Brother, may I?

Tom lay on the table, only half-listening to what the trainer was telling him. Matt had just stormed out of the room, leaving Tom in a very confused state.

"Doc, what the hell just happened?" Tom asked

"I dunno. You and Matt were hugging..."

"Matt? Oh, fuck!" Tom realized he'd just made a fatal error. In his dazed and blinded state, he'd mistaken the brother with whom he was in love with the brother who didn't even know the extent of their union. "Which way did he go?"

"Back toward his locker room, I think. His segment was next."

"Thanks, doc. I gotta find him." Tom jumped off the table and immediately regretted it. His faint-headedness returned, forcing him to grab the nearest thing handy: Randy, who had witnessed the entire situation, but was nice enough not to say anything stupid. He didn't know what was going on, and it was none of his business. He just felt a little bad about what had happened in the ring, albeit an accident.

"Whoa, man. Take it easy." Randy half-walked, half-dragged Tom over to a row of chairs and dropped him into one, taking the nearest one for himself.

Tom slouched down, staring at the lights. "What the fuck did I just do? Honestly, did it look like I was trying to make out with Matt?"

"Look, I dunno how you Southern boys were raised, but it seemed a little too... friendly." Randy tried to find the right word.

"For one thing, I was raised in L.A. and two, I thought it was someone else, okay." Tom retorted

"Whoever you thought it was, Matt was sure surprised." Randy answered, trying to make the connection. Matt had only said a few words to Tom before he was molested.

"Fuck." Tom put his head in his hands. "This is all so fucked up."

"Dude, you weren't yourself. Even Matt should understand." Randy replied

"Would you? Put yourself in Matt's shoes... what if your brother started something like that?"

"I'd probably RKO the crap out of him, concussion or not." Randy answered

"I was hoping for a bit more understanding from you." Tom rubbed his temples aggressively. "Considering this is all your fault."

"My fault!" Randy answered "What'd I do? You head-butted me!"

"If you weren't so thick-headed..."

"Fuck you, Hardy." Randy answered, knowing that Tom wasn't really angry at him, it was just his way of dealing with the pain and confusion that was running crazily through his mind.

"Can you let me know when Matt is done his in-ring. I really gotta talk to him now." Tom sighed. Things had gone from mildly irritating to full-blown awkwardness in a matter of hours.

"Yeah, I gotta go interrupt anyway. I think Matt is rewriting the script as we speak..."

Matt was in the ring, hyping up the crowd for his future title match against Orton. Those annoying return clauses in their contracts.

"Randy, I saw what you did to my brother out here earlier and don't think I won't forget it..." Nor could Matt take his mind off what had happened backstage, either. "We may not have been on the same page for a while, and I won't even bother trying to understand why he wanted to join you idiots in the first place, but no one messes with family and gets away with it!"

Matt almost added "Unless it's me!", but bit his tongue just in time.

Randy's music interrupted. He stood on the stage, alone, and looking more than a little confused.

"First of all, I don't see where it is any business of yours how I handle what goes on in Legacy. The only business with you involves that title that you stole from me..."

"Isn't it amazing how every time you lose a title, or can't win one, it's 'stolen' from you." Matt interjected "It must be fun living in your Legacy-land sometimes. I don't know how they put up with you."

"They put up with me because I tell them to!"

"Yeah, we know what happens to them if they don't... they get carried out of here." Matt yelled, channeling some of his aggression into his mic work.

"Matt, that doesn't concern you..." Randy said "The only thing you have to worry about is the beating I'm gonna give you in that ring."

"Damn straight it concerns me!"

"Matt, it doesn't." Mic in hand, Tom slowly walked onto the ramp. "Let me handle this, Randy. You've done enough damage."

While Randy looked on, Tom slowly walked to ring, having to stop halfway to gather himself. He was still concussed and getting his bearings was difficult at times.

Just climbing the stairs to the ring almost made him black out.

"Matt, I know you care about me, about our family, but can you just drop the overprotective brother routine for once. I can take care of myself; what happened here earlier was a miscalculation." Tom was breathing heavily from the effort to talk and not pass out.

"A miscalculation?" Matt repeated "Like kissing me in the back... was that another miscalculation?"

Tom smirked. So that's where this promo was gonna go. If that was the case, Tom was fine with it.

"You've had concussions... c'mon, you know I was outta my skull." Tom answered "You brought it on."

"Me? How? All I said was hey, bro..." Suddenly, the last few pieces of the puzzle fell into place. "You thought I was Jeff, didn't you?"

"What?" This time Tom's lie wasn't as convincing as he'd hoped. As an afterthought, he wondered what those snooping policemen were thinking, hearing this. "Matt, you're even more sick than I thought."

"I'm the sick one? Tom, you've been in our lives for less than three months. You conveniently hook up Jeff with Morrison and then when things go wrong, who does he run to... not me! Not the brother who's been beside him for all of his life, but you! You caused all his pain and instead of turning you away, he quits the company and runs right into your arms."

"At least I'm not the one who cut the brake cables on Morrison's car." Tom shouted back. If Matt wanted to make this a worked shoot, Tom was quite willing to go along with it.

"Dude, I was nowhere near his car."

"Since we're so quick to be passing blame here, let's look at it from my perspective. All your life you've been the one Jeff runs to and now you're out of the picture. You couldn't handle it so you set the whole thing up. You just needed a spark. When you found out that Jeff and Morrison were falling apart, you thought it was the perfect opportunity to get back on Jeff's good side. It was all you Matt, and now you're trying to start something with me! It's not gonna work! If I have to take you out myself, I will, but you are not gonna hurt me or Jeff or anyone else with your slanderous lies!"

Tom carefully descended the steps, leaving an open-mouthed Matt in the ring.

"If it makes you feel any better Matt, think of it this way... as you so nicely pointed out, up 'til three months ago I wasn't in your life... well consider me out of it again effective immediately!"

Tom barely made it backstage before he collapsed into a chair. The effort he'd put into that promo had left him completely drained. Sitting with his head between his legs, trying hard not to throw up, he heard footsteps approach. Not having the strength to look up, he only did when it was three pairs of dress shoes that stopped in front of him.

"Not now." He groaned

"Tom Hardy, you're coming with us."

"Get a warrant." Tom said, wondering if he could be arrested for throwing up on a cop's shoes.

"Already got one. Do you wanna do this the easy way or the hard way?"

"Whatever." Tom could've cared less at that particular moment. He did get one moment of satisfaction when he did upchuck on their shoes shortly after standing up.

Tom was taken downtown. Unknown to him, Matt had received the same welcoming when he left the ring. Shoved into separate rooms, they stewed. Matt took to cursing, and throwing the furniture around while Tom put his head down on the desk and was soon asleep.

"What's the plan Chief..."

"You heard what those two said... it sure sounded like a confession to me."

"But, sir, wasn't that part of the show?"

"Maybe, maybe not. It's up to us to find out."

"It's gonna be tough. I don't think either of them will finger the other. After all, they are family..."

"Family, huh?" That word gave the boss an idea. "There's another Hardy, isn't there?"

"Yeah, Jeffrey... he's the youngest."

"And he had an argument with the deceased just prior to his death, right?"

"I gotcha, Chief... we just tell them that we'll bring Jeff in as well if they don't talk."

"I want this case closed by tonight."

"Yes, sir."

Tom was rudely awakened by the sound of papers hitting the table's surface an inch from his left ear.

"Fuck off." He moaned "I've got a headache."

"I'm Detective Miller... my partner, Detective Jacobs..."

"What part of fuck off didn't you two understand?" Tom repeated

"We're gonna ask the questions and you're gonna answer them. You haven't been straight with us since the beginning and we're giving you a chance to clear your name before we send this to the District Attorney." Miller said

"Considering my mind is so fried right now I don't even remember what I said to Matt in the ring, you can either get me a lawyer or cut me loose, I don't care which."

"Get him a lawyer, Jacobs. While you're at it, bring in Jeffrey Hardy for questioning."

If they expected some sort of reaction, they were sorely disappointed. After asking for his lawyer, Tom had fallen back asleep.

"We're not getting anything here. How are Green and Black doing?"

"I dunno. I'll call legal aid and have uniform bring in the other Hardy Boy... Coffee?"

"Thanks... this is gonna be a tough one."

"I told you everything I know!" Matt shouted

"Okay, let's just go over it one more time." Green looked at Black, who shrugged. All three were standing, Matt having destroyed all the chairs as well as the table in the interview room while he was waiting. "We're just having a hard time understanding this."

"How hard can it be... I didn't kill Morrison! What Tom said was part of the fuckin' show!"

"Not according to the run sheet." Black waved what might have a copy of the run sheet or page ripped out of the phone book for all Matt knew at him.

"We are allowed to improvise with our promos." Matt retorted "You guys should really stop jerkin' me around like this..."

"Listen, Hardy." Green pushed Matt against a wall, his face inches from Matt's. "You've been jerkin' me and my partner around, not the other way around. So unless you want to tell us exactly what we want to know, we'll just have to do things the hard way. We can always drag Jeffrey in here and see what he has to say."

"Back off, Green." Black spun his partner away. "Take five."

"I'm not gonna stand here and let this guy lie to me." Green answered "Mr-big-shot-WWE-champion."

"Get some coffee, Green." Black pushed his partner out of the room. "Rookies. I always get the hot-headed ones."

"Matthew, I'm gonna be honest with you. Right now, you and Tom are top two on our list of suspects. What I'm thinking is that maybe you didn't plan to kill him, just scare him away."

"No." Matt answered

"No? But isn't that what brothers do? Protect each other? Jeffrey's what... three years younger than you, right?"

"Yeah." Matt agreed

"And since your father died, it has been just the two of you pretty much. I mean, you found out you had another brother, but you still see yourself as Jeffrey's rock. There's nothing you wouldn't do for him, right?"

"I didn't kill Morrison, if that's what you mean!" Matt responded angrily.

"I'm not saying you did..."

"They why the fuck am I here?"

"You wanna see justice done, right? You believe in right and wrong... do you think that whoever did this should go unpunished?... Then help us Matt... help us find out who did this.."

"Well, what have we got?" The Assistant District Attorney was standing behind the one-way mirror in the room where Matt was being held.

"Not much." Jacobs answered "Tom lawyered up and we can't find Jeffrey. Someone must've tipped him off."

"What's your take on Matt?"

"Honestly, I don't think he did it. It just doesn't make sense. Underneath all the surface, Matt really loves Jeff and just wants to see him happy."

"And what is that based upon... women's intuition?"

"Just call it a hunch. I would suggest cutting them loose for tonight. We've got nothing to hold them on and maybe one of them will make a mistake." Jacobs answered

"Let 'em go." ADA Schiff sighed. This case was gonna be a long one.

Jeff had been watching movies all day, eating candy, and generally enjoying himself when his phone rang.

"Enigma." He answered, expecting it to be Tom.

"Hey, kid... Orton."

"Randy? Whaddaya want? And how did you find me?" Jeff said

"Just relax. I'm in a storage room at the arena."

"Oooh... what're you and Cody doing?" Jeff squeaked

"Nothing." Randy answered "Why does everyone think I'm gay?"

"Well, you have those girly hips, and a small..."

"Never mind." Randy cut in. "I'm just calling to warn you that the shit's hit the fan really hard..." Randy reiterated the events of earlier that night, concluding with Tom and Matt's detention. "... and I would suggest you find another room to stay tonight just in case. Shit, I gotta go."

"Byeeee." Jeff sang

Randy set the phone down beside him. "Now where were we?" He asked, taking a naked Cody Rhodes into his arms.

"You were just about to punish me for messing up my match." Cody sighed

"Yes, I was." Randy smiled... and people thought he was gay? Ridiculous!

Around the same time the decision was being made to let both Tom and Matt go, Jeff was sprawled across a bed in the room belonging to Jack Swagger. He was the first superstar Jeff had been able to reach and he'd quickly agreed to sharing his quarters. He'd neglected to tell Jeff that he was sleeping in a single, not that Jeff planned to stay the night. Hopefully, he'd get some good news before he needed to sleep.

"Thankya, Jack... I really hate to be a pest." Jeff answered

"No problem. I actually like having the company." Jack said"Any more popcorn?"

"Uh, no. Skittle?" Jeff was usually wary of handing out his favorite snack, but since he was getting a room out of it, he broke one of his own rules.

"Thanks... what're we watchin'?" Jack plopped down beside Jeff.

"The way I see it, we got three choices... Nightmare on Elm Street, the original..."

"I don't feel like a horror movie. Having to wrestle Christian is scary enough."

"I know." Jeff answered "Well, there's also the Da Vinci Code..."

"Seen it." Jack answered

"Or Skater Boys 3: Gettin' Boarded!"

"Jeff, that sounds like gay porn to me..." Jack looked uneasy.

"Well, there's also the Care Bears Movie on Cinemax." Jeff quickly added.

"I guess gay porn it is." Jack mumbled, wondering why tonight would be the one night there was nothing on TV.

Outside the police station, Tom anxiously paced. He didn't know what to do. He needed to call Jeff, but he didn't feel right doing it right there.

"Fuckin' assholes." Tom heard Matt swear as he came outside. "You waitin' for someone Tommy?"

"Yeah, you." Tom replied "Are you and I ever gonna be able to coexist?"

"You've been a pain in my ass since you joined the company so no, I don't think we will." Matt answered

"You really should adjust your attitude and fast or both of us are gonna take the fall for this Morrison thing. Then where does that leave us... or Jeff for that matter, huh?" Tom said, feeling in his pockets for his cigarettes, then realizing that all his personal items were still in his street clothes, which were in his locker... back at the arena. "Fuck. All my stuff's still at the arena."

"Yeah, mine too." Matt answered

"I guess we start walkin." Tom said "If we're lucky, they've kept a door open for us."

"Y'know Vince is gonna flip." Matt said

They'd been walking for almost an hour in silence when Matt made that last comment and, except for a couple of wiseguy drivers who thought two young, good-looking, shirtless men walking down the street at midnight meant something, nothing had been said between the two Hardy brothers.

"Yeah." Tom responded "Matt, do you really hate me that much?"

"Hate you?" Matt had to think about the answer to that question. "I don't think so."

"Because you and I sure don't seem to get along at all." Tom answered "No matter what happens, we seem to fight."

"Let me answer that before you go off again. I've had a certain role for the last thirty-one years and suddenly I find myself on the outside looking in." Matt replied "And now I find out that you and Jeff are a what.. a couple..."

"I wouldn't go that far." Tom cut Matt off mid-sentence. "Okay, I'll admit that I love Jeff that way and I loathe myself for it every waking moment. I wish there was some way I could just forget about him, but you and I know it's not gonna happen. I don't know how Jeff sees me. I think he's even more confused than I am. I wish Morrison was still alive. When they were together, it was easy to look the other way." He rambled, but Matt let him. Matt was actually starting to understand where his brother was coming from though he still hated the whole idea of Jeff and Tom together.

"Tom, I dunno. As if that wasn't confusing enough, you threw yourself at me in the trainer's room."

"We both know that was a mistake." Tom replied "Matt, I need you... Jeff needs you. If the three of us are gonna survive all this nonsense, we have to stop fighting like teenagers. Whatever problems you and I have, we need to put them aside for now."

The things Tom said were making sense. But could he trust Tom after all they'd been through?

"Okay, say I trust you. Where do we go from here?" Matt asked

"Bro, if you trust me, then you already know the answer to that." Tom said, a sparkle in his eyes returning.

"Yeah, bro, I think I do." Matt replied, his eyes also shining. He felt he had a purpose again.

"Let's go." Tom started to jog. The darkened arena loomed ahead. Matt followed. Hopefully the future would provide more answers than questions.

TO BE CONTINUED

This fic is turning into a lot longer one than when I first thought of the plot... in the next chapter, more answers than questions, but the big question is: Can Matt and Tom set aside their problems long enough to realize what really matters?

As an aside, this is my first fic to reach 1000 hits... to all those of you who've read and reviewed, I thank you. To those of who who have just read it, I thank you as well.