Punk headed back to the locker rooms with his bag on his back. He took his phone out of his pocket and clicked the main button so the screen lit up and he could check the time. It was still mildly early, and dealing with AJ hadn't taken out much time from his day, he was still on schedule for a midday run.
Pushing open the locker room door, Punk walked inside and stopped in the middle of the room, now turning to directly face the other man who was fumbling around inside his locker. As the door shut and broke the dead silence Corey turned around to see Punk standing, staring at him. Punk dropped his bag down by his feet and stood there, crossing his arms and revealing his huge biceps.
"Ah, just the man I wanted to see." Corey said, turning back to his locker to grab the bottle of water lying on the top shelf. "I hear you've been running into AJ, or should I say my girlfriend quite a lot."
Punk broadened his shoulders, chewing his gum and looked Corey up and down before answering. "Running into her? I don't think that's exactly it. After all, I'm not a woman beater." Punk spat. He had his own issues to raise with this miscreant.
Corey's eyes widened and he raised his eyebrows, fiddling with the bottled water in his hands. "Sorry what? I don't think I quite got what you said." He replied whilst turning his head a little and narrowing his eyes at Punk.
Punk took a deep breath and laughed a little. "Oh it's nothing really." He said quickly, looking all around the locker room then back at Corey. He gave him a disapproving glance. "AJ always did have a bad taste in men."
Corey looked at him, his mouth open a little. He huffed and blinked slowly. "I guess that's why she fucked around with you for a little bit then huh?" He added smartly, unscrewing the lid of his water and gulping some down to dampen his dry throat.
Punk nodded at him fairly. "Hm, I guess you could say that I'm definitely not everyone's choice." His words started quite soft. "But I'm certainly more of a man than you, and don't you ever forget I still look out for AJ, chump." He stated in a more serious and meaningful tone, glaring at Corey still.
Much to Punk's dismay, Corey began to laugh and turned around to his locker slamming the door shut. "Oh right, don't worry yourself big man she's fine with me, in fact she's probably better off with me. I mean what was the reason you two ended it? Oh I remember…the Championship right?" Corey said snarkily; he could see he was hitting a weak spot with Punk now. He took another sip of his water before continuing, "I know I'm going places in this company, but I'll always make sure that she's by my side." Corey smiled sarcastically at the end of his sentence.
Punk clenched his fists under his crossed arms and felt his anger building up inside of him but he stopped himself before it became too late. He ran his tongue along the inside of his bottom lip, fiddling with his lip ring. "Uhuh, okay you do that you pathetic little imbecile, but I swear to God if you do anything to hurt her and I find out, it won't just be your ego that will suffer, I'll make you beg me to stop the torment I'll inflict on you." Punk snapped.
Corey looked a little taken back, but he wouldn't let Punk's words faze him. "Ooh, I tell you…look…look at that." He said pointing to his arm, "You almost gave me goose bumps there Punk! Have you been rehearsing or?" Corey was suddenly cut off when Punk launched himself at AJ's abusive lover, pinning him up against the row of lockers and grabbing the collar of his t-shirt.
"You made me drop my water." Corey said sarcastically, despite his current position he didn't fail to get under Punk's skin.
Punk pushed his face right up in Corey's own personal space, and spoke harshly. "I'm warning you; don't make break you just like I've shattered everybody else. If you know what's good for you, you'll go on living your fucked up life out of my way and treat AJ how she deserves to be treated. See men like you; they don't last long in this company, or in my locker room, and when I've got a personal problem with someone I can only deal with them one way, beating the shit out of them. Don't say you weren't warned." Punk released his grip on Corey's tee and walked backwards over to his bag. "I'm warning you man, if she even looks unhappy I'll come and find you and make your life a living hell, and that's a promise." Punk gave Corey a sarcastic wave before he exited the locker room. As he stepped outside the door he checked his phone once more, right on schedule for his run.
He got outside the arena and began to make his way back to his bus so he could get ready properly for his time alone running around the city streets. A run was just what he needed to calm down right now, he was proud of himself for having enough self-control not to break Corey's face on the spot.
Now Corey was leaving the locker room himself still trying to absorb everything Punk had said, every last threat. However one word particularly stood out in his mind, 'woman beater'. Things still weren't very clear from the night he'd hit AJ, but he was rather concerned about how Punk had come to find out. He hadn't seen AJ properly since that night, and he wondered if she'd been meeting with Punk in secret.
He took his phone out of his pocket and held it in his hand for a moment, staring at the blank screen. Then with a huge sigh he swiped his finger across the screen to reveal a photo of him and AJ, it never failed to make him smile. It was a pretty old photo from his birthday about 6 months ago, not long before him and AJ had started dating seriously. She looked so beautiful, but most of all happy. It made him come to the ultimate realisation that he hadn't seen a smile on AJ's face since they bought the house in New Jersey.
Just a couple of weeks after they moved in, everything began to slip. Noticing her get up in the morning and drag her heavy body out from under the sheets. She'd sit at her dressing table and just stare at her reflection, before once again deciding she couldn't be bothered to make herself look human today. Corey often referred to her as his own 'friendly ghost' as she always looked so pale, now that he thought about it that nickname seemed to get on her nerves a lot. She'd often just sit on the couch and stare into space for seconds, even minutes. He'd get no recognition from her at all, and would lip read her words to find her muttering Punk's name in her daydreams, but she was never careless enough to let his name leave her lips in reality. She'd show no affection, just an empty body without a soul. Trying to confront her would result in a full blown argument. AJ would deny missing Punk, and would scream her affection at him rather than showing it, which became rather fake. "Of course I love you! Can't you see it? Don't you understand? Do you think I'd be here if I didnt!?" She'd scream, her voice cutting in and out with the pitch of her tone. Sometimes Corey wondered if she just stuck around because she couldn't bare being alone. Time and time again she'd dodge his kisses, and refuse to hold his hand, and the truth was it hurt Corey. It hurt him a lot. The bubbly cartoon like woman he'd fallen for several months ago was nowhere to be found, and he had been left with this replica made of her flesh and bones, but not her soul and never her personality. The fire in his heart would be re-oxygenized every time someone spoke about how happy she always seemed with Punk, or how they never thought she'd move on. This fire would burn away all his affection and leave him with the ash of hatred. He'd often force AJ into doing things with him to try and gain back those months of bliss, but he knew deep down in the pit of his wrecked heart that the romance was dead, and she was nothing but an emotionless zombie.
As Corey walked back to the hotel his anger was getting caught up inside of him, the thought of all the time he'd lost by wasting his energy and affection on a woman who was repulsed at the sight of him now. Although one side of his personality told him that he was still in love with her, and wanted to make things work, it just so happened Punk had demolished all of Corey's fragile hope, and now all he wanted was to hurt AJ like she'd been hurting him. To make her feel his pain would be the satisfaction he'd wanted to gain for months. Punk was throwing around empty threats, and if Corey showed AJ he was not to be messed with there was no chance she'd go back running to Punk, and if worst came to worst? He'd be the barricade stopping her from communicating. That's right; it was time to avenge his bottomless pit of jealousy.
Hope y'all enjoy this chapter! Things are getting serious, haha! I'm really looking forward to writing the upcoming chapters and I hope you are ready to read them!
If you want to let me know what you think, or just discuss the story with me or anyone, please review and let me know what you think! I can honestly say your reviews fuel me to write such amazing things so don't be shy! Thanks, have an amazing day :)