"Is she ready to go?"
Adam's attention was dawn away from the blonde woman he was staring at. He turned his head slowly, discovering that the source of the voice that had spoken to him was Randy Orton. He shifted himself away from where he was standing, just in front of the window looking into Trish's hospital room. The young woman was just inside, and she was set to leave that afternoon. Adam had been visiting her when she asked him to excuse her so that she could be alone for awhile before getting her things together.
"Yeah, I think she just wanted to be left alone for a few minutes while she got ready," he replied.
Randy nodded, gazing past Adam and into the window. He could see Trish inside, putting some things together in a bag that Dawn Marie had brought for her. A lump formed in his throat as he watched her rise from the bed, a pained, visible limp in her step as she walked over to the bathroom. A moment after she stepped inside and closed the door behind her, he switched his gaze to Adam, whose green eyes were locked intently on him.
"Randy..." Adam began, his gaze very serious, "...I have to say a few things to you..."
"Adam, stop," Randy interrupted, tossing his hands up and shaking his head.
He knew exactly where the blonde man was headed, and he didn't think he could handle it. His emotions were already beyond wrecked, and the thought of another heart to heart was unbearable.
"Now's better than never, and I don't want to risk losing the chance of saying some things to you. You have to admit, there's a lot to be said," Adam reasoned.
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Randy admitted after a brief silence. "But before you say anything, I want to thank you... for everything you've done."
"Like punching your best friend and causing more than one scene in a matter of fourty-eight hours?" Adam questioned, and the two men laughed, though it was somewhat awkward. "Lets face it, Randy, I've done nothing to be thankful for."
He seemed insistent, but Randy shook his head in disagreement.
"Of course you have. You've been here since the moment we arrived, and you've done so much for Trish - and me, even if it was indirect - in the past few days alone," he said. Then, after a short pause, he continued, "And this goes back to even before all of this mess started. Whether or not you meant to, you've helped immensely in the decision I made to turn myself around, to get away from Paul."
Adam was flattered by the younger man's comments, but he still disagreed. Maybe he had influenced Randy's decision to straighten himself out, but he most certainly hadn't done so in the most honorable way.
"You mean, I helped influence your decision with my not so nice words, which I made sure to say to you time and time again?" he replied, chuckling again.
Randy's gaze remained sincere as he shook his head again.
"Hey, we've both said and done a lot of things recently that we probably regret. It's the nature of the beast, you know that. The point I'm trying to make is that your not so nice words really sunk in and made a big impact on me. So I wanted to thank you... in short, thanks for being an asshole towards me."
Adam laughed, "Anytime." He looked away for a moment, a thoughtful gaze in his eyes, as though he was trying to process a thought into words. "You know, Randy, after all that's gone on these past few days, I can't for the life of me remember why I hated you in the first place. I don't feel like I'm talking to an enemy anymore. You're a good person, and as long as you promise to take care of her, I promise to be supportive of your relationship."
"Adam, you have my solemn vow that I will love and take care of Trish Stratus, and I'll do so with every fiber of my being. And I thank you for your support... it means more to me than you'll ever know..." He trailed off, and at that moment they realized just how choked up the conversation had left them.
Randy glanced up at Adam, who wore an expression identical to his. As crazy as the idea of them being friends would've sounded as soon as two weeks ago, that was exactly what they had become. In the past few days they had spent together at the hospital, he and Adam had grown closer than he and Paul Levesque - a man whom he once idolized - had ever been, and would ever be.
"Ah, what the hell, come here..." Adam spoke again, opening his arms to Randy.
Randy laughed, and with a shake of his head, he moved towards the Canadian, gratefully accepting his embrace.
------------------------------------
Mr McMahon, I need some time off, Randy rehearsed the line over and over again in his head, embedding the phrase into his brain. He stood pacing before the door to the chairman's office, trying to steady his breath before he went in there.
He hated asking for time off, that was why he never did it. But desperate times called for desperate measures, and Randy desperately needed to be home with Trish while she recovered. They had only been home for two days before he had to leave her again, and walking out that door had to have been the hardest thing he'd ever had to do. There was no way he could it week in and week out, so he simply had to have some time off. However, Vince McMahon was not an easy person to deal with, and somehow Randy imagined it would be like pulling teeth to get him to agree to his request.
Taking one last deep breath, he drew his hand from the pocket of his slacks and knocked on the door. Then, he pushed it open and went inside.
"What?" Vince asked testily upon seeing him int he doorway.
Randy frowned as he took note of the already annoyed expression on his boss's face.
"Mr. McMahon, I have to talk to you about something," he voiced tentatively, placing his hands in the air as if to say he wasn't going to cause any trouble.
"Well, make it quick, I've got work to do," he replied, and with a wave of his hand urged him to continue.
Randy sighed, "Well, I came here to ask you for a favor. I was wondering if you could..."
"Wait, wait, wait," Vince cut him off, shakin ghis head. He rose from his desk, walking over to Randy. Narrowing his eyes condescendingly at his young employee, Mr. McMahon went on, "A favor? You think you're in the position to be asking me for favors? Oh, that's rich. I'll tell you what, Randy... go ahead and humor me. Tell me what it is you want."
"Look, I know you don't think very highly of me, but I really need this. I was hoping that maybe you'd let me take some time off..." he said, pausing to take a breath. Before Vince got a chance to reply, Randy rushed to continue. "It'll only be a few weeks, three tops... but Vince, I need some time. I have to take care of Trish."
"Let me get this straight," Vince replied, taking a step back. "You want me to give you time off so you can tend to Trish, who is responsible for me losing the best Superstar I've ever had?"
"Trish isn't responsible for anything, and you know it. That bastard attacked her... you didn't lose a Superstar, Vince, you lost a criminal," Randy spat, scowling at the reference to Paul. "The point is, this is a crucial time in her recory, and she needs me. I've got to be with her now, please understand that."
"I understand it perfectly," he nodded, "but what I don't understand is this. You say Trish needs you, and that you have to be with her. Well, Randy, if you had only been with her when this happened, she never would've gotten attacked... and she never would have gotten raped."
Upon making his statement, a sly grin curled the lips of Vince McMahon, and he laughed. Randy, on the other hand, did not find a word of what he said to be amusing. His blood coming to a boil, he clenched his fists together, wanting nothing more than to punch the smug look right off of his face.
Vince took notice of Randy's hands, which were clenched so tightly into fists that his knuckles were damn near white, and he rolled his eyes. He leaned towards the younger man, snatching his left hand swiftly.
"If you even think about it," Vince warned, staring ominously into his eyes, "you can kiss your time off goodbye."
Groaning, Randy pulled his hand away. He nodded, stepping back in retreat.
"Okay, fine... do I have my time off?"
Vince eyed him silently for a moment, appearing to be deep in thought. Only a second later, though, a sinister grin spread across his lips.
"No..." he said, almost laughing as he watched a look of shock work its way onto Randy's face. "No, you may not..."