011

November 11, 2014 (off camera)

Kasey Summers felt like she was at a crossroads— not the type that involved burying a box of trinkets to summon a demon to make some crazy deal— the kind that involved a lot of sleepless nights weighing life options. She'd been contacted by the company that had employed her doppelganger and they were requesting she meet with them in the next few weeks to bury the hatchet. She'd readily agreed because the last thing she wanted was any sort of acrimony anywhere. She had no intentions of signing with anyone else, even though she'd been debating jumping to SVW just for a slight change of scenery. Everything was wearing on her lately and just the thought of hitting the road for another event had her freaking out internally. No way could she tell Cody or Christian that, though. They'd both pulled a million strings to get her back into FFW after her last spectacular flake out. She couldn't afford to lose any more friends and the thought of hurting those two made her feel sick to her stomach. It was bad enough that she'd hurt Jason's feelings when she'd stopped talking to him after Nessa's wedding. Even the prank she'd pulled on Nessa had been more about revenge and the rush it gave her than garnering any further hatred from the horrible little bitch.

Pulling open the fridge, she liberated a bottle of beer and set it on the counter. She hated the stuff herself, but her boyfriend seemed to almost live off it.

Boyfriend.

It felt so weird to think of him in those terms, but they hadn't really spent a day apart since that night in October that she'd showed up at his bar. They had so much in common it was weird and awesome and she was already way beyond crazy about him. No real shocker there. Her heart was always on her sleeve and she fell fast for everything.

The white noise of the popper was almost comforting as she bustled around, getting some butter out of the fridge and putting it into a coffee mug that she popped into the microwave to melt it.

Hunter Donimari couldn't get his knee to stop bouncing up and down as he sat on his girlfriend's couch. The small box in the pocket of his jeans was burning a hole and it was hard not to fidget with it. He'd had the damn small box for days and on the last night of his visit, he'd planned to give it to Kasey— that had been the extent of the plan and now that time was here and he was scrambling for the perfect approach. He didn't have any doubt that she'd accept it, but the excitement from it was making him jittery. Bringing a hand up to his mouth, he exhaled and nodded as if to pump himself up. "You got this, guy.... you got this." He smiled to himself like a total derp and then nodded again. "Yeah, I got this." Doing one of the dorkiest things that he was capable of, he closed his fist and raised it in the air, fist-bumping nothing.

Freezing for a moment when he heard what sounded like footsteps coming, he straightened up and became serious. He whispered once more, "you got this," to himself, before standing up to wait for Kasey to come in the room.

She walked in with a bright smile on her face, a huge clear glass bowl of buttery popcorn in one hand and a bottle of beer in her other. "Did someone call while I was in there? I thought I heard you talking to someone— kinda hard to hear though with the air popper going."

"Say something?" Damn it, he'd thought he was being subtle and quiet. That big ol' mouth of his had a tendency to get him in trouble. They had that one in common. "I mean... yeah... that cat of yours," he gestured with his thumb at the orange cat who was dozing in a chair. "There was this huge bug and he'd been trying to get him and I was encouraging him— kept telling him that he's got this." He smiled really big, proud of the story he'd come up with so quickly. "Yeah, this huge jackal-looking thing was like a beetle on 'roids. Nasty with a million legs but he got it like a ninja and I high-fived... him..." he trailed off awkwardly, wishing he'd stopped before embellishing the tale just a little too much. Sliding his hands into his pockets, he shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh," her eyes went wide as she looked from the cat back to her boyfriend, "geez. I guess I missed all the action."

"Yeah, you did. It was over pretty quick." Hunter reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, looking sheepish. "I shoulda got out my phone and recorded it for you. Sorry, Red."

She loved it when he called her that. Having a nickname that was private was way better than taking the one she'd had as a kid and turning it into her wrestling name. Shaking her head, she couldn't help but smile up at him. "Well I hope you didn't let him eat it. George is a delicate flower, after all. He'll be puking all night..."

"Nah, he just pounced on it and then spit it out. The remains went down the toilet." Closing his eyes for a brief moment, he shook his head with sigh. "Hey, how about we sit down?"

Kasey nodded, handing him the beer before plopping down on the couch with the bowl of corn in her lap. "Sounds good to me... I've been on my feet so much today I kinda just want to veg right out— sorry I dragged you through that museum and bored you to death." She made a face, picking up a kernel and tossing it at her mouth. She missed and it bounced off her glasses. "It just seemed like one of those 'date-y' things that people do so... you know. I wanted to try it and I figured maybe if I could say I knew who Georgia O'Keeffe was, people wouldn't think I was completely oblivious so...." she had to pause to breathe after running out of air. "Next time you can pick what we do, okay?"

He didn't answer, staring across the room to where her cat was grooming himself lazily.

"Hunter?" She was looking at him quizzically. "Oh God... are you mad at me?"

"Wait, what?" He raised an eyebrow, turning his head to look at her with genuine confusion. "Sorry, you said a lot there and I kinda got lost in the middle..." he hesitated, "but did you just ask me if I'm mad at you?" Letting out a soft chuckle, he shook his head and gently ruffled her hair. "Naw, you're too adorable to get mad at."

"Ohhhhkay," she rolled her eyes at the adorable comment, not about to let it go. She might not be an expert at reading people, but she could tell that there was something bothering him. "So... besides watching him mangle a bug.... was there something else bugging you?" A little smile crossed her lips, "see what I did there?" She was actually pretty pleased with herself for that pun, as terrible as it was.

"Heh, the bug was BUGGING me. Heh, heh." He started genuinely laughing; it didn't take much to amuse him at times, especially if he was nervous. "Anyway, naw, nothing's bothering me. Everything's good."

"Okay," she nodded, "maybe I'm just feeling all wonky because I don't want you to leave tonight. I mean, I know you have to because you have a life and the bar won't run itself and all that stuff but it's really nice having you here. So it's probably that. I'm just feeling a little... what's the word? Hinky?"

"I don't wanna go, I'd stay a few more days if I could—"

"I'll go with you." She nodded, "I'll just have to ask Mrs. Bucci if she can watch George for a few days. I'm sure she won't mind since he's made such good friends with Buttercup and Marigold."

"Well, if not, we'll see each other soon. It's not like we're that far away from each other."

Kasey nodded, "I know. I just kinda wish I'd waited before signing the lease here. I mean, I can't just break it now when Cody pulled a lot of strings to make this happen for me and I think it's better that I can talk to Carson pretty easy when he's—"

"Red," he interrupted her, "focus for a second, okay? I got you a little something." He shrugged his shoulders as if it wasn't any kind of big deal— in reality it was the biggest deal ever for him.

She turned towards him so fast that she almost upended the bowl. With great care, she set it aside on the coffee table and turned towards him. "You got me something? Really?!"

"Yeah, I did." A hand came up and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "If you don't like it, I can always take it back and get you something else. I just saw it and I thought of you."

"I would never take back something you gave me... are you kidding?! It's probably the single most awesomest thing EVER!" She bounced a little on the couch, grinning with excitement. "So show me already before I DIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

"Okie dokie," his voice unintentionally faltered a bit as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the box. Holding it out in front of her, he opened it, revealing a beautiful ring with her birthstone. He was unable to meet her eyes for fear there might just be disappointment there. "Don't think it's an engagement ring... I mean cause we just met and all... but it's like a promise, I guess."

"A promise?" She stared at it, her mouth open slightly as she watched the light flash off the gemstone. "Like... not the Jonas Brothers kinda promise, right? Because... I know I'm sorta like a born-again virgin now with all the lack of any halfway decent making out in the last two years—" she caught herself with a stricken expression, "oh God... not meaning you. Because you're really... uhm... your lips and..." she was as red as her hair now. "It's a really pretty ring, Hunter," she mumbled, "I love it. A lot."

He couldn't help but laugh that he was as awkward as she was. He grinned as he pulled it out of the box. "Can I go ahead and put it on you?"

"Well duh," she grinned, holding out her hand even though her cheeks still felt hot. "Ring me."

"If ya like it then ya shoulda put a ring on it..." he started singing the song by Beyonce; it seemed appropriate, after all. "I did like it... your finger that is." He gently slid it on her finger. It was a perfect fit. Bringing her hand up to his lips, he softly kissed her knuckles and grinned.

"Guess I'm not a single lady no more," she said it with a straight face, "and I'm totes okay with that... because..." she stared at the ring for a few seconds before lifting her eyes to look at him as that blush crept back over her cheeks, "I love you. A lot. And I know it's too soon for that since it's only been a month and stuff but... you know... when it feels right, it feels right and this DOES. So much. Honestly, this is like the only thing in my life right now that actually does because this place and my career and all that other stuff is just..." she paused, lacking the right word, "GAHHHHHH!"

He kept hold of her hand, not wanting to lose that physical contact with her. "It is right, Kase." He leaned in, his eyes locked on hers. "I look at you and I see my future. Never had that before. Honestly never really even though about the future before."

"The future," she echoed, "I don't know if you wanna go that far......because a lot of guys— not just in my past but in general— oh God, you must think I'm a giant slutbag. Just...you know... boys say those forever things because they think dumb girls like me wanna hear it. So don't do that if you think that's what I want. I.... already like you and stuff," she mumbled, lowering her gaze as she tried to tug her hand out of his grasp, "so it's not really necessary."

He felt a tad awkward as he looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. Embarrassment was seeping in and he chuckled to keep it at bay. "I... uh don't really say things just 'cause that's what I think someone wants to hear." He gave her a smile and then wondered if maybe he'd pushed her into something she wasn't ready for.

"Oh." She looked up just in time to see the doubt on his face. "Well... um... pretend I didn't just open my mouth and stuff in both feet? I'm just..." she broke off, obviously flustered, "I've spent the last few years trying to be a good person because that's what I thought people liked about me and I never really even wanted to be... you know how hard it is to smile all the time, even when people are running your name through the mud and kissing other girls on TV in another company— I wasn't really supposed to lose my shit over that because I was supposed to be nice and oblivious. And look where that got me... so much junk in my head that I totally melted down and had to leave FFW. And you know what? I legit feel like that's about to happen again. December's gonna be a year since I came back and I have nothing to show for it but a lot of laughs over wrecking Nessa's stupid wedding." She realized she was rambling, lifting her head to flash him a wan smile, "I guess there's still a bit of a learning curve to... pretty much everything. I... I'm so sorry. I just can't seem to shut up. It's just... you know. I have this huge match coming up and I don't know if I'm going to be facing Aimee or Lightning again and... it's kinda just messing with my head."

"Fuck those assholes," he said without missing a beat, "you didn't deserve any of the shit you've gone through."

"Wait..." her eyes were wide as she stared at him, "did you see all that?"

"Yeah, c'mere," he pulled her into his arms, "I watched pretty much everything from the last year I could get my hands on. I saw how they shit all over you when you lost to that Valentina broad—"

"I almost had her beat," Kasey mumbled, "and I wanted to win that so bad. But I failed because that's all I seem to do lately and now... I mean... I still had that Evolution Title shot in the bag but... you know... winning the Femme For All would have been pretty awesomesauce."

"You don't have to win them all, Red." He kissed the top of her head. "You go out there and do what you gotta— I'll be in your corner, no matter what."

"Kinda like having you in my corner," she lifted her hands, grabbing the front of his shirt. "Or in my bed... or on my couch. You know... wherever." She pulled him down, falling back against the cushions, kissing him hard.

He kissed her back eagerly, his arms sliding around her waist to pull her even closer. "You... for me wherever and whenever you want me."

"You're right," she whispered, closing her eyes as she nuzzled against his cheek, not caring about the little bit of stubble there because he'd forgotten his razor back in Chicago. "These are the moments that matter... this is the future."