CHAPTER 4: The Talk

"Ok, babe, I'm going to do the Highlight Reel," Chris said, standing up.

"Ok, but try not to be too sexy," Stephanie replied, smiling up at him.

"What do you mean? I'm a sexy beast," he reminded her. "It's impossible for me not to be sexy, babe."

She laughed. "You're right. What was I thinking?"

"You're thinking about how, in less than two weeks, you're going to be Mrs. Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," he said, leaning down to gaze into her eyes. "And you know what? I'm thinking about it, too."

She gazed into his eyes and smiled. "I can't believe I'm going to be spending the rest of my life looking into your eyes," she whispered. "It's like a dream come true."

He smiled and kissed her soundly before standing up. "Well you better believe it, sweetheart," he said, heading for the door. "I'm going to make all your dreams come true, and I have the rest of my life to do it."

"You're so sweet," she sighed. "Have fun out there."

"I will... With me out there, it's always a party," he told her. He gave her one last smile, then slipped out the door, leaving her all alone.

Stephanie leaned back on the couch and smiled. She couldn't wait to get married to Chris. He truly was the love of her life... But then there was John, her best friend, and he didn't seem to share her feelings on this. It was important that he backed her up on this, though. She stood up. She was going to go and have a talk with him right now...

John sat in his locker room, staring off into space. He had so many things on his mind at the moment, and almost all of those things revolved around his best friend. Why hadn't he noticed how great Stephanie was before she got engaged to Chris? He didn't know, and it didn't matter if he ever did, because in less than two weeks she would be Mrs. Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, and that would be the end of it...

"Stupid dreams," he muttered, flipping on the television in front of him. He groaned as he saw Chris making his entrance to the ring.

"There's my baby," a voice said proudly from behind him. He turned around and saw Stephanie leaning in the doorway, looking at Chris making his entrance on the TV. She smiled at John and walked all the way into the room, shutting the door behind her. "And what have you been dreaming about?"

"Dreaming about? What are you talking about?" he asked nervously, looking away. She could always tell if he was lying about something just by looking him in the eyes, and he really didn't want her to figure that out.

"Uh oh, you're trying not to look into my eyes," she said, walking over and sitting on the couch next to him. "So what are you trying to hide that you don't want me to know about?"

"I don't... I'm not hiding anything," he stammered, and then he wanted to slap himself. He always stammered when he lied, and he knew that she knew that.

"And there goes the infamous Cena stammer," she laughed, putting her hand on his arm. "But really, John, I came to have a talk with you... What's going on?"

"I wish I knew," he said with a sigh, leaning back on the couch. "I mean, you're getting married and I'm having these crazy dreams and it's all happening so fast that I-"

"Speaking of fast, slow it down a little," she said, leaning against his chest. "Now put your arm around me and tell me all your problems."

That's not such a good idea, he thought, but nonetheless, he put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him. A few months ago, back before she got engaged, this position they were in was normal for them. Now that she was off-limits, the feeling his was getting from this small contact was...well, totally forbidden.

"You're too quiet," she said softly. "And I know something's wrong with you, so just come out with it already."

"You really want the truth?" he asked, looking away.

"Well, yeah," she said, looking up at him, still leaning her head against his chest. "So tell me."

"The other night, I had this dream about you," he began, closing his eyes. "And it scared the hell out of me."

"What was it about?" she asked curiously, her hand reaching over to run playful circles over his abdomen. "Was it like one of those scary dreams where I had three heads and claws?"

"I wish. Then I wouldn't be so confused about everything," he said, grabbing her hand. She pulled it away and kept drawing circles across his abdomen, and he grabbed it again. "Please don't do that, Steph. You don't understand what you're doing to me right now..."

She sat up and looked at him. "Ok, stop being so vague and spill it, because now you're really worrying me," she said, studying him carefully. "Exactly what kind of dream did you have?"

"You came to my room at like two in the morning...so we could talk," he explained, looking away. "But we didn't really talk. We... We kissed...a lot...and then I woke up, looking for you beside me..."

"Yikes," she said, standing up. "And when was this?"

"Like, two nights ago," he said, putting his head in his hands. "I don't know why I'm dreaming about you, Steph. It just happened...but if you hate me, I guess I can understand."

"Relax, honey," she said, sitting down next to him and putting her arms around him. "It was just a dream. As long as you know the difference between reality and a dream, then it's ok."

"Then you're not mad at me?" he asked hopefully, looking at her.

"Mad? Never," she said softy. "Don't worry, we'll figure this out..."

A/N: It's been a long time, huh? I know, and I'm sorry about that. It's not that I forgot about this story or anything. I just forgot what direction it was going in...but now I know!