Sasha sat at the very back of the arena the following week at RAW. The show had just ended, and crew members began clearing out as she sat cross-legged on a production crate, the belt beside her. Her shoulders were slumped and she wiped away some of the tears that had formed, holding back a sob. It was dark and secluded, so nobody had to know the company's cry baby was at it again. It was pathetic, how she got upset and emotional so easily, but what she didn't realize was how it also made her incredibly good as a character. She portrayed such a cool and confident badass but at the same time, her ability to show real and raw emotions was what got the WWE Universe hooked in the first place.
She sighed. She probably should be getting ready—Bayley would be looking for her any second now.
"Boss?" she heard the familiar voice of Seth, and she quickly sat up, making sure she had wiped away all her tears.
"What?" she snapped, hiding the crack in her voice.
"Hey, come on now. What happened to us being cool?" he raised an eyebrow and walked over, hopping on the production crate she was on.
"Sorry," she muttered, shaking her head. "Just having a weird night, that's all."
"Were you crying?" Seth looked at her concerned.
"Uh, no," she shook her head again. "Did you need something?"
"Well, your girl Bayley was looking for you. She went ahead—said something about Skyping her boytoy."
"She left me?" Sasha said in disbelief. She didn't need any more reason to pity herself, though she fought back the tears. Usually, it was Bayley who knew what to say to her in these types of situations, and she was hoping she could get some words of wisdom from her best friend tonight. She certainly didn't feel like crying in front of Seth, despite the newfound level of their friendship. For all she knew, this was Bayley's way of playing matchmaker again, and it slightly pissed her off.
"I got you. You can hitch with me," he said, giving her an assuring nod. "What's with the pissy attitude tonight?"
"I'm not pissy, Seth."
"Really? Could've fooled me."
"Just stop."
"What's wrong?"
"I said stop!" Sasha glared before suddenly looking down apologetically. "Sorry," she muttered.
Seth sighed. "Fine. If you don't want to talk about it, it's cool. But I'm always here to listen if you need it, alright?" he told her. "Come on. It's getting late," he watched her hop down the crate.
After telling him she'd meet him in 10 minutes, she hurried over to the women's locker room to change out of her gear into skinny jeans and an oversized John Cena sweatshirt. Washing her face and making sure all the makeup was removed, she wore her glasses and grabbed her bags before following Seth out to the parking lot. He wanted to make a snide comment about the sweatshirt she was wearing, but decided against it—not while she was still upset. Hearing the doors of the rental car unlock, she opened it and slid inside the passenger's seat, watching him start the car.
Their car ride was silent, as Seth cruised his way through the streets of Philadelphia. He glanced at her once in a while—she was definitely in a mood tonight. Her usual energy wasn't there, with lips pursed and face all scrunched up, and she seemed to be deep in thought. Making a left turn instead of a right that would have led them straight to their hotel, he made a few more turns and slowed down at a burger joint that was still open.
Sasha furrowed her brows and looked at him curiously. "What's this? Did you not eat at catering tonight?"
"Well, if you're not going to talk to me about what's bothering you, at least let me buy you ice cream or something," he opened the door and stepped out of the car, waiting for Sasha to do the same. "Come on, Banks. Get out of the car, and just let me buy you an ice cream or whatever it is you feel like eating. This kind of attitude doesn't suit you."
With a huff, she did as she was told and followed Seth inside the joint. It was near empty, save for a few college students doing some group work while munching on fries and burgers. Leading them to a table at the corner, Seth ordered a cheeseburger while Sasha got a vanilla milkshake.
When their food arrived, she quickly sipped on her drink and let the thick, sweet taste comfort her. There was nothing like a good vanilla milkshake to make you feel better, and a small smile crept up her face before continuing to drink wholeheartedly.
"There it is," Seth spoke—his eyes and smile were teasing.
Sasha playfully made a face and scrunched her nose. "I think you're getting a little soft, Seth. What happened to all the teasing? Thought you loved making my life miserable?"
"Yeah, I still kind of do," he shrugged. "But then I realized making you smile is so much better," he winked.
Sasha almost choked on her shake and lowered her head to hide the blush that was forming.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha!" Seth threw his head back and cackled. "Look at you, Banks. Blushing like a silly, little girl," he shook his head. It was one of his favorite things to do, to be honest—getting a reaction from her just like that. But then again, Sasha had become his favorite person in the company, right before Cesaro and Roman, so anything that involved Sasha Banks, he got himself pretty invested.
"Ugh, I hate you," she rolled her eyes playfully, slapping his shoulder and causing him to laugh again.
"So," he started on a more serious note, offering some of his fries but she shook her head and declined. "Are you going to tell me what got you all upset tonight?"
Sasha looked at him and pouted as he continued, "Come on. There were tears back there. Don't deny it. What happened? Do you need me to curb stomp anybody?"
She laughed gently and shook her head. With a loud sigh, she started. "It's really petty. I just found out I'm booked to lose the title again at Roadblock," the gleam in her eyes disappeared. "I mean, I love this whole rivalry with Charlotte and I'm not complaining that we're both getting these amazing opportunities to make history. But even you've got to admit that it's getting a little boring and predictable—her winning the belt at every pay-per-view only for me to win it back two weeks later at RAW. It cheapens the championship, and I just think that it could use a better storyline."
"In other words, you want to be a champion longer."
"Of course I want to be a champion longer. I want to hold it for as long as I can," she looked down. Her vanilla milkshake was almost gone. "I mean, there's only so much l can do in the company and I want to retire before I reach my plateau."
Seth looked at her crossly. "You're talking about retirement at 24? Are you kidding me, Banks?"
"Hey, it's different for you guys, okay?" she shrugged. "You guys don't have an expiration date like we do."
"Dear god, now we're talking eggs and pregnancy."
"Hey, you're not a very good listener, you know that?" Sasha frowned at him.
Seth felt bad and instinctively took her hand to get her to keep talking. "Sorry, I'm sorry," he shook his head. Sasha looked at their hands, her heart running all of a sudden, as he quickly pulled away. "You were saying?"
"Uh," she tried to get back on track. "Just that I know I'm still young but I eventually want to settle down and do exactly what Brie Bella did," she finished. "Anyway. There. I told you it was petty."
Seth chuckled, and shook his head. "No, it's not," he reached forward to pinch her cheek, to which she swatted his hand away. "Okay, look. About the championship? I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'm sure they know what they're doing, and the title changing hands pretty often doesn't cheapen it. It only makes it more coveted," he pointed out. "You just need to trust in the process, Sash. And if we're talking storyline-wise here, at least you don't get sick of putting Charlotte in a Bank Statement. I'm just about done giving Jericho the Pedigree every week."
Sasha laughed softly at his comment. "I get it," he continued. "It can be frustrating sometimes—knowing how you can be on top today and suddenly demoted to mid-card tomorrow. I'll admit, I overthink it a lot. I've spent a number of sleepless nights wondering if I'll ever be champion again. Admittedly, I don't think it's happening anytime soon—not with this feud with Triple H. But you? You've got something incredibly special, Sash. So special that I promise you, the company wants to keep seeing more of it."
She smiled coyly at first, before it eventually reached her ears and turned into one of her heart-warming giggles. "Thanks, Seth. That means a lot coming from you."
"What did I say? I told you I got you," he raised his eyebrows at her and winked. "Look, I know Bayley's your girl, Charlotte's like an older sister, and you've got this brotherly relationship going on with Woods," he started. "But if you're up to it, you've also got The Man on your side, alright? I might be a little too talkative, and it doesn't mean I'll stop annoying you because I live for that shit, but I promise you that you'll never, ever get bored hanging out with me. Plus you get free milkshakes every now and then," he nodded towards her now empty glass.
"Whoopie, I still get that insufferable side of Seth Rollins," she answered sarcastically. "How did I get so lucky?"
"Ah, and there's the overly sarcastic Banks I know," he teased, finishing the last of his burger.
They stared daggers at one another, as a joke of course, before Sasha started what would have been their longest series of name-calling. "Jerk."
"Brat," Seth retorted.
"Immature."
"Gullible."
"Arrogant."
"Cry baby."
"Ugh," Sasha glared at him. She resented that label. "Belt Stealer!"
"Ouch, we're going there now, aren't we? You nerd."
"I'm a nerd?" Sasha pointed to herself. "Uh, Seth, I'm pretty sure that's you."
"Fine, we'll call it a tie. Because you've got that Sailor Moon thing going on, and that is pretty nerdy."
"Whatever, you have crap taste in music."
Seth laughed. "Careful, you just insulted Bayley, too."
"Don't tell her I said that," Sasha covered her mouth and snickered.
"Secret's safe with me…for now," he chuckled. "So uh, are we done here?" he raised an eyebrow, looking at their empty dishes.
Sasha nodded and made a move to stand up. "Yup. Thanks for the treat, CrossFit Jesus."
"Will you please stop calling me that?" he snapped, playfully pushing her outside the door and making their way over to the car.
"Sasha Banks wins this round!" she raised her hands while sticking her tongue out at him.
Unlocking the car door manually, Seth quickly entered and laughed as Sasha tried opening her side of the door. "Hey," she knocked loudly on the window. "Open this!"
"What's that, Banks?" he yelled from inside while starting the engine.
"Seth, this is not funny!"
He laughed out loud again, before reaching out to unlock her door. "You have a sick sense of humor, you know that?" Sasha said as soon as she entered, fastening the seatbelt.
"Nah, I just like to piss you off."
He began the quick drive to their hotel, parking the rental and helping Sasha take her gym bag out of the trunk. Just to tease him, she unzipped it and checked to make sure the belt was still inside. "Ha, ha. Real funny, Banks."
They walk together towards the elevators as Sasha pressed the button heading up. "Thanks again," she told him, hesitating at first but deciding to give him a light hug.
Seth hugged back the first few seconds before sneaking in a pinch to the side of her waist, causing Sasha to jump back and slap him on the shoulder (as usual). "Geez, you can't even give a decent hug goodnight."
Seth laughed. "I was kidding. Here, let's try that again," he said, suddenly pulling her towards him and giving a proper hug this time that they both lingered in.
When they pulled away, Sasha coughed and smiled coyly. "Uh, goodnight."
"Goodnight, Sash," he winked.