One thing Alexis Rose never had to worry about when she lived and grew up in Cincinnati… wildfires. She would have rather faced hunkering down in a storm cellar from a twister than ever face the devastation that California had endured with the blazes that had ripped through the State. Altadena in particular had been ravaged by the Eaton fire that destroyed entire neighborhoods. By a combination of sheer dumb luck and divine intervention, Alexis’ condo, save for a little bit of smoke damage, had remained largely unscathed. The same couldn’t be said for thousands of others.

In-between getting rid of the ring rust that she had accrued for the last year or so, Alexis and her girlfriend, LAPD Detective, Brooke, had devoted their spare time to helping the other residents who’d lost loved ones, their homes, their entire ways of life in any way they could.

Today though, they were enjoying a nice dinner, trying their best to ignore the horrible smokey smell that was still rife. Alexis pushed her fork through a pile of roasted vegetables, glancing out the window at the faint orange haze that still hung in the distance. It was hard to escape the reminder of what had happened, even in the quiet moments.

Alexis: Do you think it’ll ever go away?

Her tone was soft but tinged with a hint of weariness. Brooke looked up from her plate, setting her fork down as she leaned back in her chair.

Brooke: The smell? Eventually. The damage? God knows…

She sighed, her expression momentarily clouded before she forced a small smile.

Brooke: But people rebuild. We always do. Look at you. Your shoulder’s all better, ready for your first match in Lord knows how long! I’m so proud of you, Lexi, you’ve worked so hard.

Alexis smiled. She knew she’d worked hard to get back into ring shape for the time when Butch and Wisdom eventually gave her the green light. And the thought of finally competing again was exhilarating. Still, she knew Brooke had been going through a lot at work. Looters, vandals, arsonists along with the other every day shit that plagued the streets of LA.

Alexis: I just hope I haven’t missed a step. I’ve felt great in the practice rings but when you train with a guy like Sensei Kiriyama, you feel like you can do anything. Honestly, Brooke, the guy is like a wrestling savant; I’ve never met anyone with a mind for the business like him. His match against Sean is going to be off the charts.

Brooke: Sean? He’s the Scottish guy, right? Is he not the one that went viral for proposing to his girlfriend in Disneyland? That was so sweet.

Alexis: To Michelle, yeah.

Brooke: The little blonde girl? And is she not the one you choked out on your first day?

Alexis rolled her eyes, embarrassingly.

Alexis: Yeah, not my proudest moment…So, how was work today?

Brooke smirked, running a hand through her short, dark hair.

Brooke: Oh, you know. The usual. Paperwork, chasing down leads, convincing suspects that lying to a detective isn’t in their best interest.

Alexis: Sounds thrilling.

Her lips curved into a teasing smile.

Brooke: Not as thrilling as watching you nearly drop an entire case of bottled water on your foot at the shelter yesterday.

Brook’s eyes sparkled with amusement as she shot back at her girlfriend teasingly. Alexis gasped in mock offense, still smiling.

Alexis: Excuse me! That was a very heavy box, and I was trying to be helpful!

Brooke: You were very helpful.

Brooke’s, her tone softened as she reached across the table, her hand brushing against Alexis’.

Brooke: I am so proud of you, you know that right?

She took Alexis’ hand in her’s, stroking the back of it with her thumb. The sincerity in Brooke’s voice made Alexis pause. She felt a warmth rise in her chest, a mix of pride and affection.

Alexis: Well, I’ve had a pretty good partner.

She curled her fingers around Brooke’s, who smiled in response.

Brooke: We make a good team.

Alexis: We sure do!

They both leaned in at the same time, knowingly, their lips meeting in a soft, delicate kiss. As the kiss lingered and threatened to go deeper, the mood was disrupted by the buzzing of Alexis’ cellphone. She lifted it off the kitchen island counter and her face screwed up slightly.

Alexis: Shit, I didn’t even hear my phone go off. I’ve got a missed call from Jeremy and a voicemail.

She played it back, listening to Jeremy’s message and her expression morphed from confusion to surprised joy.

Alexis: Wow!

Brooke: What?

Alexis: Ya girl just got asked to be someone’s tag team partner at Havoc!

Brooke: That Jeremy guy? Bless him, he’s so sweet. He and that Matt make a cute couple. That’s great though Lex! I’m happy for you!

Alexis couldn’t help but beam from ear to ear as she called Jeremy back. Ironically, as his did earlier, the call went to voicemail.

Alexis: Hey, Jer! Sorry I missed your call earlier, I’ve got no idea what’s happening with the cell service here lately. Anyways, I got your message and I’d love to tag with you at Havoc! Let me know if you want to get some training done at the Academy before we all head to Seattle! Talk soon! Bye!

Alexis hung up her phone as she and Brooke went back to enjoying their dinner along with the pleasure of each other's company as the scene faded to black.