Once things with Alex and Ricardo are squared away, peace reigning in Florida yet again, Mike exchanges goodbyes with his friends, the three of them looking forward to spending more time together at Raw that Monday. He, however, has California responsibilities to tend to, point in fact being one very eager wife to go back with and help unpack, spread her influence around his house, before they have to go their separate ways for the first time since they'd gotten married, AJ still far from ready to return to WWE. He watches her sleep on the flight back home and ponders how she'll handle being all alone in the fairly big house, frowning slightly as he brushes his knuckles against her cheek, smiling when she only stirs enough to lean into his warmth, sighing softly.
When they land, she's still half-asleep, his arm around her waist the only thing guiding her off of the plane and to the carousel to grab their luggage before they walk side by side to the car, AJ humming against him as he strokes her side. "I love you," she murmurs when he helps her into the car, throwing their things into the back seat before joining her in the driver's seat.
He leans back against the seat and stares at her, waiting until she opens her eyes and stares back at him, his lips twitching up into a fond smile as he finds her hand and strokes her knuckles. "I love you too." She smiles back at him as he turns his attention back to the car, starting it up and angling them onto the road leading towards their home.
Between the two of them, unpacking her things and deciding on what should go where isn't as bad as he'd feared. In fact, they finish in time to catch the sunset, walking hand in hand along the beach outside of Morrison's apartment where they'd gotten married, AJ gasping and squealing as he picks her up and walks her into the surf, settling her down once more in the water and kissing her deeply as the waves crash over them. She grows quickly accustomed to the chilly water washing over her bare skin, however, wrapping her arms around his neck and responding in kind, smirking against his mouth.
He sighs, nuzzling against her, and whispers against her lips, "I'm going to miss you on Monday."
"No," she says, eyes flashing in the semi-darkness as her grip around his neck tightens. "That's days away, I don't want to think about it, much less talk about it." Her next kiss is desperate and sad and he feels guilty for reminding her. "Mike..."
He brushes the hair out of her face and stares down at her, gentle and affectionate. "It's ok, sweetheart, I won't mention it again. What do you say we go drag Morrison out of his apartment and get something to eat? Hm? Does that sound good?"
She pouts at this, though a little more jokingly than before. "But I don't want to share you tonight," she complains, hugging him closer as another wave sweeps over them, Mike laughing as she wavers, nearly overwhelmed by its force.
Holding her steady, he leans in and kisses her intensely, breathing in her sigh. "Just for an hour or two, yeah? Then we'll go back to the house, and hole up for the next few days. I promise." She continues to pout until he lightly ghosts his fingers along her sides, making her gasp and squirm, trying to avoid his tickling touch. He laughs softly, nuzzling closer to her. "I'll owe you one, hm? Come on, sweetheart, I haven't seen him in a few weeks, he might get a complex."
She sighs and groans, kissing him lightly. "Fine, fine. But I'm going to hold you to your promise about this weekend." She grazes her fingers down his face, allowing him to pull her to her feet and lead her back up the beach towards John's apartments.
He smiles, wrapping his arm around her shoulders while pressing a kiss to her temple. "There's a burger joint not far from here, let's convince John to go to it... and then I'll introduce you to the delicacy of french fries dipped in milkshakes..." The fresh look of horror dawning on her face makes him laugh.
The rest of the weekend passes quietly. Mike and AJ spend most of it in the house, watching TV curled up in each other's arms, or talking softly while he shows her various things around the house, fingers tangled together the entire three day period until Sunday afternoon when he packs. She's very quiet, sober, watching him as he collects things and throws them into his bag, trying desperately to remember what all he needs. It'd been so long since he'd actually prepared for wrestling... "Elbow pads," she reminds him softly, holding the items out to him. As he looks up, surprised, she smiles sadly and he abandons the attempt at getting his things together for his flight in the morning, joining her on the edge of the bed and taking the elbow pads from her with a tender look on his face. "Mike?"
"You know what, give me a minute here, and then I want to show you something," he tells her, quickly scanning the room and, finding nothing else that he thinks he'll need tomorrow, zipping his bag up almost violently before returning to her side. "Come on, sweetheart," he tells her, holding his hand out towards her.
She quickly takes it, allowing him to drag her upright. "Where are we going, Mike?" she asks, confused as he leads her out of the house and towards the driveway.
"You'll see," he teases her, pressing a quick kiss to the side of her head before he opens the door for her, grinning as she lightly squeezes his hand. Once they're both in the car, he drives off yet again towards the beach, a small smile on his face as he wonders why it'd taken him this long to show her one of his most favorite places in California.
She watches the passing scenery closely, head tilting when he drives past the typical parking lot used near where they'd gotten married. He drives on a bit further, finally stopping when Morrison's apartment isn't even in sight anymore, and parks in a nearly abandoned parking lot, AJ blinking as she gets out of the car and looks around at a part of the beach she hadn't even known existed until this moment. "Mike..."
He grins and wraps an arm around her, drawing her further along the beach to the quiet, peaceful cove and she gasps, realization dawning. "Welcome to the spot of a great many 4th of July bashes over the years, sweetheart." She pulls away from him slightly, resting her fingers on the weathered stones, taking in the natural beauty of it all, before turning to face him with a soft smile. "You're going to be the first woman ever invited to one of these things, you know."
"Hmm, I don't know whether to be flattered or insulted," she teases him softly, skipping back over to him as he rests his hands on her hips and draws her in for a kiss.
"Well, flattered, I hope," he murmurs, sighing against her lips as he leads her backwards, pressing her against the rocky wall that she'd just examined. She hums into him as he trails his hands down her arms, eyes fluttering at his exploring touch.
"Yes," she finally finds the words, leaning back against the rocks as Mike trails kisses down her throat. "I'm going to miss you so much," she breathes out, panting softly as tears fill her eyes at the thought of going for so long without being able to see or kiss him. She knows that it's just part of their lives as WWE superstars, and for a wild moment, she considers returning early despite not feeling up to it emotionally yet, her shoulders shaking.
"Oh, sweetheart," he sighs, brushing his fingers through her hair. "I'm going to miss you too... but it's going to be ok. I'll be back as soon as I finish media." He leans towards her and peers into her eyes, brushing the tears off of her cheeks. "I promise you, we're going to get through this. You'll return to dominate those nasty divas, and we'll continue spending as much time together as we had prior."
She forces a smile and nods, swallowing as his fingers trail lower, brushing across her stomach while she rests her forehead against his shoulder, sloppily kissing his sun-kissed skin. "I love you," she whispers through a gasp, nails lightly scraping up his back.
"I love you too," he replies between kisses, so overwhelmed by bittersweet emotions that he can barely keep his eyes open long enough to watch her reactions to his attentive ministrations. He hates the thought of leaving her as much as she does, wishing that things could be different... though he understands all too well why she'd want this time off. He had had movies and other side projects to distract himself, but the Divas title had been so important to her for so long, he thinks if not for their wedding, she would've spiraled down once more into that broken, crazed girl she had been months ago, if not something worse, and the thought makes him sad as he presses her closer, shielding her from the rough rocks with his hands and arms, the waves lapping against their surroundings becoming a soundtrack for this moment as she sinks into him, not wanting this moment to end.
The next morning, Mike wakes up and watches AJ sleep for a few minutes, sighing quietly before he pulls himself out of the bed, padding into the kitchen. Her cooking skills are better than his, but he can manage scrambled eggs, sausage and toast, so he does, sprinkling shredded cheese on top of the fluffy eggs before pouring some orange juice for them both, scraping jelly along the bread. Once done, he places the plates and glasses on a tray and heads back to the bedroom, smiling down at AJ as she stirs subtly, drawn to the smell of the food.
"Mike?"
He chuckles and hovers over her, pressing her into the pillows as he kisses her. "Good morning, sweetheart... I brought you breakfast." She stares up at him sleepily and he smiles, tracing his fingers down her cheek as she sighs and arches up in a lazy stretch, his fingertips following her body's motion causing her to shiver. "Here." He lifts the tray off of the bedside table and rests it in her lap, smirking as she examines the spread with a hungry look on her face. "Does it pass your test?" he asks, leaning over to kiss her shoulder as she takes a bite of the eggs, sighing softly.
"Yes," she tells him, twisting around to kiss him properly. "But, like most things you do, it's awesome." She presses her fingers to his lips as he beams up at her, smug and affectionate all at once in ways only Mike can be.
"That's what I like to hear," he tells her, lifting a slice of toast from her plate and holding it to her lips until she takes a bite, smiling at the soft taste of strawberries before pulling back to scoop up some eggs with his fork, feeding him in kind. They take turns feeding each other, Mike relieved that he has some time before his flight to just hold her for a little longer.
"I hope they give you a match tonight," she mutters as she brushes her fingers against his wrist. "Seeing you on TV even for a few minutes would be better than not at all."
He sighs into her hair, taking a deep breath. He'd gone for so long without a match, he doubts that he'd be that lucky, but he doesn't want to take away whatever hope she has left. "If not, we'll skype during the event," he promises her, rubbing gentle circles into her hip. "You'll be able to see and talk to me then. How's that sound?"
"I guess that would work," she whispers, rolling over to press herself against him, tapping her finger against his chest with a small smile. "Now, one last question... How long is it until your flight?"
"Hmm..." He glances at the clock. "A couple hours still. What do you have in mind?"
She smirks and leans in for another kiss, deeper and more passionate than before, Mike easily catching on as he holds her close, responding in kind.
Arriving at Raw that night feels a little like coming home, the arena loud and bustling as he enters, nodding at a few of the techs rushing to and fro. Mike smirks and trails through the halls to the locker room, unsurprised to find Ricardo and Del Rio outside of catering, talking quietly. He drops his bag and sneaks up on them, draping his arms over their shoulders, pulling them closer. The annoyed, disgusted look on Del Rio's face makes it all worth it as Miz sneers at him. "Hey, guys. What's shakin'?"
Ricardo laughs softly, happy to see Mike back in these halls. "We're currently discussing ways to get into Adam Rose's bus," he shares with the Awesome One.
"That guy with the bunny?" He chuckles, shaking his head. He hadn't realized just how much he'd missed the craziness of the WWE until he'd stepped back into the middle of it. "I think I could help you brainstorm some ideas with that, man." One quick glance at the board had shown he has no matches or planned segments, the only thing on his agenda for the night to be filming some clips for a Memorial Day montage later on in the show.
"I'd like that," he grins. "I'm glad you're back, Mike."
"Me too, man." And it's true- he may not be used in the way he likes still, but he had missed spending time with Ricardo and Alex. He had missed the energy of the place surrounding an event. He had even missed doing media things. "Me too."