PART 18
Stacy hurried down an empty arena hallway, rushing to the women's locker room. After taking a few days off to fully recover from her injuries, the blonde woman was back on the road with the Raw roster. After arriving at the arena with Chris, he had explained that he and Christian had to go speak with Eric Bischoff and, for whatever reason, didn't want her there.
As soon as the two men left, Stacy quickly made her way to the locker room, glancing over her shoulder occasionally. She didn't want to run the risk of bumping into Test or Scott Steiner, especially after hearing just how livid her now exboyfriend had been when he discovered that Trish, Chris, and Christian had rescued her. Finally reaching the door to the locker room, she breathed a heavy sigh of relief, thankful that her trip had been uneventful.
She pushed the door open, entering the room and promptly closing the door behind her. She took a few steps into the room, her eyes settling on the blonde woman she discovered sitting by herself on the couch. Stacy frowned as she studied Trish, the Canadian diva obviously unaware of her presence.
"Hey, Trish..." she murmured quietly, not wanting to startle her.
"Hi Stace," she replied without turning to face her.
She gave a shaky sigh, drawing her legs up on the couch, tucking them under her chin. Stacy sat down next to her, and it was then that she noticed how red and puffy Trish's normally bright eyes were. Concern flooded Stacy's face as she came to the realization that her best friend must have been crying. She placed a gentle hand on her distraught friend, her worry increasing by the second.
"Trish? Are you okay?"
Trish sniffled quietly, lifting her gaze to the younger woman. She tossed the tissue she had been using, the crumpled fabric landing on the table beside the couch.
"I'm alright.... just thinking," she replied. Then, with a small shrug, she added, "You know how I can get sometimes."
Stacy nodded, her lips curling down into a frown. She knew exactly what Trish meant, and that worried her all the more. The Canadian diva only got this way as of late because of one man, and of course, that man was her half brother, John Cena.
"You never told me what happened at the hospital," Stacy commented, recalling the last time she had seen him.
As she and Chris waited for Trish and John to finish their discussion in the parking lot, they had been very surprised to discover Trish returning to them alone. When they questioned her as to John's whereabouts, she'd simply said the young man had decided to take his own car and head straight to the next Smackdown show.
"That's because I never *wanted* to tell you," Trish responded flatly.
Stacy's frown deepened, her brow creasing as she wondered what could have possibly happened. A ton of scenarios ran through her head, none of them seeming to make sense... except for one. Judging by Trish and John's illustrated past with each other - their constant arguing, the way they acted around one another, their most recent encounters - only one logical explanation for Trish's behavior in the locker room came to mind.
"You cut it off again, didn't you?" Stacy asked, her concern slipping away, to be replaced with frustration. "Trish, why would you do something like that? You *know* how it makes you feel, and you know..."
"Stace, I didn't..."
"No, listen!" Stacy cried, interrupting Trish just as she had done to her a few seconds earlier. "You've had opportunity after opportunity to come to grips with your feelings for him. I know John acted wrongly before, but now he's practically throwing himself at you, and yet you *still* push him away. Suck it up and admit that you love him already, Trish!"
Now that their relation was no longer a secret, Stacy did not feel the need to disguise how sick it made her feel watching her best friend break her brother's heart. Frankly, the entire ordeal made her nauseas. She couldn't stand seeing two people she loved so dearly hurting each other like this.
From her seat, Trish sighed, sending her an empty stare. She supposed she couldn't blame Stacy to jump to her conclusion - she *had* mad a habit out of walking away - but it did hurt a bit to have her speak so harshly towards her. If only you knew...
"Stacy, I didn't cut it off," she spoke, finishing the statement she had previously tried to make before being cut off.
"What?"
Trish sighed, massaging her temples as she felt the twinges of a headache coming on.
"What I mean is that I didn't break it off with him. I *did* come to grips with my feelings, and I let him know. *He* broke it off with *me*, not the other way around. I finally realized just how much I love him... and now he's gone."
* * * *
Meanwhile, in his office somewhere down the hall, Eric Bischoff was in a conference with Rob Van Dam... if you could even call it one. Of all the wrestlers to have ever worked for him, be it on Raw or back in WCW, he had *never* come across someone as difficult to work with as Rob. Mr. Monday Night had a tendency of making the smallest things, such as signing a match, pure hell. When there was a knock on the door, Eric nearly shouted with joy. The grin plastered on his face remained there as Chris Jericho and Christian entered the room.
"Boys, come in!" he greeted them cheerfully. "Have a seat!" Shaking his head, Christian stepped forward, deciding that he would be the first to speak.
"Don't have time, EB... we came by to request a match," he explained, nodding a hello to Rob, whom he just noticed sitting in one of the chairs by Bischoff's desk.
"Alright, name it," Eric replied, not seeing the glare Rob sent him.
"Wait a second, how come they come in here and ask for a match and you agree without even knowing who they want, yet I tell you who I want and why and all of a sudden I'm a pain in the ass?" Rob interject, his question causing the two blonde men to smirk. RVD had always gotten the short end of the stick where Bischoff was concerned, but seeing the two interact was always a comical experience.
"Because you're *always* a pain in my ass, Rob," Eric replied, a wry smile crossing his features. "But, if it makes you happy... guys, who do you want to face?"
"Test and Steiner, as soon as possible," Chris answered quickly, stepping up next to Christian. Rob nodded in his seat, the visit the Canadians were paying the Raw GM beginning to make sense.
"I thought you guys were friends," Eric replied skeptically, surprised by their request.
"Well, you thought wrong," Chris said shortly.
"This is about Stacy, isn't it?" Eric asked, his dark eyes twinkling a bit.
"So what if it is?" Chris shot, taking a somewhat defensive stance at the head of the desk. Eric simply laughed, shaking his head.
"That's cute, but seriously, aren't you a bit beyond playing saviors for the damsel in distress?" he asked with a laugh.
Sensing his best friend's anger building rapidly, Christian threw his hand back to Chris, holding him steady as he sent Bischoff a dangerous glare.
"This is no game, Bischoff," he warned. "You *do* know that Test attacked Stacy. The asshole beat her, and was planning on going back to do God knows what else had Trish not found her and brought her to us!"
"Which is even more a reason for me to veto your match idea. I know emotions are running high, and I can't afford to lose one of my Superstars to injury because of some personal vendetta. I'm afraid I'll have to say no," Eric replied plainly. He glanced down at the papers on his desk, dismissing the two men as he picked one up and scanned over it.
The air deflated from Chris's chest as though a hole had been poked in him. He could feel the rage building in his system... if he didn't get his match, he would have to find someone else to take it out on, and that was not something he wanted to do.
"Then *I* want Test," Rob said suddenly, to the surprise of all three men. "If you're not going to them their match, give the punk to me, and I'll stop begging for a shot at Triple H for hitting on Lita."
Bischoff arched an eyebrow, cocking his head to the side. He stared blankly for a moment before laughing, shaking his head.
"As enticing as your offer sounds, Rob, I think I'd rather just give these two what they want," he replied, missing the wide grin spreading across Rob's lips. He knew if *he* requested a match with Test, it would only cease to anger Eric, therefore tricking him into giving Chris and Christian their match. Chris's ears perked up, his eyes lighting up as he listened in carefully.
"Fine, you've got it. Christian and Jericho versus Test and Scott Steiner, next week Monday on Raw... you've got your match."