Part 3
A quiet sigh emitted from the lips of Chris Irvine, the blonde man raking a hand through his long hair. For what seemed to be the millionth time that week, his mind was plagued with guilt. Jay had barely been gone for a week, and Chris was about ready to yank his hair out by the strand.
He felt absoutely terrible for what he had done, even if it was an accident. And as selfish as it might have sounded, if he heard Jay's name one more time, he would snap. Though he knew none of them had done so intentionally, each time one of his coworkers mentioned his friend's name, it reminded Chris of why he was gone in the first place.
"Hey now, why the long face?"
Chris raised his head, which was resting in his hands, and he glanced up. A soft smile touched his lips as he saw her making her way towards him. Of all the people he had run into that day, she was the one he was most looking forward to seeing.
"Oh nothing, Stacy," he replied, gesturing for her to come to him.
He wasn't quite sure what he and Stacy Keibler were. She wasn't technically his girlfriend, though he knew that sometimes both secretly considered themselves a couple. Ever since her rocky breakup with Andrew Martin, a former friend of his, Chris and Stacy had become extremely close.
At this piont, he waws very infatuated with the leggy diva, and regardless of whether or not she was technically his girlfriend, he was sure as hell going to treat her as such. He was never fond of technicalities anyway.
"It sure doesn't look like nothing," she spoke again, interrupting his thoughts.
Chris slipped from his trance, his eyes resting on her. Stacy came to a stop before him, her brow furrowing slightly.
"Just stressing over some things is all," he assured her with a forced smile. "Don't worry about it."
A frown crossed Stacy's face. Though he hadn't exactly specified what was stressing him so much, she knew what it was. It had been on his mind constantly as of late.
"Chris, how many times can I tell you this? What happened to Jay was not your fault," she insisted, crossing her arms hastily in front of her. "I know it, he knows it... and I'm sure you know it, too."
A sigh slipped from his lips, and Chris gave her a weak shrug.
"I do know it, Stace, but my heart keeps telling me differently. I just... I feel like I should've protected him better..."
"Stop it. You know damn well you did everything you could. Jay went into that match last night knowing full well what he was risking. I may not know much about wrestling, but I do know that there was nothing you could have done to prevent what happened."
He wasn't about to argue the seriousness of her tone. Despite her tiny form, Stacy was a very firm, daresay intimidating young woman. Hell, even if she wasn't, he knew she was right.
He smiled, reaching out and taking her wrists in his hands, tugging at them in an almost pleading manner. He pulled her to him, wrapping his arm around her waste and resting his head on her stomach.
"You're right, Stacy. And I'm sorry that I keep sulking like this, but I'll get over it. It's just hard right now, ya know?" he asked, tilting his head back so that he could look up at her.
"I know, Chris, I know," she replied with a sigh, tossing her arms lightly around his neck.
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"I think I'm losing my mind already."
Trish giggled at the lighthearted comment made by her boyfriend. She shifted onto her side, resting up on her hip as she glanced over at Jay, who was laying beside her on the bed.
"That's not good, you've only been out for a week," she said, adding in a playful pout.
Jay groaned, rubbing at his tired eyes. Sitting around the house all day was destroying his metabolism, and it left him with absolutely no energy. It wasn't even a matter of being tired... he just felt like, for lack of a better term, a blob. He was normally such an active person, and now that his doctors had advised him to avoid any physical activity for another week or so, he didn't know what to do with himself. He wasn't made to sit still.
"I know, but you have to understand this," he began to reply, tossing his arms to his sides and staring up at the ceiling, "I haven't had a real injury in five years. It's been five whole years since Ihve had more than a few days off, and I have no clue what to do to pass time. I cannot sit around all day and watch TV... it drives me crazy."
"Jay, you'll figure something out," Trish insisted, placing her hand over his. "Of course it's hard, but you'll get used to it. You just have to find other things to occupy your time."
"You make it sound simple. The only thing I'm allowed to do right now that requires any type of physical exertion at all is shower, and that's not exactly an exciting event," he reminded her.
Trish's lips came together in a pout. She hated seeing his spirits down like this, but she really couldn't blame him for it. He had being going strong for such a long amount of time, this injury was a hard blow not only to his body, but to his mind as well. She knew how aggravating it was for her when she had been forced to have foot surgery back in 2001. Those three months she spent out of action were unbearable.
She opened her mouth to comfort him, but he went on with his speech.
"And you know what the worst part of all this shit is?" he questioned, and judging by his distant expression, Trish guessed that Jay was asking himself and not her. "Our angle together was just beginning to pick up. And now, because I was too blind to see this stupid injury coming, it's going to waste away to nothing. What could have arguably been the most successful angle of my career is shot."
"You don't know that, Jay," she insisted, grabbing his chin and tilting his head so that he was looking at her. "I know it seems like forever, but trust me, sweetie, six weeks is not a very long time. There's a good chance things won't change... I'm sure they won't."
Jay sighed... though he still didn't agree with her, he gave in. If any type of debate were to come from their discussion, she would no doubt win. She always won. She was way too intellectual for him. Adam always joked that she was the brains of their relationship.
"I hope you're right," he said finally, after a long silence. "I'm just not looking forward to being alone, sitting around and waiting to find out."
Once again, Trish found herself having trouble transforming her thoughts into coherent sentences. Words and emotions were tumbling around in her mind, but none seemed to formulate together. She sat still, silent for a long while before she tentatively spoke again.
"You're not going to be alone, you'll..."
"I know I'm not going to be alone, Trish," he cut her off, almost hostily. "But you can't tell me it's not going to feel that way. It's already such an awkward situation, and then to think of how weird it's going to be for all the people I care about, too... it's just a lot of stress."
"What are you talking about?" Trish asked him, confusion etched on her face.
"Just think about it," he said to her, shifting slightly so that his body was turned toward her. "You saw how uncomfortable Adam and Amy were at the hospital. Both of them are going to want to help, and that means that they're going to have to be around each other again... because of me. Stacy's told me how guilty Chris feels, and that he's practically scared to show his face around me... because of me. I'm just praying that my attitude doesn't get so bad that the situation becomes too hard for you, too."
Trish sighed, rubbing her thumb across his cheek. She rose up to her knees, leaning toward him and cupping his face in her hands. She kissed him, soft but still passionate, and then moved her head to his shoulder. Resting it there, she hugged him tightly, exhaling loudly as she felt his arms wrap around her.
"I'd never do that to you, and you know it."
Heaving a sigh of his own, Jay held Trish tightly. He held her that way for a long while, even when she tried to pull away. He knew that she would never leave him. But there was a small part of him that felt that even though she would never want to leave, he could make her feel that she had no other option.He let go only when a sharp pain shot through his back, grimacing in both pain and reluctancy as he released her from his embrace.
