**Thanks to Psychobunny410, Mizzle fo' Rizzle, Crystal, Julia and
NoInkInMyPen for the wonderful reviews! I'm so glad you still like the
story!!**
Steph and Matt held hands on the way home, but both were too deep in thought to talk. Matt's head was swimming with the thoughts of his brother losing his job, and the fact that he had finally told Steph how he truly felt. But two things were bothering him. The first was that ever since Matt brought Steph to his dad's on Christmas, it seemed like Jeff was doing everything in his power to break them apart. Why would Jeff do that? What was the big deal? And second, Did he tell Steph too soon that he was falling in love with her? He was so afraid of scaring her away. Plus, she didn't say it back. That made him wonder how she truly felt.
Steph on the other hand was busy worrying about the party. She didn't know if she could fit in well enough with everyone else because as much as she hated to admit it, there was a difference between the two lifestyles. And she didn't know what to expect from Shannon's party. But the other thing that she was thinking about was that Matt confessed his love for her. She knew that she cared deeply about him, but everytime she ever used the "L" word, it always backfired on her. She didn't want to lose him, but she didn't want him worrying about why she didn't say it either.
They pulled into Matt's driveway and got out of the car. Matt grabbed her stuff for her and Steph grabbed the keys from him so she could open the door. Matt brought her stuff up to his room and came back down.
Steph was in the kitchen searching for some lunch for the two of them. Matt walked up and wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the back of her neck, "You know Steph, I'm really glad you came home with me."
Steph smiled and leaned into him, "I'm really glad too. I hope you don't mind me snooping, but I'm starving."
Matt cuddled her, "My house is your house, I don't mind at all. As a matter of fact, I think that you look great in my kitchen."
Steph giggled and kissed him, "Well thank you."
"What do you say we order delivery and that way we can just relax until it's time to get ready? We could have some hoagies delivered?" Matt offered.
"Mmm.that sounds great." Steph replied wrapping her arms around Matt.
Matt grabbed the menu out of the drawer and the two placed their order and headed into the living room. Matt pulled Steph onto his lap, and Steph snuggled on him. "Matt, what time do we have to arrive at Shannon's?"
"In a few hours." Matt replied.
"What kind of party is it? What should I wear?" Steph asked.
"Hon, I think that you're putting way too much thought into this party. Just wear whatever you're comfortable in, but nothing too fancy. I'm just wearing jeans and a shirt." Matt replied rubbing her shoulders.
"I'm just nervous. I don't want to embarrass you in front of your friends." Steph replied.
"Hon, you could never do anything that would embarrass me." Matt said kissing her.
"I wouldn't say that." Steph said laughing.
"I'm serious, nothing that you could do would embarrass me." Matt reassured her.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* A FEW HOURS LATER
Steph came down the stairs wearing a red and black sweater with black jeans and black high-heeled boots. She had curled her hair a little and wore light makeup. He told her to be casual, so she was. So she thought.
Then Matt came in from outside and he was wearing a pair of baggy carpenter jeans, tennis shoes and a button down Punisher (comic book character) baseball-style jersey with his brown corduroy jacket.
Steph looked at what he was wearing and instantly felt overdressed. But, she didn't have anything else with. Normally she would pack a few baby doll tees or something for relaxing, but she had totally spaced it.
"You all set hon?" Matt asked her.
Steph looked down at her outfit, "I think that I'm overdressed."
"You look great. Don't worry about it." Matt replied. "You'll fit in just fine."
Steph smiled, "Then I'm ready. Were we supposed to bring anything?"
"Already got it in the car while you were curling your hair." Matt said taking her hand. "Shall we?"
Steph nodded, "We shall." And they headed to the car.
They arrived at Shannon's and Steph was surprised at how many cars there were. "I thought this wasn't going to be very big." She said to him.
"This isn't. They're usually a lot bigger." Matt replied non-chelantly.
Steph got out and Matt grabbed the drinks from the trunk and they headed inside. Matt didn't even knock, he just walked straight in.
Steph took a deep breath, there were a lot of people from the WWE there and many that had no clue that she was dating Matt. Steph walked close to Matt, "I thought there weren't going to be a lot of people from work here." She said quietly.
"Word must have spread quickly." Matt said with a shrug as he put the drinks on the counter. He turned to face her, "Do we really need to keep this a secret anymore? Wasn't the big concern Paul finding out?" He asked her.
"Well, that was one of them, but I just wanted to protect you. The locker room can be harsh and I don't want you getting treated different. You worked damn hard to get to where you're at and I don't want them to get you down." Steph started to explain when he held up his hand.
"Steph, you don't have to protect me. I can handle my own. I'm happy with you, I'm in love with you and I don't care what other people think or say." He said with a strong conviction. "Unless you don't want people to know about us."
"You say it like you think that I'm ashamed of us." Steph argued back. She really felt like she was being bullied and she didn't take it well.
"All I'm saying is that why should we live in hiding? If we're in love, why can't we show it?" He said gently. He could tell that he hit a touchy subject but he wasn't sure which part pushed her buttons.
"Fine, if you don't mind everyone knowing, then we won't hide it. I don't think we need to make a big spectacle of it, but we won't hide it." Steph said with a little bit of sharpness in her voice. She had been so stressed out, and just as she was starting to let herself calm down, her and Matt had to have their first fight in the middle of Shannon's house.
Matt opened his mouth to reply when he heard his name called. He looked and seen Shannon flagging him over, "Hey Matty, come check this out!" He called.
Matt pointed to Shannon, "Wanna come?"
"Nah, go ahead. I'm going to grab a drink." Steph said waving her hand. "I'll be fine."
"You sure? You can come with if you want." Matt offered but Steph was shaking her head.
"Nope, you go ahead. I'll be just fine"
He leaned over and kissed her lips gently, "I'll be back soon, promise."
Steph kissed him back, "Don't worry about me."
Steph watched him head over towards Shannon and a few guys she didn't know and then she started to make her way to the bar. She wasn't paying much attention and she bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry." She said.
The guy (who she didn't know) turned around and nodded his head. "No worries. You must be new around here." He held his hand out with a sleezy smile, "I'm TJ, and you are?"
She shook his hand, "I'm Steph. Nice to meet you."
Out of nowhere, she felt a hand slip around her waist, "There you are. Let's go get you a drink." She heard John Cena say.
Steph smiled, "That sounds great."
Once they had walked away, she whispered, "Thanks, I owe ya."
"You look stressed out, you ok?" John asked her.
"I've had the shittiest 48 hours ever." She said.
"I got something to make them better, let me make you a drink." John offered. "Where's your man at?"
"Shannon wanted to show him something. Is Jeff here yet?" She asked nervously.
"Not that I've seen, but he's usually running late." John replied.
"Tell me about it." Steph mumbled.
John handed Steph a tall drink. "This will help you to relax, trust me."
Steph took a sip and looked at John, "This tastes great, what is it?"
"It's just something I came up with one day, but it's stronger than it tastes, so drink wisely." He replied with a smile.
They started a conversation when she heard Shannon exclaim that Jeff and Beth were finally here. Steph groaned to herself. She was afraid of what could happen.
Steph was talking to John about the pay-per-views leading up to Wrestlemania when she felt an arm slide around her waist and a kiss on the back of her neck. "Hey gorgeous."
Steph smiled and turned around, "Hey Matt."
Matt nodded to John, "Good to see ya here Cena."
"Thanks, I'm glad I could make it." John replied.
"The party will be underway shortly. Jeff is helping Shannon with some of the wiring on the sound and lights system." Matt said to him. He looked at Steph, "Sorry about that, I thought I could fix it, but I wasn't able to."
"That's ok. John was keeping me great company." Steph replied finishing her drink. "Could you make me another one of these?" She asked John.
"Sure thing." John replied taking her glass and headed off to the bar.
"What are you drinking?" Matt asked her.
"I'm not really sure, but John makes it really well." She said with a smile.
Matt laughed. John brought Steph her drink. And the couple began to mingle.
**A FEW HOURS LATER**
Steph and Matt were having a pretty good time. Shannon had gotten the sound and lights system working, and he was playing a pretty well-rounded assortment of music.
Steph and Jeff hadn't seen each other yet, and she was very thankful for that. She still felt out of place, but she was having a good time. Matt got a little bit of flack from some of his friends for dating a "McMahon" but it was all in good fun.
Steph was definitely feeling the drinks. She had decided that she was going to have a good time come hell or high water.
Shannon's wife Crystal made her way over to Steph with a few shots, "Hey girl. You look like you could use a couple of these."
Steph smiled, "Thanks, I'm just not used to all of this."
"Yeah, after enough drinks the place turns into a rave party." Crystal said with a laugh.
Steph looked around and couldn't agree more. There were people body surfing, and there was a mini-mosh pit and it was definitely not they type of party Steph was used to going to. Crystal smiled and handed her two shots, "Bottoms up!"
The girls took their two shots and Steph instantly felt the rush. "Wow, those were strong."
"Yeah, but they're the best. They definitely help to get you in the party mood." Crystal replied.
Just as Matt was making his way over to Steph and Crystal, out of the corner of his eye he caught Jeff climbing up on a speaker. "What's he doing now?" He thought to himself.
"Everyone, I have an announcement." A drunken Jeff slurred into the dj's microphone.
"Jeff get down before you fall." Beth called to him.
"No, I have something to say and dammit I'm going to say it." He looked up, "I'm no longer employed. I got fired last night."
Everyone was shocked. People were talking amongst each other and Steph had no one to turn to. She looked around to find Matt but wasn't able to spot him.
Jeff jumped off of the speaker and made his way over to Steph, "And here's the person who did it. She fired me. While she's here playing with everyone's mind, most importantly Matt's head." He went nose to nose with Jeff, "We all know that you have no real interest in Matt. You're only using him until you're back on your feet again. Paul was a smart man to move on because all you are is a rich, snotty bitch with no real good intentions except to fuck with everyone's lives because you feel you can."
Matt was just about to grab Steph's shoulder so she knew he was there, but it was too late.
Steph was so insulted. She hauled back and slapped him across the face as hard as she could, "You know what, fuck you Jeff. I'm so damn sick and tired of having to defend myself to you all the time. I don't owe you shit. For your information, I am in love with your brother. Yes, it's true, and yes I said it. I love Matthew Moore Hardy. I would scream it from the rooftops, but I shouldn't have to defend shit to you because you don't know anything about me. I personally think that you should have the respect for your brother to stay the hell out of his relationships, but apparently you don't agree." She was bound and determined to speak her mind. She cleared her throat and started up again, "As far as me firing you goes, you brought it on your damn self. You knew the rules, you agreed to them, and you fucked up. Yes YOU. Maybe it's time to get your head out of your ass and start owning up to your responsibilities. If you're tired of being on the road and tired of wrestling then be a fucking man and grow up. Tell someone, don't wait until now when I had to fire you. That's the cowards way out. So I'm ending this conversation right now with fuck you and stay out of my way." Steph pushed past him and headed for the door.
Jeff stood there shocked. Matt caught up to Steph and grabbed her hand, "Steph wait, I'm coming with you."
"No Matt. I really need some time." Steph said with tears streaming down her face. "I hope you don't think of me as selfish, but I really just want to go home."
"Well I can give you my keys and in a little while I'll come home and we can talk." Matt started to say when Steph shook her head.
"Matt, I mean my home. I'm sorry. I can tell the difference between the two of you and I feel like I'm tearing the two of you apart and I can't take that. I'm going to go home, you two can talk about this, and I'll see you on Monday at Raw." Steph said kissing him on the cheek. "I really hope you understand."
"Steph, you don't need to go home, we can work through this here." Matt said practically pleading with her. He was so scared that if he let her go home that it would signal the end of them.
"Matt please, don't make this harder." Steph said through her tears. "I've gotta go. I'll see you on Monday." And with that she turned and walked out the door.
**What's going to happen now? How does Steph truly feel? Will she give up her relationship because of the strain between Matt and Jeff? How does Matt feel? How will he react to Jeff? Please read and review!!**
Steph and Matt held hands on the way home, but both were too deep in thought to talk. Matt's head was swimming with the thoughts of his brother losing his job, and the fact that he had finally told Steph how he truly felt. But two things were bothering him. The first was that ever since Matt brought Steph to his dad's on Christmas, it seemed like Jeff was doing everything in his power to break them apart. Why would Jeff do that? What was the big deal? And second, Did he tell Steph too soon that he was falling in love with her? He was so afraid of scaring her away. Plus, she didn't say it back. That made him wonder how she truly felt.
Steph on the other hand was busy worrying about the party. She didn't know if she could fit in well enough with everyone else because as much as she hated to admit it, there was a difference between the two lifestyles. And she didn't know what to expect from Shannon's party. But the other thing that she was thinking about was that Matt confessed his love for her. She knew that she cared deeply about him, but everytime she ever used the "L" word, it always backfired on her. She didn't want to lose him, but she didn't want him worrying about why she didn't say it either.
They pulled into Matt's driveway and got out of the car. Matt grabbed her stuff for her and Steph grabbed the keys from him so she could open the door. Matt brought her stuff up to his room and came back down.
Steph was in the kitchen searching for some lunch for the two of them. Matt walked up and wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the back of her neck, "You know Steph, I'm really glad you came home with me."
Steph smiled and leaned into him, "I'm really glad too. I hope you don't mind me snooping, but I'm starving."
Matt cuddled her, "My house is your house, I don't mind at all. As a matter of fact, I think that you look great in my kitchen."
Steph giggled and kissed him, "Well thank you."
"What do you say we order delivery and that way we can just relax until it's time to get ready? We could have some hoagies delivered?" Matt offered.
"Mmm.that sounds great." Steph replied wrapping her arms around Matt.
Matt grabbed the menu out of the drawer and the two placed their order and headed into the living room. Matt pulled Steph onto his lap, and Steph snuggled on him. "Matt, what time do we have to arrive at Shannon's?"
"In a few hours." Matt replied.
"What kind of party is it? What should I wear?" Steph asked.
"Hon, I think that you're putting way too much thought into this party. Just wear whatever you're comfortable in, but nothing too fancy. I'm just wearing jeans and a shirt." Matt replied rubbing her shoulders.
"I'm just nervous. I don't want to embarrass you in front of your friends." Steph replied.
"Hon, you could never do anything that would embarrass me." Matt said kissing her.
"I wouldn't say that." Steph said laughing.
"I'm serious, nothing that you could do would embarrass me." Matt reassured her.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* A FEW HOURS LATER
Steph came down the stairs wearing a red and black sweater with black jeans and black high-heeled boots. She had curled her hair a little and wore light makeup. He told her to be casual, so she was. So she thought.
Then Matt came in from outside and he was wearing a pair of baggy carpenter jeans, tennis shoes and a button down Punisher (comic book character) baseball-style jersey with his brown corduroy jacket.
Steph looked at what he was wearing and instantly felt overdressed. But, she didn't have anything else with. Normally she would pack a few baby doll tees or something for relaxing, but she had totally spaced it.
"You all set hon?" Matt asked her.
Steph looked down at her outfit, "I think that I'm overdressed."
"You look great. Don't worry about it." Matt replied. "You'll fit in just fine."
Steph smiled, "Then I'm ready. Were we supposed to bring anything?"
"Already got it in the car while you were curling your hair." Matt said taking her hand. "Shall we?"
Steph nodded, "We shall." And they headed to the car.
They arrived at Shannon's and Steph was surprised at how many cars there were. "I thought this wasn't going to be very big." She said to him.
"This isn't. They're usually a lot bigger." Matt replied non-chelantly.
Steph got out and Matt grabbed the drinks from the trunk and they headed inside. Matt didn't even knock, he just walked straight in.
Steph took a deep breath, there were a lot of people from the WWE there and many that had no clue that she was dating Matt. Steph walked close to Matt, "I thought there weren't going to be a lot of people from work here." She said quietly.
"Word must have spread quickly." Matt said with a shrug as he put the drinks on the counter. He turned to face her, "Do we really need to keep this a secret anymore? Wasn't the big concern Paul finding out?" He asked her.
"Well, that was one of them, but I just wanted to protect you. The locker room can be harsh and I don't want you getting treated different. You worked damn hard to get to where you're at and I don't want them to get you down." Steph started to explain when he held up his hand.
"Steph, you don't have to protect me. I can handle my own. I'm happy with you, I'm in love with you and I don't care what other people think or say." He said with a strong conviction. "Unless you don't want people to know about us."
"You say it like you think that I'm ashamed of us." Steph argued back. She really felt like she was being bullied and she didn't take it well.
"All I'm saying is that why should we live in hiding? If we're in love, why can't we show it?" He said gently. He could tell that he hit a touchy subject but he wasn't sure which part pushed her buttons.
"Fine, if you don't mind everyone knowing, then we won't hide it. I don't think we need to make a big spectacle of it, but we won't hide it." Steph said with a little bit of sharpness in her voice. She had been so stressed out, and just as she was starting to let herself calm down, her and Matt had to have their first fight in the middle of Shannon's house.
Matt opened his mouth to reply when he heard his name called. He looked and seen Shannon flagging him over, "Hey Matty, come check this out!" He called.
Matt pointed to Shannon, "Wanna come?"
"Nah, go ahead. I'm going to grab a drink." Steph said waving her hand. "I'll be fine."
"You sure? You can come with if you want." Matt offered but Steph was shaking her head.
"Nope, you go ahead. I'll be just fine"
He leaned over and kissed her lips gently, "I'll be back soon, promise."
Steph kissed him back, "Don't worry about me."
Steph watched him head over towards Shannon and a few guys she didn't know and then she started to make her way to the bar. She wasn't paying much attention and she bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry." She said.
The guy (who she didn't know) turned around and nodded his head. "No worries. You must be new around here." He held his hand out with a sleezy smile, "I'm TJ, and you are?"
She shook his hand, "I'm Steph. Nice to meet you."
Out of nowhere, she felt a hand slip around her waist, "There you are. Let's go get you a drink." She heard John Cena say.
Steph smiled, "That sounds great."
Once they had walked away, she whispered, "Thanks, I owe ya."
"You look stressed out, you ok?" John asked her.
"I've had the shittiest 48 hours ever." She said.
"I got something to make them better, let me make you a drink." John offered. "Where's your man at?"
"Shannon wanted to show him something. Is Jeff here yet?" She asked nervously.
"Not that I've seen, but he's usually running late." John replied.
"Tell me about it." Steph mumbled.
John handed Steph a tall drink. "This will help you to relax, trust me."
Steph took a sip and looked at John, "This tastes great, what is it?"
"It's just something I came up with one day, but it's stronger than it tastes, so drink wisely." He replied with a smile.
They started a conversation when she heard Shannon exclaim that Jeff and Beth were finally here. Steph groaned to herself. She was afraid of what could happen.
Steph was talking to John about the pay-per-views leading up to Wrestlemania when she felt an arm slide around her waist and a kiss on the back of her neck. "Hey gorgeous."
Steph smiled and turned around, "Hey Matt."
Matt nodded to John, "Good to see ya here Cena."
"Thanks, I'm glad I could make it." John replied.
"The party will be underway shortly. Jeff is helping Shannon with some of the wiring on the sound and lights system." Matt said to him. He looked at Steph, "Sorry about that, I thought I could fix it, but I wasn't able to."
"That's ok. John was keeping me great company." Steph replied finishing her drink. "Could you make me another one of these?" She asked John.
"Sure thing." John replied taking her glass and headed off to the bar.
"What are you drinking?" Matt asked her.
"I'm not really sure, but John makes it really well." She said with a smile.
Matt laughed. John brought Steph her drink. And the couple began to mingle.
**A FEW HOURS LATER**
Steph and Matt were having a pretty good time. Shannon had gotten the sound and lights system working, and he was playing a pretty well-rounded assortment of music.
Steph and Jeff hadn't seen each other yet, and she was very thankful for that. She still felt out of place, but she was having a good time. Matt got a little bit of flack from some of his friends for dating a "McMahon" but it was all in good fun.
Steph was definitely feeling the drinks. She had decided that she was going to have a good time come hell or high water.
Shannon's wife Crystal made her way over to Steph with a few shots, "Hey girl. You look like you could use a couple of these."
Steph smiled, "Thanks, I'm just not used to all of this."
"Yeah, after enough drinks the place turns into a rave party." Crystal said with a laugh.
Steph looked around and couldn't agree more. There were people body surfing, and there was a mini-mosh pit and it was definitely not they type of party Steph was used to going to. Crystal smiled and handed her two shots, "Bottoms up!"
The girls took their two shots and Steph instantly felt the rush. "Wow, those were strong."
"Yeah, but they're the best. They definitely help to get you in the party mood." Crystal replied.
Just as Matt was making his way over to Steph and Crystal, out of the corner of his eye he caught Jeff climbing up on a speaker. "What's he doing now?" He thought to himself.
"Everyone, I have an announcement." A drunken Jeff slurred into the dj's microphone.
"Jeff get down before you fall." Beth called to him.
"No, I have something to say and dammit I'm going to say it." He looked up, "I'm no longer employed. I got fired last night."
Everyone was shocked. People were talking amongst each other and Steph had no one to turn to. She looked around to find Matt but wasn't able to spot him.
Jeff jumped off of the speaker and made his way over to Steph, "And here's the person who did it. She fired me. While she's here playing with everyone's mind, most importantly Matt's head." He went nose to nose with Jeff, "We all know that you have no real interest in Matt. You're only using him until you're back on your feet again. Paul was a smart man to move on because all you are is a rich, snotty bitch with no real good intentions except to fuck with everyone's lives because you feel you can."
Matt was just about to grab Steph's shoulder so she knew he was there, but it was too late.
Steph was so insulted. She hauled back and slapped him across the face as hard as she could, "You know what, fuck you Jeff. I'm so damn sick and tired of having to defend myself to you all the time. I don't owe you shit. For your information, I am in love with your brother. Yes, it's true, and yes I said it. I love Matthew Moore Hardy. I would scream it from the rooftops, but I shouldn't have to defend shit to you because you don't know anything about me. I personally think that you should have the respect for your brother to stay the hell out of his relationships, but apparently you don't agree." She was bound and determined to speak her mind. She cleared her throat and started up again, "As far as me firing you goes, you brought it on your damn self. You knew the rules, you agreed to them, and you fucked up. Yes YOU. Maybe it's time to get your head out of your ass and start owning up to your responsibilities. If you're tired of being on the road and tired of wrestling then be a fucking man and grow up. Tell someone, don't wait until now when I had to fire you. That's the cowards way out. So I'm ending this conversation right now with fuck you and stay out of my way." Steph pushed past him and headed for the door.
Jeff stood there shocked. Matt caught up to Steph and grabbed her hand, "Steph wait, I'm coming with you."
"No Matt. I really need some time." Steph said with tears streaming down her face. "I hope you don't think of me as selfish, but I really just want to go home."
"Well I can give you my keys and in a little while I'll come home and we can talk." Matt started to say when Steph shook her head.
"Matt, I mean my home. I'm sorry. I can tell the difference between the two of you and I feel like I'm tearing the two of you apart and I can't take that. I'm going to go home, you two can talk about this, and I'll see you on Monday at Raw." Steph said kissing him on the cheek. "I really hope you understand."
"Steph, you don't need to go home, we can work through this here." Matt said practically pleading with her. He was so scared that if he let her go home that it would signal the end of them.
"Matt please, don't make this harder." Steph said through her tears. "I've gotta go. I'll see you on Monday." And with that she turned and walked out the door.
**What's going to happen now? How does Steph truly feel? Will she give up her relationship because of the strain between Matt and Jeff? How does Matt feel? How will he react to Jeff? Please read and review!!**