PART 2

I believe in you...

I'll give up everything just to find you.

I have to be with you,

To live, to breathe, you're taking over me.

"I can't forget about you, either," Stephanie whispered. "I tried, but I have a little something that reminds me of you daily..."

"What's that?" Chris asked curiously, his fingers unconsciously caressing her hand. It was still there between them. He could feel the heat intensifying between them with each passing second, and he reached up to touch her face and wipe her tears away. His hand was shaking a little, and all he wanted to do was lean over and kiss her...

She reached up and placed her hand on top of his, feeling him. She had missed him so much, and now he was here...

"What reminds you of me?" he asked quietly, his hand still on her face. He leaned a little closer...

It was now or never. "He's right here in my arms," she said softly.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" he asked, removing his hand from her face and looking at her with wide eyes. He looked at the baby. "Is he...mine?"

"Yes," she whispered. "This is your son."

He was silent for a long time, a very long time, just looking at the baby, then at her. Then... "Why didn't you fucking tell me!" he exclaimed angrily, standing up. He didn't give her a chance to answer him, though. "How could you keep something like this from me? My son?"

"Chris, I-"

"Save it," he said, heading for the door. "Tell your dad I'll see him tomorrow."

She sat there stunned, looking at the place where he'd just been standing. She hadn't expected for him to react this way at all. She understood the fact that he was mad at her for keeping this secret from him, but still... He hadn't even asked to see the baby at all. He had basically rejected both of them just like that...

She wiped her tears away and stood up. She would shed no more tears. She had to be strong for herself, for her son... She knew in her heart that Chris would come back to her. He was too good of a person and too much of a man to stay away from his son, even if he had just found out about him. She believed in him, and she believed that somehow, someway, they would end up together and everything would be ok...

The question was, when?

I look in the mirror and see your face.

If I look deep enough,

So many things inside that, just like you, are taking over...

Chris stood in the men's bathroom staring at his reflection in the mirror. He didn't know what he was doing anymore. He had stayed away from the WWE for a year, had stayed away from Stephanie for ten long months. Now, he was back, and he'd tried so very hard to stay away from her. He'd brushed her off every single time he'd run into her. Every time they talked, he tried to be as cold and distant as possible, even though he didn't really feel that way.

He hadn't been able to stand seeing her cry back in her father's office, though, and it had been instinctive for him to comfort her, to touch her hand, to wipe her tears away. He sighed and closed his eyes, head bowed as he leaned over the sink. The heat between them was still there when he touched her, and it had almost been unbearable. The chemistry was still there, and the fire between them still burned strong... If anything, the time they'd spent apart had only made him fall deeper for her...deeper and harder.

And now there was a baby to consider. He had another son. He had to admit, when he'd learned back in January that she was pregnant, he'd wondered how far along she'd been, had wondered if there was any possibility that it could be his. But then he'd seen all the pictures of her and Hunter smiling with his hand on her stomach. They had seemed so happy together, and they just had what Chris liked to refer to as that "expecting parent" glow to them. He'd figured that if there was any chance that the child was his, she would call him and let him know, but apparently she hadn't.

He opened his eyes and slowly looked up into the mirror at his reflection again, trying to see the man he had become. Some days, he just felt like he didn't even know himself... As he looked at his reflection, he could swear that Stephanie was standing behind him, holding their baby... He whirled around to face her, angry. "Why are you here? You're not supposed to be here!"

"Uh, this is the men's bathroom," Kurt Angle said, looking at him like he had three heads or something. "Last time I checked, I was allowed to be in here."

"Sorry, Kurt, I thought you were someone else," Chris said, turning back around and looking at the mirror again. "I feel like I'm losing it. I'm just on the edge right now... There's so much going on in my life at this point."

"Tell me about it," Kurt said, walking over to one of the urinals. "I'm all ears."

"It's just not something I'm at liberty to discuss with anyone," Chris said, still looking at his reflection. "This is just between me and...someone."

"I get that," Kurt said. "But are you sure you don't want to talk about it?"

"I wish I could. It's driving me crazy!" Chris exclaimed, punching the mirror. The glass cracked but didn't break, and he looked down at his hand, specifically at his knuckles. They were starting to bleed a little, but he couldn't feel it. He felt like he was immune to physical pain at this point... It was the emotional pain that was kicking his ass. He sighed and rinsed his knuckles off with some cold water, wondering what the hell was wrong with him.

"Calm down," Kurt said, zipping his pants up. He washed his hands, then leaned against the wall and looked at Chris. "Speak your mind before whatever it is you're holding inside kills you."

"She's taking over me! Everything is all just clashing together at once and it's... I can't stop thinking about her," Chris said in a low voice. He closed his eyes and he could see her face; it was engraved into his mind. This time, though, he saw the baby, too. His eyes snapped open. "She's everywhere I go. I tried to forget about her, I tried for ten agonizing months to forget about her, but I couldn't... I can't... I love her."

"Who are you talking about?" Kurt asked, wondering who had Chris so tortured, so conflicted. "Your wife?"

"I can't tell you," Chris said shortly, and he turned and walked out of the bathroom. Stephanie was taking over his mind, his life. He didn't know how long he would be able to keep trying to resist her, and he honestly didn't know if it was even worth the effort anymore...

I believe in you...

I'll give up everything just to find you.

I have to be with you,

To live, to breathe, you're taking over me.

"Are you sure you don't want me to take LC home with me tonight?" Hunter asked Stephanie for what had to be the hundredth time in twenty minutes. It was later that night, Raw was over, and Hunter was about to catch a flight to their place in Connecticut. Stephanie had to stay behind for some meetings for the next day, and he wanted to be one hundred percent positive that she would be ok if he left the baby with her.

"I'm positive, Hunter," Stephanie replied in a steady voice, holding the baby tightly. "I can't be without him for a night. He reminds me so much of his daddy, you know?"

"Aw, that's so sweet," he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. He touched his "son" lightly, not wanting to wake him. "While Daddy goes home, you be the man of the house...or, hotel," he said in a low voice to the baby.

Stephanie didn't know what to say as she watched the display. When Hunter found out the truth about her baby, he was going to be so hurt... And she hated the fact that she was going to have to hurt him, because he had been so good to her over the years. He wasn't the asshole that he portrayed for the fans, but she found herself wishing that he was...

"Ok, sweetie, I need to go catch my flight," Hunter said, interrupting her thoughts. He leaned down to give her a soft kiss, then leaned over and kissed his "son" on the forehead. He stood up straight and gave them both tender looks. "I can't wait until you guys get home. I hate the fact that you have these meetings, Steph."

"Me, too," she said, looking away. "But I'll be home soon, though."

"I love you," he said, starting to walk away.

"Love you, too," she replied, and she watched him walk away until he disappeared in a crowd of people. She headed back to her rental car. After strapping LC in his seat, she got in and drove back to the hotel where she and some of the wrestlers were supposed to be staying at.

It was difficult for her to carry LC into the hotel along with all of her other things. "I should've done this earlier when Hunter was here," she muttered to herself. Some random person took pity on her and held the doors open for her to enter the hotel. She wondered where all the bellhops were. Looking around and spotting none, she frowned. They're always here when I don't need help, and now that I do... What kind of crap is this?

She walked over to the desk and attempted to get checked in. This was an even harder task for her because of the fact that she needed to sign papers and everything. "Can you give me a minute, please?" she finally asked the woman behind the desk.

"Sure, sure," the woman said nonchalantly, and she started filing her nails.

"Anything I can help you out with?" came the melodic voice from behind Stephanie, that voice she dreamed about every night.

"Chris," she said softly, turning around and staring into his eyes. She was surprised that he was offering to help her out when he had been so pissed at her just a few hours before.

"Yeah, I think that's my name," he said in a teasing voice, but behind that teasing tone was evident nervousness. He was nervous to be around her after the way he had acted earlier, walking out of her father's office without so much as looking back at her or the baby... "So, um, what do you need me to do?" he asked after a minute.

"Will you hold LC?" she asked him hesitantly.

"Uh, sure," he said nervously. He took the baby from her and looked down at him. He was awake now, and the two stared into each other's eyes with the same look of curiosity on their faces. He has my eyes, he thought wildly, and he couldn't help but smile.

"Ahem." The woman at the desk cleared her throat to get Stephanie's attention. Stephanie tore her eyes away from the beautiful scene before her and quickly signed the papers. Once she was done and had her card key in her hand, she turned around to look at Chris, who was still staring affectionately at LC.

"Do you mind carrying him up to my room for me?" she asked him.

"I'd love to," he said, sounding amazed as he stared at the baby in his arms. He shook his head as if breaking out of a trance and looked at Stephanie. "Wait, don't you want me to carry your bags for you?"

"No, I'll handle it," she assured him. "You just carry LC..."

I believe in you...

I'll give up everything just to find you.

I have to be with you,

To live, to breathe, you're taking over me.

"Stephanie, he's beautiful," Chris said for the third time. He was sitting in her hotel room with her, and he was still holding LC. "Just...beautiful."

"I know," Stephanie replied, smiling at him. "He gets his good looks from you."

"But he looks like you, too," he pointed out. "Look at that chin, that cute little dimple right there."

"What can I say? We made a beautiful baby," she said with a little sigh. She couldn't get over the fact that he was there with her, that they were there together, and that he was holding their baby... It had all seemed so impossible just a short while before, but now things were looking up.

"Oh, he's asleep," he said, sounding disappointed when he noticed that LC was indeed asleep now.

"I hate to point it out to you, Chris, but he is only one month old," she said with a laugh. "He tends to sleep a lot." She stood up. "Here, let me go put him in his crib...and don't leave yet, because I need to talk to you."

He let her take LC from him and watched her walk out of the room. He leaned his elbows on his knees as he sat on the couch and waited for her to come back. It was all so surreal to him, everything that was happening. He didn't know what to do, what to say... She came back about two minutes later and sat down on the coffee table in front of him. They didn't speak for the longest time. They just looked at each other, really looked at each other.

"I love him already," he said finally, referring to LC. "He's one of the most adorable babies I've ever seen in my entire life, and I'm not exaggerating."

"I know," she replied, unable to stop looking at him. "I like to think that he's the best part of what you and I had, know what I mean?"

He nodded. "Why do you call him LC?"

"No one knows, not even Hunter, but it stands for Lil' Chris," she said. "Because when I just call him Chris, I think about you..." She turned her head and looked away. "Actually, I'm always thinking about you... I know you probably think I'm stuck in the past or something, but I can't stop thinking about you..."

"I dream about you every night," he said quietly. "It's like...it hurts to be without you, and when I think about the fact that there's no way we can be together... It hurts even more."

"I feel the same way," she said, and she looked back at him, biting her lip lightly. "I've missed you, Chris... I've missed you every day for the past ten months."

"I've missed you, too," he admitted. "I've missed being with you, touching you...hearing you laugh, seeing you smile..."

She didn't know what else to say to him as they sat there face to face. She was just happy to know that he felt the same way, that she was taking over him the same way that he was taking over her...

He stood up then, and pulled her to her feet.

"What's wrong?" she asked him as he stood there in front of her, just looking at her.

"Steph, you're like...like oxygen and air... I need you just to live, to breathe," he whispered, and he pulled her to him.

"I need you, too," she whispered back, and then she kissed him...

(Taking over me)... You're taking over me...

(Taking over me)... Taking over me...

Later that night...

"Steph," Chris said softly, one hand gently shaking her.

"What? What's wrong?" Stephanie asked sleepily.

"Is that the baby crying?" he asked.

"Yeah, sorry, I'll get him," she said, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

"No, no, I'll get him," he said, one hand on her arm. "I just...never heard him cry before..." He got up and walked over to the crib. She turned on a bedside lamp and he picked LC up. "Shhh, Daddy's here," he said in a soothing voice, calming him down almost immediately. "And guess what? I'm not going anywhere..."

"Not going anywhere? What do you mean?" she asked, now fully awake as she watched him.

"Things can't just go back to normal. We've tried that already," he said, coming to sit on the bed next to her. He looked at LC, who was already falling asleep again. "I can't just pretend that I don't love you, and I can't leave him..."

"So what are we going to do?"

"I don't know..."

A/N: So, there's really no way I could just end it like this... Do you guys think I should like continue it or whatever? The song...is done, but the story seems like it's just beginning... Let me know!