All of the people in this story are owned by Vince McMahon and the WWF.
If you would like to use my story, please ask me first.
Chapter 7: The dance
Amy sat up in bed with a jolt. She looked at the alarm clock next to her bed, 4:30 p.m. For a minute she couldn' remember how she had even gotten here. *Oh, that's right,* she thought to herself with a smile, *Matt brought me up here.* She slowly got out of bed. She felt as if someone had taken her muscles and twisted them into a pretzel. Her head was killing her! Amy reached into her purse and pulled out a bottle of aspirin. She
was surprised to find a glass of water on her bedside nightstand. Matt must have put it there. *He is so sweet,* Amy smiled to herself. She drank the glass of water, downing her pills. Amy opened her hotel room door only to find Matt standing there, smiling.
"So, we meet under better circumstances this time. I didn't really want to scream abuse," he said with a grin. She leaned against the door frame, smiling softly.
"What, no comeback. Seriously, are you feeling better?" he asked. She appreciated his concern, but she wasn't about to tell him that her muscles were killing her. *If I tell him that, he will try to get me an appointment with a massage therapist, and I'm just not in the mood for a massage today.*
"I have more energy," she said being truthful.
"Good," he said. "Do you have an appetite for food? We're headed over to the diner across the street to get a bite to eat."
"Who's 'we'?" she asked.
"Jeff, Nora, Steve, Debra, Brian, myself, Stephanie and Paul."
"Okay, I'm in. Wait a second, where are Michael and Lisa?" she said, panicking.
"They are fine, Andrew and Joanie offered to watch them for us. Come on Amy, give us some credit. We're not dunces. We can take care of them," he said, irritated.
"I'm sorry, when I didn't see them and you didn't mention them.." she trailed off.
"It's okay," Matt said. "Just have some faith in us, alright." He gently grasped her elbow and guided her down the hallway.
At the diner:
They started discussing their upcoming matches for the night.
"Alright, who are we fighting tonight? I need a recap."
Jeff looked at Amy in surprise, usually she always remembered who they're opponents were.
"Raven, Tori and William Regal."
Amy wanted to gag, "William Regal," she burst out, "I can't wait to kick his pompous.." Matt clapped a hand over Amy's mouth and looked sheepishly at Jessica, who was glaring at Amy.
"Sorry," Matt apologized to Jessica. Amy nodded her agreement. *What is wrong with me,* Amy thought. *I feel like I'm all wound up.*
"What are you on?" Matt hissed.
"Nothing," she said angrily. Amy fumbled for the bottle of aspirin in her purse. She fished it out and shoved it into Matt's hand. "It's just aspirin, that's all," she said in exasperation. Matt scanned the bottle's ingredients. "Well, there must be something in here you're allergic to, don't take it," he commanded her abruptly.
Amy's mouth dropped open, "How dare you!" she hissed angrily. "I am not a child, I am not the little sister you never had, and I would hate to think how I would be treated if I was your girlfriend!" She slammed the aspirin bottle down on the table, grabbed her purse and stalked out of the diner.
"Real smooth, big brother," Jeff said sarcastically. Matt didn't say a word. Instead he stared into his coffee.
"I feel for you man," Brian said sympathetically.
Matt wanted to kick himself. *I can't believe I just said that. Sometimes I can be bossy, but I went too far this time.*
"Well, aren't you going to go after her?" Chris demanded. Matt shook his head. "No," he said, with a sigh. He ran a hand through his hair and said, "She'd ignore me and keep going."
Leaning forward, Paul put his elbows on the table and said, "Dude, everyone knows you like her, you guys have been dancing around each other for the past 2 weeks. Just ask her out," Paul said bluntly.
"It's that obvious huh," Matt said with a small smile.
"Yes," they all said simultaneously, rolling their eyes.
"Besides, we're tired of seeing you two moping around because you won't admit your feelings to each other," Steve said honestly. Everyone turned to stare at Steve.
"What! Well, Matt started it," Steve said defensively. "Anyway, I was just being honest," Steve trailed off.
"Alright, Alright, I get the picture! I'll go talk to her," Matt said throwing his hands up in the air.
As Matt got up from the table, Austin stopped munching on his carrot stick, pointed it at Matt and demanded, "For crying out loud, ask the girl out on a date! I'm tired of seeing you guys make goo-goo eyes at each other." At that, Debra smacked Steve upside the back of his head. He stared at his wife in surprise.
"That was rude, Steven!" Debra said shocked. "Besides, if they start dating, what do you think they'll be doing anyway?" she asked him sharply.
"Aw, man then they'll never stop making goo-goo eyes at each other!" Steve said, burying his face in his hands. Everyone at the table howled with laughter.
"Well, look at it this way," Chris said, clapping Austin on the back, "you have been vital to the cause," he said with a laugh.
As Matt approached Amy's room, he nervously thought about what he was going to say to her. The lyrics from Lonestar's song, "Tell Her," floated into his mind.
*It's a good thing that Jeff played that CD over and over again,* Matt thought. He knocked on Amy's door, no answer. He knocked again, and this time the door swung open. His heart thudded in his chest. *Oh no! Amy!* his thoughts screamed as he rushed through the open doorway. That's when he saw it. He picked up a note on the bedside nightstand. He skimmed the note and frowned,
Dear Jeff,
Went shopping, be back at 6:45- in time for the match.
Love,
Amy
Matt crumpled the paper into a ball and tossed it in the waste basket. Frustrated, he ran a hand through his hair. "That does it, I'm talking to her, tonight!" he said to himself as he stormed out of her room.
At 6:45, in the locker room,
Amy quickly changed into her long sleeved, fire and ice blue top, along with matching blue pants.
"Hi," a voice quietly said. Startled, Amy jumped and slammed her locker door.
"Oh hey Nora," she said, relaxing.
"So, have you talked to Matt yet?" she asked non-chalantly.
"No," she said coldly, "and I don't plan to."
"Amy, you guys are friends, maybe more. You need to talk this out.."
Amy shook her head, "Nora, this is none of your affair, so I would appreciate it if you.."
"None of our affair! Well, you certainly have all of us involved in it. That little escapade at the diner today. If you two think that no one notices what's going on between the two of you, then you're both really dense."
With that Nora stormed out of the locker room. Amy stared after her, her mouth hanging open in surprise. She never expected Nora to be so, well, forthright.
5 minutes to curtain time, Jeff stormed over towards Amy.
"Amy," he said, raking a hand through his purple hair, "you're like a sister to me, but you crossed the line this time. This 'thing,' between you and Matt had better be taken care of. Enough is enough! This whole thing is bull. You and Matt's love life may not have originally been any of our business, but you have both made it our business."
"Okay, why are you telling me this? Nora already gave me a piece of her mind."
"That's right, and you made her cry."
Amy's eyes widened in shock, "Made her cry, she's the one the told me off."
Jeff gently put his hand on Amy's shoulders. "That's right, but Nora is a hopeless romantic at heart. She hates to see two people in love keep getting their communication wires crossed. In your case, she'd like to see you two get some wires to even cross. Amy stared at him with a 'Huh' look on her face. Jeff rolled his eyes in frustration. "She doesn't want either of you to miss the boat- because you two keep pussy-footin around each other."
Amy's eyes filled with tears. She put her arms around Jeff, unwilling to let go. "I love him Jeff!" she murmured against his chest.
He wrapped his arms around her, "I know you do babe, but tell him, not me," he said gently. She pulled away from him a bit, her eyes wet with tears.
"Hey, guys, are you set to.." Matt trailed off, taking in the scene. He felt as if everything was moving in slow motion. Amy's hands rested lightly on Jeff's upper arms, while Jeff's hands cupped Amy's elbows. "I guess so," Matt said in disgust. Turning on his heel, Matt walked briskly down the hall.
"Matt, wait up!" Amy yelled. Matt kept on going. Amy left Jeff and sprinted towards Matt, so she could keep up with his long-legged stride. Breathless, she finally caught up to him. "Matt," she said putting her hand on his arm, "It's not what you think."
"Oh, yeah, then what was It?" Matt demanded.
Amy took a deep, shaky breath and looked up into Matt's smoldering eyes. "This!" She grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him on the lips, hard! "Wow!" he breathed, staring into her cinnamon eyes.
Just then they heard Lillian announce from the ring, "The Hardy Boys and Lita!"
Jeff ran towards them, "Come on guys! We're on!"
"We'll, uh, Matt cleared his throat, "discuss this later," he said huskily. Amy smiled as he shyly threaded his fingers through hers.
As the Hardy's music ended, Kurt Angle's came on. He was followed by Terri, X-Pac and Dean. Jeff faced off against Kurt Angle. Jeff was doing good until Kurt got him in an ankle lock. Jeff cried out in pain. Matt tried to get into the ring, but the referee held him back.
"He's going to break Jeff's ankle!" Matt screamed. The referee turned and forced Kurt to release his ankle. Jeff slowly got up and elbowed Kurt in the throat. Jeff hobbled over to Matt, reaching for his outstretched hand. He managed to tag Matt's hand, and Matt practically jumped into the ring! He started pounding away on Kurt's face. X-Pac flipped into the ring and kicked Matt in the back. Matt went down.
"You human piece of slime!" Amy screamed and jumped into the ring. She clothes-lined him and put him in a sleeper hold. Terri got into the ring and grabbed her by the hair.
"Get off her," Matt yelled. He grabbed Terri and bulldogged her. Just then, they heard children's voices. Amy and Matt turned around only to see Lisa and Michael running down the ramp towards them!
"Unca Matt, Unca Jeffy, Amy," they chorused.
"No! No! Go back!" Amy screamed to them. Kurt took advantage of the situation and knocked Amy down, grabbing her ankle.
In the meantime, Stephanie came running down the ramp after the children. She had just scooped up Lisa when a fan grabbed her arm.
"Hey, sweet thing, when are you going to do a bra and panties match?"
Horrified, all Stephanie could do was stare.
"In your dreams punk," a voice snarled as a large hand closed around the guys throat.
"Sure, okay," the punk's voice squeaked.
"You okay Steph," Paul asked worriedly, putting a gentle hand on her arm.
Stephanie leaned into him, "I'm okay, thanks."
"I'll be right back, I have one thing to take care of."
Paul reached his hand into the ring and grabbed Kurt's ankle, yanking him off Amy.
"Have at it boys," Paul said non-chalantly as he headed back up the ramp towards Stephanie and the kids. The crowd screamed in delight that "Triple H" had just helped the Hardys.
Paul knelt down and scooped Lisa up into his arms, "Now, what did Uncle Paul tell you earlier?"
"Not to wun away fwom you," Lisa said seriously.
"That's right, why didn't you listen? You put yourself, Michael and Aunt Stephanie in danger."
"I'm sorry, I just wanted to see Unca Matt and Unca Jeffy," she sniffled.
"It's alright, sweetie, but no more running away, okay?" he said, looking sternly at Michael and Lisa. They both nodded. Stephanie smiled. Just hours earlier she remembered when Matt and Jeff were showing the kids around the wrestling arena, Michael and Lisa had bumped into Paul. They had both looked up at him with wide eyes. Paul had just cleared his throat, got out of their way and moved on. Stephanie recalled Lisa's question.
"Who's that big man? He looks mean."
"Oh, he's not mean," Jeff drawled, "he's a friend of ours." Stephanie also remembered her and Paul's argument over children earlier. She wanted children, he didn't. She was hoping he might change his mind now, because of Michael and Lisa. A heart wrenching sadness enveloped her because she wasn't sure if she could have children and she wasn't expecting a marriage proposal from Paul anytime soon.
Meanwhile, back in the ring,
Matt rushed over to Amy and knelt down beside her.
"You okay? He didn't break your.." Matt swallowed hard as he trailed off.
Amy shook her head, "No, but he came close." She winced as she gingerly touched her ankle. She'd have a lot of bruising later.
"I owe Paul one," Amy heard Matt mutter, "but I owe Kurt even more," he growled. Matt tagged in Jeff and grabbed a handful of spandex around Kurt's waist. Terri started to come in but Amy limped over to the edge of the ring and pushed Terri off of it. Outraged, Dean clothes-lined Amy hard, knocking her to the mat. Amy saw Matt was about to do the Twist of Fate on Kurt and Amy was not going to let Dean interfere. As Dean stepped over her, she grabbed his ankle and he fell down, hard, knocking him out cold. Amy wheezed, slowly pulling herself up. She watched intently as Jeff did the Swanton bomb onto Kurt Angle. Jeff went for the pin and got the three count. It was over!
Amy hobbled over to Jeff and enveloped him in a big hug.
"You were great Jeff! As usual, you pulled the Swanton bomb off without a hitch."
"Hey, what about me!" Matt asked, jokingly.
"You did great too," Amy said, shyly giving him a kiss on the cheek.
"Couldn't have done it without ya," Matt whispered into her ear. Amy blushed and had to stop herself from giggling like a young school girl. "Here, let's get some ice on that ankle," Matt said.
Amy put her arms around Matt and Jeff's shoulders. She expected to have them help her out of the ring, but instead she felt herself being lifted up.
"Guys, what are you.."
"We're taking you out in grand style," Jeff said, grinning.
Meanwhile,
In Stephanie's dressing room, Paul was sitting on the floor with Lisa asleep in his lap, and playing Candyland with Michael.
"Ah,ha!" Michael said triumphantly, "I landed in the gumdrop forest, and I ate it all up!"
"I can see that," Paul said with a grin. "You didn't even save me any!"
Steph looked up from some story line ideas she was writing, and smiled softly. Paul caught her watching them and he smiled at her tenderly, his eyes full of warmth. Paul got up and gently put Lisa on the love seat. "I'll be right back munchkin ," Paul said, as he ruffled Michael's hair. Michael just nodded enthusiastically and started playing with the Candyland pieces. Paul squatted down on the floor beside Stephanie. He took a deep breath. "Stephanie, when I saw that guy grab you tonight I was so afraid for you. It made me realize something- I don't want to lose you. I, I think if anything ever happened to you- you're like my whole life. I love you! Bending down on one knee, he took Stephanie's hand and kissed it. "Will you marry me?" She had long ago dropped her paperwork, and was now staring at him with tears in her eyes and a lump in her throat.
"Yes," she said softly.
Paul beamed, "Really?"
"Yes, yes!" she said excitedly, and wrapped her arms around his neck. I love you too," she whispered to him.
"What are they doing?" Lisa who had woken up during all the commotion, asked Michael.
"They're getting married."
"They're married now?"
"Yep, they do it all the time on tv."
"I don't see a ring."
"They're it is, see he's putting it on her finger now."
"Oh, otay."
Back in the Hardy's dressing room,
Amy had her foot propped up on Matt's lap, as he applied ice to her bruised ankle. Nora sat next to Jeff complimenting his moves in the ring. Matt rolled his eyes and shook his head. He could just see Jeff's head getting bigger by the minute.
*Chris was right,* Matt thought with a grin, *Nora is good at inflating his ego.* Nora and Jeff sat across from Matt and Amy. Nora rested her head on Jeff's shoulder, and said, "How do you manage to do the Swanton bomb so gracefully?"
Jeff shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think about it, I just do it. Lot's of practice is the key, I suppose."
Matt cleared his throat and Jeff looked at him sharply.
Getting the message, Jeff said, "Nora, do you want to catch a late movie or something?"
Taking the hint, Nora smiled, "I'd love to."
Amy struggled to sit up. "Okay, what's going on? I know you're trying to pull something over on me Matthew Hardy."
"What, I'm not doing anything," Matt said innocently. Amy struggled to get up, but in doing so she put weight on her ankle. She winced in pain. "Lie back," Matt said firmly yet gently. "We need to talk." Suddenly very nervous, she swallowed hard. She nodded her consent and he continued.
"I know I tend to give you advice a lot." Amy raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I try to tell you what to do a lot," he admitted. "I crossed the line today and I know that. I was bossy. I'm sorry."
"Okay, I forgive you, but only if I get to add overbearing, pushy, controlling.."
"Okay, okay, I get the picture!" Matt said.
Amy's smile fell from her face. "It also hurt me because I felt like I was a little child being scolded by my father. You said it in front of all our friends and you were very cold about it. It was humiliating." As she talked, Matt could see the hurt in her eyes.
"Yeah, I understand where you're coming from," Matt said slowly, thinking it over. "I never meant to make you feel that way. I'm so sorry I hurt you. I'm working on the bossy thing," he said sheepishly.
"For or against," she said with a grin. Matt reached over and wrapped his arm around her neck, putting her in a playful headlock. He stopped though when he felt her shoulders stiffen. "Is something wrong?" She was reluctant to tell him.
"Well," she said slowly, "when Dean slammed me onto the mat, it hurt my shoulders and now my muscles are stiff and sore."
"Turn around," Matt said. He gently started to massage her shoulders. "How's that feel?" he asked.
"Ooh, it feels great." He started to apply more pressure, kneading her stiff muscles as if they were dough. "Ooh, you have the magic touch," she said, leaning into him more. "You missed your calling."
"Nah," he said, as he breathed in the scent of peaches in her hair, "I like being considered a high flyer instead." He was sorely tempted to kiss her. Risking it, he gently kissed her on the shoulder, hoping she wouldn't really notice. Just then Lisa toddled through the door followed by Michael, Stephanie and Paul. They jumped apart, Matt's arm draped across Amy's shoulder casually.
"Did we come at a bad time?" Paul grinned mischievously.
If you would like to use my story, please ask me first.
Chapter 7: The dance
Amy sat up in bed with a jolt. She looked at the alarm clock next to her bed, 4:30 p.m. For a minute she couldn' remember how she had even gotten here. *Oh, that's right,* she thought to herself with a smile, *Matt brought me up here.* She slowly got out of bed. She felt as if someone had taken her muscles and twisted them into a pretzel. Her head was killing her! Amy reached into her purse and pulled out a bottle of aspirin. She
was surprised to find a glass of water on her bedside nightstand. Matt must have put it there. *He is so sweet,* Amy smiled to herself. She drank the glass of water, downing her pills. Amy opened her hotel room door only to find Matt standing there, smiling.
"So, we meet under better circumstances this time. I didn't really want to scream abuse," he said with a grin. She leaned against the door frame, smiling softly.
"What, no comeback. Seriously, are you feeling better?" he asked. She appreciated his concern, but she wasn't about to tell him that her muscles were killing her. *If I tell him that, he will try to get me an appointment with a massage therapist, and I'm just not in the mood for a massage today.*
"I have more energy," she said being truthful.
"Good," he said. "Do you have an appetite for food? We're headed over to the diner across the street to get a bite to eat."
"Who's 'we'?" she asked.
"Jeff, Nora, Steve, Debra, Brian, myself, Stephanie and Paul."
"Okay, I'm in. Wait a second, where are Michael and Lisa?" she said, panicking.
"They are fine, Andrew and Joanie offered to watch them for us. Come on Amy, give us some credit. We're not dunces. We can take care of them," he said, irritated.
"I'm sorry, when I didn't see them and you didn't mention them.." she trailed off.
"It's okay," Matt said. "Just have some faith in us, alright." He gently grasped her elbow and guided her down the hallway.
At the diner:
They started discussing their upcoming matches for the night.
"Alright, who are we fighting tonight? I need a recap."
Jeff looked at Amy in surprise, usually she always remembered who they're opponents were.
"Raven, Tori and William Regal."
Amy wanted to gag, "William Regal," she burst out, "I can't wait to kick his pompous.." Matt clapped a hand over Amy's mouth and looked sheepishly at Jessica, who was glaring at Amy.
"Sorry," Matt apologized to Jessica. Amy nodded her agreement. *What is wrong with me,* Amy thought. *I feel like I'm all wound up.*
"What are you on?" Matt hissed.
"Nothing," she said angrily. Amy fumbled for the bottle of aspirin in her purse. She fished it out and shoved it into Matt's hand. "It's just aspirin, that's all," she said in exasperation. Matt scanned the bottle's ingredients. "Well, there must be something in here you're allergic to, don't take it," he commanded her abruptly.
Amy's mouth dropped open, "How dare you!" she hissed angrily. "I am not a child, I am not the little sister you never had, and I would hate to think how I would be treated if I was your girlfriend!" She slammed the aspirin bottle down on the table, grabbed her purse and stalked out of the diner.
"Real smooth, big brother," Jeff said sarcastically. Matt didn't say a word. Instead he stared into his coffee.
"I feel for you man," Brian said sympathetically.
Matt wanted to kick himself. *I can't believe I just said that. Sometimes I can be bossy, but I went too far this time.*
"Well, aren't you going to go after her?" Chris demanded. Matt shook his head. "No," he said, with a sigh. He ran a hand through his hair and said, "She'd ignore me and keep going."
Leaning forward, Paul put his elbows on the table and said, "Dude, everyone knows you like her, you guys have been dancing around each other for the past 2 weeks. Just ask her out," Paul said bluntly.
"It's that obvious huh," Matt said with a small smile.
"Yes," they all said simultaneously, rolling their eyes.
"Besides, we're tired of seeing you two moping around because you won't admit your feelings to each other," Steve said honestly. Everyone turned to stare at Steve.
"What! Well, Matt started it," Steve said defensively. "Anyway, I was just being honest," Steve trailed off.
"Alright, Alright, I get the picture! I'll go talk to her," Matt said throwing his hands up in the air.
As Matt got up from the table, Austin stopped munching on his carrot stick, pointed it at Matt and demanded, "For crying out loud, ask the girl out on a date! I'm tired of seeing you guys make goo-goo eyes at each other." At that, Debra smacked Steve upside the back of his head. He stared at his wife in surprise.
"That was rude, Steven!" Debra said shocked. "Besides, if they start dating, what do you think they'll be doing anyway?" she asked him sharply.
"Aw, man then they'll never stop making goo-goo eyes at each other!" Steve said, burying his face in his hands. Everyone at the table howled with laughter.
"Well, look at it this way," Chris said, clapping Austin on the back, "you have been vital to the cause," he said with a laugh.
As Matt approached Amy's room, he nervously thought about what he was going to say to her. The lyrics from Lonestar's song, "Tell Her," floated into his mind.
*It's a good thing that Jeff played that CD over and over again,* Matt thought. He knocked on Amy's door, no answer. He knocked again, and this time the door swung open. His heart thudded in his chest. *Oh no! Amy!* his thoughts screamed as he rushed through the open doorway. That's when he saw it. He picked up a note on the bedside nightstand. He skimmed the note and frowned,
Dear Jeff,
Went shopping, be back at 6:45- in time for the match.
Love,
Amy
Matt crumpled the paper into a ball and tossed it in the waste basket. Frustrated, he ran a hand through his hair. "That does it, I'm talking to her, tonight!" he said to himself as he stormed out of her room.
At 6:45, in the locker room,
Amy quickly changed into her long sleeved, fire and ice blue top, along with matching blue pants.
"Hi," a voice quietly said. Startled, Amy jumped and slammed her locker door.
"Oh hey Nora," she said, relaxing.
"So, have you talked to Matt yet?" she asked non-chalantly.
"No," she said coldly, "and I don't plan to."
"Amy, you guys are friends, maybe more. You need to talk this out.."
Amy shook her head, "Nora, this is none of your affair, so I would appreciate it if you.."
"None of our affair! Well, you certainly have all of us involved in it. That little escapade at the diner today. If you two think that no one notices what's going on between the two of you, then you're both really dense."
With that Nora stormed out of the locker room. Amy stared after her, her mouth hanging open in surprise. She never expected Nora to be so, well, forthright.
5 minutes to curtain time, Jeff stormed over towards Amy.
"Amy," he said, raking a hand through his purple hair, "you're like a sister to me, but you crossed the line this time. This 'thing,' between you and Matt had better be taken care of. Enough is enough! This whole thing is bull. You and Matt's love life may not have originally been any of our business, but you have both made it our business."
"Okay, why are you telling me this? Nora already gave me a piece of her mind."
"That's right, and you made her cry."
Amy's eyes widened in shock, "Made her cry, she's the one the told me off."
Jeff gently put his hand on Amy's shoulders. "That's right, but Nora is a hopeless romantic at heart. She hates to see two people in love keep getting their communication wires crossed. In your case, she'd like to see you two get some wires to even cross. Amy stared at him with a 'Huh' look on her face. Jeff rolled his eyes in frustration. "She doesn't want either of you to miss the boat- because you two keep pussy-footin around each other."
Amy's eyes filled with tears. She put her arms around Jeff, unwilling to let go. "I love him Jeff!" she murmured against his chest.
He wrapped his arms around her, "I know you do babe, but tell him, not me," he said gently. She pulled away from him a bit, her eyes wet with tears.
"Hey, guys, are you set to.." Matt trailed off, taking in the scene. He felt as if everything was moving in slow motion. Amy's hands rested lightly on Jeff's upper arms, while Jeff's hands cupped Amy's elbows. "I guess so," Matt said in disgust. Turning on his heel, Matt walked briskly down the hall.
"Matt, wait up!" Amy yelled. Matt kept on going. Amy left Jeff and sprinted towards Matt, so she could keep up with his long-legged stride. Breathless, she finally caught up to him. "Matt," she said putting her hand on his arm, "It's not what you think."
"Oh, yeah, then what was It?" Matt demanded.
Amy took a deep, shaky breath and looked up into Matt's smoldering eyes. "This!" She grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him on the lips, hard! "Wow!" he breathed, staring into her cinnamon eyes.
Just then they heard Lillian announce from the ring, "The Hardy Boys and Lita!"
Jeff ran towards them, "Come on guys! We're on!"
"We'll, uh, Matt cleared his throat, "discuss this later," he said huskily. Amy smiled as he shyly threaded his fingers through hers.
As the Hardy's music ended, Kurt Angle's came on. He was followed by Terri, X-Pac and Dean. Jeff faced off against Kurt Angle. Jeff was doing good until Kurt got him in an ankle lock. Jeff cried out in pain. Matt tried to get into the ring, but the referee held him back.
"He's going to break Jeff's ankle!" Matt screamed. The referee turned and forced Kurt to release his ankle. Jeff slowly got up and elbowed Kurt in the throat. Jeff hobbled over to Matt, reaching for his outstretched hand. He managed to tag Matt's hand, and Matt practically jumped into the ring! He started pounding away on Kurt's face. X-Pac flipped into the ring and kicked Matt in the back. Matt went down.
"You human piece of slime!" Amy screamed and jumped into the ring. She clothes-lined him and put him in a sleeper hold. Terri got into the ring and grabbed her by the hair.
"Get off her," Matt yelled. He grabbed Terri and bulldogged her. Just then, they heard children's voices. Amy and Matt turned around only to see Lisa and Michael running down the ramp towards them!
"Unca Matt, Unca Jeffy, Amy," they chorused.
"No! No! Go back!" Amy screamed to them. Kurt took advantage of the situation and knocked Amy down, grabbing her ankle.
In the meantime, Stephanie came running down the ramp after the children. She had just scooped up Lisa when a fan grabbed her arm.
"Hey, sweet thing, when are you going to do a bra and panties match?"
Horrified, all Stephanie could do was stare.
"In your dreams punk," a voice snarled as a large hand closed around the guys throat.
"Sure, okay," the punk's voice squeaked.
"You okay Steph," Paul asked worriedly, putting a gentle hand on her arm.
Stephanie leaned into him, "I'm okay, thanks."
"I'll be right back, I have one thing to take care of."
Paul reached his hand into the ring and grabbed Kurt's ankle, yanking him off Amy.
"Have at it boys," Paul said non-chalantly as he headed back up the ramp towards Stephanie and the kids. The crowd screamed in delight that "Triple H" had just helped the Hardys.
Paul knelt down and scooped Lisa up into his arms, "Now, what did Uncle Paul tell you earlier?"
"Not to wun away fwom you," Lisa said seriously.
"That's right, why didn't you listen? You put yourself, Michael and Aunt Stephanie in danger."
"I'm sorry, I just wanted to see Unca Matt and Unca Jeffy," she sniffled.
"It's alright, sweetie, but no more running away, okay?" he said, looking sternly at Michael and Lisa. They both nodded. Stephanie smiled. Just hours earlier she remembered when Matt and Jeff were showing the kids around the wrestling arena, Michael and Lisa had bumped into Paul. They had both looked up at him with wide eyes. Paul had just cleared his throat, got out of their way and moved on. Stephanie recalled Lisa's question.
"Who's that big man? He looks mean."
"Oh, he's not mean," Jeff drawled, "he's a friend of ours." Stephanie also remembered her and Paul's argument over children earlier. She wanted children, he didn't. She was hoping he might change his mind now, because of Michael and Lisa. A heart wrenching sadness enveloped her because she wasn't sure if she could have children and she wasn't expecting a marriage proposal from Paul anytime soon.
Meanwhile, back in the ring,
Matt rushed over to Amy and knelt down beside her.
"You okay? He didn't break your.." Matt swallowed hard as he trailed off.
Amy shook her head, "No, but he came close." She winced as she gingerly touched her ankle. She'd have a lot of bruising later.
"I owe Paul one," Amy heard Matt mutter, "but I owe Kurt even more," he growled. Matt tagged in Jeff and grabbed a handful of spandex around Kurt's waist. Terri started to come in but Amy limped over to the edge of the ring and pushed Terri off of it. Outraged, Dean clothes-lined Amy hard, knocking her to the mat. Amy saw Matt was about to do the Twist of Fate on Kurt and Amy was not going to let Dean interfere. As Dean stepped over her, she grabbed his ankle and he fell down, hard, knocking him out cold. Amy wheezed, slowly pulling herself up. She watched intently as Jeff did the Swanton bomb onto Kurt Angle. Jeff went for the pin and got the three count. It was over!
Amy hobbled over to Jeff and enveloped him in a big hug.
"You were great Jeff! As usual, you pulled the Swanton bomb off without a hitch."
"Hey, what about me!" Matt asked, jokingly.
"You did great too," Amy said, shyly giving him a kiss on the cheek.
"Couldn't have done it without ya," Matt whispered into her ear. Amy blushed and had to stop herself from giggling like a young school girl. "Here, let's get some ice on that ankle," Matt said.
Amy put her arms around Matt and Jeff's shoulders. She expected to have them help her out of the ring, but instead she felt herself being lifted up.
"Guys, what are you.."
"We're taking you out in grand style," Jeff said, grinning.
Meanwhile,
In Stephanie's dressing room, Paul was sitting on the floor with Lisa asleep in his lap, and playing Candyland with Michael.
"Ah,ha!" Michael said triumphantly, "I landed in the gumdrop forest, and I ate it all up!"
"I can see that," Paul said with a grin. "You didn't even save me any!"
Steph looked up from some story line ideas she was writing, and smiled softly. Paul caught her watching them and he smiled at her tenderly, his eyes full of warmth. Paul got up and gently put Lisa on the love seat. "I'll be right back munchkin ," Paul said, as he ruffled Michael's hair. Michael just nodded enthusiastically and started playing with the Candyland pieces. Paul squatted down on the floor beside Stephanie. He took a deep breath. "Stephanie, when I saw that guy grab you tonight I was so afraid for you. It made me realize something- I don't want to lose you. I, I think if anything ever happened to you- you're like my whole life. I love you! Bending down on one knee, he took Stephanie's hand and kissed it. "Will you marry me?" She had long ago dropped her paperwork, and was now staring at him with tears in her eyes and a lump in her throat.
"Yes," she said softly.
Paul beamed, "Really?"
"Yes, yes!" she said excitedly, and wrapped her arms around his neck. I love you too," she whispered to him.
"What are they doing?" Lisa who had woken up during all the commotion, asked Michael.
"They're getting married."
"They're married now?"
"Yep, they do it all the time on tv."
"I don't see a ring."
"They're it is, see he's putting it on her finger now."
"Oh, otay."
Back in the Hardy's dressing room,
Amy had her foot propped up on Matt's lap, as he applied ice to her bruised ankle. Nora sat next to Jeff complimenting his moves in the ring. Matt rolled his eyes and shook his head. He could just see Jeff's head getting bigger by the minute.
*Chris was right,* Matt thought with a grin, *Nora is good at inflating his ego.* Nora and Jeff sat across from Matt and Amy. Nora rested her head on Jeff's shoulder, and said, "How do you manage to do the Swanton bomb so gracefully?"
Jeff shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think about it, I just do it. Lot's of practice is the key, I suppose."
Matt cleared his throat and Jeff looked at him sharply.
Getting the message, Jeff said, "Nora, do you want to catch a late movie or something?"
Taking the hint, Nora smiled, "I'd love to."
Amy struggled to sit up. "Okay, what's going on? I know you're trying to pull something over on me Matthew Hardy."
"What, I'm not doing anything," Matt said innocently. Amy struggled to get up, but in doing so she put weight on her ankle. She winced in pain. "Lie back," Matt said firmly yet gently. "We need to talk." Suddenly very nervous, she swallowed hard. She nodded her consent and he continued.
"I know I tend to give you advice a lot." Amy raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I try to tell you what to do a lot," he admitted. "I crossed the line today and I know that. I was bossy. I'm sorry."
"Okay, I forgive you, but only if I get to add overbearing, pushy, controlling.."
"Okay, okay, I get the picture!" Matt said.
Amy's smile fell from her face. "It also hurt me because I felt like I was a little child being scolded by my father. You said it in front of all our friends and you were very cold about it. It was humiliating." As she talked, Matt could see the hurt in her eyes.
"Yeah, I understand where you're coming from," Matt said slowly, thinking it over. "I never meant to make you feel that way. I'm so sorry I hurt you. I'm working on the bossy thing," he said sheepishly.
"For or against," she said with a grin. Matt reached over and wrapped his arm around her neck, putting her in a playful headlock. He stopped though when he felt her shoulders stiffen. "Is something wrong?" She was reluctant to tell him.
"Well," she said slowly, "when Dean slammed me onto the mat, it hurt my shoulders and now my muscles are stiff and sore."
"Turn around," Matt said. He gently started to massage her shoulders. "How's that feel?" he asked.
"Ooh, it feels great." He started to apply more pressure, kneading her stiff muscles as if they were dough. "Ooh, you have the magic touch," she said, leaning into him more. "You missed your calling."
"Nah," he said, as he breathed in the scent of peaches in her hair, "I like being considered a high flyer instead." He was sorely tempted to kiss her. Risking it, he gently kissed her on the shoulder, hoping she wouldn't really notice. Just then Lisa toddled through the door followed by Michael, Stephanie and Paul. They jumped apart, Matt's arm draped across Amy's shoulder casually.
"Did we come at a bad time?" Paul grinned mischievously.