Wrestling One-Shots Six

Ilja Dragunov

The SUV has barely pulled into the arena for RAW and you are already tired of being there. Ludwig is busy on the phone talking with his girlfriend Tiffany. And Gunther never bothers to talk much with any of you before the show. Ever since Giovanni got kicked out of Imperium and moved to Smackdown you've been feeling more and more left out.

Ludwig finally hangs up the phone and acknowledges you for the first time since the group left the hotel.

"YN, what's with the face?" Ludwig asks you.

"What face?" You reply blankly and pull your bag higher up on your shoulder.

Ludwig shrugs and grabs his bag from the back of the car. "You look like something is bothering you." He explains. "Come on. You think I haven't noticed you moping around these past few weeks?" He adds and falls into step with you.

"Gunther hasn't seemed to notice anything wrong." You scoff, staring ahead at your leader striding through the hallway. "So maybe you're just being paranoid, Ludwig." You joke with him.

"Yeah, okay." Kaiser drops the subject for the time being.

The three of you head down to the Imperium locker room and get ready for the show. Gunther has a match scheduled for later against Otis, but you and Kaiser aren't scheduled for anything. That doesn't mean Gunther won't want the two of you out there with him though.

You drop your bags off at the locker room and decide to grab a bite to eat from catering since you aren't wrestling.

"I'll be back in a bit, guys. Gonna go grab a bite to eat." You announce your plans to the room as you head for the door.

"Don't be long," Gunther warns you. "I want you and Kaiser both out with me in case Gable and Maxxine are with Otis." He explains.

You nod and pull the door open. "Will do, boss." You muse playfully and head out.

You make your way down to catering and peruse the selection of food and drinks set out for everyone. You decide on a snack wrap and a bottle of water before settling down in an empty seat to scarf down your meal.

You are in the middle of eating and scrolling through your phone when someone approaches your table.

"YN LN?" A male voice catches your attention.

You peek over your phone, still chewing a bite of food, and nearly choke on said food when you see who's standing in front of you.

"Ilja?" You choke back your food and swallow hard. "Hey! How are you?" You ask and gesture for him to take a seat.

Ilja sits down across from you and you take a moment to observe him. It's been over a year since you've seen Dragunov. Not since your NXT UK days. He looks slightly older of course, but there's still that same fire in his eyes. He's dressed in a nicely tailored suit, like usual.

"I'm great, thank you." Ilja smiles at you. "Tonight is my first night here on Raw." He explains.

"Right." You nod. "Pearce snagged you from NXT." You recall Ilja's name being called last week during the draft. "Well, welcome to Raw, Ilja. I'm sure that you'll thrive here." You match his friendly smile.

Ilja nods in thanks. You feel your phone buzz in your pocket, probably Ludwig warning you to get back to the locker room. But you chose to ignore it. At least for a minute.

"And how have you been, YN, my dear?" Ilja asks you right back. "I heard that Giovanni recently left Imperium?" He asks you.

"Left, yeah." You scoff. "You could say that I guess." You shrug. "I've been good, Ilja. Thanks for asking." You assure him.