Ever Fallen in Love
Author's Note:
Thank you all so much for the reviews!! They mean so much!
I hope you keep them coming :)
By the way, even though Torrie and Trish Stratus are sadly not part of the WWE anymore, they're still considered as Divas in this story,
Enjoy!
Chapter Eleven : Party People
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"Matt! You cheated!"
The older Hardy brother replied by pressing L1 on his remote stick, which lead to the virtual Matt Hardy on the screen applying a Twist of Fate on the virtual Jeff Hardy. The referee went for the three-count, and once again Matt kicked his brother's ass on the Smackdown vs. Raw 2008 PS3 game.
"You were saying?"
"Man I know you cheat! It's not possible you win every time!" Jeff let out an exasperated sigh, and threw his controller on the bed. If there was one thing the Rainbow-Haired-Warrior couldn't stand, it was losing… even with video games.
"Jeff, its okay baby brother…" Matt said in a mock-soothing voice, knowing it would infuriate the younger Hardy. "You can't be good in everything you do. It's okay that you can't beat me, it's perfectly natural."
"Perfectly natural my ass! We're playing again!"
"Jeff, we've been playing for three hours! Just face it: I'm just better than you with video games."
"Oh we'll see about that…" Jeff replied, with a determined look on his face.
A few seconds after their "match" had started again, the hotel-room's door flew open and in walked Maria, followed by her best friend Mickie James. They both had about seven shopping bags in their hands, and greeted the Hardy Boyz with huge smiles.
"Hey guys!"
"Hey." They both replied in robotic voices, as they were fully concentrated on the TV screen.
"I love how Jeff always ignores me when he's playing that stupid game."
At the mention of stupid, Jeff pressed on the pause button and finally looked up at Maria.
"You're only saying that 'cause you're not in the game…"
Maria rolled her eyes playfully.
"Even without being in the game, I kick your ass every time we play it."
Matt gave his brother an incredulous look, and violently smacked him over the head.
"You even get beat by a girl?! Shame on you!"
They all laughed… all except for Jeff, whose ego had once again been squished by Maria.
"I'm going to go try on the dress for tonight!" She said happily, as she walked off towards the bathroom. "Good luck with the game Jeff: you really need it!"
He answered her with a sarcastic smile, as she closed the door to get changed. Mickie went and sat between the brothers, and started begging for a controller.
"Can I please play?! I'm very good!"
"Yeah, you can take Matt's stick and-"
"What? You want another Diva to beat you up in a PS3 match? I don't think so. The Hardy name doesn't need to suffer any more 'cause of you."
Jeff went to hit his brother's shoulder, when the Woman's Champion violently grabbed his hair and pulled him back.
"Enough you two! You're acting like kids… big, hairy kids with long hair!" Mickie practically yelled at them as both Jeff and Matt looked at her as if she were an extraterrestrial. "Now give me that remote stick!"
Just as Jeff fearfully handed Mickie what she wanted, Maria opened the bathroom door and stepped out. She had slipped on her new dress for their party this evening. It gracefully hugged her body, reached her knees and fit perfectly around her chest: a sexy, sparkling and night blue colored dress… a beautiful sight to see. And Maria in it made it look breath-taking.
"So what do you think…?"
"WOW! You look gorgeous!!" Mickie exclaimed, as Matt nodded his head enthusiastically.
But no one found her more beautiful than Jeff did. He thought he'd never seen a woman as perfect and flawless in his entire life… And he knew it wasn't just because of the dress. That was only an accessory that added to her natural charm. His heart even skipped a beat. But on the outside, he looked completely indifferent. It wasn't in Jeff's nature to keep his thoughts to himself: he was usually a very expressive person. But something held him back at that moment. He didn't know why, but he felt couldn't bring himself to let Maria know how stunning she was to him.
"You look nice." He simply said, and pressed on the play button to continue his virtual PS3 match. "Good choice."
A small, almost invisible frown crossed Maria's face. She couldn't help but feel upset by his reaction. She'd looked forward to showing off her new outfit; and to Jeff more than anyone else. For some reason, she'd secretly hoped that he'd love it.
I guess not…
Only Mickie noticed the subtle look of disappointment on her friend's face. Jeff would have noticed it too, if he wasn't so focalized on the TV screen. But Maria didn't want any sort of awkwardness in the room. In a blink of an eye, she made herself look like the fun and ever-so-optimistic Maria that everyone was used to.
After all, Jeff wasn't the only one who could keep his feelings to himself.
"Ok, well I'm going to take a shower!" She said in the best cheerful voice she could muster. "And when I come out, you should all start getting ready. The party's in a few hours… and I know Jeff needs more time than that to get his hair and nail polish ready!"
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By the time Jeff did get ready, it was already quarter to midnight. He needed some extra time to tie his hair back, and make it look neat and classy. After all, Vince had organized a night-out for his WWE Superstars at one of the hottest and trendiest clubs in Kansas City, where their latest Raw event would take place. It was only at times like these that Jeff really made an effort to look more "elegant", what with his multi-colored hair and all that.
When Jeff, Maria, Mickie and Matt arrived at the club, they were immediately taken to the V.I.P circle, where the party was already in full-swing mode. Only WWE Superstars had access to the private corner. It consisted of four big tables with an astronomical amount of alcohol to consume… which was going down pretty fast by the time the Hardy's and the two Divas reached the V.I.P section. They were seated in the table along with John Cena, Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, Shawn Michaels, Torrie Wilson, Chris Jericho, Trish Stratus, Dave Batista, Randy Orton and his wife, the former WWE Diva Stacy Keibler, and… to Jeff's big surprise, the Undertaker. The Phenom immediately spotted the Rainbow-Haired-Warrior, and gave him the same icy-cold stare he'd given him at the Candy Shop of the Airport. A little surprised, Jeff quickly put the bizarre Undetaker at the back of his mind and focused on Maria. They'd both acted slightly distant with each other since she'd showed them her dress, and that was starting to bug him. He knew what if felt like to be on Maria's bad side, and he really didn't want to go there again. But more than anything, he didn't want to see her upset.
Just as they were passing between the large tables to make it to their own, Jeff slipped his hand on Maria's waist. He leaned towards her ear and spoke loud enough to be heard above the music.
"You look amazing tonight Maria."
She looked him straight in the eyes, and he could tell that his compliment had happily surprised her. And indeed it had: Maria thought that Jeff didn't care less about the way she looked that night, so to hear him say that she looked "amazing" really lifted her spirits up. She offered him a huge smile.
But their small moment was interrupted when Maria spotted CM Punk. He was standing at the table opposite her, along with some of the ECW Superstars. But unlike the Extremists, who were dancing and drinking and enjoying themselves, CM Punk was just standing there, glaring at Maria. She could tell, even through the darkness of the club, that he still hadn't forgotten how much she'd hurt him. She immediately pulled away from Jeff, and went to sit next to Torrie and Stacy, without looking at the younger Hardy or at the Straight-Edge Superstar.
Jeff went to stand with the men, feeling a little confused at what had just happened. One second she was beaming and smiling at him, and the next she was literally running away.
"Hi Jeff!" He was pulled out of his thoughts when Kelly Kelly rushed over to him and tugged his arm. "I'm so glad you could make it! You want a drink?"
"Nah I'm good for now." He replied with a small smile, hoping that she'd stop hogging him. "Thanks."
"Ok! Well do you want to dance?"
"No thanks, I'm fine right here as well."
"Ok! Well I'm going to hit the dance floor! Join me later…"
She winked at him seductively, and made her way to the dance floor along with the other Divas. He leaned over the V.I.P corner, and was immediately joined by some of the other male Superstars. They were all looking over their respective ladies: John had his eye on Torrie, Randy was looking over his wife Stacy, Chris had his attention on Trish, and Jeff… Well, Jeff was only looking at Maria.
The Divas on the other hand, weren't paying attention to their men whatsoever. Even Maria had forgotten that Punk was there, as she danced to the beat with her friends. They formed a tight circle at the center of the stage, as they danced and laughed and had fun. All the men in the club were dying to dance with them, but they all knew that practically each of the Divas had a big, male wrestler keeping an eye on them. But not all the men in the club were conscious of that. One particularly drunken average man had his eye on Maria. He approached her and slipped his hands on her waist. She pulled away, but the man kept grabbing her from behind, trying to dance with her… almost in an aggressive manner. Then he did the mistake of putting his hand on her ass.
Maria turned to slap the living daylights out of him, but before she had the chance to do so she saw him violently thrown to the floor. Everyone backed away, as Jeff Hardy stood over the man, ready to punch him. But Jeff wasn't the only one on Maria's defense, unfortunately. She saw CM Punk standing in front of the Rainbow-Haired Warrior. He also had his eyes on the drunken pervert… And at the same moment, both Jeff and Punk looked up and noticed each other. A scowl formed on both their faces.
"What do you think you're doing Hardy?" CM Punk yelled at him, loud enough for everyone to hear.
"I was watching out for Maria!" Jeff retorted, getting just as angry as the ECW Superstar.
"Why would you do that? You're in no position to watch over her. You're not her boyfriend-"
"And you are?!"
"Stop it you guys!" Maria interfered, as she placed herself between the two men before things got out of hand.
CM Punk snickered, and gave the Diva a nasty one-over.
"Look at that Maria: you're trying to avoid a problem. Don't you think you already cause enough of those without even trying?"
"Don't talk to her like that!" Jeff shouted angrily.
"It's okay Jeff, let's just go."
Maria's voice almost trembled. The comment CM Punk had just given her had really hurt her. She never expected him to be so mean, especially not in public.
"That's right Jeff, go follow you're little girlfriend. Maybe she'll reward you in bed later on."
Jeff snapped. If Maria hadn't held him back, he would have pounded on the Straight-Edge Superstar. He was infuriated, and Maria had to put in all her physical strength in order to push him away from CM Punk.
"Please Jeff let's just go! Please!"
Tears formed in her eyes, as she begged him to come with her. And it was only the pleading and desperate tone in her voice that got him to slowly follow her.
He gave CM Punk one last long glare, before following Maria out of the club.
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There you go! Chapter 11. Hope you all enjoyed it !!
And I just want to point out that in reality, I love CM Punk. I doubt he'd ever talk to a woman the way I made him talk to Maria.
Just like with Edge, they're two Superstars that I adore, and I'm only painting them out as jerks for the sake of the story.
Here's a little preview of what's coming next.
Maria and Jeff get in a heated argument, just as their storyline together becomes more important…
Please leave a review!! Thanks!