- CHAPTER SEVEN -
"YOU WALK AWAY WHEN THINGS GET TOUGH."
- TWELVE YEARS PRIOR -
The surroundings were white as the light shone down, making the room appear so bright to the teenage girl. How her mother could sleep in a room full of light, Beth could never understand, for she had struggled to sleep there herself.
Of course, Beth was in the hospital where her mother would receive chemotherapy treatments for the cancer she had. After months, the doctors finally were able to identify the illness consuming Mary Lynch, but it was too late. Though they didn't want to admit it to the sixteen-year-old, Beth already knew her mother was dying.
However, they were only a few weeks from Christmas, and Mary still had a few more months left in her. That was what brought Finn through her door with a gift in his hand.
Beth's brown, tired eyes squinted enough to see The Prince through the lights as she immediately woke up. The young girl smoothed her hair, trying to make herself a bit more presentable, though her face held red marks from the way she laid previously. The girl slept uncomfortably on two chairs beside her mother's bed rather than opting for sleeping anywhere else because her mother was her number one priority.
"Finn," she breathed, caught off guard by his presence. The little skip of her heartbeat increased her nerves as Beth's crush paused in the doorway sending a smile her way.
The icy blue orbs then moved towards the figure on the bed that began to stir. Mary Lynch was awakening from her own slumber and smiled towards her daughter. Beth reached her hand out to her mother and squeezed lightly. "Good morning," she spoke, momentarily forgetting that Finn fucking Bálor was watching the family.
"Good morning, hunny," Mary responded, knowing she had heard Finn's name as her eyes found him hiding in the doorframe. "Finn, how delightful to see you!"
Finn smiled warmly at the mother. "You look amazing as always, Mary," he spoke, noticing the differences in her after only a few weeks. Her face was slimmer, and her skin lacked color, and of course, Mary Lynch no longer had hair.
"Don't start flattering me now," Mary teased, smiling bigger than Beth had seen her for a while.
"Oh, please," Finn chuckled, walking towards the bed with a small gift bag in his hand. He grabbed a chair from the other side of the room and moved it towards the duo, placing the seat next to Beth. He could see through her tired eyes and messy hair that she was struggling, a sight that made his heart hurt. Finn wanted the best for her.
Beth took a shaky breath as Finn sat so close to her, learning to control her emotions even though Finn was everything to her.
"I'm not one to barge in, but I actually had a surprise for both of you," he spoke, a glow coming to his face that Mary hadn't seen in all her years of knowing the younger man. Finn had a playboy reputation, though he occasionally would lose his facade to do what was right.
Finn's hand extended towards Mary as she grabbed the gift bag, pulling out a "Fight Factory Pro Wrestling" shirt. Her questioning eyes looked towards him as he explained himself.
"Beth has told me that you will be home the entire Christmas week," he started. "So, I have decided to set up a show that Saturday night with Beth and I in the main event in a mixed-tag match."
Beth's eyes shot towards Finn, a panic already brewing inside of her. The small girl had yet to compete in a match on a show, let alone a main event mixed-tag.
The Irishwoman was dumbfounded as to Finn's decision, wondering who her opponents would be because no other woman attended the school. She was still so young, with so much to learn, and the wave of insecurity overwhelmed her. However, Beth held it together at the sight of her mom grinning ear-to-ear.
"That's wonderful news, Finn! I've been wondering when I could finally see my baby in a wrestling ring," Mary excitedly spoke, a happiness flowing through her because she knew how much Beth loved it.
Normally, Mary would have noticed Beth nervously bite the inside of her lip, or fiddle with her fingernails. Both of the habits have followed Beth from the time she was a little girl. The mother hadn't noticed, however, due to the circumstances surrounding her. Besides, Beth had become very good at concealing her emotions. Being around Finn all the time proved that.
For once she felt a twinge of anger in the man she longed for. He hadn't spoken to her about the idea, and didn't ask her if it was alright. Beth was stuck—she couldn't back out after seeing her mother so happy.
Beth gave a slight smile as she stood from her seat. "Well, I say this exciting news calls for breakfast. I'll get you something to eat, mother," Beth squeaked out, trying to get away. Walking towards the door, she heard her mother thank her, but nothing from the brunette. Beth's small body paused at the doorway where Finn originally stood as she turned towards the duo again. "And Finn," she started, watching his blue eyes find her own, brown ones, "you will be joining us for breakfast."
Finn chuckled at the girl, seeing how much she had come out of her shell in just a year. He watched her grow up and mature so fast because of everything going on in her life.
"Finn, I have actually been meaning to talk to you," Mary spoke, breaking Finn of his thoughts as he realized he still faced the now-empty doorway and held a smile on his face. The Prince cleared his throat, turning towards Mary with a raised eyebrow.
Mary moved her hand to fall on his, squeezing it lightly. "Becky will be coming back over Christmas, but not full-time. She wants to stay in America," Mary informed Finn. He furrowed his eyebrows, wondering where the conversation was going.
The older woman continued, "obviously I only have a few months left, Finn—"
"Mary, don't—" Finn interjected, just for Mary to cut him off as well.
"Finn, please let me say this," she begged, pleading with a look in her eyes that caused an ache in his chest. He nodded, allowing her to continue.
Mary's brown eyes looked towards the window as she spoke, sighing in what seemed to be disappointment. "Beth will have to make the decision on what to do next when I'm gone. She'll be freshly graduated, with a job that could support her enough to live in a small loft. She could stay here, if that's what she wanted. Or, she could live with Becky until she got her feet under her. However, that would mean Beth must move to America, and leave the one thing she loves behind her."
Finn understood where Mary was going with the conversation. Beth was stuck, with no where to go—no where to call home.
"I would never ask you for anything you didn't want, Finn. I just want you to promise me something," Mary croaked, the sincerity evident in her voice as Finn stared intently into her eyes.
Finn grew closer to Mary, wanting her to know how much he was listening. "What is it, Mary?" he asked.
Mary's bottom lip quivered as she said, "promise me you'll always look after my daughter, no matter what."
Finn furrowed his eyebrows, wondering why Mary would even worry about his connection to Beth. "Of course, Mary. Why wouldn't I?" he responded.
Mary just smiled. "You both have a connection, whether you want to admit it or not, Finn. You don't realize it yet, but you do. I just want you to know how much I adore you. I accept you, Finn, as long as you'll protect my daughter."
Mary's words had gone straight over Finn's head, as she had intended. Of course, Mary knew of the fondness Beth held for the wrestler. Finn had not felt the same. He wouldn't show it regardless—Beth was far too young.
The age difference would have bothered the mother in any other circumstance, but not with Finn. With Finn, age was just a number.
- CURRENT DAY -
Beth sighed in frustration as Becky's phone went to voicemail once again. The natural ginger had been trying to call her sister all day, but to no avail. Sure, Becky was busy with media, but she had always used to make some time for the girl.
Walking into the arena, Beth felt embarrassed. She was supposed to be holding that title on her arm, with a happy glow on her skin. Rather, that wasn't the case. Beth was a loser.
She steered clear of Twitter over the last twenty-four hours, knowing that it would be a flurry of emotions from the fans. Would they be on her side in all of this? Probably not—everyone always loved Becky.
Beth was always the afterthought.
"Hey! Earth-to-Beth?" a voice spoke, breaking her of her thoughts. Karl stood in front of her, waving his hand as he caught her attention.
"Hey," she responded.
Karl furrowed his eyebrows at her current state, asking, "is everything okay? You kind of blacked out there for a second."
Beth nodded her head, doing what she always did best. "I'm okay, just tired from yesterday is all," she lied, faking a smile. It worked, seeing Karl nod his head in understanding as he agreed.
"I was just on my way to catering, want to join me?" he asked, changing the subject.
Beth had originally wanted to find Becky, or Seth for that matter, but due to their dodging calls, Beth figured it would be better to wait it out until they showed up. So, she agreed. "Sure," she answered, "I have to drop my stuff off in the locker room quick."
Karl nodded, jokingly saying, "I love hanging outside the women's locker room."
Beth laughed as the two went on their way, while Karl slightly distracted her from the problems inside of her life right now. His taller body walked closely alongside her as she got to know him better, not previously having the chance. Soon enough, they were sitting in catering talking about their lives.
She got to know that he was married and had four beautiful children. His face lit up at the thought of his family and it made her heart melt. Beth hoped that one day she would be that lucky.
"Beth, are you sure you're okay?" Karl asked once again, realizing that something was off in her demeanor. He continued, "I know I'm not the best for advice, but I'll listen—"
"Becky," Beth interrupted, seeing the orange hair from across the room as she stood from the table. Karl gave a confused stare to the ginger as she walked towards her sister, wondering why.
"Becks, I've been calling you all day," Beth spoke, catching the ginger's attention.
Becky winced at the sound of her sister's accent, knowing exactly what she was going to ask about. She had been avoiding her calls all day, knowing that she had done wrong by taking the title off of her sister.
Turning towards Beth's almond eyes, she faked a slight smile. "I know, Beth, I've just been crazy busy today with media because of the win last night—" she stopped herself, realizing that she had spoken about the edited end to their match. Beth crossed her arms, awaiting the answers she deserved though Becky would lie to her face.
Becky sighed. "Vince told me about the change only minutes before the match. I didn't have time to tell you, he does these things all the time. I'm sorry, Beth. But, this means our feud will continue and you'll have another chance!"
Beth nodded in disappointment, believing her sister because she had no reason not to. She had heard that Vince was like this, but hoped that the kind words he told her were true in that he would be different with her. Her faith in humanity is her biggest weakness—she trusts too easily and forgives too quickly. It's what Finn hated about her.
"I just thought that he was going to be different for me, you know?" Beth frowned, expressing her disappointment. "He seemed so excited for me to come and—and I just worked so hard to even be here, but, I'm glad you're the one who's holding it if I can't have it yet."
Becky almost choked on the water she had been drinking at Beth's comment about her. The Irish lass had taken away her own sister's chance of fulfilling her dream, and yet that girl was glad that Becky was holding the belt. What kind of a woman was she?
Finn had only been a table away, hearing the words from his former love as he breathed angrily at her selflessness. It was supposed to be her moment.
But, why did he care so much? He wanted to break their bond once and for all—Finn Bálor didn't want to associate with Beth Lynch anymore after their history. Perhaps Beth had been working her way into his walls once again and it terrified him. What was he kidding, he was doing a poor job of pushing her away.
His icy blue eyes glared holes in the duo as he took his own glass of water and angrily set it on the table, causing a semi-loud crashing sound before he stood and walked away.
Becky looked on at her former teacher, looking down at the floor in disappointment in her actions. She hugged her title a little bit tighter than normal.
Beth stared on at Finn's back, her eyebrows curling in confusion at his sudden outburst. There was only one thing Beth hated in this life—it was watching Finn Bálor walk away.
...