"You proposed to Becky on the beach." Roman had said it at least three times, so Seth thought he knew how the rest was going to go: Roman would glance down at the picture on Seth's phone—the sunset shot he and Becky had taken to have an audience-friendly moment to share with their family and friends—and then back up at Seth, then across Catering to Becky, who was showing off her ring to what seemed like the entire WWE women's division.
"Yeah. You know how much she likes the ocean," Seth replied. "And it was a gorgeous sunset, so I thought it would be a nice backdrop for the photo—"
"You. You, with those knees," Roman emphasized, pointing down to Seth's legs. "You got down on those knees on a sandy beach." He raised an eyebrow as he scoffed. "You really expect me to believe that, man? Between your old-man knees and you worrying about losing the ring, you really think I'm going to buy that?"
It wasn't how it had happened, of course, but both Seth and Becky had decided that perhaps it was best to leave the specifics out of the story they shared with their family and friends. Their parents definitely wouldn't want to know that they'd been naked and about to fuck, and while their friends would have absolutely no problem believing the true version, even Becky and Seth admitted they wanted to have a story they could share with their potential children.
"It's a beach. . . ." Seth honestly didn't think the story he and Becky had agreed on was that far-fetched. People proposed on beaches all the time; when he had been dating Sarah, she had casually shown him countless pictures of beachfront wedding ceremonies. "There's the ocean. . . ."
Both of Roman's eyebrows lifted this time. "Bro. I'm Samoan. Trust me, I know all about the ocean." Then he smiled and squeezed Seth hard enough that his ribs creaked. "But I'll stop bugging you. I'm happy for you, man. Truly. I know that for a long time, this was something you thought you wouldn't want, that it wouldn't happen for you." With a smirk, he added, "See? All those times I called you an idiot, I was right."
"Why are you calling my fiance an idiot?" Apparently ring admiration time was over, because Becky had managed to make it over to Seth's side to hug him.
Fiance. Just hearing Becky say it made Seth feel like he was going to explode. In his head, he was already calling her his wife, but he was trying not to say it out loud too often; it would only raise a whole bunch of questions and spark a glut of rumours. It didn't mean he was successful, though: he had already slipped a few times around Marek, but at least his best friend would just shake his head and laugh. "He doesn't think I proposed on the beach."
Glancing around, Becky saw nobody within immediate earshot—now that the entire locker room knew, it was back to business for most of them—and chuckled. "That's because he's not an idiot." Then she went on tiptoe and kissed Seth's cheek. "Only room for one idiot around here."
Roman laughed. "Good thing you staked your claim early, Becks. Idiots are in demand these days."
Rolling his eyes, Seth looped an arm around Becky's shoulders and pulled her in close. "I may be an idiot," he teased, "but at least I'm your idiot?"
Becky beamed up at him. "Something like that." She rested her head against his chest and stayed snuggled up to Seth while he and Roman joked about beach weddings, but then something caught her eye. "There's still some people we haven't told yet," she murmured, tapping Seth's chest and pointing to the coffee station, where Hunter was speaking with Bray Wyatt.
"Right. The bosses." Seth's sigh ruffled Becky's hair. It was hard to tell what WWE management truly thought of their relationship. On one hand, the pairing of two of their most popular superstars should have been a dream come true, but both Becky and Seth knew the McMahons might not see it that way. "Want to get it over with now?"
"Probably should." Becky raised her head and stepped back. "Otherwise we'll be having a TV wedding next week and not find out until we get to Creative, and then both our mothers will be pissed."
Roman ruffled Becky's hair as he started towards the coffee station. "You mean they aren't already? Don't tell me they bought the beach story." Knowing he was too far away for Seth to smack him, Roman winked. "If you can make ten people believe that—any ten people—I'll pay for your damn wedding myself, man."
Becky's laugh was borderline wicked. "Any ten? Challenge accepted." Then she tugged on Seth's hand. "Come on. Maybe if we tell Hunter," she added, "he'll tell Steph and Vince and then we won't have to."
Sliding an arm around Becky's waist as they headed over to Hunter, Seth nodded. Hunter was still one of their bosses, but he had been more like a father figure in NXT and much of that attitude carried over in his dealings with the wrestlers who had come up through developmental. Before either of them could start speaking, though, Hunter saw them approaching and held up a hand. "I already know," he began, "but let's take this to my office so we can talk without being interrupted every two minutes." Then he chuckled. "And no, I don't buy the beach story."
Further down the coffee station, Roman burst out laughing. "Told you!"
Shaking his head, Seth tightened his arm around Becky as they followed Hunter through the maze of corridors. "People propose on beaches all the time," he pointed out feebly.
"People do," Hunter agreed with a chuckle. "But you two? Honestly, I don't want to know." Then he rummaged in his pocket for the arena keys, opened a door, and motioned Seth and Becky inside. "I imagine you're getting tired of rehashing the details, so I'll tell Vince and Steph for you. How do you want to handle the public, though?" He edged past them both to sit behind the desk.
Becky and Seth shared a glance. "Well, I mean, we don't want an on-screen wedding, obviously. . . ."
Hunter laughed. "Who does? They don't have the greatest track record. But I meant in terms of how the company portrays it. Do you want the announce team to mention it, the social media teams, that sort of thing?" He paused for a moment before adding, "Because we all know you two aren't going to be able to keep it a secret for long, so we should have a plan in place."
Standing just inside the door, Seth kissed the top of Becky's head. "You're the social media guru. We both know I've made some . . . questionable choices."
Both Becky and Hunter snorted softly at that. "Low-key, maybe? One of us can post a picture on Instagram and WWE can reference it," Becky suggested. "And then we can see how it goes over?"
Hunter nodded, tapping away on his phone. "Okay then. Give me a heads up before you post anything so I can have our team at the ready. And I shouldn't have to tell you to pick a family-friendly picture." He narrowed his eyes slightly. "If it's a beach one, make sure it's not by a landmark, or we'll have vultures trying to get scoops from local vendors."
Seth's shoulders relaxed a bit. At least there was something they did properly. "They all have the ocean in the background," he replied.
"I can post it while I'm in Make-up," Becky offered, looking up at Seth. "Or would it be better to do it after the show, so the announce team doesn't have to worry about it?"
"After," Hunter decided at last. "No one backstage should leak the news, hopefully, but it'll give some of the matches a chance to trend too. You have a habit of breaking the internet, Lynch, in case you hadn't noticed."
Becky just grinned. "I'm a woman of many talents." Then she turned and hugged Seth. "I really should be getting to Make-up, though, unless you need me for this conversation. . . ?"
Hunter shook his head. "Go ahead. Text me when you're about to post. I'll warn Jeremiah that we have an important post coming up so his team has time to prepare. And congratulations, by the way. To both of you."
"Thank you." Becky squeezed Seth's hand as she reached for the door. "Catch up with you later."
"See ya." After Becky had left, Seth sank down into a chair. "Please don't let Vince turn this into a storyline. He'll want some trashy love triangle with me, Becks, and Charlotte or something." Envisioning fake pregnancies and cheating angles, Seth was suddenly glad he hadn't had a chance to eat anything in Catering.
Thankfully, Hunter seemed to agree, because he shook his head vehemently. "No, that's mid-card fare at best now. You two—and Charlotte—are worth too much to the company for that. He'll probably want the announce team to mention it, though, and I wouldn't be surprised if it gets mentioned in some storylines just for heat, but I'll do my best to make sure it's not a focal point." Clearing his throat, Hunter leaned back in his chair. "So . . . this is legit?"
Seth didn't follow at first. "What do you mean?" People weren't believing the beach story, but they didn't seem to want the truth either—not that he or Becky would ever tell most of them the real version anyway.
Hunter raised an eyebrow. "The proposal. I mean, I saw the ring. At least that looks real, or it damn well better be, considering what we paid you last year. But are you two actually getting married?"
"Yeah." Seth still had no idea what Hunter was getting at. "I mean, we haven't set a date yet or any of that. We've told friends and family, and now most of the roster, so we'll have to see when her family can fly over and when we could take a few weeks off and—"
"Huh. You're serious." Hunter looked vaguely impressed. "I thought it was just your way of making sure no one else beat you to the punch." When Seth shot him a sharp look, he added, "You're not the only guy on the roster in his thirties and looking to settle down, Rollins, and a lot of the guys not only like Becky but respect her. That combination happens less often than you'd think. I just thought maybe you figured you needed to make a move and get it official before someone else tried—"
"I proposed because I love her," Seth said simply. I should be angry, he thought. Even a year ago, he probably would have stood up in a huff and shoved his chair to the side, telling Hunter to piss off. Now, though, he was somewhat better at letting the acidic sting of criticism pass until he could see the kernel of truth beneath. His relationship track record wasn't the best and there had been times where he had rushed milestones—moving in together, getting engaged—simply because it seemed like it was what was expected of him. With Becky, however, he wanted all those things in a way he had never felt before. "I love her and she's my best friend and I'd marry her tonight if I could."
Hunter chuckled. "Careful what you wish for. I'm pretty sure there's a few people on the roster who are legally ordained."
Seth laughed too. "I'm pretty sure Liv is. Seriously, Hunter, this is real. I wouldn't play around with Becky like that. I know . . . I know I've done things that can make that hard to believe, but being with her has made me start to look at everything so much differently now. What I can do, what I can be—"
"Okay, okay, I get it. Save the emotional speech for the ceremony." Hunter held up a hand in a staying motion. "It's just that you and Becky are two of our top stars, in the ring and outside of it, and we want to avoid any implosions if possible."
Since Hunter didn't seem to want to say it, Seth let out a breath and filled in the blanks. "Don't fuck it up. I know."
"I didn't say that." But Hunter wore a rueful smile all the same. "Seriously, Rollins, I know there's pressure. When I was planning to propose to Steph, I ran through a hundred different scenarios in my head, a thousand. Then when she accepted and we were going to tell Vince. . . ." Hunter's soft snort turned into a chuckle. "After all that, it felt . . . forced somehow, almost like a performance. You're both wrestlers; part of your lives will always be a show. It's easy to love Becky Lynch; hell, just ask the merchandising department. But it's up to you to remember that she's Rebecca too. You have to be able to love both."
Seth nodded slowly. In a lot of ways, there wasn't much difference between Becky's wrestling persona and her real-life self; for him, though, the gulf between Seth and Colby could be vast—and hard enough for himself to traverse, let alone anyone else. Becky seemed to handle it with good humour, for the most part. One day, when they had both retired from the ring and were only making special appearances, things would be simpler, but until then, Seth was grateful Becky was at his side, helping to cut through the chaos. "I won't fuck it up," he said simply. It was a simple goal, perhaps crudely stated, but one that would take a lifetime to achieve, and he was beyond grateful for the chance to uphold it.