PART THREE
OUTSIDE THE CLUB
Trish watched, her eyes still wide, as the man who attacked her scurried away, holding onto his side, where he had been punched. She looked up at her rescuer in complete shock. Never in a million years would she have expected John Cena to stop and help her out of a situation like that. Never. At first, she simply stared at him, at a loss for words.
"John, I…"
"Don't worry about it Trish," he said before she could even get her statement out. Trish sent him a confused look.
"But…"
"No," he cut her off again, eyeing her seriously. "No Trish, don't thank me. I don't want or need to be thanked for that. I did what I had to do."
He helped her up to her feet, checking to be sure she was okay. He couldn't believe the nerve of that bastard. He had seen the entire thing, and to be honest, it disgusted him. He had watched the man stumbling up to Trish – he was obviously drunk off his ass – and making a pass at her. And when she turned him down, what did he do? He kept right on pushing. John wanted more than anything at the moment to be heartless. He wanted more than anything in the world to just pass on by, to turn the other cheek and continue on to the club and meet his friends and pretend like nothing out of the ordinary had happened, but he couldn't. He just couldn't. No respectful man could.
"How can I not thank you?" Trish asked incredulously. He must not have realized what it was he just did. "You saved my…"
"I *said* don't thank me!" John snapped, his tone turning cold. "I thought I was pretty clear there."
"But I…"
"Trish, please! I already told you, don't worry about it! I did what I had to do… just drop it," he said, and this time his tone was harsh, threatening even. Trish quickly shut her mouth, looking down at the ground. She became confused again. The look on his face had been… well, it had almost been warming.
"Look," he said, his gaze suddenly becoming soft again. "Don't hang around clubs this late at night, okay? It's dangerous out here," he advised.
Saying nothing more, he turned away from her and headed into the club, most likely going in there to meet some friends. Trish assumed he was here to hang out with Rodney Mack again. Trish was more confused now than ever. What the hell was that? John had gone from hot to cold and back again all in a course of five minutes. She was still in total shock that he'd actually helped her out. After all, he hated her… didn't he? What could he possibly get out of coming to her aid? The blonde diva didn't know what to that was, but she *did* know that she was extremely thankful for Cena at the moment. If it wasn't for him, that man could have assaulted her – or even worse, raped her – and then she'd be totally screwed.
"Okay Trish, I'm ready!" a voice called and, even though it was obviously a female's, Trish still jumped. She turned and saw Stacy, who was heading towards her as she slid her arms into her jacket.
"Oh… okay Stace, let's go," she responded automatically. Trish went to move, but she stopped when she noticed Stacy staring bullet holes in her.
"What is it?" she asked curiously.
"Oh, nothing," Stacy replied. "I was just thinking that you look *really* out of it. Maybe it's a good thing I'm taking you back to the hotel now after all." Trish nodded perceptively, though she secretly disagreed with her. While she *was* out of whack as the leggy blonde had said, the events that had transpired a few minutes ago seemed to have knocked the liquor right out of her system. She had never felt more sober or alert in her life, but she had absolutely no desire to go back to that club ever again, let alone that night. So, she played along, following Stacy to her car. Once they were in the car, Stacy turned back to Trish, her eyes still full of concern.
"You okay?" she asked worriedly. Trish glanced over at her, nodding insistently.
"I'm fine. Just a little tired. I-I think the liquor's starting to get to me," she lied, sending the younger woman a fake smile.
Then, Trish turned her head, staring out the window as Stacy pulled out of the parking lot. As she leaned against the window, her thoughts drifted back tot John and the help he provided her with not long ago. Why did he do it? If he didn't want to gloat, and he didn't want to get a thank you out of her, why did he even bother? Trish sighed quietly. What a night. The person whom she'd rather be dead then spend a day with turned out to be her savior…
God sure had a funny way of working things.
A WEEK LATERTrish sat in the women's locker room, organizing and reorganizing her bag. She had nothing better to do anyway, and she needed to get all the things bothering her out of her mind. As much as she hated to admit it, she was *still* thinking about that night at the club. She thought about it so much that it literally kept her up at night. It was starting to piss her off. She sighed, zipping up her bag and plopping it on the floor. She rested back on the couch, crossing her arms and closing her eyes. Almost immediately after she shut them, a vision popped into her head, causing her eyes to snap open. Shaking her head, she told herself to snap out of it. She closed her eyes again, only to once again open them as the image appeared again. This time she kept her eyes open, cursing the image that was haunting her mind. Well, maybe haunting wasn't the best word to describe it. It was more like… like… consuming. It hadn't left her mind at all in the past week, and even if she found a temporary distraction for her thoughts, it was always in the back of her mind. It became emblazoned in her mind. Every spare minute, Trish's brain was occupied by the image…
The image of John Cena helping her up at the club.
She just couldn't get over the look he gave her. It was unlike any expression he had word – directed at her anyway. The look was almost… well, almost one of concern. But it couldn't be concern… it just couldn't be. John Cena hated Trish Stratus, and she hated him too. That was all there was to it. There was no care, kindness, or concern of any kind between them. But then, why the hell did he help her? He could have just as easily passed by, and not even given her a second glance. But he didn't pass by… he stopped, punched the asshole, *and* he helped her to her feet. Trish sighed for what felt like the eightieth time that day… she really needed to get him off of her mind. She was willing to bet that *he* wasn't thinking about the incident, or her, anymore. He probably didn't even give the event a second thought once he got inside the club. Like he had told her, he just did what he had to do.
"Hey Trish!" Stacy called cheerily as she entered the room. For once, Trish got her mind off John, raising an eyebrow at her friend's happiness. For someone who had to be stuck with Test all day, she sure seemed happy.
"Where did you come from?" she asked curiously.
"Jericho's locker room," Stacy stated plainly. Trish sent her a curious and confused gaze.
"Jericho? Again? Are you stalking the poor guy?" she asked jokingly, a grin suddenly crossing her face. Stacy sent her a coy smile, shaking her head and shrugging.
"I'm not stalking him Trish… we're just… hanging out, that's all," she insisted.
"Right… and when you guys are alone in his locker room all you do is 'hang out,'" Trish said sarcastically. Stacy looked at her with wide, innocent looking eyes.
"What kind of girl do you think I am Miss Trish?" Stacy asked, seemingly in shock. All of a sudden feeling a little better, Trish jumped up from her seat.
"Hey, you hungry? Let's go get something to eat," she suggested, pointing to the door of the locker room. Stacy thought about it for a moment, and then nodded.
"Sure, lets go!" she said, turning on her heel and following Trish to the door. As they made their way down the hall, Stacy stayed a step behind Trish. She eyed the shorter woman intently, suddenly glad that she invited her to grab something to eat. Maybe then they could get to talking…
And maybe then she could explain how she knew all about what happened to Trish a week ago.
Hey all! Glad you're liking this story! Keep reading, and you'll find about more about Stacy and Jericho, as well as Stacy's relationship with John! Hope you like it, and please, don't hesitate to review!!