My Friend; My Lover
ALL IN MATT'S POV
I limped a little down the hallway. I had hurt my ankle in the ring tonight, and the rub the medics had put on it didn't seem to be working. I was going back to my hotel room to cover it in ice. Every step was painful, but I tried to ignore it. I didn't want anyone to know I was hurting...
Weakness is not something I show...
I stopped and lent against the wall, closing my eyes... It had been a long and vicious show tonight, at least that's what it felt like. I was thankful my part in it was over... I wasn't even planning on showering here, just pack up, pull on my jeans over my wrestling outfit and take-off to the hotel.
"Hey Matt." I open my eyes as the sound of Charlie's voice. She worked with me here on Smackdown as one of the Divas. She didn't have a match tonight, but she was in a Promo with some of the others. And she was looking especially foxy in her skin-tight jeans and vest...
Charlie was sweet. A few years younger than me, beautiful long flowing blond hair, bright green eyes, naturally tanned skin and the perfect body. Yes, I had spent some time with Charlie and I was attracted to her. I've never acted on the attraction though. I didn't want to mess up our friendship. I mean, what if she didn't think of me the same way...
"Charlie." I say her name, smiling the word...
"You took a nasty landing out there. How is it feeling?" I knew her concern was real. If I could trust one person not to take advantage of me, it was Charlie.
"Little sore." I tell her. She smile and looked down at my left leg. Even standing here, I didn't want to put any weight on it. Charlie knew it was more than a little sore...
"Here... Help me out to my car." She wrapped her arm around my waist and pulled me away from the wall. She was on my left, and when Charlie took a step, she limped pretty badly... I knew exactly what she was doing. She was taking the attention away from me, making it look like my limping walk was caused by me helping her...
"Thanks Chaz." I whispered...
"Think nothing of it." We stopped in at my dressing room quickly, just long enough for me to change and pack up my bag before continuing on to the car lot...We made it to my hired car successfully. We were stopped once, and they believed it was Charlie hurt and not me...
I throw my bag into the backseat and turned to Charlie...
"I'll give you a lift?"
"That would be nice. Cheaper. No taxi for me." I laughed. Chaz supported her mother, paid all her expenses and living cost, even her rent at the retirement village. And after paying for her own way, it didn't leave much for saving... She was close to her parents, and when her father died, Charlie took it upon herself to support her mom... It showed exactly the type of person Charlie is... A complete sweetheart. I don't think she has a mean bone in her body.
"Get in..." I say. Charlie limps dramatically around the front of the car. There were a few people around... I turn and smile at her when she climbs in.
"What?" Chaz asks me as she clicks her seatbelt into place...
"You should have been an actress Chaz. Anyone would believe your performance."
"Shut up." She punches me in the arm, and not softly...
"Ow." It actually did hurt, I wasn't faking it...
"Serves yourself right." She tells me, smiling... I turn on the car and start off in the direction of the hotel we were staying at. The radio spilled out of the speakers, I wasn't sure of the song playing, but it was good.
"Thanks for your help back there Chaz. You're a lifesaver."
"Only for you." She tells me, smiling at me again... Oh God, her smile completely lights up her face, makes her eyes sparkle just the much more... Right now I want to tell her exactly how I feel, but I'm too scared. What if she rejects me? I don't want to ruin what we have...
We reach the hotel and I park the car myself... This time I walk by myself. Or limp by myself. It hurts more without Charlie beside me, taking some of my weight...
"Here." She wraps her arm around my waist again and starts walking beside me. She didn't pretend to limp this time... "Did you get the trainers to look at it?" Chaz asks me softly.
"Yeah. They rubbed some shit on it." I tell her...
"I have something in my room that will help a lot more... You take a hot shower and give me a call when you're done. I come over and give you a bit of a rub down and massage. It will make you feel better, I promise."
"Okay..."Charlie dropped me off at my room and I did exactly what she said. I took a long, steam hot shower and called her... When I opened the door to her five minutes later, Charlie had showered and changed too. Her hair was wet, and like me, she wore a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.
This is another reason I like Charlie. She's comfortable to just be herself. To not have to dress up all the time and look like she just stepped out of a fashion magazine. She was down to earth, beautiful, caring, and had an incredible sense of humour. All those things together are hard to find in a woman...
Charlie entered my room, walking towards the couch and sitting on the opposite coffee table. She dumped her bag beside her.
"Come and sit down Matt. Let me have a look." She says, patting the couch... I limp my way across the room, Chaz watches my every move, analysing me. I fall onto the couch in front of her, she leans down and wraps her fingers around my ankle and very gently raises it to her leg.
With my sweatpants' leg rolled up, we can both tell my ankle is swollen. Chaz touches it lightly and hears me suck in a breath.
"Sorry." She smiles at me softly before turning her head and looking through her bag. She pulls out a bottle of something... The bottle is only tiny, and the liquid inside is clear...
"What's that?" I ask, curiosity getting the better of me.
"Kwan Loong Liniment. It's a Chinese oil. Good for aches and pains. I swear by it." She tells me... "The smell is a little strong, but I like it." As soon as she undid the lid, I understood what she said. The smell was almost overpowering, but in a nice sort of way...
"Woah."
"I know; it also clears up a blocked nose..." Charlie laughs... She puts the bottle against my ankle and moves it around. A small line of liniment is left behind. There was a cool sensation before it turned hot. It wasn't burning, but it felt nice. It reminded me of the DeepHeat cream the trainers had put on me, only this smelt nicer...
She replaces the lid and slips the glass bottle back in her bag...
Charlie massaged the oil into my skin, rubbing firmly enough for me to feel it, bit soft enough not to cause pain. I could tell she had done this before.
"So, is this your secret weapon?" I tease. Chaz smiles up at me as her fingers work my muscles. It feels really nice. I can already feel relief.
"I don't know about secret weapon, but I always rub it on any sore spots after a match, and usually the next day I'm fine... It's good shit." I laugh...
Charlie stops and pulls a bandage from her bag. She makes me bend my leg so my foot was flat against her leg. It hurt a little, but I kept it to myself... Chaz wrapped my foot and ankle tightly. She smiled up at me when she was done...
"Keep off it, rest it... You know, they usually." She tells me...
"Yes Doctor Charlie." I smirk back at her... Charile stands, turns, then falls down beside me, slapping me lightly across the chest as she laughs out loud.
"You're such a dork." She giggles... Her giggle makes me smile. I've never heard her giggle to anyone else but me. I'm not quite sure what that means. I'm hoping it's because she likes me...
"Shut up Medicine Woman." I tease back.
"Oh, you're going to get it now."Charlie tells me seconds before her fingers dig into my ribs. Not many people know or would believe that I'm ticklish, but I am, and my stomach and sides are my weak points... I laugh, trying to squirm away from her. All that gains me is Charlie's hand hitting a little too low, which causes her to jump and practically fall off the couch.
I tried to stop her, catch her, and fail miserably... I fall to, landing square on top of her. The most embarrassing thing is that my face lands right between her breasts...
Charlie didn't move, or scream at me to move. I raised my head only to find her staring at me. The pink blush that paints her cheeks is the most adorable thing I have ever seen...
I move, lifting myself up so my weight is now being supported on my hands and knees. I was going to move away, I planned to move up to the couch, but I got caught in Charlie's eye. She stared at me, her eyes half closed and inviting... My sight flickered to her lips. They were parted, looking soft and pouty...
I can't explain what happened next, I don't even know. I mean, I know what happened, I kissed Charlie, I just don't remember thinking about it. It just seemed to happen...
My lips touched Charlie's. They were as soft as they looked. I brushed my lips against her, touching my tongue to her bottom lip. Her lip-gloss tasted of cherries... I felt fingers twisting in my hair and Charlie parted her lips for me. I wasn't expecting this. I wasn't expecting Charlie to want to kiss me...
The kiss started off soft and gentle but quickly built in intensity. Her hands were clawing at my shirt, then at my skin, and before I knew it, my shirt was flying across the room.
I broke away, breathing deeply and stared down at Charlie. She was breathing hard like me, her skin flushed, her cheeks still pink... She looked so fucking beautiful right now. And I desperately wanted to kiss her again... I wanted to kiss her lips until they were swollen and red.
Charlie smiles softly as her left hand comes up and cups my cheek. Her thumb rubs back and forth across my jaw.
"I've waited months for you to do that." She whispered. "I was starting to think you didn't want me."
"You knew?"
"I had a suspicion."
"Why didn't you say anything?"
"Why didn't you?" she shot right back at me...
"Fair enough." I smiled before leaning back down and kissing her lips lightly... "So..." I mumble, brushing my lips across her jaw until I reach her neck. I kiss her skin, nibbling on the spot just below her ear. "What do we do now?"
"You keep doing that." Charlie whispers, her fingers digging into my hair... I smirked against her neck and dragged my fingers up her sides. I supported most of my weight on one elbow and dragged my other hand up and under Charlie's shirt until my fingers reached the lace of her bra.
"Mmm... It's only fair your shirt comes off too." I whisper, my kisses continue down her neck and pushing the neckline of her shirt to the side until I can nibble on her shoulder...
"You're right." She pushes me up and drags herself with me until we were both sitting up. I wrapped my arms around her, supporting her as Charlie gripped her shirt and pulled it off. She was teasing me, moving deliberately slowly. I didn't mind, I was enjoying the show. My eyes were taking in her every movement.
Charlie flung her shirt behind her. It landed next to mine...
"Damn, you're beautiful." I blurt out. Her hair was starting to dry and curl around her face. Her skin had a nice rosy glow to it, and her lips were pouty, and a little swollen from our kisses...
"I bet you tell all the half naked women that." Charlie laughs.
"None compare to you." I kiss her before she can say anything, before she can deny it... Charlie pulls away, kissing down my jaw, across my chest...
"You're mine now Matt. I don't like sharing." I smile at the fierceness of her words. Isn't the guy meant to be the possessive one? Not that I care. Charlie was mine too...
"Either do I." I push back until we were lying down again...
"Good." I kiss her hard as I grip both of her hands in mine and hold them above her head. She wriggles beneath me, teasing me with her hips as she wrapped her legs around my waist. We were so close, we were basically one...
"Charlie." I mumble, now kissing my way down her chest.
"Mmm..."
"I love you." It's been years since I said those words to anyone but family... I held my breath, waiting for her reaction...
"Matty..." She pulled her hands away from my hold and brought them down to my face, cupping my cheeks in her palms. She pulled me up until we were face to face again... "I love you too." She stared right onto my eyes when she said those words, and it took my breath away. Her eyes were bright, and completely filled with love. I had caught her looking at me like this before; I just never knew what it meant. How long has she felt like this...? "About six months now."
"What?" I frown. Had I said those words out loud?
"For about six months now, I've known I love you, that it wasn't just infatuation or lust... Matt, I love you with everything I am." She had tears in her eyes, in her gorgeous green eyes.
I leant down and pressed a light kiss to each of her eyelids. Charlie wrapped her arms around me and planted a bitting kiss to the hollow of my neck. It dragged a rumbled moan from my lips...
"Make love to me Matt..." She whispered to me. "I need to feel you." I couldn't have said no to her, even if I had wanted to, not after hearing those words pass her lips.
"Here?" I ask in a groan as Charlie bites my shoulder.
"Yes. Right here."
That night was three years ago now...
The first time me and Charlie made love, it was in a hotel room in Jacksonville, on the floor between the couch and coffee table... I'll never forget that night, not even when I'm 90 and possibly sitting in a nursing home. That night will stay with me forever.
Now, 38 months later, I stand before our closes friends and family as I wait for Charlie to walk towards me. It was our wedding day. A day, that if you asked me about five years ago, I thought would never happen...
Jeff and Dad stand beside me. They absolutely adore Charlie, from the very first moment I introduced her and Dad, they hit it off. She understands his sense of humour and he thinks she is absolutely hilarious. I was glad they got along, but honestly, it wouldn't have changed the way I feel for her.
I love Charlie. She is my entire world, and life wouldn't be worth living without her...
Music starts up, it not the traditional Wedding March. Me and Charlie are anything but traditional... We're not getting married in a church. We are outside at the Botanical Garden, it's just on dusk and fairy lights had been woven in the trees surrounding us.
It was Charlie's idea to have it here. She told me she always dreamed of a dusk wedding, and I couldn't deny her it. She was marrying me, that is all I really wanted...
From the tent where the after-party is being held, Beth stepped out. I heard Jeff gasp as he saw her. She smiled all the way down the aisle and stood opposite him... Next came Sharron, Charlie's mother. She smiled at me as she stood in her place... I turned my eyes back to the tent. The curtain of the tent was pulled to the side and out stepped Charlie...
"Oh..." The sigh left my lips as she walked towards me. My God. She looked so fucking beautiful. I could feel my heart pick up speed. It felt like the very first time I had seen her. It felt like I have just fallen in love with her all over again...
Charlie reached me, passed her flowers off to Beth before turning and facing me. I took her hands in mine and leant down to press a kiss against her cheek...
"You are gorgeous Charlie." I had tears in my eyes... I love this woman so much... She pressed her palm against my cheek and smiled as we turned back to the Marriage Celebrant. I heard an 'Aw' from our family and friends...
The Marriage Celebrant went through the normal words, but we had both decided to speak our own vows. I was first...
"Today, I pledge to share my life with you. Whether the days that come are happy or sad, I will live them with you. There was something missing in my life before you, but now I'm complete. I have you, my other half... My better half..." Charlie laughed a little at those words. "Charlie, I give myself to you as your husband, and I will love you forever with everything I have." I watched a big tear roll down her cheek. I wiped it away with my thump...
"That was beautiful." Charlie whispered...
"Your turn." I whisper back... She takes a deep breath and begins some of the most beautiful words I have ever heard...
"Today, Matt, I join my life to yours, not merely as your wife, but as your friend, your lover, and your confidant. Let me be the shoulder you lean on, the rock on which you rest, the companion of your life. With you I will walk my path from this day forward. I promise you my deepest love, my fullest devotion, and I promise to love you, to commit to you, and support you and all your unique talents and abilities. You have shown me what love feels like and for that I thank you. You are everything I need and at this moment I know all of my prayers have been answered and that all of my dreams have come true... Matt, I give myself to you as your wife, and I will love you forever with everything I have."
When she finished those words, I couldn't stop myself. I leant in and pressed my lips to hers.
"Hey hey, not yet." It was Jeff who said those words. I pulled back, bitting my bottom lip and looked down at Charlie. She was laughing...
"If we could continue." The Marriage Celebrant said, laughing a little herself. We exchanged rings, said our 'I Do's' and I finally got to kiss my Bride...
"You're mine forever now." I whisper to Charlie as we walked arm in arm down the aisle as our family and friends throw rose petals at us.
"And you're mine..." She smiles up at me.
"I love you."
"I love you too..."