Title: Priorities
Rated: T (Teen)
Genre(s): Romance/Hurt/Comfort/Drama
Pair(s): Mark/Randy, Mark/Mike
Summary: Ever since Randy has become World Heavyweight Champion, he has become distant and it is affecting his relationship with Mark. Can he save it before it is too late?
Disclaimer: I don't own anyone, only my OCs.
Warning: Slash!
Part: 2/3
OOOO
Mark looked at him as if he had obtained three heads.
Suddenly, he slammed his novel closed and slid it across the island counter. It didn't intrest him anymore. And then, it became a staring contest between Mark and Randy. The Deadman and The Legend Killer. Randy wasn't about to cave first – he needed to know that there was a chance to save this, to save them. But Mark certainly wasn't going to make it easy on him. He shouldn't have expected differently, truth be told. Randy had had to pursue him for months before he even considered a date. And that was most likely out of self-preservation.
And then, Mark did the unthinkable. He broke off their impromptu staring contest first, and walked away. He admited that there was no chance, that there was no love… not anymore. It was only a matter of time before Mark left him and took Bethany with him. Randy couldn't move, couldn't think, couldn't breath. All he could do was watch the man he loved walked away from him. There was a certain resolution in his walk, and his head was down. The dark curls that Randy so loved hid his beloved's face when he needed to see those emerald eyes the most, and it broke his heart.
The door slammed upstairs. The sound was too final to his ears. He simply stared up the staircase, unable to move. But then, his eyes flickered over to the door beside it. Carefully painted letters revealed this to be Bethany's bedroom. He had seen the teen retire there shortly before he asked Mark that question… shortly before he had received that cold-hearted denial. Randy turned around and ruffled through the grocery bags that he had brought in from the car, his efforts producing a bouquet of roses. Maybe there was a chance that he could still fix what he had with Bethany…
OOOO
"Bethany, sweetheart?" Randy gently knocked on the door, not wanting to wake her up if she had already drifted off to sleep. "Are you awake, sweetie?"
"What do you want?" Bethany hissed, her voice so low he had to strain to hear it.
"Can I come in?"
"Do you have to?"
Randy flinched a little at the teen's bitter response, but continued to soldier on. "Yeah. I think that we need to talk about what happened yesterday. But I won't come in unless you say that I can."
There were a few moments of silence. Randy seriously thought that she was going to exploit the fact that he valued her privacy and wouldn't force himself inside. But then, he heard the long scratch of velcro as she put her knee brace back on. The mattress creaked as she slid down to the floor, and the sharp slap of bare feet on the wooden floor echoed in the silence. The click of the lock, and then her door was open. She didn't wait for him to come in. She simply threw herself down onto her bed and waited. Randy sat down on the end of the bed beside her, mindful of her bad knee.
"Well?" Bethany hissed, her eyes fixed on the stars painted on her ceiling.
"I wanted to say that I'm sorry, baby. I know that no amount of 'I'm sorrys' will ever make this 100% better, but I'll say it as many times as you need to hear it." Randy held the flowers behind his back, and Bethany had not noticed them. "You don't know how pissed I was that work once again got in the way of my time with you and your father. I never meant to miss it. And I'm sorry that you were hurt – emotionally and physically – because of my inability to say no and walk away."
He handed her the roses, and her eyes widened considerably. "Y-You got me roses?"
"I meant to give them to you that night, but since I couldn't be there, I figured that they would be better late than never. Do you like them?"
"They're beautiful."
Bethany slid off of the bed once more and walked over to set the bouquet on her dresser. There was a vase there, which she would use to put the flowers in later. When she turned back to Randy, there was a look of uncertainty on her pretty face. Absently, she tucked a stray black hair behind her ear. She looked to be contemplating something important, and Randy wished that he could see inside her head just this once. And then she flashed him a shy, uncertain smile. Randy knew that this was his opening, and he should capitalize on it before the door closed.
"Thank you."
"Baby…" Randy looked at her, uncertainty in his eyes. "Is there still time for that father-daughter dance?"
"B-But…" Bethany motioned to her knee, which was still encased in that bulky brace. "I can't dance. Or, at least I can't dance well. The teacher said I wouldn't be able to compete for a month."
"Just come here and let me take the lead."
Then, Randy lifted her up so that her feet were on top of his. Bethany felt like she was in the first grade again, learning to dance for the first time. And just like that, they waltzed around the room. They didn't need music, they didn't need a large audience to clap for them when they had finished. It was simply the father-daughter dance that Bethany had been cheated out of at her recital, and she loved every minute of it. Sure enough, a few minutes in, she rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes. Randy hadn't realized how much he had missed this ever since he became champion…
He had lost track of how much time they had been dancing, but he knew that he still had one more question to ask his daughter before he let her go to bed. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, just like he used to do before she went to sleep. His daughter reacted brilliantly, turning her head toward him with trust-filled eyes. He was glad to see that her trust was not so easily lost. And as he looked over her face, he knew that there would be no-one better for the job he had in mind than Bethany. The Princess of Darkness would help him to win Mark back.
"Bethany, I can't seem to convey to your father that I'm sorry for what I did and that he means the world to me -,"
Bethany cut him off. "He's hard-headed."
"…and I was wondering if you could help me win him over?"
Bethany's exhaustion-darkened eyes widened, before a smile broke out on her face. She nodded quickly. "I know just the thing."
OOOO
Mark sat on the bed in the bedroom he used to share with Randy. Did he still love The Legend Killer, The Apex Predator, The Viper? He took a breath and held it. Of course he did. There was no use denying it when no-one was around. Even their daughter knew the truth, but Randy didn't. In fact, the other man had looked so broken by his silence that it had almost shattered Mark's resolve. Almost. Mark wasn't about to submit, not this late in the game. Randy could say that he loved him all he wanted, but now, he would have to show it.
It was then that he pulled out a picture that he hadn't looked at in months, borderline one year. It was a picture of him with Mike 'The Miz' Mizanin. Before the boy had been famous, when he was just a jobber trying to claw his way to the top, he and Mark had been in a relationship. It was the first time that Mark had been able to fully open his heart to anyone, and sure enough, it got broken. Badly. The Miz became famous and left him behind, lost and confused. Now, he was back with Kevin after the little fued The Miz had had with Alex Riley.
Without thought, Mark tossed the picture into the trash can. He had no need for it anymore. All it showed was a memory that broke his heart, and he already had a present situation doing the same. It wouldn't do to dwell on the past. With that said, he turned off the lamp on the bedside table and watched as the entire room was flooded with darkness. And he burrowed down beneath the blankets, his back to the trashcan with the picture of yesterday in it. And with that, he tried (and somehow managed) to fall into a dreamless sleep.
OOOO
A/N: Well, that's 2/3! What d'you think that Randy's gonna do to make it up to the Deadman?
Note 1: I'm still taking suggestions for when I finish this story. If you have any ideas that you want to see, name them and a specific pairing and I'll do my best to write them!
Note 2: Personally, I would love it if someone wrote a Jeff Hardy/Bobby Roode story. The feud that they have going on right now is priceless. But it would be nice if the story focused on how selfish Bobby is being now that he is TNA World Heavyweight Champion, how this behavior is hurting Jeff, and shocking Bobby out of his selfish ways.
As always, review! They make me want to write faster!
