Australia. Another make or break moment of Mike's career. If he beats Daniel there, he gets a title opportunity. So yeah, he really wants to win the match, but first he has to focus on other things. Paige is still acting odd around him, but she reluctantly grants a match between Shelton Benjamin and Daniel when he suggests it to her, eager for an opportunity to eat away at Daniel's self-confidence. Miz decides to do commentary during the match, the easy option being to interrupt. But there are still a few days to decide exactly what he's going to do with all of that so he hoists Sara out of her playpen and holds her hand as they walk slowly over to the door.
She looks up at him, eyes so wide and blue, and his heart twists a little. He's going to miss her when he flies out to Australia. Hell, he's going to miss her as soon as he leaves for Smackdown in a couple of days. He sits down on the front steps and settles her on his knee, kissing her cheek. "I love you," he says, poking her lightly on the nose as she looks up at him, lips parting slightly. He smiles and leans closer. "How's the teething going, sweetie?"
She blinks up at him, tugging lightly at her lip, and he smiles, drawing her up into his arms and rocking her back and forth. "You made the most beautiful flower girl, you know that, right?" Her smile only seems to grow as she stares up at him and he settles back, tugging her onto his chest, slowly parting her hair with his fingers.
She settles, eyes fluttering as sleep claims her, and Mike beams down at her. He loves sleepy weekends with his girls, hoisting her up and carrying her back inside after awhile of enjoying the early morning sun. AJ is still asleep in their bed and he tucks Sara in between them, content to lay and watch his girls sleep peacefully, pushing all plans for Tuesday and for Australia out of his mind as he enjoys the peace and quiet unlike what he generally experiences when on the road and constantly cycling between driving to doing media to dealing with promoting WWE and Marine 6 and everything else. He leans in and lightly kisses AJ, closing his eyes and drifting off himself, lulled by AJ and Sara's soft breathing next to him.
Tuesday, he does commentary as planned, watching for an opportunity as Shelton wrestles Daniel. It's an ok match, all in all, but Mike doesn't want to see Daniel win, so when it looks like that's possible, he dives out from behind the table and hops up onto the apron, staring at Daniel mockingly. Daniel runs and swings wildly at him, Mike quickly hopping down and biting back laughter as Shelton uses the distraction to his advantage, getting the win against Daniel. As soon as it's official, Mike gives in and laughs, sneering into the ring at Daniel, before going backstage.
When Shelton joins him, Mike slaps him on the shoulder, ignoring the annoyance on his face. "Congrats, man. Always thought you deserved more than you already have, hopefully WWE will see it now."
Shelton nods tensely, trying to cover his own aggravation at Mike's actions. After all, Mike's presence had been good for both Bo and Axel career-wise. For awhile, anyway. "I can beat him any day, any place. I just need an opportunity."
"Of course," Mike says. "Same with a lot of other people."
Shelton nods, staring at him. "Yeah. A lot of other people." Mike's tense, thinking about what Shelton could do from this point on, how it could make things complicated for Mike's own aspirations, and Shelton exhales, relaxing slowly. "Not here to start a fight." He holds his hand out and Mike gingerly takes it, nodding at him. "See you around."
"See you," Mike echoes, wondering about what Shelton's thinking, but ultimately deciding to let it go. He couldn't hang with me after all, Mike decides with a small smirk. "Just another name on the list of people to watch out for..." He shrugs and walks outside, staring up at the stars for a few moments. He can't go home, they're flying directly to Australia, so he has to settle for a quick phone call before he has to catch his flight. As he listens to AJ whisper about her day, Sara's sleeping face filling up most of the screen of his phone, he exhales softly. "I love you both," he says softly. "I'll be home soon."
And one step closer to being world champion.