Disclaimer: Again I own nothing. Thanks for the reviewers, special thanks
to my Fallen Angel Manda for her touching review – I love u girlie!! This
chapter was conceived before the whole Kane-Lita thing came about on TV and
is set on the night of the most recent brand lottery. Hope u'all enjoy it
DON'T TOUCH ME
The atmosphere backstage was frigid and lukewarm at the same time. Some people were pleased to have Smackdown superstars on Raw; others were furious and cold in their anger. Some just stayed quiet and watched from the cracked open locker room doors. It was a different uneasy kind of enemy, the enemy within having to become allies against former friends.
Matt Hardy wasn't bothered by any of it. He had enough problems with people already on Raw. Particularly his ex-girlfriend who still passed him with scorn in the corridors. Now as he sat watching the mixed brand superstars go past in their blue and red t-shirts, he felt a pang of regret. He needed to make things right with her, before other people came in and stole her heart. Having just finished his match against Jericho and still aching all over from it, he began to walk through the corridors. He wasn't looking where he was going, he was staring at his sore hand and as a result, he banged smack into somebody coming the other way. Someone with red hair that glowed as though it was on fire and an expression that could melt a glacier.
Lita
"Sorry" he said quietly, staring at her with his velvet eyes
"No prob.....forget it"
She cut herself off when she realised who she faced and made to storm off and away from him but he caught her wrist, twisting it so that she had to stop and look at his silent face.
"Get off me Matt! You're hurting me!" she squirmed against his grip "Jesus! Wasn't hurting Jericho enough for you this evening?"
"I need to talk to you"
"Well tough, I have nothing to say to you"
"Please" his voice was still soft as he held her gaze "we may not be on the same show after tonight and I want to say what I have to say before we see each other at a party or something and it gets awkward"
She looked at him silently, he hoped she saw the Hardy she fell in love with all that time ago. She pulled her wrist away again
"Let me go and I'll listen" her words were passionless
He nodded and released his grip. She pulled her wrist to her and rubbed around it, feeling where bruises would soon form. Matt slowly turned and opened the door next to him, knowing it would be empty. As he entered, he half turned to check if Lita was coming. He saw her a little way back, fighting some sort of inner battle as her hand rubbed her wrist comfortingly. Then she noticed him watching her and straightened her back before marching into the room. He smiled a ghost of a forgotten smile. Same old Lita, putting up that façade.
Inside she sat on an empty table, arms crossed defensively over her chest and her body language taut. Her eyes were cold and her mouth a scarlet slash of disapproval. She was not going to be wooed willingly. Matt knew he had to be honest.
"Thanks for giving me some time......I just want to make some sort of amend" he began
She raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything, her stance perfectly controlled.
"I'm sorry......"
"Is that it? Because if it is I'm really not impressed Matthew"
Her words cut into him like razor blades. She never called him Matthew, never had, not once. She wasn't going to give an inch of ground but he had to say this, no matter what poison she spat at him.
"I'm sorry for all the pain, I'm sorry for breaking your heart in front of the cameras, I'm sorry for costing you all those matches, I'm sorry for ever hurting you" he babbled out "I know its pathetic and I should have said it before and now there's no way I can make it right"
Silence settled between them in an uneasy uncomfortable way. Matt looked up, Lita was staring a hole in the wall. Although her mouth was clamped tight shut, her breathing was rapid and heavy in that distinct way when people are trying to contain themselves. He allowed himself to look at her body. She was more muscled and toned than before the neck surgery. She showed it off in a fitted black vest top and short army green shorts, her hair wild and barely curled as it flowed down her back. It made him ache for what he'd let go.
"Have you said everything?"
Her voice was sharp and curt, unblemished by any emotions. It hurt Matt to hear it
"I just want you to understand that I don't want to feel this pain inside anymore, I know what I did was wrong and I don't want us to feel awkward if we bump into each other back home, you know because we do have the same friends"
"The same friends? Correction Matt we had the same friends! Do you really think any of them want to see you again? You terrified and beat Shannon, you pretty much disowned Jeff after he left the business after you betrayed him to go it alone, Hurricane stands for everything you don't and as for the others who still tour the indies, I'm sure they've seen it all play out on screen and want nothing to do with you" she spoke in a cool clear voice, emotion seeping into her words "and that pain you feel inside? It's called guilt"
She went to leave but Matt; desperate to make amends, grabbed her arm again. She managed to pull away from his grasp and slapped him hard across the face.
"Don't touch me Matthew" she spat angrily "I've gone too far away from you to get caught again ok? How about you leave me alone?"
"But I......"
"You what? Want to stop feeling guilty? Then start behaving like a decent human being, you didn't make a good start tonight by reminding Jericho of Trish's betrayal"
Matt winced. It was true that when he faced Jericho in the ring, he had mentioned Trish and how hard she'd slapped him down at Wrestlemania.
"Never anger a man when he's down I guess" he said quietly
"Oh you think?? That man has been to hell and back in the last few weeks and you want to help him out? Don't mention Trish or Christian"
Her anger was hot and strong now. He took a good look at her. This anger wasn't at him; it was at Trish and Christian
"Still hurts doesn't it?" he said as he leaned against the nearest wall
"She was my best friend Matt" she said, anger flaming in her eyes "she knows more than anyone else the hurt I've been through, with you, Christian, Molly, everything and then she goes and throws her lot in with him, how could she?"
"Maybe she thought she'd get further in the business"
"By sleeping with that creepy little bastard? He's scum, no one likes him, there's no point in being with him" Lita exclaimed "and.....she knows!.....she knows what I've been though..........she knows the agony I went through trying to decide if Christian was someone for me, she knows how I felt and she's turned her back on everything, on the fans, on her friends, her best friend"
"Why don't you tell her that?"
"I have, she laughed and said how naïve I was to believe that she'd want to be best friends with me, that she was just using me" Lita trailed off, glaring at Matt "why the hell am I outpouring to you?"
"Because once upon a time you trusted me?"
"Yeah once upon a time" she muttered before seeming to shake herself out of her stupor "see you on the road"
She quickly exited without a backwards glance. Matt smiled. She had confided in him. Maybe one day she'd learn to trust him again but he could assume nothing, just take it slow. Now he needed to make something else right. He needed to get a match with Christian.
DON'T TOUCH ME
The atmosphere backstage was frigid and lukewarm at the same time. Some people were pleased to have Smackdown superstars on Raw; others were furious and cold in their anger. Some just stayed quiet and watched from the cracked open locker room doors. It was a different uneasy kind of enemy, the enemy within having to become allies against former friends.
Matt Hardy wasn't bothered by any of it. He had enough problems with people already on Raw. Particularly his ex-girlfriend who still passed him with scorn in the corridors. Now as he sat watching the mixed brand superstars go past in their blue and red t-shirts, he felt a pang of regret. He needed to make things right with her, before other people came in and stole her heart. Having just finished his match against Jericho and still aching all over from it, he began to walk through the corridors. He wasn't looking where he was going, he was staring at his sore hand and as a result, he banged smack into somebody coming the other way. Someone with red hair that glowed as though it was on fire and an expression that could melt a glacier.
Lita
"Sorry" he said quietly, staring at her with his velvet eyes
"No prob.....forget it"
She cut herself off when she realised who she faced and made to storm off and away from him but he caught her wrist, twisting it so that she had to stop and look at his silent face.
"Get off me Matt! You're hurting me!" she squirmed against his grip "Jesus! Wasn't hurting Jericho enough for you this evening?"
"I need to talk to you"
"Well tough, I have nothing to say to you"
"Please" his voice was still soft as he held her gaze "we may not be on the same show after tonight and I want to say what I have to say before we see each other at a party or something and it gets awkward"
She looked at him silently, he hoped she saw the Hardy she fell in love with all that time ago. She pulled her wrist away again
"Let me go and I'll listen" her words were passionless
He nodded and released his grip. She pulled her wrist to her and rubbed around it, feeling where bruises would soon form. Matt slowly turned and opened the door next to him, knowing it would be empty. As he entered, he half turned to check if Lita was coming. He saw her a little way back, fighting some sort of inner battle as her hand rubbed her wrist comfortingly. Then she noticed him watching her and straightened her back before marching into the room. He smiled a ghost of a forgotten smile. Same old Lita, putting up that façade.
Inside she sat on an empty table, arms crossed defensively over her chest and her body language taut. Her eyes were cold and her mouth a scarlet slash of disapproval. She was not going to be wooed willingly. Matt knew he had to be honest.
"Thanks for giving me some time......I just want to make some sort of amend" he began
She raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything, her stance perfectly controlled.
"I'm sorry......"
"Is that it? Because if it is I'm really not impressed Matthew"
Her words cut into him like razor blades. She never called him Matthew, never had, not once. She wasn't going to give an inch of ground but he had to say this, no matter what poison she spat at him.
"I'm sorry for all the pain, I'm sorry for breaking your heart in front of the cameras, I'm sorry for costing you all those matches, I'm sorry for ever hurting you" he babbled out "I know its pathetic and I should have said it before and now there's no way I can make it right"
Silence settled between them in an uneasy uncomfortable way. Matt looked up, Lita was staring a hole in the wall. Although her mouth was clamped tight shut, her breathing was rapid and heavy in that distinct way when people are trying to contain themselves. He allowed himself to look at her body. She was more muscled and toned than before the neck surgery. She showed it off in a fitted black vest top and short army green shorts, her hair wild and barely curled as it flowed down her back. It made him ache for what he'd let go.
"Have you said everything?"
Her voice was sharp and curt, unblemished by any emotions. It hurt Matt to hear it
"I just want you to understand that I don't want to feel this pain inside anymore, I know what I did was wrong and I don't want us to feel awkward if we bump into each other back home, you know because we do have the same friends"
"The same friends? Correction Matt we had the same friends! Do you really think any of them want to see you again? You terrified and beat Shannon, you pretty much disowned Jeff after he left the business after you betrayed him to go it alone, Hurricane stands for everything you don't and as for the others who still tour the indies, I'm sure they've seen it all play out on screen and want nothing to do with you" she spoke in a cool clear voice, emotion seeping into her words "and that pain you feel inside? It's called guilt"
She went to leave but Matt; desperate to make amends, grabbed her arm again. She managed to pull away from his grasp and slapped him hard across the face.
"Don't touch me Matthew" she spat angrily "I've gone too far away from you to get caught again ok? How about you leave me alone?"
"But I......"
"You what? Want to stop feeling guilty? Then start behaving like a decent human being, you didn't make a good start tonight by reminding Jericho of Trish's betrayal"
Matt winced. It was true that when he faced Jericho in the ring, he had mentioned Trish and how hard she'd slapped him down at Wrestlemania.
"Never anger a man when he's down I guess" he said quietly
"Oh you think?? That man has been to hell and back in the last few weeks and you want to help him out? Don't mention Trish or Christian"
Her anger was hot and strong now. He took a good look at her. This anger wasn't at him; it was at Trish and Christian
"Still hurts doesn't it?" he said as he leaned against the nearest wall
"She was my best friend Matt" she said, anger flaming in her eyes "she knows more than anyone else the hurt I've been through, with you, Christian, Molly, everything and then she goes and throws her lot in with him, how could she?"
"Maybe she thought she'd get further in the business"
"By sleeping with that creepy little bastard? He's scum, no one likes him, there's no point in being with him" Lita exclaimed "and.....she knows!.....she knows what I've been though..........she knows the agony I went through trying to decide if Christian was someone for me, she knows how I felt and she's turned her back on everything, on the fans, on her friends, her best friend"
"Why don't you tell her that?"
"I have, she laughed and said how naïve I was to believe that she'd want to be best friends with me, that she was just using me" Lita trailed off, glaring at Matt "why the hell am I outpouring to you?"
"Because once upon a time you trusted me?"
"Yeah once upon a time" she muttered before seeming to shake herself out of her stupor "see you on the road"
She quickly exited without a backwards glance. Matt smiled. She had confided in him. Maybe one day she'd learn to trust him again but he could assume nothing, just take it slow. Now he needed to make something else right. He needed to get a match with Christian.