Title: That Boy Is A Monster

Rated: T (Teen)

Genre(s): Romance/Hurt/Comfort

Pair(s): Paul/Bryan ~ A.K.A Big Show/Daniel Bryan ~ Ted/Cody

Summary: Daniel Bryan crossed a line on Raw, knowing how much that word affected The Big Show. 'Monster'. Can he make it up to his lover?

Disclaimer: I don't own anyone!

Warning: Slash!

OOOO

Bryan stormed down the halls, the mask of furiousness he had worn out in the arena lost. Now, he wore a look of concern for the man he had chewed out in front of millions of fans world-wide. He knew that he had crossed a line, but what could he do? He had to sell the storyline. Paul should know that he didn't mean it seriously. However, the look of heartbroken disbelief on the other man's face told otherwise. Bryan knew that he had believed the words that had come out of his mouth, that Bryan believed he was a monster and an unfortunate excuse for a man. God! What the hell kind of boyfriend was he?

He was so close to the locker room. In fact, it was only two doors down. But it would seem that fate had another destination in store for Bryan, as his shoulder collided with a firm structure and he fell down (face first) onto the concrete floor. With a small moan, he climbed back to his feet and found himself face-to-face with 'Dashing' Cody Rhodes and his 'Wonder-Boy' boyfriend, Ted DiBiase. Bryan tried to fix them with his best scowl, but it seemed to be missing it's normal heat tonight. He couldn't fully concentrate on them, not when his mind continued to wander to Paul. He needed to see him, now. These two could wait until later.

However, it would seem as if Cody had other ideas. Just as Bryan tried to walk away, he reached out and secured his hand around his elbow. "That was a real shitty move out there, even for you."

Bryan narrowed his eyes at the taller man. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You've been a real asshole ever since you won that title. To Paul, to Phil, to anyone that you perceived as a threat. What you don't realize is that the biggest threat… is you." Cody answered nonchalantly.

"You're still not making any sense." Bryan seethed.

Cody rolled his eyes – obviously, Paul must've hit him on the head a little too hard in their match. "You've pushed away your friends. You've pushed away the GM. And now, you're pushing away your lover. Soon enough, that damn title is all you'll have left. Hope it makes you happy."

Bryan seemed to put two-and-two together, as the light finally went on in his eyes. "You talked to Paul. What did he say?" Silence. "What did he say, dammit?"

Cody looked to Ted, who said, "Go ahead and tell him. Can't do too much harm."

"He said that, after tonight's episode, he was seriously contemplating retirement."

"You can't mean…" Bryan tried to replay the night's events in his mind, but all he could hear was himself calling Paul a monster. It echoed in his brain like it was on some sick loop. "…it's because of me?" He finished lamely.

And if he didn't feel bad enough as it was, AJ chose that moment to round the corner. She had her car keys in hand, and from the way she looked at him, it would seem as if she had planned to leave without talking to him at all. If only he were so lucky. Something clicked in the small brunette, and she stormed over to him. Her eyes flashed dangerously, but there were also near-invisible tear tracts on her skin. If Bryan hadn't felt bad before, he certainly did now. AJ had been a good friend to him, and had even agreed to fake-date him to ward off suspicion about his relationship with Paul. But she was also close with Paul…

"I can't believe you… you-you bastard!" AJ almost screamed, and Bryan was kinda worried that she would slap him. The last time a woman had been this mad at him, well… he was pretty sure a drunken sailor didn't know half of the words that had come out of her mouth.

"I'm… sorry?" He tried, but it came out as more of a question. This only seemed to infuriate AJ more.

"You're sorry? Why the hell are you saying you're sorry to me?" He had never heard her voice this high, and he knew that his ears would start to bleed in a minute. "You get your ass in that locker room and fix what you did, now!"

"How do I know he even wants to talk to me?" Bryan muttered.

AJ softened a little at that. "No matter what happened out there tonight, if I know Paul – which I do – he'll want to talk it over with you before he makes any rash decisions. But you better hurry. I talked to him earlier, and he already swiped your room key. So, unless you wanna sleep on the floor outside of your hotel room…"

"Right. Thanks, babe. I owe you one." He kissed her on the cheek, before he rushed off in the direction of the locker room. He had to find some way to fix this.

OOOO

Paul sat on the bench, already in his street clothes, looking at his locker skeptically. Would this be the last time that the Big Show entered a ring for the WWE? He thought back to Bryan's words. Bryan knew better than to call him a monster. He knew that it caused him a great deal of pain…

When Paul had been in middle school, he had first taken an intrest in wrestling. He was by far the biggest kid on the team, and also the strongest, and this caused the coach to put him in for more matches. One morning before school his own team had turned on him and locked him in the Janitor's Closet. Frantic, he had beat on the door for hours. But whenever someone would come near to open the door, the other wrestlers on the team told the students that it was just the 'monster in the closet'. Bryan was the only one who knew about that instance, and he had used it against him. And that was what hurt the most.

It was then that Bryan stormed into the locker room, startling several other wrestlers. He earned very heated dirty looks from a few of them, but he didn't care. His eyes were fixed on Paul. However, Paul had not noticed him. That was, until the smaller man all but threw himself at Paul, nearly knocking the bigger man over. Large hands wrapped in coarse material, pulling the bigger man down and locking their lips in a passionate, apologetic kiss. For the first few seconds, Paul was stiff as a board. Bryan could literally feel the tension in the muscles that fluttered wildly beneath his skin. But soon, he succumbed to his lover. He always succumbed when it came to Bryan.

Bryan pulled back, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. "I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't mean it. Please, you know that I would never even dream of hurting you like that!"

"I know that, Bryan. But the fact still remains that you did."

"Baby, I would have never agreed to this storyline if I knew that it would drive us apart. Please, I'll do anything to make you believe me. Anything that it takes." Bryan assured him readily, a look of hopelessness in his eyes.

"Anything?" Paul asked skeptically.

"Anything, I swear!" Bryan looked as if he was about to break down in tears. It was an incredibly rare thing for the great Daniel Bryan to be reduced to begging.

"Tell me you love me."

Bryan became stock-still. "What?"

"Tell me you love me." Paul repeated calmly.

Silence. Paul really should have known better. It had all been a lie, the claim that he would do anything to make it better. All he wanted was a simple declaration of affection, and the bastard couldn't even do that! Not that he had ever done it before, but still. In their three years together, never once had Bryan ever said that he loved him. It had really started to hurt. Knowing that he would just get turned down again, Paul grabbed his stuff and started toward the door. He didn't have to deal with this… but then, a large hand enclosed around his wrist and pulled him back. When he turned around, he entered into another breathtaking kiss.

Bryan pulled back once more, after effectively silencing his boyfriend. "I love you… I mean it, Paul. I really do."

And for the first time in a long time, Paul felt perfectly content.

OOOO

A/N: So, how was it. This was my first attempt at Daniel Bryan, so please tell me what you think!