3:
John was lost to the trauma of being sent back in time. He denied that this place could be true, despite the smells, sounds, sights and emotions reminding him that he was truly there. He found an empty room far away from the others. He stood within it and closed his eyes. He meditated until he felt calm enough to reason his way out of this. He was resilient.
He tried to apply logic to the situation. He was very drunk when he first entered this place, yet he felt extremely sober, now. It was a sure sign that he must be dreaming.
John looked down at his clothes. His old jean shorts and sneakers with pumps were with him. He remembered having a t-shirt with a Boston emblem on it and newer jean shorts with newer sneakers before he came to this place. He tried to reason that this was just part of the dream and that's why he didn't remember changing clothes.
He repeated out loud that it was all a dream. It would explain a younger Edge, Christian and Randy. It would explain Eddie.
John could not recall ever having a dream so vivid, before. It planted doubts in his mind about his theory. Why this day? Why the day that Randy nearly killed him?
He considered another possibility. One that was far-fetched, but perhaps a better lead than the dream scenario.
John knew he had been under a lot of stress, lately. He had lost Nikki during a pivotal time in his life. He was trying to transition into movies and retire from wrestling. He was becoming more aware of his age and the toll years of wrestling had taken on his body. He was not poor by any means, but he had been losing money due to the rocky economy and a drop in popularity since Dean Ambrose rose up through the ranks.
John always knew that he could not stay at the top, forever. He was almost relieved that there was finally a suitable replacement. The timing seemed right to move on, but his breakup with Nikki had stalled his progress.
Perhaps he was brought back to this day to change his path?
He wasn't sure how long this shift through time would last. If he played along with what was unfolding, John assumed that he could find some kind of closure. Maybe he would be returned to the present day by resolving the past and choosing differently.
John tried to remember more details about this day. John recognized that Nikki was not a part of his life on this day. Although he believed that it would make more sense to resolve past issues with her, whatever force put him here did not agree. John was suddenly struck with the realization that he was with someone at this point in time, but it was the last person he wanted to see.
Elizabeth.
His former wife and the woman who put him on the path that would eventually lead him to lose Nikki. At this point in his life, John was still dating Elizabeth and the relationship was at a high point.
John wondered if he was sent here to break up with Elizabeth. Was he never supposed to marry her at all? Would that save his future relationship with Nikki?
Logically, it seemed unlikely, given that John still retained all of his memories. The only option he could consider is that breaking up with Elizabeth may erase these memories, thus setting him on the path to eventually marrying Nikki.
John was also aware of consequences. Choosing to end his relationship with Elizabeth may not erase the memories at all. It may set him down a different path, one where Nikki doesn't come up. There was a great deal of risk involved in choosing to change his past, though John was still doubtful that he was truly in the past, which made it hard to believe he was really changing anything at all.
But then there was Randy.
John felt it was important that he first appeared in the arena near where Randy was, and not at home where Elizabeth would be. This was also a day where Randy played a major role. It seemed illogical to John that, given his present circumstances with Nikki, he would be taken back to the past to deal with Randy. John felt that his current relationship with Randy was a good one, despite their tumultuous history.
John was struck with the idea that perhaps changing his relationship with Randy in the past could have some kind of an effect on his relationship with Nikki in the future. Perhaps Orton's friendship would prove to be an important piece of the puzzle. John considered the consequences, but found none. Turning Randy into a friend sooner rather than later gave no indication of a risk. It would be more beneficial than anything.
That is, if John could convince younger Randy to befriend him.
John tried to remember the moment that Randy nearly killed him. It was a confrontation in the parking lot outside of the arena. John was one of the last wrestlers to leave after the show, that night. Randy attacked him while John was getting into his rental car. Randy would later tell John that he was angry about something else, a fight he had with Triple H about taking too many painkillers.
Randy jumped John from behind and shoved him up against the rental car. John hit his head on the driver's side mirror and ended up with a concussion. The reason it nearly killed him was that John wasn't fully aware of the extent of his injuries. Randy took off and John had gone to a hotel and called Triple H to complain. It was Hunter who told him to see a doctor, and John was diagnosed just two hours, later. If John had gone to sleep like he planned to, he would've died.
It was an accident. John was still a newbie at that point and didn't take the extent of his injuries to Vince. Triple H must've said something anyway, because Randy was taken out of action for a couple of weeks. The official gossip was that Randy was out on injury. When Randy returned, he became even more withdrawn, seeking solace in his opiate addiction. Eventually, Randy would nearly kill himself from the effects of his addiction.
John decided that he had already begun to change the course of this day. When Randy confronted him just moments, earlier, John had reacted neutrally instead of aggressively. This was something Randy had not anticipated and it left him more confused than angry. John believed that all he had to do was stop Triple H from confronting Randy, which would in turn stop the attack from ever happening.
He remembered that Triple H usually hung out near the production trucks. This was because Stephanie spent a lot of time working with production.
The only thing John didn't know was exactly when Triple H confronted Randy. It was not like Hunter to argue out in the open. He would probably take Randy to an empty hallway or somewhere that wouldn't draw much attention if Randy reacted badly.
John was still considering his options when he heard voices coming from nearby.
The odds were slim that he would be in the same hallway where Hunter chose to take Randy, but the circumstances were already astronomically improbable. John wen to the door of the empty room and pressed his ear against the wood. He listened to make out the voices.
He distinctly heard Triple H say, "I know you don't wanna talk about this."
"Talk about what?" came Randy's more defensive tone.
John considered opening the door and stopping the conversation right then. He reached for the knob and started to turn it when he heard Triple H say, "You've got it bad for The Kid, I know."
This statement made John halt his movements. He was caught by a memory of his first years coming up in the business. Triple H used to call John The Kid. It was a nickname that John never liked, because he wasn't sure if Triple H meant it out of affection or disdain.
"You've got to stop this. You're all messed up inside over him. It's affecting your progress," Triple H continued.
John wasn't sure what to make of this. He had never heard this conversation for himself, but Randy had told him that it was a fight about his overuse of painkillers, so why was Triple H talking to Randy about John, instead?
"You've got to let him go. Get him out of your mind. If you have to face him, you do it in the ring," Triple H lectured Randy.
The reality of the conversation was slowly beginning to creep into John's awareness. Randy had lied to him. This was not about opiate abuse at all. This was about something much more addictive.
Triple H must've grabbed Randy because there was a loud THUD from the hallway, followed by Hunter stating darkly, "The Kid has a girlfriend! He's planning to marry her! He doesn't want you! He will never want you! Go find yourself a good girl, marry her and forget him!"
"But I love him-" Randy mumbled.
"You forget him! You forget him and you move on!" Triple H yelled.
Randy was quiet. A loud crashing sound came from the hallway. John didn't dare open the door. He listened to Triple H telling Randy more firmly, "He's your opponent; not your lover. You take those feelings and you bury them. You make a persona out of them. You use that pain to rise up the ranks and be the champ. That's how you'll succeed in this business. Deprive yourself of what you really want and you'll always have a reason to stay hungry."
John was completely frozen in place. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. All these years between them, and not once had Randy revealed his true feelings. Their matches were intense, yes. The fans liked to gossip about potential sexual tension, but John had always believed that it was he and Randy's opposite nature that made them attract so well.
There were footfalls headed away from the hallway. John listened a while until he was sure both men were gone. He slowly turned the knob and opened the door.
John peeked out into the hallway. He didn't see anyone. He stepped out and closed the door. John started back the way he came, thinking to himself that he should go to the locker room. There was a high probability that Randy was also headed there.
John looked up and stopped short.
Randy was standing in the hallway, looking right at him.