A/N: Hi everyone! I'm back! So many things have been going on its been hard to try and update! When I do, I usually never finish in one sitting, so the feeling is kind of…gone. But I'm going to try my best this weekend. Busy weekend though… I've gotten a few more ideas for this story, which is pretty good, but here's the point where it gets a bit slower. Here are two hints for two of my ideas: The Big Show and Matt Hardy. – Evil laugh – You'll have to wait to see it. Anyway, please continue to review.
Disclaimer: I own Elizabeth Smith and the Smith family. That's it…I think.
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Dangerous Business
Chapter XIII
The sun rose slowly over the horizon, its rays brightening the towering white hospital building. Birds chirped happily, bursting from one evergreen to the other. Even though it was still winter, the earth had no insight, and was intent upon acting as if it was spring.
Dominique Smith opened her eyes warily. For a moment she forgot why exactly her arms were draped over a metal railing and tingling painfully. As soon as she remembered, she wanted to forget. Avoiding any glance at the hospital bed, she made her way to the closed curtains, and opened them, shedding the sunlight into the room. She stared out of the window, wondering why the world outside could be so cheerful on a day like this, until she gathered her strength to look around the room. There was the hospital bed, for one. The blond stared at her sister, butterflies chomping at her side with nausea. Liz laid there, several tubes attached to her body, frighteningly pale. She looked so weak, so vulnerable… In the room were two puffy chairs, a TV on a stand near the far wall, and a small table next to the hospital bed. The rest was complete emptiness. One of the brown chairs was pulled up next to her sister – where Dominique had spent the night – and the other was by the wall, which wasn't that far from the bed anyway. Jeff was curled up into a small ball, sleeping peacefully. Dominique smiled wanly. She vaguely remembered what the doctors had said – frankly, none of it made sense to her, but she remembered the part that they stated clearly. One year before she could do anything active. That wouldn't go over well with Liz. She was about the most active girl Dominique could think of. Sighing, Dominique walked around the room, trying to get the feeling back in her arms and feet. At first, the doctors had been worried that one of the ribs that had been snapped pierced one of her organs, but that didn't happen. It had only been two nights since, and Liz had been unconscious for a while, and then she had fallen asleep. A mumble caught Dominique's ear, however, and she turned to face the hospital bed, quickly sitting down on the chair next to it.
"Hey," Liz said weakly. Dominique smiled weakly again and intertwined her fingers with Liz's.
"I'm here," she whispered. Liz squeezed her hand lightly.
"Did it look as bad as it hurt?" she said, her voice sounding sore and scratchy. Dominique nodded slightly, tears springing to her eyes. "Don't cry," she commanded, "If you're going to cry, go find someplace else to." She scowled, "I mean it, Que. Just because I'm here is no reason to cry. It's a reason to kick someone's a-" she was interrupted by a loud moan from Jeff. Liz laughed weakly, "You're back is going to hurt as much as mine if you keep on sleeping like that," she informed him brightly.
"You sound like you want that to happen," he mumbled sleepily.
She pouted as she replied, "It's not like there's anything else entertaining in here," she pointed out, wincing as she struggled to sit up. In the end, she flopped back to the bed in defeat. "This is going to be a LONG two weeks!" she stated, pouting again, trying desperately trying to hide the immense pain in her back.
"It's going to be a long year," Jeff whispered to himself.
* - * - *
FOURTEEN MONTHS LATER
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"AH!" the shrill scream echoed through the homey, two-story house. Almost immediately following the shout was the distinct noise of two females giggling. In the kitchen, the tiled floor was covered in flour. Liz stooped down, her face and clothes streaked with the white power. Her mother squatted next to her, staring at a half of the burlap sack that used to hold the flour.
"I think we need some more flour," her mother, Lee, said, trying to keep a straight face as she gently tugged the sack free of the pile. Simultaneously, the two burst into laughter. Lee's dark brown, curly hair tugged free of her loose ponytail and fell over her shoulders, accenting her gray/blue eyes. Liz sat cross-legged in the mess and leaned back on her elbows.
"…We better not have to clean this up," she stated, casting a wary eye along the huge mess in the kitchen.
"Nah, Jinx and Jaxx will pick it up," Lee said, referring to their two Dobermans. The two were currently roaming the yard, bouncing and playing. Liz smiled lightly.
"Ah, our little Dirt Devils," she responded, pushing herself to her feet. She surveyed the mess, "Well, we're obviously going to be short of desert, but at least we have some baked chicken!" her smile fell sharply as they both looked at the black oven. Lee jerked the handle, and the two had to cough away the steam. They looked at the chicken again.
"I, uh, guess we're eating out tonight," Lee winced. The door swung open, and a gust of wind swept through. Dominique pulled her baseball cap tighter over her blond hair as she walked in, not seeing the mess over the counter, while she smoothed out her low-rider jeans.
"Hi guys!" Dominique cried, and then sniffed, wrinkling her nose, "What smells so bad?"
"Dinner," Liz choked out as Lee stood up beside her. Seeing their flour-streaked bodies, Dominique laughed as Jeff entered through the door behind her.
"Hey," he tossed his keys onto the round table, and then looked at Liz and his aunt. "I knew you guys were bad cooks," he began, "But I didn't know you were THIS bad!" The Wrestling Federation was in town, so Jeff and Dominique – who had been traveling with Jeff – had planned to stop by to have dinner with Liz and Lee.
"Hey Jeff, Dominique!" Lee cried out, carefully hugging each of them so that they wouldn't get flour on them too.
"Hi," Liz said as she padded along the kitchen, leaving white footprints on the decorated tiles as she traveled near the other end of the kitchen and opened the sliding door. Jinx and Jaxx went full-speed in, tails wagging, until they hit the floor, landing on it in a heap.
Dominique watched all of this, her eyebrow cocked, "Why don't you two get cleaned up and then us four go to dinner somewhere, 'cause we has to leave for Boston by midnight."
"Yeah," Jeff bopped his head, "Is there an airport around here?"
"Can't you drive?" Liz asked, brushing her hair with her fingers as Lee disappeared up the beige carpeted stairs to the shower.
"We're in Grand Blanc, MICHIGAN," Jeff looked at her, rolling his eyes, "It would be a bit of a long ride, huh?" Suddenly remembering something, he reached into the blue backpack that he had been holding, and tossed Liz a letter. "From Rob," he explained, and Liz nodded, setting it onto the clean kitchen table.
"Go get changed," Dominique ordered, walking into the kitchen, "We'll clean this up."
"We?" Jeff had a horrified look on his face.
"Yes, Jeff," Dominique growled, "WE." Finally, she looked at the two dogs, covered in white powder and groaned, shaking her head.
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Liz sighed, looking around her room quietly. The walls were painted delicate lavender and the carpet was white, but just about the softest thing Liz could think of. The room was a pretty nice size. The bed sat opposite of the large window, covered by dark violet sheets at the moment. On the opposite side of the bed – the one without the door – was the rather large closet. A few feet from the door sat the oak wood dresser, which was cluttered with several things. Slowly, Liz took out her earrings, took off her cross necklace, and let her hair loose from the ponytail. She quickly undressed and slipped into a pair of soccer shorts and a large Mall of America T-shirt. As she looked into her drawer, she caught sight of the black WWE T-shirt that had been rolled into a ball. She took it out, staring at it oddly, before dropping it onto the carpet, lying down on the bed, and slipping under the covers.
Liz stared up at the glow in the dark stars and comets on her ceiling as she thought laboriously. Did she really want to go back to wrestling? She closed her eyes tightly. There was just so much that she hated about it, and so much that she loved. The brunette flipped to her stomach, pressing her face to her pillow. Just as soon, there came a clawing at the door. Liz smiled sleepily as she moved to open the door, revealing Jinx. Liz let her in and went back to bed. Soon after, Jinx jumped onto her bed, curling next to her feet. The brunette smiled wanly at the dog, and then glanced up as the door swung on its hinges again, revealing Jeff and Dominique, each dressed and ready to leave. Liz immediately sat up crossed-legged and faced Dominique as she sat on the other end of the end. Jeff sat on an empty part of the dresser.
"Hey guys," Liz said, yawning, "Weren't you guys supposed to be headed to Metro soon??"
"Yeah…" Jeff said pointedly, directed at Dominique, who rolled her eyes at him, and then turned back to Liz.
"I have to tell you something," she announced quietly, so she wouldn't wake Lee up, "But you have to promise that you won't be angry…"
Liz shook her head, her brown hair drawing across her face, "I can't do that Dominique. I'll try, though," she added. Any other day, Liz would have agreed. But she noticed the tiny details in her sister that said that what she wanted to tell Liz had the potential to make her furious. Her eyes where skittish, her hands balled into fists, clutching parts of the blanket, and a few other things.
"I guess that'll have to do," replied Dominique, pressing her lips together, looking down at her white hands, "As of next week on RAW in Boston, I'm going to be Jeff's valet to the ring," she whispered. Liz was pretty sure she felt her jaw drop open. Dominique had come to her in the WWE to get away from her father (who was currently in the Navy, God knows where…) but Liz had never considered that Dominique had liked the WWE enough to be a part of it.
Liz paused before answering, "Now you have to promise me you won't get angry," her sister nodded, and Liz continued, "You have considered that you could really get hurt doing this, right?" Dominique tried to keep the anger away, and jerkily nodded.
"I know," her voice sounded threateningly close to a growl.
"You know the fact you'll hardly get to see your family, and you'll be traveling a ton?"
"Yes," her voice had definitely dropped to a growl by now.
"Then good for you," replied Liz, giving Dominique a weak smile, "If this is what you really want, I'm glad you're doing it."
Dominique let out the breath she didn't know she was holding out. "Thank you… I was really worried that you'd blow up on me. You know, tell me not to do this and that I'm stupid for it…"
"I would never do that," retorted Liz truthfully. "Stop being nervous. You can't be nervous in this line of work." She smiled genuinely at Dominique, "Call me, and I'll tell you what you need to do. Don't trust what Stacey says either – she's too dumb to know that it doesn't work." Dominique bobbed her head in reply.
"We better get going," Jeff announced bluntly, "Vince doesn't take kindly to people not getting there on time…"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," muttered Liz, "See you guys later!" She gave each of them a hug, and watched the door long before they had left. She glanced at her nightstand, at the clock. "Only 10?" she asked to herself, shaking her head. Just as she did so, her silver cell phone on the nightstand vibrated, and sent off a random tune. Liz caught the phone before it fell off and opened it.
"'Lo?" she muttered into the phone.
"Elizabeth?"
"Yes…"
"Sorry if I interrupted what you're doing right now. I mean… I understand if you can't talk or if – "
"WHO is this?" Liz cut off.
"Your father." Liz reached a hand up to cut off the signal.
"Wait! Just – Just give me a few minutes!"
"3 minutes," Liz said sternly after consideration, "And that's it."
"Listen, I just want to talk to you for awhile…in person. Look, I know you probably are going to explode in my face but please just give me a chance! Please! I just want to explain…"
"Go ahead."
"In person?"
Liz sighed, sitting down on her bed. "Where are you now?"
"In still in Grand Rapids… I've got this RAW off."
"Fine," Liz muttered icily, "I'll listen to your sob story, but I'm not promising that I won't bail on you after you've said your part, I'm just promising that I will listen. That's it. Nothing else," she sighed, her grip slipping on the cell phone. She clutched it closer to her ear. "Got it?"
"All right," was the sighed response. Liz sleepily muttered the name of a café midway between Grand Blanc and Grand Rapids. Immediately after, he hung up. Liz stared at the phone for a second, shrugged, and hung up, setting it back on the dresser. Not awake enough to ponder about her father, Liz slipped off into sleep. She didn't even hear the distinct sound of the rustling gravel or the creaking front door as her stepfather came home.
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A/N: I'm sorry that this was kind of boring, and I'm sorry it took so long to update. However – good news comes! There is no longer track and only a week or two of school left! Updates will go up more often now! I've been trying to move this story on, to somehow end the big part with Austin, because I'm frankly sick of it, so I think he's going to gradually fade out. I think there might only be one more chapter after this before it gets interesting again. Bear with me! Oh, and please check out Through Glass Shards for me! REVIEW!