#but some of y'all take the idea that Jon NEEDS to be a kid again

[strunmah-mah]

DC should publish a Superboy: Lost Days maxi or something. About the years after Jon escaped the volcano and was still living on Earth-3. I wonder if actually getting to see him grow up would help dispel the idea that de-aging him is the only way to make him interesting.

[kdenbibi]

Endless Chapter 5

Damian Wayne x Reader (x various)

Summary:Some questions are answered, some questions arise.

Warnings: Slight language, war flashbacks to Discowing

Authors Note: Yeet, hope ya like it

Tag List: @mirajanestrauss1999

I walked into the small coffee shop, shaking the snow from my beanie as I trudged towards the very back, my long winter jacket fluttered from the speed I was walking, I silently thanked the Lord they had the heater blasting in here.I peeled off the coat, tossing it in the empty booth in the back I'd been instructed to snag.  I tried my best not to let my nerves show, although to be fair I was meeting a complete stranger all by my lonesome, unfortunately Jon got an urgent call and had to bail, he seemed pretty hesitant to leave but after some reassurance that I'd be okay he dipped. Seconds felt like hours as I waited for the guy to show, my fingers drummed down on the worn down surface to the beat of the Christmas song softly drifting throughout the shop. The cheery atmosphere did nothing to quell the anxiety in my stomach, if the smell of cinnamon in the air and overall warmth the cafe provided couldn't help, then yeah I was definitely nervous. I tugged off my knit beanie, and attempted to smooth out the serious case of hat hair I had going on, thankfully, I braided my hair earlier so the loose curls sticking out looked on purpose, my fingers, now bored with the drumming, toyed with the ends of braid as a means of distraction. I felt my eye wander from the homely decorations hung up and around the walls, to watching the world go by through the window. I took in the sight, the snow had finally started to come down in Gotham so people were bundled up almost comically, and despite it being  below 40° outside, they went about their lives as usual, whenever new folks paid our city a visit, they were always perplexed at Gothamites abilities to ignore the freezing temperatures. I have to admit as sweet as the snow falling was to watch, hands down my favorite thing about this time of year was the city's tradition to string up what looked to be a million Christmas lights above and through downtown, making the usual dim, dark, nights much brighter. I was so in my thoughts I jumped at the sudden body very casually-and very loudly I might add- sliding into the booth across from me, I ended up slamming my knees into the table so hard the salt and pepper shakers knocked over. I whispered a curse under my breath as I rubbed at my newly bruised knee, and before I could roast the unwanted stranger, my head snapped up to see a familiar grin. "Yikes- that sounded like it hurt, you okay kid?" "Besides needing new kneecaps? Yeah just peachy - thanks for asking strange grown man." Said random man gave a warm laugh at my response, I took in his appearance, trying to gage if he was a threat or not, I could tell even sitting down the guy had a few good inches on me, he was wrapped in a brown bomber jacket, underneath was a crisp white shirt just asking to be stained by the grease that came with living here. He simply smiled while I analysed him, familiarity pinged in my head once I laid eyes on him grin. I scanned over his facial features, trying my damnedest to figure out where the hell I knew him from, his eyes were almost the same shade of electrifying  blue as Jon's, his hair fell in tufts of black waves, the few scattered snowflakes atop the waves made the black stand out even more.

All I got from my mini evaluation was this guy was hot, but I wasn't about to lower my defenses because of it.

He broke the silence before I could, suddenly looking confused as he glanced around the building. "Hey I thought you were gonna bring a friend? Or are they just hiding out in a vent waiting to ambush me if things go bad?" He joked, and just like that I remembered why I was even here. "Holy shit you're Ni- you're here." He nodded, the goofy grin ever present.My voice cracked mid sentence, I managed to stop myself from basically screaming 'Well butter my biscuits it's Nightwing! In the flesh!' and cleared my throat trying not to show the heat of embarrassment steadily creeping up my neck. "He uh- had to cancel actually, but don't worry I have a plan in case you turn out to be a weirdo." He laughed again, not taking any offense to my sort of threat. "Smart girl." He leaned back against the booth, thumbing through the menu like we were just two buddies catching up over coffee."I wonder if they serve any food, I'm starving.” He waved over the waitress grabbing himself a coffee, "Want something?" I responded still staring at the man confusion plastered across my face."Coco please." After a few moments of silence he spoke, clearly amused.

"You okay over there?"

"What no, wait I mean yeah why- why wouldn't I be." I internally cringed at my answer, he gave me a look which said he didn't but it, but the conversation dropped there.He filled the time spent waiting for our orders with casual stories about his day job as a police officer and how crazy it could be."Moral of the story, don't try to drive after your eyes have been dilated." I nodded, still, if not more nervous than I was earlier, a part of me felt like I should have been taking notes, he sighed into his palm, a smaller smile on his lips. "What is it? Do I have something on my face?" He picked up the dingy napkin dispenser, attempting to look at himself in the just barely reflective surface. I couldn't help the snort from escaping my mouth. "Nah I'm just trying to wrap my head around," I gestured to him with a wave of my hand. "- all this." He put down the dispenser with a smile. "It's pretty weird huh?" "Just a little." I laughed out pinching my fingers together. "I mean you're so - normal." Just then the waitress brought us our orders,He laughed into the coffee mug, taking a long sip before responding. "Well what did you think we did all day, work on our outfits and plan witty comebacks?" I paused before nodding. He sighed, rubbing his temple, "I can't speak for everyone but I happen to be a very normal guy- mostly." "Well 'normal guy' I gotta get your name cuz’ I'm running out of things to call you." He stuck out his hand,"Richard Grayson at your service, but my friends call me Dick." I took his outstretched palm with a firm shake. "Those don't sound like very good friends,” I joked “ I'm (Y/n) (L/n)." After half my drink was gone and the atmosphere was much lighter than earlier, a question popped up in my mind. "Let me ask you a question Dick." "Shoot." "Why'd you come here- you know, out of your whole 'sparkly' get up." He squinted at me, wiping his face before pointing a finger at my face. "First of all it is not 'sparkly', and let me tell you I know sparkly, one version of the costume had a very, very deep v-neck, I'm talking uncomfortable to look at deep, trust me this is an upgrade." I laughed, nearly chocking on my drink as I pictured him in the world's deepest v-neck, I wiped at my mouth with the back of my sleeve, the nerves finally leaving once I realized he was really just a normal dude.

Well a normal dude who kicks ass in tights at night but that's besides the point.

"Okay well that still doesn't tell me why you showed up all not-clad-in-skin-tight-kevlar. Aren't secret identities kind a big deal for y'all spandex junkies?" "Well yeah, but like I said before, you're a good kid, so I'm not all that worried." He leaned forward, a hopeful smile on his face. "Besides, there's gotta be trust between the people you work with- if you'd like to join us spandex junkies that is." I smiled at the man, a new wave of warmth spread through me as he spoke, I mentally paused, searching for any kind of hesitancy from my gut but all I got was a 50/50 ratio of nerves and excitement. "I'm listening, although I can't promise I'll squeeze myself into anything uncomfortable, even if it looks good." "Duly noted." He laughed. We spent the next hour shooting questions back and forth, most of his were unsurprisingly about what I could and could not do.

Mine were mostly about the tights.

By now the sun had set but there were still plenty of people walking about, apparently the threat of crime wasn't about to deter their Christmas shopping. "So what made you change your mind? About calling me that is?" He asked pulling me from my thoughts. I pulled on the sleeves of my shirt out of habit. "Something happened at the bank the other day-" "Wait, that mysterious hero was you?" "Yes and no," I gave a dry laugh "-anyway something..uh new happened with my powers and I figured if anyone could help me it be a dude who spends all his time around other people like me, can't exactly learn about this in chemistry class ya know?" He nodded with a warm smile, before his face shifted into something more of determination, "Look, I'll be honest here, personally I can't relate to the whole 'ooky spooky abilities' deal but I know a few people who do, and we'd all be willing to help." I gave him a soft smile, a warm feeling of appreciation swelled in my chest. "Thank you- I mean it really, I have no idea where it comes from- or what the full extent of it is." I huffed leaning back into the seat. "It sure be nice not to worry about it any more." "Again, like I said, it's kind of our job to help and protect. So it's not a problem kiddo." 

This felt like a moment from those sappy films where the older sibling figure ruffles the younger ones hair affectionately, but it wasn't.

Because if he tried it, I'd stab his hand with my fork out of reflex.

"So what's the plan here, am I gonna meet up with you in your secret lair and practice?" He chuckled out a no before continuing. "Not exactly, I'll have to finalize things with the big guy and when everything's ready we'll come to you." "Big guy?" He looked at me questioningly, a small smirk curling on his lips, waiting for me to come to my own conclusion. "Oh shit you mean Batman oh. OH." He shushed me with a laugh looking around at the other patrons before turning back to me. "Don't worry he's not at scary as everyone thinks." "Are you shitting me? Hell no." I shook my head with an uneasy laugh."He's on the Babadooks level- He's on that Freddy .vs. Jason level of scary." He barked out a laugh before pulling out the money to cover our bills. "Trust me kid, you'll do fine." "What if he doesn't like me? What if I don't make the cut and he throws me out a six story window?"

"That's oddly specific and-" he looked around for the sake of dramatics and whispered. "You didn't hear this from me, but if it'll make you feel better, you won't be dealing with him much." "Wait- who will I be dealing with then?" He winced out a small laugh, rubbing the back of his neck."See now I really can't tell you that."I pouted at the older man,"Dude! You said it yourself, there should be trust between people working together, don't contradict yourself Richard." I spoke with grin. "Damnit you got me there." He snapped his fingers together before leaning in "Okay but I'm only telling you because I think you deserve a warning." My brows shot up in concern at that. "Why would I need a warning exactly?" "Well, you remember that kid I had to stop from turning you to mincemeat?" "Yeah sure, I remember the goblin." He said nothing else, calmly sipping his mug, eyes cast away from me, making me realize exactly who he meant. "Shit."

Damian POV

I easily dodged Jon's incoming fist, his stance was wrong and his punches were sloppy, he was distracted by something. I used this to land a firm kick to the back of his exposed knee, bringing him down with a wince worthy thud.My heel pressed into the center of his back as I leaned down to the struggling teenager, the pressure increased on his back the lower I went. After realizing he wasn't getting up any time soon he tapped on the mat twice, signaling his defeat. "You're terrible at this you know." I offered him a hand after he managed to roll onto his back, he scoffed at me but took my offer, pulling himself into a standing position."Well yeah, thats the whole point of you training me." He rolled his shoulders before setting his feet in the proper position. He motioned at me to come at him, I simply walked towards the nearest bench and took a seat. "Aw come on Damian! You told me to come home and train but you won't even-" "You are distracted, in a real fight that would kill you." I spoke before taking a short sip from my water bottle. "Sort yourself out Jonathan." I watched the boy from the corner of my eye, his face was furrowed in frustration, I could tell he was losing his cool, it brought a smirk to my face. "I'm not distracted-" "You and I both know I'm not wrong, so talk, spew your problems like some prepubescent child, if it'll get your mind in the game."He sighed plopping down to sit on the slightly worn down mat, "I'm just a little worried about (y/n)-" "Why is there an update?" I spoke up interrupting him. He shook his head no. "Besides what happened at the bank? Nothing, I would have told you." He spoke that last line with a hint of bitterness, when I first told him to get intel on the girl, he was completely against the idea. My mind flashed to that first initial morning where they walked off together, a plan had came to my head to get the information I needed without doing much of anything. As the week progressed, I'd ask the Kryptonian if anything interesting happened with her, hoping she'd share with the boy, but unfortunately for me, he began to catch on. "Damian, can I ask you something?" "You just did but fine, go ahead." We sat at our usual lunch table, the everyday chaos of high school chatter blended our conversation into the background. "Why are you so curious about (y/n)?" I looked up from my book to meet his suspicious gaze."Is it wrong to be curious, Kent?" His leaned into his hand, the puzzlement in his eyes never faltering."No there's nothing wrong with that! its just, you don't really take interest in, well anything." I stared at him unimpressed. "No offense! I meant normal teenage stuff, like I only ever see you talk to a few people here, and whenever we talk it's about her." I won't lie, his intellect surprised me, but I didn't let it show. "She's seems like a nice person is all." I watched as his suspicion fell and the smile on his face grow into something mischievous. "So would you say she'd make a good friend?" My face scrunched in confusion."What?- sure yes if it'll shut you up." And with that he suddenly rose before making his way across the cafeteria, to my dismay he came back with the girl in question. (Y/n) looked between us, clearly just as confused as I was."Are you gonna tell me what was so urgent or keep me standing here like boo boo the fool?" "Damian wanted to know if you would sit with us for lunch!" Our eyes met, her's skeptical, mines more surprised than angry that the little shit had it in him to do this. I realized she was waiting for my confirmation, obviously not buying what Jon said. "If you want." I spoke after clearing my throat. An uneasy smile made it's way on her face before she sat down across from me, Jon took the seat next to her."Uh thanks? I mean this is uhm, nice of you and all but why?" Jon spoke for me. "Well we were just talking about how Damian here doesn't have many friends-" I kicked his shin hard under the table, but it only hurt my foot, I held back a wince and the urge to rub my now pulsing appendage. 'Boy of steel, right, I forgot.' Jon looked to me with a smirk before continuing."-and I was telling him all about how you're so nice and cool and yeah, here we are." She looked at me with a smirk stretched across her full lips, a perfectly arched brow rose in question, "That's surprising, who wouldn't wanna be friends with someone as charming and kindhearted as pretty boy over here?" The sarcasm was practically dripping from her voice.Jon, either too oblivious to notice or too excited to care, ignored this. "Great to hear! Well how was everyone's day?" Neither of us answered too busy in a stare off, I tried to analyze her, and she stared right back, refusing to step down from this unspoken glare contest. Jon interrupted us with a cough. "Well my day was great thanks for asking." She turned away to look at the taller boy, her expression much more friendly than the look she gave me. "Sorry, his whole 'children of the corn' thing going on is pretty distracting." she pointed her thumb back motioning to me, "-what'd you do today anyway?" He went on to list all the miniscule things he achieved before lunch. I half listened to their conversation, mostly focused on the novel I had, occasionally chiming in whenever I felt it necessary. Just like that the lunch period was over, and it was time to head back to reality.(Y/n) looked to me before she left, a half smile on her face, I was surprised it was directed at me and not the younger boy by my side. "You're not so bad Wayne, when you aren't talking that is." I smirked at the girl, slapping my novel shut with one hand."I'll admit, the brief moments your mouth was shut were rather nice." She laughed off my insult with a wave of her hand, before returning to her group to finish their day.

When the school day crawled to an end, and I was driving Jon and myself back to the manor, it occurred to me the boy in my passenger seat wasn't one to be easily fooled, it also occurred he may already know of her abilities and is acting stupid to throw off my questioning. I decided to sidestep all the bullshit of my original plan and straight out ask him. "Let's not beat around the bush Jonathan, has (y/n) told you anything strange about herself?" He snapped his head up, away from his phone to stare at me. "Pardon me?" I rolled my eyes at his act. "You know? Her powers, what has she told you of them?" "She has powers?" He practically screamed, I resisted the urge to slam the car into the traffic surrounding me and took a deep breath. "I'd appreciate it if you refrained from screaming like a banshee in my car." I spoke with a roll of my eyes, god the more time I spent with this kid the more I saw the inside of my head."You can drop the act, I know of her powers already." "I didn't!" He yelled, deflating in his seat."You're kidding me right?" He didn't answer."I'll take that as a no then, TT." He groaned tossing his hands up in the air, clearly distraught. The rest of the car ride was silent, him no doubt letting the information sink in. It wasn't until days later did we speak again, after he returned home rather late, looking like he'd been kicked down a flight of stairs. I sipped at the tea steaming in my cup as he sat down at the table, rubbing at his neck, exhaustion clear in his body language. "What's up with you?" His tired eyes lifted to meet mine. He hesitated before speaking, having some sort of internal debate on whether or not to tell me. "Something happened today, something with (y/n)." He gave me a very rough explanation, not wanting to delve into the details too much, before trying to head up to bed, I grabbed his arm stopping him in his tracks. "You saw what happened today, it could get worse if she doesn't get help, but she won't listen to me, so you have to do it." "What- me? I don't even know what you're saying." I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at the kid before speaking again. "You're her friend, it should be easy to get some information about the extent of her abilities and bring it back to me." He scoffed at me, "I wouldn't deceive her like that- I wouldn't deceive anyone like that!" "You wouldn't be deceiving anyone, you'd simply be using your friendship to gain information for the greater good." I responded with a shrug."It would feel wrong, I don't wanna use her." "No one said you'd use her, you can still keep up that happy go lucky friendship shit once you tell me what I need." "That's not how friendships work." He chewed on the nail of his thumb, deep in thought. I continued, placing a hand on his shoulder. "As a hero, it's your responsibility to protect the public from any threats, or any potential threats." I used my Robin voice, the tone I used to talk to civilians, commanding but nonthreatening, trying to get it through his thick head."She's not a threat." He looked conflicted as he spoke. "Any unregistered meta is a threat, hell me and you both are threats. Power in the wrong hands is never a good thing." "Well it's not in the wrong hands, she saved those people today!-" "Prove it to me, show me she's not a threat and I'll drop it." We stared at one another in silence before he nodded, a fire in his eyes.

"Deal."

I was brought back to the present when he moved to stand, stretching out his body."I think I'm good now, you ready for round two?" I placed the water bottle down before rising, I walked until I was an arms reach away from him, "Let's see if Kryptonian's are all their hyped up to be."

After a good two hours of sparring (aka me tossing him on his ass in many different ways) and getting an idea of what he could do and handle, we called it a day. We made our way up from the cave, into the empty kitchen, he grabbed two water bottles from the fridge, tossing one to me before sitting down at the table.I nodded as thanks and pressed the cold bottle against my warm skin, sure the kid couldn't fight for shit but he was resilient as hell. I leaned against the counter, the cold of the marble bringing some relief to my overheated body. "What had you so worked up earlier anyway?" I asked breaking the silence that had fallen over us as we tried to catch our breaths. He finished patting his face with a towel before speaking."Oh it's nothing serious, I was supposed to go with her to meet someone but she texted me everything's going smoothly." "Why would she need you there?"

Thankfully he learned early on not to take my bluntness to heart, so he replied with a smile.

"I mean who wants to meet some hardcore vigilante all by themselves?" My head snapped up so fast it startled the younger boy. "She's doing what?" He grimaced at me, a nervous smile on his lips. "Meeting up with a vigilante to discuss her powers?" He spoke as more of a question than an actual answer.I felt the urge to slam my hand to my forehead, or alternatively his head into the cabinet. "It just occurred to you to share this with me now?" 

My voice was rising, I couldn't believe the amount of stupidity bottled up into one human. "Hey in my defense I thought you knew! I mean it is Nightwing, you guys are cool right? You have nothing to worry about!." His eyes shifted from me to the doorway, as he inched towards it, his voice had gone up a few good octaves in fear. He held up his hands like he expected me to throw something his way, a good chunk of me thought that wouldn't be a bad idea. I paused, racking my brain for answers to all the questions I had, why would Dick go see her? Why didn't I know about it? Why was I not strangling Jon right now? So many questions with no answers. I looked up to ask him for any other withheld information only to see his body quickly disappearing down the hallway.

"I'm sorry I'm running but you're way too freaky to be around when you're mad!" He yelled over his shoulder, it echoed throughout the hallway. I had now two options, call Dick, demand an explanation and hope he'll give it to me, or take my anger out on my housemate and then call dick.

Option two sounded much more fun, and besides, a quick throw off the balcony would test his flight skills.

[msbigredmachine]

Into The Deep End - Chapter 33

Sasha has always tried to play it safe, to keep her life as simple and risk-free as possible. Things change, however, when she garners the interest of a handsome, charming, younger man from a completely different world than hers. As she starts to question her own rules, is she ready to take the biggest chance of them all? Will she let herself take that dive? Roman Reigns/OC

CHAPTER 32

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Rolling his blue eyes, Jon pointed his fork at the iPad propped on the table between himself and his buddy Joe. "Rollins, calm your girlfriend down," he spoke into the screen.

Joe laughed and took a bite of his toast as the raven-haired, green-eyed woman in the iPad screen clapped her hands happily. Colby sat beside her, pulling his two-toned hair into a ponytail. "What? She's happy for Joe, let her be," he said.

"Look at you, can't even stand up to your girl," Jon mocked, snickering when Colby promptly flipped him the bird.

"Shut up Ambrose," Lauren chastised, returning her attention to the Samoan. "About time you and Sasha patched things up, Joe. You two belong together. I was going to come over there myself and knock some sense into you both."

Joe chuckled. "No need for that, babe. It's all good between us now."

"And you love each other! That's so damn sweet," Lauren gushed, oblivious to Colby rolling his eyes behind her. "I'm so glad things are working out for you, big man. It's been a long time coming and you deserve every bit of it."

"Thanks, L. So what are you and Mr. Idiot doing? Hanging out at home?" the Samoan asked.

"Yep." Colby sighed and looked over his shoulder into the room. "We got somewhere to be in about half an hour but right now I'm still trying to pack for tomorrow."

Jon groaned. "I haven't even started," he stated, biting off half a sausage link. "Hey Joe, think you can get Sash to help me again? Last time she packed my suitcase in ten minutes."

"Hell no," Joe quickly dismissed him, "Do it yourself. Weren't you coping before she came along?"

"Yeah. But she's so much better at it," the younger man tried to reason.

"No."

Lauren laughed and checked her watch. "Well guys, we'd love to stay and chat some more but we need to get going," she said. "We'll talk later, Joe. Give Sasha a kiss from me. And no tongue for God's sake."

"You're no fun," Joe winked at her, right before she stepped out of the frame.

"Where's my kiss?" Colby asked his girlfriend, pouting.

"You come over here and I'll give you more than a kiss," the two men heard Lauren's seductive reply in the background, and they immediately pretended to gag. "Hey, we're eating over here," Joe complained, laughing when Colby made a face at them before logging off of FaceTime.

Joe put away his iPad as Jon picked up the pepper shaker. "Lauren's right though," he said. "It's great that you and Sasha are back together."

"Trust me, I'm just as relieved as y'all are," Joe replied.

"Lord knows if you didn't do something soon enough I might've considered whisking her away for myself," Jon added.

Joe smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Really?"

The Cincinnati native shrugged as he took another bite of his breakfast. "Yeah. She's sweet, feisty, a great cook, she takes good care of us and...well, she's pretty hot. I ain't exactly blind, ya know. I actually used to have a little crush on her very early on. I can say that now without fear of getting my ass kicked." At the look on his friend's face,he chuckled. "Relax, G.I. It was only a little one. She's only ever had eyes for you anyway. No one else stood a chance. Not me, not that slimeball Orton, not nobody."

Joe would have been lying if he said he wasn't glad to hear that. "Well, you got Renee now, right?"

Jon gave him a strange look. "Dude, we're not together."

Joe rolled his eyes. "Of course not."

"Nope," Jon insisted. "We hang out, we fuck sometimes, we go to work. You know how it goes."

"Sounds like your everyday relationship," he joked, looking closely at Jon. "And that's all you want from her?"

"What do you mean?"

"You don't want to be with her as more than just a bed buddy?" Joe pressed. "At all?"

Jon thought about it then shook his head. "Naw. Not interested. Unnecessary drama. Besides, she's too much like me. Two crazy pseudo-blonde sluts that are too busy to settle down. Trust me. We prefer it this way." Nonchalantly, he raised his coffee to his lips, leaving Joe to think about the statement and wonder how much truth there was to it. "So is the kid comin' or what?"

As if on cue, T.K. strolled into the restaurant. He pushed back the hood of his sleeveless sweater and looked around for the wrestlers, smiling when he found them. Reaching their table, he gave both men a fist bump. "Hey, what's up?"

"Hey kid. You're lookin' good," Jon complimented, looking over the teenager's improved physique. "You're taking the workout seriously."

"Yeah. I'm enjoying it," he smiled, sliding into the booth next to the blue-eyed man. "Thanks for inviting me, guys." After breakfast, Joe and Jon were heading out for a WWE-related photoshoot and they had asked T.K. to come along. Again, there was no hesitation from him. He enjoyed every moment he spent with them, gaining rare insight into their unique lives. It was awesome, and a little surreal, that he was getting to know people he watched on TV on a personal level.

"No problem. Order something because we got a long day ahead," Joe said, waving a waitress over. "Hope we're not throwing a wrench in any plans you got."

"Not at all. Actually, you're life savers." Seeing their questioning expressions, he clarified, "I needed to get away from Chanel and y'all gave me the perfect escape route."

"Hmm. You and your girl havin' problems?" asked Joe, cutting his sunny side-up.

The waitress came over and T.K. placed his order before returning to the conversation. "We weren't ever really together. And I just ain't into her anymore. She's too clingy."

"Oh, we know tons of chicks like that." Jon rolled his eyes while Joe shrugged in agreement. T.K. looked at his ringing phone and groaned. "She's calling me right now. What do I do?" the teen implored.

"Ignore her. Turn your shit off," said Jon.

Joe shook his head and pointed at his friend. "This blockhead is the last person to be taking relationship advice from. You should talk to her. Tell her the truth about how you feel. Avoiding her won't solve anything."

T.K. looked skeptical. "But she never takes no for an answer."

"Well that's her problem," Jon stated critically, waving his fork around as he spoke. "You don't want her no more. She should deal with it."

"Man, shut your ass up." Joe shot Jon a stern look, then looked back at T.K. "Look, you're better off coming clean to her than making her feel like you jerked her around. She might take it badly but in time she'll leave you alone." He leaned back in his seat. "The earlier you tell her, the better. But for now...block her number."

A man, a woman and a little girl entered the restaurant together. Joe turned his head and his smile faded instantly. Reflexively, he looked at T.K. Jovial and talkative only a second ago, the teenager was now rigid and withdrawn. Joe knew he'd seen them as well.

Jon looked over at the man guiding what seemed like his wife and daughter into a booth and did a double take. The man was the spitting image of T.K., and the Cincinnati native was given an idea of what the teenager would look like in twenty years' time. Sensing the tension suddenly emanating from T.K. beside him, he exchanged a look with Joe and learned everything he needed to know in an instant. He wisely kept his mouth shut.

The waitress returned with T.K.'s breakfast. Joe's stomach sank a little as Tyson caught sight of them and started making his way towards them. Crap, he recognized them. Joe had seen him around the area a couple of times but never interacted with him before. He hoped there would be no trouble. But if there was, he had no problem restoring order in his own special way.

"Hey, I know you. You're Roman Reigns. I'm Tyson. Big fan." Flashing a big smile, he extended his hand to Joe. Joe refrained from rolling his eyes at the other man's pretentious behavior. But not wanting to look like a douche, the Samoan took his hand, shaking it a little more firmly than usual. "Thanks."

"I've seen you on this side of town a few times. You live here?" Tyson inquired, hands in his pockets, still smiling.

"No." Joe glanced glanced at T.K., who was making a conscious effort not to look at his father. The older Tyson was clearly doing the same. This was tension and then some, and Joe wouldn't complain if the other man went away.

"I see." Tyson's lips curled, in no mood to leave just yet. "Oh, by the way, havin' fun with my ex?"

Instantly, T.K. raised his head. There was fury in his eyes as he stared at Tyson. Underneath the table Joe's hands clenched into fists. "What was that?" he asked, sounding much calmer than he felt.

"You know. My ex-girlfriend. Sasha?" Tyson sneered. "Yeah, I seen y'all once or twice. Y'all look real cute together. You datin’ her or somethin’?" His shoulders shook as he sniggered.

Joe fought off the rage brewing inside him. "Yeah, we’re dating. That funny to you?" he demanded.

Still laughing, Tyson said, "Nope." He made a show of calming himself down. "It's just...I never thought I'd see the day...a celebrity having my sloppy seconds."

"Oh I know you ain't talkin' 'bout my Mama!" T.K. shot to his feet, only stopped from charging at Tyson by Jon throwing his arm out in front of him. "Hey, hey, hey! Calm down. Sit your ass down, kid. Sit. Down." he ordered sternly, coaxing T.K. back into his seat. A few heads had turned curiously in their direction. He looked on wearily as across from him, Joe stood slowly to his full height in front of Tyson. "Joe, come on man, leave it alone. It ain't worth it."

He thought Jon knew him better. That he preferred to pick on someone his own size. At least he'd be given a fair fight. Not taking his eyes off Tyson, the Samoan pursed his lips arrogantly, shaking his head at Jon's words. "Naw, I ain't gonna touch him." Reaching over to the table next to them, he picked up a clean fork. "I ain't even gotta say nothin'. He dumped a gorgeous, sexy, classy lady for that," He jerked his head in the direction of the table where Desiree was loudly scolding a crying Tiffani, "That's all I need to know about him."

Tyson bristled, all amusement wiped off his face. "That's my wife you talkin' about like that, boy," he growled.

Joe sat back down and shrugged. "Like I said, I rest my case."

Tyson stood there, incensed. Though he knew far better than to pick a fight with two pro wrestlers, he would not leave without the last word. "Wait till that one," he pointed at T.K., "becomes a problem. We'll see if y'all as buddy-buddy as y'all are now." With a scoff, he trudged back to his table, gathered up his wife and daughter and ushered them back out of the restaurant, ignoring an oblivious Desiree's demands to know why they were leaving.

"What an asshole," Jon commented, breaking the tense silence that settled around the table.

Joe returned his attention to T.K., the boy's eyes blazing with hatred as he watched his father drive away. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," he answered brusquely, pushing his unfinished breakfast away. "I'm not hungry anymore. Can we get a box for this?"

Joe wanted to argue but thought better of it, summoning the waitress once again. "Fine. You'll need it later during our shoot. We're gonna be there a while." He held the teen's gaze for a moment. "How about we keep that little incident from your mom, huh?"

Nodding his head in agreement, T.K. shared a small smile with the Samoan. "No problem."

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WARNING! Very mature content ahead.

It was midnight. The kids were asleep in T.K.'s room and Sasha was like a mouse out to play while the cat was away. Finally, they could have their private time. She should have felt bad for shipping Mia out of her room and into T.K.'s for the night just so she could play virtual porn star with Joe, but she had a feeling it would all be worth it, especially after the text message he had sent to her earlier in the day:

Hi baby girl. Miss u already. Can't wait till we FaceTime tonight. Btw, Pam snuck a present under ur bed this morning. Call me before u open it, and make sure you're in a...state of undress. ;) X

Reaching under the bed, she felt around and touched something, pulling it out and setting it on her lap. It was a rectangular box with gold wrapping paper sealed with a red bow. As she eyed it curiously, Joe's FaceTime ID popped up on her iPhone. Sasha connected the call and was greeted by her boyfriend's smirking face. Seeing his tattooed chest made her skin tingle. "Baby," she gushed, smiling widely.

"Man, you are a sight for sore eyes, Sash," said Joe, shifting on his hotel room bed to get more comfortable. "Found it yet?"

"Yep," Sasha replied, tapping the box on her lap. "Can I open it now?"

His smile was sly, cryptic. "Go right ahead."

Sasha tore open the wrapping paper, looked inside and gasped in horror, "Oh my god! You got me a dildo?" She whispered the last word, almost afraid that her kids would hear her even though they were both fast asleep at the other side of the apartment.

"You can thank Pam for the idea," said Joe, "That one's top of the line according to her, with like six different settings and has one of those double vibrating stimulation things."

"You got my best friend doing your dirty work now?" Sasha said, smiling at her phone screen. "What else have you two planned behind my back?"

"The only plans I got are with you, nani," said Joe. "Let me look at you, baby. Put the phone in a good spot." He was using his iPad for optimum viewing. He would much rather have her in the flesh but this was close as he could get to the real thing.

"The screen is kinda small," she pointed out, tilting the white iPhone from side to side. She was stalling but he didn't have to know that. Finally, she slid the phone into the phone dock and rested her back against the headboard, a big smile on her face as she waited for him to see her properly.

"Well, I see you perfectly so it's fine," Joe told her, his mouth instantly going dry when he finally noticed what she was wearing. "Holy fuck..."

She looked beautiful. Fucking hot. Her underwear complimented her chocolate skin and showed off her generous bosom invitingly. Her hair was down the way he liked. And he could see all of this because she was leaning back on the bed, her legs crossed seductively. "Wow, baby girl."

At the look on his face, Sasha twirled a lock of hair in her finger and puffed out her chest. "You like?"

"Like? I love! You look like a goddess. Turn around. Let me see that ass." He watched as she pushed up on all fours and turned. He saw the string of her panties disappear between her ample butt cheeks. Sasha looked over her shoulder at the iPhone screen, bouncing her ass teasingly with a wicked smile on her face, and Joe felt himself go rock hard instantly. "Damn, baby," he whispered, "Damn."

Giggling, she returned to her seated position. "Are you alone?"

"Yeah. Colb is hanging out with Dolph and Kofi and a couple of others. Don't know where Jon went, probably with Renee or something."

"Good. No one will interrupt us then." She slid her hands up her body and cupped her breasts. A soft moan escaped her. "I watched you on TV tonight," she whispered, "You tryna get me killed, ain'tcha? Lookin' so damn hot and making me want you bad."

Joe watched her massage her tits, jealous that it wasn't his hands doing the touching. "Is that right?"

"Mm-hmm." She squirmed a little as she rubbed her nipples. "I miss you."

"I miss you too sweetheart. I wish I could be there with you right now."

"Talk to me, big boy. Tell me what you would be doing if you were here," she breathed, her lust-filled gaze fixed on him.

"I would be laying on top of you on that bed," he started. "I would kiss your soft, sexy lips nice and slow, slide my tongue into your mouth to taste you. My hand would move up your thigh, up your hips and your body and squeeze one of those pretty tits that belong to me. My mouth would suck the other breast, my tongue flicking over your nipple. Then I'd switch titties. You know I gotta give 'em both equal attention..."

He trailed off, swallowing hard as Sasha pushed down the strap of her bra to expose her breast. Unconsciously, his hand slid over the front of the black briefs he wore and palmed his throbbing erection. Watching her with dark, hooded eyes, he forged on. "I would suck hard enough to make you moan my name, baby. Scrape your nipple with my teeth, blow on it a little and suck on it again. I know how much that drives you wild."

"It drives me crazy, baby," she responded. With her thumb and forefinger she rolled and tugged her nipple, imagining it was his hot, wet mouth on her. "Mmm, Joe..."

Her moaning his name like that would surely be the death of him. He reached inside his briefs and pulled out his dick, wrapping his fist around the hardened length. He widened his legs so she could see better. "Like what you see, baby?" he asked, smirking when she licked her lips. 

Sasha smiled lasciviously, a ravenous look in her eyes. "Oh yeah. That dick looks fuckin' delicious. I wanna wrap my lips around that big beautiful dick. I'ma suck and lick every inch of you until you're begging me to let you come in my mouth," she murmured, watching intently as he started moving his hand up and down his length slowly, and the action made Sasha's body heat up. "That's it, big boy. Stroke that big cock for me," she encouraged him.

"You look sexy as hell in that lingerie, babe, but right now you're overdressed," he said. "Take it all off, nani. Strip for me."

The corner of her mouth curled, and Joe's breathing grew heavier as she slowly unclipped her bra and pulled it gracefully off of her. The sexual tension smoldered through their screens. She slid her panties down her legs, which hung straight in the air as she took them off. Joe remembered her mentioning that she'd taken up yoga with Pam to regain her flexibility. He couldn't wait to discover the new positions he could contort her body in. When she sat there stark naked with her thighs pressed together, he growled. "Don't go all shy on me now, sweetheart. Spread your legs for me. Let me see how much you want me."

Sasha's heart raced as she obeyed, giving him full view of her goodies. Joe's mouth watered as he noticed how nicely trimmed she was, how wet and ready she was for him. "Shit, baby. Even from here I can see how soaked you are. I wanna eat that juicy pussy. Lick and suck you while I'm squeezin' your big ass in my hands, your tasty thighs wrapped around my head."

His voice was raspy and bone-melting, and the thought of his head between her legs and his lethal hurricane tongue assaulting her pussy made her even more aroused. Desperate to ease some of the tension in her body, her hand slid down between her legs and with a moan she began to rub herself, fixated on Joe's leisurely ministrations.

"That's beautiful, baby girl. I love watching you touch yourself. It's so fuckin' hot." He watched her hungrily, licking his lips as her fingers slid up and down her folds. "Slip your fingers inside your pussy. Feel how wet I'm making you."

She nodded her head and quickly did as she was told, pushing her middle finger into herself. "Fuck. Baby I'm drippin'," she gasped and moaned as she added another, slowly working them inside her. Seconds later she pulled her fingers out and put them in her mouth, tasting herself, and Joe growled out at the sight. “That’s so fuckin’ hot Sasha, goddamn.”

"I need you, Joe,” the mother of two moaned. “I need your big dick inside me."

Her voice was husky and pleading, and his dick twitched in his grasp at the sound of her moans. The sight before him was incredible; his woman sprawled naked on her bed with her legs wide open, gasping his name while she pleasured herself. He was so damn turned on that his body ached. "Pick up the dildo."

Sasha snatched up the flesh-colored silicone toy, noting for the first time that it was actually the same size as Joe. The realization filled her loins with another wave of moist warmth. "Uh huh?"

"Rub the tip against your pussy lips first, get it nice and wet," he instructed her, groaning again as she complied. He was surprised he hadn't exploded from the sensations attacking his two-hundred-plus pound frame. "Now turn it on and fuck yourself with it."

She twisted the bottom of the toy and a buzzing sound immediately filled the room. She pressed the tip against her clit, her body arching with a gasp as more pleasure instantly swarmed her insides. Breathing heavily, she slowly began to thrust the vibrating toy in and out of her, stimulating herself. "Aw yeah...fuck...ooh..."

Joe jerked himself faster as he watched her carefully. "That feel good, baby?" he asked, his eyes dilated with lust. "Are you thinkin' of me fuckin' your tight pussy?"

"Yeah, baby! You feel so good, big boy. Awww god!" She threw her head back, moaning in ecstasy. Her pussy clenched around the toy, and Joe squeezed his eyes shut, cursing as he visualized her tight wetness engulfing his dick the same way. "Fuck yourself faster, Sasha. Just like I would fuck you...ah!" He groaned, his toes curling as shockwaves zipped through his entire body. The buzzing sound, her moaning, the sight of her essence leaking from between her legs combined with the pleasure surging through him was sensory overload. He groaned as he worked his aching dick, his other hand massaging his balls the way Sasha would. "Fuck. Wait till I get you alone, baby girl," he rasped, arching his hips up into his hand. "I'ma pound that pussy so hard you won't walk straight for a week."

Sasha's only response was a wanton growl through gritted teeth as she thrust the toy faster. She forced herself to keep her eyes on her boyfriend, his hips flexing as he continued to stroke his engorged member. The heat started to build up within her, growing hotter by the second. "Joe, oh god," she said, her breaths expelling in short bursts as she grinded desperately on the vibrating dildo. "Fuck, I'm gonna fuckin' come," she gasped.

"I'm fuckin' close, Sash," he grunted, feeling his balls tingle and tighten. "Come on that dick baby. Come for me." He could see her legs trembling and her toes curling, signifying her end was indeed near. His hips bucked as he pumped himself as hard as he could, Sasha doing the same at the other end.

"Fuck! Yes, yes, yes...awww fuck!" Her entire body stiffened, then shook, her free hand clutching the sheets at her side. She heard Joe groan loudly and forced her eyes open in time to see his milky seed erupting like a volcano and spilling all over his hand and abdomen. His cheeks were flushed and his forehead glistened with sweat, and she'd never seen anything so beautiful. He always looked beautiful when he came. After her body finally relaxed and she could see straight again, she pulled the toy out of her, moaning softly as she did so, and turned it off. She crawled closer to her phone. "You alright, baby?" she asked, the dazed smile on his features resembling the one on hers.

"I'm great," he panted, his chest heaving as he picked up a wet wipe and cleaned himself up with it. "Babe, that was fuckin' awesome."

Quickly stashing away the discarded lingerie and the toy, she picked up her iPhone from the dock and lay back down on the bed, holding the phone in front of her face. "It was. I'd have liked to see you a little better but other than that it was fantastic."

"We definitely need a repeat soon. This is probably the hottest thing we've ever done together." He grinned and leaned closer to the screen. "I really liked that cute little number you had on. I can't wait to come home so I can take it off of you myself."

"You've made a few promises tonight, big boy. I'm holding you to all of 'em."

"You better," he responded, looking at the time on his iPad. "I better get some sleep. Need to be up in four hours."

Sasha nodded, lying on her side. "You do that, handsome. I know you got a long day tomorrow."

"Yeah, but after what we just shared, I think I can face whatever the hell tomorrow brings," said Joe, gazing lovingly at the woman at the other end. His woman. "I love you," he said.

"I love you too," Sasha smiled. "Dream of me tonight."

"I always do, baby. See you on Wednesday."

"Will do. Goodnight." Blowing a kiss to the screen, she ended the call and closed her eyes with a lazy smile. She was going to sleep very well tonight.

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CHAPTER 34