Incarnadine

Chapter 9

All the tips and tricks—and app suggestions from Becky—in the world couldn't counter a busy week, and Seth had a stacked one ahead. Wrestling on both RAW and SmackDown, house shows on the weekend, signings and appearances. Once RAW was over and he could finally head home, he had two days of training and trials at Black & Brave. It meant he would either have to feed from Becky very early before heading home—which could be dangerous for her, given the air pressure on the plane—or he could suggest something even more potentially problematic: he could ask her to come with him.

"I know you're not big on Iowa," he began, "and there wouldn't be a ton for you to do—which could be good, because then you could catch up on your rest—but would you consider... uh, staying with me in Davenport for a few days? My schedule is going to be packed and I don't want to lapse again." He hated adding that in there—he certainly didn't want to make her feel guilty—but he wanted to show that he was being more aware of his schedule. "If there's a fee to change your flight, I'll cover it...."

Becky mulled it over as they shared a hotel breakfast. "You couldn't... settle things now, before we caught our flights?" she asked.

Seth shook his head. "Well, it would be okay for me," he explained. "Not so much for you." Glancing around at the neighbouring tables, he added, "I'll explain later." No one was close enough to hear—unless they happened to be a supernatural like he was, which he highly doubted—but it had become a habit. More like 'survival instinct', Seth thought grimly. He had been sloppy in his indie days and almost been caught; he might have been able to brush it off then, but now he was too high profile.

He expected Becky to flat out refuse or at least take time to mull it over, but to his surprise she nodded. "I didn't have anything big planned," she said, looking at her schedule on her phone, "and the time zones will be closer to Ireland, so I can call home more easily." She met his gaze and smiled. "And I'm sure you'll arrange a tab for me at 392, right?"

"Endless tab," Seth agreed. He would have done that anyway, but if free coffee would keep her happy, he was more than willing to oblige. "Plus you can hang out with my dog...." He sent a quick text to his mother, asking her to prepare one of the guest rooms for Becky.

Becky perked up at that. "You should have led with that," she laughed, finishing her coffee and reaching for her bag. "Coffee and dog walks? I'm in."

As luck would have it, the ticket agent was a Shield fan, so Becky was able to get her ticket changed with a minimum of fuss—and the clerk got a Seth Rollins autograph for his collection. While Seth caught up on Black & Brave messages, Becky slept curled up against his arm for most of the flight. He almost felt bad waking her up as they were about to land. "C'mon, Becks. Marek will be waiting to pick us up."

Sitting up, Becky rubbed her eyes. "Does he... know?" she asked sleepily.

"Yeah. One of the few." Seth reached over and rubbed her cheek. "You have crease marks," he said with a laugh. As the plane landed, they both put on their sunglasses and hats, hoping to avoid notice, and Seth guided Becky through the airport with the ease of familiarity. When they were in a quieter area of the pick-up zone, Seth cleared his throat. "I hope you don't mind, but I also told him... about you. Just so there was no confusion."

Becky nodded. "That makes sense."

Seth thought her voice sounded a bit off, but the rattling of their luggage wheels was making it hard for him to focus. "There he is." He waved at his friend and steered Becky towards the exit.

"Hey, Becky. Nice to meet you." Marek shook her hand and then pointed to an SUV just outside the exit. "Thanks for helping him out," he said evasively. "You've been a godsend."