bon appetit

“It is. Well I think it is anyway.” Riley gave a shrug. “And I’m a fan of you guys.” Laughing at Cassie’s joke, she ducked her head a little and when she looked back up to see the other brushing her hair out of her face she couldn’t help but bite her lip. “I’m sorry to disappoint you,” She started as she reluctantly let go of Cassie’s hand. “But I won’t be interviewing you or Jess today.” She waves the script around. “I’ve got to go talk to the new champ. “But I’m honoured that I’m your first choice. You sure know how to make a girl feel special.” Riley laughed again, but blushed slightly at how awkward she sounded. 

“Of course everyone was excited to see you guys! You both deserve to be here.” Riley replied, grinning even more now. She could help herself, the smile of Cassie’s face was infectious and adorable. The giddy feeling in her chest made it feel like she had been the one to debut tonight, not The IIconics. What was with her? She’d only meet this girl like two minutes ago and she was already hooked. “Smackdown is the perfect place for you, trust me.” As she shakes Cassie’s hand she raises an eyebrow. “You already know who I am?” She asked, a little confused. “But it is nice to meet you too Cassie.”

“Okay good.” Riley replied, a small smile forming on her face. As Cassie bent down to pick the script up, she quickly let out a sigh of relief. If she’d bumped into her any harder it might have caused some damage. “Well, I suppose you’ve got to keep up with all the messages from your adoring fans.” Riley grinned. “You were amazing out there today. I’m so glad you’re here.” She said genuinely as she stared at Cassie. Then, remembering where she was she soon snapped out of it. “But so was Billie as well… I mean Jess.” She stammered and then cleared her throat awkwardly. “Sorry. I’m being rude. I’m Riley.” She said as she stuck her hand out for Cassie to shake.

Everyone knew of one of the unsaid rules of the WWE, after Wrestlemania there was always some new main roster debuts. Maybe someone would return from injury, or make an epic comeback after being left the company for so long. But more often than not over the past few years it’s been NXT call ups. And there was one call up that Riley had been waiting for for a while. And this wasn’t just because Riley was such a huge wrestling mark and knew that this girl deserved a chance up here, but mainly because she wanted to finally meet her for the first time. Peyton Royce. Well, Cassie McIntosh to be exact. One half of the IIconics with partner Billie Kay - Jess McKay. And Riley could sit and list the rest of Cassie’s resume, but she hadn’t got time right now. Her crush on the superstar had been growing for a long time, which was dumb because they’d never even met before, and Riley knew she needed to get a grip.

Standing backstage, Riley had picked up the rest of the Smackdown script to check what interviews she had left, none sadly with Cassie, when she felt someone bump into the back of her. “Whoa.” She exclaims, dropping the script to the floor and turning around suddenly. “It’s okay.” She responds automatically and then it dawns on her who had bumped into her, the one girl she couldn’t get off her mind. “I’m okay.” She said dumbly as she continued to stare at Cassie. Then she snaps out of it. “Yeah, I’m totally fine.” She gives a little laugh. “Sorry I got in your way.”

Riley lets a little laugh out as Cassie pulls her even closer. She’s practically on her girlfriend’s lap right now, but it’s not like either of them would mind. She never realised that being in a relationship would feel so good. She feels like she’s found the one already, her perfect girl. Her hands move even further down now and cup Cassie’s hips.

Riley smiles into the kiss. She holds onto Cassie tight, never wanting to let go again. Then her hands are wandering, from Cassie’s waist and down her back. But the kiss stays soft and slow. They just need to take time to let these new feelings sink in.

“I suppose you’re right.” Riley says, leaning back so she could look up at Cassie’s face. “And honestly, if I had to hide my feelings for you any more, I think I would have exploded.” She admits. “I told you it was fate that brought us together.”

Riley grins again and hums contently “And maybe now, we might actually get through a movie or an episode of a show.” She glances over to the TV with a laugh. “Sorry we got distracted again.” She presses a soft kiss to Cassie’s neck. 

Riley can’t help but laugh into the kiss and she ends up pulling away. “You’re such a dork.” She says, a huge grin on her face. “But I guess you’re my dork now.” She kisses Cassie one more time and then moves so that she can wrap her arms fully around her. She just wants to hug her and to hold her, make sure she’s real. “I’m so happy right now.” Riley mutters, resting her head in the crook of Cassie’s neck.

Riley was completely unaware of Cassie’s inner issues, just like Cassie was unaware of her own. Of course she was hiding something huge, but she couldn’t tell Cassie, she couldn’t tell anyone. So she pushes it all down inside of her and tries to ignore the burning guilt. But hey, maybe they both deserved to be happy for a change. So fuck it, if they liked each other they should be together. Riley beams at Cassie and reaches out to grab her hand. “I thought you’d never ask. I’d love to be your girlfriend.” Then she kisses her. So soft and gentle but full of so much care.

Riley smiles a little more and then leans up to press a kiss to the top of Cassie’s head. “If only we’d known about our feelings sooner.” She murmurs but then shrugs. “You won’t fuck things up baby. I know you won’t.” She doesn’t really know anything about Cassie’s previous dating life, so she wasn’t sure what she had been through. But then Riley is grinning and tightening her grip on Cassie. “Is this real? Are we… are we dating?”

Riley moves herself forward and wraps an arm around Cassie’s waist. “Hey.” She says softly, her voice full of concern. “I don’t think that about you. I never could.” She starts to rub Cassie’s back gently. “I’m not perfect, and I have my doubts about myself, it’s true. But if we both have feelings for each other, maybe we can try and make this work.” Riley smiles and ducks her head to try and look at Cassie’s face. “I know I want to be with you more than I’ve ever wanted anything.”

“What?” Riley frowns again and reaches a hand forward to touch Cassie’s arm. “You’re not fucked up Cassie. Not at all.” She looks away, ashamed at herself. “I’m sorry. I just thought that… you wouldn’t want to be with me because of who I am.” She glances back at Cassie. “Do you really have feelings for me?”

“What?” Riley says, completely shocked by this revelation. Then she can’t help but smile a little. “You do?” She asks. But then she frowns. “No. You deserve so much better than me.” She shakes her head. “You can’t have feelings for me. It’s impossible.”

There were thoughts spinning around in Riley’s head now, that were distracting her. She should probably tell Cassie about her feelings. She didn’t want this to be just comfort sex and she’d have to hide her feelings again. Pulling away from the kiss, she looked straight into Cassie’s eyes. “I can’t do this.” Riley starts. “I have feelings for you Cassie. Like really bad.” She admits. And now she starts to think about how broken she was, how she didn’t deserve Cassie and all of her self doubts. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kissed you back.”

The kiss surprises Riley at first. She isn’t really sure what it means, Cassie doesn’t seem like the type of girl to kiss someone because she felt sorry for them so there must be a deeper meaning to it. But her feelings for Cassie take over and she wraps her arms around her waist and begins to kiss back.