Appearances
Can Be Deceiving
Author:
Luna
Feedback:
Always appreciated!
Archive:
Full Moon Romper Room, WWE_ATS_BTVS, anyone else just ask,
I’ll probably say yes.
Rating:
PG-13, for the moment. I, however,
reserve the right to up the rating should the need arise!!!
Type:
Pairings:
Lilian/?
Disclaimer:
Vince McMahon owns the WWE. Nothing is
being gained from this, except a need to pass the time.
Summary:
Spoilers:
None that I’m aware of.
Anything
else: Oh we must thank Paulena for this little bit of
fun. (This is in response to the second Lilian challenge.) It was her challenge that made the plot
bunnies multiply. I’m using these
characters as I see fit. I’m not going
to be going against the nature(s) of those involved. At least I hope I’m not. Any comments are welcome as long as they are
constructive. ^__^
Author’s
Note: Normally I would send this to my
beta to make any necessary corrections, however she’s unfamiliar with the WWE
so I’m going to send this story out WITHOUT it being beta’ed. Please keep that in mind when you
review. Thank you for your time and
patience.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
The ring announcer stormed out of the makeshift office, her blue
eyes so dark with anger they looked black.
‘That revolting little pig,’ Lilian thought with disgust. She was not going to make a spectacle of
herself in that manner. How dare he even
*think* to put her in a bra and panties match!
It wasn’t that she thought herself above the other
wrestlers. In fact, she thought she was
a step down. These ladies were trained
professionals, and Lilian knew she couldn’t begin to compete. Sure she was pretty. Everyone said so, but
that little voice in the back of her head never let her really believe the
compliments about her appearance.
Absorbed in her thoughts she didn’t even notice the person
coming from the opposite direction until she ran into them, literally. Strong arms shot out and steadied the
announcer. “I’m so sorry,” she mumbled
as she turned her gaze to the person she’d tried to run over.
“It’s not a problem Lilian,” Jazz replied. She tilted her head to the side as she got a
good look at her fellow diva. “Anything wrong?”
The blonde threw a glare at the door she’d just left. Her lips compressed to keep the scathing
comments about Raw’s general manager to herself. The dark skinned wrestler followed the other
woman’s gaze and nodded knowingly.
“What’d he do this time?” Blue
eyes met a chocolate brown stare. The
announcer gave a small sigh before confessing what had her so hot under the
collar.
“What!” The notoriously vicious wrestler exclaimed.
“It’s not just the match with Nidia. It’s the fact that he as much as said that if
I don’t do it, I can kiss my job good-bye.”
The blonde folded her arms over her stomach and shook her head. “What am I going to do?”
“Why don’t you call someone,” Jazz suggested.
A delicately plucked eyebrow rose. “And just *whom* should I
call?”
The wrestler shrugged.
“But if you do nothing you’re going to get your ass handed to you,” she
stated mater-of-factly. “She’s not exactly known for her manners.”
Lilian snorted. “No
kidding.” Again the eyebrow arched. “And isn’t that a bit like the pot calling
the kettle black?”
Jazz patted the announcer’s arm affectionately. “Yeah so don’t let this little encounter get
around. I got a rep to protect.” With that the other woman walked off.
Lilian knew that she had things to do before Raw officially
kicked for the night. She had things to
do and one of them was trying to find a way out of the predicament that she now
found herself in. As unlikely as it
seemed there just *had* to be a way around her wrestling tonight. Determination etched in every line of her
pretty face she strode down the corridor and off to her work.
Unbeknownst to the pair that had been talking, there had been
another listening in to their conversation.
The smile that graced his features would have put the sun to shame. He had an idea. A damn good idea too! Now he only hoped that he’d be able to pull
this off without looking like a fool.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Two
As the night wore on, the more the worry of her up coming match
weighed on Lilian’s mind. She still didn’t have any idea about how to
get out of it. Everyone that she’d
spoken to had even less advice then Jazz had had. It was not encouraging to say the least.
Outwardly she never showed the strain of her ordeal. Her smile was just a bright, her demeanor
just as friendly. The entire roster was
buzzing about her match. The women were
horror struck, well most of them, and the men… well let’s just say they were
*really* looking forward to tonight.
It wasn't that they hadn't noticed how attractive she was. It had more to do with that fact that she
managed to embody both innocence and sex appeal. The combination had more then one male on the
roster in her thrall, even if she was completely unaware of it.
Her match with Nidia was going to be the
Lilian's feet
felt leaden. They didn't want to make
the trek to the locker room any more than they wanted to make the trip back to
the ring. She, however, wasn't going to
let Eric get the best of her by acting like a child and refusing to do this.
In the locker room her feelings of anxiety increased as she
scanned the contents of her travel case.
The majority of the clothing was skirts and dresses. That wouldn't do, not at all! She wanted to keep her clothes on!
There was a knock on the locker room door. "Um... Ms. Garcia?"
The voice was unfamiliar, probably one of the numerous
stagehands that the WWE employed.
"Yes?"
"I've got a package for you," he responded.
The blonde's brows drew together. Who would be sending her a package and why
now? 'Only one way to find out,' she
thought as she crossed the room and opened the door. The man on the other side looked
uncomfortable. In his hands was a large
mustard colored envelope. She was even
more confused now then when she'd been told she had a package.
The older gentleman handed her his burden. Once that was done he turned and left Lilian
standing in the doorway looking confused.
A cameraman stood a short distance away capturing the whole scene and
televising the entire thing.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Watching the monitor in another locker room, an agitated
wrestler paced as he gnawed his thumbnail, pleading with the screen. He didn't know what had possessed him to do
this. If it wasn't well received he
could wind up looking like the biggest fool on the planet "Open it. Open it."
The locker room door opened and the redhead rolled her eyes at
the display. "Why don't you try
actually *talking* to her," asked the now sidelined diva.
"Bite me, Lee," he replied without breaking eye
contact with the monitor.
"She's got a point," Kane said as he entered the room
right behind her. Despite what the show
would have the viewers believe, the big red machine and Lita did not despise
each other. Theirs was a solid
friendship, which is probably what made the hatred seem so believable.
"Not you too," the wrestler exclaimed. "It's bad enough I get from her, but now
I have hear it from you too." He was working himself up to a royal pout.
"Well if you spoke to her you might actually get a shot at
asking her out," the big man said.
"Oh shut up! Both of you."
His brows knitted and his arms crossing over his chest.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Shaking her head she turned and closed the door. With trembling hands she slowly opened the
package. What fell into her hands
couldn't have shocked her more if it'd been a live snake. Though this "present" didn't have
teeth. A slip of paper fluttered to the
floor.
Lilian ignored that for the moment and studied the gifts that
had been sent. It was a pair of black
jeans, a rather clingy looking long sleeved sapphire blue shirt, and finally a
pair of black eight hole Doc Martins. A look at the tag on the jeans, and the
bottoms of the shoes revealed that someone had known her sizes. Of course
someone could have talked to one of the girls in costuming to find those out.
The thoroughly flummoxed announcer picked up the note. A carefully typed message read, "Thought
you might need these. A. Friend.” Nothing more, nothing less.
It left her completely baffled. Someone had gone to the trouble to obtain her
dress size and help her.
It was common knowledge that Lilian rarely wore anything other
then skirts and dresses to the arenas. Her duties were normally nothing more
strenuous than the occasional interview. However it was the note that piqued
her curiosity. It was typed, which to her mind meant that it was someone she knew,
*and* that she would recognize his or her handwriting.
That thought gave her pause.
If it was one of the guys that wouldn't explain a
thing. She wasn't in a position
to bolster his career. So why would they
even be interested in her. She sighed;
it always came down her insecurities.
About the only thing Lilian was confident about was her singing
ability. That was something no one could
argue with; her talent was undeniable.
Another knock on the locker room door brought her out of her
reverie. "Yeah?"
"Ms. Garcia, you have fifteen minutes," the stagehand
told her.
"Okay," the announcer replied. She slumped onto the bench the clothing still
clutched in her hands. She drew a deep
breath and gave herself a mental shake.
She could do this; she *would* do this.
With that thought firmly in mind she began to change from
announcer to wrestler. As she shed her
normal evening attire her entire attitude shifted. Each piece of clothing that was replaced was
a like a brick in a wall. Replaced was
the friendly, caring announcer that all of the wrestlers never minded talking
to.
The woman that walked out of that locker room had a
narrow-minded focus. Not only would she
go out to that ring, she was going to make Nidia very sorry that she had ever
entered the ring against her. Now if she
could only get the butterflies in her stomach to calm down the transformation
would be complete.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Three
People looked twice as Lilian passed them without a word. It was more effort to put one foot in front
of the other than it should have been. This was the hardest thing she’d ever
had to do. Sure, she’d had other
distasteful duties but none of them were likely to end with a trip to the hospital. Her blonde tresses were swept up in a
bun. She wasn't going to let hair be
used as a weapon against her.
The announcer didn't have many advantages going into this and
she didn’t want to give her competition a leg up. She may not know how to wrestle but she could
fight. She had been one of very few
girls in the family so her cousins and brothers had made sure that she could
defend herself.
It didn't matter what she showed the roster or even the
fans. The simple fact was she could lie
to everyone else but she couldn't lie to herself. She knew the truth. She was scared stiff. Lilian had very serious doubts about
this. It had been easier to think she
could do this while she was safely ensconced in a locker room.
She took her place by the curtain and waited for her music to
hit the air before stepping through. Her
eyes fell and hardened on the Raw GM.
His plastic smile was visible from the head of the ramp. It turned her resentment up a notch. She stalked down to the ring intent on
getting this thing over with as quickly as possible.
Lilian paused halfway down the ramp as Eric brought the mike to
his mouth. "So glad you could join
us Lilian," he smirked out at the crowd.
They had the good sense to boo him.
She folded her arms over her stomach, her whole posture radiating
suppressed anger. “Well what are you
waiting for?”
The blonde rolled her eyes at the GM. He was too cocky for his own good. One of these days he’s going to piss off the
wrong person and he’s going to be knocked down a peg or three. She just hoped she was around to see it. Slowly the announcer mounted the stairs.
Never in her time with the WWE had she been afraid to climb
through those ropes. She was now. She took a deep breath released it slowly and
stepped into the ring. She kept her blue
eyes trained warily on the man across from her as she waited for her opponent.
Nidia’s music hit the air and
chants of bitch echoed in the air. The
brunette sneered at the crowd, and leveled a hateful stare on the
announcer. In the young woman’s opinion
Lilian wasn’t a diva. She was a
glorified lackey. The fact that Eric had
the nerve to place that woman in the same ring with her made her furious.
Lilian wracked her brain trying to figure out why the other
woman was so angry with her. She’d never
portrayed the young woman in a bad light, never said anything derogatory about
her. The blonde’s anxiety skyrocketed as
the brunette stomped up the stairs and literally threw herself
into the ring. ‘This is not going to end
pretty,’ she thought dismally.
Both women turned hostile stares on the general manager of
Raw. His fake smile widened. ‘Two birds with one stone,’ the man thought
with another arrogant smirk for the crowd.
Nidia had been a pain in his side since she’d arrived at Raw and now he
had the satisfaction of pissing her off.
Lilian thought she was too good for him so he slapped her with the
ultimate humiliation, this match.
He brought the mike to his mouth once again and took in their
heated glares, their hatred of him turning up his smile about a hundred
notches. “As I’m sure you ladies are
aware,” the GM leered at both the crowd then the women standing a few feet away
from him. “This match is to continue you
until one of you are reduced to her bra and panties.”
Lilian rolled her eyes.
The match was pretty self-explanatory.
She began to wonder what the little weasel had up his sleeve. It had to be something truly disgusting if he
was involving himself in the match preliminaries. As if to confirm her thoughts the lights
dimmed and music hit the air. The blonde
groaned. “Not this jackass,” she
muttered to herself.
Nidia took one look at who was coming down the ramp in a
referee's jersey no less and lost it.
She pushed her face into the general manager's, for a moment completely
forgetting about the mike he held. "You expect him to call this match
fairly," she shrilly inquired. When
Eric just smiled wider and nodded she dissolved into a Spanish diatribe.
The ref entered the ring his arrogant swagger matched only by
his idiocy. There weren't too many
divas, or even men for that matter, that liked the special guest. Test stood in the middle of the ring leering
at the two women.
Lilian crossed her arms self-consciously. Even covered as she was, she felt like she
was naked under that disgusting gaze.
When the man actually licked his lips she couldn't help the shudder that
ran through her body.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
In the locker room backstage he was throwing a fit. Eric had lost his mind! Test didn't give a rat's ass about women or
their safety. It seriously looked like
the GM was trying to put one of the girls in the hospital. Given what they all knew it looked like the
only way his crush was leaving tonight was in an ambulance.
He cursed and began pacing.
His mind tried to come up with a way to help her without betraying the
fact that he had feelings for the announcer.
He had it! Or at lest he thought
he did. As he chased that thought down
to its smallest detail the match raged on.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
The two women circled each other. Both looked for a weakness that could be
exploited. The women locked up. Lilian had seen enough matches to be able to
do that without looking foolish. However Nidia, with ring experience, quickly turned
it into a side headlock.
Lilian fought against the rising panic. Panicking wouldn't help her situation in the
least. Stop, think, her brain
demanded. A small sly smile graced the
announcer’s face as she dropped down to the mat.
The unexpected action managed to free her neck from the diva's
hold. The brunette glared down at the
other woman. Her leg pulling back and
that was what the blonde had been waiting for.
She launched herself at the other woman catching her in the stomach.
Lawler and JR were wondering just when Lilian had mastered the
spear. Their fellow announcer had never
to their knowledge been trained to wrestle.
Yet, she'd executed that move with flawless precision.
As the two landed Lilian grabbed the bottom of the younger
woman's shirt and when she rolled away she took Nidia's
shirt with her. The blonde knew better
than to start getting cocky. That's when
things usually went south.
The brunette shrieked with outrage and flung herself at the
announcer. It was a good thing her
brothers and cousins had taught her to fight back. Otherwise this would have been nothing more
than a mugging.
Still Lilian took a fair amount of hits. She was dazed and tired. There was too much adrenaline in her system
for pain to be a factor yet, but it was there tugging at the edges of her
mind. Cool air hitting her flesh let her
know that Nidia was trying to take her shirt.
Newfound strength surged through the blonde as she bucked and
fought to keep her clothing on her body.
Her wild movements brought her knee in contact with the diva's jaw and
the young woman released her hold on the top, staggering back.
The blonde took the opportunity to roll away and take stock of
her situation. Surprisingly Test hadn't
interfered in the match and had called this as fairly as any of the others
would have. That didn't mean that the
announcer trusted him, not in the least, but it was a nice change of pace for
the usually abrasive man.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
"Come on, come on you can do this," he urged the
blonde on the monitor.
"You know if you went down to the ring you could actually
help her," Lita said.
He rolled his eyes at the redhead. "Yeah or Test could disqualify Lilian
because I was a distraction and force her down to her underwear," he
replied snidely.
“Well could you possibly do that,” she waved a hand to indicate
his pacing. “Somewhere
else. You’re starting to give me
a headache.”
“Then close your eyes,” he shot back.
The crowd’s gasp brought the young wrestler’s gaze back to the
monitor and he winced.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Lilian was reeling. That
had been one hell of hit. The diva
hadn’t held anything back on it either.
She knew she was going to be sporting a bruise tomorrow. The sound of ripping fabric brought the
blonde out of her stupor.
She brought the heel of her hand sharply up into the other
woman's nose. It was a lucky blow to be
sure, but still it angered the young brunette.
Nidia gave the blonde a shoulder to the midsection. She pushed the announcer into the corner,
continuing to administer shoulders to the midsection.
Lord above she'd never hurt this bad. Weakly Lilian clasped her hands and brought
them down on the other woman's back. It
had little effect. Test, in true ref
fashion, began the count. The angry
brunette turned on the man, giving him a piece of her mind.
Lilian knew that her time was short. Nidia would be back on her soon. She took advantage of the rest that the ref
had unwittingly provided. The blonde
refused to let the pain take away her focus.
She still had to get through this match.
Nidia was outraged.
First, she had this ridiculous match with Lilian. Now, she had to deal with an asshole like
Test pretending to be a ref. It was more
then the young woman could take. One
particular unfortunate comment from said ref and the brunette drew her hand
back and slapped the man's face. Hard.
‘Ouch! That had to hurt,’
Lilian thought. Not one to let an
opportunity pass her by she grabbed the back of Nidia's
too short shorts and pulled with all of her strength. The shorts, Nidia, and Lilian all fell to the
mat.
The announcer knew better than to stick around. She rolled out
of the ring holding the shorts aloft. It
was a great feeling and the crowd's roaring approval made it that much
sweeter. The ring bell sounded and
Jonathan told the audience what they already knew. Test lifted her hand in victory.
Nothing could dispel this feeling she thought happily. She should have known better though. Test's lips came down on hers and she
couldn't help the shudder of revulsion that filled her. She jerked back as if stung and did the first
thing that came to mind. She slapped his
face.
Lilian stared in horror as all hell broke loose.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Four
Nidia snatched her shorts from the blonde. She cocked her own arm back and slapped the
announcer, hard. She slapped her hard
enough to snap the other woman’s head around.
Lilian stood there gaping.
Her cheek stung but the thing that kept her frozen in place was the
three men that came through the curtain.
She couldn’t have been more shocked if she’d been told grass was blue.
Her feet moved of their own
volition. They carried her to the edge
of the ring. Her fear of the advancing
hoard had her scrambling into the ring.
They followed her like a pack of rabid dogs.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
His eyes shot wide and his friends echoed his “Oh shit!” They tore out of the locker room intent on
dishing out their own unique brand of justice.
They were joined by others and may have looked like a rag tag bunch but
they would not let what was happening go.
Kane, Lita, Rob, Rodney, Jazz and Shane Helms all made their
way, hopefully to rescue a still in one-piece Lilian. Their footfalls echoed strangely through the
hallways as they ran to ring side. The
crowd’s roar of approval barely registered with the superstars.
The sight that met their eyes filled them with a sense of
dread. Test had a handful of Lilian's hair, his finger wagging in her face. Her blue eyes were wide with fear and
loathing. Nidia advanced from the other
side, her intentions written all over her face, and none of them were
good. Chris and William Regal stood
guard as the pair humiliated the blonde woman.
On the floor Christian and Trish Stratus waited by the
ring. They were there to make sure that
no unexpected visitors interrupted what was happening in the ring. Things did not look good for the Raw announcer.
Most of the roster knew why Christian, William, and Nowinski were out there.
The blonde beauty had turned them down.
She had made it clear that she wasn't interested in any of them and they
had taken the rejection very, VERY personally.
Nowinski tapped
Test on the shoulder but the older man ignored him. The Harvard grad just shrugged his
shoulders. He figured that if Test
wanted to get his ass whipped that was the other man’s business. He rolled out of the ring and made his exit
via the crowd just as Rodney and Jazz made their presence known.
Jazz tapped Nidia’s shoulder. The brunette turned angry eyes on the other
woman and paled considerably at the face grinning evilly back at her. The African-America beauty landed a wicked
right hook. It left the scantily clad
Nidia sprawled in the middle of the squared circle. A clubbing blow to her back brought Jazz
sharply around and face to face with William Regal.
His thin lips twisted into a cruel smirk as he pulled his arm
back. The diva knew enough about the man
to know that she couldn’t let him land that blow. She threw up her own arms catching his before
he could hit her. Her hands slid further
back onto his shoulder and brought her knee up to meet his face. The British native crumpled to the mat and
Jazz stepped back as Rob rolled into the ring to take over.
The dark skinned diva’s eyes landed on Lita as she tried to
stave off a very pissed Trish Stratus.
Only when the blonde made to kick at the redhead’s stomach did she
intervene. The unmitigated gall of the
women’s champion to try and intentionally hurt the pregnant wrestler pissed her
off more than anything.
Jazz vaulted over the top rope and landed unerringly onto the
bottle blonde bitch. They both fell in
an undignified heap to the floor. The African-America woman was the first of
the two to recover and she quickly got to her feet. Lita and Jazz proceeded to beat the hell out
of the other woman.
Knowing that there was no way to win this fight Trish got to her
feet and fled back up the ramp. Her eyes
landed on Christian, who was trading blows with Shane Helms and not faring too
well. There wasn’t really anything at
stake here and she couldn’t see staying any longer. With a final glare directed at Jazz and Lita
the women’s champ retreated behind the curtain.
Lilian stood stunned in the ring as she watched Rodney and Kane
take turns beating on Test. She was
unaware that she had so many friends.
Lita she could understand. They
were friends outside of work, so by extension she knew why Kane and Shane were
out there, but the others were a shock to her.
It wasn’t that she was mean or rude to anyone. She just thought that people habitually saw
her as part of the furniture, someone they could, and often did, overlook until
they had to work with her. This show of
support left her speechless, and a little awed.
A gentle hand touched her face.
She looked into Lita’s concerned eyes, scanned
the woman and nodded to herself. “When
we saw what was going on we had to come,” the wrestler explained.
“I appreciate that,” she told the diva.
The redhead put an arm around the announcer and walked her from
the ring. The two chattered as they made
their way up the ramp. Neither noticed
the young man standing in the ring watch forlornly as they disappeared from
sight.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Five
He stood and stared at his reflection. Was he really invisible or was there
something else that he was missing? His
gut had twisted when Lilian had left the ring last week and never once looked
back. Something had shifted that
night. He was now bound and determined
to make the lovely ring announcer notice him.
The only question now was, how?
He came up with and discarded multiple ideas. It had to be suave enough to impress her, yet
down to earth enough for him to be comfortable.
He threw his hands up in the air, sending his eyes heaven ward hoping
for divine intervention.
“Give it up man. Just ask
her out,” came Kane’s gravelly voice.
Startled the man jumped; whirling he glared at the
intruder. “Could you possibly make some
noise? It’s damn eerie the way you
manage to sneak up on people,” he snapped.
The big red machine just shrugged one shoulder and stepped aside
as Lita entered the room. “You’re
hopeless. You know that, right,” the
redhead asked her friend.
“Then why do you keep hanging out with me,” he asked arching an
eyebrow.
“I keep hoping I’ll rub off on you.”
“Don’t you mean you keep hoping to rub up on me,” he joked.
“You wish,” she shot back.
“A guy can dream,” he said with a smile.
“Aren’t your dreams supposed to include a certain blonde haired
ring announcer,” she responded archly.
“Shhh,” he hissed. His
eyes scanned the door to make sure no one else had heard her. “Do you have to be so freakin’
loud?”
“What’s it going to take to get you to ask that woman out,” the
exasperated diva asked.
“A dare,” Matt replied as he strolled into the room.
“Matt,” both exclaimed.
Lita jumped up from her seat on the bench to embrace her
boyfriend. The two men locked eyes over
the petite redhead. The other man shook
his head furiously. Matt grinned
devilishly, leaned down and whispered into his girlfriend’s ear. “Triple dog dare gets him ever time.”
Lita smiled conspiratorially, slapping his chest playfully. “Don’t do that,” she said jokingly. She wasn’t sure quite why it was that even
after all this time Matt could still send shivers down her spine with his voice
alone. She was aware that he didn’t want
their friend to know what she had been told and acted accordingly.
Kane looked on indulgently, as the other man rolled his eyes and
made gagging noises. “Would you two get
a room?”
“We already have one,” the elder Hardy smirked.
“You’re not doing *that* in here,” he exclaimed.
Kane chuckled when he got a glimpse of the devilish gleam in Lita’s eyes. “We
could always go back to pestering you,” she said innocently turning from Kane
to the other man.
“Fine, as long as you two are going to get horizontal,” he
replied sullenly.
“All right then,” came the lighthearted reply. “I *dare* you to ask her out.”
“Who,” the other man asked feigning ignorance.
“Lilian,” Lita snapped.
“Ah, no,” came the quick reply.
The redhead smiled wickedly.
“Okay then, I double dare you,” she said, knowing
he would refuse even that.
The other man eyed her warily before shooting her down again.
“Triple dare you,” she said again.
Their eyes locked and again the challenge was rejected.
“I triple dog dare you,” the redhead said slowly.
His mouth dropped open.
He wanted to refuse yet again, but it was like he came upon a stumbling
block and couldn’t force the words out of his mouth. Sweat popped out on his forehead as he stared
at his friend. His eyes pleaded with her
to take the words back.
Lita looked at him expectantly.
She knew that he wouldn’t be able to refuse; in fact she had counted on
it. Part of her wanted to let him off
the hook, but if she did that then the rest of them would be subjected to his
incessant whining about the blonde announcer.
“Done,” he said and his eyes were wide as saucers. He couldn’t believe he’d said it. He hadn’t meant to; in fact he’d been
readying a denial when the word just popped out. He broke out in a cold sweat. What had he done?
The redhead rose from the bench and looked at Kane and
Matt. “Food?”
“Food,” they responded.
The young man dropped to the bench, his head in his hands. He couldn’t believe he done something so
stupid, for something so important. He
wished he could take it back, but knowing his friends he knew they wouldn’t let
him. ‘God, I hope she never finds out
about this,’ he thought to himself
He left the room to follow his friends. He never looked back. If he had he might have seen the bleach
blonde trying hard to stifle her laughter.
‘Oh this is just too good,’ she thought as she turned around and went
back the way she came.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Six
The company was alive with excitement. The boss was throwing a big shindig. No one was quite sure why and they weren't
about to question it either. All they
knew was that it was scheduled to happen at the end of the week. It was a black tie affair. Dinner would be served. Rumor had it Vince was worried about losing his
wrestlers to the other companies and this was his way of making sure no one
jumped ship.
The shy young wrestler stood around twiddling his thumbs for two
weeks. Now he had to work up the courage
to ask his favorite blonde to the party.
He valiantly hoped that no one else had already asked the pretty
announcer already.
With a sigh he checked his reflection once more in the
mirror. His dark blue
His gaze dropped down to his hands. Unlike some men his nails were neat, even,
and clean. It had always been his pet
peeve. It bothered him to see unkempt
hands, like it said something about the person that they couldn’t even take the
time to take care of their hands. His palms
and fingers were roughened and calloused but that was because of his job. He couldn’t keep them like an executive.
Turning away from the mirror he sighed again. It should have been so easy. He liked her and by all accounts she didn’t
mind spending time with him. Why
couldn’t he just gather his courage and ask her out? He plastered a smile on his handsome face and
walked out of the locker room. He had a
lady to see.
It wasn’t long before he found the blonde announcer. Lilian was laughing at something the man in
front of her had said. Jealousy flared
brightly in the young man. It took all
his self-control not to storm over and punch Shelton
Benjamin in his smug face.
He was brought out of his stupor when the African-American
wrestler ran his hand down Lilian’s shoulder to her
elbow. The other man strode toward the
pair, hoping his face showed none of the emotions that were currently roiling
through his gut at this precise moment.
“Looks like we’ve got some company,” Benjamin said to the blonde
in front of him.
Lilian turned her lovely face to him. Her eyes seemed to shine at him, her smile
even brighter than the one she had bestowed upon
“I’ll just leave you two alone,”
“Hey you,” Lilian greeted him.
The smile never left her face.
“Hey,” he returned. His
hand went up to rub the back of his neck.
“How are you,” the blonde inquired as she tucked a stray lock of
hair behind her ear.
“I’m good,” he responded with a small smile. “You?”
“Can’t complain.” She gave a small laugh then lowered her voice
to a stage whisper. The young man leaned
in playing along with her. “Well, I
could but it wouldn’t change anything.”
“What would someone as good looking as you have to complain
about,” he asked then quickly shut his mouth.
His eyes widened as he realized what he said.
Lilian threw her head back and her tinkling laughter echoed
through the hall. He could feel a blush
climbing up his neck, staining his face.
She laid her small hand on his arm.
His heat stopped beating. Her
fragrance wafted over him. She smelled
of strawberries and a hint of something floral, roses perhaps.
Without thought he caught her hand in his larger one. He stared into her azure eyes and was struck
again by how beautiful they were.
“Lilian,” he said softly. “Will
you do the honor of accompanying me to McMahon’s dinner?”
The blonde was stunned.
She’d never thought in a million years that he would ask *her* to the
dinner. Secretly she had hoped he would,
but was far too realistic to expect it.
His crestfallen expression told her that she’d been silent too
long. “Someone’s already beaten me to
it, haven’t they,” he asked dismally.
She raised her free hand and cupped his cheek, gently forcing
him to meet her eyes. “No. No one has asked me.” The young man gaped at her. Her smile widened. “I would love to go with you to the dinner,”
came her earnest reply.
“Really,” he asked hopefully.
“Really Shane. I couldn’t think of any other superhero I’d
rather go with.”
The Hurricane could barely suppress the urge to jump, whoop, and
shout. Without warning he scooped Lilian
up in his arms and swung her around.
He’d done it! He’d asked Lilian
out and she’d said yes. The young
wrestler pulled back and flashed her a million watt smile.
That smile had been known to melt divas at a hundred paces and
now that it was directed at her she wasn’t sure what to do with it or him. Her face and neck were heating up. She dropped her gaze from his face, though
the giddy feeling that had entered her system since he’d asked her out was
still thrumming through her veins.
“What time should I pick you up,” Shane asked the announcer in
his arms.
Lilian threw him a dazzling smile. “How does eight
sound?”
“Sounds good to me,” he replied with a smile. The smile slipped as he thought of
something. “This isn’t going to bother
you is it?” He raised a hand to the
green tipped spikes on his head.
The announcer leaned up on tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Not at all.” She stepped out of his embrace. “See you Saturday?”
“Saturday,” he said flashing that sinful smile. He watched her as she walked down the hall
and turned a corner. Whistling to
himself he strolled off in the other direction.
At the end of the hall a little redhead did the happy
dance. ‘It’s about time,’ she
thought. Lita was glad that her two
friends were finally getting together.
“Just wait till I tell Matt,” she cried and dashed off to their locker
room.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Seven
Lilian floated into the room that she shared with Victoria,
Stacy, and Lita. The foursome usually
got some strange looks. Everyone seemed
to think that they hated each other but that was far from the case. They were like sisters and always had each
other’s backs.
“Oooh looks like someone’s got a
secret,”
"What's that," Stacy asked as she came around the
small wall that divided the bathroom from the rest of the space. The leggy blonde looked from the
raven-haired diva to the ring announcer.
"Guess who just asked me to the dinner Saturday,"
Lilian taunted her friends as she glided over to one of the queen-sized beds,
flopping back onto it.
"By that display I'd have to say it's someone we
like,"
"Or at least someone *she* likes," Stacy returned.
"Both," Lilian answered from the bed.
"So are you going to tell us or are you going to make us
drag it out of you," the mercurial wrestler asked.
The blonde announcer lifted her head from the bed to glare at
the two divas. "You know you two
take all the fun out of having news like this," Lilian groused as the door
opened.
"News like what," Lita asked, coming further into the
room.
"Someone has asked our dear little Lilian to the dinner
Saturday,"
The red head leveled her gaze on the announcer, arching a
perfectly plucked eyebrow. "Oh and
who is this mystery man?"
Lilian could feel her face heating up. "I'm sure you already know," the
blonde countered.
"She may, but *we* don't," Stacy said as she gestured
to Victoria and herself.
Wearily the announcer sat up on the bed and faced the three
women in the room. Running a hand through her blonde locks she said, "Okay
but you have to *promise* not to laugh."
The three women agreed.
Blue eyes regarded the others looking for a long moment. Finally she said, "Shane Helms.”
The blonde announcer was met with three identical expressions of
disbelief. She couldn’t help it. Lilian laughed until her sides ached and
tears leaked from the corners of her eyes.
The three divas glared at the blonde announcer.
“Great just great,” Lita fumed.
“*We* can’t laugh but you can yuck it up. Do you know how unfair that is?”
“Hey,” Lilian and Lita said simultaneously turning to frown at
the demented diva.
“O-kay. Sorry,” the raven-haired wrestler responded.
“Well, I think it’s cute,” Stacy said, a sweet smile on her
face.
“Thank you Stacy,” Lilian replied.
“Welcome.” The leggy
blonde stood there for a moment before asking, “Um, you do have dress for the
dinner don’t you?”
“Well…” the announcer trailed off. “That’s where you guys come in. I thought you could help me find the perfect
dress.”
The other three women in the room groaned. In their experience a shopping trip with
Lilian was usually an all day affair.
Lita thought the blonde announcer was far too picky. Lilian called it discerning. Call it what you liked; it all added up to
the same thing, all day stuck in a mall until she found the *perfect* dress.
“Please girls,” Lilian begged.
“I’ll even throw in lunch. On
me,” she wheedled.
“Shouldn’t you be making that offer to the WWE resident
superhero,”
“Don’t you ever think of anything else,” Lita asked with a roll
of her eyes.
“Is there anything else,” she asked innocently. The look in her eyes belied the seemingly
innocuous remark.
“How did you ever get Kane to agree to go out with you,” the
redhead asked with a shake of her head.
“A lady never kisses and tells,”
“You a lady huh? Who’d a thunk it,”
Stacy remarked. She laughed when the
mercurial wrestler flipped her the bird.
“Keep it up chuckles,” the raven-haired wrestler snapped.
Lilian waved her arms in the air. “Can we get back to me please,” she asked.
“Yeah, because we all know it has to be all about you,” Lita
teased.
The announcer raised a flawlessly plucked eyebrow at her. “Now that you know. Will you guys *please* go with me,” she
implored. She even went so far as to
employ the big puppy dog eyes. When the
other girls still didn’t cave she let her lower lip tremble.
“Okay! God, I give,”
Stacy said. “I’ll go.”
The other two reluctantly agreed. With a squeal Lilian leaped off the bed and
hugged each of her friends in turn.
“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
You guys are the best!”
All four ladies grabbed their purses and headed out to find Lilian’s dress. The
ride down to the lobby was quick and they were on their way to the nearest
mall. With any luck the blonde announcer
would find an outfit to die for in the first store. It wasn’t likely to happen. The other three women prayed for luck.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Eight
As it turned out they found the perfect dress well before
lunch. It was a beautiful strapless red
chiffon dress with streamers off the back.
The bodice was accented with a row of rhinestones. The dress set off her complexion
wonderfully. The guys would never know
what hit them when she walked through those doors on Shane’s arm.
The girls dropped the dress off back at the hotel. They were currently enjoying lunch. Their laughter and friendship made for a
delightful afternoon. One by one the
girls drifted off leaving Lilian to her own devices for the remainder of the
evening. She walked down the street back
to the hotel.
She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn’t even notice
that someone was in her path until she nearly ran them over. Reaching out instinctively she steadied the
person in front of her. Once she
realized whom it was that she had saved the announcer almost wished she’d let
the other woman fall.
It was none other than Trish Stratus. The artificial blonde sneered at the other
woman. “Why don’t you watch where you’re
going!”
“I’m sorry,” Lilian replied not really meaning it.
“You should be. You
spilled coffee down the front of my favorite blouse,” the busty blonde snapped.
Sure enough, there on the front of Trish’s pink baby doll tee
was a dark stain. Lilian barely resisted
the urge to roll her eyes. It was well
known through out the company that the Canadian wrestler thought herself above
the rest of the women in the WWE.
“I’ve already apologized.
What more do you want me to do,” the announcer asked exasperated.
“You’re going to replace this shirt,” the other woman snapped.
“I don’t think so Trish. I’ll
pay to have it cleaned but I will not replace it,” Lilian said calmly.
“What happens if they can’t get the stain out?”
“Then I’ll *think* about replacing. You’re just as much at fault here as I
am. You should have been watching where
you were going too,” the announcer said.
“You think you’re so much better than I am, don’t you,” Trish
hissed.
“What’s that supposed to mean,” Lilian asked incredulous.
“You’ve got the friends, the staff, and the guys all panting
after you. Well guess what. You’re not as special as you think you are,”
the busty blonde sneered.
Lilian’s blue
eyes hardened on the Canadian wrestler.
“You’re making me repeat myself,” she said coolly. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Trish laughed. “Could it
be? Could it really be that the high and
mighty Lilian Garcia doesn’t know,” she taunted the other woman.
A feeling of dread passed over the blonde announcer. “Know what,” she asked quietly. All of her previous hatred of the blonde diva
was gone in a wave of foreboding.
The Canadian wrestler’s eyes widened along with her malicious
grin. “It is. It is true,” she crowed. “The lovely Lilian
doesn’t know that the only reason someone asked her to the dinner was because
he was dared to.”
If it were possible Lilian’s heart
would have dropped through the floor. It
couldn’t be true. Trish was just
jealous. That had to be it. “You’re lying,” the announcer accused, though
her voice lacked any real conviction.
“Not just a dare, but it was a triple dog dare,” Trish ridiculed
the other woman. The buxom blonde leaned
and dropped her voice as if whisper conspiratorially, “And you know what else,”
she waited for the announcer to shake her head.
“The whole company knows it.”
Trish walked away wearing a cat that ate the canary smile. Her work was done. She had knocked that self-righteous blonde
down a peg or three. The Canadian diva
cast a glance over her shoulder. The
blonde announcer was standing stock still in the middle of the bustling
lobby. ‘Oh yeah,’ she thought. ‘She’d shown that bimbo just who was boss
around here.’
Lilian walked back to her room, her heart thoroughly broken by
the news Trish had so gleefully delivered.
The blonde announcer should have known better. The guys on the roster never saw her as
anything other than the friend. It broke
something in her.
She sat down on one of the room’s two beds thankful that the
others were still out. Her blonde head
fell forward into her hands. The tears
filled her eyes and coursed down her cheeks.
The announcer rolled onto her side and began to sob. Her heart felt like it was quite literally
breaking.
The blonde announcer cried out bits of her shattered heart onto
the hotel’s ugly floral print comforter.
She cried until there were no more tears left. Her body was weak and shaky. On wobbly legs she headed toward the bathroom
and a nice long hot bath.
Lilian filled the tub with warm water. Next she added her special bubble bath
watching with listless eyes as they formed a frothy surface. She shed her clothes and stepped into the
water, sinking low in the bathtub. The
young woman let the hot water soothe her tired body and achy limbs.
Her eyes closed. In her
mind she went over every little thing that he had said and done. It didn’t add up. If he hadn’t really wanted to ask her why had
he? Sure, men could be stupid when their
pride was challenged. She just didn’t
think that Shane was one of those guys that let his ego make decisions for him,
even if a dare had been involved.
With a sigh the announcer opened her eyes more confused than
when she’d closed them. Lilian couldn’t
make sense of what she had been told and what she had seen with her own
eyes. When Shane had thought someone
else had already asked her he’d looked crestfallen. That didn’t fit with someone that had only
asked her out on a dare.
Sighing, Lilian rose from the now tepid water. She pulled the plug on the tub. Walking over the room’s mirror she wiped the
fog away. She stared at her reflection
for a long moment before making up her mind.
She would go out with Shane tomorrow night. They would have dinner and dance
together. It would only be *one* dance
though. She decided that’s where the
“date” would end. She had no desire to
know what else had been included on that dare.
Her heart couldn’t take it.
Lilian’s mind
was made up. She would do it. With that thought firmly in mind she changed
into her pajamas and crawled into bed.
Hopefully, tomorrow would be over with quickly. She didn’t know if she could make if the
night dragged on endlessly. As she
closed her eyes she wondered when guys would finally see her as something more
than a coworker, more than a friend.
With a final sigh she rolled over and fell asleep.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Nine
The day of the party dawned clear and bright totally at odds
with how the blonde ring announcer felt.
She was short, surly, and just generally disagreeable. Of course it could have had something to do
with the fact that her roommates had awoken her at the ungodly hour of seven in
the morning.
“Someone had damn well better be dying,” were the first words
out of Lilian’s mouth when the covers were wrenched
away from her.
“Jeez, Lil you’d think no one ever
woke you up this early before,” Lita chirped happily from the end of the bed.
Lilian cracked one eye open and glared at the grinning
redhead. “I’m going to kill you slowly,”
she grumbled as she opened her other eye and slowly sat up in bed.
“You wish jelly fish,” the highflying diva tossed back.
“C’mon Lilian, we need to get going,” Stacy said hurriedly.
“What the hell for,” the blonde snapped.
“Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning,”
The ring announcer groaned as she remembered the plan. All of them were going to go out and get
their hair and nails done today. They
would spend time with each other as far away from work as they could get. With a sigh Lilian pushed herself up off the
bed and stumbled towards the bathroom.
“Give me about five minutes,” she mumbled before closing the
door.
Once the door was firmly shut she heaved a sigh. She had no idea how she was going to get
through tonight but she would. She
wasn’t the type of person to back out of an agreement. Just thinking about what Trish had said
brought another rush of confused emotions.
Lilian turned on the tap and washed her hands. She stared at her reflection; again wondered
why the guys she worked with never saw *her*?
Rolling her eyes at the turn her thoughts had taken she loaded up the toothbrush
and scrubbed her teeth. The others
weren’t exactly known for their patience.
It was a wonder that they weren’t breaking down the door as it was.
As if conjured by her thoughts one of the girls pounded on the
door. “Did you fall in,” Lita asked
merrily from the other side.
“HA HA! You’re not as funny as you look you know,” Lilian said after as she came out of the
bathroom. She walked over to her
suitcase and pulled out a pair of jean Capri pants and a light blue tank
top. She walked back to the bathroom to
change. It wasn’t long before the ring
announcer felt reasonably sure that she was ready to go. Pulling her hair back into a scrunchie she joined her friends.
“What did we decide for breakfast,” Lilian asked as she slid her
feet into her thongs.
“We were thinking that little bistro we passed yesterday,”
The blonde stifled another yawn.
“Well if we’re going we better get.
Or I’m going back to bed,” she threatened the others.
The three other girls scampered out of the room ahead of the surly
announcer. They made their way to the
elevator and down to the lobby. In
unison the four women produced sunglasses and donned them. It was a clear warm morning. It promised to be even hotter as the day wore
on.
Breakfast was an amazingly simple affair. The girls ate lightly. They chatted about everything and
nothing. It was still surprising after
all this time just how easy it was to lose track of time. It was hard to think that they hadn’t known
each other all their lives but only a couple of years.
Stacy asked for the time.
When they were informed that it was after
“You’d think we’d learn to wear a watch,”
“Well we made it, didn’t we,” Lilian asked.
“Only because Lita broke every speed limit known to man,” Stacy
countered.
“We’re here. Can we
please drop it,” Lita asked as she brought up the rear.
“All right if you insist. I’ll drop it,”
“Thank you,” the redheaded dare devil replied.
“For now,” the raven-haired diva inserted.
The extreme wrestler rolled her eyes. “I should have known,” Lita muttered.
“Yeah you should have,” Lilian responded, pinching her friend’s
cheek.
“Will you three please knock it off,” Stacy demanded. “They’re going to think we’re savages.”
The other three shared a look then grinned at the leggy blonde
manically. “We aren’t,” the trio asked
innocently.
Stacy threw her hands up in the air. She shook her head and walked off with one of
the girls from the salon. The two were
talking animatedly. The others were soon
separated as the salon girls got a hold of them.
Lilian lost herself in the pleasure of letting someone pamper
her. For the next four hours she was
washed, colored, cut, styled, painted, and plucked. She’d never felt as good as she did when the four
girls left the salon. It was nice
letting someone else take care of those things for her.
The girls decided on a late lunch before going back to the
hotel. They were talking about their
dates and what they were wearing for the dinner later that evening. The reminder of what awaited Lilian made her
quieter than usual. Her friends noticed
and tried to draw it out of her.
“Guys, it’s nothing. Just
something someone said,” Lilian tried tell them.
“Who,”
“I’ll give you three guesses,” Stacy said as she studied her
fellow blonde.
“She wouldn’t dare,” Lita snapped.
“Oh she would and did,” Lilian replied, realizing that they
weren’t going to let it go.
“That little tramp,”
“I knew I should have broken her jaw,” Lita said sullenly, as
she crossed her arms over her chest. If
that bitchy bimbo ruined Shane and Lilian’s first
official date she would personally make sure that Trish got everything that was
coming to her and then some.
“Guys, this isn’t going to solve anything. Let’s just drop it already,” Lilian said tiredly.
Noticing the distress hiding behind the calm exterior Stacy
intervened. “All right, but if you want
to talk about it, we’re here for you.”
The other two nodded emphatically.
Lilian reached out and grabbed her friends’ hands. “I know that.
And thank you.”
Looking up Lita realized that they were once again running
late. “We better make tracks or we’ll
never be ready when the boys come to get us.”
The foursome hurried back to the hotel. They were rushing around trying to be ready
on time. Lita and Victoria were in the
bathroom applying makeup, while Stacy was at the room’s only other mirror,
Lilian made due with the mirror on her make up box. It wasn’t the best but it wasn’t bad either.
The girls took turns getting zipped into their dresses. Their nerves were all wound tight. With a final inspection
“He’s not picking you up,” Stacy asked.
“Honey, I was lucky I got him to agree to go at all. I’m not about to give him a chance to back
out now,” she returned as she sailed out of the room.
Stacy was just slipping on her heels when there was a knock at
the door. “I’ll get it,” Lita said,
coming out of the bathroom to answer the door.
“Hey there, good looking,” Rob said to Lita.
“Stace, Rob’s here,” the redhead
called into the room.
“I heard. The room’s not
that big,” the blonde returned.
Rob got a good look at Stacy as she came toward him. He seemed to lose his ability for speech for
just a moment before saying, “You look stunning.” He kissed her cheek while she flushed
prettily under the compliment. After the
whole Test and Steiner incident the young blonde had feared all men were a lost
cause. Rob however changed her mind
about that. He really listened to
her. He made her seem important. She liked the feel. A lot.
“See you guys later,” Rob said easily as he led the leggy blonde
out the door.
Lilian was checking her
make up one last time. She pulled
nervously at her dress, making sure that nothing was peeking out. With a sigh and a roll of her eyes she turned
away from the mirror. Lita flashed her a brilliant smile as the two waited for their respective
dates to show up.
“Think they’re going to show,” Lita asked as she glanced at the
clock for what seemed to be the fiftieth time in the last five minutes.
As if on cue there was a knock at the door. The redhead rose from the bed and crossed the
room. Lilian follow
behind the other woman.
There at the door was Shane Helms and Matt Hardy. They were both smiling. Both were wearing tuxes. “We’d have been here sooner, but Matt had
trouble with his tie,” Shane offered by way of explanation.
“I can’t help it if I’m more at home in ring attire than this
monkey suit,” Matt grumbled.
The girls shared at laugh at that.
‘God, she looks so good,’ he thought. ‘Well say something stupid,’ another part of
him answered. Shane shook himself. He
offered the ring announcer a winning smile.
With a flourish he produced a bouquet of mixed flowers. “When I saw these I thought of you,” he said
handing them to her.
“You’re making me look bad,” Matt groused
Shane laughed. “You don’t
need any help from me to do that,” he returned.
Lilian was shocked. She
hadn’t expected him to bring her flowers.
She gave him a dazzling smile and took them from him. The blonde laid them on the room’s desk,
reminding herself to put them in some water when they returned later. She finally took a good look at her date for
the evening.
His tuxedo wasn’t the typical one seen at proms across the
country. He was wearing a white-banded
collar shirt with a dark red button at the top.
Instead of a cummerbund it was a vest the same shade of red as her dress. Lilian shot Lita a look one of her blonde
brows rising. The daredevil diva just
shrugged one shoulder.
“Shall we,” Shane asked as he offered the lovely blonde his arm.
Lilian slipped her hand in the crook of his arm and let him led
her from the room. Neither of them aware
of the smug looks Matt and Lita shot at their backs.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Chapter Ten
Lilian wasn’t quite sure how it happened. She had promised herself that she would be
polite but wouldn’t encourage Shane. All
of her carefully laid plans were thrown out the window as the young man charmed
the lovely ring announcer. Several of
the divas shot her dirty looks when Shane wouldn’t even give them the time of
day.
The ring announcer was having a wonderful time and dinner hadn’t
even been served yet. She let her blue
eyes move across the table to Kane and Victoria. The big red machine looked decidedly
uncomfortable. When his mismatched eyes
met her gaze she gave him an encouraging smile.
She let her eyes move to the other couples at their table. Rob was talking quietly with Stacy, who
seemed to come alive under his intense attention. Matt and Lita were like a couple of lovesick
high school kids. Their heads bent close
together as they whispered to each other.
Shane let one of his arms rest on the back of Lilian’s chair as he leaned into her. “Are you having a good time?”
The blonde turned to look at him a smile already on her
face. “Yeah I am.”
“I’m glad,” he said returning her smile. Hesitantly he reached for her hand and held
it in his own.
Butterflies took flight in the ring announcer’s stomach at the
simple touch. ‘I’m being so silly,’ she
chastised herself. However, she couldn’t
stop the pleasure his innocent contact invoked.
They stared into each others eyes.
Neither was aware of anything more than the person in front of them.
A not so subtle cough reminded them of where they were. Blushing they turned their attention to their
other dinner companions. Lita arched a
brow at Lilian’s behavior. Being the mature adult that she was the
blonde stuck her tongue out at the other woman.
The table began to laugh.
Dinner, itself, was uneventful.
They had grilled salmon, rice pilaf, and asparagus. To finish off the meal there was either a
scoop of rainbow sherbet ice cream or slice of strawberry cheesecake. The waiters rushed around clearing the dishes
from the table and bringing everyone coffee.
A DJ located discreetly in one corner began playing music softly.
Slowly the couples began filling the space that had been cleared
for use as a dance floor. Lilian thought
it was nice to finally be at one of these functions with someone rather than
being there solo. She turned and smiled
at the man sitting beside her. He gave
her that heart-stopping grin.
They watched the other couples as they moved on the dance
floor. Shane’s thumb was absently
brushing over her back. There was a
silence between them. It wasn’t awkward
or uncomfortable. It was one that spoke
of ease between two people.
Shane asked Lilian to dance.
As the pair approached the dance floor Christian and Trish were walking
off. The two blondes looked at the pair
in front of them then at each other and began to laugh. Lilian was rudely reminded just *why* Shane
had asked her to the dinner in the first place.
The young man’s puzzled expression went from the retreating duo
to the woman that now stood stiffly beside him.
He wasn’t sure what they’d done, but apparently it was enough to make
her uncomfortable. It made him want to
trail after them just to pummel them to death.
Somehow he didn’t think that would win him any points with the lady
beside him, though he did give it some serious thought before shrugging aside
the idea.
Lilian moved woodenly in Shane’s arms. She could feel the tears pricking at the
backs of her eyes. It hurt so badly to
be reminded that someone had to be dared to even consider asking her out. What was so wrong with her that the guys
couldn’t just ask her out?
As the song came to a close she stepped out of Shane’s
embrace. She thanked him for a lovely
evening and walked off the dance floor, leaving Shane to stare after her in
confusion. He could hear some of the
others beginning to snicker and felt his face flame. He trotted off the dance floor after the
woman that had stolen his heart.
He caught up to her near the doors. He grabbed her arm, halting her retreat. She turned tear filled blue eyes to him. “Wait, please. I don’t understand what happened,” Shane
confessed.
“Please, Shane, don’t make a scene,” Lilian implored. She noticed that her friends were already
making their way over to them. She had
to go now before she embarrassed herself even more.
“You can’t just leave.
Not like this. At least tell me
what I’ve done.”
“You already know what you did.
I know about the dare,” she said quietly, unaware that her friends were
standing nearby. “Trish told me all
about it. How the only reason I even got
asked to this was because you were dared to.”
“I’m going to kill that bitch slowly,” Lita ground out.
“You have to get to her before I do,”
“Wait for me,” Stacy chimed in following after them. The three of them went off to find one Trish
Stratus and ruin *her* night.
“Lilian, please, listen to me,” Shane
begged, uncaring that they were now starting to draw a crowd.
What could she do? He
still had a hold of her arm. She wasn’t
about to make a scene. He ran a hand
through his hair and sighing harshly.
“The reason that Lita dared me to ask you out was because I was too
afraid to say anything to you.”
Lilian was shocked. Lita
had been in on this and hadn’t told her about it? The next time she saw the redhead she was
going to get it with both barrels, she thought darkly. She was so lost in thoughts of her friend’s
destruction that she almost missed his next words.
His hand rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “I couldn’t seem to find a way to just come
right out and ask you. I’ve tried. Numerous times,” he explained. “I always ended up backing out at the last
minute, too afraid that you would say no, or worse laugh in my face.” Shane turned to look directly at her. “What I’m trying to say here Lilian is that I
love you.”
“I,” she started, a tirade dying on her lips as what he said
finally began to sink in. “You love me?”
“As if you didn’t know,” Bubba Ray said from the sidelines.
She frowned at the man. “No I didn’t,” she defended.
“How could you not,” Shannon Moore asked, clearly confused. “When you’re around everyone else ceases to
exist.”
“I-I-I,” she stumbled.
She was at a loss as to how to answer.
She really had no idea that he’d felt this way about her.
“Guys, could you give us some privacy,” Shane stated. Once the others had moved away from them he
turned back to her. He stared deep into
her cerulean eyes. “I, Shane Helms, love
you, Lilian Garcia.”
Lilian squealed and launched herself into Shane’s waiting
arms. He held her in his arms savoring
the feel of her pressed so close to him.
Slowly he lowered his head, giving her a chance to stop or say
something. She did neither; instead she
closed her eyes as she felt Shane’s lips close over hers.