Chapter 33: Making It Right
At SmackDown Punk was back to being in a foul mood. He dropped April off at his locker room and he took off to yell at Hunter, Vince, creative, the production team and anyone else who dare cross his path. Meanwhile in the locker room April was waiting for him to come back and wondering what he was going to say tonight. He had an open mic and with Jericho not there he wouldn't have to worry about not being interrupted.
"Hello there" Paul said peeking his head through the door. April looked up and gave him a reassuring smile
"Hey Paul come in" April invited
"Is he around?" Paul asked nervously before fully stepping in
"No it's safe" April smirked as Paul stepped in and closed the door behind him
"I wanted to apologize to you" Paul said to her "I don't think I handled last night very well"
"No I'm sorry" April said to him "You were trying to help and I was a mess"
"I should have approached you differently" Paul said shaking his head and taking a seat next to her "I'm used to working with different kinds of people"
"You mean strong people?" April asked
"No that's not what I meant" Paul assured her "You're allowed to be upset and cry even and you did it in the privacy of your own locker room which was the right thing to do. I just hated seeing you that way"
"I know and it's ok" April said to him "And I'm going to work on not being so sensitive"
"I would be upset too" Paul said "Actually I was very upset by those shots Jericho took at you which is why I was a little testy myself. I feel like I've been there from the beginning with you and you're marrying one of my best friends and I don't want you to be tainted by this industry"
"I get it and I know you were looking out for me" April assured him "Thank you for trying"
"I'm going to keep trying too" Paul informed her
"I appreciate it" April smiled and that's when Punk walked into the locker room. He still wasn't thrilled with Paul obviously.
"I was just catching up with April" Paul said to him and Punk just nodded
"Well I need to talk to her so could you give us a few minutes?" Punk asked. His voice wasn't cold it was friendly enough.
"Sure" Paul smiled "I'll see you both later"
"Bye Paul" April waved as Paul walked to the door
"Everything ok?" Punk asked her
"Yea he just came to apologize" April said to him
"Good" Punk said to her
"He didn't have to apologize" April said to him "He was trying to help"
"It's not his place to help you in that way" Punk said to her "And if he yells at again like that we're going to have a big problem"
"You can't always protect me" April said to him and Punk scrunched his face up "People are going to yell at me and you can't always yell back for me. Paul's right I have to learn how to take care of myself. I think I've gotten too comfortable with you"
"Excuse me?" Punk questioned with a chuckle
"Before I was with you I did everything myself, I defended myself and I took care of myself" April reminded him
"Well we're getting married" Punk reminded her casually "So you're going to have to get used to the fact that I'm going to jump in and defend you no matter what but enough about this I want to talk to you about tonight"
"Ok so what are you going to say?" April asked
"I'm obviously going to have to address you" Punk said to her
"Are you going to say how pretty I am?" April smirked
"Oh so pretty" Punk grinned "But uh- I don't want to be the one to tell your story, you know? It's not really my place"
"You want me to go out with you?" April asked
"If you want to" Punk said to her
"This is your promo, your match, your main event. There is no one I trust more telling my story than you" April said to him "Just say what you have to"
"Are you sure?" Punk questioned
"Yes of course" April said to him "You'll do great"
"Alright" Punk said to her "I want to keep you out this as much as possible but Jericho is a seasoned vet here and he knows what he's doing- at least that's what I've been told four times tonight"
"I'm expecting it now its ok" April said to him "Besides I have things to do back here"
"Oh really?" Punk asked amused "What's more important than going out to the ring?"
"Putting the finishing touches on my first ever t-shirt" April marveled
"You didn't tell me you were getting a shirt" Punk smiled
"I didn't want to jinx it but they said I have to pick the final design but today" April said to him "I'm really excited"
"Can I see?" Punk asked
"Nope I want you to be surprised" April said to him
"Alright" Punk said to her "You do know I have the power to just go and check it out?"
"Don't ruin it" April warned "I'm really excited about this"
"Fine" Punk said to her.
April was with some members of the staff looking over her t-shirt when Celeste walked by.
"Hey" Celeste greeted "Is that the new shirt?"
"The first shirt" April corrected proudly showing off the 'love bites' t-shirt design "What do you think?"
"It's awesome" Celeste grinned "It's amazing how I've been Diva's champ for months and they only now approached me about a shirt and yours is already almost done"
"Oh" April said quietly not really sure what to say
"Hey I'm not mad" Celeste assured her with a smile "It's cool at least one girl back here is getting some recognition and honestly I've been begging to wrestle you"
"Really?" April asked
"Yea you kick ass in the ring" Celeste said to her "I mean the other girls are great but you're different"
"That means a lot coming from you" April said to her
"And I know you're going to get a lot of heat from the fans and the guys back here over being with Punk but I totally respect what you do" Celeste said to her
"Punk helped me" April admitted "He definitely got my foot in the door and I don't deny that but I wasn't dating him during that time"
"You don't have to explain it to me" Celeste assured her
"No I want you to know" April said to her "He introduced me to the right people but I tried out, I worked my ass off" she said to her "And after I was long signed with NXT we started to date. And believe me if he had a say in who I worked with or what I did I wouldn't have worked with Nick or Cena"
"Yea I kind of figured that out" Celeste chuckled "I can't imagine Punk kicking in Vince's door and demanding you kiss other men on TV"
"Yea he wasn't a fan of those stories" April smirked "He's a good man and yes he looks out for me here but he doesn't get me special treatment as a matter of fact he didn't even know about my shirt until an hour ago"
"I believe you" Celeste said to her "And like I said you don't owe me or anyone else an explanation you work really hard and whether people admit it out loud or not they can see it and if it means anything to you I get it"
"It does and I appreciate it" April said to her
"So are you so into this shirt that you're missing your future husbands promo?" Celeste asked and April's eyes widened
"Oh my god I forgot" she yelped jumping out of her seat and rushing towards the first monitor she could find
"….Jericho also pointed out that I am getting married and yes that is true" Punk told the crowd "He of course stood at the top of the stage and insulted my fiancée because he knew it would piss me off and believe me ladies and gentlemen he did"
April watched carefully and played with her skull necklace that Punk had given her for Christmas.
"I don't even want to address his comments about her because they were so ridiculous. I think a lot of you already knew about my relationship with AJ Lee I also think most of you are smart enough to realize his claims about her were not true. AJ Lee is one of the hardest workers in this entire industry she works her ass off every day and night to be here. She deserves to be here and more importantly she deserves to be respected and Chris Jericho will respect her because I'll make sure of it. And again his comments about her appearance you all have eyes right?" he grinned towards the crowd who cheered loudly "Yea that's what I thought" he smirked "I'm also not ashamed of people knowing I was afraid idiots like Jericho would use her to get to me. The only truth that Jericho has spoken in the last two weeks was the fact that AJ was a waitress and how cool is that?" he asked the crowd "A waitress from Tampa Florida is now in the WWE and guess what? She's a fan just like all of you are and she's living proof you any one of you could make it."
April smiled at his comment because it was true. She was sitting in the crowd for Raw one week and the next she was signing a contract. He didn't go over the top but he got his point across and the fans loved it and seemingly loved her as well. She listened as he moved focus back on just Jericho and pumped up his match.
"…and now I'm going to head to the back with my hot fiancée, head back to Chicago and punch some things until I get my hands on Jericho next Monday"
April loved the way Punk handled himself tonight and she was so proud of how did it as well. He was a true professional and truthfully she learned so much from him, he was one of her best teachers here.
"How'd I do?" Punk asked as he approached her backstage
"I thought you were amazing" April said to him honestly "Short, sweet and to the point"
"You thought I was sweet? I'm supposed to be scaring my opponent" he frowned
"Sweet to me" April smiled "Thank you for what you said"
"I meant it all" Punk smirked "Let's get the hell out of here though"
"I still have to sign off on some things" April said to him "But you go to the bus and I'll meet you there"
"Alright" Punk said to her simply "Is it for your shirt?"
"Maybe" April teased
"Can I see it now?" Punk asked
"No" April giggled and kissed his cheek
Back in Chicago Punk was working out with Colt downstairs and April was cooking upstairs. It had almost become a weekly tradition that April would cook for two after a long workout. She enjoyed cook for the two and it really bought her back to happier times of her childhood. The doorbell rang and she rushed towards it thinking it was a package she was waiting for.
"Jason" April said stunned
"Hey kid" Jason choked out "Long time no see"
"What are you doing here?" April asked him "Better question how did you know where I lived?"
"I googled it" Jason shrugged "You have a few minutes for me?"
"Um" April started and looked behind her to make sure Phil was nowhere in sight. "Just for a minute" she said stepping aside
"It's freezing out" Jason said stepping in and kicking the snow off of his shoes
"What's going on Jason?" April asked him
"I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by" Jason said to her
"You looked up my address" April reminded him "You weren't just stopping by"
"I wanted to first of all thank you and Punk for helping me out" Jason said to her
"But it wasn't enough was it?" April asked
"I'm not here for money April" Jason said to her "I'm here because I need a friend"
"Jason-" April started
"Just give me a few minutes" Jason said cutting her off
"If Phil sees you he's going to flip out" April warned him
"Really? I feel like we kind of made amends" Jason noted
"No he still hates you" April said to him honestly
"You've got it good here April" He said looking around the large million-dollar home "I mean damn do you remember where you used to live?" he chuckled
"The guest bathrooms in this place is bigger than my old place in Tampa" April smirked
"I'm happy you worked hard and you deserve this" Jason said to her
"I deserved my career? Because last time I checked you felt I owed you for that" April pointed out
"I was wrong ok?" Jason laughed "I've been completely alone for the last few weeks and all I've been doing is thinking" he said taking a seat on her couch. "You've really been my only friend"
"You tried to force yourself on me" April reminded him
"I wasn't in the right mind April" Jason said to her "It was a horrible thing to do"
"You really scared me" April admitted
"I know" he said quietly "I'll never forgive myself for that"
"What do you want Jason?" April asked defeated
"I just wanted to thank you for everything" Jason said to her "And give you this" he said reaching into his pocket and pulling out money "It's what Punk gave me a few weeks ago"
"How did you get this?" April asked warily as he stood up and placed the cash in her hand
"Well there's a story to it" Jason chuckled "But just keep it. I've taken enough from you"
"I don't want stolen money" April said holding her arm out for him to take it back
"It's not stolen money" Jason said to her with a smile and placed his hand over hers "Just keep it and give it to Punk"
"How did you get it?" April asked
"It's a long story" Jason said to her
"Hey April Punk said that-" Colt stopped talking as he walked into the room when he saw a strange man holding April's hand "Oh sorry" he said but continued to walk into the room. April pulled her hand away from Jason and looked over to Colt
"What happened?" April asked him
"Oh he said that you knew where the protein shake mix was. He moved it from downstairs for some reason" Colt smirked
"Oh it's in the kitchen" April said to him "Um Colt this is an old friend of mine" she said being forced to introduce them "He was just leaving though" she said to him and Colt nodded and extended his hand
"Colt" he introduced
"Hey man" Jason said politely shaking his hand
"Sorry I didn't catch your name" Colt smirked
"Jason" he said and Colt just nodded
"Oh I've heard a lot about you" Colt said to him "Nothing good unfortunately"
"Yea I get that" Jason smirked
"So what are you doing here?" Colt asked folding his arms
"I was just visiting my friend" Jason defended lightly
"I'm April's friend" Colt said coolly with a grin
"Colt it's fine" April said knowing Colt was just looking out for her "He was really just leaving"
"Do I have to check your pockets before leave?" Colt asked seriously
"That's fair" Jason said agreed "I'm not here for any trouble I came by to pay April back"
"For all the stuff you stole from her or for ripping her off for years?" Colt questioned
"I get it" Jason said to him "But you really don't know me so judging me seems kind of unfair don't you think?"
"I think I know enough" Colt said smugly
"What the hell is taking you so long?" the voice of Punk could be heard in the kitchen, clearly he was looking for Colt. April felt her stomach fall as she could sense Punk enter the room. "What the hell are you doing here?" Punk asked Jason
"I came to give back the money you gave me" Jason said to him
"You gave this crook money?" Colt asked Punk
"I'm not a crook" Jason argued
"Right" Colt laughed bitterly
"Guys" April warned in a low voice
"I asked you a question" Punk demanded walking towards him "Do you remember what we discussed the last time I saw you?"
"Yes and I was just here to pay you back" Jason said to him "Ask April"
"Yea" April said passing him the money, Punk counted it and handed it back to Jason
"Get the hell out of here" Punk warned "I don't want or need your money" he said to him "And do not come back"
"Fine" Jason said to him "April it was good seeing you again" he said with a smile then left.
"You invited him in?" Punk asked her
"He said he just needed a minute" April said to him and Punk shook his head
"He smells like a rat" Colt noted scrunching up his nose
"I wonder where he's staying…." April trailed off
"Oh no, no" Punk smiled "You're not giving it a second thought. This is what he does he needs something from you that's why he's back"
"What could he need? Clearly he has money" April said to him
"I don't want to know and we're never going to find out" Punk said to her "If you let him back into this house I'm calling the police." He warned her and she nodded
"Alright" April said to him
"You have that look" Punk noted
"What look?" April asked
"The look a little kid has when they find a stray dog" Colt pointed out "I see it" he said agreeing with Punk
"She gets that look all of the time" Punk said to Colt
"Stop talking about me in front of me" April said the two "I'm not taking anyone in but I am curious as to how he got that money"
"I'm going to go out on a limb and say he stole it" Punk mocked "And the last thing we need is to be caught up in crap like that"
"You're right" April agreed "He's gone it's done" she said to him
"Good" Punk said to her "You ready to finish up?" he asked Colt who nodded
"Yea I'll grab the stuff from the kitchen" Colt said walking out of the room
"You ok?" Punk asked her
"Yea I'm going to be done cooking in half an hour so hurry up" April smiled walking past him. She passed Colt as she entered the kitchen and when she heard the door close she opened the palm of her hand where there was small piece of paper in it. When Jason passed her the money she hadn't even realized there was a note attached. She gave one more look towards the entrance of the kitchen before looking down and reading it….