Here's chapter 12, everyone! My deepest apologies for taking so long with updating this. I've been laboring through work and more work, not to mention various family obligations that have popped up as well. Hope y'all like this! This is a bridge for what will happen next chapter, and I can't wait to deliver that for you all. So here we go!

The Kiss Of Death

"Where are you taking me to?"

"Less questions, more walking woman. We're almost there anyways."

His hands were clasped around her eyes as he led her to their destination. Before that, on the half hour drive over from the hotel in LA that they were staying at, he had her blindfolded, wanting to keep his surprise for her just that; a surprise. All day and into the night, she had been bugging and pestering him about what he had planned, trying to weedle it out of him, but him being CM Punk, WWE Champion and professional hard-ass, he didn't once tip his hand to her and show him the cards he was keeping close to his chest. And this being AJ Lee, newly minted General Manager of Monday Night Raw and hyper-active geek goddess, not knowing what he was doing didn't sit very well with her.

"You know, I'm technically your boss", she said as he continued to lead her blindly to where ever the heck he was taking her. "I could strip you of the title if I wanted to..."

He chuckled to himself as he slowly led her down a narrow path, the end of their little walk in sight. Hands still covering her eyes, he leaned down and forward, so that his lips were near her ears. "And if you did that, I'd have to chop your body into little pieces and feed them to my sister's dog. I wonder how you'd taste...", he whispered, a smirk playing on his lips while she flailed her arms, trying in vain to smack him.

"Probably not as bad as you would. I'm pretty sure crusty, inked and greasy wouldn't be appetizing to anyone", she shot back with as they finally came to a stop. But his hands were still covering her eyes, and she pouted as she shifted and wriggled her body around so that his hands no longer covered her eyes, instead resting on the back of her head while she looked up into his green orbs and smiled. Though he wouldn't admit it out loud to anyone other than himself, every time he saw AJ's smile, it made him feel like the luckiest guy in the world to see something as radiant and pretty as that. Just the way she would light up the way she did, he couldn't help but feel good on the inside. If he was having a bad day, and could only look at one thing to help make it somewhat better, it'd have to be her smile. It was just...perfect.

"Hardy har har", he replied back sarcastically, quashing the the happy-go-lucky feelings brewing in the pit of his stomach. "I would taste awesome, being the best in the world and all. Now do me a favor and turn around, or you'll miss out on your surprise."

Nodding her head, AJ turned turned around and instantly, her jaw dropped as she took in the luminary scenery. Before her stood what she thought was the prettiest, most well decorated and beautiful little restaurant that she had laid her eyes on. It was the outdoor section of the place, tables in every direction she looked. Beautiful little bouquets of flowers and candles adorned the table tops, and rose petals were scattered everywhere. She peered around one of the many waiters zipping by and noticed the spacious-looking lounge on the inside, and to both her right and left, she saw tables on the other side of the windows and pillars, on the street. She must've looked like she was gawking and gaping at everything, because she didn't even notice Punk's tattooed fingers snapping in front of her eyes, trying to snap her out of her daze. Finally, after a couple more seconds, she blinked and shook her head, spinning on her heel to face Punk, who was wearing a welcome smile as she struggled with her words. All she wanted to do right now was kiss him profusely full on his lips and then find a quiet place and...she was getting ahead of herself.

"Go on, say it. I'm pretty fucking amazing, aren't I?", he said, his words ringing through her body, down to her bones, causing goosebumps to pop up on her arms. She just couldn't believe it; everything about what she just saw screamed romance, and how he had pulled this off, she didn't know. She almost didn't want to know, just so it would maintain the element of surprise, but that was besides the point. That he went out of his way to bring her here, where ever they were, for what she thought was a simple dinner date, floored her. It was so upscale and so unlike him...and then her thoughts quickly drifted to her appearance; she wasn't dressed for such a nice place like this! Everywhere she looked, she saw everyone wearing casual clothing, nice suits, blouses, slacks, heels, dress shoes...and here she was, wearing an Avengers tank-top that she customized herself, her usual assortment of bracelets and wrist bands, her favorite red shorts and her Converse...so underdressed! She began to look at herself up and down, and, as if he sensed what she was thinking, Punk placed his hand on her shoulder lightly, and instantly she calmed down, turning to look into his eyes.

"Don't get yourself all whipped up because we're both looking like we should be dressed for Comic Con rather than a four star restaurant. I am fully aware of this fact, so now would probably be a good time to tell you that I know a guy who used to work here who still has it good with the owner of this place, so he managed to get us a table on short notice. The autographed replica belt I sent his cousin probably helped with the process. And with all of that being said, you are now free to do whatever you want to me", he said with a chuckle, ruffling her hair a bit as she frowned at him messing up her hair. She leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, releasing a contented sigh as she melted into the side of his body, his arm instinctively wrapping itself around her slender frame.

"You never cease to amaze me, CM Punk. And you certainly know how to charm a girl, despite your past track record", she said with a light giggle as they began to walk to their table in the back, garnering odd and appalled looks from the older people sitting at the various tables. She could hear the whispers and see the sneers, but she didn't care; as far as she was concerned, it was just her and Punk. Everything else felt like white noise.

"I've told ya before and I'll tell ya again, m'lady. I'm kind of a big deal", he said cockily, but with a playful grin on his lips as he held her seat out for her, taking his own seat across from her shortly after that. "And please, you know you don't have to call me Punk all the time..."

"You absolutely hate being called Phil though", she responded back quickly with, biting down on her lip. "I mean, I feel like you're more comfortable with being called Punk...it's who you are."

He gave her his best sympathetic look, reaching across the table to take her tiny hand in his own tattooed one. "Who I am is Phil Brooks, and yes, while I do seriously dislike being called by my given name most times, I'm not gonna slam a chair into your face if you want to call me that every so often. If and when you start twisting my name into little cutesy nicknames is when I'll want to slam a chair into your face", he said, grinning as he ran his thumb over her knuckles, while their waiter arrived with an almost perturbed look on his face, almost like he was uncomfortable taking care of two...normal looking folks (though they were both anything but normal).

"Uh...hello there. Welcome to Il Cielo of Beverly Hills, my name is Walt, I'll be serving you this evening...what can I get you fine people to drink?", he asked rather uneasily, his eyes drifting back and forth between the many tattoos that adorned Punk's arms and hands. "Perhaps a glass of our finest white wine?"

"We don't drink", the two of them responded with in an instant, causing the young man standing in front of them to flinch a little bit at how they answered in sync so seamlessly. "Sorry about that", AJ said, quickly apologizing while Punk shook his head, hiding a grin.

"Water will be just fine, dude. And if you have it, Pepsi please, for me and the lady as well", he said with a smile as the waiter curtly nodded his head and was off to fetch their drinks. He couldn't help but laugh until he caught AJ's worried glance in the corner of his eye. He ceased all laughter and leaned forward to see what was bothering his favorite little crazy chick. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"You don't think that guy is gonna try anything funny, do you? He was looking at you oddly. He wouldn't stop staring at the one you have here", she said, pointing the scripture on the back of his left hand, reading it for a brief moment. "Huh. I never actually stopped to see what it said. No gimmicks needed?", she questioned, wondering what significance it held to him.

A reminiscent, almost sad smile spread across his lips as his eyes darted down to it. "Tribute to an old friend of mine who passed. The name Chris Candido ring a bell?", he asked as she nodded her head. "He always said that he didn't need a gimmick to get over in this business, and he never did. He was a great man that went too early."

AJ cocked her head to the side, eyebrow arched as she thought of what he just said. "But wait, wasn't he part of the Bodydonnas with Sunny?", she asked, quizzical look painted on her features. Punk's eyes went from that of his tattoo to her, giving her a slightly miffed look. "I ruined that little moment there, didn't I?", she said with a sheepish smile, her cheeks turning a flushed shade of red as she tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"I'm adding buzz kill to the list of things that you are", Punk deadpanned as their waiter returned with their waters and Pepsi's. "Took ya long enough!", he exclaimed jokingly at the young man, whose eyes widened in shock. "I'm joking with you kid. You look like you gotta loosen up a bit. It's all good here."

"Please sir, I'm going to ask you nicely to please refrain from whatever juvenile behavior you partake in outside of whatever profession you have chosen for yourself. This is my job and I expect to be treated with respect", he says, AJ's eyes narrowing, her lips forming an 'o', like she couldn't believe someone dropped the 'respect' card in front of him. She then took a page out of Punk's book, pulling on the collar of her tank top. "You probably shouldn't have said that..."

"Why?", the waiter asked, unaware of the devilish little smirk forming on Punk's lips as he cracked his neck and prepared to go straight for the jugular, his jovial mood having changed swiftly to that of angst. "I was serious, this is my job and-"

"And you want to talk about respect?", Punk said, cutting the man off, his words coming across as steely and icy. "Do you even know what the word respect means? Let me tell you. Respect is what you're not showing me right now. Respect is what you're not showing my lady friend here either. Don't act like you weren't eyeballing my tattoos and my clothes. And don't act like you weren't checking her out either", he said, pointing to AJ, who had a small grin on her pink lips as she held her hands up, not saying anything. "Listen, I get it. I'm not like most people, and I never will be. But I made peace with that fact a long, long time ago. Either you accept it or you don't, and right now, I'm catching the vibe that you don't."

Sensing where this was going, the young man named Walt began to realize that perhaps he had over stepped his boundaries by openly ogling the ink of the angered man in front of him. And openly insulting him probably hadn't done him any favors as well. Slowly, he tried to back away, stammering his words, but Punk reached out and roughly grabbed the boy by his wrist, dragging him back, where he was now face to face with the WWE Champion, who had risen from his seat, while AJ did her best not to burst out into giggle fits at how awesome this whole thing was. This angry side of Punk outside of the ring was something she hadn't seen before...and she had to admit, she was liking it. He looked hot while he was pissed off.

"You do not walk away from me when I'm talking to you. Now, get this. I brought my lady friend, whom I like very much, out here because I wanted to give her a nice little surprise while we're out here in California for the week. I didn't bring here to be looked up and down at like a piece of meat and I certainly didn't come here to have you judge me like some pretentious, self absorbed, spineless jackass. I'd hate to have to do this", Punk growled, bringing the boy to his face, his hot breath smacking him in the face. "But don't think for one second that I won't hesitate to shatter every single tooth in that mouth of yours. I'm the WWE Champion. Show me some respect, or I'll teach you what it's all about."

"That's why", AJ responded simply. Punk let go of the boy's collar, causing him to stumble backwards into an empty table, a scared, deer-in-the-headlights look in his eyes as he scampered away, somewhere out of sight. A satisfied smirk on his lips, Punk sat back down, glancing over at AJ; she was smiling. A little taken back at the ferocity of the situation, but smiling nonetheless. "So were you what they had in mind when the phrase 'Don't poke the bear' was coined?", she asked him, causing the two of them to chuckle.

"I'm sorry about that AJ. I usually try my best to keep my anger in check when in public but..."

"Don't be sorry", she responded quickly. "That guy was asking for it. I saw how he was looking at you and your tats...and the fact that he was checking me out makes me feel kinda skeeved out..."

"Oh, he wasn't checking you out", Punk said. "I just wanted him to think he was. Make him piss his pants, you know?"

A big, wide smile spread across AJ's lips. Sure, she would admit that it was a bit of a bummer that he hadn't referred to her as his girlfriend, but she knew he wasn't ready to fully come forth with his feelings for her like that, and frankly, she wasn't necessarily ready to jump head first into another, new relationship just yet either, even if it was Punk, even if she knew he wouldn't hurt her like Daniel would, even if her best friend did approve of him, even if she was wanting to show him just how much she appreciated all of what he was doing for her tonight in her own special way. But right now, she was really digging how everything was going between them. It was moving at an acceptable rate.

"You never cease to amaze me...Phil."

xXx

She sighed contentedly as she put her phone down. It was now Saturday afternoon, and she was sitting in the bus all by herself; Punk was out at the Nokia Theater doing the roster reveal for the new WWE video game that hit shelves in October, one that he found himself on the cover of, while Kofi and Truth were out at a Be A Star rally at a nearby elementary school. Deciding she wanted to go for a walk, she grabbed her belongings and strode out of the bus, making sure the doors were closed. Slipping her sunglasses on, she looked up at the blue skies and smiled; it was a wonderful day to take this walk and enjoy the California weather.

After a while, she found herself sitting at a table at a local park, watching as kids and their parents flew by, enjoying themselves. She got so wrapped up in watching them all, she hadn't even noticed the behemoth of a man walking up and taking residence on the side opposite her. When she felt the entire table shift, she glanced over and smiled at the giant sitting across from her.

"Hey Show!", she exclaimed, waving happily to him. "What brings you out here?"

"I thought I'd ask you the same question, kiddo", he said back to her. "Every time I've seen you, you've been attached to Punk's hip and shadowing him, so it's a bit surprising to see you out here all by yourself."

"I don't shadow him, per se...I just really enjoy his company, that's all", she said, blushing slightly as she adjusted her sunglasses. "And besides, he's doing the roster reveal for WWE '13 right now, and I've got an interview in a few hours so we're probably not gonna see each other till much later, so hah to your theory", she said, sticking her tongue out playfully.

"Uh huh, alright, whatever you say kiddo", the giant said with a hearty chuckle. "So how've you been? How's the new responsibility treating you? Breaking your back yet?", he asked as the subject turned to work.

"I'm really enjoying the chance I've been given, I'm so thankful...and getting to work closely with guys like you and John, my friends, it's great. And well, you probably already know what I'd say about getting to work with Phil again..."

"First name basis huh? Bastard must really like you if he's letting you call him that", Show quipped, a smile forming on his lips. "I've known him for close to six years, since our ECW days, and he still threatens to sock me in the adams apple when I call him Phil. You're one of the lucky ones."

"Luck is for losers, Show!", she responded, laughing at how much Punk really was beginning to rub off on her, while Show shook his head, grinning as he scratched away at his beard, muttering to himself that the female version of Punk was upon them all.

"Speaking of him, though, there's something I wanted to talk to you about", he said, speaking up, which in turn piqued AJ's interest. Maybe he had divulged something to Show about her? It had to be something good. But she wasn't prepared for what the gentle giant was going to say to her next. "You know this recent heel turn they've got him doing, right?"

"Yeah...what about it?", she asked hesitantly, sensing that this conversation wasn't going to go the way she wanted it to. An uneasy feeing began to brew in the pit of her stomach. 'That can't be a good sign', she thought to herself as she waited for the big man to continue.

"He uh...he...well, lets just say he really gets into them, and when he really gets into heeling it up and getting everyone to hate him...he really, really gets everyone to hate him, on and off camera. He pulls no punches and has no boundaries. You could be someone like me, a co-worker, or even his family, and he'd still find a way to make you want to knock his damn lights out. I know I almost wanted to a few summers ago."

AJ's heart sank a bit at the words that were coming out of Show's mouth. She had only been on the main roster for a little over a year and a half now, right in the middle of his big run as the conquering hero champion, and hadn't seen much of his asshole-ish tendencies. Oh yeah, of course she had heard the stories from fellow wrestlers all the way down to the guys who helped set up the ring at every show, but she had yet to really see him act like a complete ass. She was hoping she never would...but this made her feel like things were about to change between the two of them, and not for the better.

"He's changed", she said, though it sounded like she was trying to convince herself of that fact. "You don't see him when it's just me and him..."

"That's right, I don't. But I do see and have seen him when he's around the boys, and to be completely honest with you, kiddo, most of us want to beat the crap out of him when he gets on his high horse like that. Listen, I like ya, kid. You're like a little sister to a big old bastard like me, so I only want what's best for you. If hanging around Punk all the time is what you want, then go for it. I just thought I'd give you the heads up. Last thing I or any of us want to see is you hurt like after you and Bryan broke up. Just...be on the look out, kiddo", he said as honestly and truthfully as he possibly could, standing up and patting her on her head as he bid her good bye so he could return to his wife and children back at the hotel. She half heartedly waved him goodbye, her mind racing a mile a minute.

'He's not gonna be like that', she thought. 'He was such a sweetheart and gentleman the other night when we went out to dinner...how could he just change so quickly? He won't. He won't. I know he won't. Everything will be just fine. Everything will be just fine...'

Little did she know how much things could drastically change over the course of one month...

And that's that. Hope you all like it. Thank you to everyone who's reviewed and liked this story, you all keep me going, so much thanks! Crazy Is The New Sane will be updated shortly, as will this, so keep your eyes peeled!