Though at first I feared it would be the death of me, actually not having a schedule, not having to be somewhere or having an alarm clock to wake me up was just what my body and soul needed. Though, whenever I thought back to the stunt I had just pulled off and the consequences that had followed, I did get a big knot in the pit of my belly. I had never been fired before. I had never been in trouble a day in my life. But when I dared to cringe or feel even the slightest bit apologetic for my actions, all I had to do was roll over. The space next to me in bed was empty but not for long. Soon, he would be back.

Las Vegas was nothing short of surreal. My scheme had resulted in allowing one of the best to ever do it, being allowed to unleash a wrath filled truth that the fans and the WWE executives, alike needed to hear. He was going to quit…that he was adamant about and I pretty much couldn't blame him. I could sense his restlessness and every day expected him to say that he'd had it and just quit on the spot. But he was a man of his word and I respected that. Though every ounce of him dreaded it, CM Punk laced up his boots, put on his big boy rasslin' trunks and boarded a plane to fulfill his overseas tour commitment.

He was ballsy enough to actually invite me to go. Granted I had grew a pair in order to do what I did but in fact, they were still baby balls. I had no problem neutering myself and refusing to travel along with him. I was not wanted on the tour, at the arena, or any WWE event and I knew it. Being canned was bad enough but I had the rest of my career, rest of my life to think about. That meant I had to show restraint and tact.

But Punk had been serious when he had invited me to come back to Chicago and I had decided to go. At that point, I had nothing else to lose really. My job was already gone and truth be told, I had lost my heart to Phil Brooks a long time ago. The original plan had been for me to meet up with him after he got back but on a whim and totally in the moment, I had gone back to Illinois with him following the departure from Nevada. So we had left that hotel, airport bound, hand in hand. I loved, loved, loved the way my hand felt in his. It felt nice to go back to his home. The last time I had been there, pleading my case for a second chance at love, things had not gone so well. He had practically kicked me out of his room. When I had left his building devastated and a weepy mess, never in a bazillion years would I have imagined that there would be a next time. And that next time would include him making love to me over and over again until both our exhausted and pleasure filled bodies were spent.

I had been sad to see him go, as I was whenever we had to part but I took comfort in knowing that soon enough, the good byes would be less frequent. His forgiveness did not come easy and second chances were rare, all but nonexistent. He had let me back in, in more ways than one and I knew that meant something. So without a job and madly in love, my days were spent lounging away in the Windy City waiting for my heart's desire. Smile etched permanently on my face, I buried my head in the pillow that still smelled like him. I could have stayed there forever and I probably would have, too if my cell phone hadn't pulled me back to reality. I still had reason to smile though. It was Punk.

"Salut," he said cheerily from the other side of the world.

My grin grew even broader.

"Hi."

God, I had missed him.

"What are you up to, Cyn?"

Missing you.

"Not much," I played it off. "Just hanging out."

"How is life among the 7 percent employed?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Okay, I guess. For now. I don't know. I mean, it is nice to relax and just be. But I know I can't do this forever."

"You'll figure something out."

"I know but enough about me. What is going on with you? How is the tour?"

He sighed heavily on the line.

"It's going, you know? I've actually been pretty busy. Doing a ton of press and stuff. And I am main eventing a lot of the cards."

"Wow, Punk…that, that's so awesome."

"I am finally getting everything I wanted, Cynthia. The recognition and respect. My rightful place on the card. The guys and gals in the locker room look to me as a leader. The McMahon family is forced to admit that I'm a major player now, that I could be the face of the company."

"That promo changed everything."

"It damned sure did."

"How does it feel?"

He paused for a few seconds.

"Not as good as it would have felt, say three years ago, even one year ago."

I understood exactly what he meant.

"Your name is everywhere," I told him. "And it is mostly stuff that has nothing to do with wrestling. That promo blew up the mainstream."

"Tell me about. By the way, pack your bags because when I get back, we have to go to LA."

"What for? Look, I told you already that I really don't think it is a good idea for me to travel with you. Vince McMahon may be kissing your butt right now but he still hates my guts. I don't want to cause a scene."

"I get it and that trip isn't wrestling related. I am doing Jimmy Kimmel."

I couldn't help but smile. Even if he was still going to walk away, at least he was doing it on his terms. Like a boss and going out in a blaze of glory on top of the professional wrestling world.

"That's amazing."

"Yep."

I giggled a little bit.

"The fact that you get the opportunity is incredible but it just…"

"What?"

"You want me to go with you. That makes me happy."

"There you go being a girl again."

"Your girl?" I posed.

I was being flirty. He brought out that giddy, girly side of me but the minute I blurted that out, I instantly regretted it…until I heard his response.

"Yeah…my girl."

I melted into that pillow.

"So now what?" I sighed in absolute contentment.

"Well, as much as that promo grated Vince's goat, now with all the mainstream attention and everything that is going on, the old buzzard knows he is sitting on a goddamned gold mine. He is upping the ante, offering me insane amounts of money for a new contract, which now, mind you, includes sign on bonuses that include cash and a bunch of other perks."

"Does that make a difference to you?"

"No," he didn't miss a beat. "But…"

"But what?"

"Stephanie came to me last night. She is the lesser of the evils, along with Linda. The one person I can actually look at without wanting to spit in her face…at least for the moment."

"What did she say? What did she want?"

"The same thing they all want. Same conversation, different day, except this time, I didn't tell her to go fuck herself."

"Why not?"

"I told her, unofficially and off the record, that the only way I would even consider an extension or any kind of deal was if they agreed to give you your job back."

"Punk!" I sat straight up in bed.

"Look, don't go get all spazz on me, kid. I know how hard you work and how important your career is to you and what you have been through to get there. Quite frankly am I financially and mentally ready for early retirement? Yeah. Are you? Not so much. You need this job or at least to part ways on a semi amicable note. You're sitting in Chicago right now chilling with Pepsi and watering my plants instead of being in your office in Stamford because of a sacrifice you made. For me. I appreciate it but it's a lot to have on my shoulders. I don't want to live with that, you know?"

I suddenly had mixed feelings.

"Is that…is that why I'm here now?"

"What do you mean?"

"You feel bad or guilty or whatever that I lost my job. I mean, that's nice and all but I don't ever want you to feel like you owe me something. Because you don't. I made a choice. One that I stand by. And I love you and I know you said you want to give us a chance but if you're only doing it to make up for me being fired…"

"Cynthia, Jesus Christ, woman, sometimes I don't know whether to throttle you or hug you," he sighed into the phone. "You should know better than that, know me better than that by now. I would never be with you out of obligation or guilt. That isn't how I roll, kiddo. Never have, never will. When I am with someone, it is because I genuinely want to, because I care about them."

I closed my eyes.

"So…are you with me?" I questioned.

"You're in my house, aren't you?"

I chuckled to myself, picturing him rolling his eyes in the moment.

"Yeah…I suppose I am."

"On a personal note, you and I are solid again but professionally, I do owe you something. You know that's true."

"We're not keeping score, Punk."

"Cyn…"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Anything you want."

"Do you want to stay?"

"Not really?"

"I know you don't. You are super burned out but that ring is your passion. One day, some way or another, your heart will lead you back to that ring. I just don't think now is the time or place. And WWE certainly isn't the forum. So I would never ask you to sell your soul and bargain with them on my behalf. It's not right."

He took a deep breath.

"You sure? You made a big sacrifice for me when you didn't have to and if it takes me having to swallow a bit of shit to sacrifice for you, that is something I am willing to do. You proved your loyalty and nothing is more important to me than loyalty. Nothing."

"I don't want to go back. Not after the way they treated you and the way they tried to use me. I still want a career, now the challenge will be trying to figure out another way to do it."

"Alright, then that is settled. I can keep telling them to go fuck themselves. Works for me."

I couldn't help but laugh.

"I really can't wait to see you, you know that?"

"Ditto, kid. I am looking forward to home. By home, I mean my city and my place and my cat and my family and my friends. And my girl. You know, I'd love to tell you that we can jet away to some fancy vacation spot but the truth is, I am over the traveling. For a little while, I want to just be. My home is my vacation for now."

"Absolutely. Punk?"

"Yeah, babe?"

"I don't know if I already said it and if I did, it is certainly worth repeating…I am insanely proud of you. For what you said and did in Vegas and what you do every night in the ring. And just, for being you. You're an inspiration."

"That means a lot."

I knew it had and that made my heart feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It was the first page of a brand new chapter in my, his, our lives.

Author's Note: This is not the end. More updates to come. Again, apologies. Real life is super busy and I do admit, I no longer watch wrestling. However, I have promised you guys on here and in replying to your private messages that I will finish these fics and I intend to keep my word. This also refers to the conclusion of Crushing Blows, which is a One Tree Hill fan fic I still get a lot of messages about. Thanks for your patience, understanding, and continued interest. I will wrap up the more popular stories first and then try to move on to the others. Just putting it out there that it might take a very long time because I have a lot on my plate. In the meantime, if you want to check out what I have been up to during hiatus, you can visit my profile page here for the link to my author Facebook page (or search Gooseles on FB) for exclusive updates on the release of my first self-published novel! Hope you guys give it a "like"!