Hell in a Cell goes well. They walk out victors again after Maryse pins Brie Bella, which means Mike technically has two wins in a row against Daniel Bryan. He's amused, walking around with a bright grin on his face, when Maryse meets him backstage at Smackdown. She smiles at him and touches his arm, staring up at him.
He frowns, not sure about the look on her face. "Are you ok, Maryse? What's going on?"
She takes a breath. Lets it out shakily. "I owe you so much, Mike. Without you, I'd be bankrupt, all alone on the streets of New York right now. You helped me get secure financially, and without you, I wouldn't have fallen in love with Heath, and I wouldn't have this beautiful little girl right now. But I've decided since Heath and I are getting married in a couple of days, and our daughter is growing so quickly, I want to be at home more." She looks away. "Heath and my travel schedules clash enough as it is when I'm doing media for Miz and Mrs. So I'm going to say my farewells tonight, and then I'll be done for now." She takes in the shock on his face and smiles a little, leaning up to kiss his forehead. "If you ever need me, I'm just a phone call away. Never forget that. I can't thank you enough for everything, Mike."
He shakes his head and smiles down at her. "I'm really happy for you, Maryse. I wish you and Heath every happiness."
She beams up at him. Squeezes his hand. "I'll see you in Texas for the wedding, right?"
"Of course!" he says, lips twitching. "No one in this group can have a wedding without me."
She grins at him. "Didn't Morrison and Taya get married on Lucha Underground without you?"
He scoffs. "That was just for TV. Now come on, let's figure out your farewell tonight." They walk side by side down the hall, talking, and she giggles as he teases her, trying to ignore the pang of change and how much they'll both miss this easy friendship between them.
After Smackdown ends, Mike sees Maryse to the airport and heads to California on a red-eye. When he arrives, both of his girls are fast asleep, and Mike kisses Sara on the forehead before kicking his shoes off and joining his wife in bed, smiling when she cuddles up close to him. They'll be leaving on Thursday for Texas, which leaves them about a day to figure out clothing for themselves and Sara, and to pack. It's going to be a mess, he thinks, but he's still looking forward to it. Especially to see how vastly opposite Maryse's part of the wedding will be in comparison to Alicia's.
He bites his lip to keep from laughing at the thought, closing his eyes and exhaling to let all of the tension out of his muscles, falling asleep slowly as he breathes in, the smell of AJ's shampoo always a comfort to him.
When he wakes up, Sara is crawling around next to him and breakfast is filling the house so he drags his daughter closer and kisses her nose as she pats his arms and talks at him, each utterance of "Daddy" making him warm with happiness. "You're growing up so fast," he tells her, kissing the top of her head. "You're gonna be three years old in about six months," he shakes his head. "So ridiculous. Where'd the time go, huh?"
He sighs and kisses the top of her head, remembering the look on Maryse's face as she confessed to wanting to stay at home with Monroe more, as her daughter grows 'day by day'. "I wish I could do the same," he whispers to her, cuddling her closer. "Maybe at some point, huh? I just hope you don't grow to despise me for not being home as much as other dads..."
He senses being watched and looks up to find AJ hovering in the hall, tray in hand, and forces a smile as she walks in carefully and lays breakfast in front of him. "We love you, Mike," she tells him, tilting his jaw up to kiss him. "And we always will."
He genuinely hopes so, the smile on his face weak even as Sara grabs for some grapes on his plate.