Disclaimer: own nothing, apologies.
THUNDER ON THE INSIDE
Everything had changed
Lance sighed and rested on his elbow as he sat in one of the numerous crumby diners he inevitably ended up in on the road. His burger was late as always. He didn't mind usually but tonight he was hungry. He had a lot on his mind which was evident in the way he drummed his fingers on the plastic table in front of him. He raked a hand through his bristle short hair. Things were itching in the back of his mind. He felt like he was being sucked in somewhere.
"Hey there Thunder" a joking voice sounded behind him
Lance didn't bother to even half turn, knowing who it was. Only one person called him Thunder
"Sit down Jericho if you're intending to be constructive"
With his TV smirk still in place for the benefit of those watching, Chris Jericho slid into the seat opposite Lance and pulled the baseball cap off which covered his bright blonde hair. Tossing it onto the table with barely a glance, his smirk dropped to be replaced by a jaded concerned look. Lance didn't have to look up to know the way Jericho was looking at him. He had shared more hotel rooms, tour buses and assorted cramped living conditions with the man sat opposite him. He could predict the way Jericho would act before he actually did anything.
"Traveling sucks at the moment huh?" Jericho commented, stretching his legs out under the table.
"Indeed"
There was no need for anything else. They both knew what was on the other's mind.
Two beautiful women who tore their worlds apart
Jericho focused on the table when suddenly a waitress who made no pretence of being perky but was refreshingly rude dumped a platter of food on the table and stalked off without a word. Lance watched her leave
"Doesn't cost anything to smile" he muttered as he began to dig into his greasy food
Jericho raised his eyebrows to indicate his amusement at his former tag team partner's comment. It seemed to him that some things never changed. He chanced reaching out a hand to steal some fries but Lance smacked it sharply away.
"Worth a try I guess" joked Jericho half-heartedly
"As always, ask first" reprimanded Lance
He looked at Jericho intently. His fellow Canadian wore large square sheer brown sunglasses in an attempt to gain a little anominity with his tangled blonde tresses tied back out of the way. Instead of the garish glittering ring gear he was associated with, he wore black jeans and a Fozzy t-shirt under a leather jacket. Lance allowed a small smile to enter his face. This was Jericho down to his bare bones. Barely anyone else saw him in the same light. Lance had been the only one up until a month or so ago. Everyone else saw Jericho as an egotistical sadistic asshole, which in truth he was to most of the world but somehow since things had changed recently, since a certain beautiful blonde Canadian had got under his skin, he had come back to the way he was before, when Lance had known him all that time ago. Lance knew it was just Jericho's emotional mask he had worn. Jericho knew that in order to get somewhere in the business he had to stop being the good guy, the one adored by fans and loved backstage but rather be the one no one wanted to share a locker room with because that was the type Vince Mcmahon and Eric Bischoff both approved of. And those with approval for the title shots
"Have you spoken to her yet?" Lance asked, scooping up more fries with his hands and finally offering a small handful to his friend
"Haven't you seen me try? every time I do she throws it back in my face" Jericho said, his words laced with pain and anger "I just......keep trying and every time I do she backs away, did you see the look on her face tonight? When I rescued her from Jazz? She looked like she'd seen her worst ever fear, made me feel like I was doing the wrong thing by helping her out"
"Did you do the wrong thing by rescuing her the first time?"
Jericho allowed his mind to go back to that time. When Steven Richards and Victoria had tried to break her body. There was no one else, Lita was tied up dealing with Molly and Gail. There had been nobody around willing to help her. He could not have stayed backstage and allowed it to happen, not to mention the inroad he could make for a certain bet. He shook his head
"No, that was absolutely the right thing to do"
"As it was tonight, don't be so hard on yourself" Lance admonished as he began on his burger "she had her heart broken by you remember"
"That was all Christian's fault!" hot anger was in his words now
"You agreed to the bet as well"
"Don't remind me"
It had been so stupid. Christian had decided that a fun way to pass the time would be to bet who could get a diva into bed first - him or Jericho? Christian had picked Trish for Jericho and Lita for himself. Unfortunately, Bischoff had found out about it very soon afterwards and had said that it was an excellent idea and whoever did it first would get a substantial reward. He couldn't stand either diva since they'd both turned him down. So as soon as the cameras were on and Christian started talking about the bet, Chris had to go along with, acting as though it was all for a crummy bet.
It had begun that way but then he began to see her differently. The way she was so independent and had fought her way up the women's roster which hadn't been made easy for her. The admiration he'd had for her before the bet slowly blossomed into something more but then it was too late. He'd tried as hard as he could to apologize but Trish was having none of it, utterly furious with him.
He looked up to see Lance finishing off his burger.
"So my life basically sucks, how's your's?" Jericho asked
"Interesting" was all Lance offered
"Interesting how?"
"I think" Lance paused as he considered his answer carefully "I think I am falling in love"
Jericho looked at him carefully for a few minutes, scrutinizing him with ice blue eyes before nodding
"Ok, you think you're falling in love, who's the lucky lady?"
"I am not permitted to say"
"Christ Lance, it's me! I won't say a word, you know I won't"
"Perhaps but this time, I shall remain silent on the matter"
Jericho looked at him again and a slow grin crept over his face as he slowly realized.
"Its Miss Jackie isn't it?" he said triumphantly "you've fallen for that plastic chick!"
"I'd prefer it if you were a little more complimentary" interjected Lance a little offended "but yes, since you have guessed correctly, it is Miss Jackie, she reminds me of Dawn"
"Junior, you have got to get over Dawn......." Jericho began before Lance waved his words away
"This is not about Dawn" Lance corrected "we were never anything but friends, we merely had a special connection which allowed us to feel as though we were more, no Dawn and I are completely fine, I spoke to her last night, asked her about it, if it was ok with her and since she has a new man in her life, she gave her blessing"
"I never would have thought it" said Jericho, grinning "you and Miss Jackie? Well it's a thought"
"She is what I want" Lance replied "I shall wait and see what her reactions are, ever since Rico seemed intent on defeating Venis and we were both at ringside, there was something inside of me that awoke when she looked across the ring at me"
Jericho smiled and ate the fries in his hands absent mindedly. It sounded like the perfect remedy to him. He and Lance had kept their close friendship pretty secret. Most insiders knew they had trained and traveled the indies together and even been tag team partners but they also thought that they had split as a team and had been enemies ever since. It allowed them a little scope to have someone who knew who they really were. Jericho had no problem working for Bischoff, loved the benefits and didn't mind the fans despising him. Lance had taken the same root though they'd made sure to keep apart from the one time they teamed up in a combined effort to try and get rid of Goldberg. The friendship allowed them a little time to vent their feelings and be with someone who truly understood them.
In this business you needed it.
"She's changed you" Lance commented
A funny half-pleased smile crossed Jericho's face.
"Really? How?"
"In your demeanor, you've just changed"
"Good? Bad?"
"Good, if you let others see how you'd changed then maybe someone other than me would notice"
Jericho smirked and allowed himself to think about Trish again and how much better she made him feel.
"Maybe so but I like it better this way"
"Chris dude, come on ditch the loser and lets go" an irritable voice sounded behind him
Chris blinked and then scooped up the baseball cap, settling it firmly on his head again. He got to his feet to stand beside Christian who was looking pretty annoyed. Things hadn't been so rosy between them recently since Christian saw nothing wrong in throwing Lita aside like a piece of meat while Chris most definitely did though only Lance knew how much. They weren't on the same page any more though. Just riding partners, tag team partners and sharing a locker room since it suited their purpose to be a team
"I'll catch you around Thunder" said Chris with a final smirk
He wheeled around to walk beside Christian. As he walked through the dinner he could see it was heavily populated by tired WWE stars. For a second he saw sunlight bright hair and a flash of red and white jersey but when he tried looking a second time, he saw nothing. The mind plays funny tricks when you're tired and yearning.
"Come one dude, got more chicks to inject with Vitamin C" enthused Christian, clapping him on the back as they reached the car
Jericho smiled though his mind was only on one person. He wondered if she'd let him talk to her. He looked up at Lance and thought about Lance's words. In love with Miss Jackie? He laughed to himself. Leave it to Lance to fall for the most unexpected inappropriate woman possible. Love was funny though. With a rueful smile, he slipped into the front seat of the rental and looked at the stars for answers.
THUNDER ON THE INSIDE
Everything had changed
Lance sighed and rested on his elbow as he sat in one of the numerous crumby diners he inevitably ended up in on the road. His burger was late as always. He didn't mind usually but tonight he was hungry. He had a lot on his mind which was evident in the way he drummed his fingers on the plastic table in front of him. He raked a hand through his bristle short hair. Things were itching in the back of his mind. He felt like he was being sucked in somewhere.
"Hey there Thunder" a joking voice sounded behind him
Lance didn't bother to even half turn, knowing who it was. Only one person called him Thunder
"Sit down Jericho if you're intending to be constructive"
With his TV smirk still in place for the benefit of those watching, Chris Jericho slid into the seat opposite Lance and pulled the baseball cap off which covered his bright blonde hair. Tossing it onto the table with barely a glance, his smirk dropped to be replaced by a jaded concerned look. Lance didn't have to look up to know the way Jericho was looking at him. He had shared more hotel rooms, tour buses and assorted cramped living conditions with the man sat opposite him. He could predict the way Jericho would act before he actually did anything.
"Traveling sucks at the moment huh?" Jericho commented, stretching his legs out under the table.
"Indeed"
There was no need for anything else. They both knew what was on the other's mind.
Two beautiful women who tore their worlds apart
Jericho focused on the table when suddenly a waitress who made no pretence of being perky but was refreshingly rude dumped a platter of food on the table and stalked off without a word. Lance watched her leave
"Doesn't cost anything to smile" he muttered as he began to dig into his greasy food
Jericho raised his eyebrows to indicate his amusement at his former tag team partner's comment. It seemed to him that some things never changed. He chanced reaching out a hand to steal some fries but Lance smacked it sharply away.
"Worth a try I guess" joked Jericho half-heartedly
"As always, ask first" reprimanded Lance
He looked at Jericho intently. His fellow Canadian wore large square sheer brown sunglasses in an attempt to gain a little anominity with his tangled blonde tresses tied back out of the way. Instead of the garish glittering ring gear he was associated with, he wore black jeans and a Fozzy t-shirt under a leather jacket. Lance allowed a small smile to enter his face. This was Jericho down to his bare bones. Barely anyone else saw him in the same light. Lance had been the only one up until a month or so ago. Everyone else saw Jericho as an egotistical sadistic asshole, which in truth he was to most of the world but somehow since things had changed recently, since a certain beautiful blonde Canadian had got under his skin, he had come back to the way he was before, when Lance had known him all that time ago. Lance knew it was just Jericho's emotional mask he had worn. Jericho knew that in order to get somewhere in the business he had to stop being the good guy, the one adored by fans and loved backstage but rather be the one no one wanted to share a locker room with because that was the type Vince Mcmahon and Eric Bischoff both approved of. And those with approval for the title shots
"Have you spoken to her yet?" Lance asked, scooping up more fries with his hands and finally offering a small handful to his friend
"Haven't you seen me try? every time I do she throws it back in my face" Jericho said, his words laced with pain and anger "I just......keep trying and every time I do she backs away, did you see the look on her face tonight? When I rescued her from Jazz? She looked like she'd seen her worst ever fear, made me feel like I was doing the wrong thing by helping her out"
"Did you do the wrong thing by rescuing her the first time?"
Jericho allowed his mind to go back to that time. When Steven Richards and Victoria had tried to break her body. There was no one else, Lita was tied up dealing with Molly and Gail. There had been nobody around willing to help her. He could not have stayed backstage and allowed it to happen, not to mention the inroad he could make for a certain bet. He shook his head
"No, that was absolutely the right thing to do"
"As it was tonight, don't be so hard on yourself" Lance admonished as he began on his burger "she had her heart broken by you remember"
"That was all Christian's fault!" hot anger was in his words now
"You agreed to the bet as well"
"Don't remind me"
It had been so stupid. Christian had decided that a fun way to pass the time would be to bet who could get a diva into bed first - him or Jericho? Christian had picked Trish for Jericho and Lita for himself. Unfortunately, Bischoff had found out about it very soon afterwards and had said that it was an excellent idea and whoever did it first would get a substantial reward. He couldn't stand either diva since they'd both turned him down. So as soon as the cameras were on and Christian started talking about the bet, Chris had to go along with, acting as though it was all for a crummy bet.
It had begun that way but then he began to see her differently. The way she was so independent and had fought her way up the women's roster which hadn't been made easy for her. The admiration he'd had for her before the bet slowly blossomed into something more but then it was too late. He'd tried as hard as he could to apologize but Trish was having none of it, utterly furious with him.
He looked up to see Lance finishing off his burger.
"So my life basically sucks, how's your's?" Jericho asked
"Interesting" was all Lance offered
"Interesting how?"
"I think" Lance paused as he considered his answer carefully "I think I am falling in love"
Jericho looked at him carefully for a few minutes, scrutinizing him with ice blue eyes before nodding
"Ok, you think you're falling in love, who's the lucky lady?"
"I am not permitted to say"
"Christ Lance, it's me! I won't say a word, you know I won't"
"Perhaps but this time, I shall remain silent on the matter"
Jericho looked at him again and a slow grin crept over his face as he slowly realized.
"Its Miss Jackie isn't it?" he said triumphantly "you've fallen for that plastic chick!"
"I'd prefer it if you were a little more complimentary" interjected Lance a little offended "but yes, since you have guessed correctly, it is Miss Jackie, she reminds me of Dawn"
"Junior, you have got to get over Dawn......." Jericho began before Lance waved his words away
"This is not about Dawn" Lance corrected "we were never anything but friends, we merely had a special connection which allowed us to feel as though we were more, no Dawn and I are completely fine, I spoke to her last night, asked her about it, if it was ok with her and since she has a new man in her life, she gave her blessing"
"I never would have thought it" said Jericho, grinning "you and Miss Jackie? Well it's a thought"
"She is what I want" Lance replied "I shall wait and see what her reactions are, ever since Rico seemed intent on defeating Venis and we were both at ringside, there was something inside of me that awoke when she looked across the ring at me"
Jericho smiled and ate the fries in his hands absent mindedly. It sounded like the perfect remedy to him. He and Lance had kept their close friendship pretty secret. Most insiders knew they had trained and traveled the indies together and even been tag team partners but they also thought that they had split as a team and had been enemies ever since. It allowed them a little scope to have someone who knew who they really were. Jericho had no problem working for Bischoff, loved the benefits and didn't mind the fans despising him. Lance had taken the same root though they'd made sure to keep apart from the one time they teamed up in a combined effort to try and get rid of Goldberg. The friendship allowed them a little time to vent their feelings and be with someone who truly understood them.
In this business you needed it.
"She's changed you" Lance commented
A funny half-pleased smile crossed Jericho's face.
"Really? How?"
"In your demeanor, you've just changed"
"Good? Bad?"
"Good, if you let others see how you'd changed then maybe someone other than me would notice"
Jericho smirked and allowed himself to think about Trish again and how much better she made him feel.
"Maybe so but I like it better this way"
"Chris dude, come on ditch the loser and lets go" an irritable voice sounded behind him
Chris blinked and then scooped up the baseball cap, settling it firmly on his head again. He got to his feet to stand beside Christian who was looking pretty annoyed. Things hadn't been so rosy between them recently since Christian saw nothing wrong in throwing Lita aside like a piece of meat while Chris most definitely did though only Lance knew how much. They weren't on the same page any more though. Just riding partners, tag team partners and sharing a locker room since it suited their purpose to be a team
"I'll catch you around Thunder" said Chris with a final smirk
He wheeled around to walk beside Christian. As he walked through the dinner he could see it was heavily populated by tired WWE stars. For a second he saw sunlight bright hair and a flash of red and white jersey but when he tried looking a second time, he saw nothing. The mind plays funny tricks when you're tired and yearning.
"Come one dude, got more chicks to inject with Vitamin C" enthused Christian, clapping him on the back as they reached the car
Jericho smiled though his mind was only on one person. He wondered if she'd let him talk to her. He looked up at Lance and thought about Lance's words. In love with Miss Jackie? He laughed to himself. Leave it to Lance to fall for the most unexpected inappropriate woman possible. Love was funny though. With a rueful smile, he slipped into the front seat of the rental and looked at the stars for answers.
