Seth Rollins is waiting.
The former Shield frontman and current Raw fan favorite has been biding his time for the moment when Triple H returns to the fold in WWE. He's not the only one waiting of course, as fans are surely expecting The King of Kings to eventually be on his way back.
The sooner, the better for Rollins.
Rollins needs Triple H. Instead of moving ahead with a rivalry between the two when Hunter betrayed Rollins, there has been nothing of any substance happening. Fans watched Rollins go after the new WWE Universal champion, Kevin Owens, while Triple H once again disappeared.
He left many questions unanswered.
Rollins was never told why Hunter chose to endorse Owens. He was left to find his own way, and fans were left to decide whether he was worth their admiration. KO became the top heel on Monday nights, while Rollins became the top face.
But Triple H remained in the background.
Rollins typically has the best reaction of any Superstar on Raw—and with good reason. He worked hard to earn his spot, and he came a long way in terms of being a bankable main event talent. Fans no longer saw him as a former member of The Shield; they saw him as a top guy.
He carried himself as if Raw were his show, and in many ways, it was.
But Triple H's absence left him in a lurch. Rollins pursued KO and ultimately had nothing to show for it. Instead of taking the WWE Universal Championship, Rollins found himself on the outside while Roman Reigns stepped in for the title shot.
The Big Dog has a chance to take the gold at the Royal Rumble. But Rollins is left with no opponent.
The timing is right for Hunter's return because Rollins is at a standstill. Aside from a marquee match against Chris Jericho or a win in the Royal Rumble itself, Rollins has no real purpose. Fans know his next stop is The Game, and they are wondering when it will begin.
January 29 may provide the answer.
Triple H's return could very well happen at the Royal Rumble, but a match with Rollins may not. That will likely happen at WrestleMania 33 so WWE will have enough time to properly promote their showdown.
But the fireworks have yet to begin.
Triple H's return will probably happen when Rollins is down in the ring. That could be at the end of the Rumble match, when he's mere moments away from winning. The Game's music could hit, distracting Rollins, so he can be tossed over the top rope.
Rollins' plight would become even more desperate than before. Losing his chance at the WWE Universal Championship twice because of Triple H would be enough to put him over the edge.
The truth is Rollins needs exactly that. Until the feud begins with Hunter, Rollins is left without a direction. Owens is busy with Reigns, and Jericho has been a temporary opponent. Rollins is the odd man out and needs a major rivalry to keep his momentum moving.
He needs Triple H to get himself going like never before.
Fans love Rollins and want to see him succeed. But constantly getting shut down by KO and Y2J has not helped his cause. If he is to truly get moving in the right direction, Triple H must get back in the mix. It's a feud that Rollins was built for, and it's one that perhaps could've been planned from the very beginning.
Being handpicked by The Game was great for Rollins in the short term. But understanding that Hunter's character cannot be trusted and that Rollins had the potential to get over as a face, WWE likely had the idea to split the two up.
Fans decided Rollins was worthy of their support, and that meant he could no longer be on the same page as his mentor.
Now Rollins can move on to the next phase of his main event run. That run must include a win over one of WWE's best of all time. Going over on Triple H would do more for Rollins than ending The Shield did and would solidify him as one of WWE's top talents.
Rollins is waiting, and so are his fans.
Tom Clark can regularly be seen on Bleacher Report. His podcast, Tom Clark's Main Event, is available on iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Android, Windows Phone and online here.