Best for Business

Full of apprehension, I take another look at the people around me. Stephanie and Mick Foley sit in front of me, and Seth’s beside me. Stephanie’s hands are in her lap. She looks as professional as she always does. Mick looks more laid back. He’s leaning against the back of his chair, a big smile on his face.

This would be like any other meeting, if Seth Rollins wasn’t seated right beside me. I’ve never talked to him, let alone sit right next to him. Whatever Stephanie wants to talk about concerns both Seth and I, and we don’t have that much in common.

Seth is the top heel in the company, while I’m the newest face in the women’s division. He’s a champion, I’m not. He’s been here for years, I’ve been here for a month. I’m not at the level Seth is at; it’s too early in my career.

I pry my eyes off him, finally settling my eyes on Stephanie and Mick. It’d be easy to get lost studying his face, memorizing the details of it. I can’t forget why I’m here with him in the first place.

Stephanie clears her throat. She looks between Seth and I, a giant smile on her face. “Thank you both for coming today. I know it seems odd that we want to talk to you both together, but we have an opportunity for both of you. One that will be mutually beneficial.”

“What is it?” Seth asks.

“Well, let’s start with Shay. You’ve only just started here on Raw, and the crowd loves you. You already the most popular woman on the roster, and it’s only been three weeks. That’s so impressive,” Stephanie says seriously, but also genuinely. I feel myself blush as she talks about me, flattered that she’s saying such nice things.

I open my mouth to thank her, but she continues, “And, Seth, you’re the exact opposite of that. You’ve come back from your injury with a rise in popularity, but you’re still a heel. I know you’ve expressed interest in turning face, and Mick and I might’ve found the best way to do that.”

“What do you plan to do, exactly?” Seth’s voice is on edge, almost nervous.

This time Mick speaks. “We think you two should work together, so to speak. If you two appear as a couple, it could change Seth’s role.” He looks directly at Seth now, “Your attitude will change in order to impress her, your heel-like tendencies will fade away. You’ll become the new and improved Seth Rollins.”

“This will only work if you’re both on board. We know it’s a lot to ask. We don’t want to put you in situations you’re uncomfortable with,” Stephanie says.

I look over to Seth. He’s staring straight ahead, at Stephanie. I can’t tell by looking at him how he feels about all of this. He doesn’t say anything, so I talk first. “We could try it. It would be good for both of our careers.”

“How long do we have to think this over?” Seth asks as soon as I’m done speaking.

“By next week. We want to get this started immediately. If you don’t, we’ll have to start thinking of other ways to shake things up for you both.”

“Oh, one more thing,” Stephanie says, “We need to start doing things a little differently regarding storylines like this. We want to make it appear more personal. Shay is very active on Instagram, so we’d like her to put photos of you two on Instagram, like a real couple. We don’t want what happened between Rusev, Lana, and Dolph again.”

I nod slowly. Lana and Dolph had a storyline roughly a year ago. The angle also involved Summer Rae, the two women competing for Dolph’s attention. All was going well, until TMZ leaked Lana and Rusev’s engagement. The storyline fell apart after that. Fans lost interest in Dolph and Lana, and began focusing back on Rusev and Lana - the exact opposite of what was supposed to happen.

There’s nothing wrong with what Rusev and Lana’s engagement, it was just bad timing. Until that storyline, it wasn’t a big deal what happened in anyone’s personal life.

“Understood,” Seth stands. “Is there anything else?”

“That’s all for today,” Stephanie smiles.

Mick stands alongside Seth. “If you two haven’t had the pleasure of meeting before today, take the next few days to get to know each other. This is all based on your chemistry together, too. The best stories are told between people who move well together. Get to know each other and see if you two could make this work.”

Mick shakes both of our hands. I thank them both for the opportunity and exit the room. Seth follows close behind. He shuts the door behind us, then turns over to me. He doesn’t say anything at first, just stares. Unsure of what to do or say, I break the silence. “This sure is an interesting way to meet each other,” I laugh nervously.

He runs his hand through his dark hair, a small smile on his lips. “Yeah, it sure is. I’m Seth.”

“Shaylin, but everyone calls me Shay.” Seth extends his hand, which I shake. “What do you think about all of this?”

“It’s... quite something. I never thought I’d be in a storyline like this.”

“I get what you mean.” And it’s true. I never thought my first major storyline - or any, really - would entail me not wrestling. It’s difficult to picture myself acting like I love a man I hardly know. Other people have had it far worse in this same scenario. Rusev had to pretend to be interested in Summer, and Lana had to watch. Lana had to show interest in Dolph Ziggler, while Rusev had to watch. I’m not in a relationship, so I don’t have to worry about that. But still, showing fake affection is not easy for me.

“I have to go get ready for my match, but can we talk about this later? We can get coffee on Wednesday, if you’re free?”

“Yeah, of course. I’ll see you then.”

We stand there awkwardly for a minute, neither of us moving. Seth runs his hands through his hair again, and then laughs. Not a real laugh, but an uneasy one. “I should probably get your number then.”

“Oh, right! Do you have your phone?” My dress doesn’t have any pockets, so it’s impossible to carry my phone with me. The most fatal flaw in women’s clothing.

Seth hands me his iPhone. I quickly type in my number hand it back to him. I left my contact name blank, so he can put whatever name he sees fit. “I’ll see you later,” Seth smiles one of the first genuine smiles I’ve seen from him. He walks away before I can say anything else.

What am I getting myself into?