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On Mondays We Wear Leather, part 1

Becky didn't think there would be many things she could dislike as much or more than Brock Lesnar, but she had just discovered another one to add to the list: getting the same protected treatment as Brock Lesnar. No one would come out and say it to her face, but it was basically an open secret that Vince didn't want the championships—particularly his biggest drawing talent—featured on television every week. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder my arse," Becky muttered as she waited for Charlotte to arrive so they could film the first of their three spots. Apparently Creative had finally decided to build up some matches for the upcoming TLC event, so it was shaping up to be an eventful RAW—at least if people could sit through the tedious 'divorce court' segment at the beginning.

She had been scribbling in her travel journal just to pass the time, since the women's locker room had been cleared out in advance for filming, but now Becky found herself writing random lists. Things she wanted to do, places she wanted to go, gift ideas for family: there was no rhyme or reason to the lists, so she hoped they would make sense later. Trying to figure out what to get Seth for Christmas was going to be a challenge: since it was going to be their first holiday season together, it felt like there was extra pressure to get everything just right. Under his name she had a big question mark. Maybe Charlotte will have some advice, she thought, tapping her pen against her thigh.

"Glad to see you got the memo about Wear Your Leather Jacket to Work Day." Laughing, Charlotte stepped further into the room, but waved back a waiting cameraman. Then she gestured down at Becky's lap. "You still keep a journal?" She looked a bit wistful as she added, "I don't recognize that one. But I guess you probably filled up the last one I got you."

Becky's posture softened as she glanced down too. She had almost forgot that this was the first journal she'd had to buy herself for a while; whether it was for a birthday or Christmas, Charlotte always seemed to have a new one in her gift bag. "It's been a busy year," she replied, standing so she could hug her best friend. "It's getting full, though. I might need a new one by Christmas."

Charlotte smiled and kissed her cheek. "I'll take that hint. There's a beautiful shop Andrade showed me. They make notebooks by hand. Maybe I'll get you a custom-made one."

"Then I'll be too afraid to use it!" Becky laughed, stepping back. "Speaking of Christmas, though, I need to pick your brain after." Then she pointed at the camera crew patiently waiting in the corridor. "Let's get this filmed first, though, and we can talk later."

"Yeah. In Medical, according to the scripts." Rolling her eyes, Charlotte retreated to the hallway.

As the cameras got ready, Becky settled back in her spot. Do fans really never question why there just happen to be cameras in the locker rooms? she wondered. She probably hadn't when she was a kid. She opened her journal again but turned it to a blank page; with her luck, someone would have done a screen capture if it were on a real page, then zoomed in and posted it online. She wrote a randomly related sentence about Asuka and Kairi just in case, feigning exasperation when Charlotte came in with her offer of a tag-team match against the Kabuki Warriors. After the promo was done and the tech crew had left to get the footage edited, Becky leaned back. "One done," she declared as Charlotte sat beside her. "Two to go."

Charlotte slung an arm around her shoulders. "I missed this. Every time I watch SmackDown and see Sasha and Bayley being all buddy-buddy, I get jealous." With a sigh, she kissed Becky's cheek and stood up. "Have fun getting your ass kicked."

Becky chuckled. "Asuka and Kairi always make it fun." And for the most part, she wasn't wrong. She wasn't a fan of lopsided handicapped matches, mostly because they never really made anyone look good: if the lone wrestler could beat two—particular in a case like this, against the tag-team champions—it made the team look weak, while a victory over the lone wrestler couldn't help but be anticlimactic. Asuka and Kairi's skill sets made it interesting, though. The spot with the table didn't go as planned, but they salvaged it as much as they could. It set up a future feud with Asuka nicely too, which was Becky's main goal. While she appreciated that the women's tag division needed to be built up, both of the single titles in the division were languishing.

"Fancy meeting you here," Charlotte teased after their first spot in the medical office was finished. Since they were filming a double episode that night to cover the holidays, it could be hard to keep track of what was 'live' and what would be used next week.

Becky reached over and handed her the ice bag she had just rejected on screen. "Want to get a head start? You'll be needing it soon."

"Sweet of you," Charlotte replied, "but I'll make them get me a new one. Nothing but the freshest ice for the Queen, you know." Her smirk softened somewhat as she added, "I'm glad we're getting to work together again. I know you'd rather be focussing on the title and I get that, but I've missed you. Maybe next year, we can have a tag team title run for real."

"Only if I get to make puns about 20-20 vision." Becky gave her a quick hug. "Go get your ass kicked already, would you? This bed isn't very comfortable to sit on."

"Thanks for the warning." Charlotte winked at her and left the room. Her ambush spot wasn't far from the medical office, so Becky could hear everything, and the camera crew wasn't far away. A few minutes later, Charlotte was back and the camera crew was setting up for angles. Before they knew it, the promo was done and the techs were filing out of the small room, leaving the two friends alone. "Done in one," Charlotte remarked. "You'd think we have chemistry together or something." Then she grinned wickedly. "Speaking of chemistry, is Seth trying to copy Finn now or something? Or did he just read the memo?"

Becky just shrugged. She knew something was happening with Seth's arc, but he wasn't sharing many details with her; he wanted it to be as much of a surprise as possible. "What do you mean?"

Charlotte's grin only grew. "Nothing, nothing. Maybe it's a matchy-matchy couples thing. . . . "

Becky rolled her eyes. "Please. You post pictures of you and Andrade in bed together. You two have matching outfits for photo shoots. Seth and I have nothing on that."

Hopping down off the bed, Charlotte laughed. "Not that you share, anyway. We don't have the same spotlight you two do, so we can get away with it. I'd say Have a good night," she added with a wink, "but I think that's going to be a guarantee."

Becky waited a few moments before leaving just in case there were any stray camera crews shooting in the hallway. Rather than head directly to the women's locker room, though, she detoured to the men's, intending to just pass by. Then she caught a glimpse of Seth in his heelish all-black, shrugging into a leather jacket. Definitely glad he got the memo, she thought, heart fluttering a bit as she approached.

He turned before she could collect herself and when he noticed how flustered she was, Seth smirked. "Hey." He sauntered over and slid a hand around her waist. There was only the smallest of gaps between her top and her shorts, but naturally his fingers found it, sneaking beneath to touch skin. She automatically tilted her face up for a kiss, but he nuzzled her neck instead. "Don't wear the leather pants back to the hotel," he murmured, making her shiver as his hand moved further up her back. "It takes too long to get them off."

A shiver rolled down Becky's spine before she felt uncomfortably warm. Seth had always been gorgeous as a heel, but he'd never been in full heel mode since they'd gotten together. She'd had hints of his darker side—and quite happily reaped the benefits, at least in the bedroom—but now she might get the full show. "Um, I should have leggings. . . ?"

Seth's wolfish grin only grew. "That'll do." He finally kissed her then, hard enough to make her breath catch and long enough to make her legs wobble. "Go get dressed. I'll be done soon." When he pulled his hand away, Becky almost stumbled, and she had to lean up against the wall to steady herself as she watched Seth adjust his jacket on his way to the gorilla position.

Once Seth was out of sight, Becky hurried to the women's locker room. Her attempt at a heel turn last year might not have worked out, but if that kiss was any sort of harbinger, she certainly hoped Seth's did.