"Oh my god, Stephanie, wake up. Wake up!" said Shane as he ran over to her unconscious body. He was freaking out as he saw her pill bottle on the floor and the atypical amount of alcohol she consumed. He just knew there was something wrong. Last night had been the most horrible night of her life, and he wasn't able to comfort her. It shouldn't have surprised him that she had taken drastic measures. He understood how much Hunter had meant to her, and being Pedigreed must've been the final straw for her in realizing that it was over.
"Just wake up, oh god, this is bad. This is really bad." He knew he had to do something, so he decided to drag her over to the sink in the bathroom from the bed. Her body was gangly, uncooperative, and she hit the nightstand hard on the way down, leaving a bruise on her back.
"Fuck!" said Shane. He was able to get her over to the bathroom after a laborious effort, and he pushed her face down into the sink before turning on the water and splashing it all around her face.
Stephanie woke up with a start and felt the sensation of water being forced down her throat and into her nostrils. She coughed and sputtered into the water and tried to understand what was going on.
"Let's see, I was humiliated on national television, and decided to try to drink myself into unconsciousness, and now I am face down in a hotel sink full of water. Things are going swimmingly for you, aren't they, Stephanie?"
"Oh my god, you're alive! Don't you dare scare me like that ever again, Stephanie!" exclaimed Shane. He gave his sister a massive hug as she was still getting the water out of her senses. He didn't know what she was thinking, but he was glad that he wasn't too late.
"Shane? Is that you?" asked Stephanie. What would her brother want to do with her? Everyone had abandoned her recently, and she didn't think that someone like Shane would ever want to talk to her again. She had basically declared her hatred for Hunter's puppy on television. It was so comically evil that looking back on it, she really had no idea what was going through her mind at the time.
"Yes, of course it's me. What were you thinking, Stephanie, mixing pills with alcohol like that? And why were you drinking so much to start with?"
"I- I didn't take any pills." Stephanie looked around the bomb crater of a room she was in and understood what conclusions he had come to. Her pills were on the floor, and the rum bottles were all over the bed. Her vision was blurry, with the sunlight filtering through the window disorienting her.
"Tell me the truth. Were you trying to hurt yourself?" said Shane. His face was as severe as she had ever seen it before, and she realized that he really did care about her. It was nice to know, but it didn't change her situation.
"No, I was just trying to dull the pain of last night. You must've seen what happened. The entire country knows what a failure I am, both personally and professionally. How can I claim to be a McMahon when I can't even wrestle?"
"Stephanie, there are a lot of people who care about you, and you don't need to turn to alcohol to get relief from traumatic experiences like that. From what Jazz told me, your post match experience wasn't any better than what I expected, and I am here to help you recover from that. Your whole family is here for you. And as for losing the match? Nobody thought you could win that match, you disappointed absolutely no one."
Stephanie looked at him with soft, pleading eyes. She had to know what she could do to fix her shattered life. She thought about the one issue that hadn't come up yet, the one that she could never avoid for as long as she lived. "What do I do about Hunter? I still love him, and he is never going to talk to me again. I realized over this past month that I can't live without him. I can't sleep, I am always sick, and I never have felt so lonely before."
"Steph, you are an amazing person, and you do not need Hunter to live. As for getting him back, you kind of went too far with the whole fake pregnancy business, so you have to give it time. Don't speak to him for a while, and you may find that he can't live without you either. He's on top of the world right now, but this business has a way of pulling everyone back down." Shane honestly wished she would never speak to him again after all of the pain and misery he had caused her for the past two years, but he knew that bringing that up would do her no good at this moment.
"I have nothing left in my life, though. I am out of the WWF, I have only as much money as Daddy allows for basic needs after we kind of tried to run him out of business, and I have no friends. How can I redeem myself? I am tired of being shit on by the world all of the time, I want to do something!" Stephanie didn't know where that last bit of courage came from, but for the first time in a few weeks, she felt motivated. Maybe everything wasn't dark and bleak.
Shane was surprised by that outburst, but as he looked at Stephanie's face, warped by intensity and emotion, he knew that she had gotten a bit of her swagger back. Her rebellious and angry nature brought out the best and worst in her, but in this case, it was for the best. He smiled and said, "You are a McMahon. No matter what any contract says, if you want to be in the WWF, you can do so. Our family is so messed up that after only 5 months, Dad has me back in his good graces and he can do the same for you. It may be a few months before you really return to the company, but you need to get better, and come back with a clear intention."
"What should I do when I return?" Stephanie asked. Her time in the WWF had always been shaped by the men in her life, and she wanted something different. Getting back together with Hunter was her ultimate goal, but she had to face the facts and realize that it would be hard to make any progress on that front for a while.
"I remember that one of the happiest looks on your face in your entire life came from 'winning' the women's championship. Try to do it again. For now, work in the corporate offices, but when you come back for real, make an impression." Shane knew that he had a way for his sister to get out of this slump. She just had to be motivated to make something of herself again.
Stephanie thought to herself, "He is right. I didn't earn that championship, but it felt like I had. Maybe if I did it for real, it will make all of this worth it. And I can shove it in that bitch Molly's face!" A grin broke out on her face, and she just knew what she had to do now. "Shane, I am going to go talk to Daddy about working in accounts again for a few months. But you are right. I am getting that belt when I come back."
Shane smiled at her and said, "I just want you to be happy. If that's what will do it for you, than go for it. And after you move back to your house in Greenwich, come by every now and then to visit me in New York. Marissa would love to see you, she just has been terrified by …events… that have occurred recently." Stephanie winced the way he said events. Her behavior over the last month had really been something else, and she would always have to live with that.
"I forgot about her membership in the Humane Society and the Dog Lover's Association."
"Marissa still loves you, she just needs a little time to understand what happened to you and how you are going to change. And so do I. Good luck with Dad, and call me if you need anything." Shane gave her a hug before leaving the room, and Stephanie thought about their conversation on a deeper level after he left.
"I can do this, I have Shane on my side. I just need to go face Dad."
Stephanie cleaned herself up, and got changed with the last remaining outfit in her suitcase. After eating breakfast alone in her room, she decided it was time to go face Vince. She approached his room on the 7th floor and knocked on the door, saying, "Daddy, can I talk to you for a minute?"
Some commotion unfolded on the other side of the door, and Stephanie was shocked to see a young woman yank open the door and run down the hall at full speed with no clothes on, leaving a flustered and sheepish Vince facing his daughter. "Stephanie, you have the absolute best timing. Sorry about your match last night, I know it must've been hard to have all those people calling you a slut again, but, um, what can I, um, do for you?"
"Daddy, I know I may have been forced out of the company, but it only specified televised events for the next few months in the contract. Is there any way I can have my old accounts job back?" Stephanie felt awkward standing in front of her half-naked father begging for a job, but she knew better to call him out on his dalliances when she was in her current dire state.
"Of course you can have a job in accounts, anything for my baby girl, but, um, I don't know about you returning to the shows. I can't upset my champion, and you, well, you upset him more than anyone in the locker room." Stephanie couldn't believe that he was going to take Hunter's side in this. Then again, he had tried to sacrifice her to the Undertaker, so she figured that anything was fair game when it came to Vince and his precious business.
"Daddy, I know I messed up, but I want to come back and become Women's Champion. I need to make up for my mistakes." Stephanie hoped he would cave to her request, and she was disappointed to find his face impassive and blank.
"Stephanie, I admire your, um, optimism after last night, but I think it's best if you stayed at the Corporate Offices for longer than just a few months." Stephanie could tell he just wanted her to go away, and it was really starting to bug her. This was her career, her future at stake! He didn't seem to care at all, and he was clearly just waiting for her to leave so he could get back to whatever, or whoever, he was doing.
"I really need your support on this, Daddy. I don't want to tell Mom about what's her name hiding around the corner, but I might just have to if she asks me." The anger she felt at being ignored by her father and taken advantage of by the entire world became too much for her. She was bringing out the big guns. Screw family loyalty, she thought, this is business.
"Now, there is no need to do anything drastic Stephanie-"
"Are you sure about that, Dad?"
"Stephanie, that would be a very bad road to take. Now I am willing to let you run Smackdown as GM, as I have very confidence in your ability to do exactly what I say, seeing as you have no allies left in this company. It's the same reason that I am letting Bischoff take over RAW in a few months, as he is the only person in this business hated more than me. But any notions of you having any independence in MY company should be put out of your head immediately."
"Dad, I don't want to be your stooge. I want to be a legitimate competitor, and if you can't accept that, I have to call Mom about your proclivities on the road" said Stephanie, as she turned towards the young blond girl hiding behind a plant nearby, who looked back at her with nothing but pure embarrassment on her face.
"Oh fine, you have my word, you can come back to the shows in 4-5 months from now on your terms. I hope you are happy. Just please, can you come back another time? I have, er, some business to attend to."
Stephanie was satisfied, and walked away with her head held high. She was going to do what she needed to. But she still needed to get some of her belongings from Hunter's home in Greenwich. That would come next. She suddenly felt extremely nervous about returning there. There were so many memories in that place. After gathering her possessions, Stephanie left the hotel, ignoring all pointed stares from members of the company on her way out. They would get theirs, it was only a matter of time, she thought.
She did not, however see Hunter Hearst Helmsley on the balcony two floors up talking with Edge as they spotted her on her way out. Edge said, "You must be glad to see that particular problem on its way out, right?
Hunter didn't know what to say. Something just felt off about the way he felt. Last night was the pinnacle of his career, the peak of his success, and he just felt empty. Stephanie was always on his mind, and most of the time he was able to push thoughts of her to the violent impulses inside of him. When he Pedigreed her last night, he felt like he had finally killed whatever feeling the stupid bitch had imparted on him, and he was glad of it, but there was still something off.
"Yeah, man, I'm just glad that Jericho doesn't have the title and that chapter of my life is done." He pushed his long hair to the side as he witnessed Shane McMahon walk by, giving him a death glare as he passed. Well that's a problem I anticipated, but not a pleasant one, Hunter thought. He could easily take the Boy Wonder, but he didn't want to risk anything against a guy who did not care about his own wellbeing. Anybody who jumped 50 feet to drop an elbow on the Big Show and put him out of commission for a month was nobody to make an enemy of without serious thought.
"Thanks for the view you gave us last night with that Pedigree. I can totally see you have taste. But tell me, do you have any plans for the future with your title reign? Anyone in particular you want to send a message to?"
That comment annoyed Hunter, but he didn't speak on it. The leftover jealousy he had of people taking an interest in Steph unfortunately still flared inside of him. "I'm not sure yet, I have heard the same rumors as everyone else about Shawn coming back, and I don't know what to make of it. But why do you want to know? I'm not attacking Christian, before you ask. I really don't care about whatever went on with you guys."
"Hey, I am just curious. But seriously, how was she in the sack?" Hunter was getting pissed at this point. He considered Edge a minor acquaintance, nothing more, and didn't feel like talking about this with him.
"Look man, I am just going to get some food. But don't ask about Stephanie. Just don't. I really do not want to talk about that woman ever again." Edge looked at him strangely as he walked away. Maybe he was a bit short with people, but they really didn't know what they were talking about when it came to Steph. He hated her for taking away his joy at being a father. He didn't hate her as a person. Nobody understood this, and they could never understand what he was going through. Hunter decided that after he got lunch, he was leaving the hotel, and going home for a few days. He was exhausted, and needed some alone time.
As he got into the taxi that would take him to the airport, he looked outside and saw Stephanie struggling with her bag as she boarded the bus. That was a new development, he thought, as she hated public transportation. He didn't like how it sat with him, that she was alone in this city. Thinking such thoughts were ridiculous, he suppressed them.
But when his plane touched down in Stamford three hours later, he couldn't dispel the feeling that something was missing in his life. He had the title, the respect of his peers, the fans, and the ring rats were paying him special attention ever since his VERY public separation, something that he didn't have the spirit to indulge in. He had told himself it was because he had business as his first priority, but he was starting to think that it was something else holding him back.
Note: Thanks for the reviews! I can't update this that often because of school and work, but I'll try to do it every week or so.