The Good Life

AN. Yo! Welcome to the last chapter, guys. Aww :(

Chapter Thirty-One – Just the Beginning

Girls,

I know this is going to seem out of the blue for you to wake up tomorrow and find this on your doorstep but I knew there was no other alternative. The three of you deserve to know the truth and have me tell it before someone else does. To put it simply... or as simply as I can... I've left the street. I suppose in a way you could say I've run away like a rebellious schoolgirl who dreams of being with her rocker boyfriend and away from the constraints in her life, which I know is a tale Maryse would enjoy. You always were one for the dramatics. Love you really, Frenchie! Anyway... you should probably know that this 'running away' I did wasn't spontaneous... well it was to a point... but it's something I've wanted for a long time. The truth of the matter is I ran away to be the person I want to be again... a WWE Diva. I'm going back to the company. I also ran away to be with the love of my life. He's been the love of my life for a long time, ever since I first met him I knew he was special, and it might shock you when I tell you it's John Cena, our neighbour. (The one you dated for awhile, remember Eve?) I probably should have told you we knew each other before... but you know us housewives, we always have our secrets to hide. But just know this: he's a wonderful man and he helped me realise that the life I've been living isn't for me. I love you girls and I know you'll support me in my decision, and I'll definitely get in touch with all of you when I can to explain my decision in more depth, but please don't forget me. I know I won't forget any of you. Just know that I'm happy and that I want you to be happy. I hope you are.

Much love, Lay.

P.S., If Eve hasn't got it together with hot stuff Riley yet, can one of you ladies force her into it please? Mwah! Xo

Absolute silence. It wasn't until all three were finished reading and looked up from the note to check out the other's reaction that they realised it was the quietest they had ever been as a group. Tiffany, eyebrows still fuddled together in confusion, had another look at the note while Eve and Maryse, perched on the pregnant woman's porch, tried to speak but ended up muttering incoherent thoughts.

Finally, the Latina said something easy to understand. "I can't believe it."

"Neither can I. It was in the back of my mind yesterday that she'd disappeared from my wedding but I thought she had a headache, never... this. And John Cena? Talk about surprising!"

"Tell me about it," said Eve. She folded her arms across her chest. "He failed to mention his secret relationship with Layla while he was at my house on our date."

Despite their early-morning surprise, Maryse couldn't help but let out a titter of laughter. "Sweetie, you only dated him to rub it in Alex's face."

"I did not!"

"Just a little bit."

"No."

"Yes."

"Okay... maybe."

"I knew it." The blonde gave a triumphant smile.

Now happy to step into the conversation, Tiffany passed the note around and shook her head. "This is so weird. I was just talking to her yesterday while we were getting ready for your wedding. She seemed so... normal... like nothing was going to change. Like she wasn't going to be leaving the next night..."

The housewife trailed off. Layla had been her closest friend on the street. The news of her departure from Avidian Lane was somewhat bittersweet. Of course she was happy that her friend was doing this for herself—she knew when Layla had been drunk before she tended to whine about her marital status—and that she finally had a chance to be with someone she actually loved and have her dream career instead of lounging around at home, but she was also upset.

Who would she have late-night margaritas with? Who would she have a giggle with other the phone when she was feeling stressed out and ready to give up? Eve and Maryse were amazing friends and she knew she could count on them, but sometimes it took that special person to truly put the smile back on your face. Layla El Regal was that person for her.

"I knew she wasn't happy with William though... and oh God, what about William? Do you think he knows?" Eve glanced over to the Regal household. "Actually now I think about it, I think he's on the Raw tour. Is he going to have to come home to this? Has she already told him? This is so... exciting!"

"Exciting? Really?"

"Well it's weird and unexpected... but yeah, it's also exciting. I'm happy for her."

"Me too." Maryse decided. She played with the diamond on her ring finger as she spoke. "But only the three of us on the street together now? It's going to take some time to adjust to."

"And then it'll just be the two of you. I'll have the twins to look after." Tiffany rubbed at her stomach. "Totally inappropriate timing, too, because now I need another wee. Maybe we should catch up and speak about this again later on today?"

"Sure, I've got some shopping with Emily to do anyway."

"And I've left Alex in bed." The brunette looked particularly proud of herself. "I better go and check on him."

The ladies disguised the pangs of sadness that hit them as they went their separate ways; Maryse back to her house where her husband and daughter were waiting for her, Eve back to her sleeping boyfriend and Tiffany (unfortunately) back into the bathroom. It hadn't hit them just yet that Layla was gone, and the latter of the three wondered when it would.

3 Months Later

An ear-splitting wail brought Tiffany crashing back into consciousness and as she woke from what could only have been two measly hours of sleep, she wondered which twin was crying for attention now. Had it only been a few months ago that she was excited to become a first-time mother? Sleep-deprived and looking worse for wear, she almost craved for those quiet, naive moments again.

After switching on her lamp, she sat up in bed and glanced over at Drew. He was sleeping peacefully on his back, mouth slightly open as he emitted soft snores. Some people have all the luck. She thought before checking the time. 1:08, the flashing red digits blinked back at her.

"I'm never going to get a good night's sleep again." She muttered to herself, as right on cue, the other twin started up. "Drew, honey, get up." When he stirred and failed to do just that, she nudged him with her elbow.

"What? What's happening?"

"You need to slip into Daddy role, that's what's happening. You take Aaron and I'll take Abbie." The blonde tiredly dragged the covers off of both of them before standing to her feet. Even as she gave him the orders as usual, she wasn't sure if her eyes were fully open.

It didn't take too long to settle into a routine with the twins once they were born. Twice the trouble was about right, as Aaron and Abigail McIntyre had come screaming into this world two months ago prematurely and hadn't bothered to stop since then. The house certainly wasn't as peaceful as it used to be with the troublesome two filling it up.

Drew almost tripped over his own two feet as he stumbled around, avoiding one toy here and another there. That was another thing about the change in lifestyle – their kids' stuff was everywhere. "Can't I have Abbie?"

"Playing favourites already?"

The Scottish man brushed a hand across his wife's back as he caught up with her on the landing. "No, she's just easier. Daddy's little girl."

Tiffany couldn't deny that her husband and her daughter seemed to have stronger correlation than she and Abbie did. When the babies had first been born, the happy couple had held them in their arms – Aaron in the tired mother's, Abbie in the proud father's – and she had commented, wondering if having one of each meant having favourites. Now she could say that wasn't the case; Abigail might be Daddy's Little Girl, but she was also Mommy's Little Angel and the same could be said for Aaron.

Lights were switched on in the room, babies were picked up and the crying was soon brought down to sniffles instead. Aaron was the first to settle and Abigail soon followed suit. She wasn't surprised at the regularity of this; their little guy had been born first, so she wondered if he was the 'leader' out of the two. Something told her that when they hit their teenage years that wouldn't be the case.

"Do you know what I think when I look at these two?" Drew remarked from the doorway when they were finally settled again and the lights were switched off.

"That you wish they would give you more sleep."

"Apart from that." He laughed. Wrapping his arms around his wife's waist and feeling her lean against him in response, he whispered, "That I can't believe how much happier they've made us. We went through that rough patch and then it got better... we got ready for the twins to come along... and now look at us. A happy – severely tired – family."

Tiffany leaned on her tip-toes to kiss him. "And here's to many more years of it."

"Here is your winner and new WWE Champion, Ted DiBiase!" Justin Roberts exclaimed through the microphone as the wrestler grasped at the gold – newly won from Daniel Bryan – and celebrated with the cheering fans.

Rolling her eyes, Emily reached for the remote and turned off the television, despite Maryse's protest to rewind it again. "Watching it five times in a row is my limit. Love you Dad," she turned to Ted, who was cradling his wife in his arms as they lay together on the sofa in the living room, "but it's six in the morning and I have to get ready for school."

The DiBiases watched as Emily traipsed out of the room in her pyjamas, looking suitably tired and feeling it too. That was the last time she allowed her mother to drag her out of bed early in the morning to watch her father win the title on Monday Night Raw. It might only have happened last night, but there was a reason they had the option to record these things.

Maryse angled her head towards Ted and gave him a kiss on the ridge of his jaw. "You did our family proud, baby. We're all so happy for you."

The wrestler had only got in from a late-night flight a couple of hours ago in the middle of the night and so he yawned to show this fact off, before then replying. "It was a great feeling. Layla congratulated me backstage before I left to come back here."

"How is she? She must be feeling great—"

"Considering she won the Diva's Championship a week ago? Yeah, she's buzzing... but I think she's even happier because John's making a splash on Smackdown."

For the first time in a while, Maryse had been paying attention to not just her husband's work on the wrestling shows, but everyone else's too. She had seen John Cena's matches and the responses he got and could certainly see why; the guy was charismatic, something she'd seen in him from their old poker games.

"You must be tired." She told him and they sat up together. "Let's go up to bed."

"Sounds like a fantastic idea."

The French-Canadian woman was leading him up the stairs when the home phone rang. After questioning who it was at this time in the morning, Ted told her to wait there, that he would quickly get rid of whoever it was and they could go up together. Only he appeared to be taking his time as he listened to the other voice on the end of the line.

"Is everything okay?" Maryse asked with some concern as he returned to her.

"That was the police. They've caught Mike and Mickie... after three months, they've caught them. They've got them in holding right now. They need our statements."

The blonde wasn't particularly sure how to react. It was odd to think that just a few months ago she and 'The Miz' were carrying out a love affair while Ted was away, but that it then all came out in the open and everything went to hell. She looked at her life now; she was finally content and safe, but was that feeling about to go away?

As if sensing the way she was feeling, he walked back over to her position on the stairs and took both hands in his. "I don't know what's going to happen now but you've got me. I'm here to support you."

She released her hands from his grip, but only to place them softly on either side of his face to pull him into her. "I know. I love you, baby." And when she kissed him, Maryse knew this was true enough.

Whatever was coming their way, they were a family and they could deal with it together.

"Good class, girls – I'm really impressed with what I've been seeing! Let's pick it up next week at the same time."

Eve collected her stuff together from the hall and took generous sips out of her water bottle as she allowed herself a few minutes to catch her breath. Today's jiu-jitsu class had been a fun one – there were more new members than she could count and she was genuinely having fun feeling like she was useful around the place.

She used a hand to shield her eyes away from the sun as she made it outside of the building and into the car park. A smile touched her lips before she could stop it when she came across a familiar sight. It was Alex waiting for her as usual, leaning against his car. He didn't see her coming as his attention was on his phone, but certainly knew she was there when she tilted his head up and left a lingering kiss on his lips.

"I keep telling you that you don't have to come and pick me up after class," said the brunette with a smile, "but here you are as always. You must be exhausted. Didn't you just work the night shift at the hospital?"

"Yeah but now I get to go home and crawl into bed with you, which is much comfier than mine by the way."

He should know. Ever since they'd started up their relationship on the night of Ted and Maryse's wedding, Alex had spent a considerable amount of his time over at the Torres place of residence. Logan was never surprised when he came down in the morning to join him at the kitchen table for breakfast, and in return Alex was never surprised when Logan disturbed them – grimacing all the while – to ask if he was actually going to get any dinner that evening. They were practically living together now.

Usually there was nothing she loved more than to slip into bed with her boyfriend, especially if she wasn't tired and she got to watch him sleep, but this morning she had plans. "The girls' are coming over in an hour to hang out for a bit. Poor Tiff needs a break from the twins and Maryse – no doubt – wants to brag about Ted's win."

"You girls and your gossip, I'll never understand it." He shook his head before opening the car door for her. "Well if that's the case then we have little time to waste. Did you say an hour?"

Eve smirked as she slipped into the passenger's seat. As she checked her phone for messages, she couldn't help but let that same smirk settle into another smile. She was happy – finally and truly – and it was a wonderful feeling.

Alex took his time getting round to the driver's seat. Making sure Eve wasn't looking, he slipped his hand into his pocket and picked out the small velvet box that had been there for a while now. He didn't bother opening it as he knew what was in it; a diamond engagement ring that had taken a lot of extra hours at the hospital to pay for.

Mrs. Eve Riley... Mrs. Eve Torres-Riley...

Even if she didn't change her name, when it came time for him to propose, he wouldn't care. He just wanted to call her his wife like he'd wanted to do since the first time he met her in the supermarket. She'd been like a hurricane barging into his life back then; she still was now.

Alex would wait, this much he knew as he slipped into the driver's seat to drive them back onto Avidian Lane. Their relationship was fresh and it needed time to mature. But he would wait for that special moment to arrive and then he would grab it with both hands. He couldn't wait.

Layla was back in the game and she was loving it. As she walked the hallways of the Smackdown arena the crew were to perform in tonight, she hitched the championship belt up further on her shoulder and grinned to herself. It was a silly little butterfly belt she'd won not a week ago at the tapings, but it was hers all the same and it meant a lot to have it in her possession.

It was weird how life moved on so quickly. Three months ago she'd been in another world back on Avidian Lane, nervous about leaving the street with John and paving a new way for herself. But it had been so easy to slip back into the wrestler's lifestyle and she was having the time of her life now. A fan favourite on Smackdown and the Diva's Champion, it was all going well.

She missed Avidian Lane, of course she did. She missed the girls' and the conversations they would have; the midweek meet-up for margaritas, the gossip, and the fun they had together as a group. It was hard leaving all that behind. But she was happy now. No longer in a suffocating marriage with William Regal and with the love of her life instead, what could be better?

The British woman had called Tiffany a few days ago and asked what was new. This was their weekly ritual now – a quick phone-call, Tiff never had long to talk now the twins had been born, to fill her in on what was happening. "Logan and Emily are still together, Eve's still thrilled for them but she's giving them space... especially since her and Alex never leave her room... Ted and Maryse are wonderful, but you should know that because you see Ted a lot..."

While it all still felt so familiar to her, Layla knew it was right to admit that it wasn't her world anymore. This was. She had promised a visit back to Avidian Lane when she and the Smackdown crew had a break in the vacation season to have a little time off, and she definitely couldn't wait to head back to it all, but only for a few days. Now, a few days without wrestling and everything that came with it—the training sessions, the promotional tours, the visits around the world—was an unsettling thought.

She reached a familiar locker room moments later and, not bothering to knock, slipped inside the room. John looked adorable as he napped on the leather couch in his locker room. There were a few kicks about dating the wrestler of the moment; since everyone – especially the boss, Vince McMahon – had faith in him now, he got the best of it all. A locker room to himself... a standing ovation from the crowd every time he won a match... a hot Diva girlfriend to boot.

She woke him up with a kiss. When he gave her a dimpled smile, she responded appropriately. "How's the future World Heavyweight Champion?"

"A lot better now that you're here." He sat up to allow her a seat and rubbed away the sleep in his eyes. "That belt suits you."

"I think so too."

In just a matter of hours they would be going out there to tape this week's Smackdown, but for the time being they were happy enough to enjoy each other's presence. She took the nervous hand that was resting on his knee. Layla found it cute that after all this time, John was still anxious when it came to these shows. He had it all in the palm of his hand and yet he was still courteous, still grateful for being able to live his dream, and it warmed her heart.

She pressed her lips to his again for a longer kiss. Yes, this was exactly where she wanted to be – here with John in his locker room, anticipating tonight's show and looking forward to giving the crowd what they wanted to see. For a moment she wondered if something would go wrong – if things were a little too perfect – but she soon decided that if it was and if anything was to happen, they would deal with it together. Always together. That was the way it should and would be for a long time to come.

This was just the beginning.

The Good Life is finally over! A massive thank you to everyone who reviewed this story – even those who simply favourited or alerted it. It means a lot :)

Just a quick couple of questions:

Favourite housewife?
Favourite couple?

- Mikki.