Flames

Deci-mates, part 2

"You awake?" Seth gave his wife a gentle nudge. His mother was visiting and had taken Roux to a museum, so he and Becky had the house to themselves. Once upon a time, that would have meant clothes off before the front door had even closed, but now they were both so busy that they actually rested a bit during their child-free downtime.

Becky reluctantly opened one eye. "I'm stretching my eyelids," she murmured. "They've been open all day. I don't want them to freeze that way. Didn't your mother ever use that line on you when you stuck your tongue out or anything?"

Seth laughed and kissed the top of her head. They were curled up on the couch, supposedly going over his upcoming schedule so they could fit in another couples interview, but Becky had been suspiciously quiet for the last few minutes and he guessed she had been dozing off. "Not quite the same," he replied. "Becks, if you want to nap, go ahead. I just have two more emails to answer." He shifted around a bit to give her better access to his shoulder—his good shoulder, anyway. It made typing more of a challenge, but he didn't mind.

"Busy bee. Netflix specials and football analysis and wrestling academies...." Becky tapped his knee every time she mentioned a new gig.

"I have to spread the word of Big Time Becks," he chuckled, "so people know it's not just you saying it or Sports Illustrated saying it...."

Becky tugged lightly on his beard. "I know, I know. It's getting old. But I can't really switch things up mid-feud with AJ. I'll get to freak out when I lose and then hopefully I can start changing things a bit."

Seth stayed quiet for a moment. He was usually pretty good about reading between the lines and figuring out what Becky wasn't saying, but he also didn't want to assume. "Have you been on Twitter again? I thought you had someone handling your posts."

"I do. I still come up with them, but I don't look at the replies." When Seth gave her a look, she added, "Well, not as much. And not until the day after. I learned that in one of my writing classes. Time away creates distance."

He hadn't been doing much on social media either, at least not on Twitter, and he was grateful for it. When he was back in action, it might have to change, but Seth was going to enjoy the hiatus as long as he could. Becky had always liked it more, though, especially when she was a face; she loved interacting with her fans. "Good advice." He had no sooner sent off the second email before his notification sound dinged, and he groaned. "No," he said firmly, shutting down his laptop and setting it aside. "No more work for today." He turned slightly so he could wrap both arms around her. "I know this sound crazy, but for the first time when I've been out with an injury, I'm not missing wrestling all that much."

Becky looked up at him skeptically, but was all too happy to snuggle up. "Who are you and what have you done with my husband?" Poking his chest, she added, "You're a very convincing copy, I must admit. Maybe I need to do... further investigations."

Shutting his eyes, Seth laughed and rested his head against hers. "I still love wrestling. You know I do. But now, with all of this," he explained, gesturing at the laptop, "the football gigs and the Netflix thing and even acting—I can see more non-wrestling work on the other side of things, you know? Even with Black & Brave, I know I can't do that forever. I can invest in it and maybe do some lectures, but I won't be able to do the in-ring lessons forever either."

"I know I tease you about being old, but it's not like Je'Von and the other kids are calling you Uncle Colby yet." Becky started to roll her eyes, but then she laughed. "Though we all know AJ Styles secretly likes being Uncle Allen, so that wouldn't be a bad thing. Auntie Becks has a nice ring to it, yeah?"

"I'd say they already call you Mother," Seth replied, "but we don't want Roux getting any more ideas about siblings." Seth knew he was highly respected in the men's locker room, but the regard the women's locker room had for Becky held an extra element, something between affection and admiration. Or maybe a bit of both, all stitched together with gratitude. She might not have been in the worst of the Divas era, but most of the women knew Becky's struggles and how the things she had fought for were benefiting all of them.