Pairings thus far: Minor mentionings of reluctant (ended) Miz/OCs(f), a one-time consensual (ended) Miz/OC(m), Miz is growing more attached to Morrison, Shannon Moore has a girlfriend, one really small mention of (ended) Matt/Lita, (ended) Morrison/Melina, and abusive yet questionable content between both of Miz's personas
Once again, I apologize for not updating this in a while. My excuse this time for not updating? Well, let's just say that the teachers weren't lying when they said that Senior Year was going to be busy as hell. D: That, and I also have been busy getting information for a college that I received a $16,000 grant for in the mail. :D And lastly to that, I have a job interview Tuesday. So yeah...I've been a bit busy lately. XD But now, I'm going to attempt to get this chapter written so I can keep this going because I actually intend on finishing it at some point in time...even though I'm only about half-way through this story. XD Hope you guys enjoy!
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A rented, gray Toyota RAV4 about ten miles from its destination in Cleveland, Ohio, just a few days from Christmas, 2008
Boy, how time sees to just fly on by, huh? It only seemed like last week that the creatures inhabiting the planet known as the humans were celebrating the New Year with festive activities and parties all across the globe. But now these same creatures were looking at things with a slightly calmer approach as young adults from all over were taking time away from work to travel towards the state of their upbringing for a little family time. Everybody needs a little time off; even Mike Mizanin. And also The Miz.
"This is total bullshit, Mike. You and I should be on the road towards our next event; not to your mommy's house!"
"Look, we've worked our asses off this year; don't you think we could use a least a little time off? I mean, John's doing that right now in California, is he not?"
"Yeah, but John isn't visiting his mother; he's visiting a tramp that he's officially taken back about two thousand times now."
"Well, for one, I'm pretty sure it hasn't been that many times yet; this has actually just been his third time doing that. Secondly, that's not my problem. And, lastly, I don't exactly have a significant other that I can cuddle up in front of a toasty fire with. My mom's been there for me through thick and thin; what kind of son would I be to just completely forget about her and not even bother coming for Christmas? I already feel bad enough missing out on Christmas last year!"
"First off, that's pretty sad that you're actually keeping track with that bullshit. Secondly, yes it is your problem and thirdly, that's actually why it's your problem. And as for your mother, that bitch is obviously not there for you if you can't even trust her with your darkest secrets."
"Fuck off, dude; that's my mother you're talking about!"
"And so you won't comment on anything else, I see. Interesting..."
As hard as it was to concentrate with The Miz babbling on and on about everything possibly negative in Michael's life, the young man tried his hardest to keep his mind primarily on driving and his eyes glued to the thousand upon thousands of white ice crystals lying ahead of him for miles to come. Ohio had gotten a good amount of snow this time around, but not enough to hold people back in their homes. There had been families driving together in town, children running all over the neighborhoods, and couples, young and old, walking hand-in-hand in the street together with their large coats and gloves keeping them warm. Mike couldn't held but smile the few times that he had been stopped by a red traffic light and sat back in his car seat, watching how much his fellow Clevelanders took pleasure in starting snow ball fights with each other, building snowmen, and rolling around in the snow, forming snow angels.
"All of this happiness and joy makes me want to upchuck, bro."
After a while of admiring the beautiful city of his youth, Mike finally managed to come across a "Parma: 5 Miles Left" sign and flipped his turn signal on. Seeing that he was already going reasonably slow since the roads were icy, Michael just turned the steering wheel and made his turn, proceeding onward to Parma at almost 35 miles per hour. As excited as Michael was to be visiting his beloved family who had raised him to be the man he was today, he didn't want to zip through the neighborhood like a race car driver and end up sliding so badly that he crashed into a building or worse; somebody's house or even his own family's. Not to mention the expenses he'd have to pay on the rented Toyota. "Eh, the car could use a few tweaks here and there, like a heater and radio...not to mention that this thing guzzles gas like a battle tank, but I'd rather make payments on my own car instead of a dealer-owned 2006 Toyota RAV4. I know, I know; I can be a bit stingy with my pocket change sometimes."
Even though he knew very well that it would only take just a few minutes if even that to get to his mother's house, Michael began to become rather anxious but excited at the same time. Would his folks like the gifts he had bought for them? Who all besides his mother and Roger would be waiting for him? Were any of his old friends in town? Would this crappy car even have enough gas to make it to his old house, which was only a down the street?
Fortunately, the answers to these questions were revealed in under two minutes once Michael actually found the house and slowly pulled into the driveway, next to two other vehicles. The young man pushed the lever into 'park' and turned the key, shutting off the motor. Before the professional wrestler could even exit his rented vehicle, he could see his 19 year-old step-sister, Tonia, appearing from the front door of the house and waving at him. Mike waved back at her and proceeded in exiting the vehicle while the young woman turned around, facing the inside of the household. She used both of her hands to cup over her mouth and shouted, "Hey, Mikey's here! He's here!"
Michael slammed the car door shut and turned in just enough time to realize that the brunette was now charging towards him with open arms. "Mikeeeeey!" Suddenly before Michael knew it, his sister was now hanging off his shoulders, arms tightly wrapped around his neck, head placed on his right shoulder, and the woman's legs waving in the air, feet kicking Mike's sides a few times. "Hiya, big brother! Long time no see!" The 28 year-old wrapped his arms around the woman's waist to assure she wouldn't fall on her ass, luckily having enough strength not to tip the both of them over.
"Hey sis...nice to see you, too."
"So whatcha been up to?"
"Well...traveling the world, making money, getting kicked by men other than my own half-sister-quit kicking me!"
"Awww, what's the matter? You can handle being manhandled by other men, but you wince in pain when your little sissy kicks you?"
"Haha, very funny, Toni."
Toni giggled heartfully and finally let go of the often wounded young man, getting herself back onto her feet. "So you decided to be the good brother this year instead of Jimmy, huh?" Michael smiled a caring smile and shrugged. "Ehh...what kind of brother would I be to you if I didn't show up for the Holy Man's birthday, right?" Tonia crossed her arms and tilted her head.
"Well I figured that you wouldn't show up like last year, considering what your profession is and all. But, you managed to once again prove me wrong. Jimmy, on the other hand, couldn't get time off from his boss."
"Is he still working for Mr. Whatshisface over at AM Trust?
"Mr. Burns?"
"Yeah, that guy."
"Yep, and Burns is still the same asshole he was last time you visited."
"You mean Mister "Get back to work doing MY work or your ass is canned and stuffed down the shitter" Burns?"
Toni laughed and confirmed this while and unknown man stepped outside and wrapped his arms around the young woman. "Hey-whoa! I didn't see you there, Tom." The man chuckled and gave Toni a big kiss on her cheek, causing Mike to cross his arms and raise his eyebrow, grinning an amused expression. "Well looky here; looks like Toni's snagged herself a man, I see!" Mike's sister turned her head to return the man's kiss upon his lips and then the couple both turned to face Michael Mizanin.
"Mikey, this is Tom." She then turned to face Tom and said in the same tone, "Tom, this is my step-brother, Michael." Tom smiled and held his hand out to Michael, having it grabbed respectfully and shaken by the man in question. "Nice to meet you finally, Mike. Toni's told me so much about you and I honestly didn't believe her at first when she said that you were The Miz from WWE. But...shit was I wrong!"
Mike chuckled and responded with, "Nope, my sis wasn't lying, bro. I'm that totally awesome, super talented legend that's on TV every week." Toni rolled her eyes and playfully slapped Mike in the arm. "Bullshit, you only wish you were!" Mike let go of Tom's hand and pulled his jacket collar up, closing his eyes and flashing his signature 'cocky bastard' grin. "Ah, silly sister; if Chuck Norris cannot hurt me, what makes you think you can?"
Toni bit her lower lip, trying not to smile and shook her head. "You're too damn good at that, Mikey." Mike opened his eyes and gave her a genuine smile and tapped her shoulder. "Acting classes are the best, right?" After a few minutes of being outside, the three adults began to shiver and realize that being outside in the snow for too long can cause serious illness, thus leading to them entering the old house.
Mike's mother was cooking a nice dinner for the company in her household while his step-father, Roger, was finishing up the last few Christmas cards he had forgotten to send out to his aging relatives. Of course, this was put off until later once again whenever he noticed his step-son walking through the front door of his house. The middle-aged man had gotten up from his recliner chair and greeted Michael with kind words and a hug. "'Ey, Mikey. How's it going, champ? And, if I recall correctly, calling you 'champ' would be very accurate, wouldn't it?" Mike couldn't help but let a huge smile come across his face as he let go of the oldish man and patted his back, greeting him politely with equally kind words.
"So my parents do still watch wrestling...sweet"
"Dude, just because you won the other set of tag belts now doesn't mean that your family is necessarily proud of you. I mean, you're kind of a disgraceful son once you think about it...performing moves the incorrect way just to keep people from getting hurt and acting like a total tool every week..."
"Gee, thanks for ruining my moment there, Miz."
"Anytime, buddy."
The day progressed as the family all caught up with old times and the like of everything that's happened within the past year. Mike told a couple stories about being on the road, Toni talked about how her and Tom had met, Roger talked about his retirement plan that would be put into full effect within the next year or two and Mike's mother discussed holiday spirit and the nerve of some of the Wal-Mart shoppers. All in all, it was almost like Michael was a teenager again except Toni wasn't dating the school bad boy anymore. "God did Roger throw a fit over that Brad Rizzo! That kid was no good from the get-go...little punk from New York who thought he was hot shit just because he started smoking cigarettes when he was ten..." Well, also there was the fact that Mike felt the need to act brotherly towards Tom to compensate for the fact that his step-brother, Jimmy wasn't home. So it was needless to say that Tom probably felt very at home whenever his girlfriend's brother would randomly put him in a headlock and tackle him to the floor.
But still, by the end of the first day, everybody had gotten a bit tired out from all of the fun and ruckus and headed on to bed. Toni and Tom had rented a hotel room a few miles away in town since her old bedroom was too small to accompany the both of them and Michael stayed in his old bedroom. It was such an odd feeling stepping into his old bedroom again; nothing had changed whatsoever! His Def Leppard posters were in the exact same spots they had been growing up, his crappy old television set was still in it's spot against the wall, his dresser was still there-hell, even his only Nirvana poster was still on his closet door (as much as he didn't want to admit it, Michael thought Kurt Cobain was amazingly hott whenever he was a teenager). Everything was where it was whenever he moved out...boy did the nostalgia ensue!
"I don't really give a shit about your old memories, Mike. So...how about you just shut up about the 'good ol' days'?"
"Well of course you won't like hearing about it; you didn't come until my college years..."
"Even then, your memories that have formed before my existence are of no importance to me whatsoever."
"Only because they have nothing to do with you."
"Exactly!"
Yes, the visit was fine, relaxing, and just everything Michael needed...but that didn't mean that there weren't any points where Mike couldn't help but feel in blue funk. The worst moment of melancholy came on Christmas Eve whenever everybody had been asleep except for The Demon of Desire himself...who, needless to say, was in a mood that was far from Miz's cocky and perverted outlook. You know how when the streams running through a dam are flowing steadily and then, in a sudden disaster, the dam starts to show it's cracks and the levees slowly begin go come undone before finally exploding? Let's say that Michael was in the stage where the levees were showing signs of cracking at this moment. And, in the utmost predicable event of all time, The Miz made matters far worse than how it should've been.
"Whine, whine, whine-cry, cry, cry, bitch, bitch, fucking bitch! Do you ever do anything else other than feel sorry for yourself? I swear, you're like the Hamlet of professional wrestling!"
"I know, I know; it's pathetic to feel so down so often...but I honestly can't help it. Just because you make me out to be a careless bastard doesn't mean I actually am."
"Well maybe if you were just a little bit careless, you wouldn't be feeling so goddamn shitty all the time."
After successfully smuggling gifts from his car and into the house where they laid beside the other Christmas gifts under the tree, Michael heaved a deep sigh and took a seat in his step-father's recliner chair which sat in front of the fireplace. After feeling the cold breeze of the room hitting against his bare arms, he finally gave up trying to rough it and pulled some starter logs from out of the floor cabinet and used them to start a slowly building fire. After taking a seat back in the chair, that was when the depression started to kick in. And it only got worse the more and more he thought over the random things crashing against his membrane's walls.
The sky blue eyes of the young athlete shimmered in the dancing flames like two diamonds waiting to be dug from the Earth. They've always said that fire was symbolic for power and enthusiasm, but one's always had to remember that the element still leaves a lynching burn in your skin. Sometimes...maybe a burn was very much needed on the human skin. A tragically brutal wake-up call to say the least, but it was just harmless enough to keep you alive, but harmful enough to kill you just a little bit. Perhaps a little death was more necessary than a huge life to live?
"Ugh, for the love of-To be or not to be: that is the questi-"
"Oh shut up, asshole. It's your fault that I have to go through shit like this all the time."
"My fault? Really? Really? This isn't even my body; it's yours. Why don't YOU find some therapy for YOUR body?"
"Because you won't let me..."
"Ahh...so you do listen to me, after all."
"You ruin everything..." Mike's voice came out in harsh, uneasy whispers as he could feel his forehead slowly grow colder and his eyesight hazing out to such clouded vision that it resembled television static. "You really want to question me, son?" Whenever a sudden feeling of nausea began to sink in, Mike slowly lifted himself from the chair and began to walk so slowly that limping would've been faster. He placed his right palm gently against his forehead and tried as hard as he could to breathe in as many easy breaths as he could. Mike's bare hands began to shake nervously as he closed his eyes and tried to make his way into his bedroom. "Well then...I'll give you something to fucking think about!"
Unfortunately...he didn't quite make it and he awoke on the living room floor on Christmas morning at 12:05 A.M to his stepfather patting his back while lying on his side.
"Is he alright? Do I need to call 911?"
"What the fuck is the matter with him tonight?"
"Answer my question, Roger!"
"Fuck woman-I don't know either! I haven't exactly ever been put in a situation like this where-"
"Oh my god, he's waking up! Oh thank god..."
Michael's eyes popped open and he struggled to catch his first few breaths as he slowly gathered that he was once again in a position that he had promised himself he'd never be in again. "My baby...oh my-Mikey, are you okay?" Roger's mouth widened and he patted the fallen man's shoulder. "Sport...son?" Michael couldn't answer at the moment...nor did he really want to answer.
"Son...?" He had done it again; he had managed to cause a stir in the room without even realizing what he had done. First he had upset John, now his own family...could Michael be safe anywhere for just one night without Miz destroying him limb by limb? And if that weren't bad enough, it had turned out that Miz had done a lot more than just give the owner of the body a seizure; he had also broken both of the front windows of the house, used a present from under the tree to extinguish the fireplace, flipped the recliner chair over, and dug deep, bloody gashs into Mike's left thigh.
The lachrymose eyes of Mike Mizanin contained such a tale that nobody could even begin to comprehend...not even he could. Later in the day once the side effects of his fainting had worn off, Michael was forced to lie to his parents as well as his sister and tell them that he was sleepwalking and had just gotten to carried away in his dreams. His mother made him swear that he'd see a doctor...but it was tragic to say that he never did. Did it break his heart to lie to his parents like this? Absolutely, but how could he possibly explain any of this to the bunch?
It wasn't enough that he had to faint in his childhood home as his depression which had been present before his falling had returned from the shameful depths of his being. What was this feeling existent for, you ask? If Michael had the slightest idea himself as to why he felt so horrid, there'd be an answer to that question. Many possible things could've contributed to it, but why would it even matter in trying to figure it out? Even if he had figured it all out, what makes him think he'd ever actually recover from what has happened?
Whenever Christmas had officially ended, Michael hit the road once again to earn his livings on television week by week. Yeah, some may think that money is the source of everyone's happiness and all problems will be solved, but that wasn't the case at all here. This had been the second time Michael passed out among company...but only another addition to the countless times he would fall in his lifetime. This was only a foreshadow of how the rest of Michael's private life would turn out to be, for while everybody had gone home with their most prized wishes from Santa being granted, Mike was the one who would never have his Christmas wish granted for as long as he lived on this Earth. What that wish was...well...it was nothing more than to just have a little time to breathe in silent armistice.
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Man, am I tired...you can probably tell by the end of this chapter that I was probably losing a bit of energy. XD So anyway, I hope you enjoyed this and I'm sorry for taking so long to update! And I humbly thank Salem Dae, Bourtonfreak13, booxradley for reviewing! :D