A/N: This story is a response to a challenge from Jen at Unheard Melodies.  I'd paste the challenge, but I'm the lazy author, LOL, so just read!  Let me know if ya like it!

*Refuse to Regret*

"John, could you please turn that crap off?"

John Cena groaned in annoyance, not pleased in the least at having to hear that gripe for what had to be the fifteenth time today. He turned his head at a dangerously slow pace, eyeing the young woman next to him with disdain. He was getting sick of hearing her whining, her insolent complaints, and her insults to his music. Rolling his eyes, he gave her a bitter scoff before returning his attention to the road he was driving on.

"I've told you once, and I'll tell you again, Stacy. As long as we're in my car, we listen to *my* music," he reminded her.

Stacy snorted at his response, turning away and staring blankly out the open window, the wind whipping her hair around a bit. She didn't think her request was all that outrageous. She sighed, using her index and middle fingers to massage her temples, her head throbbing in tune with the pulsating bass of John's system. Each thump of the Jay-Z song blaring from the speakers sent a pounding sensation through her head, painfully rattling her brain.

"John, please!?" Stacy cried, clutching her forehead, a pained expression on her pretty face. "I'm getting the worst headache! This rap shit isn't even music!"

John scowled at her, practically growling as he reached for the volume knob, turning it all the way down.

"Aw, I'm sorry Stace, I forgot I left my *NSync CD in my other car!" he snarled sarcastically.

From the backseat, Randy Orton, who had been listening intently to the two bickering, laughed loudly. He wasn't as hardcore a rap fan as John, but he'd prefer his music over hearing Justin Timberlake swooning twelve year olds any day. He couldn't help but chuckle at the young man's comment. A few seconds later, he was whacked in the back of the head. He groaned jokingly, making a face at his girlfriend, Trish Stratus, who happened to be sitting beside him.

"What?" he asked innocently, rubbing the back of his head gingerly. Sometimes Trish wasn't aware of her own strength.

"Don't laugh, it's not funny," Trish warned him, her gaze softening as she eyed Stacy, who was resting her head against the window, eyes closed. "John, just keep it down, please. It's obviously giving Stay a headache."

Gripping the steering wheel so tightly he feared it would snap off in his hands, John ground his teeth together. Turning in his seat, he kept one hand on the wheel, the other reaching up to adjust his baseball cap as he eyed her in disbelief.

"Well gee, I'm sorry, I didn't know Princess over here would have such a fit over my music," he commented dryly.

He kept his gaze locked on Trish, missing the glare Stacy shot him as she lifted her head from the window..... as well as the pothole in the road just ahead. He sailed over it doing at least eighty, the tire getting caught in the hole, sending the car into the air. John quickly turned around and slammed on the breaks as it landed, sending the skidding car to a halt on the side of the deserted highway. Throwing his door open, John groaned as he hurried to the front of the car, Randy only a step behind. He lifted the hood, both men coughing a bit as smoke poured from the engine area.

"Great... just fuckin' great," John snapped, wafting the fumes away with his hands. Randy coughed again and took a step back, accidentally stepping on Stacy's foot, unaware that the leggy blonde had come up behind them, Trish standing by her side.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" he cried apologetically. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Stacy replied with a nod, her gaze traveling to Cena and his car. "That doesn't look too good."

"Yeah, no shit," John replied hastily. "I don't know what's wrong with it. Do any of y'all have a phone on you?" I need to call for help."

"Wow, I thought calling for help would below a man such as yourself, John," Stacy snickered. Though her remark came out before she had time to think, she didn't regret it. If John was going to be such a prick towards her, she saw no reason to even try getting along with him. However, she wasn't aware just how stressed the car situation was already making him, so when he responded, she was more than a little shocked.

"Do you have your fuckin' phone or not?!" he screamed, turning swiftly on his heels to glare at her. Stacy jumped a took a step back, her eyes widening at his seething tone.

"...No..." she replied almost inaudibly, lowering her head.

Sighing, John peeled his eyes off of Stacy, glancing at the other two expectantly. Randy knew the question, so he spared John the time and energy of verbalizing it by shaking his head. John tossed his arms in the air and groaned again.

"Great, just great!" he cried, distancing himself front he group. He didn't want them to be around him when he completely lost it, which he was dangerously close to doing.

"John, calm down, Randy called a few moments later, cautiously stepping up to him. "I know about as much as cars as Trish or Stacy does, so I'll tell you what. You stay here and see if you can fix it, and I'll head out for help."

John was skeptical, his gaze moving from his best friend to the bare road. The empty land stretched vastly across miles and miles of space. He knew there wouldn't be any signs of life, let alone a gas station, for at least ten miles, and he didn't want to send Randy all that way in the already blistering temperatures. Still, God only knew how long it would take for him to fix it.

"Alright, if you're sure..." he said tentatively, pausing for a moment, "... thanks a lot, man."

He graciously extended his hand and Randy nodded, shaking his hand and hurrying off... it'd take a long time to get where he was headed.

Trish remained at Stacy's side as Randy passed by, but it was only a matter of seconds after he lazily planted a kiss on her cheek that she left her friend behind, scurrying off after her boyfriend. She loved Stacy more than life itself, and John was terrific as well, but there was no way she'd be able to put up with them being at one another's throats.

"Wait, Randy, I'll come with you!" she called as she caught up with him, missing the look of disbelief, Stacy shot her.

After watching the pair disappear down the road, Stacy sighed, heading over to the grassy area by the side of the road. She cleared a spot and sat down, praying that John could figure out what was wrong. It was scorching hot, and she didn't know if she could wait long enough for Trish and Randy to find help, selfish as it sounded.

Meanwhile, John himself had returned to the car, the smoke having since cleared. A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead as he buried his head in the hood, tinkering around with the parts inside. After a good fifteen minutes of playing around, poking around at the tubes and parts inside, John took a step back, baffled. Nothing seemed to be out of place. Then again, he was no expert. He knew a bit about cars, but he was in no way experienced with them.

Noting the puzzled and frustrated look on his face, Stacy frowned, standing up. She approached him silently, not opening her mouth to speak until she had stopped next to him.

"Hey, is there anything I can do?" she questioned, her tone almost sounding meek.

John sighed, holding his tongue. She knew jack shit about cars, and that was giving her the benefit of the doubt. He reminded himself that *she* knew she couldn't help with the car, and that she was only trying to help in any other way she could. Her sweetness calmed his wracked nerves a bit, causing a very small smile to play on his lips. He turned to face her, regarding her as though she were a child... not annoying, just... innocent.

"Uh, if you want, grab me a water bottle out of the backseat?" he requested, the thought of having a drink causing him to lick his dry, parched lips.

Stacy nodded and headed off to fetch his water, which was inside a small cooler that had been placed in the backseat of the car. While she was gone, John buried himself back into the hood, resuming his search for a problem with his car. He still, for the life of him, could find a single thing wrong. It was starting to become *very* aggravating.

"John? Here you go..."

He had gotten so deeply enveloped in his task that in the minute Stacy was gone, he had forgotten about even sending her for his water in the first place. Therefore, he was very startled when she spoke... so startled, in fact, that he jumped back, in turn whacking his head off the inside of the hood. He cried out in pain, his head ringing as he stumbled away from the car.

Stacy winced as she watched him, grimacing in discomfort as he rubbed the top of his head. She slowly moved towards him, the bottles that she had snatched for herself and him in her hand, her steps tentative as she worried how he would react. She stood behind him, raising her hand as though she was planning to rest it on his back, but instead, she froze like that. Between their fighting over the music, the stress he was under over the car, and his hitting his head on the interior of the hood, Stacy worried that her gesture, though being made with good intention, would send him over the edge. He let out another pained groan, keeling over a bit as his hands still head onto his head.

Sighing, a concerned Stacy dropped her arm, her hand landing gently on the small of his back. Much as she feared, John turned and threw her arm away, mumbling something about leaving him alone. He knocked one of the bottles out of her hand, it just so happening to be the one she had already opened to take a sip of. It fell from her hand, the lid coming off and the cold water splashing all over her. Stacy dropped the bottle to the ground, still holding the other one as she screamed, the sensation of the cold water running down the front of her not exactly comforting.

"John!" she cried, taking a step away from him and shaking herself a bit, drops of water flying from her.

John turned to see what she was whining about, his eyes widening a bit as he realized what he had done. He glanced down at the ground, noting that the bottle was almost empty, and when he drew his gaze back up to Stacy, he noted that she was wearing most of it. He opened his mouth to apologize, but all that came from him was a laugh. He chuckled at her, the scene becoming quite comical to the young Superstar.

Stacy glared at him, not finding anything funny. She was drenched. As John continued to laugh, Stacy pursed her lips together, a small smirk playing on her lips as she got an idea. She twisted off the cap to John's water bottle, dropping it to the ground. She lifted the bottle up over his head and titled it, dumping all of the contents onto the unexpectant man.

John reacted much like Stacy did, jumping back and gasping as the ice cold water worked its way down his heated body. He glared at Stacy, a murderous gleam in his eyes. The blonde woman laughed at him, pointing at him mockingly. Her laughter ceased when John lunged towards her, grabbing her by the arms. Her eyes widened, and she suddenly found herself frightened as John's eyes bore holes into her. Then, John cracked up, encouraging Stacy to resume her laughter.

The two continued to laugh, despite themselves. Their eyes met as they giggled, both of them realizing just how comical their situation really was. Suddenly, John got the itch to do something that he had never before considered in all the time he'd known Stacy...

He kissed her.

Stacy's immediate reaction was to kiss him back, tossing her arms around his neck. John's body, which had cooled down considerably since having the water dumped on him, heated back up as she pressed herself against him. He groaned against her lips, pushing his tongue into her mouth and spiraling his around hers. A few moments later, he reluctantly pulled away, catching his breath, which had been sucked from him by the intensity of their passionate kiss.

He glanced down at her curiously, wondering how she'd react now that the kiss ended. He feared that she would turn away, or even worse, slap him or something like that. But instead, she smiled softly, raising herself up a bit on her toes to press another kiss to his lips. John smiled as she rested back on her feet, her beautiful brown eyes locking with his as she placed her soft hand on his cheek.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The two of them sat in the front seat of the car, John's arm wrapped around Stacy's shoulder. Despite the heat, they enjoyed the feeling of being so near each other. John had ceased his attempts to fix the car, after Stacy suggested he just give up and wait in the car with her till Trish and Randy returned.

It amazed him how drastically the day had changed. Deep down, he had always known he'd had feelings for Stacy, but he'd always shrugged them off. He couldn't be happier that the impulse to kiss her had taken over him earlier. He shifted in his seat, pulling away from her a bit as he glanced down at her, a soft smile on his lips.

"I, uh... just wanted to say that I'm sorry about how I was actin' earlier. I was pissed about you dissin' my music, but I had no right to be such a jerk," he admitted, his cheeks flushing slightly. Stacy smiled, shaking her head.

"Don't worry about it," she replied calmly. "I had my share of moments today as well. Besides... I think the bickering ended up bringing us just a little closer, don't you think?" she questioned, an amused look on her face as she kissed him once more.

John sighed contentedly, tightening his grip on her and pressing his lips to the top of her forehead. Stacy laughed softly as she rested her head on his collarbone, the irony of her day making her giggle. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a small gleam of light, the reflection of sunlight off of a key... which happened to still be in the ignition.

Raising an eyebrow curiously, she reached across John and grabbed a hold of it, biting her lip as she turned it. The car, which had supposedly been dead for hours, started, the engine revving up.

"You've *got* to be kidding me," John said, an astounded look on his face as he stared wide-eyed at the steering wheel.

The entire time he had been so bewildered, so frustrated because he couldn't find anything wrong, and that was just it... there *was* nothing wrong. Stacy laughed loudly, the priceless look on John's face providing her some very amusing entertainment. His jaw still gaping, he looked at her, and she pouted adorably, wrinkling her nose.

"Aww, I'm sorry... I guess you're mad you got out of the car so quickly."

John hesitated a moment, and then grinned.

"No, Stace, I'm not. I refuse to regret doing anything that

in the end brought me closer to you."