Work Text:
Had such an incident occurred a year ago, Rhea would have been fucking furious over losing her winning streak she held against Asuka. But in December of 2025, that realization did not come over her and even if it did, she still would not have given a shit. The only thing that mattered was the woman in her arms.
Rhea tried not to jostle Iyo too much as she carried her to the med bay. “I’ve got you,” Rhea murmured lowly in Iyo's ear. Iyo let out a grumble of pain that made Rhea hold her tighter.
“Rhea, your match-”
“Doesn’t matter,” Rhea cut in, her voice silken and soft.
“My fault-” Iyo tried again but was cut off once more.
“Doesn’t matter,” Rhea reiterated. She then leaned down and placed a comforting kiss on Iyo’s forehead.
They finally reached the med room, with Iyo being the one to reach out and open with door without a knock, ignoring the sharp pain that shot through her as she did so.
Without invitation, Rhea placed her on one of the available beds as gently as she could. The medical staff took a hair too long to attend to Iyo (in Rhea’ mind), earning themselves a small taste of the Australian’s ire. In full eradicator mode, she stalked over to one poor soul and grabbed him by the collar, hauling him up to meet her hardened glare, “ stop standing around and bloody help her,” she growled.
“Rhea!” Iyo admonished from the other side of the room.
Rhea complied with her unsaid wish and released the man, leaving him and others to rush over to Iyo. Still in her ring gear, Rhea stood in the middle of the room, a tall and imposing figure.It was easy to pick up how terrified the staff was of Rhea and Iyo felt for them. As they sat her up on the side of the bed, she focused her gaze on her friend, “you should wait outside,” Iyo suggested, her words tinged with pain.
Rhea was quick to argue, “But-”
“It’s going to be a while. Go shower and change. I promise I will be okay,” Iyo interrupted.
Rhea swallowed thickly, and conflicting emotions and thoughts playing across her features in mere seconds. Eventually, she relented with a deep sigh. She walked over to Iyo and gave her another forehead kiss that screamed of an affection and intimacy that went beyond friendship.
She was giving Iyo that look again. The one that made Iyo often forget how to breathe and at the current moment, blocked out the pain still home in her back. Rhea gave her a soft, encouraging smile then left the room to go do as Iyo suggested.
Someone cleared their throat, bringing Iyo out of her Rhea-induced haze, reminding her of the fact that a room full of people just watched the rather emotional exchange between them. But she could hardly allow herself to be embarrassed as she became aware of the horrid ache in her back once more.
“Thanks for that,” the attendee that Rhea manhandled said as he helped her move to lay down on her stomach.
Despite everything, Iyo managed to give him a half smile in response. As her examination went into full swing, Iyo thought about the ramifications her injury could have. The match for the tag titles was just around the corner. She would have to go into the match not fully 100%.
Her back would be undoubtedly target in an aggressive manner. Rhea might even try to turn into a handicap match and refuse to tag her in. As great as Rhea was, she could not handle them both on her own. No one could. Asuka and Kairi would dissect Rhea right in front of her and put the blame on Iyo for the pain Rhea had to endure.
The next time they talked strategy, Iyo was going to have to ensure Rhea into a promise to not handle the match in such a manner. It would be a losing strategy and an unbearable sight. She would have to get a strong pain killer shot before the match as well. Her prescribed painkillers she had tucked away in the hotel room she shared with Rhea would be far too little. As it was, whatever shot they would feel comfortable giving her would hardly be enough but it would be better than nothing. They would just have to work fast to finish the match as soon as possible.
Another possibility was that Rhea could find somebody else to replace her altogether. That notion left a sinking feeling in Iyo’s stomach. It had to be her and Rhea to take out the Kabuki Warriors. The thought of Rhea sharing that moment with anyone else left a nasty taste in her mouth. It wasn’t akin to jealousy (she was familiar to that sting whenever she had to endure the flirty sessions between Rhea and Cathy Kelley. Those were thankfully becoming rarer as time went on), but it just didn’t feel right. It felt like fate called upon it be her and Rhea to dethrone her former friends. Together.
It took about an hour for the medical team to finish up with Iyo. The results were about what she expected. Her injury had been aggravated further and it was highly recommended that she stayed out of action at least two months. Not doing so may put her career at risk. It wouldn’t be the first time and certainly wouldn’t be the last. Her and Rhea were going to win those titles, her back be damned.
A loud knock reverberated throughout the room, signaling the return of the Eradicator. She didn’t wait before she barged into the room, face now bare and in regular clothing that was in her favored color of black. Rhea paid no heed to the medical staff, attention zeroing in on Iyo, coming over and squatting down to meet Iyo’s gaze directly.
She reached out with a hand, and brushed a stray of hair of Iyo’s face, “how, ya feeling, chipmunk?” she asked tenderly.
Iyo gave her a small, tired smile, “a little better. Will feel even better when I take my meds.”
“Should have brought them. Will have to make sure we do so next time,” Rhea replied softly. “I got the car packed, we can head out of here.”
Iyo nodded in agreement before her eyes narrowed slightly, “you don’t plan to carry me to the car, do you? I’d rather try to walk than force you to do that.”
Rhea gave her a cheeky grin, signifying that was exactly what she planned to do but unbeknownst to her, her bubble was about to be popped.
“We have a wheelchair you can use to wheel her out, and we will be more than happy to assist. Iyo is always a great patient,” one trainer spoke up.
Rhea’s grin fell as she turned to said trainer with a frown. The woman could only nervously shrug, thinking her suggestion would be seen as helpful rather than disruptive.
“That will be just fine,” Iyo stated, earning herself a frown from Rhea. But Rhea didn’t argue as her broad shoulders deflated.
Rhea may not have gotten to carry Iyo to the car but Iyo did allow Rhea to carry her to their hotel room, much to the Australian’s glee. Rhea placed her on one of the twin beds and wasted no time in getting her a glass of water and her pain killers.
Iyo took her meds with haste, eager for the pain in her back to subside. Once she was done, Rhea came over to her with some makeup remover wipes and a compact mirror and sat on the edge of the bed. Iyo gave her a smile of thanks before getting to work on removing her face.
As she did so, Rhea stared at her intently, not saying anything for a while. Iyo knew that the questions were coming and Rhea was just trying to give her time for her meds to kick in. But Iyo herself wanted to go ahead and get the conversation out of the way.
Brown flickered away from the compact mirror to meet blue, “I did aggravate the injury and it is being suggested I sit out two months,” she explained honestly.
Rhea’s mouth formed a tight line, “Iyo……” she trailed off, finding it difficult to voice what she believed to be in Iyo’s best interest.
“I know what you want to say but we will face the Kabuki Warriors together,” Iyo said resolutely.
“I think that you should live to fight another day. Say we lose and you back gets fucked beyond repair? We take that risk for nothing and you lose your career,” Rhea said, explaining her worries.
“So who would you replace me with?” Iyo deadpanned.
The taller of the two could only blink in response, confusion decorating her features, “what the bloody hell do you mean “replace you”?”
Iyo began to get irritated, the pain she was enduring acting as an accelerant, “just as I said. If you think I should sit this one out, then who are you going to get as your partner? Even though it should be us taking them out.”
Rhea’s eyes widened at the sudden attitude she on the receiving end of, “ what makes you think I would ever replace you? I know that this battle is ours, chipmunk. I meant that we should forfeit the match.”
“N-nani?!” Iyo never thought she would hear such words come out of Rhea’s mouth. Holding gold meant everything to Rhea, was the most important thing to her. When the opportunity presented itself, you were to seize that gold, no matter the cost. That was a philosophy the Eradicator had lived up to, until now that is.
And truthfully, that scared the shit out of Iyo. Even with her being able to admit to herself that she had feelings for Rhea, that their dynamic would be considered an emotional affair if either of them were in committed relationships, championships were the ultimate goal in this line of business and nothing was to come before that.
But Rhea was undeterred, acting as though she hadn’t said she wanted to throw a title opportunity in the trash. For Iyo. “We forfeit,” she reiterated. “Unless you want me to do a handicap match, those are the only options I’m cool with, Iyo”.
“I’m not letting you go out there alone, Rhea. You can forget about that,” Iyo shot back.
Rhea leaned in closer , blue eyes smoldering but Iyo met her gaze unwavering. “Either we forfeit the bloody match or let me handle it alone,” Rhea nearly growled.
Something inside Iyo incensed at Rhea’s brutish attempt to get her way. Never again would Iyo allow someone to boss her around, “we keep the match and I will compete. I will go to the ring by myself if I have to.”
The look that overcame Rhea’s face wasn’t something that Iyo could describe. Her eyes were wide but eerily laser focused on her, her jaw tightened, lip curling as though trying to fight off a snarl, “I am completely serious when I say this, Iyo. I will lock you in a closet before I let you anywhere near that ring,” Rhea promised, voice deadly quiet.
Truthfully, Rhea prayed it wouldn’t come to that. Taking away Iyo’s agency was something she thought she would never be tempted to do but the thought if Iyo going anywhere near Asuka and Kairi in her predicament (the imagined scenario of a handicap match didn’t help matters) was sending her into a tizzy. They would aim to end her career, Rhea had no doubt about that.
Iyo was in this injured state due to Rhea in the first place, all because Iyo put Rhea’s wellbeing above her own. Rhea was going to protect Iyo this time around, even if Iyo ended up hating her in the end.
The Australian would have thought her words would piss Iyo off more but surprisingly she deflated. Breaking off the staring match, looking at the now closed compact mirror and half used wipe still in her hands. She murmured something low in Japanese, something Rhea wouldn’t be able to decipher even if she said it in English.
She reached out with a hand, tilting Iyo’s face up to meet her own. Her heart dropped as she noted the sad look in Iyo’s eyes, “what was that?” she questioned with a touch of hesitation.
“I said we mean too much to each other. You’re willing to throw a title match away for me, and I’m willing to risk my career for you,” Iyo answered quietly. “It’s going to end in disaster.”
Rhea didn’t know what to say to that. Her worry about their friendship had been about ambition coming between them rather than the lack of it. Maybe it should worry her that the glow and allure of gold was utterly dim compared to Iyo’s smile. But it didn’t worry her, not one bit.
“I never thought I would hear you be so uncaring about being a champion,” Iyo said softly, breaking the quiet.
Rhea shrugged before carefully crawling over Iyo to lay beside her. “People change,” she said once she was settled. “I like to think I changed for the better.”
Iyo glanced down at her, then at the other bed in the room. This had become a habit of theirs as of late. Bed sharing. Even in little twin beds, they would sleep so wrapped up in each other the lack of room was hardly a problem. With how heated their conversation had been, Iyo figured they would end up sleeping separately. A part of her did, still irritated at Rhea’s attempt to dictate her life.
However, Iyo found herself melting into Rhea and cuddling into her side, while still being mindful of her back. Rhea wrapped her arm around her and pulled her in closer. She then placed a soft kiss into Iyo's hair as the shorter woman sighed almost contently.
Iyo closed her eyes, finding the whole night of events draining, allowing the steady sound of Rhea’s heart to lull her to sleep.
“Chipmunk,” Rhea called out softly when Iyo was on the edge of falling into the abyss of sleep.
Iyo gave a grunt of an answer, forcing her eyes to open. She looked up to Rhea to see that the taller woman’s eyes were focused on the ceiling.
“I’m sorry for what I said about locking you away. It’s just that you getting hurt, it makes me crazy,” Rhea apologized.
“ Apology accepted, and I feel the same way,” Iyo replied.
She then began to feel the tug of sleep again when Rhea spoke once more, “and I wish you didn’t. I hate that you’re so willing to throw caution to the wind for me.”
“Oh well,” Iyo replied non-concerning.
That earned her a low chuckle that rumbled deep in Rhea’s chest. “You are something else, chipmunk.” She then sobered, thinking about how so much was left unsaid between them still and perhaps it was better that way. She was still fully convinced on the match not being worth it. Somehow, she was going to have to convince Iyo of that.
But she knew there was no chance in hell of that happening.