A/N: Hopefully with Miz's return next week, chapters will start being longer again. Heh.

And, RIP Young and Restless' Jeanne Cooper.

When Miz looks at the small pile of scenes that he has to read to learn the lines for what's to be his final scene for Christmas Bounty, it's bittersweet- his second movie under his belt now and his WWE return on the horizon. He's tempted to return quietly, surprise his friends, but he's never been that great with keeping things on the down-low. So, after sending a quick mass text out to John, Alex and Ricardo: Guess who's about to wrap their second movie?, he tweets about it as well before turning his attention back to the final night he'll be spending with the Christmas Bounty cast and crew. Although two weeks isn't enough time really to move past the embarrassment surrounding Wrestlemania, he misses his friends. He does miss competing, no matter how tainted it might seem by everything lately. In some ways, it'll be good to be stateside again. In others, he's still conflicted.

When his phone beeps, he checks it and smiles slightly. Congrats, man. In time for Raw? comes from Alex and he sighs, glancing at the schedule he'd been sent with the scenes.

I'm not sure, it's going to be cutting it close. We have a couple more things to finish up tomorrow morning. I kind of doubt it, but maybe the week after. He immediately curses himself for the slip of the fingers, hoping that Alex will let it go, but sure enough-

Maybe?

He closes his eyes. ... Probably. I just... I'm still weighing everything that happened before I left. I'll probably be there. That's all I can say right now.

Alex's response doesn't come for awhile but when it does, Mike has to smile at his friend's steadfast loyalty. Alright, I do understand, Mike. You know where I'm at if you want to talk.

Yeah. Thanks, man.

He wraps on early morning Monday. Returning the leather jacket he'd worn through a lot of the filming process is a little sad, as he'd grown to like the article of clothing, feeling like it suits him well. He considers booking a quick flight to Virginia but, after some research, realizes he has no option but to leave it: there are no available flights that would arrive in time for Raw, so he opts to stay in Canada for one more day, say goodbye to Vancouver before heading back to his life.

For a wild moment, he even considers returning on Smackdown that Friday, but in the end, he opts against that as well. Especially when, as he idly checks flights, the first one that catches his eye is one from Vancouver to LA. Home calls to him, although it's another place he'd seen relatively recently, spending time with Morrison before leaving to film. He wonders if perhaps another few days with his former tag partner would help settle his thoughts, ease him along to being ready physically and emotionally to return to WWE yet again.

When he returns to his laptop and books the flight, a smile spreads across his face. At least it's something of a plan, the rest of his week sorted as he figures out whether returning on Raw the following week is something he wants to do or not.

Still feeling ecstatic after the success he and Alberto Del Rio had enjoyed the week prior, Ricardo Rodriguez wanders the hallways of the arena Raw's being held in, smiling at the few people he passes by on his way back to his employer. He's almost to the locker room when there's a soft sound of throat clearing behind him and he jerks slightly, turning to find AJ Lee standing behind him, head tilted to the side as she takes him in with a somewhat eerie smile on her pale lips. "Ricardo," she greets him.

He swallows and shakes his head at her, not sure what she would want with him, but certain that it's nothing good, considering her boyfriend is embroiled in his feud with Alberto. "Um... AJ?"

She smirks and skips closer to him, causing him to gulp nervousnessly. "Do I make you uncomfortable, Ricardo?" Without waiting for an answer, she tugs on his green, red and white bowtie, causing him to shift awkwardly. "Aw, I don't mean to. I mean, it was thanks to me you won that match last week, right? If I hadn't stopped Zeb from pinning you, allowing you to get the roll up victory... well..." She smiles, eyes gleaming dangerously, and he looks around anxiously, disturbed by just how empty, quiet the hallway is currently.

"AJ, I have to- I have to get back to El Patron," he stammers, trying to turn away from her, but she has a surprisingly strong grip on his sleeve and he finds himself stuck in place, the only way to get free from her risking injury to her, considering how much taller than her he is. There had been a time last year when he'd felt sympathetic towards her, after she'd been ran into by Big Show and had been in a neck brace for weeks- Ricardo being well versed in neck injuries himself, he doesn't want to risk doing anything that could cause her physical harm to get free. "Por favor, let me go," he tells her, eyes wide. "I don't want to-"

"Don't want to, what?" she asks with a small smile. "Hurt me? Like your little friend Miz? I mean, you two are friends, right? At least that's what locker room rumors claim." She digs her fingernails into his tux, Ricardo wincing slightly as his clothes threaten to tear under her motions. "Did he ever... talk to you about me?"

Not sure how to handle this situation without betraying Mike's confidence, or cause more damage to his suit, much less anything else- he's uncomfortably aware that Big E is probably lurking around somewhere nearby, just waiting for him to do or say something wrong- Ricardo closes his eyes. "He regrets what happened between you two."

Her smirk grows tighter, more painful. "I regret that anything happened between us," she spits, releasing him roughly and tilting her head as she examines him, that dangerous look in her eyes once more. "I'll see you around, Ricardo."

As she skips off, he finally feels like he can breathe again, shaking his head with a grimace. "I'd rather not," he mutters, despite knowing that they'll have to share the ringside area later on, when she's out there for Ziggler and he's out there for Alberto.

Later that night, Alex Riley watches as referees help everyone from the ringside area- Big E refuses assistance, walking on his own recognizance past him, but referees are on either side of Ricardo and Alberto, easing them through the hallway to the trainer's office to get checked out, AJ tagging along with the trainer and referee helping Dolph, who seems to have gotten the worse of it, a clean shot to the skull from the ladder.

He follows, trying to ignore the sensation of AJ's dark stare on his back, Ricardo hunched over slightly as he clings to his shoulder, each step adding to his agony. It's sad, after the previous week that this week would start off so poorly for him, especially so quickly after getting rid of the ankle brace. Alberto also seems to be having issues walking, his balance off after the ladder had been slammed so brutally into him. He scrubs at his face and looks from man to man, shaking his head: Extreme Rules was an insane ppv, really, everyone going all out to prove themselves, try to outdo whatever performances they'd put on at Wrestlemania... especially when titles and pride both were on the line.

Patting Ricardo's good arm comfortingly, he watches as the trainer and the referees begin looking everyone over, the room full of all of them, thick with tension. Not for the first or last time, he wishes that Mike could be here. He sighs, trying not to think about how uncertain his friend had sounded about returning at all. "It'll be ok," he mumbles, not entirely sure if he's trying to convince himself or the injured ring announcer.