There's always this vibe in the dojo. Learning, and new experiences and... Ricardo smiles. It had honestly been the very best thing to come into his life when he hadn't been sure what was going to come next after his time in the WWE had concluded. He breathes in and looks around as the crowd begins to fill the ringside area, grinning before ducking backstage to prepare for his tag match. He wishes Paige is here for this, an inkling of an idea rocketing around in his hyped mind and wishing she could be present to hear him announce it, but when he peeks out again, Sofia and Alberto are sitting close to the entrance and this calms him, causes him to grin as Alberto nudges the housekeeper and points him out to her, Ricardo grinning and waving at them before ducking back behind the curtain as the show begins.
His partner is Chasyn and their opponents have a manager who tries many shifty things whenever they get the advantage but Ricardo eventually takes him out and Chasyn gets the pin for their team, the two of them recollecting inside of the ring. Chasyn speaks of Ricardo being overlooked in the WWE, and he thanks him but is determined to look ahead, not back, so as soon as he gets a chance at the mic again, he announces his intention to be entered in the Florida J-Cup at the end of the month.
Chasyn and he leaves not long afterwards, Ricardo pausing to hug Sofia and grin at a proud Alberto before going to change out of his sleak black gear. Feeling much more comfortable in jeans and a short sleeved top, he finds his family waiting for him outside of the locker room and allows himself to be guided towards Alberto's car.
"All ready to go to Pennsylvania in the morning, hermano?" Alberto asks him, peering at him from the rearview mirror.
"Si, flight's booked, I'm packed... Just as long as there's no delays with the flight..." As soon as the words have left his lips, he laughs mirthlessly. "Better count on it, then." He locks eyes with Alberto, realizing that they'd said the same thing at the same time, and begins to laugh helplessly.
His sleep is restless, even with the comfort of a victory on his shoulders. He's so focused on what Paige will want to say to him that he spends most of the night staring up at the ceiling. After hours of scattered sleep, he wakes up enough to drag himself out of bed, it's still a good five hours til his flight but he's too anxious to stay home, especially with Alberto and Sofia still asleep, so he leaves a note before grabbing his bag and leaving.
He drives around for awhile before deciding to go on ahead to the airport. His flight actually leaves almost on time and he sucks in a deep breath, his anxiety growing now that he's actually on his way to Paige's side. It's a short enough flight and he hasn't quite calmed down when he gets into a taxi with his bag.
He makes his way to the hotel Paige had mentioned she'd been booked to stay at, looking up in awe at the tall building before making his way inside. He ventures to the front desk and waits until a woman turns her attention to him, his lips struggling into a weak smile as he walks towards her, suddenly realizing that he may not be able to get into Paige's room, not like this. "Hello, I-"
"Ricardo?!" Her voice is startling and beautiful all at once and he jerks, turning in time to catch her as she runs into his arms. He laughs brokenly as she kisses him desperately, pulling away to search his face. "How, I don't, what is going on?!" she demands, grinning in disbelief as he hugs her tightly.
"I had a couple of days and I wanted to see you," he explains softly. "Do you have time...?"
There's pain in her eyes as she looks over at the WWE handler behind them, looking far from pleased. "I'm sorry, love, but I have to go prepare for my meet'n'greet..." She hesitates, looking like she's about to say something else, before changing her mind. Pressing a keycard into his hand, she offers him another quick kiss. "Make yourself comfortable, order room service or use the pool and I'll be back before you know it." She kisses him, long and hot, before pulling away. "I'm so sorry, but I'm ecstatic you're here, really."
He can do nothing but watch, dazed, as her fingers slip out of his hands, the WWE official guiding her away from him. For the first time, he wonders if perhaps they won't be able to survive the inadvertant distance his leaving WWE had caused between them.
He's tired from fretting, food nor swimming sounding good to him so, after laying his bag by Paige's, he lays down on her bed (which still smells like her, bringing a smile to his lips) and thumbs through TV shows- all mindless junk on Sundays- until he dozes off, the remote slipping from his slack fingers.
His dreams are abstract. Distorted memories from Total Divas, Brandon singing to Paige and Alicia and Rosa spazzing over it all. He's struggling to reach out for her, something holding him down and causing him to panic even worse, when Paige kisses Brandon.
"No!" he yells, sitting up wildly, his hands thrusted out towards... something. Reality bleeds back when he realizes he's tangled up in sheets in Paige's hotel bed and only fifteen minutes has passed since he entered this room. Sinking back against the pillows, he stares dozily at the TV until finally there's a giggle out in the hall, Paige letting herself in with the spare keycard.
She makes a soft tsking noise before dropping an armful of gifts from her fans on their bags and squirming up close to him, kissing him on the mouth and snuggling against him. His hand is warm around her as he drifts once more, his dreams this time nonexistent.
When he wakes up again, she's still there, breathing in time with him and he sighs, rolling over and nuzzling into her as she whispers out his name, eyes locked on him. "I missed you, love."
They need to talk, he knows, but he's sleepy and warm, needy and eager to properly kiss her when she's not about to be dragged away, so he does, pressing his eyes shut against her soft whimpers. "I missed you too," he breathes before closing the rest of the distance between them mentally and physically.
Room service has just left, Paige spooning up some ice cream and feeding it to him, his hand resting on her bare ankle, when he takes the bowl and puts it on the table. He turns back to her, eyes dark and solemn, and she swallows, growing fidgety as their peaceful time together slips away. "Talk to me," he beseeches her. "What's going on?"
She struggles for awhile. To compose her thoughts, make sense of whatever it is, and he waits as patiently as he can, although her reaction is leaving him even more anxious and ill. Finally she looks up and realizes he's almost green with nerves so she gets up and tucks herself in his lap, staring at him. "I told you I would let you know if I ever felt the urge to do something crazy on Total Divas... It's... yeah. I love you so much, it hurts, Ricardo. Because of that I'd never make you do something you'd be uncomfortable with, but they've written Rosa and Cameron out and... If it's that simple, what choice do I have?"
She falls quiet as he examines her. "What are you planning?" His voice is low, defeated already, and tears fill her eyes.
"I have a friend," she breathes out. "Not Brandon, definitely not, but... He's another musician, and... It's a win-win, you see? He'll get exposure on the show, and I'll have one more reason for them to keep me casted." She's speaking hurriedly, her expression desperate and miserable. "I won't do any of it if you... If it hurts you," she insists.
He stares at her, pondering how his leaving WWE so unexpectedly had to have hurt her, but how she had accepted it, supported him through all of the changes that had since. "I trust you. Do what you feel you need to, mi fuerza." Even as the words leave him, and she jumps into his arms, pressing kisses against every inch of his face, he can't help but wonder if he just agreed to their relationship's deathknell...
Paige has to fly back to Vancouver the next day but, she tells him happily, her role in the film will be wrapping early and she'll be back in the States in time for Payback. He purses his lips at her and she sighs, cupping his face and beaming at him. "I'm sorry I won't be with you for your title match in California, but I know you'll do great."
"That's the plan," he tells her with a small smile. "Perhaps I'll have my second taste of gold..."
"And you haven't even been out of the WWE a year yet, love," she muses. "I'm so proud of you."
"I'm proud of you too," he tells her, pressing his forehead to hers. "I know you're going to get back at Naomi for what she did to you, deservedly so, but be careful, alright?"
She nods, carding her fingers through his hair and sighing softly as he presses kisses against her ribs which, not that long ago, were sore and bruised only a few weeks ago. "I love you."
"I love you, too." Her plans for Total Divas still eats at him but for now, he lets it go and focuses only on the now.
-x
Paige leaves for Vancouver and Ricardo turns his attention back to the dojo, training for the Florida K-Cup as soon as his plane lands. Alberto is in California for Lucha Underground, his #1 contendership match against Hernandez schedule. Ricardo almost finds it funny, considering they'd hired Hernandez to help with Ray Gonzalez in Puerto Rico, but that's just how things shake out in wrestling sometimes.
What's not so funny is the growing animosity between John and Alberto. Thankfully, Ricardo has his own events in California this coming weekend, so he decides to leave early once training finishes and go to the temple to support his former employer. Because of this decision, he's there to watch with the rest of the horrified crowd as Morrison interferes and throws Alberto through glass into Dario Cueto's office, allowing Hernandez to get the easy win.
Ricardo rushes backstage, ignoring everyone who tries to stop him, the shards of glass cracking under his shoes, and everything else as he rushes to Alberto's side. "El Patron!" He finds his hand, squeezing it between both of his own. "I'm here..."
Security approaches in his periphial but a different voice speaks up, one only vaguely familiar. "Leave him be." It's Dario himself, staring on in disgust of the mess his office is now in, and Ricardo is overwhelmed in thankfulness towards him... but before he can say or do anything, Alberto moans and he immediately turns back to him, whispering in what he hopes is soothing Spanish.
Later, they are recommended to go get Alberto checked out at the ER just in case, so Ricardo is following the stretcher out when he spots a couple of familiar forms walking hand in hand not that far away. As he releases Alberto's hand and runs to them, he doesn't care about Star, his eyes locked on John. "How could you?" he demands, his voice trembling. "How...?" He gives John every opportunity to explain but the man does nothing but stare back at him, his eyes glinting mutedly in the darkness. Finally Ricardo gives up, tears in his eyes, and walks back to Alberto's side.
Alberto being told he needs to rest before being released, Ricardo insists he stay at Mike's house- Ricardo is suddenly relieved he'd forgotten to give John the key back after Wrestlemania- and then borrows Alberto's credit card long enough to book another flight to California. He only feels comfortable enough leaving for the airport when Alberto's freshly dosed on painkillers, falling deeply asleep within twenty minutes. Thankfully the plane lands close enough to on time and before long, Ricardo is hugging Sofia. "I don't understand any of this," he admits wearily.
She pulls away and cups his face, examining him. "That is something I said to myself almost daily after Alberto betrayed you, mi hijo. Now come." She hooks her arm in his and walks towards the luggage carousel. "Then you can go get ready for your match and I can watch over senor."
"Gracias, Sofia," he tells her with a soft smile. "What would we do without you?"
She beams up at him, shrugging. "Luckily neither of you will ever need to find out."
