Ever Fallen in Love

Ever Fallen in Love

Author's Note:

Thank you all so much for the reviews!! I hope you keep them coming :)

Now, on with the story :) Enjoy!

Chapter Seven : The Boss's New Rules

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Jeff Hardy walked in the hotel's hallway, searching for his destination. He secretly hoped he wouldn't find it: even though he had to. It was already 12pm… which meant he only had four hours before his meeting with Vince and Maria. And of course, being a last-minute-doer kind of person, Jeff only waited until now to tell the Diva about their boss's big plans. He really dreaded this…

And I can't wait to see her reaction… Maybe she'll slap me this time…

"Hey Jeff!"

He turned around to find the source of the sweet voice. For a second he thought it would be Maria, who had maybe gone back to her bubbly self, but instead he found Kelly Kelly walking in his direction. She waved at him, and gave him a seductive smile.

"Hey Kelly." He said flatly, but not rudely. He didn't really care much about her. Sure she was pretty, but a little too shallow for Jeff's liking.

She winked at him, before heading to towards the elevators. Feeling rather relieved, Jeff continued on his search… which didn't last long because a few steps later, he found himself in front of Maria's hotel room.

"Here goes nothing." He took a deep breath, and knocked on her door.

Immediately footsteps from the other side could be heard. Before Jeff's "fears" of facing her could come back, the light brown door suddenly flew open. And there stood in front of him Maria Kanellis.

As he'd expected, she didn't look too pleased to see him at her doorstep. But she didn't look angry either... She simply seemed shocked. Her lips were slightly parted, and she blinked once. Yes, she was definitely shocked to see the Rainbow-Haired-Warrior standing in front of her.

"Hey Maria…" He said with a small smile, hoping to break the silence.

"Hi." She quickly replied, even though she still seemed surprised. After that, she went quiet again.

"Look, um… I know you're not too happy in seeing me here. But I just have something to tell you. It's really important…"

When he found that she was still in her stupefied state, that she hadn't moved a muscle, Jeff decided he push the subject a little further… hoping his luck wouldn't run out.

"Could I come inside? I promise, I'll be real quick…"

He wanted to add "then I'll be out of your hair for good", but he knew that would just be a lie… unfortunately.

After a few moments, Maria gently moved aside, giving Jeff just enough space to slip inside the room. Normally he would always take a few seconds to check out a Diva's surroundings, something that intrigued him very much. But in this case, he thought it was better to just face Maria and tell her what was going on.

"Ok, so here's what's going on… You're not gonna be too happy to hear it-"

"I wasn't expecting good news Jeff." She replied flatly. He didn't know if he should laugh or take her comment personally, so he instead decided to ignore it and continue talking.

"Right… So here's what happened. After we landed, I followed Edge to the bathrooms, to argue with him about what he did on the plane. So like I said… I got there, we did argue for a bit… And then, um… then we heard someone in the stall next to us, who had obviously overheard everything, and it was Mr. McMahon and-"

"WHAT?!"

At the mention of Vince's name, Maria snapped out of her stupor. She had just yelled her lungs out at the younger Hardy, out of complete shock and sudden dread.

Jeff unconsciously took a few steps back. Maria's loud, enraged yell at him had been unexpected, since he had just begun to feel a little more comfortable in her presence.

Maybe I am gonna get that slap on the face after all…

Maria tried to calm herself from her sudden outburst, and inhaling deeply.

"And what did Mr. McMahon say…?" She managed to ask in a slightly more relaxed tone.

"He, uh… He thought it was brilliant."

"Brilliant…?" She said, her voice sounding very edgy.

"Yeah, brilliant, and he wants to put us in a storyline together because of it."

Jeff prepared himself for her to snap again. But this time, it seemed like she was too shocked for words. Her jaw dropped, and she had regained her silent and surprised look. It was as if she had just seen a ghost. She was just standing there looking stupefied.

"Maria?" He asked hesitantly, hoping she wouldn't suddenly scream at him. But he didn't get anything: she didn't move, respond, or even blink this time. She just looked like an angry and statue with its mouth open.

"Ok, well, I'm gonna go now!" He pointed towards the door, and began to move in its direction. "And by the way, we gotta be in Vince's office at 4pm sharp, to talk through the storyline and stuff…" He had already made it to the other side of the door, but Maria still hadn't moved a muscle. "Ok? 4pm, don't forget!"

With that, he began walking towards the elevators. He then noticed that Maria's door was still wide open. Figuring out that the Diva had no intention of closing it, he turned on his steps and went back towards her hotel room. Maria was still in the same state he'd just left her in.

"4pm Maria… Very important." He whispered to her one last time, before slowly closing the door on her.

He made his way back to the elevators, and this time he didn't turn back. Now that Maria was more or less informed about their storyline, he felt a weight lifted from his shoulders.

Yeah… It definitely could have gone worse.

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At ten to four, Jeff had already seated himself on the couch in front of Mr. McMahon's office. He put on his earphones, and waited patiently for the meeting to take place. Suddenly, he started pondering on where Maria was. After all, he hadn't exactly made sure that she had registered the part about the meeting. She seemed to have completely zapped out after he mentioned their storyline.

Shit! What if she doesn't remember me talking about the meeting?! I'm gonna get killed…

Then, to his relief, he felt someone sit on the other end of the couch. Thankfully, it was Maria. She'd definitely snapped out of her state of pure shock, yet she didn't look happy whatsoever. She had a sullen look on her face.

Jeff opened his mouth to tell her something, anything, when the door to Vince's office opened in front of them.

"Ah! There you are! There's nothing I love more than Superstars on time!" Vince exclaimed, his voice as loud and boosting as ever. "Get in get in! We have business to do!"

He rushed Maria and Jeff in his office, looking as excited and hyper as ever. Age had definitely not taken its toll on Vince McMahon. He hurried to his leather chair in front of his desk, while the two Superstars took their place in the two chairs positioned in front of him. Maria shifted uncomfortably in her seat, while Jeff tugged on his red and brown hair.

"Ok! Now I suppose Jeff told you why we're here… How exciting is this!" Vince tapped happily on his desk, while Maria and Jeff forced smiles. "We're going to get to the details now. So listen up because they're very important! This romantic angle we're involving the two of you in is very important to me… See I've been wanting a new strong couple on the show for a while now! The type of couple that will go down in the books of history! Like John Cena and Torrie Wilson two years ago, my daughter Steph and Triple H, Randy the Savage and Elizabeth… All these romances made for some good TV time, and they're still talked about 'til this day! And I want to bring that element back with the two of you!"

Jeff nodded, even though he felt a small lump form in his throat. This storyline was definitely going to be more serious than he'd thought… maybe even one of the most important storylines of his career. At least that's what Vince made it sound like.

"So imagine how thrilled I was when I overheard Jeff and Adam talk about you're little flirt back in Toronto! I felt great! I knew at that moment that I had found my new pairing… Jeff Hardy and Maria Kanellis, two of the fan favorites… It all fell into place! Look, I can even see the chemistry between you now!"

Jeff and Maria laughed stiffly, only for the sake of their jubilant boss. Then they both secretly wondered what drug Mr. McMahon had been using.

"So as I said before, this storyline is going to be big. Not just the usual Diva walks Superstar to the ring and all that crap… No no, the crowd has to feel the love between you!" Vince smiled like a madman, while the two Superstars felt more and more apprehensive. "Now we're going to start out simple… And we're starting this week! What's going to happen is that a segment will take place between Maria and Umaga backstage. Umaga is going to try and "impress" Maria, but with no luck. Then later on in your match against Melina, the Samoan Bulldozer is going to come and try and attack you Maria, for not responding to his advances! And then you Jeff, being Umaga's opponent at Judgment day two weeks from now, well you're going to come and make the save!" Vince boomed, looking very proud with his plan for the upcoming Raw event. "And we'll take it from there… Any questions?"

Maria immediately jumped at the opportunity.

"Yeah, how long is this storyline going to last exactly…?"

"Hmm, well that hasn't really been determined yet. I can say for sure that it's going to be a bumpy ride between you two. Break ups, make ups, and all of that. I might even turn it into a love triangle some time, for the drama aspect… But that's still far ahead of us! One thing's for sure though: it's going to start with Maria and Jeff, and it's going to end with Maria and Jeff!"

Both Superstars nodded. They put on happy faces, once again only to please their boss.

"Ok, well if that's it, you two may go now! And I'll see you in a few days for Raw!" Vince stood up dynamically, as he walked Maria and Jeff towards the door. Before they stepped out, the Rainbow-Haired- Warrior remembered to ask one last crucial question.

"By the way Vince, are we gonna be sharing the same locker-room-"

"You most definitely are!" Mr. McMahon cut through his question. "And the same rental cars, the same hotel-rooms… Hell you'll be lucky if I don't make you share the same bed!" Vince laughed at his own remark, while Jeff and Maria looked horrified. "Basically, you two are going to be together the whole time! It'll only help for the storyline… See if you're close off-screen, you'll definitely look very close on-screen… And who knows, maybe by the end of this scripted romance, we'll have a real life romance!"

Vince winked at both his Superstars, before stepping back in his office and closing the door. They stood there looking completely flabbergasted. How had they gotten themselves into such a situation?

Maria's sullen and sad look swooped back on her face the moment Mr. McMahon was out of sight. She looked down at the floor, while Jeff stood by her side feeling awkward. He somehow knew that she was thinking about CM Punk, and he couldn't help but feel bad for her.

And so out of the kindness of his heart, even though he didn't particularly like her at the moment, Jeff thought he'd try to cheer her up.

"Hey, I know this sucks… But it could have been worse right?" Jeff said softly, and seeing as she still had her eyes set on the ground, he pressed the subject further. "I mean, you could have been stuck with… let's see, Snitsky! That would have been horrible. At least I don't smell."

After saying that last sentence, Jeff had the urge to kick himself. Who in their right mind would tell a girl that they didn't smell?! He felt completely stupid, and when Maria looked up at him, he expected her to make fun of him for that last remark. Instead, she offered him a small, simple nod. Jeff considered that a good sign, and so he smiled at her as she walked away. He then walked in the opposite direction, hoping to go back to his hotel room and organize a poker or something with Matt, John and the other men. This was after all the last night he'd have his own hotel room, and he thought he'd make the best manly time out of it.

I don't smell… Jeff you are definitely off your game.

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There you go, chapter 7! It's longer than usual, so I hope you all enjoyed it!

By the way, in case it's not clear, the little sentences in italic refer to Jeff's thoughts, and in some chapters they will be Maria's thoughts… And the bubbly Diva will be in the center of the next chapter!

Maria goes to see CM Punk… Will it go as she expects?

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