Slaughterhouse

Emotional Whirlwind

The next day, Carmen and Rhea arrive back in Orlando. Rhea decided to come back since Buddy will be there as well and talked Carmen into going back too. As they walk out of the airport, Rhea gets into her truck they pulled around for her and Carmen awkwardly tries to flag down a taxi. Lowering the passenger window so she can talk, Rhea looks at Carmen in confusion.

"What are you doing?" Rhea asks.

Carmen looks over at her, her eyes droopy.

"Getting a ride home.." she speaks softly.

Rhea turns the truck off and gets back out, walking around it and over to Carmen. She looks at her face and tucks some hair behind her ear.

"Come home with me Carmen. Please?" She whispers.

Carmen nods and Rhea grabs her bags for her, putting them in the backseat with her own. She opens the passenger side door and motions for Carmen to get in. She does and Rhea makes sure she's fully in before shutting the door and going around to the driver's side to get in. The ride home is silent. A little awkward. Carmen still has doubts and Rhea knows it.

Once they arrive at the house and they walk inside, Rhea is immediately met with a hug from Buddy. Carmen watches him hold her tightly in his arms. Planting small kisses on her forehead. She looks down at her duffle she brought in to hide her face.

"I'm..gonna go shower." She mumbles.

She starts to walk away when she's stopped by Buddy softly grabbing her arm and pulling her back to him. He wraps her in a hug and holds her just as tightly, giving her the same kisses he gave Rhea. She smiles ever so slightly as he gives her one last peck before letting her go.

"Enjoy your shower baby." He says.

Carmen nods a little before making her way to the bathroom and shutting the door. Buddy looks back to Rhea and follows her to the couch, sitting next to her on it. She looks sad, worried. He grabs one of her hands.

"She's not any better, is she?" He asks.

"You should have seen her last night Matt. She was..broken. She got so drunk she couldn't walk on her own. Could hardly walk at all." Rhea sighs and shakes her head.

"Did she let you stay with her?"

"Yes. Eventually she let me shower her and hold her. But she cried for an hour in my arms. Matt...this goes way beyond just being upset by what Raquel said. Carmen genuinely doesn't believe that we care about her." Rhea explains.

Buddy's heart visibly breaks. He sighs and looks down at their hands, rubbing Rhea's with his thumb.

"Let me take her out for lunch. I'll talk to her, okay?" He says.

Rhea nods and Buddy swipes away a tear threatening to spill from her eye. She smiles softly at him.

"I need to go to the gym. I'll be back before Dom's housewarming party tonight okay?" She speaks lowly, still a little tense.

Buddy pulls her hand up to his mouth and kisses the back of it gently.

"Okay babe."

Rhea smiles at him and stands. She leaves the house and goes to the gym. Carmen comes back downstairs, showered and dressed in sweats with damp hair, just as she left. Buddy stands and turns to her, looking at her. She's looking at the door sadly.

"Did I upset her?" She asks.

"No not at all. She went to the gym. I wanted to see if I could take you out for lunch." He replies.

Carmen nods and forces a smile.

"Alright."

Buddy walks around the couch and places a gentle hand on her back, leading her out to his truck. He drives to a nearby diner and guides her to a booth inside, sitting across from her.

Carmen sits and looks at him. When he clasps his hands on the table and winks at her she blushes and looks down at her menu. It wasn't a soft sweet blush though. It was an embarrassed one.

"Carmen.." He says lowly.

She shyly ducks her head behind her menu to cover her face. Buddy reaches out and pulls it down, resting it on the table.

"Look at me Carmen."

Carmen's eyes slowly lift to meet his. He looks at her eyes, the emptiness in them. How dull they look compared to the shine they had when he first saw her on NXT. Buddy can't help but feel sad that they caused this powerhouse of an athlete to lose all her confidence. All because they went about bringing her into the relationship the wrong way.

"Do you remember what I told you in the airport? How Rhea is just as scared?" He asks.

Carmen nods, "Yes."

"You are worth so much more to us than you realize. We are not using you for sex. I promise you that. We want you. All of you, Carmen. We care about you so much." Buddy speaks softly but firmly at the same time.

He wants her to feel the sincerity in his words, but the gentleness in his approach. Carmen stares in his eyes for a minute and he doesn't break eye contact; giving her time to see what she wants and feel what she needs to feel. When her eyes slowly start to light up again, and a small genuine smile crosses her lips, Buddy leans across the table and caresses her cheek. He slides his hand down to her chin and holds it softly.

"I meant every word I said." He adds before letting her go.

Carmen smiles at him again and nods.

"Are you coming with us to Dom's housewarming party tonight?" He asks her.

"Yeah but I doubt I'll drink this time. I think if I even touch one I'll puke." She cringes, making Buddy laugh a little.

"Rhea told me you had a lot last night."

Carmen turns red and nods, "Damian thought we were gonna keep him up moaning again when she came to the room."

Buddy laughs and Carmen giggles with him. They continue to talk over burgers, fries and milkshakes. Buddy insisted they eat something enjoyable for the sake of having some fun.

She's wiping ketchup from her lip with a napkin when Carmen looks to Buddy again, face somewhat serious.

"Can I ask you something?" She speaks up. 

"Of course." Buddy replies, setting his fry down and giving her his full attention.

"You said you want all of me right?" She asks.

Buddy scrunches his eyebrows slightly in confusion but nods at her.

"But you've never had all of me." Carmen states, looking in his eyes.

His eyes open a little wider and his eyebrows relax knowingly, immediately getting her point.

"Is that what you want?" He asks her.

Carmen doesn't break eye contact or hesitate when she says, "I wasn't ready before. I'm ready now."

With that, Buddy nods his head in understanding. He wipes at his mouth with his own napkin and licks over his teeth with his mouth closed. Looking at Carmen, he can see how serious she is. Buddy looks at his watch and then back up.

"Tell you what. We'll talk about it tonight after the party. We need to go get Rhea and get ready for it." He says.

Carmen smiles and nods. They stand and Buddy lays cash on the table for the bill before walking back out of the diner with Carmen.

As he drives her back to the house, Carmen can't help but feel a whirlwind of emotions. Satisfaction at the conversation they had. Happiness at the fact that they seem to actually care for her more than she thought. A bit of excitement for after the party. And some nervousness to face Rhea again after everything that's happened.