Checks & Championships

9

//Flashback Continued//
Rachelle's P.O.V
I woke up the next morning and felt something heavy across my stomach. I looked down and saw and arm across my stomach and moved my head up to see Austin.
My head was pounding, and I have no recollection of last night at all. I try to move his arm, but he tightens the grip and pulls me closer. "Don't." He mumbles and I try to remember what happened last night.
He sighs as I roll over and he cradles my head to his chest. I'm unsure of what to do because I'm not completely sure what had happened.
A few moments later, he lifts his arms to rub his eyes and finally looks down at me. He surprises me when he bends his head down to kiss me. At first I didn't move, but then my lips glided along with his until he pulls away.
"Not that I don't like waking up to you, but what are you doing here?" I ask and he scrunches his eyebrows.
"You called me, remember?" He asks and I shake my head. "Oh." He says and his eyes looked sad and full of regret. "Well, you basically called me drunk and stated that I never cared about you, which is not true at all, not in the slightest." He says and props his head up on his arm. "I just wish I knew how you truly felt so that I could reciprocate." He says and looks at me again.
I bend my head down in embarrassment as he sits there in silence. "I want to be good for you, but I don't even know how to begin." He says and place my forehead on his chest, and he runs his hands through my hair. "I'm scared I will hurt you and you will hate me." He adds, his voice breaking at the end of the sentence.
"Austin, I could never hate you." I tell him and he sighs, laying on his back and looking up at the ceiling.
"You've told me to my face that you hate me." He says and I shake my head.
"I didn't mean it. It's just you act like this and then turn around and will act a different way in front of your friends. I don't get it." I tell him and move over to the edge of the bed.
"You know what? I can't even blame you. It was my stupid fault for falling for you in the first place. I always fucking do this." I say and run into the bathroom and shut the door, locking it.
Austin starts knocking on the door. "Rachelle, please open up."
"Go away." I tell him and I sink down to the floor and start crying. "Rachelle, I swear to god, I will break down this door." He says, beating harder on the door.
"If you knock down my door then you will pay to fucking replace it." I tell him and roll my eyes.
"Fine." Is all I hear him say before he busts in the door and picks me up off the floor, and places me on the counter.
"Austin are you fucking serious?!" I scream at him and he just shrugs his shoulders.
"I'll pay for it." He says nonchalantly and just gazes into my eyes. "You make me fucking crazy." He says and throws a towel over his shoulder. "I try to push you away, but you manage to reel me back in." He says and leans against the counter. "I don't know what it is about you, but I can't stay away." He says and walks towards the door and stops.
"Then don't." I tell him and he looks back at me and shakes his head.
"I have to, you don't understand!" He yells and presses his back up against the cabinet in the bathroom.
"Then tell me." I say softly and he turns to face me again. He brings his hands up to cradle my face. His face was red with anger and frustration. "You're too good for me, Rachelle." He says and drops his hands. I scoff and hop down off the counter and pushed past him and make my way into the living room where I grab his keys and wallet.
"What are you doing?" He asks me and I walk up and place them in his hands.
"You don't want to talk to me? Then leave." I tell him with a face full of tears. He stands there and crosses his arms. "I don't have time for your fucking pouting Austin. Just get the fuck out!" I yell at him and go to push past him again when he stops me and pins me to the wall.
I try to release his grip, but he was too strong for me. "Stop fighting me." He says and I just stand there until he releases my wrists and moves his hands to my face and wipes the tears away. "Do you see what I do to you? Screaming and crying?" He says and shakes his head. "You deserve more than that, Rachelle."
"I don't care." I say and he just stares at me. "You either want me or you don't Austin so quit fighting it." I tell him and he nods.
"I do want you, but I can't have you." He says and I let out a frustrated growl and pull his face to mine and kiss him. He wraps his arms around my waist and picks me up, taking me to the bed.
He sits me down at the edge of the bed, breaking off the kiss. "This isn't healthy, Rachelle." He tells me and I roll my eyes.
"I don't care! You make me feel like no one else has. I always have this burning passion when I'm with you. You consume me and when we are apart, I feel like half of me isn't here. Stop pushing me away Austin. I love you." I tell him and he rushes back over to me to kiss me again. This time he was hungrier and held my face until he pulled away. "You don't love me." Is all he says before turning and walking away once again.
"No, you don't get to fucking say that and then leave!" I yell at him and he stops. "If you really feel anything for me Austin, you will turn around right now and walk to me because I swear to god if you walk out that door, don't ever come back." I tell him and he leans forward, grabbing onto the rocking chair in my living room.
"What don't you understand Rachelle?" He says, turning around to face me. "It's because I love you that I have to walk away." He says, his eyes full of tears.
"That's bullshit and you fucking know it." I tell him and he just stands there. "If you didn't care for me then you wouldn't constantly want to come to me when no one else will listen. You wouldn't kiss me like that." I yell at him and he walks back over to me and takes my hand.
"I want to be good for you so bad Rachelle." He tells me, and places a kiss to my forehead. "You have no idea." He says and walks back into the bedroom and sits down on my bed.
I walk up to him and sit in his lap. "Try." I whisper to him and he wipes his eyes.
"I'll fuck it up baby." He says, voice hoarse from all the yelling. I scoot to where I am straddling his hips and he looks up at me. "Do you want me?" I ask him and he nods. "Then stop fighting it." I say and presses my lips to his and push him back onto the bed.
He keeps his hands on my sides while kissing me and we only come up for air occasionally. I finally pull away and look down at him. His eyes are full of worry and I clasp my hand in his and he just stares at me. "Are you sure?" He asks me and I nod. "I love you so much, Rachelle."
"I love you too, Theory." I tell him and crawl off him and back into bed where he joins me.
"I can't promise to be perfect, but I'll try my best to be the best boyfriend I can be." He whispers and I lay my head on his chest.
"That's all I am asking for." I tell him and he presses a kiss to my head.
'Okay then, I guess we are trying this then." He says and I nod, and he pulls the blanket up to cover the both of us and I fall asleep again to his beating heart.
//Present Day//
Marlana's P.O.V
I had hit the mat of the ring for what felt like the 100th time. I was officially back and had ring rust, bad. I ran the ropes for at least an hour or so.
I practiced my rolls, both quarter and back rolls. I still felt off and that's when I got up and saw Roman making his way over to me. "What's wrong?" He asks me, leaning up against the apron of the ring.
"I don't know, it's like I've lost my edge." I say and he stands up and walks up the steps, entering the ring.
"Bump." He says and I do, but it felt slow. I get up and do it again, and still it felt off. "You're in your head." He tells me and walks over to put his hands on my shoulders. "You had a month without being in the ring, you have to re-adjust." He tells me and I start to run the ropes again and he helps me by dragging me by my arm to get across in 3 steps.
I stop and bend over to hold my knees. "No, up with arms on your head, come on." He says and I look up towards the ceiling frustrated. "Yeah, she's been here a while, can you come down and help her?" I hear Roman ask and then he hangs up the phone.
"Who was that?" I asked him as he puts his phone back down on the apron of the ring.
"Rachelle." He tells me and I nod. "Come on, run them again and take 3 back bumps." He orders and I do so until I hear Rachelle walk in.
She climbs in the ring and Roman steps out. "Come on girl, let's get that ring rust out." She says and locks up with me.
As I continued to run the ropes and work on basic to-the-mat takedowns, I felt myself getting better and back to my old self.
"You guys are wrestling soulmates." Roman says and I look up and smile at him. "Because you did not look like that a couple hours ago." He says and I hug my best friend.
"Thank you, Rachelle. I just needed you to work my ass." I say and she laughs. "Hey, what are friends for?" She asks and shrugs and I chop her in the chest.
"Alright, she's all yours." Rachelle tells Roman and he slides back into the ring.
"Do you feel better?" He asks and I take my hair down to fix it and nod. "Good, now let's get you cleaned up because we are having our first official date tonight." He tells me and open the ropes in the ring so I can get out of the ring.
Later that evening
I had just finished blow drying my hair to straighten it for the date tonight when Roman had entered the bathroom. He smiles at me and was making funny faces at me in the mirror. "Our first public outing as a couple. Are you nervous?" He asks me as I slipped my dress on over my head and he helped me zip the back of it.
"Should I be?" I ask him and he shakes his head, adjusting his tie.
"I actually have something to give you." He says and walks into the room and comes back shortly. "Turn around." He tells me and I do and he places a necklace around my neck and I pick my hair up to make it easier for him to hook it in the back.
I look down and it was a pendant with our initials and birthstones. "Roman, it's beautiful." I tell him as I turn around.
"As are you." He says and I sit down and put my shoes on and he holds out his arm for me to grab and he walks down the hallway with his hand on my lower back until we reach the car.
He opens the door and shuts it once I am seated. We arrive to the restaurant and I immediately felt like all eyes were on us.  Roman takes my hand and walks me down to our table and we both sit down.
"This is like super fancy." I say and Roman has a waiter come over to pour me a glass of wine. I shiver at the sudden air that hits my shoulders and Roman quickly stands up and gives me his jacket. "Thank you." I tell him and he sits back down and grabs my hand.
"You know you didn't have to do this right?" I ask him as he just sits there, looking at me.
"I just wanted to show you off. Is that not okay with you?" He asks and I shake my head. "No of course it is, I just had no idea that you had all of this in you." I say and he laughs.
"Well, this is what it looks like when you're with me." He says and winks. "Now, eat your food." He says and I pick up my fork and begin to start eating.
His phone buzzed but he ignored it and turned it off, stuffing it back in his pocket. "Did you just turn your phone off?" I ask him and he nods.
"Tonight, is about us, no distractions." He says and grabs my hand again. He messes with the ring on my left finger and stares at me. "One day, that'll be an engagement ring." He tells me and the air leaves my chest.
"You want to marry me?" I ask him and he nods. "Absolutely, and one day I will." He says and I feel the tears build up in my eyes. "Wow." I say and he just continues to smile at me. 

"You didn't think I would?" He says and sits back, throwing his arm behind his chair. I watch as his muscles clench underneath his dress shirt. "I didn't say that." I say and he smirks and starts loosening his tie. "You don't want to be my wife one day?" He asks and the lights in the room feel like they are on my face with how warm I was. 

"I do." I say and he smiles and pays for our dinner. He places his hand on my thigh the whole ride to the hotel. I go into the bathroom and pull my hair up in a bun. Roman walks in and leans up against the doorway and watches me. "Can you unzip me?" I ask him and he does it slowly. I step out of it and it seems like he was wanting to ask me something. 

"What is it?" I ask him as I throw a t-shirt over my head. I sit up on the bathroom counter and he walks up and stands in between my legs. "We've been at this for a while so I hope you don't think it's too fast but-" He pauses and opens the palm of my hand and places a key in it. 

"What's this?" I ask him and he reaches down in his pocket to pull out the exact same key. "The keys to our first home." He says and my draw drops and he laughs at my reaction. 

"Y-you got me an apartment?" I ask and he shakes his head. 

"I got you a house. well, us a house." He says and I throw my arms around his neck and he wraps his arms around my waist. "I take it you're okay with this?" he asks and I nod against his neck. 

"When do we get to see it?" I ask him and I let go of his neck. 

"We move next week. No more hotels. It's near Dwayne's  place." He says and I pull his face to mine and kiss him. 

"I love you so much." I say and he kisses my forehead. "I know." He whispers against me.