Jeff Hardy: International Brother of Mystery

"Are you ever planning to get out of that bed?" Tom demanded, setting a tray of food down on the bedside table.

"No." Jeff sulked, pulling the covers up to his chin.

"Well, here's breakfast anyway." Tom said "You know, it would've been nice if you'd given me a little warning before you showed up."

"Why? So you could try to talk me out of it!" Jeff pouted more.

"I may be your older brother, but it's your life... if you want to throw everything away, it's not for me to try to convince you otherwise. Now, do you want to tell me what really happened? I find it hard to believe that Vince just gave you your release. You were IC champion for fuck's sake!"

"I told you what happened." Jeff replied, eyeing the food beside him. He was hungry, but didn't want to seem like he needed it.

"And I talked to Vince. He told me that you stormed into his office, threw the belt down and quit on the spot." Tom replied

"Oh." Jeff look down, ashamed.

"Did you think that you could lie to me and get away with it? We work, er worked, for the same company. I was bound to find out, if not from the boss, from someone." Tom sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at Jeff. "Does Matt know?"

Jeff stared at the quilt. "No." He mumbled

"Oh?" Tom answered, surprised. "I guess he'll find out eventually."

"Maybe he won't?" Jeff asked hopefully.

"Jeff be serious. Do you think Matt isn't gonna ask when he finds out that the title formerly held by his little brother is now vacant?" Tom answered "C'mon, Matt's not that dumb is he? Are you gonna eat this or not?"

"I'm not hungry." Jeff went back in sulky mode.

"Jeffro, you gotta eat." Tom took a spoonful of egg and held it. "Don't make me do airplane."

Jeff turned his head aside.

"Fine... pilot to tower... pilot to tower... flight number seven to Hardy International requesting clearance. I have cargo that needs offloading immediately." Tom felt totally foolish doing this, but sometimes Jeff's childishness became contagious. "Do I have permission to land?"

Jeff eyed the eggs hungrily.

"I'm almost out of fuel, tower, I'm coming in heavy." Tom dive bombed the spoon right at Jeff's mouth. "I don't know if I have enough to divert to Bunny National." Tom looked over at Jeff's rabbit, lying peacefully on the other pillow.

Realizing that Tom might actually try to feed his Bunny, Jeff stopped being a brat and accepted the eggs. Bunny was very fragile, she being of advanced age. (I don't know what 22 is in stuffed Bunny years, but I'll bet she ain't no spring chicken!)

"Are you gonna eat now?" Tom asked

Jeff gazed at the tray of food.

Tom set it on the bed and watched as Jeff dug into it greedily.

"Jeff, I have to fly out tonight." Tom said "I have a show in New Orleans... damn, what now?" his cell had just gone off.

"Hey Matt, how's tricks?"

"Things have gotten really weird." Matt responded

"Where are you?" Tom asked. He could barely hear him with all the background noise.

"In an airport in Des Moines." Matt answered

"Des Moines? What the hell are you doing there?" Tom demanded "We didn't have a show there, did we?"

"Something a little more serious than that, bro." Matt answered

"Oh, what happened?"

"I don't know all the details, but sometime last night, John Morrison drove his car off a bridge." Matt stated

"He what?" Tom asked

"That's what I've been told. No other details have been released." Matt swallowed nervously. "The police think Jeff might have..."

"Don't even think that, bro. I'm pretty sure that Jeff was nowhere near Des Moines, or anywhere else, last night." Tom answered, staring at Jeff who was wolfing down his breakfast, unconcerned with the conversation five feet away from him.

"Yeah?" Matt seemed to cheer up at this news. "How?"

"Because he's been at my house, holed up in my guest bedroom for the past day and a half." Tom answered

"That's a relief. I'd hate to think that Jeffro could do something like that."

"Like what... did he not... oh, I see."

"Yeah... so expect a lot of questions soon. Maybe even tonight."

"Thanks for the warning, Matt." Tom looked over at Jeff again. "Should I?"

"If you think he can handle it, I'll leave it up to you." Matt responded "I'll see you in the Big Easy later tonight and you can let me know what happened."

"Sounds good, bro." Tom answered "Laterz."

"Was that Matty?" Jeff asked

"Yes it was." Tom said "You have egg on your face."

Jeff wiped at it with his sleeve. "What'd he want?"

"Oh, just called to let me know a few things." Tom replied

"Does he know about me?" Jeff asked

"Don't know... he had a lot more pressing matters on the go." Tom debated whether or not he should tell Jeff about the fate of his ex.

"There was something more important than me?" Jeff sounded incredulous that he wasn't number one on someone's mind.

"Yeah. I know you find it hard to believe, but you are not the center of everyone's universe twenty-four seven." Tom sat down again. "Now there is something I need to tell you, but I'm not sure if you can handle this right now."

"Handle what?" Jeff asked, eyes squinting at Tom.

"According to Matt, sometime last night your ex drove his car off a bridge." Tom said choosing his words very carefully.

"Johnny? Why?" His eyes now wide, Jeff looked at Tom. "How is he?"

"He isn't, Jeff. John is dead." Tom answered "From what Matt told me, it appears that it was not suicide."

"You mean someone killed him?" Jeff asked, instinctively grabbing Bunny and holding her tight.

"I don't know anything more than what I just told you." Tom responded "I'm probably gonna find out a lot more than I want to when I get to New Orleans. There is gonna be an investigation and they are probably gonna wanna talk to you."

"Me?" Jeff squeaked "Why?"

"According to Matt, it's a matter of routine. " Tom answered "They're gonna talk to everyone eventually... you, me, Matt, Mark even. I know you had nothing to do with it unless you cut his brake cables while I was sleeping."

"Tommy!" Jeff said, alarmed.

"Sorry bro. That was uncalled for." Tom ruffled Jeff's scarecrow of hair.

"Johnny's gone." Jeff whispered, hugging Bunny.

Tom sat quietly, waiting for the inevitable flood.

"Are you okay to stay here by yourself?" He asked, when Jeff didn't start crying, which was a surprise. Jeff had been known to cry when someone lost on "The Price is Right". "I still have to fly out of here tonight."

"Do you hafta?"

"Unlike you, I don't have millions of dollars stashed away somewhere." Tom pulled his travel-worn suitcase from the closet and started packing for his two week trip through the South, ending with a one-night tournament on Raw to crown a new Intercontinental champion. "I gotta pay for this place, I'm carrying a few grand in credit card debt, and I still have a few payments to make on my Condo in Florida."

"Then I'm coming too." Jeff sprung out of the bed.

"Jeez, Jeff, I thought you wore pajamas." Tom glanced away as soon as he saw Jeff's nudity.

"I didn't bring 'em." Jeff had just shown up on Tom's doorstep with only his carry-on luggage. "Pajamas are evil anyway."

"Maybe you should buy some... unless you think it's a good idea to sleep naked in the same house as you brother who is just looking for an excuse to jump your bones." Tom answered "Six pairs of socks, six of skivvies, four shirts, three pairs of jeans, one suit and that should leave just enough space for the IC title when I win it." Tom added his shaving kit and locked it.

"If you're coming with me, you better a: put some clothes on and b: put some clothes on." Tom covered his eyes. He didn't want memories of Jeff's nether regions burned into his mind any more than it already was.

"Maybe I'll go like this." Jeff danced around, said nether regions bobbing as he moved.

"Even though it would make going through the metal detector at the airport a lot easier, I do think you should wear something."

"Naked is fun though!" Jeff sang

"If it is so fun, why didn't you volunteer to be naked instead of Mideon?" Until Jeff covered up, Tom was consciously staring at the ceiling, as ridiculous as it both looked.

"Dunno."

"For that matter, if Vince was looking for bigger ratings, he should've got you to streak instead of Kendrick. Or you and Matt instead of Jericho and Christian..."

At the mention of Christian, Jeff's mood changed abruptly. He got very quiet all of a sudden.

Now, if there was something worse than a naked brother, it was an angry, naked brother.

"C'mon Jeff, just relax." Tom took a step toward him, then realized what he was planning to do and stopped.

"Relax!" Jeff said it like the word was foreign to him. "If he hadn't..."

"Whoa, dude, you're getting all worked up over nothing. You don't even know what caused it. I don't like talking bad of the dead, but maybe John threw himself at Christian."

Tom sized up Jeff's reaction and realized he didn't like it one bit.

"He coulda said no."

"Maybe he did. Have you even talked to Christian?" Tom replied "And why are you arguing with me in the first place... I had nothing to do with this!" He was getting as flustered, if not more so, than Jeff. "I've got to leave in an hour... if you are coming with me, get dressed."

Tom grabbed his suitcase and was halfway out the door when Jeff spoke.

"Tommy, why doesn't anybody love me?"

"That's bullshit Jeff. A lot of people love you." Tom answered "There's me and Matt and Bunny and you probably still have a couple of fans..."

"I mean physically. Is there something wrong with me? Aren't I pretty enough?" Jeff gestured to his still-naked form.

"Jeff, you know my feelings about you already." Tom answered "I don't know why you can't find the love you desire. You're creative, fun to be around, generous, good-looking, and I'm getting a fucking hard-on staring at you so I'll leave now."

"Tommy, don't go." Jeff walked over and brushed against him. "Stay with me for a bit."

"Jeff, I have a flight..."

"You just said you don't have to leave for an hour... we have plenty of time." Jeff lightly ran his fingertips over the swelling in Tom's jeans.

Tom gulped nervously. "What happened to family is a line you're not willing to cross?"

"I want to be loved. I want you to love me." Jeff caressed the growing bulge, his own body responding as well.

"This is wrong." Tom groaned, desperately wanting to ravish his younger brother on the spot.

"Love is never wrong." Jeff answered, reaching up to caress his face. "Even like this."

That was all the reasoning Tom needed. Grabbing Jeff by the hips, he tossed him onto the bed and landed on top of him. They kissed deeply, mouths opening to allow their tongues to dance with each other.

"This is wrong." Tom's mind repeated, but the rest of his body wasn't listening. He broke the kiss only long enough to lick and suck his way down Jeff's upper torso, eliciting moans from his younger sibling. He flicked his tongue against the metal bar in Jeff's navel, and then looked up at Jeff. His eyes were closed, his chest was heaving, and most of all, he looked like he was thoroughly enjoying this.

"Oh Tom..." He panted

"Oh Jeff." Tom answered, spreading his legs and diving down between them, licking his inner thighs seductively.

"Ahhh!" Jeff mewled, his muscles quivering. "Stop teasing me... please!"

Hearing that was all the encouragement Tom needed. He stroked Jeff's cock a few times just to get a feel for it, then swallowed it with more skill than he should've. Any pretense of heterosexuality was gone in that instant. Tom gagged a little when the head hit the back of his throat, but he quickly recovered, swallowing around Jeff until every inch of him was in Tom's mouth and his balls were bouncing off his chin.

Jeff was gripping the sides of the bed tightly as he rode the roller coaster of passion that Tom was sending through his system. He never realized how badly he had wanted this to happen. His problem was it was too good and Jeff found himself at the brink in mere moments. The only way back was to start telling himself how wrong this was, how he shouldn't be allowing this to happen, and many other things. This got his dick to soften slightly, but Tom's mouth soon brought it back to full arousal.

"Dude... I'm ready!"

"So am I." Tom removed Jeff's dick from his mouth and started jerking it quickly with his hand. "Cum for me baby!"

"Fuck yessssss!" Jeff screeched, emptying his seed into Tom's hand. He milked Jeff for several more minutes, only stopping when he realized Jeff had no more load to shoot.

"You've done that before, dude. I know it." Jeff looked around for something to clean off with. Tom rolled off the bed; grabbing a towel from the bathroom for him to use.

"First time, bro. Scouts' honor." Tom replied

"Dude, you are so full of it... if you haven't where'd you learn to give head like that?" Jeff wiped the last traces of semen from his body and threw the dirty towel in Tom's direction.

"Fanfiction-dot-net." Tom answered "Some stories are quite helpful in that regard... did I do alright?"

"Alright? You were more than alright." Jeff sighed, snuggling back under the blankets.

"I'm sorry that I don't have any time for post-coital tenderness, but I gotta get going or I am gonna miss my flight. I guess you are staying here then?"

"Fuck." In his ecstasy, Jeff had forgotten all about his own travel plans. It wasn't that he wanted anything to do with wrestling anymore, he honestly just wanted to be with Tom as much as possible.

Jeff tore through the room, finding something in his luggage that wasn't too dirty.

"You should consider goin' back home and grabbing some clothes." Tom raised his eyebrows at Jeff. "Or buying something that doesn't look so well-worn."

"Whatever... it's not like I'm goin' anywhere." Jeff retorted

"Five minutes... I'll call a taxi." Tom left the bedroom, a little dazed from what had just happened there. It was mildly intoxicating to think about what had just happened.

"I'm ready." Jeff sang out. Tom snapped back to reality.

"Cool." Tom replied

"Did you calla cab?" Jeff answered, his drawl sounding so damn sexy.

"A cab... oh no, not yet." Tom answered

"Shouldn'tcha better?" Jeff asked

"Yeah, I guess." While he got transportation, Tom drunk in the sight of Jeff leaning against the banister. He looked so perfect, his hair framing his Adonis-like face like a rainbow, his tattooed torso, now barely covered by the tightest of muscle shirts... it was almost too much for anyone.

"Tom, are you okay?" Jeff asked

Tom realized that he had spaced out again.

"Yeah, bro, cab's on the way... I'm just thinkin'." Tom put his phone away.

"Thinkin' 'bout what?" Jeff asked

"What just happened." Tom answered "I'm not sure if I should be regretting it or not. I mean, I've just played into the prototypical Southern stereotype not to mention thrown away my sexual identity."

"I don't regret what happened." Jeff answered "I think we both know where we stand with this."

"But how the hell do we explain it?" Tom asked

"We don't, dude." Jeff replied "I go on playing the devastated boyfriend and you play the comforting brother."

"Hmmm. Works for me."

Three loud honks from the driveway alerted them that the cab had arrived.

"What about Matt, though. Can we really keep this a secret from even him?" Tom asked, throwing both his and Jeff's bag into the trunk.

"Tommy, I love Matty to death, but I don't think it's a good idea to involve him in our sex life." Jeff replied

"Yeah... I don't think I'm quite ready for a three-way." Tom replied

Jeff laughed loudly. It was good to see him in such better spirits.

Tom went straight to the arena from the airport, leaving Jeff to book a hotel room. He went about the business of getting ready for his IC qualifier later that night with as little fuss as possible. His only qualm was his opponent. He had been scheduled to face the late John Morrison, and no one had bothered to tell him who his opponent was gonna be. A chat with Vince McMahon was in order. Tom tentatively knocked on the door to his office du jour.

"Mr. McMahon?" He asked

"Tom. Come on in. I was just gonna send for you." McMahon pointed to one of the chairs across from his desk.

"Yes sir. I was just wondering who I was going to be facing tonight?" Tom asked

"Well, as you know a lot of the talent is tied up in other story lines. We hope you don't mind working with Kendrick tonight."

"Depends... is he gonna streak again?" Tom smirked

"That was ten years ago." Vince smiled

"And I'm still having nightmares, sir." Tom replied "How can a grown man can have a dick that small?"

"Must've been a cold night." Vince replied "There is one other thing I wanna talk to you about."

"Oh boy." Vince's abrupt tone change startled Tom.

"I know you know what's been going on with Morrison. Matt told me he called you." Vince leaned across the desk.

"Yeah, he did... it's a shame." Tom answered "He may have been an ass, but no one deserved that."

"And Matt told me that he told you about what Jeff did." Vince answered

"Jeff is impetuous, but can you blame him?" Tom replied "I'm not justifying it, but I might have done the same thing."

"If there's one thing I hate is people not honoring their commitments." Vince looked sternly at Tom. "Our fans deserve loyalty from the performers they pay their hard earned money to see."

"Uh, Mr. McMahon, what does this have to do with me?"

"Tom, I need to know that regardless of what happens with this investigation, you're not gonna jump ship." Vince said

"I have no plans to." Tom replied "Do you know something I don't?"

"We're giving you the push. You're getting the title in two weeks, and immediately following that, the whole Legacy thing is over." Vince leaned back in his chair.

"Why can't I stay in Legacy?" Tom asked "I think it's a good fit."

"It doesn't work... your whole reason for joining was jealousy of Matt and Jeff's success. With Jeff gone, and you having gold, there's no angle. We're gonna flip it so that Legacy becomes jealous of your success and kicks you out."

"Okay... how are they playing it?"

"You're gonna face Cody Rhodes in the Semi-finals of the tournament and Randy in the finals... sorta like what we did with Kurt, Rhino, Edge, and Christian in the King of the Ring a few years ago.

"I can live with that." Tom answered "Anything else?"

"I know it's a lot to deal with, but you need to make yourself available sometime in the next day or two for questioning."

"Yeah, Matt gave me a heads-up on that too." Tom said

"I personally don't think you have anything to be worried about... from what I understand, you're way down there on the list of suspects." Vince replied

Tom wondered how much higher up he'd be if anyone knew that less than forty-eight hours later, he gotten into bed with Jeff.

"Whenever they want to talk, I'm ready... the sooner the better, as far as I'm concerned." Tom answered

"Thank-you for your cooperation." Vince replied "I'll let them know."

"Okay... and that is all?" Tom rose from his chair.

"That is. Just remember, spectacular but safe. Give our fans a reason not to hate anyone else with the last name Hardy."

"You got it." Outside the office, Tom suddenly leaned against a wall. "Our fans won't hate me Vince, but I can't guarantee that for everyone."

TO BE CONTINUED

Just one thing left to clear up... whodunnit!

For those of you that wanted it... HARDYCEST!

For those of you that didn't want it (me)... oh well, we can't always have everything we want in life!

Till we meet again!