Stephanie turned on her laptop and signed into her e-mail account. She grinned when she saw an e-mail from Chris.
Steph,
I was watching last night. Lance Storm? Couldn't you have picked someone who isn't an ass? I should know. I tagged with him in ECW. You looked good. It was different watching you in WCW. It's almost like role reversal, huh?
In other news, Hunter went out on a date last night and you would never believe who the girl was. You have three guesses. Well, they are all wrong. He went out with Jackie. They apparently had a good time. They went to dinner and they ended up bowling. What kind of first date is that? Wait, didn't we bowl on our first date? Jeff is still "heart-broken" over you. I think wary of women would be more accurate. He's definitely afraid of falling for anyone else. Can't really blame him though.
I'm pretty much bored here without you. Benoit took me to a bar last night and we got absolutely smashed. Kurt had to come pick us up. He was the only wrestler in the hotel, at least the only one picking up his phone. We convinced him he was protecting the image of the Federation. He did manage to lecture us on the dangers of drinking. The biggest danger of drinking is having to spend a miserable thirty minutes in a car with a no-neck dork by the way.
I miss you. I hope you are having a good time in WCW. If anyone gives you a hard time, let me know. I'm ready to kick anyone's ass. I'll see you in a couple days. I love you.
Chris
Stephanie leaned back in her chair and smiled. She liked how he jumped from subject to subject. She was sorry to hear he was bored. But the distance would probably keep them from getting sick of each other. She leaned forward and placed her hands over the keyboard.
Chris,
I just got your e-mail. Isn't the Internet wonderful? I love being able to turn on my laptop and seeing that I have mail from you. I watched advanced tapings of Smackdown earlier today. Your match against Kane seemed brutal. Why the hell did D-Von Dudley help you? I guess time will tell. You looked great, as always. I remember the first time I ever saw you in the ring, I was mesmerized. Not too many people have your gift, but you use it well.
I picked Lance Storm for the simple reason that he was fighting Booker T. I want to get on Booker's bad side. Lance isn't so bad and you know it. I don't like that he is so staunchly Canadian. He was about to tell me he didn't want me to be his manager because I'm an American. I reminded him that my boyfriend was Canadian and he thought it was okay for me to be his manager. He finally agreed. He doesn't seem to remember that you two were tag partners.
I'm glad to hear Hunter is dating. It's been about four months since he and I broke up. He deserves to be happy. Jackie though? I thought she was going out with one of the APA. I guess not. She always seemed very down to earth and kind to me, except when DX was beating the crap out of her. If Hunter is happy, then I am happy. It's too bad Jeff can't trust women. I hope I didn't turn him completely off of relationships. He's a great guy.
I miss you too. I wish you were here with me. I love bouncing ideas off of you. Right now I'm just kind of looking around and seeing where I can make a difference. I didn't go out and get drunk last night. I slept and dreamt of you. I did want to tell you Test was acting strangely last night, but we agreed to stay out of each other's lives. I understand why he hates me. Oh well. Sins of the past.
Speaking of the past. It is strange to think of you watching me on WCW. I remember watching you on WCW and you watching me on WWF when I first started. You're right about the role-reversal. But I think it's good. It ensures that we move slowly.
I'll see you Thursday. I have a feeling Dad will have some work for me. He pretends that he doesn't care that I'm at the WCW, but I know better. Do you mind if we spend some time with him? We'll talk about it later. I love you.
Stephanie
P.S. Kurt is not THAT bad!
Jericho smiled at her last comment. Her e-mail was rambling and endearing. He had forgotten her letters that often reminded him of stream-of-consciousness narratives. Stephanie wrote what was on her mind, when it was on her mind.
Her comment about Test acting strangely bothered him. He was glad to hear Stephanie and Test had come to some kind of truce. Jericho remembered telling Stephanie that they should let Test in on the plan when they were working on getting him to propose. Stephanie had insisted that the fewer the number of people actually involved in the plan, the better. He often wished he had never agreed.
He recalled a time he had overheard a conversation between Albert and Trish. They were talking about how obsessive-compulsive Test was in private and that his laid-back, friendly attitude was all a show. And he held grudges. Jericho shook his head and ignored that thought.
*** Two weeks later ***
"You're here!" Stephanie exclaimed as she opened her hotel room door. She flew into Jericho's arms.
"Surprise," Jericho said before kissing her.
"I've missed you so much!" Stephanie said, pulling him into the room. "I'm so sorry I couldn't get away this past weekend. I'm so glad you're here."
"Me too," Jericho agreed. "Do I get to go with you to the show tonight?"
"It's not against your contract or anything?" Stephanie asked.
"I'm fine as long as I don't get caught on camera," Jericho assured her.
"I'll make sure," Stephanie promised.
"I'll just bet you will," Jericho said. He pulled her close for another kiss. "You get ready now."
Stephanie giggled as she picked up the outfit laid out on her bed. She skipped to the bathroom and talked to him while she changed. "How did you know where I was?"
"I'm pretty good friends with your brother," Jericho said.
"How did you get the day off?" Stephanie asked.
"I told Vince that I needed to go to the doctor to get my neck checked out and the doctor ordered some rest," Jericho said.
Stephanie came out of the bathroom. "Are you alright?"
"I only said I told Vince," Jericho said.
"You wouldn't lie about something as serious as that," Stephanie said. "You don't want to cry wolf over your health in this business."
"The specialist said I was okay," Jericho said. "I just need to rest for a week. He said I bruised the bone."
"Ouch," Stephanie said, "my poor baby."
"I'll survive," Jericho said. "Get ready."
An hour later, Jericho and Stephanie walked in the arena hand-in-hand. Stephanie was excited. She wanted to introduce Jericho to her new friends and show him she was really trying to turn her life around. She wanted to have a life she would be happy to call her own.
"Stephanie!" a voice exclaimed down the hallway. Jericho and Stephanie turned to see Lance Storm rushing towards them.
"What?" Stephanie asked.
"I have the first match of the show!" Lance exclaimed. "Hello Jericho."
"Hello Storm," Jericho replied.
"I've got to go honey," Stephanie said.
"I'll go talk to Shane," Jericho said. He kissed her cheek. "Come get me when you're done."
Stephanie and Lance walked down the hall. "So you're really seeing Chris Jericho?"
"That's right," Stephanie said happily.
"I thought it was just a gag to get me to let you be my manager," Lance said.
"No," Stephanie replied. "You ready?"
"I'm always ready," Lance answered.
Jericho went to Shane's dressing room and came upon a conversation between the Boy Wonder and Test. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything," Jericho said.
"Come in Chris," Shane said.
Chris came into the room, but he noted the angry look on Test's face. "So what's up?"
"We were just finishing up some personal business," Shane said. "Test has a match to get ready for."
"Yeah," Test said, rising from his seat. "I'll talk to you later Shane."
Jericho waited until the door closed before he said, "That sounded like a threat."
"You're telling me," Shane said. "He's a little upset that he hasn't gotten a chance at the championship yet. He's convinced Stephanie has something to do with it."
"I actually wanted to talk to you about Stephanie," Jericho said.
"She seems happy here," Shane said.
"I think so too," Jericho said. "But I think she needs to be careful around Test."
"Test is my friend Chris," Shane said, "he would never do anything to hurt Stephanie."
"Shane, Test got burned bad by Stephanie," Jericho said. "A lot of people ended up hurt in that whole situation. No one came out completely unscathed. But Test never really got any kind of retribution."
"Hunter didn't get retribution after Stephanie cheated on him," Shane pointed out.
"Hunter loved Stephanie though. He just wanted all of the pain to end," Jericho said. "Test never loved Stephanie. She was a pawn."
"What about when he called the cops on Hunter for domestic violence?" Shane asked.
Jericho snorted. "That was lame. Hunter spent a night in jail and Stephanie stood by his side. Nothing happened. Test probably hated that. He'll want revenge someday."
"It's been over two years," Shane pointed out.
"Shane, Stephanie said he was acting weird when she first started," Jericho said. "She said they have some sort of truce, but it was weird."
"I'll keep an eye out," Shane promised.
"Thanks," Jericho said.
"How's Vince?" Shane asked.
"Crazy, as always," Chris replied.
"Good to hear some things never change," Shane said. "I hear he's convinced The Rock will defect."
"Any truth to the rumors?" Jericho asked.
"Are you a spy?" Shane questioned.
Jericho looked thoughtful for a moment. "Highly unlikely."
"Well, I'd still rather keep it to myself," Shane said. "It's good for business."
"I see," Jericho replied.
"Look," Shane said. "Stephanie and I really care about Vince. Can you make sure he doesn't do anything stupid? I heard Mom was going to let him move back into the house. He doesn't need to screw that up."
"Yeah yeah," Jericho said.
"Thanks man," Shane said. "We should probably start talking about less serious stuff because Stephanie is going to walk in that door any moment."
"How about them Dodgers?" Jericho quipped.
"You watch baseball?" Shane asked.
"I watch hockey," Jericho replied. "That's about it."
"That's right," Shane said. "You should think about watching football."
"No," Jericho said adamantly.
"Watching football doesn't make you any less Canadian," Shane said.
"Whatever," Jericho replied.
"You weren't even born in Canada!" Shane exclaimed. "You were born in New York and you lived there for awhile too!"
"Your point?" Jericho asked.
"You're American by birth," Shane said.
"Don't try to convince him about anything," Stephanie said as she walked into the office. "Canadian is of course better."
"That's basically it," Jericho replied.
"I see," Shane said. "Steph, you can take off early. Take your boyfriend to dinner or something. I've got a business to run."
"Okay Shane," Stephanie said. "Good night."
"Night," Shane said.
"Thanks for letting me barge in here," Jericho said. He glanced at Shane, his eyes serious.
"Sure," Shane said, nodding. He understood perfectly. Now he just needed to find someone he could trust to watch Test.
Steph,
I was watching last night. Lance Storm? Couldn't you have picked someone who isn't an ass? I should know. I tagged with him in ECW. You looked good. It was different watching you in WCW. It's almost like role reversal, huh?
In other news, Hunter went out on a date last night and you would never believe who the girl was. You have three guesses. Well, they are all wrong. He went out with Jackie. They apparently had a good time. They went to dinner and they ended up bowling. What kind of first date is that? Wait, didn't we bowl on our first date? Jeff is still "heart-broken" over you. I think wary of women would be more accurate. He's definitely afraid of falling for anyone else. Can't really blame him though.
I'm pretty much bored here without you. Benoit took me to a bar last night and we got absolutely smashed. Kurt had to come pick us up. He was the only wrestler in the hotel, at least the only one picking up his phone. We convinced him he was protecting the image of the Federation. He did manage to lecture us on the dangers of drinking. The biggest danger of drinking is having to spend a miserable thirty minutes in a car with a no-neck dork by the way.
I miss you. I hope you are having a good time in WCW. If anyone gives you a hard time, let me know. I'm ready to kick anyone's ass. I'll see you in a couple days. I love you.
Chris
Stephanie leaned back in her chair and smiled. She liked how he jumped from subject to subject. She was sorry to hear he was bored. But the distance would probably keep them from getting sick of each other. She leaned forward and placed her hands over the keyboard.
Chris,
I just got your e-mail. Isn't the Internet wonderful? I love being able to turn on my laptop and seeing that I have mail from you. I watched advanced tapings of Smackdown earlier today. Your match against Kane seemed brutal. Why the hell did D-Von Dudley help you? I guess time will tell. You looked great, as always. I remember the first time I ever saw you in the ring, I was mesmerized. Not too many people have your gift, but you use it well.
I picked Lance Storm for the simple reason that he was fighting Booker T. I want to get on Booker's bad side. Lance isn't so bad and you know it. I don't like that he is so staunchly Canadian. He was about to tell me he didn't want me to be his manager because I'm an American. I reminded him that my boyfriend was Canadian and he thought it was okay for me to be his manager. He finally agreed. He doesn't seem to remember that you two were tag partners.
I'm glad to hear Hunter is dating. It's been about four months since he and I broke up. He deserves to be happy. Jackie though? I thought she was going out with one of the APA. I guess not. She always seemed very down to earth and kind to me, except when DX was beating the crap out of her. If Hunter is happy, then I am happy. It's too bad Jeff can't trust women. I hope I didn't turn him completely off of relationships. He's a great guy.
I miss you too. I wish you were here with me. I love bouncing ideas off of you. Right now I'm just kind of looking around and seeing where I can make a difference. I didn't go out and get drunk last night. I slept and dreamt of you. I did want to tell you Test was acting strangely last night, but we agreed to stay out of each other's lives. I understand why he hates me. Oh well. Sins of the past.
Speaking of the past. It is strange to think of you watching me on WCW. I remember watching you on WCW and you watching me on WWF when I first started. You're right about the role-reversal. But I think it's good. It ensures that we move slowly.
I'll see you Thursday. I have a feeling Dad will have some work for me. He pretends that he doesn't care that I'm at the WCW, but I know better. Do you mind if we spend some time with him? We'll talk about it later. I love you.
Stephanie
P.S. Kurt is not THAT bad!
Jericho smiled at her last comment. Her e-mail was rambling and endearing. He had forgotten her letters that often reminded him of stream-of-consciousness narratives. Stephanie wrote what was on her mind, when it was on her mind.
Her comment about Test acting strangely bothered him. He was glad to hear Stephanie and Test had come to some kind of truce. Jericho remembered telling Stephanie that they should let Test in on the plan when they were working on getting him to propose. Stephanie had insisted that the fewer the number of people actually involved in the plan, the better. He often wished he had never agreed.
He recalled a time he had overheard a conversation between Albert and Trish. They were talking about how obsessive-compulsive Test was in private and that his laid-back, friendly attitude was all a show. And he held grudges. Jericho shook his head and ignored that thought.
*** Two weeks later ***
"You're here!" Stephanie exclaimed as she opened her hotel room door. She flew into Jericho's arms.
"Surprise," Jericho said before kissing her.
"I've missed you so much!" Stephanie said, pulling him into the room. "I'm so sorry I couldn't get away this past weekend. I'm so glad you're here."
"Me too," Jericho agreed. "Do I get to go with you to the show tonight?"
"It's not against your contract or anything?" Stephanie asked.
"I'm fine as long as I don't get caught on camera," Jericho assured her.
"I'll make sure," Stephanie promised.
"I'll just bet you will," Jericho said. He pulled her close for another kiss. "You get ready now."
Stephanie giggled as she picked up the outfit laid out on her bed. She skipped to the bathroom and talked to him while she changed. "How did you know where I was?"
"I'm pretty good friends with your brother," Jericho said.
"How did you get the day off?" Stephanie asked.
"I told Vince that I needed to go to the doctor to get my neck checked out and the doctor ordered some rest," Jericho said.
Stephanie came out of the bathroom. "Are you alright?"
"I only said I told Vince," Jericho said.
"You wouldn't lie about something as serious as that," Stephanie said. "You don't want to cry wolf over your health in this business."
"The specialist said I was okay," Jericho said. "I just need to rest for a week. He said I bruised the bone."
"Ouch," Stephanie said, "my poor baby."
"I'll survive," Jericho said. "Get ready."
An hour later, Jericho and Stephanie walked in the arena hand-in-hand. Stephanie was excited. She wanted to introduce Jericho to her new friends and show him she was really trying to turn her life around. She wanted to have a life she would be happy to call her own.
"Stephanie!" a voice exclaimed down the hallway. Jericho and Stephanie turned to see Lance Storm rushing towards them.
"What?" Stephanie asked.
"I have the first match of the show!" Lance exclaimed. "Hello Jericho."
"Hello Storm," Jericho replied.
"I've got to go honey," Stephanie said.
"I'll go talk to Shane," Jericho said. He kissed her cheek. "Come get me when you're done."
Stephanie and Lance walked down the hall. "So you're really seeing Chris Jericho?"
"That's right," Stephanie said happily.
"I thought it was just a gag to get me to let you be my manager," Lance said.
"No," Stephanie replied. "You ready?"
"I'm always ready," Lance answered.
Jericho went to Shane's dressing room and came upon a conversation between the Boy Wonder and Test. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything," Jericho said.
"Come in Chris," Shane said.
Chris came into the room, but he noted the angry look on Test's face. "So what's up?"
"We were just finishing up some personal business," Shane said. "Test has a match to get ready for."
"Yeah," Test said, rising from his seat. "I'll talk to you later Shane."
Jericho waited until the door closed before he said, "That sounded like a threat."
"You're telling me," Shane said. "He's a little upset that he hasn't gotten a chance at the championship yet. He's convinced Stephanie has something to do with it."
"I actually wanted to talk to you about Stephanie," Jericho said.
"She seems happy here," Shane said.
"I think so too," Jericho said. "But I think she needs to be careful around Test."
"Test is my friend Chris," Shane said, "he would never do anything to hurt Stephanie."
"Shane, Test got burned bad by Stephanie," Jericho said. "A lot of people ended up hurt in that whole situation. No one came out completely unscathed. But Test never really got any kind of retribution."
"Hunter didn't get retribution after Stephanie cheated on him," Shane pointed out.
"Hunter loved Stephanie though. He just wanted all of the pain to end," Jericho said. "Test never loved Stephanie. She was a pawn."
"What about when he called the cops on Hunter for domestic violence?" Shane asked.
Jericho snorted. "That was lame. Hunter spent a night in jail and Stephanie stood by his side. Nothing happened. Test probably hated that. He'll want revenge someday."
"It's been over two years," Shane pointed out.
"Shane, Stephanie said he was acting weird when she first started," Jericho said. "She said they have some sort of truce, but it was weird."
"I'll keep an eye out," Shane promised.
"Thanks," Jericho said.
"How's Vince?" Shane asked.
"Crazy, as always," Chris replied.
"Good to hear some things never change," Shane said. "I hear he's convinced The Rock will defect."
"Any truth to the rumors?" Jericho asked.
"Are you a spy?" Shane questioned.
Jericho looked thoughtful for a moment. "Highly unlikely."
"Well, I'd still rather keep it to myself," Shane said. "It's good for business."
"I see," Jericho replied.
"Look," Shane said. "Stephanie and I really care about Vince. Can you make sure he doesn't do anything stupid? I heard Mom was going to let him move back into the house. He doesn't need to screw that up."
"Yeah yeah," Jericho said.
"Thanks man," Shane said. "We should probably start talking about less serious stuff because Stephanie is going to walk in that door any moment."
"How about them Dodgers?" Jericho quipped.
"You watch baseball?" Shane asked.
"I watch hockey," Jericho replied. "That's about it."
"That's right," Shane said. "You should think about watching football."
"No," Jericho said adamantly.
"Watching football doesn't make you any less Canadian," Shane said.
"Whatever," Jericho replied.
"You weren't even born in Canada!" Shane exclaimed. "You were born in New York and you lived there for awhile too!"
"Your point?" Jericho asked.
"You're American by birth," Shane said.
"Don't try to convince him about anything," Stephanie said as she walked into the office. "Canadian is of course better."
"That's basically it," Jericho replied.
"I see," Shane said. "Steph, you can take off early. Take your boyfriend to dinner or something. I've got a business to run."
"Okay Shane," Stephanie said. "Good night."
"Night," Shane said.
"Thanks for letting me barge in here," Jericho said. He glanced at Shane, his eyes serious.
"Sure," Shane said, nodding. He understood perfectly. Now he just needed to find someone he could trust to watch Test.