Kevin's POV:
My last ROH match quickly approached and I was really pumped for it. I'd be lying if I said seeing Nikki hasn't affected me the slightest. It has. It's the equivalent to when she left me. I couldn't really focus on the wrestling part and maybe it's good that I didn't since I was scheduled to lose my championship. I would've lost it anyway. Nikki Bella consumes my thought process still to this day and she shouldn't. It pisses me off because I don't consume her mind. I don't make her unfocused and uneasy. That's because she's not in love with me like I am with her. And I don't understand why. I gave her everything and she just gave me a nice stab wound in my chest.
"Steen, my man, you ready?" I sat on a crate near the exit to the ramp and looked up. Adam Cole. That's who I'm losing my fucking Ring of Honor title to. This guy I have hated for years in and out the ring. This cocky prick who couldn't wrestle circles around me and I'm just suppose to lie down and lose. If I wasn't going to NXT, I'd whoop this kid's ass right now. With no filter as usual I replied, "I believe you're the one who needs to be ready, Cole. You see I may be scheduled to lose tonight but when I'm through with you, you're going to feel like you've lost already." He chuckled patting my shoulder and I glared at his hand. No one touches me. That's always been my rule.
"Same ol' Kevin Steen. Full of that fighter instinct. That overdrive to set out and kill." "Isn't that what the fans chant every night? Kill Steen Kill? Fight Steen Fight? Now why, Adam Cole, would you expect any different from myself?" The cameras circled around us meaning that this was being used as a promo. Promos are like a preview of what's to come whether it's up next or the next pay per view. Either way, unlike WWE, our promos were real. They weren't scripted. Anything goes. "I wouldn't but seeing as though you have a special guest tonight, I thought maybe you'd tone it down." I tilted my head folding my arms, "What special guest?"
"Nikki Bella. Hopefully, she'll bring her hot sister." Nikki? Here? Are you kidding me? "Her hot married sister. How do you know she's coming?" "I just seen her. Brie is married? Damn. Here I was looking for a score." "Would you shut the fuck up about Brie? I'm talking about Nicole. Where is she?" I was a little anxious now. Nicole's never been here before and it's not like where this is Monday Night Raw. ROH doesn't give a shit about safety. Every night is a risk. If I get seriously injured, I didn't want my wife to see it. "She's out in the crowd, I'm assuming." Shit. It's to late. "Adam, I swear to god if you're shitting me I'll beat the living shit out of you. Even more so than tonight." "Whatever, Steen." Adam walked off.
Our match approached quickly and soon after Adam Cole's theme hit, was mine. I poured the bottle of water over my head and tossed the bottle to the side emerging through the curtain. The crowd was your usual mixture of cheers and boos because I'm not exactly Mr. Popular around here. They were all shoved up Adam Cole's ass. I held my hands out, yelling insanely as usual. I saw a fan's hand out so I smacked it. I was all fired up. I scanned the crowd but didn't make it to obvious. I slapped a bunch more hands that were reached out to me and I even leaned over the barricade, picked up a kid, and pointed to his shirt. His shirt read my signature, "Kill Steen Kill!" I got the crowd chanting that and I spun the little boy around then I handed him back.
I made my way down the ramp, with Nikki nowhere in sight. I have a feeling she is there. I get this weird feeling whenever Nikki is around that I mistook for butterflies at one point. It's hard to explain, my stomach does flips or some shit. I really shouldn't be focused on my wife being somewhere out there watching me but I am. I wanted to know her exact facial expressions before, during, and after the match. I wanted to impress her even though I hate her at the moment. I started to walk up the ring steps, belt in my hand, and that's when I noticed her.
Nikki Bella stood front and center, about as close as to the action as you can get. Which wasn't a good place for her to be, but what was I suppose to do? She wasn't going to listen to me and I had no time to explain. I quickly winked at her then entered the ring. My theme cut off and the ring announcer introduced us both. I stood in my corner, not taking my eyes off of Nicole. When I heard my name, I snapped out of it just in time to perform my usual taunt. I started chanting my own slogan, "Kill Steen Kill! Kill Steen Kill!" I beat the turnbuckle as the crowd roared. Even the ones who didn't like me.
The match was pretty one sided. I've said this countless times but Adam Cole is not a challenge to me. I was suppose to lose but it's really hard to lose when I'm this good at what I do. They don't call me Mr.Wrestling for nothing you know. Eventually, I'd have to stop showboating in front of my wife and take a beating. I pretended to get over confident and raised my fist in the air. I stalled and stalled until Adam pulled himself together and turned this match around. Adam punched like a girl. God I can't stand this kid. Adam threw my body outside the ring and I rolled straight into the barricade, my back slamming against it. Well. Shit. I started to pull myself up but Adam tugged my fat ass up then started punching me in the face a couple times. I leaned on the barricade for balance. I felt Nikki's hand on my shoulder and that's all it took for me to have this sudden surge of energy. I tackled Adam Cole into the ring post then we both fell to the ground.
Falling bought me a hell of a lot of time. "Let's go, Kevin!" The fans were actually on my side. Well, this is fucking weird. I'm not complaining though. They're the reason I'm even still here in this business anyway. Jim Cornette, the boss, cannot stand me. Mostly because I call him out on all the shit he does or had done wrong. I've smacked him around a few times and never got fired because I'm who sells the tickets, not no damn Adam Cole or anyone of those clowns. I pulled myself to my feet and was met my by four punches to the gut. He grabbed me by my hair, sling me back in the ring, then got up on the top turnbuckle setting up for the Panama Sunrise. I just let him connect. His finisher was the only good thing about him.
Adam Cole got the three count and was crowned the new ROH champion. I crawled to the corner and I felt really down. This is it. My last match in Ring of Honor. I stared at the mat. I tried motivating myself by saying this was only the beginning and that I was moving onto greater things. Grander pastures or however the hell they say that. "Thank you, Kevin!" The crowd started chanting and even though those bastards hated me the entire time I've been here, I love them regardless. I didn't realize I was crying until the steamers from the rafters started pouring down all around. Adam Cole went to the back which was good because even though he won the title, this wasn't about him. I stood up and held onto my ribs, in pain from that finisher, and raised my fist up high.
I suddenly felt arms wrap around me and I hadn't realized it before, but Nikki had managed to get in the ring somehow. I forgot what her hugs felt like so I allowed myself to enjoy this moment for I went back to hating her. She whispered to me, "I'm so proud of you, Kevin." I don't know what it was about those six words but I felt really satisfied. I'm pretty secure right in this moment. I'm not gonna lie. It didn't even feel like it was real. She pulled away from me but I couldn't just let her pull away. I pulled her back to me, closer and before I knew it, I kissed her. In front of Ring of Honor, in front of the world, probably in front of John Cena. Good. I want Cena to see this. At first, she was in shock so she didn't but after awhile, she got really into it. That's my Flawless Nikki.
We parted slowly and I smiled at her. She didn't smile back though. She probably just realized that we were on national television making out and that her family and John would find out about her nobody husband who just got signed to NXT. I shook my head, still smiling, then held my hand up. I showed her that I still wore my wedding band. I don't remember the last time I took it off to be honest. I dropped my smile to show her I was serious and I said, loud enough for the audience to comprehend, "For better or worse. Til' death do us part. I will never take this off. I promise you." She didn't reply the way I wanted. I don't know what I expected but that was not it. All she did was turn away, climb out the ring, over the barricade, and started walking up the steps in the audience toward the exit. I held my hand up still like an idiot.
It was like her leaving me all over again. Only this time I was actually watching her do it. Either way, it hurt like hell.
