Masked//Roman Reigns Love Story

Chapter Two

WWE Superstar Seth Rollins, Colby, was having a house warming party and he told me it'd be in best interest to come. He seemed friendly enough after meeting him the night I debuted on RAW, and AJ felt like his party would be a good networking opportunity for me. She didn't want me to make the same mistakes she did coming in and said it was imperative I play nice while I was new to the company.

I talked AJ into coming with me because I anticipated not being able to show up by myself. She reluctantly agreed to come and be my emotional support friend for the day. We both knew why I was really so nervous about coming to Colby's party, but AJ convinced me that I rather run in to him here and work out our issues during our down time than at work. She had a point but I wasn't looking forward to it.

AJ and I arrived fairly early in the night and we did not intend to stay long. Walking into the backyard of Colby's house, the smell of barbecue on the grill hugged my senses. I was hit with an overwhelming sense of nostalgia about the life I had before everything went to shit, but I tried to brush it off.

"Glad you ladies could made it," Colby greeted as soon as he noticed us walking over to him at the built in bar. He was behind it shuffling with bottles.

"Thanks for having us," AJ thanked him as he walked around the bar to give us both hugs.

I handed him a gift bag filled with plates and silverware for his kitchen. I just met the guy so I didn't know what he liked but I didn't want to come empty handed. He graciously thanked me before having us follow him into the kitchen so he could sit the gift down there. He offered us drinks, whether from the kitchen or the bar outside, but AJ and I declined both. I put a hard pass on the alcohol specifically because I knew it'd be in my best interest not to drink tonight, or any night for the matter.

I spent about an hour aimlessly wandering around with AJ and reciting my name for the people who asked. I'd come across a lot of faces I knew from the tv screen but none I knew personally. Jonathan (Dean Ambrose) had shown up along with Jon and Josh (Jimmy and Jey Uso), Jon's fiancée, Trinity (Naomi), Toni (Cesaro), and quite a few others. While it'd been chaotic meeting so many people at one time, nothing prepared me for the intimidation and unsettledness I felt when Joe came into sight.

He was Roman Reigns now, part of The Shield with Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins. He was one of the biggest attractions in WWE at the moment and his star was only on the rise. He'd done well for himself since I last saw him. I hadn't expected him to end up in WWE knowing how in love with football he was, but I had to remind myself that I didn't know him anymore. People grow and change. Who he was then was probably far from who he was now, and the things he loved then probably changed from what he loved now. He felt like a stranger to me and I hated it. But I was to blame for all the distance.

I tried to stop my blood from boiling when I noticed him getting comfortable with Danielle, the long legged flirty blonde. I'd known her before coming to WWE and she was so wrong for him. I started to give myself a headache trying to piece together what kind of relationship they had going on and why. The sight of them laughing witch each other made me nauseous and there was nothing I could do about it. I was relieved when he left her to start watching over the grill.

"Maria, you still here?" I heard Colby ask me, shaking me from my thoughts.

Snapping my head back around I noticed a sly smirk played across his lips. I hadn't been very careful about hiding my ambivalence towards Joe, and Colby had caught on to it.

"Sorry, I just got a little distracted for a second. I'm back now," I said.

"It's okay, you're not the only one to fall for him so I don't judge. He's a ladies man."