Mike's still far from pleased about Sunday, but he plays to the best of his ability, and ends up with an award for being the VIP of the evening. He walks around with the trophy all day Tuesday, smug and sneering at everyone who looks at him strangely. You may not find me useful on your little PPVs, but here I am. At least charity baseball appreciates me. He's a little frustrated he'd missed seeing Team Hell No crash and burn so he puts together a funeral for the team. He has a replica of Kane's mask, even hires a few men to follow him as ushers, and finds his most solemn, black suit to properly commemorate the moment.
Everything is going smoothly... until Daniel interrupts and clears the ring of everything, destroying all of the display Mike had put together so carefully for this farewell to Team Hell No. They glower at each other while Mike stands safely on the ramp, Daniel clearly angry and eager to get his hands on Mike. Mike, however, does not share this urge and turns, leaving a seething Daniel behind as he escapes backstage. He doesn't trust Daniel to leave him alone, however, so he collects his things and leaves quickly.
His hotel is fine, it's a relief to escape back there and pace around his room, angry and frustrated that, even after all of these years, he still can't avoid Daniel friggin Bryan. It was one thing when he wasn't an active competitor and all Daniel could do was throw cheap insults at him and attempt to throw his weight around, which never went too far because as a regular champion, Mike was much more important to the company than some easily injured, washed up man who was bitter and angry over being forced into a general manager role for so long.
He wants it to end. He wants to put Daniel back on the shelf, or even just beat him down so thoroughly that he opts to leave WWE when his contract ends in the fall. He thinks about a WWE without the thorn that's been in Mike's side since NXT season 1, and exhales as a smile crosses his lips at how much sense it all makes. "Let him go do his strong style fighting in Japan," he mumbles. "See how long he can truly lasts, when he's already so easily injured. I'm sure it'll end perfectly." He peers into the bathroom and turns on the sauna, sinks into the steam with a sigh. He hasn't wrestled in awhile, but he's still sore from travel and the baseball game. He and Maryse will be spending a lot of the next week doing media for Miz and Mrs, and he's not sure when he'll actually be home next to see AJ and Sara, and it gnaws at him deep down inside, but there's always video messaging and other ways of communication so he'll at least get to see his girls before he finishes all of his responsibilities and goes home for a couple of days.
He closes his eyes and thinks about Sara, and the unknown child that he and AJ have barely had the time or energy to seriously try for yet. "Please don't grow up to hate me," he mumbles, leaning against the cool tile surrounding the tub. He wonders if Sara will grow up wanting to take after her mother, if their second child will find some motivation in Mike's work ethic. He smiles at the thought of it and squints into the mist. "As long as they're happy and healthy," he decides, "everything else will work itself out."
The next day, he and Maryse meet up for their lengthy media schedule and Mike smiles at her, holding the car door open for her. As soon as they're on the way, he wiggles his fingers at her. "Lemme see!"
Her lips twist and she pulls out her phone, swiping through all of the pictures of Monroe Skye she has on there. He chuckles and looks at pictures of Monroe by herself, and some with Heath, who's clearly doting on her. "She's going to definitely be a daddy's girl, isn't she?"
"He's so sweet with you," Maryse says with a soft, fond smile. "Such a good daddy." She sighs. "I love him so much. Being away from them, even for today, feels pretty awful." She pauses. "That was very inconsiderate of me. I know you're away from AJ and Sara a lot more-"
"It's fine," he tells her. "I understand. This is the first time you've been away from her, of course you're feeling it worse than usual. The first time I had to leave Sara, I felt so awful, even though I knew AJ was going to take really good care of her." He sighs with a smile.
"Yeah, that's basically where I'm at," Maryse admits, resting the tip of her finger against the picture of her baby. "She's so small, and she's going to grow up so fast..." She sighs wistfully, smiling over at him. "If only we could leave them small forever, huh?"
"Yeah," Mike nods. "But I have to say, it's really awesome to see Sara get bigger, show more of her personality the more she learns to say, and getting better at walking around. She's already this really cool, intelligent little kid and I can't wait until she's older to really see the kind of person she's going to be."
"I can't wait for that myself," Maryse says with a small smile. "Between myself and Heath, Monroe is definitely going to be well-rounded." She laughs a little bit. "He's already talking about going camping with her, and although it's not usually my scene... I think I'd love to experience that with them."
Mike listens to her go on about life with Heath, relieved that both of them have settled into their lives, comfortable and in love with their significant others. When he'd first met her, he never thought any of this would be possible- her with Heath, he with AJ, both of them sitting companionably in a car heading out to do media for a reality show that's even more faked than most. "Some life this is, huh?"
She barks out a laugh, then nods. "Oui, it sure is."
"I wouldn't change a thing."
"Me neither," she agrees, smiling. They fall quiet as the car stops outside of their first interview spot, the two of them collecting themselves, their things. "Here we go."
"Yep," he says, getting out of the car and holding the door open for her. "Here we go."