"This is getting ridiculous," stated Corey, re-reading over the text messages Roman had sent to the group chat. Most of them consisted of the Samoan teen complaining about his current predicament, being stuck in a room with his secret girlfriend—the suspected baby momma- and her partner in crime and their combined lackeys. However, after not receiving the sympathy he hoped for, Roman turned a little nasty, and his attention locked on Summer again. Instead of his normal friendly tone and playful manner, he'd sent them a harsh thread of messages, the last of which was an ultimatum. The group had to choose him or Summer.
"I don't know," replied Finn, re-reading over the tirade of messages and the poorly worded ultimatum. It was as if the Samoan was unaware of the trouble he was in and that he was practically digging his own grave at this point. "It's a pretty easy decision for me," he added; he'd choose Summer in a heartbeat and wouldn't shy away from admitting it.
"Forget the dumb ultimatum," Summer called from the teacher's desk. She smiled small as she looked around the room. This was the first time in a while the Darklings had joined them outside of wrestling and the NXT Hall. "Where did Seth and Echo go?" asked the leggy blonde, noticing the pair had disappeared at some point. It appeared the others hadn't noticed them leave either, especially if their reaction of looking around the room was anything to go by.
Drew could only let out an amused chuckle as he stepped closer to Nikki and Brie. The mix of confusion and curiosity washing over the others seemed to tickle him to no end. Perhaps it was the idea that both had vanished without a word or the thought that one of the Darklings could pass their ability to teleport to another, even if temporarily.
"While we're on the relationship topic," called AJ. Her dark eyes locked on Finn while Maryse seemed to find Becky. It was as if the two girls had the same thoughts and figured now was the perfect time to enact their plan. At the same time, Punk's dark eyes seemed to find Damian. Rhea quickly caught on, if her cheeky grin was anything to go by.
"Aleister, I really hate you right now," called Finn upon realizing why AJ had locked her attention on him.
"I seem to recall Rhea adding the Sun Shimmer and A.T. to the conversation," declared the Dutch teen, who had no regrets about throwing Rhea into the middle of it or sharing the attention with her.
"Sun Shimmer?" Renee voiced, only for Dean to whisper the answer to the follow-up question she'd been about to word:Who is Sun Shimmer? The moment his whispered words reached her, a sweet smile appeared across her lips, and her eyes lit up; a soft aw threatened to fall through her painted lips, too, as she found it , she wouldn't word the comment yet.
"A.T?" AJ asked, hearing Rhea chuckle again, suggesting the initials were part of an inside joke shared between the Darklings.
"Ahsoka Tano," called Damian in reply, at least ending that mystery before it got too out of hand. "We all know our Prince is a Star Wars nerd. Ahsoka is one of his favorite characters," he explained, putting an end to the mystery Aleister had started the day prior and allowing Finn some peace of mind, at least until the questions regarding Sun Shimmer appeared.
"Excuse the bluntness, but why are you two looking at Damian and me like that?" Becky asked, noticing Maryse's attention hadn't turned away from her, as Punk's was still locked on to Damian. "Don't tell me you're still gonna try to lock you all in a room plan?" she added as a feeling of uncertainty washed over her.
"I've got to ask, but what's Damian got to do with all of it?" Drew asked, drawing attention to himself while also wording the question the Archer of Infamy had likely been trying to answer. Nikki and Brie glanced at each other as if in a wordless conversation while the others tried to answer the question or at least nominate who should answer it.
"Really, Drew, Really?" uttered Miz.
"Simply put ..." started JD, but he quickly lost his confidence, especially when the much taller teen looked around at him as if expecting an answer that would truly settle the curiosity bubbling.
"Damian and Echo are sitting in a tree. K.I.S.S.I.N.G" sang Dom before launching across the room the moment Damian's deadly glare landed on him.
"Yeah, I'm not saving you from that," voiced Rhea as Damian made chase.
"Now all we got to do is find Summer, a worthy gentleman," replied Carmella as she mindlessly folded a piece of paper, trying her hand at origami. However, her attempts at creating the teddy bear weren't going all that well. If anything, it looked like a mess of folds and points.
"Don't tell me you plan to lock me in a room, too?" Summer pointedly declared as she removed her healed feet from the desk and stood to pull the skirt of her dress down.
"Guilty, but that's only because we know gentlemen perfect for you and with unspoken feelings," called Brie; as a chuckle escaped her, Dom dodged under a table and into the furthest corner of the room, calling for Rhea to save him upon realizing he was trapped. Aleister, of course, filmed the entire chase, whereas Cross seemed to enjoy the entertainment provided.
"It can't be any worse than my poor decision to date Roman," Summer said, clearly regretting her decision. Her words showed how much the heartbreak affected her, even when she tried so hard to hide it. "Serenity can have him; at this point, she'll be doing me a favor. At least that way, he can finally be truthful with himself and leave me alone," she continued, recalling the rising tensions between the Samoan and herself. Every time she saw him, her hatred grew, and her anger grew. Even more so when he continually denied his wrongdoings and put the blame on others. He denied anything happened between him and Serenity even when it was obvious something had happened, especially if Serenity's recent claims were true.
"Speaking of drama," declared Miz, feeling it was the right time to change the subject once more. "Do any of you think there is truth to Serenity's pregnancy claim?" he asked. Deep down, he wanted to know the opinions of those surrounding him. Miz was expecting a mixed reaction. He was sure both Seth and Dean would jump to defend their friend, but when he looked over to Dean, the opposite appeared to be true.
"Something tells me she's not just saying that to get Roman's attention," stated Dean, voicing his opinions and surprising most by not defending Roman as most would have expected. There's a reason why our headmistress and those involved in the intervention think he knows more than he's letting on; there's a reason why he's in that room. Plus, I have a little faith Serenity wouldn't go this far without someone encouraging her to do so."
"Should we throw him a baby shower or a party to congratulate him on parenthood?" asked Cross, once again breaking up the thick and awkward tension beginning to settle over the room.
"Damo," called Nikki, with a sweet grin painting on her lips, her eyes lighting up just a little bit more. Do tell, how long have you been crushing on Demon?" she worded, an act of innocence taking over. Damian briefly turned to glare at Dom before returning his attention to Nikki, trying to find the right words to answer her sweetly worded question.
"We've got to think of a ship name," added Brie shortly after that. "Same goes for Becky and Seth as well as Finn and his mystery crush," she added, as if oblivious to the clues placed before her. Renee could only chuckle, although voiced her agreement to help. Adding the established couples needed their own ship names, too.
"I don't know," replied Damian, truth ringing through his words. He didn't know when his growing affection for Echo had begun, nor did he particularly understand it. One day, they'd been acquaintances with common friends, and then the next, it was like a light shone down on her; he'd taken notice of her like he was seeing her for the first time. There was a need to be around her as if she was the air he needed to brief. "It just happened. It's like one day I just woke up and needed her," he tried to explain, although he found it difficult to do so.
"I get you, brother," called Dean, recalling a similar experience with Renee. However, theirs had been a little different. They'd been paired up for every project for nearly their entire school life, barely speaking a word to each other outside of classes. Then, one day, he found himself looking forward to spending time with Renee, looking forward to working with her, and talking with her. It was like she'd become his reason for being. Like Damian, he couldn't explain it either; it was as if his heart had locked on Renee and refused to let go. It was that unexplainable need to be with someone.
"I think all of us who found our person understands" voiced Miz, recalling it felt as if his world had stopped the moment he met Maryse. She was his special, someone like AJ was to Punk. They complimented each other in many ways, built each other up, and encouraged each other to be stronger than before.
"So Finn, who is Sun Shimmer?" called Carmella. She had suspicions but wanted the Irish Prince to admit them. "Is it who I think it is?" she asked, a bright sisterly smile appearing across her lips. As she ignored her phone buzzing again, a quick glance told her it was another message from Roman in the group chat. The others around her seemed too happy to ignore the message.
"Can't I have my secrets?" replied Finn, his famous cheeky grin appearing mere moments later as if he was playing with them or at least enjoying tormenting them a little bit. "Dom, if you start singing again, I'm throwing you out in the rain with a metal rod," he added, although it was clear it was playful. Dom merely pretended to be scared as he side-stepped behind Rhea.
"Finn and ..."
"Same for you, JD," quickly declared Finn the moment JD began to sing the same off-key song Dom had before.
"Sun Shimmer," commented Cross, deciding to throw Finn in the middle of the hassle and hopefully get the awkwardness and questions out of the way. "Take off the N from the sun. Then erase the S, H, and I from Shimmer," she instructed, her iconic laughter following along after as those present did as instructed.
"Summer," spoke Aleister, answering the riddle of sorts Cross had put out there and seeing as the realization dawned on those dotted around the room. A chorus of Aw! Escaped the collection of girls, minus the leggy blonde in question, who seemed stunned by the revelation, although some truth soon hit her. Finn was her Valentine's secret admirer, the one who'd sent her flowers, a teddy bear, and her favorite chocolates—the one who'd made her feel special after everything that happened with Roman.