Title: Fully Loaded, 2000.
Author: Cathie McMath. (email: penrithpanther_03@yahoo.com.au)
Author's Note: This is my first WWE fanfic - and I'm pretty proud of it! ^_^ The only thing I need to comment on is the timeline is slightly muffled.. I know Lita and Matt began "dating" early 2001. But in this fic, they were already seeing each other during the time of this match.
Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Jeff, Lita, or any of the other WWE athletes I use in this fic. Vince McMahon does. If it were me, you could bet that Jeff and Lita would be together already! Or.. I'd just take Jeff for myself. Either way - I'd be happy!
Summary: Jeff, Lita and Matt reflect on their intergender 6 man tag team match at Fully Loaded, 2000.
Rating: PG-13. Some swearing present.
TimeLine: 2000 - Fully Loaded.
Distribution: Just email me and let me know if you'd like to have it.
***
Jeff stared at the ceiling, lying on his bed in the empty hotel room. The ceiling was a bland off-white colour, and had a few marks and stains scattered on the surface. He sighed loudly as he continued to study the ceiling. He wasn't sure how long he had been laying on his bed, just looking up at the ceiling. He had collapsed onto his bed as soon as he returned from the arena that night, and he hadn't moved since.
He sighed again. He must've been there for at least an hour. He knew this damn ceiling off by heart.
The door swung open, and Chris Jericho stumbled in.
"Hey man! You left the arena pretty early.. you feelin' okay? Those 'conquistadors' didn't beat you up that badly, did they?" A smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth as he spoke. Chris sank onto his bed, and pulled off his shoes.
Jeff rolled over onto his side, facing away from Jericho. He just wasn't in the mood to explain why he had left so early. Wasn't in the mood to tell Chris that he was dying inside, not being able to talk to Lita. Not being able to tell her the truth.
"Ah, we're in a mood, are we?" Jericho smiled, getting up from the bed and walking towards the bathroom. "Fine. I only came back to take a shower and get cleaned up. We're all going out to grab a few drinks. Wanna join us?" He asked, lingering outside the bathroom door.
Jeff sat up slowly, leaning against the pillows. "No. I just want to veg out here tonight."
Chris shrugged, and opened the bathroom door, ready to enter. But he was stopped by Jeff's voice.
"Who's 'we'?" Jeff folded his arms over his chest and looked at his friend. Jericho raised his eyebrows at the multi-colour haired young man. "Just out of curiosity." Jeff added.
The blonde cocked his head at Jeff, running his fingers through his tangled hair. "Trying to avoid someone?"
"No!" Jeff shot back, a little too quickly and with a little too much force. He cleared his throat. "I mean, no, I'm not. If it's going to be a big group, I think I'll pass. That's all."
Jericho shook his head. "There won't be a lot of us. Me, Matt, Edge and Christian, and Bubba and D'von."
Jeff frowned, and tried to sound as casual as he could when he spoke. "Lita's not going with you guys?" His green eyes locked onto Jericho, and he shook his head.
"Nope. Said she wanted to be alone for a little while. I think she's still sore from the match." He frowned, and corrected himself. "I mean, from the beating. Wasn't really much of a match, was it?"
Jeff scowled at the memory of Trish kicking Lita in the ribs, forcing her into the ring so that Albert and Test could hurt her even more. He couldn't believe that they would do this. What could they possibly have to gain from hurting Lita? "No, it wasn't."
Jericho paused, watching Jeff. "So, are you coming?"
Jeff looked up at the blonde canadian, and shook his head. "No, I'll stay here. You guys have a good time though, and try and stay out of trouble. I won't be there to save all your asses, so behave!"
Chris flashed him a wicked grin before disappearing into the bathroom. "Don't we always?"
***
Lita cuddled further into the bed covers. Tonight had not been a good night for her. Not at all.
Firstly, she was attacked by Trish. Someone she thought she could trust. Sure, on the show they were enemies. On the show they hated each other. But in real life - where it actually mattered - they were extremely close. Or at least they used to be.
She ran her hand gently over her bruised and sore ribs, and winced at the pain.
What was Trish thinking? Why would she attack her like that? For no good reason? It just didn't make any sense. Lita wasn't holding the title, so it's not as if Trish would gain an advantage for the title - because Lita didn't have it. And nothing had seemed wrong the other day when they had gone out for coffee`, so Lita couldn't have possibly said or done anything to offend her.
She thought back to their day out. They had gone shopping in the morning, splurging on new make up, and a few new outfits. And then the two divas had spent the rest of the afternoon talking in a small cafe`. God, had Trish known then that she was going to attack Lita like that? Had she been planning it while they were talking? The thought of it made Lita feel physically sick. That afternoon they had talked so much, and shared so much. Lita had even told Trish about what was going on with her and Jeff...
Jeff.
The other reason why her night had been ruined. She couldn't believe him. Months of ignoring her, months of distance between them, and all of a sudden he comes to see her, and expects everything to be okay?
Lita felt the moisture welling into her eyes. She wouldn't stop herself from crying this time. She was all alone. No one would know she'd been crying over Jeff.
It killed her inside. The way he ignored and avoided her. She kept wanting to ask him what was wrong, if she had done something to upset him.. but she never had the chance to speak to him alone anymore. As soon as she'd catch him alone, he'd make up some bullshit excuse and leave. After the first month or so, she simply gave up. He didn't want to be near her, for some reason, and she had to simply accept that and move on. Thank God she had Matt to lean on. As long as she had Matt, she'd be okay.
But if Matt was all she needed, then why was she feeling so miserable? Why was she missing Jeff so damn much it hurt? Why did she feel the urge to cry herself to sleep every night?
Lita's sobs became heavy, her whole body shaking under the covers of the hotel bed. The force of her tears so strong, that her lungs began to ache.
There was a knock at the door, and Lita sat up quickly. She wiped away the tears from her eyes, and ran her hands through her hair, trying to make herself more presentable. "Who is it?" She called through the closed door, shocked at the trembling in her voice.
"Um, Lita. It's me." A tentative voice wavered through the door. "I, uh, can I come in?"
Lita's breath caught in her throat. Jeff. Damn, she thought he'd gone out with Matt and the others. Shit, he couldn't see her looking like this. He'd know she'd been crying immediately.
She jumped out of bed, and ran to the bathroom. "Hold on a sec, Jeff." She called back. "I, um, I just stepped out of the shower. Give me a minute." Wearing only an oversized Hardys shirt, she splashed cold water onto her face. She glanced up into the bathroom mirror, and prayed the red circles around her eyes weren't extremely noticeable.
Lita stepped towards the door, her heart beating hard from the rush. She pulled open the door, and Jeff smiled weakly at her.
"Want some company?"
She turned away, leaving the door open for him to enter. She sat back down on the bed, silently thankful that the dim bedside lamp was the only light filling the room. Maybe if she just didn't look at Jeff, he wouldn't notice that she had been crying.
When Lita didn't answer him, Jeff slowly stepped into the hotel room, shutting the door behind him. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, sitting on the edge of her bed. She wasn't looking anywhere near him, simply crawling back under the bed covers.
There was a long silence.
Lita's heart was beating hard and fast. She'd always been so comfortable around Jeff before. But at that moment she'd never felt more nervous and uncomfortable in her entire life. She kept her gaze away from him, knowing that if she made the mistake of looking into his bright green eyes, he'd be able to see how much she was hurting inside. And she didn't want him to know that. She didn't want him to know how much not having him with her was hurting her.
Jeff mentally ran through all the different things he wanted to say to her, trying to find the best thing to say. There was so much that he needed to say, that he needed to tell her. He needed to say he was sorry. He needed to tell her that it had been hell for him these last few months. He needed to say he was doing it for her, and Matt. He needed to tell her that he couldn't take it anymore.
He needed to tell her that he loved her.
When Jeff couldn't take the silence any longer, he opened his mouth, not too sure of what he was going to say, but knowing that he needed to say something to her.
"Matt didn't want me to spend any time with you anymore."
From her position on the bed, covering herself with the bed covers, Lita shuffled up a little. A slight frown creasing her pretty face, she cocked her head at Jeff. "Sorry?"
Jeff licked his lips, and took in a breath. "Um, well.. I don't know where to start really--"
"Start with that."
"What?"
Lita's frown deepened. "What you just said about Matt. Explain that to me." She was sitting out of the covers now, in the middle of the bed. Jeff still sat on the edge, his feet touching the floor.
"Okay. Do you remember that day, after Fully Loaded at the hotel room?" Jeff questioned, figdeting with his coloured locks.
"You're going to have to be a bit more specific than that, Hardy. That was over three months ago." As the words left her mouth, Lita suddenly realized. Three months.. that would be about the same amount of time Jeff stopped talking to her, wouldn't it?
Jeff shifted his feet up onto the bed. "The day me and you went out for breakfast, and Matt chucked a fit at us when we got back." Lita nodded, remembering her boyfriend's outburst. Jeff continued. "Well, after you left to go back to your hotel room, I stayed and talked to Matt. Long story short - he told me to stay away from you."
"What?" Lita cried out, the frown firmly planted on her features. "That doesn't make any sense! Why would Matt say that?" She paused, and her face softened. "And why would you listen to him?"
"Matt told me to stay away from you because he could see what you couldn't."
Lita shook her head. "No, damn it! Jeff - no more of these bullshit explanations! Just tell me what happened!"
Jeff swallowed hard. He had to tell her the truth now. There was no way around it. She needed to know everything.
"I love you, Lita. I have for some time now. I don't know how or when it started. All I know is that for a long time now, you're the first thing I think about when I wake up, and the last thing I think about before I go to sleep. That's why Matt told me to stay away from you. He could see that I wanted to be with you so much." He looked at her, studying her reaction as he continued. "I don't know if he told me because he was jealous, or worried. Whatever the reason, I did it."
Jeff's words echoed through Lita's head. Love? He loved her? Not like a sister, as she thought he did. Not as a friend. But.. real, true love? She pushed that aside, knowing there was more answers to be told.
"Why did you do it, Jeff? You obviously don't .. love.. me as much as you think you do if you just obeyed him like that, and ignored me." She felt her eyes water once more. "Do you have any idea how hurt I was? That whole time.. I thought you were mad at me, or hated me. I had no idea what was happening! It was so hard, Jeff!"
"I did it because I love you. And because I love Matt. I didn't think it was fair on either of you, if I was around you all the time, pretending to be content with being your friend - when what I really wanted was to be so much more." His voice was shaking. He was terrified. How would she react? Would she scream at him, and tell him to leave? No - he wouldn't. No matter what she asked him to do, he wouldn't leave her again.
Lita looked down at the bed covers, shaking her head. "Jeff. This is so.. screwed up." Her voice was quiet, and gentle. She wasn't sure what to say, or what to think. It was so much to take in..
"Li?" Jeff called her name. She didn't look up. She could feel him move closer towards her, and then she felt his hand cupping her chin. He tilted her chin up slightly, causing her hazel eyes to lock onto his green ones. "Do you hate me?"
She felt her heart break as she looked into his eyes, and heard him speak those words. His voice was so small, so afraid. Like a child. She looked into his eyes, tears welling into her own. "God no, Jeff. I could never hate you."
Jeff felt his heart trip in his chest. She didn't hate him. She didn't hate him. He managed a small, thankful smile. Still holding her face in his hands, sitting there in her bed, an almost possessive force came over him. He breathed slowly, closing his eyes. He leant down, and pressed his lips to hers.
Lita wasn't sure what happened. She was looking up into his sparkling, green eyes, then his lips were on hers. Soft, tender lips, pressing against hers. After the initial shock, she closed her eyes too. The kiss was sweet, and gentle. Yet she prayed it would never end. All the pain she had felt just seemed to melt away in the kiss. The world around her slipped away. It was just her, and Jeff.. together.
Until she heard the voice. Angry, and betrayed.
"What the fuck is going on?"
Lita and Jeff broke apart quickly, panic rising in their chests. They turned towards the doorway to face the source of the voice, and both felt their hearts sink into their stomachs as they took in the figure standing at the door.
Matt.
Author: Cathie McMath. (email: penrithpanther_03@yahoo.com.au)
Author's Note: This is my first WWE fanfic - and I'm pretty proud of it! ^_^ The only thing I need to comment on is the timeline is slightly muffled.. I know Lita and Matt began "dating" early 2001. But in this fic, they were already seeing each other during the time of this match.
Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Jeff, Lita, or any of the other WWE athletes I use in this fic. Vince McMahon does. If it were me, you could bet that Jeff and Lita would be together already! Or.. I'd just take Jeff for myself. Either way - I'd be happy!
Summary: Jeff, Lita and Matt reflect on their intergender 6 man tag team match at Fully Loaded, 2000.
Rating: PG-13. Some swearing present.
TimeLine: 2000 - Fully Loaded.
Distribution: Just email me and let me know if you'd like to have it.
***
Jeff stared at the ceiling, lying on his bed in the empty hotel room. The ceiling was a bland off-white colour, and had a few marks and stains scattered on the surface. He sighed loudly as he continued to study the ceiling. He wasn't sure how long he had been laying on his bed, just looking up at the ceiling. He had collapsed onto his bed as soon as he returned from the arena that night, and he hadn't moved since.
He sighed again. He must've been there for at least an hour. He knew this damn ceiling off by heart.
The door swung open, and Chris Jericho stumbled in.
"Hey man! You left the arena pretty early.. you feelin' okay? Those 'conquistadors' didn't beat you up that badly, did they?" A smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth as he spoke. Chris sank onto his bed, and pulled off his shoes.
Jeff rolled over onto his side, facing away from Jericho. He just wasn't in the mood to explain why he had left so early. Wasn't in the mood to tell Chris that he was dying inside, not being able to talk to Lita. Not being able to tell her the truth.
"Ah, we're in a mood, are we?" Jericho smiled, getting up from the bed and walking towards the bathroom. "Fine. I only came back to take a shower and get cleaned up. We're all going out to grab a few drinks. Wanna join us?" He asked, lingering outside the bathroom door.
Jeff sat up slowly, leaning against the pillows. "No. I just want to veg out here tonight."
Chris shrugged, and opened the bathroom door, ready to enter. But he was stopped by Jeff's voice.
"Who's 'we'?" Jeff folded his arms over his chest and looked at his friend. Jericho raised his eyebrows at the multi-colour haired young man. "Just out of curiosity." Jeff added.
The blonde cocked his head at Jeff, running his fingers through his tangled hair. "Trying to avoid someone?"
"No!" Jeff shot back, a little too quickly and with a little too much force. He cleared his throat. "I mean, no, I'm not. If it's going to be a big group, I think I'll pass. That's all."
Jericho shook his head. "There won't be a lot of us. Me, Matt, Edge and Christian, and Bubba and D'von."
Jeff frowned, and tried to sound as casual as he could when he spoke. "Lita's not going with you guys?" His green eyes locked onto Jericho, and he shook his head.
"Nope. Said she wanted to be alone for a little while. I think she's still sore from the match." He frowned, and corrected himself. "I mean, from the beating. Wasn't really much of a match, was it?"
Jeff scowled at the memory of Trish kicking Lita in the ribs, forcing her into the ring so that Albert and Test could hurt her even more. He couldn't believe that they would do this. What could they possibly have to gain from hurting Lita? "No, it wasn't."
Jericho paused, watching Jeff. "So, are you coming?"
Jeff looked up at the blonde canadian, and shook his head. "No, I'll stay here. You guys have a good time though, and try and stay out of trouble. I won't be there to save all your asses, so behave!"
Chris flashed him a wicked grin before disappearing into the bathroom. "Don't we always?"
***
Lita cuddled further into the bed covers. Tonight had not been a good night for her. Not at all.
Firstly, she was attacked by Trish. Someone she thought she could trust. Sure, on the show they were enemies. On the show they hated each other. But in real life - where it actually mattered - they were extremely close. Or at least they used to be.
She ran her hand gently over her bruised and sore ribs, and winced at the pain.
What was Trish thinking? Why would she attack her like that? For no good reason? It just didn't make any sense. Lita wasn't holding the title, so it's not as if Trish would gain an advantage for the title - because Lita didn't have it. And nothing had seemed wrong the other day when they had gone out for coffee`, so Lita couldn't have possibly said or done anything to offend her.
She thought back to their day out. They had gone shopping in the morning, splurging on new make up, and a few new outfits. And then the two divas had spent the rest of the afternoon talking in a small cafe`. God, had Trish known then that she was going to attack Lita like that? Had she been planning it while they were talking? The thought of it made Lita feel physically sick. That afternoon they had talked so much, and shared so much. Lita had even told Trish about what was going on with her and Jeff...
Jeff.
The other reason why her night had been ruined. She couldn't believe him. Months of ignoring her, months of distance between them, and all of a sudden he comes to see her, and expects everything to be okay?
Lita felt the moisture welling into her eyes. She wouldn't stop herself from crying this time. She was all alone. No one would know she'd been crying over Jeff.
It killed her inside. The way he ignored and avoided her. She kept wanting to ask him what was wrong, if she had done something to upset him.. but she never had the chance to speak to him alone anymore. As soon as she'd catch him alone, he'd make up some bullshit excuse and leave. After the first month or so, she simply gave up. He didn't want to be near her, for some reason, and she had to simply accept that and move on. Thank God she had Matt to lean on. As long as she had Matt, she'd be okay.
But if Matt was all she needed, then why was she feeling so miserable? Why was she missing Jeff so damn much it hurt? Why did she feel the urge to cry herself to sleep every night?
Lita's sobs became heavy, her whole body shaking under the covers of the hotel bed. The force of her tears so strong, that her lungs began to ache.
There was a knock at the door, and Lita sat up quickly. She wiped away the tears from her eyes, and ran her hands through her hair, trying to make herself more presentable. "Who is it?" She called through the closed door, shocked at the trembling in her voice.
"Um, Lita. It's me." A tentative voice wavered through the door. "I, uh, can I come in?"
Lita's breath caught in her throat. Jeff. Damn, she thought he'd gone out with Matt and the others. Shit, he couldn't see her looking like this. He'd know she'd been crying immediately.
She jumped out of bed, and ran to the bathroom. "Hold on a sec, Jeff." She called back. "I, um, I just stepped out of the shower. Give me a minute." Wearing only an oversized Hardys shirt, she splashed cold water onto her face. She glanced up into the bathroom mirror, and prayed the red circles around her eyes weren't extremely noticeable.
Lita stepped towards the door, her heart beating hard from the rush. She pulled open the door, and Jeff smiled weakly at her.
"Want some company?"
She turned away, leaving the door open for him to enter. She sat back down on the bed, silently thankful that the dim bedside lamp was the only light filling the room. Maybe if she just didn't look at Jeff, he wouldn't notice that she had been crying.
When Lita didn't answer him, Jeff slowly stepped into the hotel room, shutting the door behind him. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, sitting on the edge of her bed. She wasn't looking anywhere near him, simply crawling back under the bed covers.
There was a long silence.
Lita's heart was beating hard and fast. She'd always been so comfortable around Jeff before. But at that moment she'd never felt more nervous and uncomfortable in her entire life. She kept her gaze away from him, knowing that if she made the mistake of looking into his bright green eyes, he'd be able to see how much she was hurting inside. And she didn't want him to know that. She didn't want him to know how much not having him with her was hurting her.
Jeff mentally ran through all the different things he wanted to say to her, trying to find the best thing to say. There was so much that he needed to say, that he needed to tell her. He needed to say he was sorry. He needed to tell her that it had been hell for him these last few months. He needed to say he was doing it for her, and Matt. He needed to tell her that he couldn't take it anymore.
He needed to tell her that he loved her.
When Jeff couldn't take the silence any longer, he opened his mouth, not too sure of what he was going to say, but knowing that he needed to say something to her.
"Matt didn't want me to spend any time with you anymore."
From her position on the bed, covering herself with the bed covers, Lita shuffled up a little. A slight frown creasing her pretty face, she cocked her head at Jeff. "Sorry?"
Jeff licked his lips, and took in a breath. "Um, well.. I don't know where to start really--"
"Start with that."
"What?"
Lita's frown deepened. "What you just said about Matt. Explain that to me." She was sitting out of the covers now, in the middle of the bed. Jeff still sat on the edge, his feet touching the floor.
"Okay. Do you remember that day, after Fully Loaded at the hotel room?" Jeff questioned, figdeting with his coloured locks.
"You're going to have to be a bit more specific than that, Hardy. That was over three months ago." As the words left her mouth, Lita suddenly realized. Three months.. that would be about the same amount of time Jeff stopped talking to her, wouldn't it?
Jeff shifted his feet up onto the bed. "The day me and you went out for breakfast, and Matt chucked a fit at us when we got back." Lita nodded, remembering her boyfriend's outburst. Jeff continued. "Well, after you left to go back to your hotel room, I stayed and talked to Matt. Long story short - he told me to stay away from you."
"What?" Lita cried out, the frown firmly planted on her features. "That doesn't make any sense! Why would Matt say that?" She paused, and her face softened. "And why would you listen to him?"
"Matt told me to stay away from you because he could see what you couldn't."
Lita shook her head. "No, damn it! Jeff - no more of these bullshit explanations! Just tell me what happened!"
Jeff swallowed hard. He had to tell her the truth now. There was no way around it. She needed to know everything.
"I love you, Lita. I have for some time now. I don't know how or when it started. All I know is that for a long time now, you're the first thing I think about when I wake up, and the last thing I think about before I go to sleep. That's why Matt told me to stay away from you. He could see that I wanted to be with you so much." He looked at her, studying her reaction as he continued. "I don't know if he told me because he was jealous, or worried. Whatever the reason, I did it."
Jeff's words echoed through Lita's head. Love? He loved her? Not like a sister, as she thought he did. Not as a friend. But.. real, true love? She pushed that aside, knowing there was more answers to be told.
"Why did you do it, Jeff? You obviously don't .. love.. me as much as you think you do if you just obeyed him like that, and ignored me." She felt her eyes water once more. "Do you have any idea how hurt I was? That whole time.. I thought you were mad at me, or hated me. I had no idea what was happening! It was so hard, Jeff!"
"I did it because I love you. And because I love Matt. I didn't think it was fair on either of you, if I was around you all the time, pretending to be content with being your friend - when what I really wanted was to be so much more." His voice was shaking. He was terrified. How would she react? Would she scream at him, and tell him to leave? No - he wouldn't. No matter what she asked him to do, he wouldn't leave her again.
Lita looked down at the bed covers, shaking her head. "Jeff. This is so.. screwed up." Her voice was quiet, and gentle. She wasn't sure what to say, or what to think. It was so much to take in..
"Li?" Jeff called her name. She didn't look up. She could feel him move closer towards her, and then she felt his hand cupping her chin. He tilted her chin up slightly, causing her hazel eyes to lock onto his green ones. "Do you hate me?"
She felt her heart break as she looked into his eyes, and heard him speak those words. His voice was so small, so afraid. Like a child. She looked into his eyes, tears welling into her own. "God no, Jeff. I could never hate you."
Jeff felt his heart trip in his chest. She didn't hate him. She didn't hate him. He managed a small, thankful smile. Still holding her face in his hands, sitting there in her bed, an almost possessive force came over him. He breathed slowly, closing his eyes. He leant down, and pressed his lips to hers.
Lita wasn't sure what happened. She was looking up into his sparkling, green eyes, then his lips were on hers. Soft, tender lips, pressing against hers. After the initial shock, she closed her eyes too. The kiss was sweet, and gentle. Yet she prayed it would never end. All the pain she had felt just seemed to melt away in the kiss. The world around her slipped away. It was just her, and Jeff.. together.
Until she heard the voice. Angry, and betrayed.
"What the fuck is going on?"
Lita and Jeff broke apart quickly, panic rising in their chests. They turned towards the doorway to face the source of the voice, and both felt their hearts sink into their stomachs as they took in the figure standing at the door.
Matt.