"You have to admit, dude, that felt so good."

Jay laughed as he threw back his head to down some more of his beer. "Yeah, it did feel good," he admitted. Even if Trish hadn't been there to see him wrestle his very first match, it still felt good to be out there. The adrenaline was like nothing he'd ever experienced before. Though the crowd hadn't been large, it felt like there were thousands of eyes just on him, relying on him to entertain them and he liked to think he'd done a decent enough job. There'd been a few botched spots, but Chris had told him that was to be expected in his first match, nerves and all that.

"We rocked out there," Adam said, ignoring the fact there were a couple times where they were not so rocking.

"You guys were good," Stephanie said, nodding as Chris draped his arm around her neck proudly. He loved the fact that he had a girlfriend who could assess a match. "But don't get content with good, if you want to make it anywhere, you're going to have to be great."

"Words to live by," Chris said, "the minute you start thinking, hey, I'm great, I have no room for improvement is the day that you don't get any better and then you get stagnant and nobody is going to want you and you're not going to be pushed at all."

"Duly noted," Jay said. "I know there was room for improvement though, it was just our first match. It felt good to get paid though, I know that it's not going to be totally steady work, but the money is going to help."

"The money issue is going to be a big thing," Chris told them. "You're going to run into guys that aren't going to pay you or try to low-ball you. That's one of the roughest things about the business, the money. You've got guys who are just out to scam you and you have to be careful with who you trust."

"Okay, so you say this, yet you have a standing offer with Vince McMahon," Adam said, "dude, what the hell is up with that? I mean, you've got the god of wrestling at your door and you're not taking the work. I would literally jump at the chance to work for Vince and the WWF."

"I don't feel like I'm ready," Chris shrugged. "I want to feel like I'm ready and I'm not yet, I know that. Besides, I've got stuff booked for a while and I can't right now and when I get there, I'll get there."

Stephanie tried to hold in her eye-roll, but it was difficult. She would never understand why her boyfriend wouldn't take the opportunity that so many others were drooling over. She wouldn't get in the way though because that wasn't her style. If Chris didn't want the opportunity, she would let him make his own decisions. That didn't deter her from wanting to interfere on Jay's behalf. She couldn't help it. Here was this guy, all of 20 years old and he had a wife and a daughter and was going to be struggling for a while. She knew the journeys weren't easy and she knew that there were other cases similar to Jay's, but he was her friend and she wanted to help.

"You're so fucking lucky and you don't even know it," Adam said, then turned his head and saw some ladies looking over at their table. "Oh man, look at those rad-looking girls over there checking me out, yeah, I know that you want me, ladies."

"You're a pervert, you do know that, right?" Stephanie told him.

"You're just mad that you stuck with that guy so you can't have me," Adam told her with a wink. "Now if you'll excuse me, it's time to actually use this wrestling thing to get boned tonight, see you suckers later."

"Bye," Stephanie said with a wave. "God, I worry about him. He's going to get himself in trouble if he's not careful."

"He'll find out soon enough how gross rats are," Chris said, snuggling Stephanie against him. "That's why I'm so glad I've got you."

"Yeah, that's the only reason," Stephanie told him, kissing his cheek. "So Jay, how do you really feel after your first match? How did it feel going out there?"

"It was…incredible," he grinned. "I can't even describe the feeling because it was so surreal. It was like everything I'd ever thought it was going to be, but more. It didn't even matter that the crowd wasn't big, it felt like I was a god or something. I know that's weird to say, but that's how I felt. I couldn't help it though, it was just so crazy out there. I hope I didn't look like a new guy though."

"Well, of course you did," Chris said, "nobody knew who you were, but I think you guys did a good job getting the crowd into it. They were really getting into the false finish thing at the end. That's what you want to do, you want to tell a story. Good wrestlers are able to tell stories through their wrestling, get the crowd wanting more of it and for your first match, I think you both did a great job."

"Thanks, Chris, you have no idea how much that means to hear that. I know that you're not much older, but hearing it from someone who is actually in the wrestling business is different than hearing it from I don't know, Joe Blow off the street."

"I understand," Chris told him. "So did you see…"

"No," Jay interrupted with a shrug that he meant to look casual, but he was anything but. The mere mention of Trish caused him to tense up a little and it was noticeable to the other two people at the table. "I didn't see her and I would hope if she came she'd tell me."

"What if she didn't though?" Stephanie said, hoping to cheer him up. "I mean, you know, Chris said she was against the whole wrestling thing so maybe she came, but wouldn't tell you to try and save face."

"She's not like that," Jay told them. "She's very headstrong. She does what she wants, you know and if she was going to come, she'd tell me, let me know, I hope she would. I really wanted her to be there though. As much fun as it was, having her there with me would have been a million times better."

"Maybe she'll come to another match of yours," Stephanie said and Chris nodded along. "You've just got to keep inviting her. The more experience you get, the more work you're going to get. She's worried about money, right?"

"Among other things. I think she just wants stability and can I really blame her for wanting that?" he wondered. "I mean, we've never exactly done things…the right way. I've loved her for a really long time though and I just can't imagine the rest of my life without her ad I know I'm only 20, but it's just…I've loved her for so long."

Stephanie squeezed Chris's hand under the table, "I get what you mean. You know you love her, but you know she wants something that you can't exactly give her right now."

"Yeah, it's like that. And even if I do get to the big times," he said, "I'm not sure she'd want that. I know I wouldn't be there for her."

"You shouldn't give up your dream though," Chris told him. "If this is your dream then it's your dream and you have to at least try for it, don't you think?"

"See, normally, I think I would think that," Jay said, "but I've got a family. It's so much more to think about and I don't know, maybe I'm being selfish like Trish thinks I am. I'm trying not to be, I like to think I'm doing this all for a purpose, that purpose being the financial security for my wife and daughter, but she sees it as this pipe dream that won't provide for Sophie."

Stephanie looked at Chris and nudged him in the shoulder, looking at him imploringly. All she had to do was mention who her father was and she could help Jay with that stability he so desperately sought. Chris shook his head no and she widened her eyes, asking him again and he again shook his head. He didn't see Jay as one of the guys to take a handout for one, but he knew that Vince would see him as nothing more than a green jobber right now. Jay needed the experience before going to the WWF.

Later that evening, Stephanie walked into the bedroom where Chris was lounging on his bed. "Okay, so I know you didn't want me to do anything and I didn't call my dad or anything, but I did call his office…"

"Stephanie McMahon, what did you do?" Chris asked. "Stop trying to dictate Jay's life. He's not going to be good for the company right now. You know how your dad is with guys that aren't the usual type that he loves."

"But look at Shawn and Bret, they're not the type," Stephanie pointed out, "and they're doing well."

"Shawn has the most charisma of any wrestler since…well, forever," Chris told her, "and Bret is probably the best wrestler to ever come out of Canada, myself included. Both of those guys have worked and earned their spot."

"Okay, okay, I get it, anyways, I called in a couple favors," Stephanie said and she thrust a piece of paper at Chris. "I was able to get Trish's schedule at school and I was thinking since you're both…there, you might seek her out and talk to her."

"You're a piece of work, McMahon, you know that," Chris said, shoving her hand away. "I'm not going to talk to her, okay? This is their business and while I think it's sweet of you to actually care about what happens to them, this is their marriage, not ours. If she doesn't support him, she doesn't support him."

"But what if you were married and your wife didn't support you?"

"Moot point because I'm not married and when we get married, you already support me. We just have to let them work things out for themselves and if they don't, they don't. We don't even know Trish, only what Jay has told us about her. She might have some valid points and what am I going to do, force myself on her and tell her that she has to accept that her husband is wrestling?"

"Just tell her that it is a viable option for a career."

"I'm not doing it," Chris told her, "you're out of your mind if you think I'm going to go up to a woman I don't know and start telling her what to do."

"Fine!" Stephanie said, crumpling up the paper and throwing it to the ground. "We just won't do anything for our friends ever!"

Jay opened the door and saw Trish and Sofia and was surprised. "Hey, Trish, I thought Melissa was going to drop off Sophie today."

"She has a cold so it's actually really good that you're taking Sofia for a couple days so she doesn't get sick," Trish said and Jay gently rubbed his daughter's back, who was asleep in her mother's arms. "She fell asleep on the ride over, you know how she gets in cars, always falls asleep."

"Here, let me take her," Jay said, taking his daughter into his arms and then taking her into her nursery and laying her down in her crib. He'd have to buy her a bed pretty soon as she was outgrowing the crib. Luckily he'd gotten paid for the wrestling and paid pretty well if he did say so himself. He walked out into the living area again and saw Trish putting dishes away. He always forgot to do that. "You don't have to do that."

"It's okay," Trish said, "thought I'd help out."

"I really hoped you'd come to my first wrestling gig," Jay told her quietly. "I kept looking for you, hoping that you would show up."

"You know that's not my thing," she told him, but didn't face him. She'd come to every show he had over that three night span. She still didn't understand his motivation for all this, didn't get why this was his dream of all things, but she couldn't just ignore it and not support him, even in her own little way. She didn't know why she wanted to keep it a secret, but she just felt like she needed to keep it to herself. She didn't want to give him false hope that she'd ever be okay with this because she wasn't.

"I know, but it would have been nice to have people there," he said, looking down. "My mom actually came to one of the shows."

"That's nice of her."

"She supports me."

Trish turned to him, "Jay, I've told you my feelings on the entire thing, I can't help them. I can't help that the life I want is so far removed from the life I have. I'm not blaming you for any of this…I just can't handle it all right now. I knew that getting married so young would have all these…whatevers, responsibilities, but when you're trying to deal with a husband who wants to become a professional wrestler, it's like I've got to throw it all out the window."

"I got paid really well for the show," he told her, trying to show her what he could do.

"And will you every time you have one of these shows?"

"Not really…"

"And the traveling, where are you going next, huh?"

"Well, you know I was thinking about Mexico."

"Yeah, Mexico, see, a whole country in between the two of us," she shook her head. "I'm proud of you, Jay, you know this, but I can't see how this is good for us. All it seems to be is good for you and I can't handle that."

"I'm just asking you for a little support," he told her, "that's all, I don't think it's too much to ask that my wife give me a small amount of support. All these other guys-"

"I don't care about other guys, I care about you and Sophie, that's it and I'm doing what I have to, to make sure Sophie gets everything, please do the same," Trish said. "I've got to go."

"Trish, we're not done here!" he yelled at her as she grabbed her keys and walked towards the door.

"Oh yes, we are."

The finality of her words sent a chill down his spine.