It's been a mostly quiet week, comfortable in the knowledge that they're so good that John successfully defended the tag titles on his own, and Mike is still tag team champion despite his shoulder being a little messed up right now. Ricardo and Alicia are whispering and holding hands on the floor, watching the kids play, and Mike is laying on the couch, AJ lightly kneading his shoulder like John had suggested to help relax his muscles, when Ricardo's voice raises. "What the-?"
"What is it?" Alicia and Mike ask, nearly at the same time, and Ricardo glances between the two of them before holding out his phone.
"WWE just released like, four people," he says, a shocked tone to his voice.
Mike sits up and is by his side in a flash, taking the phone from him and skimming the tweet, swallowing hard. "Oh, damn," he mumbles, finding his own phone and returning Ricardo's to him. The waiting is the worst, he thinks, and he can only imagine how the people whose names show up the next few hours must feel, especially with everything going on and work so scarce right now.
Then Alicia lets out a muffled curse and Mike glances at the kids quickly, relieved that Sara at least hadn't seemed to notice, before refreshing and seeing what had made her react like that. He swallows, hard, and buries his face in his hands. "Shit."
Heath Slater has been released...
"God," AJ mumbles, hand fluttering over her lips. "He must be a wreck."
It had come out of nowhere for him, and Zack, and so many other people today. There had been a video conference with Vince earlier, that was brief and to the point, warning of something along these lines, and Mike had briefly considered who could possibly be touched by this, but to actually see it in print, and know that some of his friends are now jobless in one of the worst times to face such uncertainty... Mike isn't sure what to do, what to say, where to turn.
He sees Heath's tweet awhile later, about needing time to get his thoughts together, and so he waits. Helps AJ feed the kids, pokes at his own dinner a few times, listening to Ricardo and Alicia's low chatter, then once George and Sara are in bed, he heads outside with his cell phone and dials Maryse, swiping his foot through the grass as he listens to it ringing.
She sounds shaky, but as strong and graceful as ever as she greets him. "He hasn't been happy for a long time," she says softly. "I wish it were under better circumstances, or if perhaps he'd made the decision himself, but we'll be ok. We'll make it through. We always have, we always will."
Mike smiles and remembers how all of this began, when she was in deep financially and needed help. Now, between her saving as much of her WWE pay as she could, and Miz and Mrs., he's relieved that at least they'll be alright for awhile. "I know. You're one of the most savvy, durable people I know. But if you guys ever need anything, you know how to find me."
She pauses for a long moment and he wonders if she's fighting down emotions, before she whispers, "Thank you, Mike. I'll never forget everything you've done for Heath and I."
"Any time," he promises her, glancing up at the stars twinkling overhead.
-x
Mike breathes in and out. He's feeling physically better now, not perfect, but some of Morrison's suggestions have helped and he has enough mobility in his shoulder that they've agreed to put him back on the show, to be by Morrison's side, even if it's just for the Dirt Sheet. He smiles faintly and ghosts his knuckles down George's chest, observing the baby as he sleeps. "It's gonna be ok. You be good for your mommy and big sister, ok? I'll see you soon." He leans in and lightly kisses him on the cheek before turning to leave.
He stops short, finding AJ standing there, staring at him, a tense look on her face. "Is this wise, Mike?" she asks softly and he swallows. "You could've been seriously injured. We both know what shoulder injuries and nerve issues could lead to if not tended to correctly. Not to mention we're in the middle of a pandemic, and there are two young children who need you right here."
He exhales. Steps towards her and lightly squeezes her shoulders, staring into her upset, slightly wet eyes. "Sweetheart," he murmurs. "I know this isn't the best circumstances, and I wish I could just hole up and never leave again until life fixes itself, but... if I do that, what then? We just bought this new house, and there are so many other things going on right now. And we understand more than most how tenuous everything is right now, especially job security." He strokes her skin gently and she exhales, shakily. "I'm not thrilled with it all either, but we'll be as careful as we can. Ok? I love you. I love our kids. I'm just doing my best to navigate a really difficult situation, and even then, what we're going through is minor in comparison to others."
She groans and buries her face in his chest, breathing roughly as he strokes his fingers through her hair. "I know, but it doesn't really feel like it sometimes. Sometimes this feels like the worst possible thing." She clings to him and he kisses the top of her head, giving her a few moments to calm down. When she pulls away, he lightly wipes his fingers under her eyes and smiles down at her. "I love you too," she mumbles, sighing. "Just... be careful, alright? I know it's impossible to know for sure, but..."
"I will, I promise." He kisses her, lingering against her lips for a few moments, before pulling away with a wistful smile. "I have to go, my flight's soon."
She forces herself to let go of him, stepping towards the crib. "Alright," she breathes out. "Call me when you get there?"
"Always," he promises her, his usually natural grin a struggle as he looks back at her, white knuckling the side of the crib as she stares in at their son, unable to meet his eye as he leaves the room to grab his bag, prepare to head for the airport.
He stops in for a second to peek in at Sara, who is fast asleep as well, hugging a teddy bear close, and closes his eyes. "I really am the luckiest man in the world." Squaring his shoulders, he turns and heads for the door.
In the car, about to drive off, he looks up in time to see AJ standing at the door, a pale but determined look on her face as she stares back at him. She blows him a kiss and he smiles at her before reversing out of the driveway and leaving his world behind, trying to ignore the tension in his chest, how deeply he wants to just turn back around and stay.