Ricardo wakes up early on Tuesday, a buzz in his veins, his brain working a million miles per hour. He stares at the ceiling for a few moments before realizing why his adrenaline is pumping the way it is. He breathes in and out and thinks about his match scheduled for later- the first one in months, the first one post-COVID, with no crowds and no distraction but himself and the others in the ring. He's not sure what match it will be yet, just something to test the waters out with, see how things feel, how his body reacts to doing something other than training.

He hears a sleepy murmur next to him and turns to find Alicia fast asleep on the side facing him, hugging her pillow. His face softens and he brushes some of the hair out of her face before leaning in to kiss her gently. He's about to get up and start his day when she grips his wrist and tugs him closer. "No," she whines. "Stay in bed."

"I didn't mean to wake you," he whispers to her and she shakes her head.

"It's fine." She rests her head on his chest and closes her eyes, wrapping her arm around him and squeezing him. "Tonight's the big night, huh?"

"Yeah," he murmurs, stroking up and down her back lazily. He presses a kiss to her forehead, lingering for a few moments. "I promise I'll be careful. I'll go to Mike and Alicia's guest house just to make sure I don't spread anything on, but I'll call and video chat with you as often as I can. Ok?"

When she sits up, she doesn't look thrilled, but she leans in and kisses him anyway, slow and sweet, and he sighs into her mouth, running his fingers carefully through her hair. "You'd better. All of that," she clarifies as he stares up at her, eyes dark and stubborn. "I'll never forgive you if you get sick or, or..." Her voice stammers to a halt and she looks away. "Ricardo... It's going to be really rough the next couple of weeks."

He nods. "I know." His fingers graze her hips and she stares back down at him, a grim set to her lips. "Alicia... We need the money, and I... I need to do this."

She sighs. "I know," she says, her voice low and sad. "I know both are true." She digs her knees into his hips, leaning in and kissing him again. "But my threat holds either way."

He wants to say something in response, but she keeps kissing him and touching him, her body pressed as close to his as she can get it, considering, and it takes his breath away and leaves his many wayward thoughts fading away into nothingness.

Once they do eventually get out of bed and venture into the kitchen, Sofia is at the stove, making breakfast. Ricardo peeks at her work for a few moments, determining that it's eggs and toast, and a few other, simple staples, before patting her arm with a quiet good morning, returning to the table to wait with Alicia, who is already sipping at a glass of grape juice.

Ricardo rests his hand close to hers and she looks at him for a few moments before reaching out and tangling her fingers with his, squeezing lightly. He smiles at her and she sighs, closing her eyes, before lifting their hands and pressing a kiss to his knuckles. "I love you," she informs him and his smile grows, eyes softening.

"I love you too, Foxy," he murmurs back and she flushes softly, putting her glass down and letting the affection between them infuse the moment, Sofia's soft noises barely registering as she plates their breakfast and walks it to the table, setting each dish before them while taking care not to disrupt their moment.

Ricardo's eyes brighten when he sees the potato wedges and sausages surrounding the eggs, a mug of coffee steaming nearby. "Muchas gracias, Sofia," he calls out to her.

"De nada, mi hijo," she responds, still busy at work in the kitchen.

Ricardo smiles at Alicia and strokes her knuckles a few more times before they quietly release each other, moving to start eating. Sofia joins them at some point and they don't talk much, but the meal is peaceful and delicious and Ricardo starts to think maybe, just maybe, he'll actually win tonight.

Despite the excitement building within him, mixed with a healthy amount of anxiety, it still hurts to leave Alicia later that afternoon to drive to the academy where the match will be held. He holds her for a few minutes, feeling her shaky breathing against his shoulder, and murmurs into her hair before pulling back and leaning in to kiss her. "I'll be fine, Alicia," he informs her quietly and she clings to his shirt.

"You'd better be," she says, eyes wide and wet, but no tears falling yet.

"I promise," he whispers, kissing her again before turning to Sofia. "Take good care of them for me, ok?"

"Si, you know I will," Sofia says quietly, hugging Ricardo tightly. "As long as you take care of yourself."

Ricardo smiles down at her. "Will do my best, you know that."

She lightly taps his jaw a few times and he exhales, catching a glimpse of the time. "Ok, guys, I gotta go." One last kiss for Alicia, his hands lingering on where their child is currently kicking as he memorizes the feeling, and he slowly walks out of the door to his car, turning to wave to them before he gets in and shuts the door, exhaling slowly, before starting the car.

If he hadn't hit the gas right then, he might have convinced himself to forget everything and return to his wife's side, but he rolls the windows down and breathes in the fresh air as it whips through his hair, and drives until traffic slows him down, then he rolls the window up, puts a CD in, and tries to get into the right frame of mind for his match.

When he arrives, he learns he's in a tag match with Mikey O'Shea vs Hunter G. and Marcus Eriks. He's heard of them, but nothing else, and once the match actually starts a couple hours later, he's impressed. For their size, Hunter and Marcus hold their own well, and Mikey compliments Ricardo's own style fairly well, their tags easy and without drama. Hunter and Marcus do put up quite a fight, and there are a couple of times where Ricardo starts to doubt- himself, his conditioning, if maybe getting back into this was a wise idea, everything... but it helps to have Mikey to tag in when he needs to catch his breath, cool off at times, and eventually Ricardo manages to sequence his moves into a win, kneeling in shock once he's sure it's over, they'd won.

Mikey joins him, leaning closer. "Hey, man, you alright?"

"Yeah," he breathes out, the two of them bumping fists. Getting out of the ring is a slow process, Ricardo's adrenaline already fading away now that he knows he's actually lasted a decent lengthed match- he's pretty sure it was over 25 minutes- and his body, unaccustomed to this much sustained activity after so long of being at home quarantined, is awakening in soreness already, so he awkwardly rolls out of the ring and stumbles after Mikey to the backstage area, but he feels happy. He's won a match after so long without, and he thinks maybe he and Mikey could continue to work together, if the company and Mikey himself agrees. But for now, he's hot and tired, and all he truly cares about is getting under a stream of hot water and washing everything off of his skin, driving over to Mike's, collapsing into bed, and video calling Alicia just to see her face before he passes out for a few hours of sleep.

So that's exactly what he does.