Ricardo sighs, his eyes closed as he relaxes on the couch in his and Alex's living room that Sunday. He had been bustling a lot this weekend, between training, and booking more dates- who knows where LaSalle, Illinois is anyway, but a match is a match- and packing where he can. He almost doesn't notice how quiet everything is with Paige, Alicia and Alex traveling to the next Raw, and Alberto in Mexico, competing his first match for AAA. He yawns lazily and wipes at his eyes, blinking up at the ceiling before he sits up, smiling a little. Collecting his shoes, keys and phone, he's out the door within minutes.

Sofia looks surprised when he knocks on the mansion's door, but pleasantly so, hugging him tightly and ushering him inside. "Se- eh, Ricardo," she exclaims, beaming. "I wasn't expecting you. Por favor, come in." As he does so, she bustles around him in that Sofia way, as if examining every angle of him, and he smiles when she's finally once more face to face with him. "Senor Alberto is in Mexico, but... you probably know that," she says, seeming a little rattled by his abrupt appearance.

He catches her hand and gives it a little squeeze, thinking he understands. They hadn't had much one-on-one time since last August, and he's a little nervous as well, though knowing there's absolutely no need to be. "Relax, Sofia, it's alright," he tells her softly. "A lot has happened recently, hm? My and Alberto's departures from WWE, and now my returning home in a couple of weeks. I just thought I'd come by and say hola, since we're both alone right now."

She nods, takes in a deep breath and holds it for a moment before releasing it in a soft exhale, like Morrison had showed them all the last time they had all been together. "Si, of course. I'm so happy to see you, Ricardo." She keeps her hand in his, guiding him into the living room, and they sit side by side on the couch, Ricardo smiling at her. She fusses with her skirt for a moment before looking back at him. "I have been preparing more of your favorite foods lately, to ensure that I'm not... completely out of practice with them when you return."

"Ah, that is what I've been smelling," he comments, glancing towards the kitchen. She nods eagerly as he turns back to her. "There's nothing to worry about, however, Sofia. Other than mi madre, you're the best cook I've ever seen." She smiles sheepishly and he pats her hand before looking around the living room. "I have missed this place," he admits.

"It has not been the same without you," she says after a moment, her eyes suspiciously bright. He stares at her for a moment before wrapping an arm around her and drawing her in for a hug, the housekeeper clinging to him. "Senor Alberto, he tried to pretend like everything was ok, but even when I was mad at him, and refused to talk to him, I could see it... he was so lonely. And not just because I was distancing myself from him..." She plays with the sleeve of his black shirt and sniffs. "I was so rude to him immediately after he did... what he did, it amazes me sometimes that he didn't fire me outright."

Ricardo had never really gotten a full picture of Alberto's life following August 5th, had never really wanted to know- everything he'd endured in those weeks was more than enough, but the more Sofia speaks, the more he thinks he can see it. While Ricardo had had Mike, Alex and John to help him through it, Alberto had truly had no one. It had been his own doing, obviously, but still... the younger man can't help but feel sorry for him. If their friendship hadn't been reborn in December, well... He squeezes Sofia's arm and shakes his head, murmuring comforting Spanish to her. They sit in silence for awhile, lost in thought, before Ricardo pulls away from her gently and finds his phone, using it to access Twitter. "Let's see if El Patron's match has concluded yet," he suggests, glad when it erases some of the sadness from her eyes.

It takes awhile, the two of them staring at the small screen as Ricardo refreshes perodically, but finally the results are updated- Alberto's success against Perro Jr.'s team is confirmed and the two grin at each other. "Let's call him in a few minutes, once we're sure he's not still in the ring," Ricardo tells her. She nods eagerly and they watch until ten minutes have gone by, Ricardo then dialing his cell phone.

It rings a few times before finally clicking in. "Hola?" Alberto is breathless but beyond pleased, and both Ricardo and Sofia can picture him standing, sweaty fingers digging into the phone while he grins brilliantly.

"Hola, El Patron," Ricardo says, placing the phone on speaker so Sofia can hear as well. "We wanted to call and congratulate you on your win."

"We?" Alberto asks, a bit of confusion in his voice before-

"Hola, Senor, I'm here too," Sofia calls towards the phone, Ricardo smiling at her as she glances towards him.

"Ah! Sofia, hola. And gracias," Alberto responds warmly. "But was there ever any doubt, hm?"

"No," Ricardo and Sofia chime in together. The three of them settle into their conversation about all that Alberto had seen since arriving in Mexico and, for the first time in a long time, things just feel right.

-x

Heath Slater isn't at Raw tonight. For a moment, Alex feels a surge of relief, but then a shadow of self-doubt overwhelms it when he sees the sad look on Alicia's face when she kisses him before they split so he can go up to the panel. She's alone, with no one to keep her company, he reminds himself. Of course she's sad. Barely anyone talks to her anymore, just you and AJ attempt to spend any time with her, but AJ is busy with Paige and... "Dammit," he whispers, wishing things were different. Unable to do anything about it, he shakes it off as best as he can and disappears up the stairs leading to the panel. It's the longest four hours of his life and by the time he's finally able to return to the hallways, she's sitting on the bottom step, clearly waiting for him.

This warms his heart a little, though he doubts it would've happened if Heath was around, but he ignores the betraying thoughts creeping around in his mind, settling behind her on the steps and tipping her head back so he can kiss her, which is a little awkward but no less passionate as she whimpers into his mouth, tangling her fingers in his hair. The others are heading down now though, so he reluctantly breaks away from her and stands, stepping down and shuffling to the side to lean over and lift her up. It's a tight fit, the stairwell not that wide and her legs so long, but they manage, Alicia gasping as gravity gives way under her abruptly and her arms wrap around his neck. He stares at her as he carries her the rest of the way out of the arena and into the parking lot, memorizing every inch of her beauty. Despite his distraction, he finds their car easily. They may be on different wavelengths and he may not have her the way he'd like, but he's not going to squander the moments they do have, so he unlocks the car and pulls the door open, settling her in the backseat.

She scoots back and stares up at him curiously, lips parting slowly. "Alex..."

He shakes his head and hovers over her, hands planted on the top of both front and back car seats, staring down at her. "It's ok, Foxy," he whispers, leaning in and kissing her deeply. "It's ok."

He's lying, and he's sure she can sense it, but before she can say anything, his lips trail down to her throat, his hands move in kind and her words are swallowed by a faint gasp.

-x

Ricardo sighs and yawns, kicking another box out of his way as he heads to bed. It had been another busy day of training and packing, so sinking into his soft sheets feels like what he thinks heaven might, his tired body slowly relaxing as he struggles to stay awake, listening to Paige's voice, somehow both tinny and sharp as it issues from his cell phone, complain about AJ's latest ridiculous actions. He responds as needed, but eventually he can't keep even that up, his eyes mostly closed, fingers slack against the phone.

She notices pretty quickly, her voice softening. "Someone's tired, hm? I'll be home tomorrow, Ricardo. Maybe I'll help you with packing, if you'll let me."

"That'd be nice," he breathes, barely aware of what exactly she's saying.

She chuckles quietly. "Yeah, it will be... good night, Ricardo."

"Buenos noches, mi fuerza." He rolls over, unaware as the phone flashes call ended, then goes dark, its owner already fast asleep.

-x

The rest of the week is much the same, training and packing and barely little time to just breathe, but it's ok. Ricardo would much rather be busy and fulfilled than sitting around, doing nothing but thinking. He's surrounded by a fresh pile of boxes, more of his things disappearing inside them, when there's a soft knock on his door and Alex peeks his head in, smiling wanly at his roommate. "Hey, man, need any help in here?"

Ricardo blinks, pulled away from the singleminded focus he had had on sorting his things and looks up at the older man, before glancing at the clock. "Maldita sea," he comments, realizing that so much time had passed, he'd forgotten lunch and whatever else. "I didn't realize it was so late."

Alex comes the rest of the way inside and grins ruefully, shaking his head as he looks around at the room that's slowly becoming less and less Ricardo's and more and more a guest room, empty and impersonal. "Um, here, I thought you might be hungry," he offers, laying a plate down on the bed and resting a bottle of water on the nightstand.

Ricardo stares at the sandwich that's resting just inches from his face for a moment before standing up, snagging Alex's arm before he can leave the room. "Gracias, amigo," he murmurs, hugging him quickly. Pulling back, he smiles at him and sighs. "I'm going to miss you, Alex."

"Well, we at least will still live in the same city, and if you need anything, you know where to go," Alex offers awkwardly, nudging one of the empty boxes with his toe.

"Si, yes I do," the ring announcer nods. "Come, sit and tell me what's been going on with Alicia and everything while I eat, and then I think I can take a break from packing... let's go out and do something. Whatever you want, bowling or training, or... just name it."

Alex smiles at him. "I'd like that, man."

-x

Packing to move becomes packing to travel to New Jersey for a meet'n'greet with fans and an appearance at an indy event that night, and Ricardo releases a breath while he and Paige wait outside of the apartment, holding hands and watching the waves lick the beach nearby. "I don't know if I'm coming or going anymore, there's been so much packing lately," he tells her, only partially kidding, and she makes a soft noise, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek.

"It'll be over soon. And besides, if you need any help with all of this, you know Alex and I are always around, willing to do so."

"I know," he murmurs, smiling at her. "The thing is Alex has already packed my things up once, with Mike... to move me into his place, and it just feels wrong, asking him do it again. The first time, I had no choice in the matter, and he did it because he's a great guy... but this time it's all my choice to move back in with Alberto, and I don't think it's right to make him help pack me up all over again just so I can leave his apartment. It was my choice, it's my responsibility."

Paige smiles at him and leans in, kissing him slowly. "You're a pretty great guy too, Ricardo," she murmurs in his ear before nuzzling against him, sighing as he wraps his arm around her and holds her close. They're still sitting there, listening to the seagulls overhead, when finally Alberto's car pulls up nearby and they lazily stand, carrying their bags over to his vehicle.

With all three of them traveling at roughly the same time, Alberto to Los Angeles, Paige to Mississippi and Ricardo to New Jersey, it had been an easy enough decision for the three of them to just go to the airport together. Alberto greets Ricardo with a smile as he opens the passenger door for Paige, waiting until she's comfortably inside to drop their bags in the trunk. He then slips in beside her and smirks at his former employer. "Great thinking, El Patron, selecting one of the cars with a bench seat in the front..."

Alberto looks blankly over at him. "No idea what you're talking about, Ricardo, I was always planning on driving this vehicle today." Not even waiting for a response, he pulls off onto the road and begins the trek to the airport.

"Of course you were." Ricardo shakes his head fondly, his smirk gentling as Paige reaches over and squeezes his fingers.

The airport is bustling, as always, and Ricardo smiles a little when Alberto glances around, checking for any potential issues, while Paige steps closer to him, not wanting to get lost in the sea of people. Even for her height and attitude in a wrestling ring, she's still just a little bit timid when it comes to traveling and he wishes he could spend more time with her, like they used to. Shaking his head, he leans in and kisses her before leading the way over to the board listing flight information. Hers is leaving first, then his, then Alberto's.

She releases a breath and finds his hand, holding it as she walks towards where her gate's at, Alberto trailing along behind them. Considering security and everything else, she only just has enough time to get into line to depart now, so she leans up and kisses Ricardo softly, stroking his hair. "I'll see you in a few days, Ricardo. Have fun in New Jersey."

"Mm hmm, good luck on Sunday," he tells her quietly, stealing another kiss as she pulls away with a small giggle, offering an awkward wave to Alberto before turning and walking through the gate to lead her to the various security checks that she'll have to get through to get onto her plane.

The two men stand side by side until she's out of sight before Alberto wraps an arm around Ricardo's shoulders and leads him into the heart of the airport once more, there still time before he has to prepare to depart. "Let's get some lunch, mi amigo," he suggests, leading the way to the first restaurant they see, an Italian grill that both have tried before, together and separately, and like well enough. Both have to laugh after ordering the same thing- baked ravioli parmesan chicken, with ice water to drink. "Some things never change, hm?"

"Si, I suppose not," Ricardo murmurs, smiling at his mejor amigo before glancing around the restaurant. "It feels like it's been a lifetime since I've been in here." It hadn't, really, but places just feel... look differently, when Del Rio is the one sitting across the table. Once the food arrives, they eat in comfortable silence, both relieved to find that the meal is delicious. When they finish, there's still time to kill before Ricardo needs to go through security, so they wander the shops nearest his gate, talking lowly in Spanish over this book or that knickknack, secretly making notes of things for Christmas this year, both relieved that they will be spending the holidays together once more, with Sofia. As it always should've been.

Eventually, Alberto catches sight of a clock and Ricardo realizes it as well. "I have to go." He sighs and smiles at Alberto. "Gracias for bringing Paige and I here, El Patron. It was nice to spend some time with you."

"Si, it was nice to spend time with you too, mi amigo." Alberto hugs him, pulls back to stare at him. "The big move's coming up soon, hm? If you need anything-"

"I'm pretty sure I've got it, El Patron," he says, still in awe of all of the people willing to help him. If anything good had come out of August 5th, it was that he'd learned who his real friends were... even if they were trying to pretend like they weren't. He smiles at the Mexican aristocrat. "But if I need anything, I'll let you know."

"Good, you do that." They walk back to the gate and Alberto sees him off, stuffing his hands in his pockets as Ricardo walks out of sight. "Hm," he sighs, turning to sit down in some plush chairs until it's his turn to prepare to depart. Los Angeles... always feels unnatural without you by my side, mi amigo... but that can be said about any place...