More Than Turkey - Part 1 / 3 - This Chapter : No Pairing.
Title : More Than TurkeyAuthor : Kimberly
Part : 1/3
Characters : Cody Rhodes, Drew McIntyre, various members of Cody's family
Pairing : None, this chap.
Warnings : Swearing and mentions of sex.
"No, Mom, she's going home to celebrate it with her own family," Cody Runnels muttered into the cell phone he pressed against his ear, using his free hand to stuff the trunks, boots, and socks he had worn earlier in the night, into the bag in front of him. Drew Galloway, sitting just across the room, chewed the inside to his lip to suppress a hearty laugh. Cody stopped, looking confused. "What do you mean British people don't celebrate Thanksgiving? No… Well why do you celebrate it? You're Cuban…" At this, Drew snorted loudly, gaining a disgusted look from Cody. "Well I don't know, then, Mom. She's catching a flight to London at three tomorrow morning. After that, I don't know what she's doing…No. Okay, yeah, maybe Christmas. I'll call you when I get off the plane, yeah? Love you too…" By the time the 'end call' button was pressed, Drew's composure had slipped and he was now whole-heartedly guffawing at the ever so slightly younger man.
"Tell me that was a joke, aye?" He said once he had stopped laughing, though tears of laughter were still threatening to fall. "Ye didna' actually think we celebrated Thanksgivin' did ye?" Cody shrugged huffily, but made no noise as he re-arranged his bag in an attempt to make both boots fit. "Do ye celebrate St. Andrew's day?" Doing his best to hide the confused look on his face, the second generation superstar turned his back on the Scot. "Do ye even know what St. Andrew's day is?" Cody sucked his teeth gently, doing his best to prevent himself from arguing back. No, he didn't know what St. Andrew's day was, nor did he care. "Sometimes ah wonder about you yanks…" Drew said, shaking his head a little, sending his long brown hair falling around his shoulders. "So wit wis that aw about anyway?"
Cody sighed and finally stopped packing everything into a bag which, strangely, would not fit clothes which had been packed into it just three hours previous. "Mom wants me to invite Layla over for Thanskgiving," he said, rolling his eyes. "Its bad enough that I gotta go down to the house, be around an Aunt, Uncle and three cousins that none of us actually like and put up with Teil's whining that her ankles or swollen and that she can't see her feet. I don't need Layla being around for that…"
"Scared Auld Virgil will embarrass ye?"
"Something like that…" Cody took one last attempt at forcing the zip of the bag over the boots, only to groan loudly when, with a loud 'zzzzz', the zip burst.
"Gimme yer boots, Ah'll take them in ma bag an' Taryn can get them cleaned for ye…" With a hand extended, Drew shook his head. For someone so close to him in age, sometimes, Cody acted much younger than the Ayr-born wrestler. "Ye can get them after Thansgivin'." Handing over the boots, Cody nodded silently. "Now, should you no be watchin' yer missus wrestle?"
Cody glared at the man in front of him. "Same shit every week, ain't it? Its always the same with the divas…" Holding both sides of the burst bag, Cody shrugged his shoulders. "I'm gonna head back to the hotel, check out and shit and then…Lutz, Florida here I come…"
"Try no ta sound so happy, Runnels," Drew laughed, now slipping one of Cody's boots into his bag easily before wiping his hands on his bare legs. "Oh 'n, happy thanksgivin'…"
"I thought you guys didn't celebrate it?"
"Taryn's one o' your lot - this'll be ma first Thanksgivin'…"
"Oh," said Cody, making his way to the door. "And, if you wanna know, Beth saves Kelly…It's a retape, remember?." He chuckled, ducking out the door as his other boot was hurled at his head, clattering against the wood.
"So when's your flight arriving, D?" Cody asked, waiting at baggage to collect his suitcase. An awkward silence followed on the other end of the line as Cody signed an autograph for a small boy. "D?" Again, silence ensued. "Dustin? Tell me you're still coming…"
"Well Tarel isn't big on the whole traditional Thanksgiving thing and we got Dakota coming over…"
"What?"
"We're just gonna have a quiet one this year man. No big fuss…"
"How the fuck did you get out of it? I've been trying since I moved to fucking Louisville! I hate you."
"Love you too, bro." Dustin chuckled and, in the background, Cody heard his sister-in-law call for the so-called Golden One to go to bed. "But I gotta go. Tell Pops and Michelle I'll call them tomorrow. Later." And then there was nothing but the dial tone, leaving Cody less than pleased.
It wasn't that he didn't love his immediate family - he loved getting to spend time with his sister and having the opportunity to play in the backyard with his niece - and he didn't even mind making awkward conversation with his Aunt Janie about 'that nice blonde girl you took to Aspen', the topic of which she had brought up no less than seven times at his dad's 65th birthday until Teil had politely informed her that he and Beth were no longer together, but the idea of sitting around while his predominantly female family discussed babies, marriage and settling down did very little for him. Stuffing his beat-up blackberry into his back pocket and leaned forward, grabbing his suitcase from the carousel and, with a surly look on his face, dragged it behind him out into the main arrivals area of the airport. iWouldn't surprise me if those jerks from reel wrestling are around…they say bad luck comes in threes, anyway…/i The Marrieta native was forced to fake a smile as he posed for a photo with a young fan who went on to announce "I like Ted better…" and, for a split second, the twenty-five year old wanted to kick the child, until his rather good looking mother muttered her apologies.
"Have I taught you nothing, Coco?" came a voice to his left where, with her hands on her hips, stood Cody's older sister Teil. "I mean, really, the way you were staring at her…How does Layla put up with it?" She chastised softly, the inherited 'Rubio' smile (a smile Cody too could stake claim to until he had veneers done to 'perfect' his teeth) beaming up at him.
"Nice to see you too, T," he said, a small smile playing at his lips. "I see you've gotten fat…"
"Could say the same for you, Codes," Teil laughed, running a hand over her bump. "But I have a reason. You don't."
"All muscle, T. Just ask dad - he'll tell you how good the favourite child is looking," flashing the older sibling a 'Dashing' smile, he pulled her into a hug. "How is everyone?" he asked, breaking the hug and, suitcase still trundling behind, making his way to the front doors. "And why'd they send you to get me anyway? Can you even reach the wheel?"
Teil rolled her eyes, her little brother's half-insults bouncing right back off her. "Dad's had a couple beers with Kevin and Mom's pissed - something about you being ashamed of us…" she shrugged nonchalantly before adding, "Oh and for calling me fat? You're driving." She tossed the keys to Cody who caught them effortlessly with his free hand.
"Is this cause Layla isn't coming for Thanksgiving?"
"Of course it is, retard. First dad's birthday and now this? She thinks you don't want her to meet us…"
"I don't." Cody said simply, entering into the parking lot where he began the search for Teil's car.
"Wow, real sensitive Codes," Teil replied, shocked, as they reached the car, Cody putting his suitcase into the back seat before getting in through the driver's door. "I don't mean to be a bitch - no, hold up, I do - she's British. I assure you, we're upmarket compared to what she's used to. And besides…look at her - hell, listen to her! - you can tell she's been dragged up," Starting the engine, Cody simply laughed as a reply. "Did you hear what I said?" A still-silent Cody nodded as they began to leave the parking lot. "You're not even gonna defend her ?"
"No, Teil, I'm not. I don't really care. But I should point out that Drew's a pretty cool guy and I met his family when we were on the European tour - they were pretty nice, upmarket as you so kindly called it…"
"So why the fuck don't you want us to meet Layla? Dad's met her. Dustin's met her. Why can't Mom and me? And what the fuck has this got to do with your latest Butt-Buddy?"
"I'm pretty sure its Mom and I… And to be fair, Teil, he's married…"
"Cody! Stop being such an ass and answer my question!"
Cody took a deep breath, exhaling slowly and, gripping the wheel tightly, replied, "Because every time I bring a girl home, mom gets her hopes up. She starts thinking about weddings and kids and shit. Well I'm gonna tell you right now, I won't be marrying Layla and I sure as hell won't be having any kids with her…" A stunned silence came from the female occupant of the car. "So, no, I'm not ashamed of you guys. I just don't want to go through that shit again. And I sure as hell don't want Aunt Janie meeting her…"
"Oh…" Teil fell silent once more, staring out the front window to the dark road ahead of them, a small smile creeping up on her lips. If truth be told, she was devastated when Cody and Beth broke up and there was no way in hell she was going to welcome Layla into the family the way she had done with Beth, even if her mother would. "Cody?"
"Yeah?"
"Did you even ask her to come for Thanksgiving?"
"No."
Teil rubbed her hands together before switching on the heating of the car, her fingers rather red with the cold. "Okay." She said, simply, and no more was said about the English diva.
"Is that muh boy?" came a booming voice from the sitting room within second of Teil opening the door. The youngest daughter of the wrestling legend rolled her eyes, Cody really was 'daddy's blue eyed boy' and he could do no wrong in the eyes of his father. Well, unless he really upset his mother, then all hell broke loose but, luckily for Teil and the rest of the family, no one was stupid enough to upset Michelle to the extent where Virgil felt the need to step up. "Cody?"
"Dad, it's after midnight - if you wake Maris up, it's your job to read 'Goodnight Mr Moon' until you're blue in the face," Teil scolded, shaking off her jacket as she stepped into the house. "But, yes, its 'your boy' and your daughter. But you only care about him."
"Enough of that, Teil," admonished her mother, oven mitt covering one hand, a wooden spoon in the other as she appeared in the doorway, pulling Teil's jacket from her to hang on the coat rack, her daughter heading into the living room, Cody appearing at the front door seconds later, hauling his suitcase behind him. "Cody, darling!" And, with that, the youngest Runnels was pulled into a tight hug from his tiny mother. "God, what is Layla doing to you, Cody?" she said, letting him go and observing him as he removed his jacket. "You look…"
"Fat." Teil called from the living room as she settled beside her husband, eating a large packet of Cheetos. "That's what I said, too, Mom."
"I was going to say…drained but…maybe I don't want to know what Layla's doing to you after all…" Ushering Cody into the living room where his father, sister and brother-in-law sat, Michelle left the suitcase in the hall and slammed the door shut.
As always was the case in the Runnels household, a lot of fuss was made over Cody being home, with Virgil wanting to discuss, blow-by-blow, move-by-move every wrestling match Cody had taken part in since they had last seen each other and Michelle trying to feed him 'Sweet Treats' and bread rolls filled with ridiculously calorific things which would have Cody in the gym for years. Teil sat quietly, grumbling about sore ankles or lack of water every now and again and Kevin laughed raucously at an episode of Family Guy that Cody had watched with Ted back when Legacy were very much still in action.
"Mom, its almost one in the morning, I'm beat," Cody said, rubbing his eyes as though he were tired, stifling a fake yawn. "I've been up since five yesterday morning and…I just really wanna go for a sleep."
"You mean a late night phone call with Layla?" Kevin joked, nudging Teil, who glared at him.
"But don't you want some soup? You couldn't have eaten since before the show!"
"I had something at the airport mom, seriously, don't worry. I need some sleep…really…" Cody lied, pushing himself from the sofa, pecking his mother on the cheek and, with a wave to the other three, heading upstairs to the bedroom he had once called his own, for the few short years before he moved out.
It was a small room, considering the one his father had devoted to the family's achievements - a room full of pictures, trophies and memories of everything Virgil considered monumental, from Teil's first dance show to Cody's title win with Drew. Cody was sure the room would have been stocked full of 'Dusty' memorabilia, had he not sold it all on eBay in his late teens, but this was a thought he didn't care much for as it brought on a wave of guilt, causing him to sit down on his old bed, which creaked in recognition. The room was painted a dark blue, something Cody had chosen when he was fourteen years of age and the walls had once been adorned with posters of Cody's idol, Shawn Michaels, and his dream woman, Carmen Electra and, since then, the only thing that had changed was the posters, which had been re-homed inside his closet, where any 'visiting ladies' would not have seen. The twenty five year old threw himself back onto the bed, sighing. He had only ever shown one 'visiting lady' the inside of his closet and, funnily enough, she had appreciated the Shawn Michaels posters just as much as he had before admitting her room had been the covered in posters of Owen Hart and The Million Dollar Man.
Cody rolled his eyes. It had been exactly this time the previous year that Beth had been here, wandering around his room in some stupid band t-shirt and very little else, laughing at all the old shit she found in drawers and the closet. Kicking off his shoes and hauling off his socks, his mind wandered back to Layla and the idea of her going through his things the way Beth had made him curl up his nose in disgust. With Beth, it had been out of sheer interest. With Layla, Cody was sure it would just be out of nosiness, looking for a picture she could share with her "twits" or whatever friends on Twitter were called. Out of laziness, Cody wriggled out of his jeans and his shirt, never leaving the bed before stretching himself out across the length of the bed in his boxers. He knew it was his fault that the relationship with Layla wasn't perfect - besides the sex it was pretty one-sided - but to be fair, he didn't care. It had all been a stupid mistake that got out of hand, a drunken one night stand after he heard the news. And now it was more out of his love for sex that he kept her around. He rubbed his temples, knowing how cold this thought made him. He didn't love her and highly doubted he ever would - to Cody, Layla was a toy, a small part of a much bigger plan. But what the plan was? Well, Cody didn't quite know…
It was much colder than he'd anticipated Florida to be at this time of year and if there was one thing Cody Runnels didn't like, it was the cold. With both eyes screwed tight shut, he felt around for his phone which he had been playing with before he had fallen asleep and, when grasping it, he pulled it up to his face and checked the time through one lazily opened eye. Seven thirty, he read with a groan, pushing back the covers he had tangled himself in during his restless sleep. He could already hear the clatter of pots and pans from the kitchen, his mother already baking her sweet treats, her turkey in the oven and her soup coming to boil in the slow cooker. Wonder when Janie and the family are coming over… he thought to himself. I'll have at least an hour and a half… No one in their right mind visits before nine. The former champion pushed himself up to lean on his forearms before stretching and turning to sit on the edge of his bed. There was a strange smell wafting from under the door of his bedroom - food, yes, but it was mixed with something strange. Perfumed, heavily perfumed flowers, roses he would stab a guess at.
Cody ran a hand through his short, dark hair and stared straight ahead at the closet in the corner before turning back to his phone and scrolling through the contacts he had saved, coming to a stop at "Express Florals". He had used this number only twice - once when he had forgotten his mother's birthday and once when he had missed a 'date' with Layla - and on both occasions, they had been most reliable. Pressing the call button, he waited for them to answer, a horrible feeling in his stomach telling him no one would answer - after all, who would be open on Thanksgiving? "'Ello and welcome to Express Florals, Andrew speakin' - 'ow can I 'elp you?" A large grin spread across Cody's face, exposing his perfect teeth. Thank God for the British…
"Hey, uh, how express is Express?" Cody asked, knowing full well he sounded stupid.
"We can 'ave the flowers delivered in 'alf an 'our for the right price…"
"Money's no object," Cody stated and, before Andrew could say anything, the Georgia-native continued with his order.
"So that's twenty-five bouquets of roses for the Kocanski residence in Tampa, Florida to be charged to the credit card belongin' to C. G. Runnels at one thousand, five hundred dollars, is that right?" Cody could almost hear Andrew's eyebrow sliding up into his hairline, purely out of disbelief.
"That's right - and it'll definitely be there by nine o'clock?"
"We can 'ave it there for 'alf past eight if you wan'."
"Perfect," said Cody. "Happy Thanksgiving, Andrew. Thank you."
And, hanging up, Cody went for a shower.
Part : 1/3
Characters : Cody Rhodes, Drew McIntyre, various members of Cody's family
Pairing : None, this chap.
Warnings : Swearing and mentions of sex.
"No, Mom, she's going home to celebrate it with her own family," Cody Runnels muttered into the cell phone he pressed against his ear, using his free hand to stuff the trunks, boots, and socks he had worn earlier in the night, into the bag in front of him. Drew Galloway, sitting just across the room, chewed the inside to his lip to suppress a hearty laugh. Cody stopped, looking confused. "What do you mean British people don't celebrate Thanksgiving? No… Well why do you celebrate it? You're Cuban…" At this, Drew snorted loudly, gaining a disgusted look from Cody. "Well I don't know, then, Mom. She's catching a flight to London at three tomorrow morning. After that, I don't know what she's doing…No. Okay, yeah, maybe Christmas. I'll call you when I get off the plane, yeah? Love you too…" By the time the 'end call' button was pressed, Drew's composure had slipped and he was now whole-heartedly guffawing at the ever so slightly younger man.
"Tell me that was a joke, aye?" He said once he had stopped laughing, though tears of laughter were still threatening to fall. "Ye didna' actually think we celebrated Thanksgivin' did ye?" Cody shrugged huffily, but made no noise as he re-arranged his bag in an attempt to make both boots fit. "Do ye celebrate St. Andrew's day?" Doing his best to hide the confused look on his face, the second generation superstar turned his back on the Scot. "Do ye even know what St. Andrew's day is?" Cody sucked his teeth gently, doing his best to prevent himself from arguing back. No, he didn't know what St. Andrew's day was, nor did he care. "Sometimes ah wonder about you yanks…" Drew said, shaking his head a little, sending his long brown hair falling around his shoulders. "So wit wis that aw about anyway?"
Cody sighed and finally stopped packing everything into a bag which, strangely, would not fit clothes which had been packed into it just three hours previous. "Mom wants me to invite Layla over for Thanskgiving," he said, rolling his eyes. "Its bad enough that I gotta go down to the house, be around an Aunt, Uncle and three cousins that none of us actually like and put up with Teil's whining that her ankles or swollen and that she can't see her feet. I don't need Layla being around for that…"
"Scared Auld Virgil will embarrass ye?"
"Something like that…" Cody took one last attempt at forcing the zip of the bag over the boots, only to groan loudly when, with a loud 'zzzzz', the zip burst.
"Gimme yer boots, Ah'll take them in ma bag an' Taryn can get them cleaned for ye…" With a hand extended, Drew shook his head. For someone so close to him in age, sometimes, Cody acted much younger than the Ayr-born wrestler. "Ye can get them after Thansgivin'." Handing over the boots, Cody nodded silently. "Now, should you no be watchin' yer missus wrestle?"
Cody glared at the man in front of him. "Same shit every week, ain't it? Its always the same with the divas…" Holding both sides of the burst bag, Cody shrugged his shoulders. "I'm gonna head back to the hotel, check out and shit and then…Lutz, Florida here I come…"
"Try no ta sound so happy, Runnels," Drew laughed, now slipping one of Cody's boots into his bag easily before wiping his hands on his bare legs. "Oh 'n, happy thanksgivin'…"
"I thought you guys didn't celebrate it?"
"Taryn's one o' your lot - this'll be ma first Thanksgivin'…"
"Oh," said Cody, making his way to the door. "And, if you wanna know, Beth saves Kelly…It's a retape, remember?." He chuckled, ducking out the door as his other boot was hurled at his head, clattering against the wood.
"So when's your flight arriving, D?" Cody asked, waiting at baggage to collect his suitcase. An awkward silence followed on the other end of the line as Cody signed an autograph for a small boy. "D?" Again, silence ensued. "Dustin? Tell me you're still coming…"
"Well Tarel isn't big on the whole traditional Thanksgiving thing and we got Dakota coming over…"
"What?"
"We're just gonna have a quiet one this year man. No big fuss…"
"How the fuck did you get out of it? I've been trying since I moved to fucking Louisville! I hate you."
"Love you too, bro." Dustin chuckled and, in the background, Cody heard his sister-in-law call for the so-called Golden One to go to bed. "But I gotta go. Tell Pops and Michelle I'll call them tomorrow. Later." And then there was nothing but the dial tone, leaving Cody less than pleased.
It wasn't that he didn't love his immediate family - he loved getting to spend time with his sister and having the opportunity to play in the backyard with his niece - and he didn't even mind making awkward conversation with his Aunt Janie about 'that nice blonde girl you took to Aspen', the topic of which she had brought up no less than seven times at his dad's 65th birthday until Teil had politely informed her that he and Beth were no longer together, but the idea of sitting around while his predominantly female family discussed babies, marriage and settling down did very little for him. Stuffing his beat-up blackberry into his back pocket and leaned forward, grabbing his suitcase from the carousel and, with a surly look on his face, dragged it behind him out into the main arrivals area of the airport. iWouldn't surprise me if those jerks from reel wrestling are around…they say bad luck comes in threes, anyway…/i The Marrieta native was forced to fake a smile as he posed for a photo with a young fan who went on to announce "I like Ted better…" and, for a split second, the twenty-five year old wanted to kick the child, until his rather good looking mother muttered her apologies.
"Have I taught you nothing, Coco?" came a voice to his left where, with her hands on her hips, stood Cody's older sister Teil. "I mean, really, the way you were staring at her…How does Layla put up with it?" She chastised softly, the inherited 'Rubio' smile (a smile Cody too could stake claim to until he had veneers done to 'perfect' his teeth) beaming up at him.
"Nice to see you too, T," he said, a small smile playing at his lips. "I see you've gotten fat…"
"Could say the same for you, Codes," Teil laughed, running a hand over her bump. "But I have a reason. You don't."
"All muscle, T. Just ask dad - he'll tell you how good the favourite child is looking," flashing the older sibling a 'Dashing' smile, he pulled her into a hug. "How is everyone?" he asked, breaking the hug and, suitcase still trundling behind, making his way to the front doors. "And why'd they send you to get me anyway? Can you even reach the wheel?"
Teil rolled her eyes, her little brother's half-insults bouncing right back off her. "Dad's had a couple beers with Kevin and Mom's pissed - something about you being ashamed of us…" she shrugged nonchalantly before adding, "Oh and for calling me fat? You're driving." She tossed the keys to Cody who caught them effortlessly with his free hand.
"Is this cause Layla isn't coming for Thanksgiving?"
"Of course it is, retard. First dad's birthday and now this? She thinks you don't want her to meet us…"
"I don't." Cody said simply, entering into the parking lot where he began the search for Teil's car.
"Wow, real sensitive Codes," Teil replied, shocked, as they reached the car, Cody putting his suitcase into the back seat before getting in through the driver's door. "I don't mean to be a bitch - no, hold up, I do - she's British. I assure you, we're upmarket compared to what she's used to. And besides…look at her - hell, listen to her! - you can tell she's been dragged up," Starting the engine, Cody simply laughed as a reply. "Did you hear what I said?" A still-silent Cody nodded as they began to leave the parking lot. "You're not even gonna defend her ?"
"No, Teil, I'm not. I don't really care. But I should point out that Drew's a pretty cool guy and I met his family when we were on the European tour - they were pretty nice, upmarket as you so kindly called it…"
"So why the fuck don't you want us to meet Layla? Dad's met her. Dustin's met her. Why can't Mom and me? And what the fuck has this got to do with your latest Butt-Buddy?"
"I'm pretty sure its Mom and I… And to be fair, Teil, he's married…"
"Cody! Stop being such an ass and answer my question!"
Cody took a deep breath, exhaling slowly and, gripping the wheel tightly, replied, "Because every time I bring a girl home, mom gets her hopes up. She starts thinking about weddings and kids and shit. Well I'm gonna tell you right now, I won't be marrying Layla and I sure as hell won't be having any kids with her…" A stunned silence came from the female occupant of the car. "So, no, I'm not ashamed of you guys. I just don't want to go through that shit again. And I sure as hell don't want Aunt Janie meeting her…"
"Oh…" Teil fell silent once more, staring out the front window to the dark road ahead of them, a small smile creeping up on her lips. If truth be told, she was devastated when Cody and Beth broke up and there was no way in hell she was going to welcome Layla into the family the way she had done with Beth, even if her mother would. "Cody?"
"Yeah?"
"Did you even ask her to come for Thanksgiving?"
"No."
Teil rubbed her hands together before switching on the heating of the car, her fingers rather red with the cold. "Okay." She said, simply, and no more was said about the English diva.
"Is that muh boy?" came a booming voice from the sitting room within second of Teil opening the door. The youngest daughter of the wrestling legend rolled her eyes, Cody really was 'daddy's blue eyed boy' and he could do no wrong in the eyes of his father. Well, unless he really upset his mother, then all hell broke loose but, luckily for Teil and the rest of the family, no one was stupid enough to upset Michelle to the extent where Virgil felt the need to step up. "Cody?"
"Dad, it's after midnight - if you wake Maris up, it's your job to read 'Goodnight Mr Moon' until you're blue in the face," Teil scolded, shaking off her jacket as she stepped into the house. "But, yes, its 'your boy' and your daughter. But you only care about him."
"Enough of that, Teil," admonished her mother, oven mitt covering one hand, a wooden spoon in the other as she appeared in the doorway, pulling Teil's jacket from her to hang on the coat rack, her daughter heading into the living room, Cody appearing at the front door seconds later, hauling his suitcase behind him. "Cody, darling!" And, with that, the youngest Runnels was pulled into a tight hug from his tiny mother. "God, what is Layla doing to you, Cody?" she said, letting him go and observing him as he removed his jacket. "You look…"
"Fat." Teil called from the living room as she settled beside her husband, eating a large packet of Cheetos. "That's what I said, too, Mom."
"I was going to say…drained but…maybe I don't want to know what Layla's doing to you after all…" Ushering Cody into the living room where his father, sister and brother-in-law sat, Michelle left the suitcase in the hall and slammed the door shut.
As always was the case in the Runnels household, a lot of fuss was made over Cody being home, with Virgil wanting to discuss, blow-by-blow, move-by-move every wrestling match Cody had taken part in since they had last seen each other and Michelle trying to feed him 'Sweet Treats' and bread rolls filled with ridiculously calorific things which would have Cody in the gym for years. Teil sat quietly, grumbling about sore ankles or lack of water every now and again and Kevin laughed raucously at an episode of Family Guy that Cody had watched with Ted back when Legacy were very much still in action.
"Mom, its almost one in the morning, I'm beat," Cody said, rubbing his eyes as though he were tired, stifling a fake yawn. "I've been up since five yesterday morning and…I just really wanna go for a sleep."
"You mean a late night phone call with Layla?" Kevin joked, nudging Teil, who glared at him.
"But don't you want some soup? You couldn't have eaten since before the show!"
"I had something at the airport mom, seriously, don't worry. I need some sleep…really…" Cody lied, pushing himself from the sofa, pecking his mother on the cheek and, with a wave to the other three, heading upstairs to the bedroom he had once called his own, for the few short years before he moved out.
It was a small room, considering the one his father had devoted to the family's achievements - a room full of pictures, trophies and memories of everything Virgil considered monumental, from Teil's first dance show to Cody's title win with Drew. Cody was sure the room would have been stocked full of 'Dusty' memorabilia, had he not sold it all on eBay in his late teens, but this was a thought he didn't care much for as it brought on a wave of guilt, causing him to sit down on his old bed, which creaked in recognition. The room was painted a dark blue, something Cody had chosen when he was fourteen years of age and the walls had once been adorned with posters of Cody's idol, Shawn Michaels, and his dream woman, Carmen Electra and, since then, the only thing that had changed was the posters, which had been re-homed inside his closet, where any 'visiting ladies' would not have seen. The twenty five year old threw himself back onto the bed, sighing. He had only ever shown one 'visiting lady' the inside of his closet and, funnily enough, she had appreciated the Shawn Michaels posters just as much as he had before admitting her room had been the covered in posters of Owen Hart and The Million Dollar Man.
Cody rolled his eyes. It had been exactly this time the previous year that Beth had been here, wandering around his room in some stupid band t-shirt and very little else, laughing at all the old shit she found in drawers and the closet. Kicking off his shoes and hauling off his socks, his mind wandered back to Layla and the idea of her going through his things the way Beth had made him curl up his nose in disgust. With Beth, it had been out of sheer interest. With Layla, Cody was sure it would just be out of nosiness, looking for a picture she could share with her "twits" or whatever friends on Twitter were called. Out of laziness, Cody wriggled out of his jeans and his shirt, never leaving the bed before stretching himself out across the length of the bed in his boxers. He knew it was his fault that the relationship with Layla wasn't perfect - besides the sex it was pretty one-sided - but to be fair, he didn't care. It had all been a stupid mistake that got out of hand, a drunken one night stand after he heard the news. And now it was more out of his love for sex that he kept her around. He rubbed his temples, knowing how cold this thought made him. He didn't love her and highly doubted he ever would - to Cody, Layla was a toy, a small part of a much bigger plan. But what the plan was? Well, Cody didn't quite know…
It was much colder than he'd anticipated Florida to be at this time of year and if there was one thing Cody Runnels didn't like, it was the cold. With both eyes screwed tight shut, he felt around for his phone which he had been playing with before he had fallen asleep and, when grasping it, he pulled it up to his face and checked the time through one lazily opened eye. Seven thirty, he read with a groan, pushing back the covers he had tangled himself in during his restless sleep. He could already hear the clatter of pots and pans from the kitchen, his mother already baking her sweet treats, her turkey in the oven and her soup coming to boil in the slow cooker. Wonder when Janie and the family are coming over… he thought to himself. I'll have at least an hour and a half… No one in their right mind visits before nine. The former champion pushed himself up to lean on his forearms before stretching and turning to sit on the edge of his bed. There was a strange smell wafting from under the door of his bedroom - food, yes, but it was mixed with something strange. Perfumed, heavily perfumed flowers, roses he would stab a guess at.
Cody ran a hand through his short, dark hair and stared straight ahead at the closet in the corner before turning back to his phone and scrolling through the contacts he had saved, coming to a stop at "Express Florals". He had used this number only twice - once when he had forgotten his mother's birthday and once when he had missed a 'date' with Layla - and on both occasions, they had been most reliable. Pressing the call button, he waited for them to answer, a horrible feeling in his stomach telling him no one would answer - after all, who would be open on Thanksgiving? "'Ello and welcome to Express Florals, Andrew speakin' - 'ow can I 'elp you?" A large grin spread across Cody's face, exposing his perfect teeth. Thank God for the British…
"Hey, uh, how express is Express?" Cody asked, knowing full well he sounded stupid.
"We can 'ave the flowers delivered in 'alf an 'our for the right price…"
"Money's no object," Cody stated and, before Andrew could say anything, the Georgia-native continued with his order.
"So that's twenty-five bouquets of roses for the Kocanski residence in Tampa, Florida to be charged to the credit card belongin' to C. G. Runnels at one thousand, five hundred dollars, is that right?" Cody could almost hear Andrew's eyebrow sliding up into his hairline, purely out of disbelief.
"That's right - and it'll definitely be there by nine o'clock?"
"We can 'ave it there for 'alf past eight if you wan'."
"Perfect," said Cody. "Happy Thanksgiving, Andrew. Thank you."
And, hanging up, Cody went for a shower.