Common Ground - Jade
NC17 - m/m slash, very mild language
Characters: AJ Styles/Chris Sabin
Summary: Chris has a little too much to drink and finds his way to AJ's room. What happens may surprise both of them.
Disclaimer: We own neither the characters nor the individuals who portray them. Written soley for our own enjoyment.
Notes: This was started a few weeks ago after AJ won the belt from Chris. It may be a little dated now, but I finally sat down and finished it. Enjoy!

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"You took my belt."

AJ Styles blinked at the man standing on the other side of his hotel room door and shrugged, "Ya didn't deserve it anyway."

Chris Sabin scowled while still managing to look confused. "Don't tell me what I deserve, AJ Styles!" He tried to poke AJ in the chest but missed. "Damn, I should have picked the second one," he muttered to himself.

"Are you drunk?" AJ demanded.

"Of course I'm drunk. If I wasn't, I would never come to your hotel room. This is stupid." Chris emphatically nodded his head as if agreeing with himself. "Now, AJ, raise your hand so I know which one to poke."

"Ooooh, ya just want me to raise my hand so ya can poke me?" AJ rolled his eyes sarcastically.

"Don't be icky, AJ Styles! I need to poke you to make my point!"

"Uh, I'm pretty sure ya made your point." AJ closed his eyes and shook his head. "Whatever it was," he muttered.

"Will the real AJ Styles please stand up?" Chris found this incredibly funny and began to giggle uncontrollably.

"Oh, man," AJ sighed. "If I raise my hand and ya poke me, will ya leave?"

"Yes," Chris stated seriously, hiccupping just a bit.

"Ok, Fine." AJ raised his hand and looked at Chris expectantly.

Chris stared at AJ for an uncomfortably long time, furrowing his brow and squinting his eyes as they darted back and forth. AJ stayed silent hoping Chris would get bored and just walk away.

Finally, Chris sighed sadly and said, "Damn. Are you trying to trick me or something?"

By this time, AJ was losing patience. "Will you just poke me and go away?!"

"I can't! All of you raised your hand!" Chris eyes widened dramatically and his voice dropped an octave, "It's a trick."

Letting out a frustrated growl, AJ grabbed Chris' hand and brought it to his chest. Forcefully moving the index finger, he poked himself with Chris' hand.

"THERE. Now go away!" AJ firmly shut the door in Chris' face.

Standing there with his hands on his hips rolling his eyes, AJ half listened for the sounds of Chris' departure. Hearing nothing but silence, he curiously peered out the peephole. Chris was still standing there staring at the door blankly. AJ cocked his head and wondered what the other man was doing. He wondered for ten minutes as he stared at Chris through the peephole as Chris stared at the door.

"For the love of...," AJ huffed as he wrenched open the door. "Why are ya still standing here?"

Chris blinked suddenly finding AJ where the door used to be. "I don't remember where my room is."

"Ya have got to be kidding me."

Chris frowned, "No, I'm not."

"Who are ya rooming with?"

"Don't remember."

"What floor are ya on?"

"Don't know."

"Where's all your friends?"

"Who?"

"Ya know, Sonjay, Lethal...Those guys," AJ said slowly.

"Who cares? They're dorks."

AJ closed his eyes and slowly, oh so slowly, counted to ten. He hoped when he opened his eyes that Chris had just wandered off. Steeling himself, AJ cracked open an eye. No such luck. Chris stood there, slightly weaving now, watching him with hazy eyes.

"I liked staring at the door better," Chris stated.

AJ gritted his teeth and counted to ten again. He knew he should just leave Chris in the hallway. He'd wander away eventually. Something niggled at him, though. Chris really was in no shape to go off by himself. Despite how annoying Chris was, AJ didn't want him hurt. Making his decision, AJ looked at Chris firmly. He figured this was the price of having a conscience.

"Fine. Ya can stay here tonight."

Chris looked balefully at him. "Why would I want to do that?"

Gnashing his teeth by now, AJ ticked off points on his fingers, "You're drunk, lost, and your friends are dorks."

"Hey! Don't call my friends dorks!" Chris was indignant.

"I didn't! You did!" AJ was rapidly heading towards pissed off.

"Well, they are dorks. Big ones." Chris tried to lean closer to AJ for dramatic effect but almost toppled over. AJ snatched him by the arm and drug him into the room.

"Just get in here. Just get in here and go to bed." AJ prayed Chris would just pass out. Please, God, spare me, he thought.

Chris wrenched his arm away from AJ and plopped ungracefully onto the edge of the nearest bed.

"Are you prop...Are you propo...propos. ..proposing. . .no," Chris frowned and paused for a minute trying to find the right word. He finally settled with a "I AM NOT HAVING SEX WITH YOU!" Chris laid back and closed his eyes.

"No, you are not," AJ was just as emphatic.

Seeing that Chris was indeed on his way to passing out, AJ sighed and began to remove Chris' shoes.

"Damn it, Mama, " AJ muttered. He figured it was mostly her fault that he was in this predicament. She was the one that just had to teach him to be a good person. AJ walked into the bathroom and filled a glass with water then grabbed two Tylenol. "See, Mama, this is what you get," he continued as he stood at the side of the bed.

He bent down and shook Chris. "Come on, Chris, wake up for a minute."

Chris groaned and swatted the hand away.

"Come on. Just for a minute."

Bleary eyes opened and AJ shoved the Tylenol into Chris' hand. Chris automatically threw them in his mouth and swallowed them down with the water offered. Groaning, he fell back onto the bed and was instantly asleep.

AJ set the water down on the bedside table and headed back into the bathroom. After stripping down to his boxers, he turned off the light and climbed into his own bed. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

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AJ slowly opened his eyes, blinking the bleariness out. Something woke him up. The room was still dark and only a sliver of moonlight peeked through the crack in the drapes. Nothing seemed out of place. Rolling over, AJ was faced with the picture of Chris Sabin. He was sitting up in the middle of the other double bed staring down at something in his lap. AJ belatedly realized it was the X-Division title belt. Not saying anything, AJ slowly sat up.

"This mattered to me, you know," Chris said quietly without looking up. Gone was the drunken slurring. In its place was quiet contemplation.

AJ remained silent.

Chris remained staring at the belt. "It did. You might think I just used it, that it was just an ego boost to me. And, you know what? It was." Chris locked eyes with AJ. "It is to everyone that wears it. Even you. But, that's not all it was or still is. It was and is vindication. " Chris looked back down at the belt softly touching it, almost caressing it. "This thing meant I was good enough. This meant that I really had a place in the X-Division. I mean, sure, everyone talks about my work rate and says I have skills, but when it came to winning the thing that proved it, I always fell just short. It was like I was good enough to be the challenger but never good enough to be the champion." Chris fell silent.

He looked over at AJ again. "I know you think I became a juvenile asshole when I got the belt. I kind of did. I was just so sick of being walked on. I figured I never got anywhere as the good ol' Chris Sabin so maybe I'd get somewhere as the asshole. Like sometimes nice guys do finish last so I wouldn't be the nice guy, you know?"

AJ did know. "Yeah," he agreed quietly.

"But it didn't matter," Chris continued, "I still lost the belt. To the nice guy. How ironic."

AJ watched Chris touch the belt and thought about what he'd said. This was a part of Chris that AJ wasn't familiar with. The old Chris was lively and always laughing or playing a joke on someone. The asshole Chris was just that..an asshole. This Chris was foreign. Maybe this was a side of Chris that had always been there, but he'd never had the chance to see it. AJ got out of bed and went to sit across from Chris. Chris glanced up questioningly.

"I do get it," AJ said, "When I was champ working with Russo, I thought the same things. I wanted it all and was tired of waiting so I figured I'd take it. Who cares about others? Everyone else is out for themselves. Why not me? So I was an asshole and I got what I wanted. I was happy, but then I wasn't." He trailed off.

"Why weren't you happy?"

"Because it's not natural being something you're not. Even if it gets ya what ya want." AJ smiled. "I'm not saying I'm a paragon of virtue, but I was always pretending and always feeling guilty. Eventually even the belt didn't make it all better. Know what I mean?"

"Yeah," Chris nodded slowly, "I do."

"Look, I know saying it's all gonna be ok will just piss ya off like it does me. But, listen, you're good. Not just good but one of the best. You'll get the belt back. I really believe that. When ya do, just be yourself. It's a lot easier and you'll be a lot happier. Trust me."

Chris stayed quiet for a while then lifted his eyes to meet AJ's with a small smile on his face. Picking up the belt, he held it out to AJ."Thanks."

AJ nodded and reached for the belt. When his fingers brushed Chris', he paused. Maybe it was the dark room or the quiet or this new side of Chris, but he could have sworn he felt a tingle. He could swear by the surprise on Chris' face that he felt it, too. Suddenly, he was really close to Chris. If he'd been paying attention to anything but the tingle moving up his arm, he would have realized that he'd grabbed Chris hand and pulled him forward. Not looking away from the eyes in front of him, AJ leaned forward and kissed Chris. Jerking back at the unexpected jolt, AJ looked directly into Chris' wide, startled eyes. His own fluttered shut when Chris leaned forward and claimed his lips firmly. Mentally, AJ wondered how he'd never realized this before. Then his brain began to focus all its attention on his lips and those eagerly kissing them.

AJ felt a tongue slip into his mouth and he met it. While their tongues wrestled, AJ grabbed Chris and pulled him flush against his body. Suddenly feeling something hard hit him in the chest, he broke the kiss and looked down. Pinned between their heaving chest was a shiny, gold X-Division title. Looking back up, AJ saw Chris blink a few times before looking down. Slowly, he raised his eyes to meet AJ's blue stare. All was quiet while they searched each other's eyes. Smiling slowly, Chris took the belt he still held and set it aside. Looking at AJ, he grinned, seeming to say that he made the first move. Now, it was AJ's turn.

Wearing a grin himself, AJ scooted closer. Wrapping his arms around Chris' shoulders, AJ pushed him back on the bed and stretched out beside him. Nudging his head underneath Chris' chin, AJ gave his answer by laying a string of kisses down the tanned throat while moving his hand down the cloth covered side. When he got to the end of the T-shirt, AJ slipped his hand under it and caressed the smooth skin of Chris' abdomen. When Chris arched into the touch, AJ's lips left Chris' neck and returned to his lips. Chris moaned into the kiss and stroked his hands down AJ's back in search of the hem of his T-shirt. Finding it, he quickly pulled it over AJ's head, briefly breaking the kiss, and tossed it aside. AJ quickly followed his lead by removing Chris' shirt. AJ's hands resumed their stroking eager to feel more of the warm skin his hand had been touching. Resuming the kiss, they continued to touch what they could reach.

When AJ brushed a nipple on that smooth chest, Chris arched and gasped. AJ broke the kiss and pressed hot, open-mouthed kisses down Chris' throat and across his chest. When he found a nipple, his tongue darted out and quickly licked it. Chris moaned, so AJ licked it more firmly drawing it into his mouth. Chris bucked into the mouth and groaned. AJ grinned and repeated his actions on the other nipple. When Chris began to whimper, AJ left his nipples moving on to his firm abdomen. He traced each distinctive line of the six pack with the tip of his tongue. Coming to the waistband of Chris' jeans, AJ unbuttoned them and pulled down the zipper. Then he pulled the jeans and boxers down and off of Chris. When Chris was completely naked, AJ leaned back on his heels and took a long look. Chris' face was flushed, his eyes were dilated with lust, and his chest rose and fell with his rapid breathing. Chris had a great body, but AJ already knew that.

Meeting Chris' unfocused eyes, AJ brought his hands to the waistband of his own boxers. He pulled them down quickly and stretched out on top of the body beneath his. Suddenly remembering the need for supplies, AJ hopped up and rifled through his bag. Finding the baby oil he used before matches, he grabbed a condom and turned back to the bed. Chris was still laying there looking at AJ expectantly. Stretching back on top of Chris, AJ gave him a quick kiss. Then he popped the cap on the oil and poured some into his hand. Gently spreading Chris' legs, AJ placed his hand at the entrance to Chris' body. When he felt the fingers, Chris let his legs fall open and lifted his hips. AJ used one finger to lightly massage the entrance and then let it slip inside. Chris sighed and squirmed. AJ added another finger. Chris pushed back on the fingers eagerly. When AJ found that spot, Chris' hips jerked and he moaned loudly. AJ removed his fingers and was reaching for the oil when he was surprised by a hand, already slick, wrapping around his shaft. Looking at Chris, AJ found a smirk settled firmly on his face. He grabbed Chris' hands from around him and intertwined their fingers. Then he captured Chris' lips in a kiss as he slowly entered his body. When he was completely buried inside, AJ broke the kiss and rested his head against Chris' shoulder. He took several deep breaths in an attempt to retain control. All was still for a moment as AJ breathed and Chris adjusted to the invasion of his body.

The silence was broken when Chris' arched his hips and whispered, "Move, please move."

AJ complied without argument. Disentangling their fingers, he instead grasped Chris' hips and began a deep, steady rhythm. Chris' hips moved to meet AJ's as AJ steadily brushed the sweet spot inside of him. Soon, they were frantically moving together. Shakily, AJ wrapped a hand around Chris' erection. It wasn't long before Chris submitted to being stroked both inside and out. As his orgasm washed through him, he gave a triumphant shout. AJ soon followed with a guttural groan.

Afterward, AJ collapsed on top of Chris trying to catch his breath. When he felt arms close around him, he reversed their positions until they were lying side by side.

Quietly, AJ sighed. "I guess we better clean up."

Before he could move, though, Chris was up and heading towards the bathroom. "I got it."

He soon came back with a warm washcloth and proceeded to clean AJ and himself. He bounced back into the bathroom to dispose of the cloth. When he came back out, he climbed into bed and snuggled close to AJ.

AJ wrapped his arms around Chris and said a quiet "Thanks."

Chris sighed and threw a leg over AJ. "No. Thank you."