In the last Raw before Summer Slam, you are included in the main event. Final opponents are determined for the other matches but you feel out of place. Will you let Dean and everybody down or work past your fears?
Warnings/Promises: wrestling violence, self-doubt
Word Count: 2700
Note: Heads up, I’m going to be moving back to college next week. (I know, just in time for Summer Slam! Yippee.) So it will be interesting to see how maintaining this series goes once my class schedule kicks in. Hopefully, I will be successful. Another heads up: Summer Slam’s chapter is going to be awesome and action-packed. *squee* Tag lists and requests open. Happy reading!
Part 1: Welcome to the Team
Part 13: Not This Time

Monday Night Raw – August 13, 2018 – Greensboro, NC
If you were a begging type of woman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre would not have started the show. Your nerves were on fire as you saw them walk into Gorilla, cringing when you heard Dolph’s music. In the ring, he pranced around as if the audience’s reaction to him was unanimous praise.
“Well hello to you to.” He grinned wide, ignoring the waves of hate rolling towards him. “We’re out here to announce that there’s a special match tonight. Drew, if you would.”
“You’re havin’ a Lumberjack match tanight,” Drew rumbled.
“That I am. Against Dean Ambrose. And there to catch him when I toss him out is going to be you, Mojo, and Mickie James. And of course Roman, Seth, and Y/N backing up Dean. But they won’t be able to much. Now, if Y/N could step out here please.”
You were more than happy to. If he wanted to have a battle of wits, he was going to realize quickly how unarmed he was. Seth followed you out, to rushed to zip up his gear shirt. “What do you want Ziggler?”
He laughed. “No need to be so formal, sweetheart. Dolph is just fine.”
“Get to the point. Ziggler.”
Biting back a scowl he cleared his throat. “I wanted to let you know it’s okay. At some point, your cousin is going to knock me out of the ring. You’re frustrated and angry. I won’t hold it against you if you hit me.”
As if reading from a hokey script, Drew asked “but I thought you liked Y/N. Why all this?”
Dolph turned to him and talked with his hands as if to a child. “You see, the key to winning a girl’s heart is playing hard to get.”
You scoffed. “That would be difficult for you then since you’re hard to want.” This was getting old. The match could start right now for all you cared.
Seth read your mind. He crossed his arm across your shoulders, keeping you from storming down the ramp. Dolph noticed. “Gettin’ a little close there, Rollins. Y/N, you could do so much better. He’s no Dolph Ziggler.”
You looked down at Seth’s abs, then back at the ring. “Good. It means he’s not freakin’ orange.” Seth coughed and turned to face behind you. He cackled quietly. “And I hope you’re ready for some serious bruising. This is going to end tonight.” You turned on your heel.
“Whatever you say, Y/N. But all tonight is going to prove is that I am the best man in the business. And nothing the Shield can do is going to disprove that.”
The women’s music sounding told Dolph his time was up. They each took turns bumping shoulders against them as they left the arena. Rhonda nearly knocked Dolph off his feet, making him growl and make a hastier exit. Alexa Bliss and Alicia Fox stood on one side of the ring while Natalya and Rhonda stood on the other. They may have won their opportunity as a team, but tonight eventually it was going to be every woman for herself.
Renee Young explained how the match was going to work. “The match is going to start as a tag match. To eliminate a team, one member has to be knocked to the floor over the top rope. Then from the remaining two women, a singles match will begin immediately.”
Corey snorted. “I can’t say I agree with this method.”
“I’m looking forward to see how it goes,” Renee pipped up. Nothing Corey was going to say was going to dampen her Raw commentary debut.
Alexa rolled out, leaving Alicia at the other’s two women’s mercy. Which they gave. Sharing a look, each of the three rolled a different way out of the ring, circling Alexa. While she was focused on not getting caught by Natalya or Rhonda, she bumped into Alicia. They shared sticky sweet smiles, then Alicia tossed her partner into the ring at the sound of the bell.
Natalya fought her first. She made frequent tags to Rhonda, ensuring they would both have enough energy for part two of the fight. If they made it that far. Alexa escaped and put that plan in jeopardy as Alicia rushed in, quickly weakening Natalya and trapping her in the ring. Rhonda rushed around to the side as Alicia tried to tip her partner over.
She was successful but crashed to the floor herself when Alexa knocked her feet out from under her. They continued to fight on the outside. Inside the ring, Alicia was gaining the upper hand. Once again, Natalya had no one to tag and had to muscle through and do her best. Exhausted, she fell against the ropes. Alicia scooped up under her, attempting for a pin.
But it wasn’t that kind of match yet.
“No. Eliminate her,” Alexa screamed, “don’t pin her!”
“Oh yeah.” Alicia grabbed Natalya’s hair and slung her towards the ropes. Rhonda was there to make sure she didn’t sail over. She guided Natalya to the corner and tagged in, rushing towards Alicia. Foxy turned and reached for Alexa, who wasn’t there. Alexa hopped down, hoping Rhonda would tire out her partner. It backfired as Rhonda swung Alicia over her back and threw her over the top rope. Alicia fell on top of Alexa and they were announced to be eliminated.
Rhonda waited for Natalya to catch her breath. It wasn’t ideal. In a perfect world, they would both have more energy and could put on a better match. Natalya stood tall. This would have to do. For how much they had trained together, Rhonda picked up on her tells. Mixed with Natalya’s lack of momentum, she didn’t last much longer.
Even then, Rhonda hesitated to pin her friend. “I’m sorry,” she said as the ref counted to three. She helped Natalya to her feet.
“It’s okay, for now,” Natalya joked. “But you better kick ass on Sunday.” She helped the ref raise her hand in victory.
Kurt Angle held his phone far away from his ear with a wince. “Braun. Braun! I know, but it was best that you stayed away from the show tonight.” He paused and tromboned the phone as Braun reacted. “Because there are a lot of people who don’t want you to beat Brock on Sunday, and that’s not just him an Paul Heyman. I didn’t want you risking your Summer Slam match.” Gritting his teeth, he talked over his employee. “Look, you can yell at me Sunday night. After your match. If nothing goes awry. Okay? Good. See you Sunday.” He hung up with a sigh then saw you. “Hey, Y/N. Please come in.”
This couldn’t be good. “You wanted to see me, Mr. Angle?”
“Just Kurt. And yeah. I need your opinion on something.” He waited for you to step further into the room. “If I’m wrong I do have a back-up, so please be honest with your answer.”
You gulped. “Okay.”
“Y/N, do you think tonight’s match is going to end the problems with Dolph?”
“Honestly,” you said slowly, “no. From what I’ve learned about him, Dolph is going to keep going until the injuries to his body outweigh any gain he’s been scrambling for. Even if Dean gets him to that point, Mojo and Mickie are involved now too. They’ve got their own issues with us now.”
Kurt thought for a second. “There’s one more slot for Summer Slam.”
How? “Isn’t it a little late to be making matches? Summer Slam is on Sunday.”
He nodded. “I know. But I had a feeling this wasn’t going to be over before then. So, you and the Shield will have a match on Sunday against Dolph and Drew, and Mojo and Micke James.”
You sighed. “This is all my fault. I didn’t mean to be such a bother.”
“Hey,” Kurt gave your shoulder a light pat. “It’s how we settle things around here. If anything, you fit right in. You are not a ‘bother’ and we are lucky to have you on the team. You’ve just started and you’re putting more effort into your contract than some old timers.”
“That doesn’t matter. I don’t have the experience.” You groaned. “I’m not Dean. No matter how much effort I put into the match tonight or Sunday, I am going to burn out quickly.”
“Don’t worry about tonight or Sunday. You’ve got this.” His phone rang again. He walked away to answer it, despite your attempt to grab his attention. With a worried huff, your left his office.
“Are you ready for the match?” Seth’s voice behind you made you cringe. “I’ll take that as a no.” He jutted his chin in the direction that Kurt went. “So, I heard the tail-end of that. You get to be part of a Summer Slam match too, huh?”
“This is a disaster.” You slumped to sit on a crate. “I came here to be a reporter. And to reconnect with Dean, in a way. Everything has gone wrong. This is way more than what I can handle.”
“No, it’s not. I’ve seen you train. I’ve been beaten by you in training. Which, not to toot my own horn, is saying something,” he chuckled. When you didn’t cheer up he sighed and tilted your head up. He gave you a small smile. “Y/N?”
“I don’t want to let him down. Or any of you.”
“You won’t. I trust you.”
It was a tiny statement. But it meant the world. You couldn’t find the words to thank him but nodded. Seth grabbed your wrists and gave them the once over.
“Let’s get you some tape.”
Corey was grumbling even before Elias could strum his first chord. His stool was set up a few feet from the announce table on the stage. He sang an upbeat ditty about hating the town and his disdain for the opponents squabbling for his title, then left the spotlight.
“Front row seats to an Elias concert. Man, you guys really do get the good stuff,” Renee cooed. She elbowed Corey before he could retort.
Elias dipped his head. “I’m glad to see at least one person has accepted the enlightenment my music brings.” He glared at Corey and made small talk with Cole as Baron Corbin and Bobby Roode made their way down to the ring. He was unbothered by the idea of this match. If anything, he was excited to see who was going to face him at Summer Slam. It was the perfect opportunity to scope out his adversary.
Corbin and Roode circled each other looking for a way in. Eventually, they had to meet in a contest of strength. Corbin used his height to his advantage and caught Roode in a headlock. Neither wrestler was one known for their gravity-defying stunts, but Corbin was going to do everything he could to keep Roode from using his strength. It worked. For a while.
Using the crowd’s enthusiasm, Roode was able to make it to his feet. He bounced off the ropes and sent Corbin’s back crashing to the canvas. He didn’t fall for Corbin’s tricks. If Baron swung around a ring post, he was waiting for him. The Deep Six was hard to kick out of, but he did. Roode danced his way across the ring. If things continued his way, he was going to Summer Slam with a chance at the Intercontinental Championship. Roode kicked Corbin in the stomach and stepped back to power up for the Glorious DDT.
He took to long. Corbin reversed Roode’s movements into another Deep Six. When Roode stumbled up from that, he walked into an End of Days. His music was cut short by Elias playing his guitar.
Elias gave him a slight bow, then strummed his way out of the arena.
They were waiting for you in the ring. Roman and Seth went out first. Then Dean. He stayed close to the curtains, having promised you a surprise. You were still trying to work up the courage to go out there when a second guitar riff sounded. It was underlined with an electric guitar and strong drums.
“Surprise,” he smiled.
You had your own entrance music.
It was bold and had a great beat. Dean wiggled along with it on the way to the ring; you poorly stifled a giggle.
Dolph was left standing alone as his accompanying trio left the ring. Dean rolled and you took your spot on the ramp-side of the ring. After the bell rang, you bounced up and down like you usually did when watching matches from backstage. Being out in the arena? It was electric. Now you knew why Dean bounced and jumped through his matches. Mickie was glaring at you from the other side of the ring but that didn’t bother you. You had ringside access to one of Dean’s matches. This was wild.
Dean got tossed out first. Thankfully, Dolph’s aim was off and he sailed right into the arms of Roman. He received hair ruffling and loud pats on the back and then they sent him back in. His arms flailed, striking Dolph about every other rotation. You laughed as Drew and Mojo watched Dolph take the beating with uncomfortable grimaces. By keeping an eye on them, you saw the plan they formulated before Mickie could distract the ref. She jumped up onto the apron, pulling Dean’s attention away from Dolph. They tried to grab at his ankles, but even their long arms couldn’t reach him and a crisis was averted.
When Dean tossed Dolph over a rope, he made sure Roman was there to catch him too. You made sure there wasn’t inference from the left and Seth did the same for the right. You could tell the men weren’t scared of you. There was another plan in place. One that was for later as Dolph staggered his way back to his feet. The match went on, with Dean maintaining the upper hand. Drew and Mojo traded sides with Mickie.
You were distracted by Drew inching his way to Seth’s side when Dolph came flying over the ropes. He landed on you, smirking when he realized what his position was. With a growl, you flipped him to his back and started to punch at his face as hard and fast as you could. You were yanked to your feet by your hair. Mickie slammed your face into the apron. You fell back, dazed. Roman picked you up around your stomach, shouting at everyone to back off.
“Ow,” you mumbled, holding your head while Dolph slid back into the ring.
“Better get used to that, sweetie,” Mickie said, backing away.
There were several other altercations. Mojo did surprisingly well against Roman, while Seth used the barricades or apron to gain some height on Drew. Dolph continuously underestimated you and received similar treatment as to the first incident. No matter what you did, Mickie could always make you crumple like a ball of tinfoil. She could do the same to Dean, too. It took the three of you a few minutes to realize how much damage she was dishing out, then another few to break away from them to come to his aid.
Then there was the chair.
Mojo tossed it in while the ref’s back was turned. Dean was leaning against the ropes. He moved out of the way at the last second. Dolph’s swing bounced back at him off the top rope, sending the chair into his forehead and his body to the mat. The ref saw the whole thing and wouldn’t motion for a disqualification since it was self-inflicted. Dolph cursed and threw the chair away. It cut into Dean’s stomach, folding him in half.
You slid into the ring as the ref called for the disqualification. Dean waved off your worried looks and questions while the other team left. He coughed hard, holding his stomach.
“This isn’t over,” you hissed. “Far from it. They wanted the fight. They’ve got one.”
“That’s my baby cuz.” Dean grinned as you stuck your tongue out at him.
Part 15: Hold It High
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