June 2001
***FYI: I'm not the owner of WWF, I do not own any of these wrestlers (sucks to be me), and I'm making no cash off of this story. If you sue me, there's not much you can get. ALSO: I'm taking major creative license here. For the most part, the relationships are the same as they are on any of the WWF shows...but it might help if you read "Into the Dark". If you haven't all you need to know is that Jericho and Stephanie are together. And in this world Shane and Marissa are not married. It's not that I don't like Marissa, she just doesn't fit in the story. ONE LAST THING: Later in the story I will be using Jericho's real last name, because Stephanie Jericho just sounds bad. ENJOY!***
June 2001
"Hey Lita," Jeff Hardy said as he plopped onto the couch next to his brother's girlfriend and his best friend. "That was a hard knock you took a couple of minutes ago."
"You should talk," Lita said, unconsciously rubbing her left elbow. "You're the one who went through the table."
"I want those damn titles," Jeff said.
"Where's Matt?" Lita asked. "He was with me when I got backstage."
"He went to go get that gash in his forehead sewn up," Jeff said. "You want me to massage your shoulder?"
"No," Lita said. "I'll be fine."
"Hey you two," Matt said when he got into their dressing room. He plopped onto the ground at Lita's feet. "How are you doing?"
"Same as you," Lita said. She leaned forward and began to give Matt a massage. His tense muscles relaxed under her hands.
"Those are magic hands baby," Matt said.
Lita smiled. "What was Shane McMahon doing at ringside today?"
"Scouting," Jeff answered confidently.
"The Dudleys?" Matt asked, refusing to break contact with his girlfriend's hands.
"Nope," Jeff said. "Us. I've heard rumors for awhile that he wants to be our manager."
"No way," Matt said. "We're going to do this on our own."
"Matt think for a sec," Jeff said. "With some of the wrestlers from old WCW coming to WWF and forming a coalition behind that jerk Regal, it would do us some good to have some friends."
"But we are perfectly able to get the Tag Titles on our own!" Matt said. "We don't need people interfering."
"You know Edge, Christian, Rhyno, and Kane are already allied with some of the WCW guys," Lita said gently, trying to Matt see reason.
"I would totally agree with you if Shane's group interfered with matches for no reason at all," Jeff said. "But it's Jericho, Test, Steph, and The Rock. They only make sure no one is getting the crap beat out of them."
"And they need a tag team," Lita said. "Wouldn't you rather it be you than say...the Acolytes."
"You two really want to do this?" Matt asked.
"Well, we are friends with Steph and Y2J," Lita said.
"And I really hate Edge and Christian hitting me with chairs whenever they get a chance," Jeff said. "I don't think our fans would be mad or anything Matt."
"Alright," Matt said. "But only if he asks."
Twenty minutes later there was a knock on the door. "Come in!" they all yelled.
"Hey you guys," Shane McMahon said, stepping into the room with Stephanie McMahon. "That was a great match you guys had today. You almost got the titles."
"Thanks," Jeff said, smiling widely. "How are you all."
"Good," Stephanie said, for Shane and herself.
"Three weeks until you are Mrs. Jericho," Lita said to Stephanie.
"It's definite," Stephanie said, shuddering to her brother. "I will be keeping my maiden name."
Shane laughed. "Guys, I just wanted to see if you were interested in getting a manager."
"We're interested," Jeff said. "As long as it means I don't get hit by half as many chairs and tables as I am right now. I went through two tonight."
"I can see what I can do about that," Shane said, nodding. "As incentive for you to be on my team, I'm going to have Vince schedule a match for King of the Ring...you versus the Dudleys for the Tag Team Titles."
"I like the way you get straight to business," Matt said. "Sounds good to me."
"Me too," Jeff said.
"Lita?" Shane asked, looking into her caramel brown eyes.
Lita smiled shyly, "Yeah, of course."
"Great!" Shane said. "I'll talk to you tomorrow. Right now Rocky has a match against Show. Regal is being a freaking jerk."
"Good night," Stephanie said, closing the door behind her.
Jeff got up and jumped around the room. "We're gonna be champs again! We're gonna kick ass! We're gonna be the best!"
"Whoa," Lita laughed. "What are you on?"
"I don't know," Jeff said. "But I want some more of it!"
"You know he has a crush on Stephanie," Matt said.
"Dude, I just think she's pretty and nice," Jeff said. "Or nice recently anyhow."
"Sounds like drama to me," Lita said.
"You guys!" Jeff exclaimed. "I'm going to be Jericho's best man in three weeks. I think any attraction I have toward Steph is under control."
Lita laughed, "Stop bugging your brother."
"Can I bother you instead?" Matt asked Lita, crawling onto the couch and pulling her into his arms.
"I think that can be arranged," Lita said, smiling as Matt lightly kissed along her jaw. "Very easily."
"Oh dear God!" Jeff said. "I'm out!"
"Jeff," Matt said. "You don't have to leave."
Jeff looked at his watch, "Actually yes I do. I have to go pick up Meredith from the airport."
"Who's Meredith?" Lita asked, after Jeff had grabbed his leather jacket and left.
"She's been our next door neighbor since we were about five," Matt said. "Her mom just passed away so her dad talked her into coming out here to get her mind off of things."
"You too are so sweet," Lita said. "How long will she be here?"
"Probably around two months," Matt answered.
"Any chance Jeff will fall in love with her?" Lita asked. "He needs a girl."
"Slim," Matt said. "They went out briefly in high school. They realized they really aren't all that attracted to each other romantically. And she had a huge crush on me."
"You sound proud of that mister," Lita said.
"A little," Matt agreed.
"Remember who your girlfriend is," Lita mumbled.
"Honey, that is not a problem," Matt said.
"When were you going to ask if she could share a room with me?" Lita asked.
"Is that a yes?" Matt asked.
"Maybe," Lita replied.
""You're the best sweetie," Matt said. He took her face in his hands and looked deep into her eyes. Lita always felt uncomfortable when he did that, like he could see through her, see into her. He slowly lowered his head and caught her lips in a devastating kiss.
"I'll, um, yeah," Lita mumbled. "You just better remember that Matt Hardy."
Two hours later, Lita and Matt walked into the hotel suite they were sharing with Jeff and now Meredith. "Hey!" Jeff exclaimed. A pretty young woman with honey blond hair that fell down her back rose from the couch.
"Hi, I'm Meredith Banks," she said to Lita, extending her hand to shake with Lita's.
"I'm Lita," she said warmly, "And you'll be my roommate."
"Okay," Meredith said. "Hey Matty."
"Hey Mer," Matt said, giving her a brief hug. "If you'll all excuse me. I believe a warm shower is in order. I'm achy all over."
"Big baby," Lita called after him.
"I'll remember that baby," Matt said over his shoulder.
Lita sat down on Jeff's lap as she picked up his bag of Doritos. "Good-bye diet."
Jeff laughed as she munched on his chips. "Lita has been our friend for about a year now," Jeff said to Meredith. "And she is horrible at keeping diets."
"Not all of us can have great metabolisms like you Jeff," Lita said, feeding him a chip. "How old are you Meredith?"
"Twenty-one," Meredith said.
"Cool," Lita said. "Hey, I like your Pearl Jam shirt."
"I got it when I went to a concert with Matt and Jeff," Meredith said. "These two are like brothers to me."
"Every girl should be so lucky to have these boys in their life," Lita said affectionately.
"You jet lagged?" Jeff asked Meredith when she yawned.
"A little," Meredith answered. Lita noticed her eyes were a deep green that reminded her of a calm lake. "Do you mind if I crash?"
"We have a while to catch up," Jeff said.
"C'mon," Lita said. "I'll turn in too."
"Okay," Meredith said, rising from the couch. "Night Jeff."
"Night Jeffrey," Lita said, "Tell your brother I said he's a big baby and good night."
"Sure thang," Jeff drawled. "Night girls."
***FYI: I'm not the owner of WWF, I do not own any of these wrestlers (sucks to be me), and I'm making no cash off of this story. If you sue me, there's not much you can get. ALSO: I'm taking major creative license here. For the most part, the relationships are the same as they are on any of the WWF shows...but it might help if you read "Into the Dark". If you haven't all you need to know is that Jericho and Stephanie are together. And in this world Shane and Marissa are not married. It's not that I don't like Marissa, she just doesn't fit in the story. ONE LAST THING: Later in the story I will be using Jericho's real last name, because Stephanie Jericho just sounds bad. ENJOY!***
June 2001
"Hey Lita," Jeff Hardy said as he plopped onto the couch next to his brother's girlfriend and his best friend. "That was a hard knock you took a couple of minutes ago."
"You should talk," Lita said, unconsciously rubbing her left elbow. "You're the one who went through the table."
"I want those damn titles," Jeff said.
"Where's Matt?" Lita asked. "He was with me when I got backstage."
"He went to go get that gash in his forehead sewn up," Jeff said. "You want me to massage your shoulder?"
"No," Lita said. "I'll be fine."
"Hey you two," Matt said when he got into their dressing room. He plopped onto the ground at Lita's feet. "How are you doing?"
"Same as you," Lita said. She leaned forward and began to give Matt a massage. His tense muscles relaxed under her hands.
"Those are magic hands baby," Matt said.
Lita smiled. "What was Shane McMahon doing at ringside today?"
"Scouting," Jeff answered confidently.
"The Dudleys?" Matt asked, refusing to break contact with his girlfriend's hands.
"Nope," Jeff said. "Us. I've heard rumors for awhile that he wants to be our manager."
"No way," Matt said. "We're going to do this on our own."
"Matt think for a sec," Jeff said. "With some of the wrestlers from old WCW coming to WWF and forming a coalition behind that jerk Regal, it would do us some good to have some friends."
"But we are perfectly able to get the Tag Titles on our own!" Matt said. "We don't need people interfering."
"You know Edge, Christian, Rhyno, and Kane are already allied with some of the WCW guys," Lita said gently, trying to Matt see reason.
"I would totally agree with you if Shane's group interfered with matches for no reason at all," Jeff said. "But it's Jericho, Test, Steph, and The Rock. They only make sure no one is getting the crap beat out of them."
"And they need a tag team," Lita said. "Wouldn't you rather it be you than say...the Acolytes."
"You two really want to do this?" Matt asked.
"Well, we are friends with Steph and Y2J," Lita said.
"And I really hate Edge and Christian hitting me with chairs whenever they get a chance," Jeff said. "I don't think our fans would be mad or anything Matt."
"Alright," Matt said. "But only if he asks."
Twenty minutes later there was a knock on the door. "Come in!" they all yelled.
"Hey you guys," Shane McMahon said, stepping into the room with Stephanie McMahon. "That was a great match you guys had today. You almost got the titles."
"Thanks," Jeff said, smiling widely. "How are you all."
"Good," Stephanie said, for Shane and herself.
"Three weeks until you are Mrs. Jericho," Lita said to Stephanie.
"It's definite," Stephanie said, shuddering to her brother. "I will be keeping my maiden name."
Shane laughed. "Guys, I just wanted to see if you were interested in getting a manager."
"We're interested," Jeff said. "As long as it means I don't get hit by half as many chairs and tables as I am right now. I went through two tonight."
"I can see what I can do about that," Shane said, nodding. "As incentive for you to be on my team, I'm going to have Vince schedule a match for King of the Ring...you versus the Dudleys for the Tag Team Titles."
"I like the way you get straight to business," Matt said. "Sounds good to me."
"Me too," Jeff said.
"Lita?" Shane asked, looking into her caramel brown eyes.
Lita smiled shyly, "Yeah, of course."
"Great!" Shane said. "I'll talk to you tomorrow. Right now Rocky has a match against Show. Regal is being a freaking jerk."
"Good night," Stephanie said, closing the door behind her.
Jeff got up and jumped around the room. "We're gonna be champs again! We're gonna kick ass! We're gonna be the best!"
"Whoa," Lita laughed. "What are you on?"
"I don't know," Jeff said. "But I want some more of it!"
"You know he has a crush on Stephanie," Matt said.
"Dude, I just think she's pretty and nice," Jeff said. "Or nice recently anyhow."
"Sounds like drama to me," Lita said.
"You guys!" Jeff exclaimed. "I'm going to be Jericho's best man in three weeks. I think any attraction I have toward Steph is under control."
Lita laughed, "Stop bugging your brother."
"Can I bother you instead?" Matt asked Lita, crawling onto the couch and pulling her into his arms.
"I think that can be arranged," Lita said, smiling as Matt lightly kissed along her jaw. "Very easily."
"Oh dear God!" Jeff said. "I'm out!"
"Jeff," Matt said. "You don't have to leave."
Jeff looked at his watch, "Actually yes I do. I have to go pick up Meredith from the airport."
"Who's Meredith?" Lita asked, after Jeff had grabbed his leather jacket and left.
"She's been our next door neighbor since we were about five," Matt said. "Her mom just passed away so her dad talked her into coming out here to get her mind off of things."
"You too are so sweet," Lita said. "How long will she be here?"
"Probably around two months," Matt answered.
"Any chance Jeff will fall in love with her?" Lita asked. "He needs a girl."
"Slim," Matt said. "They went out briefly in high school. They realized they really aren't all that attracted to each other romantically. And she had a huge crush on me."
"You sound proud of that mister," Lita said.
"A little," Matt agreed.
"Remember who your girlfriend is," Lita mumbled.
"Honey, that is not a problem," Matt said.
"When were you going to ask if she could share a room with me?" Lita asked.
"Is that a yes?" Matt asked.
"Maybe," Lita replied.
""You're the best sweetie," Matt said. He took her face in his hands and looked deep into her eyes. Lita always felt uncomfortable when he did that, like he could see through her, see into her. He slowly lowered his head and caught her lips in a devastating kiss.
"I'll, um, yeah," Lita mumbled. "You just better remember that Matt Hardy."
Two hours later, Lita and Matt walked into the hotel suite they were sharing with Jeff and now Meredith. "Hey!" Jeff exclaimed. A pretty young woman with honey blond hair that fell down her back rose from the couch.
"Hi, I'm Meredith Banks," she said to Lita, extending her hand to shake with Lita's.
"I'm Lita," she said warmly, "And you'll be my roommate."
"Okay," Meredith said. "Hey Matty."
"Hey Mer," Matt said, giving her a brief hug. "If you'll all excuse me. I believe a warm shower is in order. I'm achy all over."
"Big baby," Lita called after him.
"I'll remember that baby," Matt said over his shoulder.
Lita sat down on Jeff's lap as she picked up his bag of Doritos. "Good-bye diet."
Jeff laughed as she munched on his chips. "Lita has been our friend for about a year now," Jeff said to Meredith. "And she is horrible at keeping diets."
"Not all of us can have great metabolisms like you Jeff," Lita said, feeding him a chip. "How old are you Meredith?"
"Twenty-one," Meredith said.
"Cool," Lita said. "Hey, I like your Pearl Jam shirt."
"I got it when I went to a concert with Matt and Jeff," Meredith said. "These two are like brothers to me."
"Every girl should be so lucky to have these boys in their life," Lita said affectionately.
"You jet lagged?" Jeff asked Meredith when she yawned.
"A little," Meredith answered. Lita noticed her eyes were a deep green that reminded her of a calm lake. "Do you mind if I crash?"
"We have a while to catch up," Jeff said.
"C'mon," Lita said. "I'll turn in too."
"Okay," Meredith said, rising from the couch. "Night Jeff."
"Night Jeffrey," Lita said, "Tell your brother I said he's a big baby and good night."
"Sure thang," Jeff drawled. "Night girls."