CHAPTER 13

Marriage Advice with xxmilkybqbesxx:

hey my loves! i have surprisingly a large amount of private messages about marriage and relationships. and here i am to give you some of my advice from personal experiences.

so first off, my real name is Maria Sofia Lopez- Carter. I'm 22, originally from Barcelona but moved to Colorado after some family events happened. I met my husband, Noah Carter, when i was 17, at a baby shower. at first we both didn't really want a relationship but unfortunately you can't control your feelings. so we started dating and he went off to college. my uncle works in real estate and got me a job with him so i stayed in Colorado, and this really tested our relationship. long distance was really hard, but the key is anticipation. anticipation makes for a greater passion. how can i trust my partner if we're separated? stability and being on the same page as your significant other is reallyyyy good when it comes to long distance. also what really helped me and Noah was we came up with a schedule. so obviously we texted throughout the day but we had the time set (since we were in different time zones) what time we would call each other, which we'd try to at least two times a day. be honest and communicate your feelings to one another!

Now marriage! NOBODY TOLD ME HOW HARD MARRIAGE IS UGH! okay so the best advice i can give is honestly trust, loyalty, and communication. and ik ik everyone says this but this is really the key. unfortunately me and Noah have had some issues when it comes to loyalty, before the pandemic happened, me and him were going to go our separate ways, and started the very beginning of the divorce process. i was actually going to move to Orange County but covid hit and we got quarantined together. at first i couldn't stand it lmaoo, we lived in separate parts of our house. but we both just had that feeling it wasn't right. Noah came to me and said he wasn't fine with ending our marriage and begged me to try out marriage counseling. don't ever be ashamed if you have to resort to counseling or therapy for your relationship, it truly saved my marriage. remember to also trust each other and at the end of the day, love is truly amazing. if you have anymore questions, please let me know and message me. hope this helped, i'm here if you guys need any more advice on literally anything. i don't like calling you guys just readers, you all are apart of the xxmilkybqbesxx family, none of the success i received wouldnt have happened if it wasn't for you all. so thank you and don't be afraid to message me, i love interacting with you!

AND NOWWWW: back to your regularly scheduled program- His Hound Of Justice:

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"Cut it out!" Joe rolled his eyes. "She's just someone to pass time with. That's all, other than that, she means nothing to me."

"Alright man, whatever you say." Seth shrugged, deciding he wouldn't push Joe any further.

She's just someone to pass time with

Royce could feel her heart pumping out of her chest. She turned back around and quickly made her way to the gorilla. Was everything a lie? Did yesterday night mean nothing to him? All this time was she just a booty call? None of it made sense. Whenever it was just them, Joe was overly affectionate with her. From kissing her cheek in grocery stores to holding her hand in public. But was it all for his benefit.

"Royce?" Nikki called her.

She looked up and almost broke down once she locked eyes with her friend. "Joe..." Was all she managed to say.

"What happened?" Nikki came to her side.

"Royce, are you okay?" Paige walked over to the two.

Royce quickly explained everything since their match was next. All of the girls were livid once they heard the news.

"Fucking asshole." Becky growled and shook her head.

"We're on." Paige frowned. "We're in this together okay?"

"Okay." Royce sighed and put on her best fake face for the crowd.

The two walked through the curtain, Royce was instantly refreshed as the crowd hyped her up and made her feel somewhat better. She walked down the ramp and spotted Neels with his friends who were also models and famous celebrities in Hollywood. Her and Paige did their pose before continuing.

"Good luck my little Presley." Neels grinned once she came up to him.

Royce slightly blushed and gave him a hug. "Thanks."

Neels quickly kissed her cheek and clapped as her and Paige got in the ring.

Paige started off the match, hoping to put Billie away as quickly as she could. But the IIconics wanted their titles back and were no doubt going to do whatever they could to get them. But Paige and Royce weren't okay with it, both teams were going to do whatever they could to win.

"Looks like Peyton has taking a kendo stick to Royce's back." Michael Cole winced, seeing the girls go at it.

"Come on Roy!" Royce heard Neels shout.

As if his words lit a spark, Royce quickly turned around and grabbed the stick from Peyton, breaking it in half. She ran with Peyton and did a backflip off the post, sending her opponent straight into it.

After almost half an hour of fighting and being tagged in and out, Royce hyped the crowd up while Paige crawled to their corner to try and tag Royce back in. During the entire match, she could hear Neels hyping her up and yelling things like, "That was three!" "Count faster!" "Drag her Royce!"

"Spear! Spear by Royce!"

"1, 2, 3!"

"Royce and Paige retain their titles!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, here are your winners and still, the Tag Team champions, Royce and Paige!"

The girls lifted up their titles above and hugged, both exhausted and hurting.

Royce exited the ring and went over to Neels.

"You did it! Woohooo!" Neels cheered and opened his arms for a hug.

"No no," she held her hand up. "I'm bleeding and I'm sweaty."

He rolled his eyes and pulled her in. "I don't give a shit, you just won! Good job baby!"

Royce chuckled, trying to catch her breath. "Thank you, and thanks for coming and supporting us."

"Always." Neels said. "You're off Saturday right?"

"Yeah why?"

"Because I am taking you on a date. And you can't say no, so I don't have to feel the pain of you rejecting me." Neels smirked while licking his lips.

"What's in it for me?" Royce teased him.

"A day of being treated like the queen you are." He pinched her nose.

"Royce we gotta go, Miz is on after us." Paige informed her. "Hey Neels." She waved.

"Hey," he gave her a hug. " You killed it out there, congrats on the win and retaining the titles."

"Thank you thank thank." Paige flipped her hair and proudly flaunted the belt. "Let's go, I need the medic, my head is still pounding from being launched into the stairs."

"Alright, I'll text you, thanks again." She gave him one last hug and he sent her a wink.

"Girly you are falling for that hunk," Paige put her arm around her shoulder as they walked backstage.

Royce gave her a look, as if Paige forgot she still wanted to cry and perhaps run over Joe with her car.

"Fuck sorry, I forgot!" Paige gasped and held her friend tight.

"Damnit." Royce swore and shook her head, the tears already pouring down her face.

"You did good babe," Nikki sadly spoke and rubbed Royce's arm. "Come on, Nurse Bella will take care of you."

Becky, Brie, Nikki, Paige, Sasha, and Royce all walked to the medic together, mostly to protect Royce incase they ran into Joe.

"How does my back look?" Royce asked Brie who was behind her.

"You're definitely scratched up pretty bad." Brie replied.

"Royce!" They all looked up and seen Joe running to them, with Seth and Dean trailing behind.

"I was trying to look for you before your match," Joe smiled.

"Excuse us, we're going to the medic." Paige let out a sigh.

Joe looked down at Royce. "Oh, I can take her."

"No." All the girls said at the same time.

"She doesn't need you." Becky scoffed.

"Woah what's up with you?" Seth wondered about her attitude.

"Just move." Royce finally spoke and tried walking.

Joe stopped her, "Hey hey, what's the matter? Talk to me."

"Just leave me alone." She pushed him away and continued to walk down the hall.

He quickly ran up to her. "What's wrong? Come on it's me Royce, I'm your friend and I'm here for you. You can tell me."

"You sure you're just my friend?" She bit the inside of her cheek.

"What are you talking about?" He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Are you sure I'm not just someone to pass time with?"

Joe stayed silent and took a step back. "You heard me..."

"She means nothing to me." Royce continue to quote him.

"No no, Royce I didn't mean it like that-

"Please tell me how I misinterpreted that?" She interrupted, the tears built up in her eyes. She was angry. In fact, she was pissed. And even more because she didn't want him to see her cry, she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing her break.

"Royce... I didn't mean it I swear. The guys were just nonstop teasing me about you and I just.. That just came out but it was all anger, okay? I didn't mean it." Joe tried to touch her but she jerked at his touch.

"Anger my ass Joe. You know, I really thought you were different. I thought you were more sensitive now that your wife is gone and all you have is your kids; and I was stupid enough to think I could help. But all those calls at 1 in the morning, saying you needed help and you didn't know what to do anymore. The funny thing is," she laughed and shook her head. "Every time you'd call late at night, I woke up in your bed."

"You weren't a fucking booty call Royce!"

Royce laughed. "Then what was I? A shoulder to cry on? No, I was there just for your needs! I genuinely cared about you okay? I actually cared, I adore your kids and loved being around them with you. I was there when you got a divorce! Who helped you that night? I did! I got you dressed and took care of you when all you did was punch the mirror until your hands bled. I picked you up! And I fall in love with you, all to find out I was nothing but a piece of ass to you!"

"I didn't ask you to, but you and I both know how much I've appreciated you. How much I've done for you, I never once didn't tell you how much I was so grateful to have a bestfriend like you in my life. But don't go believing what I said out of anger and spite, we all say things we don't mean sometimes, it's apart of life Roy! Sorry but you're gonna have to learn to get over it! I will not have my hand forced by you or anyone else!"

"What is wrong with you? I've reached out to you despite everything that you've done, and you still can't get out of your own way. God I feel sorry for you!" Royce turned back around only to have Joe pull her back.

"Don't turn your back on me!" Joe yelled at her.

"I should've turned my back on you ages ago!" Royce shouted back. She quietly gasped as she regretted saying that.

Joe released her arm and stay silent. Her words were like a slap to the face. He knew he hurt her, and what he was saying didn't make any sense and only dug the knife deeper in her heart.

"Come on," Nikki stood in between them and tugged Royce away. She pushed Joe over and Brie and Sasha both slapped him across the face, now he felt the actual pain.

"If you wanted a booty call this whole time, you should've called up your ex wife." Brie snarled and walked away.

"And we all thought you were the gentlemen, guess we were wrong." Sasha crossed her arms and followed her friends.

Joe punched the wall. "Fuck!"

Seth and Dean stopped him and held him back, trying to calm him down before he really lost it.

———

That night all the girls piled into one bed that was barely big enough for two, but somehow made it work. Royce was stuck in between the twins while Paige and Sasha gripped her waist and lower part of her body. Becky was on the side, her arm slung across and rubbed Royce's, as all you heard were her uncontrollably sobs.

Joe had been through three bottles of whiskey already. Dean lost track of how many times he had to clean up the room, whether it was filled with broken pieces of glass or a lamp shattered all over the floor. Seth already had gone to the store twice to get more bandaids and bandages since Joe kept cutting his knuckles open.

Both were now just, lost souls. His biggest fear however was if he really lost her forever.

If I could show you how awful you made me feel, you would never be able to look me in the eyes again.

It hurts to breathe because every breath I take proves I can't live without you

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to be continuedgo add 'One More Round' to your reading lists. ❤️