Hey, Champ! I called when I saw Sean in the hallway at the arena the next day.

Hey, Kev, he said and gave me a big smile. He sure was happy to have the title.

I had been at the arena for a couple hours already. I was having a happy day, probably because of Hunter and Shawn and their hilarious jokes at breakfast. I wasn't worried about encountering Nathan, either.

When's your first title defense? I asked Sean.

Tonight's main event, he said, still with that smile.

I said. You're gonna win, right?

Yeah. Vince said he's planning on keeping me as the champ for at least a couple months, Sean explained.

You deserve it, I smiled at him. His own grin got bigger at my compliment.

In my head I could clearly imagine Scott standing there with us. He would tell Sean how proud he was, ruffle his hair, and crack a joke. I pushed those thoughts of Scott to the back of my mind, though. I didn't want to upset my happy mood, or Sean's.

So, who are you defending it against? I asked.

Cena gets his rematch, Sean answered.

But I'm interfering, a voice said from behind me.

As soon as I heard that voice my stomach did a strange flip, which caused my heart to start beating a little faster. It was almost as if I had a crush on the owner of the voice--Nathan Jones.

Hey, Nathan, Sean greeted him.

Tonight's your big return, I said to him as I tried to calm those strange feelings.

Nathan said with an exaggerated sigh.

Why are you interfering in Sean's match? I asked.

Payback. I was wrestling Cena when I hurt my arm, he explained.

I said as I got a good look at Nathan. He was wearing a loose-fitting pair of black jeans and a tight red muscle shirt, which was certainly doing its job. The shirt perfectly outlined the muscles in Nathan's chest and his abs.

Sean began, causing me to stop thinking about how good Nathan looked. I've got to talk to Cena about the match. I'll find you both later, he said. Then, he gave me a strange look, and walked off.

You look much better than when I saw you last, Nathan said to me.

Sorry about that, I said.

Don't apologize. You were missing the man you love, nothing wrong with that.

I smiled a thank you' and changed the subject. Are you excited about your return?

You bet. Four months of rehab isn't fun. I can't wait to get back on front of the thousands.

Are you nervous?

Not really. I'm really just excited, he said with a smile. I could tell that he was absolutely thrilled about coming back.

That's good. Have you done some training to get rid of any rust? I asked.

Yeah, I'm hoping to actually wrestle next week.

I've got a strange question, I said.



Do you actually live in Australia and fly halfway around the world twice a week?

Nathan laughed and said, No, I live here in Orlando. It's easiest to fly out of Florida when I do go back home. We laughed together for a moment before Nathan said, You live around here, too, right?

In Daytona Beach, which is an hour's drive away in good traffic, I said.

We're practically neighbors, he said, and we laughed for some odd reason.

Would you like to have dinner with me tonight? Nathan asked suddenly.

Woah! I wasn't expecting that, although it did answer my question about his sexuality. I needed to think about it. Nathan was a really nice guy. He was definitely good-looking. I already liked the way his blue eyes twinkled when he smiled or laughed. Plus, that Australian accent was to die for. But, I still felt guilty of cheating on Scott. I always promised Scott that I would love him forever. I wouldn't be showing my love very well if I went on a date with another man.

I'd understand if you didn't want to because of Scott, but I'm offering to pay, Nathan said when I didn't answer him immediately.

Sure, I'll go, I said much to my own surprise. My mouth betrayed me again! I thought about it for another second and decided that eating free food while sitting across from those eyes and listening to that accent really couldn't be that bad.

Nathan said with a smile. Meet me here after the show.

I said and he walked away to go finalize the details of his return.

*****

The clock read midnight at the fast-food restaurant when Nathan and I sat down to eat. We both had giant burgers that had ketchup, mustard, lettuce, and tomatoes sticking out between the meat and bread. We each had a big box of salty french fries and a large cup of soda.

The late dinner was actually quite wonderful. We were the only people there because of the hour, and we had a really good time. We talked about wrestling, of course. He told me about the ribs that were pulled on him as a rookie, and I told him of some that I pulled before. Nathan had several dirty, yet funny, jokes that had us both laughing until our sides hurt. We talked about sports, too. I found out that hockey isn't very popular in Australia, so Nathan knew nothing of that. However, we did have a good debate about who would make it to the World Series. Before we knew it, the clock was reading 2:00 and we decided to head home.

Shawn and Hunter had taken my car after the show, so Nathan had to drive me all the way to Daytona Beach. I felt bad about him having to drive back so late, but he insisted that it was okay. We had another good conversation in the car, but it had to end when he pulled into the driveway.

I had a really great time, Kevin, Nathan said after he shut the engine off.

So did I, I said. That crush-like feeling was returning, and I felt that we might kiss. It was a fun night, and I definitely liked Nathan, but I was by no means ready for a kiss. So, I quickly made an escape.

I never told Shawn and Hunter that I would be home late, so they're probably worried. I should get in the house before they do something stupid, I said.

Yeah, okay. I'll call you? Nathan asked.

Sure, sounds good, I said and climbed out of the car.

See ya, Nathan called.

See ya, Nathan, I said and shut the door.

When I walked into my house I saw Shawn and Hunter sitting on the couch with evil grins on their faces. It turned out that they weren't worried about me.

So, how was your date? Shawn asked.

How'd you know?

Nathan told Sean, and Sean told us, Hunter answered.

Sean said he could tell you liked Nathan, Shawn said and started laughing.

So? Can't a guy like another guy? I said defensively.

Did you kiss him? Shawn asked.

No, and what business is if of your's?

Shawn and Hunter started laughing again, so I went up to my bedroom. It wasn't too long before I heard a knock at my door and Shawn walked in.

Sorry we acted like idiots, he apologized.

It's okay, I said.

Well, I just want you to know that we are happy for you. We're glad that you're moving on and stuff.



Okay. Goodnight, Kev, he said and left my room.

I was glad that they were happy for me. The whole dating again thing was scary, and I was confused about seeing someone else when I still loved Scott so much. However, I felt happy and not guilty when I fell asleep

TBC