Disclaimer: I do not own the WWE or "Remember When" by Alan Jackson. That is all.
A/N: I don't listen to country, but I heard this song playing at restaurant I was eating at and I immediately thought of Cena and Punk. I'm a lost cause :D.
John sighed to himself in happiness. Life had been good to both he and Punk over the years. They had shared a lot of happiness together but also a lot of heartache.
Looking over at Punk, John smiled when Punk turned his own head to look at him. It was like they thought with the same brain, but that's what happens when you are with someone for fifty years. John leaned over and kissed Punk on the lips before entwining his fingers with Punk's. "I love you." He whispered in Punk's ear.
"I love you, too." Punk said back softly. He looked pensive for a moment and then said, "Remember when I was young and so were you and time stood still and love was all we knew. You were the first, so was I. We made love and then you cried. Remember when."
John smiled. "I remember." He thought back to the night he first met punk.
John was antsy with pre-WrestleMania nerves. He was about to go out there and give all those people a night they would remember of the rest of their lives. His entrance was probably going to be remembered more than the match just because it was a little ridiculous.
John was torn from his thoughts when something caught his eye. Not something, someone. The man had long, dark hair and dark eyes that appeared to be green. He was heavily tattooed, which John found irresistible. His glinting lip ring caught John's eyes for a few moments before John raised his gaze to look into the man's eyes.
Time stood still and John forgot to breathe. The man had been looking right at him when John's eyes had met with his. Everything stood still and it was like only the two of them existed in that moment. The man broke the moment when he looked away. From that moment, John knew. It was like his soul had shouted from inside him, "Mine."
Unfortunately, the man had escaped John that night because John had had to go out to the ring right after their moment and the man had left before John could find him again.
John had been so disappointed that night and almost defeated, but he knew what he had felt within his soul and he wasn't going to let him slip through his fingers.
Over the next few months, John worked hard to get the man, whose name he learned was Philip Brooks but he went by Punk, pulled up from OVW to RAW, but he had to settle when they sent him to ECW.
When John had finally been able to introduce himself to Punk, he had been met with a less than friendly reception. To be quite honest, Punk had been hostile towards him. This confused John because Punk had to have felt that moment that they shared at WrestleMania.
If John was anything, he was persistent. While Punk's attitude toward him was disheartening, he never gave up and eventually Punk caved in and went on a date with him.
It wasn't easy after that. John learned why Punk had been so hostile toward him. He had been afraid of what he had felt. There were fights, there were tears, but at the end of it all, they still fell in love each other.
John remembered the first time they made love. It had been the first time being with a man for both of them. He couldn't even describe how beautiful the act had been, but afterwards, Punk had cried silently into John's chest while John's tears fell into Punk's hair.
"I still can't believe you made me work so hard for you. It was inevitable but you still fought it." John whispered as he watched the sunset.
Punk chuckled from beside him. "I can't believe it either. I could have gotten into your pants months earlier."
John's eyebrows shot up. "Oh, so I was just a hot piece of ass that you wanted, hmm?"
Smiling cheekily, Punk replied, "Don't get your panties all in a wad, Grandpa. I made an honest man out of you. Remember when we vowed the vows and walked the walk. Gave our hearts, made the start, it was hard. We lived and learned, life threw curves. There was joy, there was hurt. Remember when."
Closing his eyes and laughing softly to himself, John nodded. "I remember."
The day they were married was cold and rainy, which was pretty normal for Chicago. The decision had been impulsive. Punk had been bored and asked John what he wanted to do. John had answered, "Let's go get married."
They had braved the rain and cold and driven to the court house in Punk's dilapidated Monte Carlo. They waited in line so long and had to navigate through all the bureaucratic red tape before they were able to stand in front of the justice of the peace.
Wearing jeans and T-shirts, they had given themselves to each other. That moment marked the beginning of their life together.
It hadn't been easy. Because both men were still in the WWE, they couldn't tell anyone they were together. The stolen days and hours away were the only times they could be themselves. On their first anniversary, John had bought them both matching claddagh rings. They had told people they were friendship rings, but some eyebrows rose.
Vince moved Punk to Smackdown while John remained on RAW. It was the one of the worst times in their lives. They hardly saw each other because of their different schedule, but after six months of the living hell away from Punk, John had threatened to quit unless Punk was moved to RAW. Vince obviously obliged.
"You sure gave Vince an ultimatum, didn't you?" Punk smirked over at John.
"It didn't matter for long though, did it? Remember when old ones died and new were born and life was changed, disassembled, rearranged. We came together, fell apart and broke each other's hearts. Remember when."
Punk grimaced. "I remember."
The year after Punk was moved back to RAW was rough, very rough. The day before WrestleMania, John's father died when his plane crashed on his way to the event. John had been completely devastated. Punk tried to comfort him, but nothing helped. Against being advised not to perform at WrestleMania, John did anyway. He would regret that choice for the rest of his life.
He had been distracted that night and had botched one move too many. He had landed on his knee wrong and blew it out. He would never be able to wrestle again.
Devastation was not a strong enough word to describe how he felt. He had just lost the most important person in his life besides Punk and the ability to do what defined his whole life.
John had slipped into a deep depression that even Punk couldn't pull him out of. Punk wanted to quit the WWE because he wanted to be home with John to make sure he was okay, but John had violently told Punk he couldn't.
John had slapped Punk across the face as soon as he told him he was quitting. Punk had been shocked and felt a little betrayed. He didn't know where his John had gone, but he didn't know who that John was.
A wide expanse developed between them and there were many nights when Punk laid next to John and cried. He missed his John and wanted him back but he didn't know how to get him back.
John wouldn't touch Punk, not even to kiss him. Most of their communication was yelling at each other. Their life together had turned into pure hell and Punk's heart was broken. He knew that John didn't love him anymore.
He stayed as long as he could take it, but he left a month after the anniversary of John's father's death. He had given up on John ever coming back to him.
Punk couldn't bring himself to file for divorce, but he still moved back to Chicago. Punk also quit the WWE because there was nothing left for him there. He spent his days reading comic books, watching movies and running through Wicker Park.
When John realized that he had lost Punk, he snapped out of it. His heart broke into a million pieces and he mourned that he had lost the single best thing left in his life. He hadn't meant any of the things he had said to Punk. He didn't understand why he had said them.
Having gathered his courage, John followed Punk to Chicago and began begging at his feet to take him back. It took months of convincing, but Punk eventually moved back in with John, but things still weren't the same.
Even many years later, Punk had to swallow around the lump that had developed in his throat just thinking about those hard times. He wouldn't wish those times on his worst enemy. "We were still broken, even after we got back together."
John looked sorrowfully over at Punk, "I know, but remember when the sound of little feet was the music we danced to week to week. Brought back the love, we found trust. Vowed we'd never give it up. Remember when."
Punk gave a small smile and nodded. "I remember."
Tragedy had struck Punk's own family. Punk's sister had married a military man and they had a child together before he was deployed. He returned from that first deployment in one piece, but shortly after Punk's sister found out she was expecting again, he was deployed a second time. Only days before his sister delivered her second child, she learned that her husband had been killed.
She had been devastated and that's what Punk believed killed her. She died minutes after giving birth when her heart just stopped.
Punk and John had found themselves parents of a two year old boy and a newborn baby girl and felt a little overwhelmed. Those first few weeks were tough, but they eventually found their rhythm and made it work.
Punk and John began to bond over the children and their relationship healed. They were better than before that year of hell. They watched first steps, first teeth, heard first words, kissed scraped knees, wiped away tears, carpooled to and from soccer, threatened first girlfriends and boyfriends and were there to cry on when first turned into first ex.
John had held Punk in his arms the night after they dropped their daughter off at college and they both cried deep into the night. They had been left behind.
They ignored the hurt of having to let go and focused on each other. They found happiness again.
John smiled sadly to himself and then squeezed Punk's hand. "Remember when thirty seemed so old? Now lookin' back, it's just a steppin' stone to where we are, where we've been. Said we'd do it all again. Remember when."
Punk squeezed back. "I remember, but do you remember when we said when we turned gray, when the children grow up and moved away. We won't be sad, we'll be glad for all the life we've had and we'll remember when."
John laughed. "I remember. We kind of failed on that one. We had no idea how much it would hurt when the kids moved away, but we are very happy for them. They couldn't stay little forever."
Punk nodded. "I know, but time went by so quickly. I love you, John. Thanks for not letting me run away from you all those years ago.
John wrapped his arm around Punk's shoulders and brought Punk into his body. "I couldn't have let you run away. I love you, too." He kissed Punk on the forehead and then let him go.
Both men turned and watched as the sun slipped below the horizon.
I know that you all would have liked an update for Lost, but I just didn't have it in me tonight, so I wrote this instead to blow off some steam and have a little fun. I mostly wrote this for me, but I hope that you found some enjoyment in it, too.