Chapter 14

"Jon, I don't like this. I don't like the fact you're going to CZW and I'll never forgive myself if I don't say it now." Chacia had admitted, zipping his bag up and turned to face him, tears swimming in her eyes. "I know this is a great opportunity for you, but…I don't want you getting hurt. This place can hurt you and end your career, your livelihood, because of the dangers…"

He had cupped her face in his strong hands and brought her against him, kissing her forehead, wrapping his arms around her tightly. "I know what I'm doing, Chace. I already know I'll never get in the WWE and I'm good with it. I accept it. CZW is giving me a real shot and I'm not gonna let them down." This was after his debut in CZW and he'd driven back to Cincinnati to pack his belongings to move down to Philadelphia, already getting a place with his tag team partner, Sami Callihan. They were known as the Switchblade Conspiracy. "This is the best place for me and I'm still gonna be working for the other organizations."

"Not if you're laying in a hospital bed, unconscious and broken." She mumbled, pulling away from him and had to blink back tears, feeling his hands settle on her waist. "I'm scared for you. And you don't know what the future holds. None of us do. You may say you're not meant to go to WWE, but I know differently. One day, you will make it if you keep plugging away at the Indies. They will eventually notice you, but not if you're all banged up and scarred up from these death matches."

He had chuckled at her and kissed the top of her head. "You worry too much, darlin'. I'm gonna be just fine and that's what Vitamin E oil is for."

Chacia knew at that moment there was no changing his mind, but she had to try one last time to convince him otherwise. "What makes you so certain CZW is the right fit for you? How do you know you want to be in the world of ultra-violence?" She had done research on this organization and whipped around to face him, hazel eyes boiling with so many different emotions.

"I don't know if I am or not. But in case you haven't noticed, or haven't been paying attention, I've been in countless wars and hardcore matches, deathmatch type matches, with Drake Younger and other guys on the Indies." Jon pointed out, lighting up a cigarette and took a long pull from it, smoke filtering out of his mouth and nostrils to surround her. "I enjoyed them. They gave me a rush I can't explain. I don't know why, but CZW seems like a good fit for me, for my character. Jon Moxley is crazy and dangerous if you haven't noticed."

"Yes, I have."

Chacia wanted to scream and yell at him that day about how stupid and irresponsible he was being with his career, with his life. She couldn't bring herself to do it though. He looked so excited to go, to continue his career he had reignited only a year prior. Jon was stubborn and set in his ways, doing what he felt best for him regardless of what anyone had to say or thought. All she could do was grab one of his bags and helped him cart them out to his truck, tossing them in the back of it.

"Do they have titles there?"

Jon laughed at her asinine question and nodded. "Of course they do or else they wouldn't be a wrestling organization, silly girl."

Hell, Chacia didn't know what kind of organization this was beside the deathmatch thing. "When you have your first match for the CZW World Heavyweight title, I want to be there to watch you win it." Chacia had requested, watching him slam the hatch to his truck closed and put the tarp over it to keep everything inside. It was a long drive from Cincinnati to Philadelphia – 9 hours, to be exact, depending on traffic.

"Even though you don't approve me going? You want to come see me win their top title?" Jon raised a brow at her, flicking ash from his cigarette and took another long drag, watching her nod. "All right, sounds good. That'd be cool if you were there, Cody too. Hell, invite as many people as you want to the Combat Zone."

That would be the ONLY match Chacia would go to CZW for, otherwise she wanted no part of it. What they did wasn't considered actual wrestling, not in her eyes and it never would be. CZW was a garbage promotion, just like her cousin claimed, full of unnecessary violence and bloodshed. Men who went into that company were never fully the same again and, to this day, Jon harbored scars on his body from his nearly 2-year run with the company.

"Deal."

Jon had finished his cigarette, flicking it away on the road and pulled Chacia into another tight embrace, feeling her body tremble against him. "This isn't goodbye, Chace. I'll come see you."

Even then, Chacia didn't believe him and he'd never come back to visit, staying in Philadelphia to live his life away from Cincinnati…away from her. "Okay." That was all she could really say while clinging to him and reluctantly pulled away to let him get in the truck. "I still think the WWE will hire you one day. I just wish you had more faith in yourself. You're one of a kind, Jon. Don't let this place take that special part of you away."

He had smiled at her, caressing her face with the back of his hand and understood what she said, her fears for him clearly written on her face. "I'll be fine and I'll call you when I get there." He kissed her forehead and put the truck in park before driving off to hit the highway.

Jon never did call, not until a year later with an invite to his CZW championship match at the 11th Anniversary CZW show.

All Chacia could do was watch his truck disappear in the distance and ignored the tears pouring down her cheeks, along with her heart crumbling in her chest.

Not realizing it, Chacia wound up going to Jon's bedroom and saw everything strewn around, unpacked. Typical. She had started packing for him, like the old days, while that memory rushed through her. It was almost as if she was on autopilot, folding clothes and placing them in the open duffel bag. Jon always carried a backpack with him too, but that was always carried on the plane with him. It held personal items he wanted to take on the road with him, but refused to check through the airport, just in case his bag ended up lost.

Once he was fully packed up, unless he wanted to add something else, Chacia left the room and went to her own, suddenly feeling drained and in dire need of a nap.

Memories were such a bitch to re-live sometimes.

By the time Jon arrived home, it was pushing night and he had started racing the sun home, so to speak. He parked his bike in the garage and headed inside, somehow not surprised to find all the lights out. He made his way to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of water and then went to go get stuff for a shower. He halted as soon as he flipped on his bedroom light, taking in the packed bag and shook his head. A quick shower later and a clean smelling Jon went to go thank Chacia and also remind her she was a mother hen. He halted in her bedroom door. She was sound asleep on top of her blankets. Smiling, he walked over to look down at her, reaching out to brush hair off her face.

Chacia didn't move an inch, not even with his touch, completely exhausted in every way from getting everything ready for tomorrow. Jon would finally be back in the ring after 8 ½ grueling months and she knew he couldn't wait to feel the rush again. She didn't feel him towering over her or his finger against her cheek, lightly grazing it. She didn't see him leave to go back to his room to get some sleep, though that's probably what she would've advised him to do if she was awake.

Morning came before long.

Chacia and Jon were on the road at 7 AM to head to the airport, after stopping at a local Starbucks to grab a coffee and a quick bite to eat. For Jon anyway. Chacia was too nervous to eat or drink anything, hands clasped in her lap tightly while staring out the window. Silence reigned between them and Chacia didn't bother breaking it because she knew Jon probably had a lot on his mind with his return. She wanted to say something to ease his mind, but had no idea to say to do that. This was the first major injury he'd suffered in his entire wrestling career that put him OUT for a long period of time. He kept rolling his shoulder and flexing his right arm, testing it continuously, even while driving.

Once they were on the plane, Jon finally blew out a deep breath and glanced at Chacia, seeing her knee bouncing up and down repeatedly. It was a nervous tick she had. Had she been on a plane before? Or maybe she was nervous about joining the WWE and signing her contract. They hadn't really talked the past week and, as guilty as he felt about it, Jon did it for a reason. He didn't want to take his anger and frustration out on Chacia, which was why he had channeled it into mountain biking and working out. It helped only a little, but being back in the ring in WWE, on television, would do wonders for how he currently felt.

Chacia hadn't expected him to talk to her and lifted anxious hazel up to meet pale blues. They weren't hard like they'd been over the past week. "I just…I just want to get this over with, signing the contract I mean." She wanted to ask him if he was all right and refrained, already knowing the answer to that question. "You should take your own advice as far as things being okay."

He cracked a small smile that barely curved his lips and took her hand, lacing their fingers together, comforting her the only way he knew how. It felt nice holding his hand again and her lips tingled at the memory of his against hers. Christ, now wasn't the time or place to think about his hands on her body, lighting her on fire or his lips on hers, moving down her neck…Chacia shivered, pushing the memory of their make-out session in the far recesses of her mind before it drove her crazy. Tackling him on a plane full of people wasn't an option. Even after all this time of being on planes, Jon would never get used to them and tightened his hold on Chacia's hand a little more. He watched his strength, not wanting to crush her hand or hurt her in any way. There was no way they could drive from Vegas to Greensboro, flying was the only choice.

"You should occupy me." He informed her. Usually, he was listening to music on his iPod or something because flying sucked. He knew, rationally, if he was going to die while traveling, it would probably be in a car because the actual odds of being in a plane wreck were slim. Hell, they should occupy each other and Jon began laughing. For some reason, the mile high club cliché had just popped into his head. Probably brought on by the raven-haired stewardess being flirted with by some poor guy who had no chance in hell.

Raising a slow brow at him, Chacia had to wonder if Jon had a split personality. He'd been cold, distant and focused the past week, after finding out how he would be brought back on television in WWE. She had to admit, it was a very sucky deal for him because he had to help the man who claimed Jon's injury was a blessing in disguise. Jon had to help him win his match at Summerslam by being in his corner and she knew he wasn't happy about it. "Occupy you how, exactly?" Her curiosity was peaked as she folded her arms in front of her chest, looking mildly amused.

"Well, you do have a rousing version of The Three Little Pigs," He snorted, sarcasm in his tone as he stared down at her with a raised eyebrow. She had tucked him in that first night, when she had been outside his hotel room door, and that was her story offering. An old children's story. "But that might be too much excitement for me." His eyes moved back to the stewardess who was trying to get away from her admirer without being a total bitch. "Want to sneak off to the bathroom and see if it's possible to fit us both in there?" He doubted it. Those bathrooms were small enough and gave people his size issues, but it was worth asking to see the look on her face.

Her cheeks turned crimson red and she smacked his arm, shaking her head. "I don't think your dick would fit in there, let alone the rest of your jacked body." Boy was he ever jacked and ready for his comeback. The man looked to be chiseled out of stone with all the working out and healthy eating he'd done. Just like the healthy eating, she had joined him in the gym and showed she could still keep up with him, also trying out CrossFit. It wasn't that bad, actually, though she preferred the old school way of doing things. They had actually sparred together in the gym and Jon schooled her, only because Chacia was incredibly rusty. She hadn't sparred with anyone in years, though he felt damn good to do it. "And I'm not joining the mile high club with you, Moxley."

She didn't think his dick would fit in there, Jon was both amused and pleased. A little flattered, a lot amused. He knew he had gotten buffed up and some things had grown, that was not one of those things. His dick was still the same hefty size it had always been. It was, however, good to know she had been thinking about said dick. "You sure, Chacers?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her, the anger and other negatives he had been dealing with all week taking a temporary break. "You could rack up those frequent flier points."

The last thing she wanted to do was upset him since Jon seemed to be calm and playful again, for the time being. "Don't call me that, Jonny," Chacia smirked at the scowl on his face and knew how much he loathed and detested being called that.