Christmas Day, Shane's House, 6:22 PM...

"If I hear "All I Want For Christmas" one more time, I swear I'm gonna lose my mind." Big Kev vented aloud while sitting on his couch.

"Oh lighten up, ya Grinch! I've been slaving over this friggin stove all day and I'm still in a jolly mood. Last thing we need is for you to screw up the vibe before the party even starts! What time is it anyway?" Shane said from the kitchen.

"There wouldn't be a party to begin with if I didn't allow one to be thrown in MY house! Don't forget that. And it's like 20 minutes past 6."

"Crap, there's not much time yet. Yo, no way is Paige still in the bathroom getting ready. And as a matter of fact, where's Alexa? I hope she's not doing the same thing over at hers."

"Look, cool or not, they're still a couple of ladies. You know how they are with their makeup and shit. And what about you, how come you're not done yet?"

"Who says I'm not? I'm just covering the pans so no one sees what I made as soon as they walk in."

"You don't think the smell gives it away, genius? It literally reeks of fried chicken in here." Kevin pointed out.

"Okay… maybe they'll know about the chicken, but nothing else. Let me have my fun, man."

"Fine, fine. Whatever. You need help with the set up or anything?"

"Uh… Nah, I got it covered over here. Just let me know when they're ready to show up if you can."

"Roger that."

As Kevin messed around on his phone, it vibrated. The cause of it was a text from Lita which simply read, "Me and the girls are ready." He texted back, "On my way then."

"Ay boy! You might wanna wrap the presentation process up soon. I'm headin out to grab our guests for the night."

"Shit! Alright, cool. I'll be done by the time you get back."

"You better. Being in this house while you cook all day is torture. When I get back, I want food. Got it?"

Shane laughed and saluted.

"Yes sir!"

Kevin then grabbed his keys from the TV stand and began the journey to Lita's home. That left the young chef alone with his still ongoing self-inflicted task of setting everything in just the right spot. He was essentially playing the role of a culinary architect of some sort. As he carried each aluminum pan back and forth from the counter to the kitchen table, his thoughts drifted back to a concern that he'd brought up a little bit earlier.

"This woman's been getting ready for a damn eternity it feels like. How long can it possibly take her to… prepare… holy shit."

If you hadn't guessed it from the boy's sudden speech pattern break, he was thrown off by the appearance of something, or to be more accurate, someone. That someone being his bold Brit of a bestie. She stood in front of him, hands on her hips, smirk on her face, looking as good as he had ever seen. She kept her regular all black style intact, but her choice in attire had still been adjusted. For the first time in his life, Shane was witnessing his friend in a full on dress. The closest thing he had seen to that was when she had decided to be a witch for Halloween a few months prior. This was different though. It was a strapless number, hugging her body in just the right way and ending just above her knees, showing the right amount of skin. Not enough to be considered to be inappropriate, but enough to cause a boy like Shane's eyes to wander if he wasn't careful. And oh boy, was Shane being careful. Her makeup was done in great taste as well, obviously not a rushed job.

"Are you gonna tell me what you think, or are you gonna just stand there like a bellend drooling with food in your hand?" She asked in a snarky manner.

"Oh shit, am I drooling for real?" He thought.

He quickly went over to the table and sat the last pan down, then checked his mouth for any evidence of misplaced saliva. He was relieved to find out there was none. He then turned his attention back to Miss Knight who raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well?"

"Midnight…. You didn't have to…. you look fucking gorgeous." He admitted.

Paige would be lying if she said that the boy's words didn't give her a gigantic confidence boost. He genuinely made her happy just then.

"Took ya long enough to spit it out." She said, flipping her hair in the process.

"Sorry, sorry. I just… I didn't wanna make anything weird, but there's a limit, man. Like… Oh my god. Why though? You didn't have to go all out for this."

"Your dad said we were having a dinner party, right? Plus, I noticed the dark green button-up shirt and black jeans look you went with. So, I figured I'd doll myself up just a bit. You don't like it?" She asked, feigning an almost sad look.

"Oh no, no, I never said that. Never said that. I'm just surprised… I'm not used to seeing you like this. Didn't think you were that type of girl."

"Well, that's one of the perks of bein' my friend. Every now and then, I let you find out something new about me. I keep you on your toes." She gloated.

"Yeah, you're unpredictable, no doubt about it." He said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.

Paige could tell that he was a few seconds away from becoming a blushing mess, so she decided to mercifully switch the topic to prevent that from happening. She had her fun… for the time being anyway.

"So, what are we snacking on tonight, master chef? I can tell you fried something by the smell. Delightful scent by the way."

"Thanks, Midnight. But, unfortunately I can't tell you. You gotta wait just like everyone else. You'll definitely like it though, you can count on that."

"I'm sure I will, love. Where's your dad gone?" She asked.

"He went to go scoop my band and bring em back here for the party. You my friend, are gonna meet the Squad tonight."

"Oooh, the Squad. How exciting. What are their names again?"

"Ruby, Rhea, and Liv. And also Ruby's mom is coming too I think."

"We got a MILF coming as well? Damn, Shane." She joked.

"Midnight! That's super inappropriate!"

"I bet I'm right though."

"No! I mean…. kinda? She's… good looking, I'll say that much."

"Right… so she's a MILF." Paige asserted.

"Dude, I really don't wanna talk about my friend's mom like that."

"Like what? Nothin wrong with admitting that you totally would shag your friend's mum if you had the opportunity."

"Right hand to God, I've never even thought about that before. I'm not like you, remember? I don't lust over people's parents, unlike some people."

"Hey man, low blow. I already said I wasn't doing that anymore."

Shane sighed.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry. I'm just- You did it for so long, ya know? Gonna take some time for me to fully get that."

"Don't be sorry, I understand, love. But be rest assured, I'm really not going to anymore. Honestly, the joke's gotten a bit stale for me at this point. Plus, there's soooo many others ways to push your buttons."

"Well, I ask that you not unleash the full repertoire tonight at least. I just wanna have a nice get together with my friends. So just like yesterday, please behave." He genuinely asked her.

"Yeah, don't worry. I'll be a good girl… your good girl." She joked.

Price facepalmed and shook his head.

"Oh come on, you gotta admit you walked right into that one."

"Yeah, and I'm mad at myself for doing it."

Paige laughed.

"Told you, soooo many ways. But I really won't do anything dumb out of respect for what you're tryin' to do here. I've seen the amount of work you've put into making this happen, and the last thing I wanna do is ruin it."

The sincerity from the pale skinned girl made Shane smile.

"I really appreciate that. That doesn't mean I expect you to just sit quietly and stay to yourself the whole time. You can if you want though."

"Based on the way you've described your friends, I don't think I'm gonna want to."

"I don't think so either. And even if you do, you at least know Alexa, so you could just talk to her."

"Believe me, I will. But again, I wouldn't count on that. I gotta get to know the rest of my best friend's harem." She joked.

"Look, even if Alexa was cool with me having an actual harem, there is no way I'd be able to keep up with all of them at once. That's like a heart attack once every 3 days."

Paige raised an eyebrow at her friend.

"Sounds like you've thought about that before, yeah?"

"Huh? Oh, wait, wait, no. Those are my sisters, man, chill out."

"Mmm hmm, whatever you say." She cheekily remarked.

"Yup, and I said it. Anyway, I'm pretty sure I don't have anything else to do to prepare so… I guess all we gotta do is wait."

Shane made his way over to the couch and plopped down, happy to relax for at least a little bit of time. Paige shrugged and went to join him. The duo were now just chillin.

"So we're gonna eat and then what? Surely you're not just gonna send them all home after dinner." Paige asked.

"Honestly, I don't have anything planned past the food. Whatever happens, happens. I know whatever that is, it'll be interesting at least."

Knight shook her head and softly chuckled.

"Always the man with a plan, I see. So, since you want me to get along with your "sisters" so much, how about you give me the rundown. What are these girls like individually?"

"Sure, I can do that. Okay, let's see. Hmm… I'll start with Ruby. Ruby's probably the most responsible person I've ever met. Now, don't get me wrong. She's not a square, and she's far from boring, but she's the very definition of having her shit together. She's kinda like the glue of the group. At the same time, she can come off a bit introverted. But, after she warms up to you, she's sweet as can be. Also, she's pale, so you'll have that in common with her."

"A fellow pale queen, nice." She joked.

"Next up, we've got Rhea. That girl is the definition of a badass. First time I ever met her, she stood up to some jerk that was trying to punk out her cousin's boyfriend. When I say she doesn't take shit from anyone, I mean it. I'm convinced she'll go toe to toe with just about anybody. That's not to say she's a hothead or anything like that. She's actually pretty chill. Just don't get on her bad side."

"I like the sound of that one."

"Finally, there's Liv. Paige, before I met this woman, I was sure that I'd never come across someone that enjoys messing with me as much as you did. Then I met Liv Morgan. She's a little sneaky thing too. Like, imagine Alexa, but like an inch taller and with the ability to cause problems in an instant."

Paige raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms.

"You're saying she does a better job at pushing your buttons than me? I highly doubt that."

"I wouldn't say "better" per se, but she definitely gives you a run for your money. She's a little flirty at times, but you definitely win in that category. But just like you, and just like Alexa, I can't bring myself to stay mad at her. She's too damn adorable. And yeah, she may be annoying at times, but I know she doesn't mean any real harm with the shit she does. At the end of the day, that's just Liv. When it comes to the Squad, she's our little troublemaker."

"You've got your own family goin' on with these birds, huh?"

"I'd say so. Those are my girls, and I guess that makes me their boy." He said with a smile on his face.

"Awww, that's sweet…. Still kinda sounds like a harem though." The Brit quipped.

"I'm fighting the urge to take one of these pillows to your face."

"Well, keep fighting it cause I'm tellin' ya love, I spent quite a bit of time on this stupid makeup. You mess it up, and I will fucking murder you."

Shane chuckled and shook his head.

"And that's exactly why I'm fighting it."

A knock on the door interrupted the back and forth between the two, so Price got up to answer it. Standing on the other side was the petite princess herself, who much like Paige, decided to dress up for the occasion. She also had what looked to be a wrapped up gift in her possession. However, that's not what had his attention. When she walked in and removed her jacket, she revealed her choice of clothing for the night to be a pink dress, pink heels. Not to mention the matching white nail polish on both her hands and feet to be exact. Shane had to look up to the sky and thank the Lord real quick.

"I don't know what I've done to deserve this, but thank you so much." He said aloud.

Alexa rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's antics, then smirked at him.

"I take it you like the outfit I have on tonight."

All Price could do was nod with a goofy grin on his face, which made Lexi giggle.

"Thanks, idiot. Move aside, so I can put my gift under the tree."

"Of course, princess. Right this way." Shane said while throwing on the ol' posh British accent she loved so much.

"I swear, the man gets better at that every time I hear it." Paige admitted.

She then got up from the couch to greet the girl, with the two of them embracing one another in a somewhat cautious hug, with them both trying to avoid smudging their respective makeup jobs.

"Oooh Paige, you look fabulous!" Lexi said, complimenting the Brit.

"I could say the same for you, love. You're really committed to the pink thing, huh?"

"I mean, it is my favorite color after all. Makes me feel pretty, ya know? You should try adding some pink to your wardrobe to see if you'd like it."

"That's gonna be a no from me, I'm afraid. Pink's not exactly my style."

Shane then chimed in.

"Yeah, cause God forbid Paige ever wear anything remotely colorful. Wouldn't really mesh well with the whole, "Don't fuck with me, I'll bloody kill you" aesthetic she's got goin' on."

Paige put her hands on her hips.

"Do my ears deceive me? Is that cheek I hear in your voice, dear Shane?" She asked in a posh accent much like the one he puts on.

"Why yes, madame. I'm happy you noticed." He responded.

The two then defiantly stared at one another for a short time before they both cracked. Shane then turned to his girlfriend, who had decided to just stand back and enjoy the banter.

"I missed her so much, babe. I love that she's here with us right now." The boy said with a big smile on his face.

"Oh believe me, Price. I can tell." She responded, glad to see her man in such high spirits.

"Hmm. I think he's just happy to be in the house alone with two hot babes all dolled up for him."

"No, that's not why I'm happy… Well, that's not the main reason why I'm happy. Doesn't hurt though."

Alexa softly hit her man in the shoulder.

"Ugh, you're such a guy sometimes."

Price shrugged.

"Can't help it. It's in my DNA."

"Whatever, Price. When are we eating, by the way? I could smell the fried chicken from across the street." Bliss inquired, eager to get to munchin'. (You thought I was feelin' you…. Sorry).

"Soon, Short Stuff, soon. Once the rest of the crew get here and get settled, we'll all eat together."

"They better be here soon then, cause I'm with Lexi. I could eat a horse." Paige added.

Some relief washed over the two girls when they heard the doorbell ring.

"See? People are starting to come through already." Price said while going to the door once more to let guests in.

He opened it to find his public nuisance of a best friend, Dean standing next to his fiery haired girlfriend, Becky Lynch. Ambrose had decided to throw on his least faded pair of jeans for the event, while Lynch's attire had a bit more flair to it, with her wearing a green skirt with a pair of green heels to match.

"Hi, guys. Lassy, you look lovely tonight." Shane said.

Becky jokingly curtsied.

"Why, thank you sir." She responded.

"What about me?" Dean asked.

Price looked the nutcase up and down before answering.

"You look better than usual. Ah, and you even wore the leather jacket without the burn holes in 'em. I'm impressed."

Ambrose cockily popped his collar after hearing that.

"See, babe? I told you he'd notice the effort I put in. Now, I smell chicken. Let's get to the eating part, huh pal?"

"I wouldn't hold your breath on that one. Shane here's holding our poor tummies hostage until everyone gets here." Paige informed from inside.

As soon as Dean fully processed the accent that flowed through his ears, his eyes damn near popped out of his skull. He blew past Shane and made a beeline toward the source of the sound.

"No way you're here right now. Cash, this is the hot British chick you went back home for right?!" He asked, not even taking his eyes off her.

The pale Brit laughed.

"In the flesh, love. You must be Dean, correct?" She asked, while sticking her hand out for a handshake.

Ambrose wasted no time in grabbing her outstretched hand and shaking it with both of his.

"Yup! Dean Ambrose, Shane's handsome and charming American best friend."

The impulsive teenager's over the top introduction was interrupted by a loud and annoyed clearing of the throat. To the surprise of no one I hope, that noise came from Lynch, who wasn't too thrilled at seeing her significant other drool over another girl.

Dean knew he had to think fast.

"Uh… And this is my awesome girlfriend who I'm very much in love with, Becky! Heh." He said, while softly shoving her toward the visitor.

Becky gave her man one last dirty look before turning her attention to the girl in front of her. With a smile, she too reached for a handshake.

"Sorry about that. My boyfriend is… kind of a bleedin' idiot. Anyways, like he said, I'm his lass, Becky Lynch."

"Paige Knight. Irish, huh? I see why Shane's friends with you then. He never shuts up about being… Well, I'm sure you know by now." She said while accepting the shake.

"Let me guess, Irish as fuck?"

"Yeah, but way more loud and obnoxious than how you just said it."

"Hey! I'm just really proud of my heritage. Is that so bad?" Price said, defending himself.

"Of course not. I'm proud to be an Irishwoman as well. Just pokin' a bit of fun at ya."

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, you can set those gifts under the tree."

Ambrose and Lynch went and did just that. Dean then turned around and did what he always did whenever he found himself in his best friend's house. He plopped himself right down on the couch and made himself comfortable.

"I swear that part of the couch has a permanent imprint of Dean's ass at this point." Shane commented.

"Not my fault your couch is awesome." He responded.

Apparently the rest of the group felt that the unhinged teen had the right idea, seeing as they all followed suit. Becky sat in her man's lap, while Paige and Alexa sat next to each other.

"Okay, I guess you all like my couch. Cool. So, can I get you guys anything? Something to drink maybe?"

"Got any booze?" Ambrose blurted out.

"Yeah, but unless you wanna go one on one with my father, I'd suggest not touching any of it."

The normally impulsive teenager for once thought about the pros and cons of the situation, before coming to the conclusion that a swig of alc' wasn't worth being confronted by his best friend's swole dad.

"Eh… I think I'll be fine with a soda."

"One can comin' up. Anyone else in the mood for a beverage?" Price asked.

Paige declined, Becky did the same, and Alexa asked for a bottle of water. Shane quickly grabbed the requests from his fridge and handed them to their respective recipients.

"Only the finest h2o for my princess." He said with the accent.

"This isn't Poland Spring though. It's Aquafina." She responded.

"Yeah, like I said, the finest."

Alexa scoffed.

"Sure, whatever you say babe."

"Not gonna lie bro, your girl's right. Poland Spring trumps all water brands." Dean chimed in.

"You're both crazy. Aquafina tastes a thousand times better than Poland Spring." Shane stated, not backing down.

"Ay, I'm takin' Shane's side on this one." Becky said.

A verbal mixed tag match of sorts seemed to break out amongst the young group of boys and girls. And it was over water. You know, that thing we all need to drink in order to live. The only person not involved was Paige, who sat back and watched the ridiculous debate play out in front of her with an extremely amused look on her face.

"Poland Spring tastes like the goddamn tap you could get outta the faucet for free!" Becky proclaimed.

"Yeah, maybe in Ireland! But over here, tap water tastes nothing like the great P.S! If it did, I'd never buy a single bottle." Ambrose fired back.

"You don't anyway! I'm the one that buys the water after we're done working out! And it's always Aquafina!" Lynch clarified.

"Well, that explains why I'm even more exhausted after I drink it. I'm exerting so much energy trying to gulp down that inferior brand without puking it back up immediately."

The fiery haired lass threw her hands up in exasperation.

"Babe, I love ya, but you are so ridiculous sometimes."

"Now she realizes." Alexa murmured under her breath.

"What was that, princess? You should speak up, I couldn't hear you." Dean said in a condescending manner.

"I SAID, you are a ridiculous nut job, and I'm surprised Becky hadn't figured that out by now." She answered defiantly.

In the midst of the increasingly heated discussion about water, of all things, the one person not participating in the argument could keep silent no more.

"No way! There's no way you lot are genuinely getting pissed off over bloody water! That's hilarious!" Paige exclaimed while laughing her heart out.

As she continued to laugh, the others looked each other up and down, realizing the silliness of the verbal skirmish they had all been engaged in.

"She's right, people. Come on, it's Christmas. There's no time for any sort of confrontation, even if it's as dumb as a water debate. We're all friends here."

"Maybe we're fighting because we're all fiendin' for some food. You got like 4 pans of fried chicken back in the kitchen just waiting to be devoured, man!" Ambrose pointed out.

Once again, Dean brought up food, and this time, Shane had a way to shut that shit down immediately.

"Dean, buddy… Do you really want my dad to show up and get pissed at us for eating without him? Better yet, do you want RHEA to show up saying the same thing? Seriously, do you really want those problems? Cause I don't think you want those problems."

The image of a less than pleased duo consisting of Kevin Price and Rhea Ripley entered the minds of everyone besides Paige, who hadn't met the Aussie yet and had never been afraid of Papa Price.

"Ambrose… I think we can wait a little longer." Alexa blurted out.

All the boy could do was nod.

After that collective agreement was settled upon, the five teens talked amongst themselves, with Shane popping in and out to tend to their needs like the good host he was. Time flew and eventually, the doorbell rang, signaling the arrival of the rest.

Young Price scurried over to the door, opened it, and sure enough, there stood the last remaining expected guests of the evening. Kevin was the first to enter, with him damn near knocking over his own son in order to get to the bathroom.

"I got an Arizona at the corner store before I picked them up, shit went right through me, move kid!" He frantically explained.

Everyone laughed at the Elder Price's antics. Then, one by one, Shane greeted his guests for the evening. He and Ruby shared a friendly hug, Rhea wrapped him up into a bearhug that would make Bayley blush and Lita ruffled the boy's hair. Then there was Liv. She was smiling at him, but something seemed kinda off about her. For one, she didn't leap into his arms like usual. Shane just chalked it up her not wanting ruin the all white skirt she'd chosen to wear for the special occasion. So, he went in for a hug, and to her credit, she returned it. However, the embrace was radically shorter than the ones they shared in the past. Morgan pulled away rather quickly, much to the surprise of the blonde boy. Again though, he brushed it off as nothing.

"What up, Liv? Haven't heard from you in a while, but I'm glad you decided to show up. Wouldn't be a party with the Squad without my little troublemaker. How are you?" He beamed at her.

Liv awkwardly laughed in response.

"Hey, hon- Shane. I'm… I'm okay. I was just a little under the weather. But, I wouldn't miss this for the world."

Shane gently tapped her right cheek with his knuckle.

"Glad ya came. Wouldn't be a party without my little troublemaker. You look great by the way."

Those comments caused Morgan's smile to grow a bit more. However, when Shane went to address the other members of the Squad, she locked eyes with her fellow cheerleader and the smile left as soon as it came. Alexa's expression wasn't one of anger, but it definitely served as a warning.

"Okay, she showed up. That's fine. Actually, that's great." Bliss thought.

The reasoning behind that was simple. To Alexa, Liv deciding to show her face once again was a sign that she understood the line clearly drawn by the head cheerleader's… actions, and was willing to continue being part of both her and her boyfriend's lives. The only difference is, now she knew exactly what her place was.

Moderately tense moment aside, Shane's father had exited the bathroom and was ready to eat. He loudly clapped before making his intentions known.

"Alright, big man's tryna chow down on some fooood. Everybody get their asses to the kitchen table so my son can play waiter like he's been waiting to do all day… fuckin nerd."

Laughter rang out amongst the gathering of friends as they complied with the patriarch's wishes. Shane quickly got to work, fixing individual plates for everyone as fast as possible. Everyone was dished out their own helpings of the aforementioned chicken, macaroni and cheese, broccoli and biscuits. He then sat a large pitcher of homemade iced tea in the middle of the table, before handing out plastic cups.

"Hope you guys like it. Put a whole lotta effort into this stuff. Go ahead and dig in." He said proudly.

He ain't have to tell 'em twice, that's for damn sure. It seemed like the most rabid eaters at the table came in the form of Papa Price, Dean and Rhea. With the way they were tearing into the grub, you woulda thought they were in a competition to see who could finish first. It's a given that witnessing this would boost Shane's confidence a little bit.

"Well, if you want more food, the pans are in the kitchen. Plus there's lasagna, just thought I'd mention that as well."

"Oh, you're too good to us." Paige said to him in between bites.

"Mate, would ya be a dear and fetch me some more of that chicken? I can't get enough." Ripley requested.

"Sure thing. But, that's the last thing I'm serving at least for a little while. I wanna eat too."

"So you're gonna serve her seconds but you won't serve your girlfriend seconds?" Alexa asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Wait, but-"

He opted to just give in and just admit defeat in order avoid any future issues.

"Wrapped around your little finger. I respect it." His British companion said, mocking him.

As Price walked off to get more food, he flipped her off. In typical snarky Paige fashion, she blew him in a kiss and went, "I adore you, loooove."

With the way everyone was sitting, Rhea and Liv were next to each other. The imposing Aussie nudged Morgan with her elbow to get her attention.

"I'm surprised you haven't joined in yet. Seems like the messing with Price boy game's just started. It's your favorite." She said with a big smile.

Liv looked over at Bliss who was having a conversation with Becky, and her eyes fell toward her plate as she lazily played with her food.

"I dunno, I guess I'm just not in the mood."

Much like Shane, the lack of vibrancy coming from Liv served as a reason for Ripley to be concerned.

"Morgan, everything alright?"

"Yeah. I've… I've just been out of it. Midterms took a real toll on me, ya know?"

That lie seemed effective enough, as Rhea didn't second guess it in the slightest.

"Oh, well I can definitely understand that. Had a rough time myself gettin' through them. But still, try not to think about that for right now and have a good time."

Even though she wasn't referring to what was actually going down, the mischievous cheerleader took the words of her bandmate and applied it to the real conundrum she had found herself in.

"You know what? You're right, Rhea. We're here to have fun with our friends, and that's exactly what I'm gonna do." She said in an almost determined manner.

"Atta girl. Oi, Price, make it snappy with the chicken. Big Sis is gettin' impatient over here."

"I'm comin', I'm comin'. I'm only one guy over here." He responded.

After sorting out the seconds situation with Rhea and Alexa, it was finally time for the boy to sit down and enjoy the fruits of his labor. He took his place next to his girlfriend, landing across from Paige. So to break down the seating arrangement, (because I can feel the confusion coming from y'all), Kevin and Lita sat at opposite ends of the table. On the left side, it went Dean, Becky, Alexa and Shane. On the right it went Rhea, Liv, Ruby and Paige. Hopefully that was good enough for you guys to picture.

For a while, the conversation was kept to a minimum, as everyone wanted to just enjoy the food for a second. The person to eventually break the silence was Kevin, who had an announcement to make.

"Alright, kids. Here's the deal. I'm done eating, and from the looks of it, Lita's done too. Curveball incoming, we're gettin' outta here. The house is yours for the night." He proclaimed.

Shane and Ruby shared equally confused looks.

"Wait, what? Mom, did you know about this?" Riott asked.

Lita nodded.

"Me and Kevin figured that we'd let you guys have fun without a couple of old bastards ruining the vibe." She explained.

"Whoa, whoa. Who's old? I ain't old." Kev interrupted.

Lita rolled her eyes before continuing.

"Anywaaaay… We'll be back in the morning. Everyone okay with that?"

The teens looked at each other, some of them throwing in shrugs.

"I guess so, but what are you gonna do? Nothing's really open, it's the holidays." Shane pointed out.

"Eh, it's New York. We'll find some shit to do. But yeah, since you're cool with me, we're bouncin' outta here. Everyone in here has stayed the night before, so I don't gotta tell you my rules. But, uh… Becky?"

Lynch perked up after being spoken to.

"Hmm?"

"Make sure your boy Ambrose doesn't break anymore of my son's belongings. As funny as it was to see him lose his mind that one time, I'd rather not have to replace anything else of his anytime soon. Can ya do that for me?"

The fiery redhead giggled.

"No worries, I'll keep him in check. I do it all the time."

"Thanks a bunch. Okay, because you're my son, you're in charge. Make sure these ladies have a fun and safe time tonight." He instructed his son.

Shane saluted his father.

"Emphasis on the safe part. My daughter's here, remember that." Mama Riott warned.

"I can assure you Miss Dumas, nothing bad's gonna happen." The boy said.

Knowing she could trust him, she nodded. She then got up from her seat and started walking to the front door.

"You comin' Lucky?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm coming. Don't rush me, I'm the one driving remember?"

The man hugged his son before leaving the teens to their own devices and exited the home.

"Hold on, what did she call your dad?" Paige asked.

"I think she called him Lucky or something." Shane answered with a confused look on his face.

"Dude, seriously… What's the history between my mom and your dad?" Ruby asked him.

"My guess is as good as yours. He still hasn't told me much."

Dean decided to speak up.

"No disrespect to either of you guys' parents, but never mind that right now. We have this whole house to ourselves for the night! The possibilities are endless!"

"Slooow down there, Deano. You heard what my father said. No breaking shit."

"I ain't say anything about breaking shit."

"Yeah, but knowing you, whatever you have in mind will most likely end in some shit getting broken." Alexa chimed in.

"I mean… She's got a point, babe." Lynch sheepishly agreed.

Dean threw his hands up.

"Just forget I said anything then, damn. Screw this, I'm gettin' more food."

The unstable teen then left the table in a huff.

"Is it bad that I sort of want know what he wants to do?" Paige asked.

"You're not alone, trust me." Rhea followed.

"That's a relief. So you're Rhea, correct?"

"Yup, in the flesh. What's up?"

"I just gotta say… you look cool as fuck."

The Aussie laughed.

"Well, thanks mate. I could say the same to you. That dress you've got on is lovely."

"I appreciate the kind words, love. Shane, you were right when you called her a badass. Seeing her in person really puts it all into perspective."

"Midnight… Can we not?"

Ripley's eyebrows raised in curiosity.

"Oh, so you've been talking to your little friend about us, have you? I'm curious, what else has he said?"

Liv piped up.

"Yeah, I wanna know too. I hope it's good."

"Settle down everyone. As much as I'd like to get the boy in trouble, everything he said about you lot was positive. Like, for example, you must be Liv."

Morgan smiled and flipped her hair.

"Uh huh, what gave it away?"

"Hmm, let me go over some of the details he was so kind enough to share with me. Okay, blonde hair, bubbly personality, really good at playing bass, and never misses a chance to be a little nuisance. But, you're adorable so he can't stay mad at you."

Alexa damn near choked on her food after hearing that. Meanwhile, Liv found herself not caring about the consequences, remembering what Rhea had said earlier.

"Oooooh, I'm adorable huh? How come this is the first time I'm hearing this information?" Morgan asked with a flip of her hair.

Price immediately fired back, happy that it seemed like his friend was back to her normal self.

"Man, I don't have to tell you that, you already know the deal. You're like the adorable, annoying, always-up-to-somethin' little sister I never had."

"Awww, you're sooooo sweet, honey." She told him.

You know that saying, "If looks could kill?" Well, if looks could kill, Alexa Bliss would be responsible for the untimely death of one Olivia Morgan. She slammed both hands on the table and got up, causing all eyes to be on Little Miss Bliss.

"Hey…. Liv? Can you come with me outside for a sec? I gotta talk to you about something."

Safe to say, the confidence Liv had gained back immediately evaporated the second Alexa addressed her.

"But… I'm eating. Can't this wait until after the party's over?" She asked, voice slightly shaking.

"No!… I mean, it'll take 5 minutes tops."

Ruby, along with everyone else at the table, could sense how uncomfortable Liv was at the moment. She decided to intervene on behalf of her best friend.

"Whoa, whoa. I don't know what's going on, but it's getting kinda tense in here. What's the matter, Alexa?"

Much like the altercation she had with Liv in the school hallway, Bliss really tried at first to keep her temper in check. However, that question caused something to snap inside of her, and she just exploded.

"Oh for the love of- AM I THE ONLY ONE WITH TWO WORKING FUCKING EYEBALLS?!"

Around the same time of the outburst, Dean had returned with a fresh plate of food.

"Damn, what I miss?"

"One more word outta you, Ambrose, and I take that plate and smash it across your fucking forehead!" The petite princess threatened.

"Okay… Imma just go eat in the living room then." He said before leaving.

This is where Shane decided to try and diffuse the situation.

"Babe, babe what happened? What's got you so upset?" He asked while going to place his hand on her shoulder.

She aggressively brushed the hand away before directing some of her rage toward him.

"You! I don't know how you don't see what this chick's been doing! Are you that fucking oblivious to shit around you?!"

Liv sunk in her seat, almost like she was trying to make herself disappear as Alexa continued her rant.

"This goddamn attention whore has been all over you since the day she met you! Hey honey this, how ya doin' babe that. My favorite boy this, sweetheart that. How in the hell haven't you noticed?!"

This goes without saying, but the mood in that house completely flipped. Paige felt an incredible amount of awkwardness and Becky was more than annoyed at how Alexa had spoken to her man, showing this by abruptly leaving the table and joining Dean in the living room. Liv was understandably terrified, Rhea had this stoic look on her face, and Ruby could sense that some bad shit was about to go down. And then there was Shane, who was still trying to keep the peace.

"Look, princess. I don't know where this is all coming from, but I promise I'll do what I can to make things right. For right now though, can we please put it off until at least tomorrow when everyone's gone? I've done everything in my power to make tonight special, and-"

"And what?! Am I ruining your little get together with your "Squaaad?" Is that it? Figures, considering you've spent the last three months prioritizing them over your fucking girlfriend!"

"But… but Short Stuff-"

"Don't you dare "Short Stuff" me right now! Do you remember what you said to me in the bleachers the week of the Battle of the Bands? You promised me that after the band thing was over and done with, you'd make up for all the lost time. You said that you'd make me your number one priority. And even then! Even then I gave you an out and told you that you didn't have to go that far. All I wanted from you was for us spend just a little more time together. Since then, what's happened? I find out that you had the fucking balls to let this one sleep with you in your bed and not even tell me. Then, instead of using the holidays as a way to keep that promise you made, you bring your precious Squad into it once again and turn what could've been a romantic Christmas into another instance of shoving me into the background. I'm sick of it!"

Shane was left speechless by that rant. Despite futile attempts to get some kind of sentence out, it was straight radio silence on his end. However, there was someone who had more than a few words to say.

"Hey, that's enough!" Ruby yelled while also getting up.

Admittedly, Alexa was startled by the sudden vocalization from the normally level headed punk girl. Still, she stood her ground.

"Oh, what's this now? You gonna find a way to defend your home wrecker of a best friend?"

Now, if Ruby wasn't pissed off before, she definitely was now.

"Okay, first of all, watch your fuckin' mouth, Bliss."

"Or what? What are you gonna do to me, huh? I already smacked the shit outta Morgan, and I won't hesitate to hit you either!" She blurted out.

Audible gasps were heard, and mouths flew open out of pure, unadulterated shock. Feeling embarrassed and ashamed, could do nothing but look down, scared to meet anyone's gaze. Ruby started to shake with rage and seeing this, Shane ran over to the other side of the table to try and calm her down.

"Ruby, Ruby. Listen to me, you're fine, you're fine. Just try and relax for a second." He cooed.

An outraged Alexa continued.

"I can't believe what I'm looking at! After everything I just said, you're STILL putting them over me?! What a joke!"

Price finished calming his drummer down to the best of his abilities before turning his attention back to his girl.

"Alexa…. Did you really hit Liv?"

Without hesitation, she responded.

"You're damn right I did! And I'll gladly do it again, as long as she keeps forgetting her place!"

The boy really couldn't believe what was in the process of transpiring. The event that he had spent so long planning and preparing for was crumbling before his very eyes. Not only that, he saw all the progress he had made with Alexa fading away. The old, vindictive and cold version of her was rearing its ugly head once again. So, Shane Price then did the only thing he felt he could do at that moment. With tears forming in his eyes, he turned on his heel and straight up left the house.

Paige called out to him, pleading for him to rethink his departure.

"Shane, love. Where ya goin'? It's dark out! Oh for fuck sake, look what you've done. I'm going after him."

The Brit dashed into Price's room, grabbed her leather jacket out of his closet, and quickly left to follow her downtrodden best friend. Would you believe that all of that only served to irritate the petite princess even more?

"Great, that's just great. Ya see what you did, Morgan? If you would've just stayed in your lane like you were supposed to, none of this would've happened!"

Liv could no longer keep herself together, and tears began to fall down her reddened cheeks as she sobbed.

"I'm- I'm sorry, Alexa. I'm sorry." She choked out.

Ruby hugged her blonde companion from behind in an attempt to comfort her, and Rhea had decided that she'd seen and heard enough.

Ripley left her seat and stepped right up to Little Miss Bliss, practically dwarfing her in the process. Now, Alexa was intimidated. After staring down at her with those piercing blue eyes of hers for what felt like an eternity for Bliss, the Riott Squad's guitarist finally spoke.

"You've done enough damage for tonight. I suggest you see yourself out of this house before I get you out of here myself." Ripley demanded.

As much as she wanted to be defiant and say "fuck you" to Rhea, she decided against it and simply left like she was told. But not before shooting one last dirty look at Liv.

After making sure Lexi was gone, Rhea made her way over to Morgan, who was in shambles at this point. She placed her hand on the cheerleader's shoulder as if to say, "I'm here for you."

Meanwhile, only one thing was running through Liv Morgan's head at that point.

"I did this… All of this happened… because of me."

AN: Man, there was no way I was gonna go a full calendar year without updating this damn story. To try to make up for the ridiculously long wait, I made this chapter ridiculously long. I can't promise that I'll be more consistent. But know this, the story is not over until I say it is. Y'all are the best, and I'll see you in the next chapter.