Thanks so much for the reviews on last chapter, I'm really glad that you are enjoying this and hopefully, you will as well enjoy this one xD
When he first heard his phone ringing he didn't think much about it; his phone was ringing all the time and they were always calls he didn't want to take. Oh, and he was also kind of busy…
Actually, he wasn't busy at all; he was stuck in an airport, eating while waiting for his delayed flight to Chicago to leave. Apparently, over the years his adventurous airport misfortunes didn't seem to end and once again he was trapped in one of those situations he hated so much.
So as his phone kept ringing, the tattooed man swallowed down his food, put the rest of his taco down on the plate and only when he took a sip of his diet Pepsi to chase down the taco he decided to fish into his pocket to get the phone out.
Again, when he took a look at the incoming call he didn't think much about it, the number wasn't registered in his phone and he had no idea who did it belong to. Nonetheless he took the call, bringing the devise up to his ear.
"What?" He barked to whoever interrupted his meal; if this person wasn't on his contact list then he was in all his right to be rude.
"So I see you haven't changed, sweet as always"
Phil smirked when he recognized the voice. "Wow… just when I was starting to think you were never going to call"
In fact, after the first week passed by Phil gave up all hopes of getting that call… not that he had set his hopes too high, he and Jeff were a bit too complicated and after some consideration he decided it was for the best that he didn't call.
What were they going to talk about anyway? He wasn't much into phone conversations, let alone with Jeff Hardy.
But it wasn't like he didn't want to see the so called Charismatic Enigma because he really did; he was just waiting for the opportunity to present itself… like now, who knew what could come out of this little call.
"Funny, I was starting to believe you were never going to pick up"
Phil shrugged even though the other man couldn't see him, then he pushed the plate with the unfinished food aside and focused all his attention in the conversation. "I was busy"
"Oh ok, do you want me to call later…?"
"Nah… I'm just waiting for my flight back home; they say there is a nasty storm hitting Chicago and until that clears I'll be here doing the usual… eating, making several trips to Starbucks, more waiting, some walking, eating some more"
Jeff chuckled, the sound muffled by the receiver but still clear enough for Phil to pick up. "Sounds like fun but I can't say that I envy you"
"What can I say? Some things never change and airports will always blow, you just have to love times like this"
"I think that sucks; here in North Carolina we have great weather, you know?" Jeff said and Phil could picture him at the other side, phone glued to his ear and a soft smile on his face.
"Why, are you inviting me over?" He replied back with a frown, not really sure if that was what Jeff was really implying.
"Just saying… but if you happen to come this way I could burrow you a razor"
Phil laughed, running his fingers through his beard. "Thanks, but I'm pretty sure I have one… somewhere in my bag"
"Then use it, you look like a bum… something the cat dragged in"
Phil snorted, running his tongue across his bottom lip. "Kiss my ass Hardy; I've never heard you complain about this bum fucking you silly"
He heard Jeff chuckling again and he rested his back against the back of the chair, listening. "I don't know Punk, maybe I'll be doing more than kissing that ass next time I see you"
At that Phil guffawed, changing the phone to his other ear before going on. "In your dreams pretty boy"
"Ha, and who says I didn't already… did you know that you sleep like a dead man?"
Phil arched an eyebrow and took one last sip of his soda. "Don't push it Hardy or I'll give you an ass kicking you will never forget"
"We'll see about that… but anyway, I gotta go now, you know, I have some stuff to do in this place…"
"Yeah, ok" Phil said, biting his lower lip as he held the phone to his ear.
"Yeah, well I'll talk to you later" With that the older man cut the conversation and hung up.
Phil hung up as well, putting the cell phone back into his pocket as he got up from his chair. Once up to his feet he gathered his food tray and his suitcase and walked to the nearest trash can; there he threw away his uneaten food and kept walking.
He hadn't been expecting a call from Jeff but he could say that it went well, a bit awkward but not too bad… for a moment he even thought the older man was inviting him over to North Carolina… at least that's what it sounded to him.
But it was just a passing comment and he didn't dwell on it, then the conversation was done and the subject dropped.
Could that be the real reason Jeff called? Could it be that he wanted to meet him? If so why didn't he clearly said so?
It wasn't as if he had plans for the weekend; he had the following days off and not much to do other than being homely… and since his flight to Chicago was delayed…
He walked to his terminal and towards the lady behind the counter, since there was no one waiting in line he took the liberty to walk right through. "Is the flight to Chicago still on hold?"
The lady gave him a look that told him a million words; it was a look he was way too familiar with because it was the same he got at every arena around the world. She didn't like him and she clearly had no problems in letting him know.
Big fucking deal, he didn't like her either…
"That flight was cancelled, as it clearly says there" With a stern look on her face, she pointed somewhere behind him, he just didn't bother to look.
"What? Are you fucking kidding me?" He complained while thoughts of getting stuck in that airport forever invaded his mind.
But instead of exploding in anger, he took a deep breath and took off his cap for lack of something else to grind. "Ok, so when is the next flight to Chicago leaving" He asked trying to keep his calm, he didn't want to come off as completely uncivilized…
"There is no upcoming flight to Chicago, sir. There is a snow storm and until we have clear weather conditions no flight is scheduled to that destination. Anything else, sir?"
Phil sucked into his mouth his lip ring and stared intently at the bitch behind the counter. Her crappy attitude plus the fact that his flight was cancelled was starting to piss him and he could very easily take his frustration on her… hell, he was going to do it!
But when he was about to tell her a thing or two his resolution hit him… if he believed in crap like that he would even say it was destiny working in his favor.
"Yes, when will your next flight to North Carolina leave?"
The woman sighed and started typing in her computer; after a while she gave him another one of her annoyed looks and spoke up. "We have one for 11:15 am and…"
"Great; I'll take that one… Mam"
~*~*~*~*~*~
So this made it twice the times Phil found himself in North Carolina in the past few months; the first time he made it to Matt's house because everybody knew where Matt lived, but this time he did some questioning around and found his way to Jeff's.
He only hoped that said man was in his house because if not he would have to drive away and either find a hotel room or drive all the way to Chicago… he just didn't want to wait out there and look completely desperate.
But then again, he could right on the spot say that changing your flight to see a person screamed desperate to him, even stalkerish!
Yeah whatever… it was either that or taking temporary residence at the airport.
Trying not to think too much of it, he took his phone out of his pocket and dialed the number Jeff called earlier, it took about three rings for the other man to pick up.
"Miss me much?" The other man said in good humor at the other side.
Phil smiled, once again picturing Jeff talking to him. "Jeff, you lied to me; you said North Carolina was having great weather and I can see some shitty rain coming, there's some nasty fog too"
After saying that Phil waited in silence because Jeff didn't respond to him… for a second he even thought he has been hung upon.
"And how would you know that?"
"Well, for starters, it says so on my phone, second… I'm freezing my ass out here…" Making him turn his attention to the house, Phil saw the door opening and out came Hardy…
He was just standing there, still holding the phone to his ear and staring back at him… his expression hard to read. He didn't look pissed or angry at his unexpected visit, he just seemed… surprised?
"Hey" Phil said tentatively, realizing that he was speaking through the phone even when Jeff was standing a few feet away from him; he hung up.
Jeff did the same, shaking his head as he smiled. "Well, weren't you freezing?" He motioned Phil to come in, standing his ground as he watched.
On his part, Phil stared at the multicolored haired man for a while, then he took a deep breath and walked towards the house. The walk felt eternal, it was like he was stepping into the unknown and having no turning back.
He was walking into Jeff's world…
"That thing" Jeff said reaching for Phil's face when he was close enough, he then proceeded to close the door to the outside world. "So I guess you did miss me much"
Phil shrugged. "I was driven by the desperation in your voice for me to come over, it wasn't letting me sleep well in my corner in the floor, so…"
Before Phil could finish, Jeff took the dreadful step that kept them apart and kissed him, his fingers once again running along his beard.
Phil responded without problem, a deep black cloud in his mind content that he was cut off from his rambling… and of course, there was no better way to be forced to shut up than this.
So he kissed him back, allowing his hand to slide to the side of Jeff; a tentative touch that seemed to encourage the other man because as soon as the contact was made the kiss went deeper and Jeff pressed even more into him.
Then, still tightly pressed against the younger man, Jeff broke the kiss and smiled. "Admit it, you did miss me"
Phil rolled his eyes. "Anyway, did I interrupt anything?" he asked, his eyes drinking on the sigh before him.
Jeff shook his head. "I was just painting some stuff…"
"Really?"
"Yeah I'll finish later"
"No, I mean, go and finish… don't let me keep you away from your stuff"
Jeff pouted and gave Phil a light kiss on the lips. "Wanna come and see?"
Shrugging, Phil smiled awkwardly, being in Jeff's house made him feel way out of place… other than bickering at each other or giving completely into the pleasures of the flesh, he didn't know how to interact with him. "Sure, why not"
"Cool, let's go" With that Jeff turned around and walked away, giving Phil no other choice than to follow.
They walked through the house until reaching the door to the basement, once there they went down stairs and voila, they were now in what resembled Jeff's art studio.
There were paintings all over the place, most of them colorful abstract faces… kind of reminded him of the way Jeff painted his face when going to the ring; it always annoyed him because he ended up with paint all over.
"You did all this?" He asked, taking a look around as Jeff knelt before an unfinished piece. It was upside down and he seemed to be giving the last touches to it.
"Yes, I lost so many when my house burnt down that I felt like I needed to start over…" He said dreamily, concentrating on his work.
"They are nice…" He said, meaning it… they weren't the conventional painting he was used to see around, but Jeff wasn't a conventional man.
"Thanks" Jeff said with a grin. "What me to tell you a little secret?"
Now it was Phil's time to grin, he arched an eyebrow and looked at Jeff. "What?"
Jeff went on with his painting and just when he seemed to be finished he turned around and smiled. "I painted one of you"
"Now really? Don't tell me it's this one" He said pointing to a demon looking face that was hanging on the side of the wall.
"No… that's someone else, yours is not here"
"So where is it?" He responded, now he was really intrigued about it.
"You know, it's not that good… it's not like a painting of you or anything, just the concept I have in my mind of you"
"I still want to see it, come on why would you tell me if you are not going to show it to me?" Did he make it before or after they started their little affair? Was is a dark picture, was that the way Jeff pictured him?
Jeff ran his fingers through his hair, his lips pulled in an uncomfortable grin.
Phil reached for him and pulled him closer. "Don't make me beg, I hate that"
The older man rolled his eyes and hissed. "Ok, ok… it's upstairs"
Phil smiled and just when he was about to lean into him for another kiss he heard some noise upstairs. Whatever or whoever it was coming downstairs…
He looked at Jeff; he was staring at the stairs intently, biting on his lips expectantly. That's when he knew things were about to turn ugly… he let go of Jeff and looked at the entrance as well.
"Jeff, it's raining like crazy and we are going to film ano…"
Fuck… just as he heard the voice he knew he was screwed, he knew he shouldn't have come here. There was no mistaking that voice… and the look on his face as he finally made it to the basement told him there was no easy way out of this.
"What the fuck is this?" He screamed/asked as his face started to turn a deep, unhealthy red.
Phil looked away, pursing his lips as Jeff remained in front of him.
"Jeff, what the fuck is he doing here?" He screamed again, his voice getting nearer as he approached them.
"I invited him" Jeff replied, his usually laid back tone getting serious, yet calm.
Meanwhile, Phil was wishing to be everywhere but there… and not because he feared the oldest Hardy but because the situation was uncomfortable and he was the one causing it…
Matt walked to them, staring at Phil with maniac anger; he could even see a vein menacing to explode on his forehead.
"You invited him?" He asked, his eyes burning a hole through him. "Why the fuck did you invited him here Jeff? Are you out of your fucking mind?"
"You know, I think I better go…" Phil said, trying to be reasonable.
"Yes, get the hell out of here you stupid motherfucker!"
"No, he's not leaving Matt, if you don't want to see him here then you should be the one leaving" Jeff said, reaching for Phil's hand to grab it in his own…
And holy mother of God… he has never seen so much anger in one person. He saw as Matt's eyes went to Jeff, then to Phil and then to the way their hands were linked, he repeated the motion until it clicked in his head.
"Oh My God!" Matt turned around, his hands flying to his head as he took a few steps ahead; when the wall stopped him from going further he turned around and faced them once again. "Jeff, please tell me you are kidding…"
Jeff didn't respond and Phil was too busy going through some kind of realization. If Matt knew about them that made it official, he was fucking another man and now somebody knew about it…
"Oh Jeff, I can't believe it! How could you? After everything this piece of shit did to you!"
"Hey…" Phil started to say but Jeff's squeezed his hand, silently begging him to keep his mouth shut.
"This is my life for me to do as I want, and like I told you Matt, if you don't like it you know what to do"
Matt let out an insane laugh. "You are telling me to leave? For this… man? What the fuck is wrong with you? Don't you see he is playing with you, that he's doing this to screw you over and over again until there is nothing left of you? And then what Jeff? Who will you come running to, uh?"
"I'll leave…" Phil said again, this was a family matter better resolved without him, he was more than familiar with brotherly disputes and he knew how ugly they could get.
"See, he already wants out! Leave Punk, get out because you have no business here"
"I said that he's staying" Jeff told his brother and turned around to Phil. "Just give me a minute ok?"
Before Phil could respond that it was better for him to leave, Matt walked to him, grabbed him by the edge of his shirt and pushed him back.
"Go ahead, leave!"
Phil didn't have much patience; everyone knew it and Matt should have expected him to respond when he shoved him. He already waited too long to act on his impulses…
So already feed up with his bullshit, Phil retaliated, pushing the older man back only to have Matt throw him a punch… soon after they were brawling in front of Jeff.
"Stop it!" Jeff screamed, trying to pull them apart.
"Get out of this Jeff" Matt said giving him a glance, Jeff took the opportunity to grab Phil and shove him to the side, he stumbled and almost knocked down Jeff's newest painting, almost…
Then Jeff got in Matt's face and pushed him, shocking the hell out of his big brother. "That's enough Matt"
But the one that had enough was Phil, his breath still ragged from the little fist exchange and his hair all disheveled, he turned around and walked straight out of the room.
"Phil…" Jeff called but he ignored him. If he knew this was going to happen he would have stayed at the airport, hell he should have walked all the way to Chicago!
"Let him leave, he was going to do it sooner or later…"
Phil ignored Matt as well, if he didn't he was very likely to turn around and beat the shit out of him… but instead he wanted to leave, calm down and then see what he was going to do.
So he walked out of the house, stepped into the freezing rain and walked to his car. Once besides it he felt someone grab him from behind and he quickly turned around, ready to give more fight to that little piece of crap…
"Phil… just give me a minute, I'll send him out"
Phil sighed, watching Matt appear on the door while calling Jeff. "It's better if I leave… I shouldn't have come here in the first place"
"Please… just a minute"
"Let him leave, good riddance!" Matt yelled from the distance, he was safely standing under the door frame while Phil and Jeff got soaked to the bone.
Phil shook his head, he couldn't stay, if he did Matt was going to keep around and they would end killing each other… that's not what he came to North Carolina for. "I can't"
Jeff's face fell, the combination of Matt yelling that he should have expected him to leave and Phil's refusal to stay tainting his spirits…
"I'm sorry…" Phil said, hating the look on Jeff's face because this was all his fault. It was his fault that his brother was giving them hell, it was his fault this whole thing even started…
Jeff looked up at him, blinking the rain out of his eyes. "Then let me come with you"
Phil wiped at his face, surprised that Jeff would suggest such a thing. "Are you serious?"
Jeff didn't respond, he just walked to the passenger door, opened it and climbed in… and just as he did so Matt started walking into the rain and towards them.
"Jeff, get the fuck out of that car!"
Phil took that as his cue to climb in as well, closing the door and starting the engine… before Matt could reach the car he was already on the move; they were on the move…
TBC
