Three weeks had gone by since Jay and Erin had spent the night at Zelina and Raquel's house. Erin had almost gotten over what she had said about getting with Zelina. Blaming it all on too much rum, she blushed bright red every time Jay mentioned it, which he had now resolved himself not to do anymore. As fun as it was, embarrassing her wasn't really a good thing to do.
Wrestlemania was fast approaching now, as was Erin's promotion and her purchase of Eagle's Nest. She was very busy with it all, but she always made time for video calls with Jay when they were apart, and time to give him her undivided attention when they were not. He appreciated her efforts more than he could tell her, even more so because no one had ever shown him that kind of commitment or consideration in the past.
Jay was sitting in catering one Tuesday afternoon ahead of a non-televised event, enjoying a coffee and minding his own business. Lately, Erin wasn't working live events as she was too busy, and Raquel wasn't at this one either as she had media commitments – one of the downsides of reaching the upper echelons of the main roster. That took care of both people he liked to spend time with, although maybe in time Zelina's name might make the list.
He was surprised when Sylvie Brett approached him, bringing with her a glass of orange juice and a salad box.
"Mind if I join you?" she asked politely.
Jay's first instinct was to say that he did mind. But there was an inherent pleasantness about Sylvie. There had been every time he had encountered her. And he told himself that his friendship with Raquel showed that he shouldn't automatically dismiss everyone. This was how most people killed time, and in some cases made friends – by talking to each other.
"Go ahead," he said.
"Thanks." Sylvie sat down and started eating her salad. She was wearing her 'Dr Brett' outfit already, although not any gloves. Jay imagined that would have disappointed Erin if she were there. The thought amused him.
A minute went by before Sylvie attempted to make conversation. "How are you then, Jay?"
"Good. You?" As ever, he found conversation with a virtual stranger difficult. Sylvie was going to have to get them started.
"I'm doing okay," she said, looking at him while eating. "Wondered if I could run something by you?"
"Sure," he said warily. What on Earth she wanted to run by him, he couldn't possibly imagine.
"A few days ago, one of the road agents informed me that it's been locked in that I'll be beating Erin at Wrestlemania. It means a lot to me that she'll not only get in the ring to wrestle me, she'll put me over too. I'd like to buy her a drink or dinner to thank her."
"Okay, do it then," he said, not seeing what the issue was. "It's a nice gesture, she'd appreciate it."
"It's not that easy though, is it? You don't just walk up to one of the Voights and invite them out for a drink."
One of the Voights, Jay thought, trying to figure out what that was supposed to mean. He decided to push past his social awkwardness and simply ask her. "What do you mean by that?"
Sylvie ate for a moment, looking like she was deciding how to answer. "She's one of the bosses. She pretty much owns this place. I'm always extra careful to be polite and stuff when I talk to her. You must know what I mean?"
Jay hadn't considered it that way. Back when he had first started the on-screen marriage angle, things in real life had kind of taken on a life of their own. He hadn't ever been wary of Erin because she might run WWE one day. There was also the fact that until the coming promotion, which Sylvie didn't know about, Erin wasn't in charge of anything. But he did understood where Sylvie was coming from. Anxiety was one thing he could relate to. He took it upon himself to allay her concerns somewhat.
"You don't have to worry about that with Erin. She doesn't see herself as above the roster or anything like that. She's I guess what you'd call down to earth. I can vouch for that myself."
"Yeah, but you're dating her," Sylvie said casually.
Jay was taken by surprise. As far as he knew, he and Erin had been keeping that on the quiet. "Dating her?" he asked, trying to play it cool as he finished off his coffee.
Sylvie giggled at him before drinking some of her orange juice. "We all know you're dating, Jay. It's very obvious."
"It is? Well, shit," he muttered. In a short conversation he had learned quite a lot. The women in the locker room, and possibly the men too, already considered Erin to be one of the bosses, and that was before her promotion that they were not aware of yet. And secondly, his relationship was public knowledge among his colleagues. That meant it was probably public knowledge among the public too. In a way he was glad. It was one less thing to worry about. Now when he was with her he could just be with her. It made him smile.
"If you want to invite Erin for a drink to thank her, approach her and tell her that. She'll appreciate it," he said.
Sylvie smiled. "Alright, thanks. I'll do that."
About an hour later, Jay was sitting in the locker room. As was often the case, he was minding his own business, not saying much to anyone. He was browsing the internet on his phone when a call came in. The device was muted, but Erin's name appeared on the screen. He thought it best to leave the locker room before answering, so he quickly headed for the door.
Out in the hallway, he answered the call. He sounded as happy as he felt to hear from her. "Hey. How are you?"
"I'm great!" came the excited reply. "Just got a call to say I'll get the keys for Eagle's Nest on Friday. The purchase is all but finalised."
"Awesome," Jay cried, heading down a quiet hallway for a bit of privacy. "There are no events Thursday or Friday. I can come help you move in if you like?"
"I'd appreciate that. Thank you. And it fits in with the other thing I was going to say. I told my dad about Friday as soon as I found out. Long story short, you're invited to dinner at our house... dad's house, I guess... Thursday night. I'd like you to come, but if you're not ready or don't feel comfortable..."
"I'll be there," he said. In truth, he had wanted to say the opposite. But he knew that whether Erin presented it as optional or not, he was pretty much obliged to go. It would be the end of any chance to mend fences with Hank if he didn't show up, and Erin would feel let down too.
"Great. Thank you, Jay. I know you'll be dreading it, but my dad won't give you a hard time. I've warned him."
"If you say so," he replied doubtfully.
"I do. I've got to get back to work in a minute, but I wanted to call rather than text with this news. And I wanted to hear your voice."
Jay felt a fluttering sensation in his stomach. It always strongly affected him when she unexpectedly said something so nice to him. "I'm happy to hear your voice too. Just had coffee with Sylvie," he blurted out, as was frequently his manner of communication.
She was adept at taking the sudden info drops in her stride as if they had been inserted perfectly normally into the conversation. "Oh, you did? Did you approach her or did she approach you?"
He knew she was asking because she was interested in his continued work on his social skills and confidence. Her support was important to him. "She approached me, but I invited her to sit. Found out during the conversation that everyone knows we're dating. Sylvie didn't know we didn't know. Wait, did that even make sense?"
"Yeah, it made sense," Erin said with a sigh. "I guess we weren't exactly secretive sometimes." Then her tone brightened. "Still, it's probably a good thing. We can go about seeing each other like any other couple now, and we don't need to worry about it."
Jay found himself smiling. "That's what I thought."
"Hey, I've got to go. See you Thursday. Miss you."
"Miss you too," Jay said, and the call ended. Every time, he felt sad for a few seconds when a call between them was over. He always wanted more. But the feeling soon passed and on the way back to the locker room he sent a text to Raquel to tell her about the dinner with Hank. He wasn't sure exactly what his friend's media day looked like, or when she might get the message. When a reply came back moments later, he had his answer to the latter. Raquel had sent him a picture of a gravestone.
"Christ," he said, laughing out loud. He sent a text back, thanking her for her support. It was all in good humour.
Raquel Gonzalez: I'll support you by arranging your funeral. Burial or cremation?
Jay laughed again. Before he could reply, another message came through.
Raquel Gonzalez: But seriously, if you need to talk about it or need any help getting ready mentally, hit me up.
Feeling grateful, he stopped walking and typed a short message. His texts were almost never long.
Thanks, mami. So much love for you.
Raquel Gonzalez: Only love for you too, man. Speaking of love you, tell Erin how you feel about her. It's time. Make sure you do it before she does. Trust me on that. Pick the right moment when you're at her place.
Jay thought about that for a moment before coming to a decision. He typed again.
Will do.
A/N: The relationship is public knowledge now, and Erin's purchase of her house is almost complete. How will the dinner with Hank go for Jay? And now that he has decided it's time, what moment will he choose to drop the three special words?
