This chapter is a birthday present for GottaLoveReiding. Happy birthday muffin!

Cheerful. Contented. Delighted. Ecstatic. Elated. Joyful. Thrilled. Blessed. Pleased. These were only a few words used to describe how happy Stormie was to have Chelsey back in her life. During those past weeks, she had not only lost her sister, her fraternal twin; but she had lost her best friend as well. Things seemed to be getting on the right track. After Thanksgiving, Stormie once again began traveling with Seth, Dean, Chelsey and Roman. It felt like old times again, fighting over who got to drive, sharing stories about their past and mercilessly teasing each other. At least, on Dean's part directed at Stormie. She missed all of it.

It had been about two weeks since Stormie's spinning heel kick had broken Chelsey's nose, and Bray had given Stormie a moderate concussion with a Sister Abigail on the steel entrance ramp. Neither Stormie nor Chelsey were cleared to compete just yet, so they had been sidelined until further notice. Chelsey was at least allowed to accompany her team to the ring, Stormie was stuck watching from the locker room. One thing Stormie was permitted to do, however, was present a Slammy with Cody and Dustin.

"Are you ready to go?" Stormie glanced up from the Facebook app on her cell phone as Chelsey addressed her. The large black Chevy Tahoe pulled under the gazebo of the hotel, which was protecting Stormie and Chelsey from the wet snow of Seattle as Seth and Dean brought the SUV around. Roman opted to stay behind to FaceTime with his fiancé and his daughter. Seth pulled the Tahoe to a stop and put the car in park, waiting as Stormie scrambled into the passenger's seat next to him while Chelsey joined Dean in the back.

There was an unspoken rule that was always obeyed when driving with the Shield; and that was that the driver always got to pick the music. Stormie was certainly surprised when she buckled her seat belt and looked up at Seth, who was holding the USB charger out to her. Dean groaned when he realized that Stormie was picking the music, but she ignored his pessimistic attitude as she retrieved her cell phone from her jacket pocket and plugged it in.

Seth raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised but seemed to smile in amusement when the song "Cruise" by Florida Georgia Line and Nelly began to play from the middle, where Stormie had it paused.

"'Cause baby you a song, you make me wanna roll my windows down and cruise, down a back road blowing stop signs through the middle every hood, every town with you," She sang Nelly's part, fully intending to continue before Dean interrupted her. "If you roll the windows down while we're cruising down this road, I'm gonna tie you to the roof of the car."

Seth and Chelsey both laughed. Stormie turned around in her seat so she could look at the mouth of the Shield in the seat behind her. "I thought you grew up in Ohio," She said teasingly. "You should be used to the cold."

"I am used to it," Dean huffed, roughly pulling up the zipper on his black leather jacket. "Doesn't mean I enjoy it."

Despite how much fun it was to pick on Dean, Stormie turned around in her seat and reached over the center console to turn the heat up in the back. They continued listening to Stormie's playlist as they drove through the streets of Seattle, looking for a store to buy their dresses and suits for the Slammy Awards tomorrow. Unbeknownst to them, Roman had purchased his own suit over their Christmas vacation, surprising, as Seth was always the man with the plan. Stormie was fully convinced that Roman's fiancé was the reason he already had his suit, and made a decision to be as organized as she seemed to be when it came to handling her man, although Seth general did not need to be handled. If anyone needed to be 'handled' in their relationship, it was definitely Stormie.

The entire drive around the city was filled with laughter from Seth, protesting from Dean and singing from both Stormie and Chelsey as the girls quickly made a new playlist of songs that they both knew. It started with "Down" by Jay Sean and included "Timber" by Pitbull and Kesha, "Whistle" by Flo Rida, during which Stormie realized that she had been whistling wrong her entire life, and ended with a surprising in-car performance of "All I Do Is Win" by DJ Khaled. Stormie didn't think it was that surprising that she could rap all the words to the song, apparently Dean, Seth and Chelsey thought otherwise.

After another fifteen minutes of searching, Seth finally parallel parked in front of a small boutique with mannequins wearing dresses and suits in the windows. It was a cute store with dark hardwood floors, white and black stripped walls and antique looking furniture that had been refurbished. The only other people inside the store were two employees who were standing behind the counter, idly leafing through a tabloid magazine. They looked up when the bell above the door chimed as Stormie, Chelsey, Seth and Dean walked inside, but immediately went back to browsing through their magazine.

Rude.

Chelsey scurried towards the back of the store, where the evening gowns were hanging on the wall. She pulled down a floor length gown from a hanger and held it up high for Stormie to see. "This would look so good on you!" Seth and Dean slowly trailed after Stormie as she rushed over to look at the dress Chelsey was holding.

"Oh that's cute." She commented, running her fingers over the silky black fabric as she turned over the price tag attached to the sleeve. Her eyes widened as she saw the price. No wonder why the store didn't have any other customers besides them, and it definitely explained why the employees barely looked at them when they walked in.

"It's not so cute anymore." Chelsey agreed when Stormie showed her the price tag and put the dress back. Aside from dresses and suits, the store also sold a beautiful collection of shoes and accessories. The boys found their suits and shoes very quickly; both were all black to match the suit that Roman already had. The girls, however, were having a little bit of trouble. The women's clothing was three times more expensive than the men's, and there were only so many dresses that would be considered appropriate for an award ceremony.

Dean walked right up to one of the dresses hanging on the rack and pulled it off to show Chelsey. "You should wear this." He said grinning. The dress was very pretty, but it was made for a club, definitely not an award show on a PG program. "No way in hell." Chelsey said immediately upon seeing the strapless backless dress with a plunging necklace that Dean was holding. He pouted and continued to hold the dress out to her. "Oh come on!" He whined. "At least try it on!" Chelsey rolled her eyes and roughly grabbed the dress, grumbling to herself as she went into the dressing room.

Stormie continued to browse around while Chelsey was trying on the dress, but nothing really caught her eye except for a pair of strappy gold high heeled shoes with a ribbon that wrapped around the legf of the mannequin that was wearing it. She quickly grabbed a pair in her size and held onto them as she searched for a dress to match. Chelsey refused to let anyone see her in the dress, but Dean was grinning for the rest of the morning, so it was safe to assume that he got a little peak.

It didn't take Chelsey long to find a dress she liked. Not surprising considering how much she hated trying on clothes. What was surprising was the fact that she loved to shop. Stormie sat down in a chair by the dressing rooms with Seth on her right and Dean on her left. They had been in this boutique for over an hour, Chelsey was out on the sales floor hunting down dresses that she promised would look so good on Stormie, like the other dresses hanging up in the dressing room were supposed to look so good. She didn't doubt her sister's fashion sense, but nothing she picked really stood out.

"You promised we were getting food after this!" Dean complained as he slumped down in his seat, his suit and Chelsey's dress resting carelessly on his lap. "I'm hungry!"

"We'll eat when I find Stormie a dress." Chelsey said in a determined voice, although her actions betrayed her as she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket to check the time. It was almost five o'clock.

"Maybe we should try a different store…"

"Maybe we should just give up! She can wear Goldust's bodysuit and Cody's paper bag mask to the Slammy's." Stormie frowned, feeling both offended and guilty. She understood that Dean was annoyed and she felt bad that he had to sit and wait until they found her a dress to wear, but at the same time, he didn't have to be a total asshole. Chelsey seemed to agree, she smacked the back of his head.

"Stop being mean," She told him. "We found my dress and your guy's suits, now it's Stormie's turn."

"Well how about this dress?" Seth called from the front of the store. Stormie didn't notice that he had left his chair, he had been mostly silent the entire shopping trip. He returned to the dressing room carrying a dress that immediately brought a smile to Stormie's face, with one glance she knew it would go perfectly with the shoes she already picked up.

"You should try it on, Sweetheart." Seth said, holding the dress out to her. She took it from him and retreated back to the dressing room and locked the door behind her. She admired the dress before she put it on the show the others. It was short and strapless, probably landing at the middle of her thigh and with a corset back and a sweetheart neckline. The bodice was a light shade of gold and covered in sparkles and sequins, while the skirt was darker and made of shimmering flowy material. She looked at her reflection in the full length mirror, appreciating the way the dress seemed to pop against the olive tone in her skin and the darkness of her hair. Stormie poked her head out the dressing room door, intending to ask Chelsey or Seth with help lacing up the corset but they were on the other side of the store, looking at the jewelry. Dean, however, was still sitting in his chair.

"Dean?" Stormie called in a voice so low that she wasn't sure that he actually heard her. "Can you tie me up?"

Dean looked up from his uninterested gaze on his shoes, pout still firmly in place on his scruffy face as his baby blue eyes appreciated the sight of Stormie's bare back, trailing over the exposed flesh, identifying every inch of olive skin, every freckle, every faint bruise from wrestling, from the back of her neck to the base of her spine, where the red lace of her thong peeked out from underneath the dress. The pout was replaced with a smirk as soon as Stormie's words registered in his mind.

"Sunshine, I didn't know you were into such kinky things." He crooned softly, taking the laces of Stormie's corset in both hands. Her cheeks and ears burned when she realized how her words sounded, but rather than getting flustered like she usually would, she felt it was high time that she embrace Dean's flirtatious and teasing nature.

"Sugar," She began, inhaling sharply when Dean pulled the laces tighter, "considering you mentioned tying me up earlier, it seems to me that we're both into kinky things. You have no idea what turns me on."

Dean's hands seemed to freeze in place the moment Stormie's words left her mouth. His breath hitched slightly, as she watched his facial expression from the mirror in front of her, how his mouth was slightly agape, how his eyes widened in disbelief, she wondered if maybe she had gone too far. Growing up with her brothers, Stormie didn't have many friends who were guys, and the girl friends that she did have usually didn't last for very long. She valued the special kind of friendship she had with Dean. Granted, she and he had very different personalities, but that was one of the reasons that they connected so well. Sharing jokes and teasing bantering was nothing new to them, but Stormie feared that this type of banter might cause Dean to second guess the relationship between himself and Stormie; that was the last thing Stormie wanted.

After a moment of silence, a breathy sound escaped Dean's parted lips that Stormie immediately recognized as a chuckle. He tightened the laces one last time before tying the ribbons in a bow. Dean stared at her reflection in the mirror as he pulled the hair that was over Stormie's shoulder to cover her back before leaning his chin on the top of her head. "You're a rare one, you know?" He said so quietly that if Stormie didn't know better, she would have assumed he was talking to himself, despite staring at her through the mirror.

His slightly chapped lips pressed against the crown of her head as he whispered, "Seth's a really lucky guy." Before he stepped back and called to Chelsey and Seth on the other side of the store, "Come look at this dress so we can get the hell out of here, I'm starving!" Stormie breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that with the familiar attitude she was getting from Dean, their relationship was fine. She turned in a circle to show off the dress as Seth and Chelsey walked over. "What do you guys think?"

Stormie allowed herself to be taken into Seth's arms when he closed the distance between them with his long legged strides; with the high heels she was wearing, she was close enough to Seth's height where he didn't have to bend or she didn't have to stand on the tips of her toes to kiss. "Nobody will be able to take their eyes off of you tonight." He pressed their lips together again before Stormie went back to the dressing room to change back into her jeans and sweater. Despite the amount of protesting Stormie did, Seth paid for her dress and her shoes, as well as his own suit while Dean did the same for Chelsey.

Seth drove them back to the hotel to pick up Roman and their gym bags before heading to the KeyArena. There were people running around everywhere backstage to prepare for tonight's Slammy awards ceremony. Since she started in the WWE four months ago, Stormie had been bouncing around from locker room to locker room, depending on the situation. In all honesty, she should be preparing for the Slammy's in the women's locker with all the other divas, but she knew that Cody and Dustin still had their own locker room, a perk from being the WWE Tag-Team Champions, so she decided to dress with them for tonight.

Seth was not happy when he heard the news. "We have plenty of space in our locker room, Sweetheart." He protested, holding onto Stormie's hand tightly as she made a move to walk in the direction of catering, where Cody said he would be waiting. Roman continued on, followed by Chelsey and Dean, leaving the second youngest member of the Shield and the daughter of a son of a plumber behind.

"It's just easier to stay with them," Stormie remarked, dropping the handle of her suitcase and placing the garment bag that held her dress down on top of it before she wrapped her arms around Seth's waist and buried her face in his chest. He smelled of cologne and coffee, a familiar and comforting scent that instantly made her relax.

"I have to present a Slammy with them, you have a Slammy to present with Dean, Chelsey and Roman, and Dean has his match, too." She mumbled into his jacket, "You understand, right? I'll see you after the show tonight." When Seth didn't protest, Stormie stood on the tips of her toes and gently brushed her lips against the coarse facial hair on his cheek before picking up her suitcase and dress and left for catering.

Cody was waiting in catering just as he said he would be, sitting at a table with a bowl of macaroni and cheese while dressed in his Slammy best; a black suit with a black shirt and a gold vest and tie He just shoveled the last forkful in his mouth as Stormie appeared in the doorway, knowing that she would have taken it for herself.

"That was mean." She pouted, dropping her butt down in the chair across from him, reaching out a hand to take his unopened bottle of water. "I'm starving!"

Cody chuckled quietly as he swallowed his mouthful of pasta. "I'm being rude?" He asked exasperatedly, gesturing to his younger sister as she broke the seal and took a generous drink. Stormie merely grinned in reply. "Do you want it back?" She asked, holding the bottle out to him; Cody waved it away and stood up to get Stormie her own bowl of mac and cheese.

Dustin was already dressed and waiting in the locker room when Cody and Stormie arrived, both her brothers were wearing suits that were nearly identical, except Dustin's shirt was white and Cody's shirt was black; he also had his jacket unbuttoned.

"We match!" Stormie said excitedly as she brought her dress into the washroom to change. Cody laughed when she emerged, pointing to his and Dustin's vests and ties with one hand, and the bodice of her dress with the other.

"You know, you're really lucky. I was going to wear that exact same dress tonight." He said jokingly. Stormie only laughed as she sat down on the bench to slip on her shoes. Cody handed her the bowl of pasta and she ate while Dustin laced up her corset. She missed these times with her brothers, aside from spending Thanksgiving in Georgia with her family, it was now a rare occasion when Stormie, Cody and Dustin were all together. She relished in their presence, knowing that it might be a while before it happened again.

Almost half an hour later, a production assistant came knocking on their locker room door, notifying the Rhodes family that it was almost time for them to present the Slammy for Hashtag of the Year. Dustin's music was the one that played, and as soon as it did, both he and Cody took Stormie's hands and they walked out onto the stage together. The applause they received from the crowd was almost overwhelming; the last time the WWE Universe had seen Stormie was when she was laid out by Bray and the rest of the Wyatt Family. It felt nice to know that apparently they didn't hate her, that they didn't hold anything against her during her time as the Wyatt Family's reincarnation of Sister Abigail. Then again, trying to save Daniel from Bray, Rowan and Harper's assault might have earned her a few brownie points.

They stood in front of the podium that was off to the side of the stage; Stormie was dwarfed by both Cody and Dustin who stood on either side of her, even with her high heels. Cody was the first to speak. "The WWE Universe is responsible for some of the best hashtags all around, and these hashtags aren't just one or two words, they capture moments, and they move forward these moments via social media."

He turned to Dustin, "Goldie," Stormie stifled a giggle at the nickname, "Any particular hashtag you were fond of this year?"

Dustin turned to look at him and paused for a moment before he leaned over Stormie's head and breathed hard in Cody's face. She laughed along with the crowd as Cody and Dustin bantered, finding it incredibly funny when Cody compared Dustin to the actually Slammy Award and Dustin asked if that would help them win a Slammy in the future. The nominees for Hashtag of the Year were #BestForBusiness, #BelieveInTheShield, #FollowTheBuzzards and #WeThePeople.

Stormie held the envelope with the winner in her hand. Thankfully, her mouth just reached the microphone when she was wearing those high heels. They were definitely an excellent find on her part. "You guys wanna know who the winner is?" Stormie asked the audience, receiving around of cheers in response.

"And the winner is..." Stormie opened the envelope and peered down at the words written inside, the winner of Hashtag of the Year did not surprise her at all. She couldn't help her face from pulling upwards into a smile. "Believe in the Shield!"

Because Seth, Dean, Chelsey and Roman were all preparing for presenting their own Slammy and for Dean's match later in the evening, nobody from the Shield could come out and accept the award for themselves. Stormie accepted it on their behalf and held onto it as she, Cody and Dustin walked backstage. "It's heavier than I thought it would be." Stormie commented, weighing the Slammy in both of her hands.

"Well, it is made of gold." Dustin chuckled, loosening the top few buttons on his dress shirt.

"And you know all about that, don't you?" Stormie teased.

"Of course he does." Cody grinned. Stormie spent a good half an hour with her brothers backstage, watching as other Superstars and Divas presented their own Slammy awards before Raw was scheduled to go on the air. As soon as the pyro went off, signaling the start of Raw, Stormie got to her feet.

"I'm going to give Seth, Dean, Roman and Chelsey their Slammy, I'll see you guys later." She kissed both her brothers' cheeks, wiping the makeup off her lips from Dustin's face before she began wandering the halls in search of the Shield's locker room. It wasn't hard to find, as it was the closest room to the concession level with a piece of paper that said SHIELD in bold capital letters.

She knocked on the door rather than just walking in, and waited for a few seconds before Seth appeared in the doorway, dressed only in a pair of black dress pants and a matching dress shirt that was unbuttoned and revealed his chest hair and impressive pectorals. "Oh, hey Sweetheart." Seth stepped back and allowed Stormie to cross the threshold. "You said you would be by later, I thought you were Roman."

"There is no way that Roman looks as cute in a dress as I do." Stormie laughed. Seth smiled and shook his head as he shut the locker room door behind her.

"Not a chance." He agreed, taking on of her hands in his to spin her around, getting a three hundred sixty degree view of her. "You look beautiful."

Stormie had been complimented all night on how she looked, she knew she looked good with her hair and makeup done perfectly, her dress fitting her like a glove, and the strappy shoes giving her at least three more inches of height. But she didn't believe anyone until Seth uttered those words. She lowered her gaze to the gold nail polish on her toes, hoping that he wouldn't notice how skeptical she appeared.

He did, of course, but he didn't say anything as his thumb and index finger grasped her chin, tilting her head up until her brown eyes locked with his. They were softened with worry and disappointment. She willed herself to say something, to do something, to not stand there like an idiot when it was obvious what Seth was implying. "The Slammy is beautiful, too."

The moment those words left her mouth, she could feel her face heat up in embarrassment. She did not seriously just say that. What an idiot. A small smile grew on Seth's face as a deep laugh bubbled up from his chest. "Did you really just compare your beauty to an award?" Her blush darkened and spread to her ears, she immediately pulled her hand away and turned, trying to hide her face.

Seth shook his head at her actions and drew Stormie into his arms. "You're crazy…" She barely turned her head, and didn't even get the chance to blink before Seth closed the gap between their lips with a soft kiss that had Stormie melting like ice cream in the hot Atlanta sun. She felt all the breath leave her lungs at the simple but sweet gesture. The Slammy in Stormie's hands was tossed onto the couch like it was a worthless chunk of gold as Seth continued to move his lips against hers, encouraging her to respond by weaving his fingers through her dark curls. She never realized just how close they were standing together until the scent of his cologne filled her nostrils and she could feel his heart beating in his chest, which was pressed right up against hers; The cross necklace that hung around her neck leaving an imprint on the exposed skin of his chest.

Although he assumed knew the reason, Seth couldn't help but wonder why Stormie thought she didn't deserve to be treated so well or told how beautiful she was. In all the time he had known Stormie, he noticed that she never mentioned any past relationships or things about her childhood aside from the embarrassing stories that the Rhodes family mentioned over Thanksgiving. Just how much had Bo messed with her mind? Did something happen that he didn't know about? Perhaps something from before Stormie's relationship with Bo?

The kiss quickly became less chaste and sweet when Seth took her bottom lip between his teeth and gently tugged on it. She hesitated for only a fraction a second before granting him the access he was asking for. He tasted like coffee, something she found that she really liked, despite not being a fan of drinking the beverage. He had to bend on his knees slightly so Stormie didn't have to crane her neck to kiss him, even with the three inch high heels she was wearing. It made things less awkward, until the sound of a deep voice chuckling filled the room.

So GottaLoveReiding has, probably unintentionally, brought it to my notice that my chapters are considerably short. At least, compared to her 4-5,000 word chapters. I just thought I'd point out that the reason for that is because I have a very short attention span, it's hard to concentrate on one thing at a time, even when I'm not writing. Like, I could be watching wrestling and listening to music at the same time. When I read something, I get bored very fast if a chapter is too long. It didn't really occur to me until now that not everyone feels the same way.