Chapter 14 - Queen of Avoidance

Two days off was followed by crazy house shows Friday, Saturday and Sunday. By the time Monday Night Raw rolled around everyone was worn down and ready for their two days off again.

Joe had noticed Alison had been avoiding him like the black plague. He knew she would confront him on her own terms. He knew she enjoyed the kiss as much as he did he just knew she was fighting it because of Colby's stupid ass; which was also the reason he knew she felt guilty about it as well.

Joe knew Colby was screwing around on Alison, he had been since they started dating. He had no proof but he knew. The night he'd gone to the gym after Smackdown; Joe watched as he didn't even get back to their hotel room until early the next morning and Alison was never the wiser. You only stay at the 'gym' that long if you're getting some ass on the side from a chic staying in the same hotel.

Colby and Alison hadn't shown up yet for Monday Night Raw so Joe just had to bid his time and just wait for her to come to him. Joe changed into a black beater and black basketball shorts and headed down to the trainers office to get his knees and ankles wrapped before his match.

Aria found herself sitting on an equipment trunk once more making sure she had empty memory cards in her cameras that she had chosen to use at ringside tonight. A throat cleared as her emerald eyes looked up and then rolled as she watched Jon lean against the wall across the hallway from where she was sitting. His arms folded over his chest.

"Something I can help you with Mox?" Aria asked in a snarky tone.

Jon chuckled. "You know...you shouldn't have called me Mox. It gave you away too easily."

"Did it really now?" Aria asked as she humored him. "And how is that?"

"Do you even know what I had to do to figure out how I knew you?" Jon asked.

"Don't know - don't care. I remember too bad you don't." Aria stated in a nasty tone. She really didn't care.

Jon chuckled. "You know you have just enough attitude and spunk to keep me more than interested. I have to admit those slap you gave me were a turn on. It's always nice to get my ass spanked by a beautiful woman; it's even better when it's a woman I have a past with." Jon couldn't help the smirk.

"If you've been a bad boy Jon and you need a spanking; by all means let me help you live out some weird mommy/son fantasy. I'll dress you in a diaper and paddle your behind and send you on your way. But according to you we don't have a past; ya know because YOU CAN'T REMEMBER IT!" Aria stated in a heated tone.

Jon chuckled deeply. "Apparently you weren't paying attention to the first part of this conversation."

"I didn't realize we were having a conversation. I thought I was having a battle of wits with an unarmed person." Yup there was that snarky tone again!

Jon had to admit he loved her smart mouth; it made him laugh harder. "It took me a minute but I remember. I had to do a lot of video research; which I thought I was only going to have to go back to my CZW days and when I couldn't find what I was looking for I gave Les Thatcher a call and come to find out it was my HWA days. Do you know how young I was?" Jon asked with a soft chuckle. "Young, dumb and full of cum; as the saying goes."

"20." She stated as she hopped down from the equipment trunk.

"Not quite 20. At least not when I met you. I was a few days shy of my 20th birthday. I was on my 16th HWA video when your face appeared in the crowd at the HWA Thanksgiving Showdown in Philly in 2005. I fondly remember that year because I spent 3 fuckin awesome days locked up in a hotel room with a gorgeous young girl; naked and drunk." Jon murmured as he moved closer to Aria.

"You remembered now? After you wasted your own free time to contact all your old friends from the Indy's just so you could watch a few videos and try to figure out who I am or how you knew me?" Aria asked. She watched as he nodded. "Awww Mox that's so sweet." She moved closer to Jon as she caressed the scruff on his jaw with her left hand.

Jon couldn't stop staring in her emerald orbs. They were so beautiful and sparkled in the lights of the hallway. He felt her move closer as she gently allowed her body to bump into his. Her hand was so softly. He'd imagined that every part of her body was soft; she had zero rough skin anywhere.

Aria smiled softly as she pushed up on her toes and kissed his cheek softly before dropping back down to the flat of her foot. She continued to smile sweetly up a Jon before her sweet smile turn into a devious smirk,

DANGER WILL ROBINSON! DANGER WILL ROBINSON! Jon's mind began to scream. Women don't smile nicely only to smirk so mischievously. Jon's body jerked as pain erupted in his balls and up out of his dick.

Aria dislodged her knee from Jon's junk as she backed away and watched as he slowly slid down the wall and squatted before she leaned down and hooked her index knuckle under his chin to turn his blue eyes to her. "Awww I know it stings a bit." She patronized. "It was never about you remembering the days we spent together that holiday weekend Jon. It was about the fact that you didn't even say goodbye; Sunday morning I woke up alone, cold and naked. You just left me there without so much as a Thank You for a Nice Holiday or Fuck You Very Much or Have a Nice Life. Think about that next time you wanna tumble with some willing girl." Aria turned and walked down the hallway to finish getting herself ready for Raw.

Joe walked into the locker room after having visited the trainers office. He figured Alison would've hunted him down there but nothing. As he walked in he could hear groaning and moaning; a dark eyebrow rose as he watched his stable mate walk around the locker room gingerly. "Bro what happened?"

Jon stopped in mid-step. "Is Aria part Greek brother? I mean would Alison know; they are best friends right?"

Joe's eyebrows knitted together. "I don't think Aria is Greek why buddy?" Joe was definitely curious now.

"Because she smashed my garbanzo's; I think she was trying to make Hummus." Jon stated in a growly voice as he continued over to the couch in the locker room as he sat down and placed a bag of ice on his jean covered crotch.

Joe couldn't even contain it another second as he busting out laughing. He had to lean against the door jam or he was going to fall on the floor laughing uncontrollably. "Bro I KNEW you were just asking for it!" Joe walked further into the room and sat next to Jon on the couch and laughed harder as Jon gave him the finger.

"Yea well she gave it to me in more ways than I ever imagined." Jon grumbled.

"Tell me you're not thinking about revenge. Aria is not a woman to be played with you will learn that quick." Joe warned.

Jon scoffed. "Revenge? Do I look like the type to instill revenge on someone who isn't a wrestlers? She's an innocent woman, I would never harm a woman."

Joe lifted a dark eyebrow. "Do I look stupid? Of course you are the type to instill revenge. Hello! Who cut the bottoms out of all of Colby's bags in NXT when he made fun of your wrestling tights and leather jacket? Not to mention the fact you shaved on side of his goatee and mustache as well."

Jon chuckled. "Colby's a douche he's lucky I didn't have all of his hair off his head and super glue it around his dick."

Joe chuckled. "He's a hairy fuck anyway it probably would've improved his look."

"Hairy junk? That's the key to having any woman you want? Shit why didn't anyone tell me this sooner? I'd a gone bald a long time ago. Though I don't know how sexy any woman would look with a mouth full of fur." Jon stated nonchalantly as Joe busted out laughing once more.

"Dude..."

"I know I know - no filter. I don't think I was ever born with one." Jon chuckled.

"I think you were but it just got broke along the way bro." Joe chuckled as he shook his head and tossed his friend a bottle of extra strength Excedrin.

"Eh I break a lot of shit."

Once Smackdown was over Joe didn't feel like eating so he ventured down into the hotel gym. Alison never showed up to the arena; Seth told him she had a migraine and was locked in the dark in their room in the suite. He knew it was because of the kiss; Alison could be the avoidance queen if pushed enough and apparently Joe had done just that.

Joe wracked a barbell full of weights across his shoulders as he studied the way his muscles moved and worked overtime as he did squats; working his quads and calves. He was focused on the center and core of his body staying balanced as he closed his eyes and continued squatting down and standing. The burning in his thighs told him the exercise was working properly. He couldn't wait to go home to Pensacola in the morning. He was ready for his two days off.

A familiar scent hit his nose and before he even opened his eyes he knew who was standing near him. His grey orbs opened to find Alison leaning against the wall next to the mirror; watching him but not standing in the way so he could continue moving. "So you've decided to finally come to me huh; are you done avoiding me now?"

"I wasn't avoiding..." The look that crossed Joe's face made her bite her tongue. "Okay I was avoiding you, but what you expect Joe?" She shook her head. "I haven't seen you in 9 years and when you do pop back up in my life your my boyfriends co-worker. Don't get it twisted I missed you and I couldn't have been happier to see you once again. But you kissing me was wrong on so many levels. I don't know what is going to happen between Colby and I, but I'm going to give him the courtesy of being a one man woman."

Joe growled as he wracked the bar on the work bench before he snatched the towel off the bench and wiped the sweat from his face and neck then tossed the towel over his shoulder and looked around the hotel gym; no one else was around, but he knew it needed to be a private conversation as he reached out and grabbed Alison's upper arm and guided her to the back of the gym where the shower room was. He pushed her into the room before closing and locking the door behind himself.

Joe turned and face Alison. "You're going to do that little puke the courtesy of being a one man woman? Are you fuckin kidding me? Alison he is a pile of shit he has been cheating on you since day one. When he told me he met this amazing woman and they spent the weekend we had off together I was happy for my boy I was happy he finally met someone. I didn't know it was you but then he started talking about how much his girl traveled and he didn't think it was going to work but he continued to see her. But he started hooking up with ring rats. He wanted the best of both worlds. A faithful girlfriend and a piece of ass on the side. You shouldn't even be with him. He doesn't deserve you."

"It's awfully funny how I've been on the road with you guys now for three weeks and you're just now telling me that Colby is screwing around with ring rats. Are you going to give me some proof or pictures or are you just guessing? If he doesn't deserve me than who does Joe?" Alison asked as she took in a shaky breath. "It took me a very long time to come to terms with my life and the way it turned out after my parents died. I've done nothing but push myself through college and finding the perfect job just so I could fulfill what I wanted to do in hopes that maybe my parents are watching me and approve of everything I've done. I've never took the time out to really just allow myself 3 seconds of happiness. True unbridled happiness."

"Did you know I called you." Joe asked. "After graduation - for WEEKS. I wanted to find you and beg you to marry me. I wanted all of you for the rest of my life. I wanted to give you everything. I wanted to give you me. If you want happiness now than what did we have back than Alison, because I thought that we were happy then."

"We had love. We had each other. We had everything I ever wanted but at the age of 19 it is not practical. Joe I know you feel it; I can feel it too." Alison stated as she reached up and touched his cheek. "I never stopped feeling it; not for you." Alison frowned as she stepped back from Joe. "I know you called. I got every single one of your messages; I got every message you ever sent or left for me. But I came into your life at a time where you were just getting ready to go out into the world and start a career and I knew - I KNEW if I even contacted you once you'd come looking for me rather than doing what you had to - to survive. I never stopped loving you Joe. I just had to live my life and you had to live yours. I mean who actually finds the love of their life when they are 19?"

Joe was floored to say the least. He couldn't believe she ignored all his messages, all his phone calls, his text messages; everything! She never once tried to contact him or call him back. All the women he dated since he graduated college just didn't measure up to Alison; they couldn't match anything she had from top to bottom. Her laugh, her smile, the way she would explain things she had experienced when her and Aria were on the road. The sound of her voice sent him over the edge and one thing had remained consistent in his life and that was the memories they had made together; he never stopped loving her and now he knew she never stopped loving him either.

There was still something there; there always had been.

"And Joe...I know Colby has been cheating on me. I just don't have the proof."

Stormy grey orbs watched as the mahogany beauty unlocked the door and disappeared.

If it was the last thing he did he would get proof for her.