Panic Room.

The time has come.

"The time has come to say goodbye…" Chris sang to himself, his finger swirling shapes onto the floor.

"What are you mumbling?" Stephanie said gruffly.

"I'm just singing."

"Well stop it." She pouted, her bottom lip showing.

"You know you remind of a spoilt little five year-old who didn't get any chocolate."

"Whatever, I've a right to be grumpy if I want, it's a free country, innit?"

"Suppose so." Replied Chris, who equally pouted. "Who are you my mother?"

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Well can't sing, can't talk, what can I do?"

"Just sit quietly and wait for that door to open." She said, pointing to the entrance. " We've only got like half an hour left, deal with it."

"You know, I'm going to miss you," Chris said sarcastically. "Hunter is a very lucky guy."

"Hunter is a very lucky guy….actually, he's probably missing me like mad."

"Aren't you worried though?"

"Worried about what?" she replied, unsure over where this conversation was going.

"Oh come on, it's so obviously they are taping this."

"And?"

"Well Hunter is going to see the tapes, he's going to see us having food fights, getting close, twister, not forgetting the kiss…."

"I wasn't conscious!"

"Oh like he's going to believe that, nobody can deny after this that there is something between us, including you."

"Hunter knows me, as soon as I get out of here, Ill tell him what happened and he will see how much I hate you and…and…and..and…"

"Yes?"

"And that I would never kiss or even touch you willingly, sorry Chris but it aint gonna happen."

"Save it for Hunter princess, cause when you go out that door, your marriage is over."

"Once again, your talking out your arse, your pathetic, getting a kick out of TRYING to make my life miserable, you need desperately need to get a life, even a psychatictrist cause this is just obsessive, you just not right in the head."

"Is that what you truly think?" asked Chris.

"Yep, that's exactly what I think, being here just proved it."

"I'm sure your change your mind."

"God, you've got a big head, I will never change my mind, N…E…V…E…R, Never!" Stephanie shouted. "Now leave me alone!"

"Stephanie is going crazy….. Stephanie is going crazy… Stephanie is going crazy." Chris said, saying like a song as he laughed to himself.

"At least I don't talk to a piece of chalk." muttered Steph, under her breath.

"What did you say?" said Chris, his entirely face perking up, a strange look on his face as he began to process the information in his head.

"Nothing, I didn't say anything." She replied, defensively.

"Wait a minute…." Chris stared a Stephanie, a weird expression on his face as he began to come to a conclusion…

"Why are you are looking at me like that?" She said, a worried expression on her face. Chris didn't look angry, she'd seen that expression many a time, it was weird, he almost look possessed….

"I was talking to chalky last night…" Chris said, he crawled over to Stephanie on all fours, and sat beside her. Like an animal, he stared at her face menacingly.

"Chris…you're scaring me." She said quietly as Chris face' leaned all so close they were nearly touching.

"You were totally and utterly conscious weren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." She stammered, watching his face.

"Yes you do…of course you do….it was only last night after all….I was talking to chalky after you supposedly went to asleep, how would you know about him if you were asleep?"

"I don't know…I just guessed." But her words were not very convincing, even to her.

"You heard me talking about you, saying that stuff about how I might be attracted to you, how I wanted you….and then I went to sleep and you came over, pretended to be sleepwalking and you lay on top of me and you kissed me…"

Stephanie was about to protest, but Chris just put a finger to her lips and smirked in an evil fashion. "And the whole time, you knew exactly what you were doing." He laughed. "Now what were saying about, not wanting to kiss or even touch me?…I think you've kinda ruined that point."

Stephanie didn't what to say, Chris' little outburst and discovery had come so suddenly she didn't know how to deal with it.

"Oh my God, I think I've finally silenced Stephanie McMahon!" Chris happily proclaimed, jumping around the room. "If that isn't my greatest achievement, I don't know what is!" He cheered. "So my little slut, what have you got to say for yourself? Wanted a piece of me did ya? My 'pretty' exterior getting too much for you?"

"Shut up."

"Come on Steph, you do owe me an explanation? It's okay, you can admit it, I don't mind."

"Admit what?"

"That you love me, that you want me…" Chris sang again.

"Big deal, so I came over, we made out for a while, it doesn't mean anything and it didn't mean everything to me either, I was bored and I wanted some fun and by the way you were talking to chalky, I thought you wanted to do it too, I mean you didn't exactly throw me off."

"I can live with that, in fact I want to make it clear to everyone who happens to be listening out there, including Hunter." Chris said, adding the last point directing at Stephanie who flinched at his words. "YOU CAME ON TO ME FIRST, STEPHANIE MCMAHON CAME ON TO ME FIRST!"

"Get over it Chris…when I was kissing you, I was imagining it to be Hunter."

"Wait a sec…did anything happen between us? Did we have sex?"

"No we did not, I would never take it that far, you were half asleep anyway, we made out for a while and then you practically fell asleep on top of me, I tried to get out but you had me kinda trapped….don't I regret that." She explained. "Happy now? Happy you figured it all out."

Chris slumped back down against the wall, a dopey smile on his face. "Yeah, everything's been wrapped up nicely and of course the extra bonus that your marriage is over, he it wasn't over before now, its definitely over now."

Stephanie couldn't deny that. She had just admitted cheating on her husband, Hunter wouldn't stand for that especially when it was with Chris. She sighed loudly, accepting the evitable.

"In consolation, I do have the embarrassment of you overhearing what I said to chalky."

She laughed, remembering his words. "It was kind of sweet, actually, though it was terribly hard trying to stop myself laughing."

"Yeah, that definitely was one of my insane moments."

"Can't judge you, we've all had them in here."

Chris stood up and looked around. "It looks so different with the paintings, the hell one is kind of freaking me out though, imagine that on all the walls, the devil looks like it's following me."

Chris walked over to the sundial by the window and after staring at it for several moments, he gasped in happiness.

"Oh my God."

"What?" asked Stephanie sitting up.

""We've got ten minutes left."

"Really?"

"Yep, it's definitely ten to 12."

"Thank God." Laughed Stephanie. "This is gonna be the longest ten minutes of our lives."

Forgetting there past differences for that brief moment, they sprang and jumped around happily, eventually hugging quickly as they shared their excitement.

This nightmare stay was nearly over….but a question began to form in her mind as the final minutes ticked by…Had Hunter seen the show? Did she still have a marriage?

Chris and Stephanie waited anxiously by the door, the sundial read 12 o'clock, now they were just waiting. Whilst Chris was just begging to get out, Stephanie was half nervous. She didn't know what Hunter had been thinking over the last 24hrs, in the panic room she was safe, she was innocent and now she was going to have face reality and potentially the consequences of her actions…

Chris heart froze as the sound of footsteps could be heard approaching the door, more and more light splintered through as for the first time in 24 hours the door began to slide open, ever so slowly….

"Oh come on, get me out of here!" Shouted Chris as he practically pulled the door open. When the outside world could been seen, Chris raced outside, cursing several times that he was free.

Chris leapt upon Shane McMahon who stood by the door,, he hugged him wildly.

"Happy to be out then?"

"Like hell, man, that my friend." He shouted pointing to the room. "Is worse than any wrestling match."

"So what about you and Steph?" Shane asked.

"What that bottom-feeding, trashbag, 2 cent, ho?" Chris laughed.

"No change then."

"I don't what you were trying to get us to do or feel in that room, but whatever it was it hasn't worked, now if you don't mind I feel like going to a bar and getting the last 24hrs back!" cheered Chris. "Does anyone know where to get out of here?" He asked to the people who were standing around. "Hold on mate, you can't go just yet." Said Shane. Chris sat down grudgingly on a sofa although it felt good to be sitting on something soft again, he cheered up of course when someone handed him a beer.

Shane smiled as he saw his sister come out and hugged her warmly.

"I just spoke to Chris."

"I know, I saw."

"Was it really that terrible?"

"Man, you don't want to know." Joked Stephanie. "I'm just glad to be out." She looked past Shane and around the large warehouse. Shane knew exactly whom she was looking for.

"Hunter is waiting outside, he wanted to give you a moment."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"What?"

"Was what happened in the Panic Room being taped? Were there cameras in there?"

Shane was silent for a moment and then very bluntly he replied. "Yes."

"Did you watch it?"

"A bit." He said but Stephanie predicted that he was just being nice.

"Did Hunter watch it?"

"I don't know." Replied Shane.

"Shane, tell me the truth."

"I swear, I don't know, he didn't watch it with me, I tell you that."

"Where is waiting?"

"He's got a limo outside."

"Ok." She said nervously, looking past her brother to the exit.

"Steph….don't worry….you did well."

Depends what you mean by well, thought Stephanie as she walked past Shane towards the exit to see Hunter….

"Hello gorgeous." Declared Hunter as Stephanie walked out of the warehouse.

She warily came towards him as he planted a big kiss on her and wrapped his arms around him, although when he continued to hold her, her nervousness seemed to go away, very slightly.

"I should never have let you go in there." he said.

Oh, here we go, thought Stephanie. This was the moment she had been dreading.

"It must have been horrible, being stuck in there with him, but it's ok cause you didn't quit and you got $500,000!"

"You didn't see it?"

"No, not really, I saw a bit when you were painting this morning, but I didn't want to see it, knowing you were in there and I couldn't see you."

"So you still love me then?" She asked hopefully.

"Of course I do, I love you more than ever and I'm so proud of you." Hunter smiled.

Although a part of her felt a little guilty, she was just so relived that everything was going to be back to normal that she just silenced that part and hoped that she would never have to think about the Panic Room again….things were better left unsaid and things were better left unknown.

"Awwww…reunited at last." Smirked Chris as he walked past the happy couple. Stephanie grew scared, hoping desperately that Chris wouldn't say anything about what happened in there.

"Hunter, I'm very sorry but there's something you don't know…" laughed Chris.

Oh my God, oh my god, thought Stephanie. Please don't say it, please don't say it.

"Stephanie lost the painting competition, they seemed to prefer my devil better so you've only got $490,000, I'm afraid." He smirked.

Steph's heart returned beating to normal as she realised he meant no harm.

"Get lost Chris, I think Steph seen and heard enough of you for a lifetime." Hunter threatened.

"Don't worry, I'm out of here, that was a experience I DO want to forget, goodbye Hunter, goodbye Steph." Chris said.

"Goodbye Chris." Stephanie mouthed as she watched Chris climb into the back of a limo, she caught his glance and for a brief moment, they stared at each-other, each sensing that they wanted to say more, but what could they say? The only word was goodbye but she wanted something more, but she wasn't sure what….

It was too late though as Chris broke the moment and submerged into the limo as it drove away from the warehouse…

"Come on Steph, let's get back, I've got a surprise for you at home."

"Your not suppose to tell me, else it's not a surprise!" Steph joked.

"Well wait till you see what it is." Said Hunter as he kissed her once more. She had her husband back, her life was perfect again but why was she still thinking of Chris…

To be Continued……