to just play the game Taker was for the time being.
"She came to see me earlier, didn't mention it. Have a seat, I need to finish up and then we can talk."
Grabbing her bag, Rajani began walking past him toward the bathroom, surprised at how composed she was. Taker settled himself comfortably in one of the armchairs; they were built sturdy so they held his weight. As far as he was concerned, she could have remained in the robe, but...rolling his eyes, he began keeping track of the time, wondering how long she would bar herself up in the bathroom. He did a cursory sweep of the room; it looked like...nothing. It was plain, which meant she was either the type of person who didn't personalize their hotel room and unpack their things or she had been packed to leave.