Lita walked into the Coliseum at the MGM Grand in a daze. She'd left her hotel room early that morning and had been wandering up and down Las Vegas Boulevard an din and out of casinos ever since.

She needed desperately to think and the stark anonymity of the chaos of the city was exactly what she needed to do it. Now that she was back for the night's show however, she didn't feel much better.

Her brain was in a fog. The redhead chided herself for not being focused for her match that night but it didn't seem to help either. No matter what she did, her mind always slipped back to Matt.

Being with him lately was like a breath of fresh air. He was the old Matt again. He was fun loving and impulsive and up for anything she needed. It was like stepping back in time to when they first met. It was great!

Lita found herself looking forward to finding him at the arenas so they could climb up into the empty seats to watch the set up crews ready the events and giggle together at all the latest backstage gossip. They'd nearly cried laughing when news of Stacy's broken jaw got back to them.

The redhead couldn't quite remember a time when the two of them had had more fun or had been better friends and that bothered her…a lot.

Could his change of heart possibly have been so complete after his many years of transformation into the monster she had watched trash their apartment a few months ago? That was the biggest part of her problem. Had her actually leaving him been enough to jolt him into the reality of what he had been doing to her? Lita wanted to say yes but she couldn't quite make herself believe it.

She shook her head minutely to clear it and made a left toward the men's locker room. It was still a good four hours to show time but she was sure he was there. Since their partial reconciliation, Matt had done his best to match his schedule to hers just so he would be available to her.

The redhead was smiling finally as she knocked on the door. No one answered and she could hear no movement from the other side but that wasn't unusual. If he were back in the showers, he'd never have heard it. That thought in mind, she turned the knob and gave the door a push.

"Hello?" She giggled opening the door and stepping through. The room was mostly deserted aside from a lone duffel bag she didn't recognize. "Anybody?" Still nothing. Lita sighed feeling slightly deflated and turned back toward the door to leave.

"Lita?" A voice called, as she was about to push through. The redhead's heart skipped a beat at the sound. She turned around so fast she nearly tripped over her own feet.

"Jeff?" She whispered at the man standing in the shower room door. His hair was dripping wet but he was wearing a pair of work out pants and had a towel draped over his narrow shoulders like he'd just started to get dressed. "Oh my God Jeff!" She screamed and launched herself at him wrapping him in a tight hug. "Jesus where have you been? We've been worried sick!"

The congenial chuckling against the side of her face chased away the last of her malaise. At that point, nothing else mattered. Jeff was back and with Matt's newfound lease on life, Lita had her family back.

"Leets, calm down." He chuckled again and too her by the shoulders, holding her at arm's length to look at her.

"Where have you been you shit?" The redhead asked again and was surprised by the tremble in her voice. Jeff's hazel eyes just smiled down on her as he wiped a tear from her cheek. She was so excited to see him, so relieved to see him all right that she hadn't realized she was crying. "You…you can't just disappear like that! Do you hear me?"

Jeff smiled sweetly and pulled her tight to his chest again.

"I missed you too." He said into the top of her head. For some reason, that short statement set her blood to boiling.

"Then why the hell haven't you called?" Lita roared, pushing him away so suddenly that he nearly fell backward into the showers.

"What?" Jeff spat as he righted himself.

"You know, called? You use phones for that!" She raged on. Suddenly, she felt so hurt that he'd been gone so long and hadn't even bothered to call. Did she mean that little to him? So many time she'd said he loved her like a sister and he couldn't even call her to let her know he was alive?

"Lita…" Jeff blustered as she passed back and forth in front of him. "I…I couldn't call."

"What do you mean you couldn't call? Of course you could have called." She went on. All the anger was just seething beneath the surface. It was like she couldn't help herself.

Sure, she was thrilled beyond knowing to see Jeff alive and well let alone in the locker room but of all the selfish, uncaring things… "Lita stop it!" Jeff finally yelled and snatched at her hand as she passed. The redhead pulled out of his reach and wiped fiercely at her heated tears again.

"No Jeff! I thought we were friends and you just up and disappear for months and expect everything to be all right? No…no Jeff, that is not how things work!" Lita's voice cracked on her and that was it. She fell against him and sobbed outright.

"I'm sorry Leets." Jeff cooed as he held her. "They don't allow phone calls or visits when you're inpatient." Lita's head snapped up at his words.

"Inpatient?" She blurted, her eyes wide with confusion.

"Yeah, I thought you knew." The redhead stepped back and took a good long look at him.

She could see it now. His normally sparkling and mischievous eyes looked tired and were ringed every so slightly with dark spots. His chest while still very well toned was not as big as it should have been. It looked like he hadn't seen the inside of a gym in quite a while. Then there was his skin. It's normally bronze tone looked like it had given up some of its color to a very slight gray pallor.

"Give me your arm." She said tightly and held a hand out. Jeff's eyes closed as he let out a deep breath and forlornly lifted his right arm out to her.

Frowning, Lita snatched his wrist harder than she should have and turned it so she could see the skin of his forearm. "Jesus Christ Jeff…" She whispered and ran her fingers over the tiny dots of scar tissue lining his veins. "You were doing so well." The anger was gone from her voice now. There was only the concern and love for her friend.

Jeff pulled his arm back and rubbed it against his hip as if to try to wipe away the evidence. "I know…" He sighed pushing past her and sat down heavily on a bench. With a frustrated grunt he threw the towel from his shoulders across the locker room and seemed to collapse inward slightly. "The road just gets to me sometimes."

Lita stood staring at him for a long moment. Why hadn't she thought of that? She and Jeff had gone from sharing a room, to grabbing a quick dinner after the shows, to playing phone tag. Why hadn't she seen that he was avoiding her?

"Jeff…" She said as she sat down next to him and began idly rubbing his back. "I didn't know why you were gone, just that you were gone. At first I didn't think much of it. You do have knack for disappearing when you don't want to be found." Jeff grinned slightly as she spoke and it made her smile too.

"I'm pretty good at that, yeah." He conceded. Lita could see the giggle he was trying desperately to contain and laughed outright. "What!" Jeff attempted to sound innocent but failed miserably.

Lita just shook her head and wrapped him in another hug. "I've just missed you as all." Jeff laughed and patted her patronizingly on the head. "The road is no fun without you or Robin."

"She left then did she?" Jeff asked as he stood up and shook out his half dry hair. Lita was happy to see it was royal blue. Odd hair color was always a good sign with the younger Hardy.

"No." The redhead said leaning back to stretch her legs out on the bench. "Injured." Jeff laughed.

"That kid doesn't waste any time does she?"

"Oh that's right. You were gone for the whole thing." Jeff flipped his hair forward and then back again and sat down again.

"What'd I miss?"

"It's a very long story and I'm not sure it's my place to say anything." Lita sighed. "Suffice it to say, she could've died."

"What? Who did what? Did she…"

"Leets? You in here?" Matt called as he barged through the door. "Jeff?" He laughed. "Holy shit kid, you're back!"

"Uh…yeah." Jeff sighed and stood up, hugging his brother reluctantly.

"How are you feelin?"

"I'm…better." He said slowly and glanced back to Lita. The look on his face was not entirely friendly. Matt however, was happily oblivious. "Why didn't you tell Lita what I wrote you in the letter?"

Matt's face paled visibly. "Bro I…"

"I asked you to let her know for a reason."

"Why didn't you tell me Matt?" The anger was back in Lita's voice as she strode over to the brothers and crossed her arms. Matt sighed heavily and held a hand out to Lita.

"C'mere." He whispered when she balked. "Please?" Grudgingly, the redhead took a step toward him.

"Why didn't you tell me Matt?" She asked him quietly, her eyes were cold and she knew it but she was in the middle of something that could confirm or deny her fears.

"Baby, you've been so worried about Robin and keeping yourself in contention that I didn't think you needed to be worrying about Jeff too." He said pulling her close to him and kissing her forehead.

"Matt…" She sighed and started to shake her head.

"He was in good hands." He continued and glanced to Jeff for confirmation. Jeff did nod but he didn't look happy about it. Lita opened her mouth to protest but Matt stopped her. "What could you have done Leets? You couldn't call him; you couldn't go see him. All you would have done was worry."

"I guess so but…" She hated that what he said made sense. Some part of her desperately wanted to have reason to scream at him and judging from the dark look in Jeff's eyes, the feeling was mutual. "You should have told me if for no other reason than because Jeff asked you to."

"True." Matt admitted and turned to his brother. "I'm sorry bro. I should've done like you asked."

Jeff shrugged. "I should've known you'd never do what I asked you to."

Lita held her breath as he spoke. It was so blatantly rude she was sure Matt would react badly. Jeff however, saved everything when he smiled and slapped his brother on the back. Matt laughed and hugged the younger Hardy again then turned back to Lita.

"Did you still want to grab some food before the show?" Lita nodded but her gaze kept being drawn to Jeff. He'd seen the aftermath of the last fight and what Matt had done to her. She couldn't stop herself from feeling apprehensive about Jeff's reaction to their tentative reconciliation.

"Uh…yeah." She said and tried to smile for Matt. She could see Jeff's silent derisive chuckle out of the corner of her eye but chose to ignore it. It wasn't up to Jeff who she did or did not see even if it left a slight aching in her chest.

"Great." Matt grinned and kissed her again on the cheek. "You wanna go with us bro?"

"Naw." Jeff muttered. "I'm gonna go hit the gym. I'll see you when the show gets started."

"Suit yourself." Matt shrugged and turned back to Lita. "Catering's still getting set up, did you want to find something on the strip?" The redhead nodded and took Matt's hand as he made for the door.

I'll explain! She mouthed back to Jeff as they walked out. The last thing she saw was Jeff's shaking head as he turned his back and the door shut.

Jeff's head was spinning as he paced the locker room. How the hell could she even consider going back to him? It blew his mind.

Walking over to his bag, he grabbed a t-shirt and threw it on.

"Girl you're so stupid." He growled. He needed to hear the thoughts that were brewing in his head out loud.

If only he'd been there… If only he'd been around to help her through it. Jeff knew in his heart of hearts that if she had had someone around to keep her focused and grounded, she never would have batted an eyelash at Matt's confusing and quite possibly half-hearted apologies.

"You can't apologize for what he did." He went on to himself as he raged around the room. It was as if his frustration had grown to the point that the locker room was choking him. He had to get out. Perhaps going to the gym hadn't been a bad idea after all.

Sighing heavily, Jeff grabbed a towel and shoved through the door.

The chaos was beginning in the arena and dodging carts and crates and crazed crew with clipboards and cell phones provided just the right amount of distraction. With the voices and sound checks from the arena proper, Jeff found he could think more clearly.

Even his anger was dissipating as the excitement of the pre-show setup got back into his blood. Yes, he'd needed to get away when he'd left but now that he was feeling healthier than he had in quite a while, he felt like he was home again. The longer he wandered, the more people came to welcome him back and ask where he'd been. His cover story went over just fine. He'd hurt his knee and had been rehabbing it at home. No one questioned it and he was glad. No one needed to know where he really was.

After nearly an hour of walking and talking and getting back into the groove of the road, Jeff had an idea. If anyone would know what was happening with Lita, it'd be Kane. Sure, Jeff was her friend and they were close but Lita and Kane were like two halves of the same person. No one knew her better than he did.

After a few inquiries, Jeff managed to find out that Kane was in fact in the building. That was terribly unusual for the big man but one hell of a stroke of luck for Jeff. He couldn't remember many shows where he and Kane hadn't come sliding in just before the run throughs at about the same time. Lateness seemed to be bred into the big man as much as it was into him. Jeff had to laugh at the thought. It seemed they'd both started turning over a new leaf.

He didn't know exactly what he was going to say to Kane when he found him, but he'd think of something. So what if they'd never been terribly close. They didn't hate each other and they did have one thing in common…Lita.

Jeff just kept that thought in his mind as he walked up to Kane's private dressing room. He could hear muffled voices coming from inside and it sounded like Kane was having a very good time. The thought was almost enough to sap his courage. The younger Hardy didn't thinkan interruption of this nature would be something the big man would welcome with open arms.

Jeff heaved a deep sigh, let his arm drop from where it had been poised to knock, and stepped back with his hands on his hips.

"Damn it." He muttered, ran a hand through his shaggy blue hair, and shuffled names on the roster through his head. There was no one he could think of that would know anything. Kane was Lita's only confidant when Jeff wasn't around and it irked him. It didn't irk him because of her closeness to Kane but because every time he thought about it, he knew that if he'd been there, if he'd had the presence of mind to control himself, he'd have been the one she cried to. Any thoughts she had about Matt would have been tested on him first. He could have done something, talked her through it, let her know that she deserved better. Something.

There was a burst of feminine laughter from inside the room and Jeff all but flinched. He had to know what was going on and this was probably his only shot. He hated it but if he didn't find out what was happening, he was sure he'd go crazy.

"Stop it Kane!" Robin giggled as she flew out of the room with Kane right behind her. They were laughing and smiling as he chased her. Jeff was unable to move as he watched, he was caught and he still hadn't figured out whether or not he was going to knock at all but now he was kind of…stuck. Oddly enough, they didn't seem to notice him at all. They were so wrapped up in each other the rest of the world seemed to fade out. They were so much in love he could almost feel it coming off of them in waves. As much as he hated to admit it, it made him just a little jealous and more than a little sad.

"Hey Robin." He finally said but it was barely more than a whisper. The two of them stopped dead and stared at him.

"Jeff?" She finally blurted. Jeff nodded, a small smile breaking through. "Oh my God! You're back!" Robin laughed and danced over to hug him.

"How's it goin Jeff?" Kane asked. He appeared to be smiling but was obviously leery of his presence even as he reached out to shake the smaller man's hand. Jeff didn't blame him. There was no real reason for the two of them to interact outside of the ring and that happened very infrequently.

"I'm alright." He nodded and glanced back and forth between the two. "Kane, is there any way I could talk to you privately?" The big man's head cocked to one sideand he looked over at Robin.

"Go on. I'll meet you down by the truck." She smiled and reached up kissing him on the very edge of his face where his mask didn't cover it. His whole demeanor changed when she touched him.

"Love ya kiddo." He grinned, his mask lifting slightly, and watched her walk all the way down the hall. "So what do ya need Hardy?" He grumbled and crossed his arms over his massive chest as he shifted his gaze back to Jeff. The Hardy took a deep breath and tried to think of where to begin.

"I need to ask you about…" He finally started.

"Lita." Kane finished. Jeff's mouth snapped shut and he nodded.

"How'd you know?" He asked and felt the tension drain out of him. Kane wasn't surprised in the slightest. It made him feel so much better to hear he wasn't overreacting.

Kane shrugged and chuckled wryly. "She hasn't been herself in a while."

"When did she get back with Matt?" Kane shook his head leaning back against the wall.

"I have no idea. I was out for a bit with Robin while she was injured. When I came back, they were pretty much an item again."

"Why would she do that!" Jeff growled and began pacing back and forth in front of the big man. "…After all he put her through…"

"I don't know what to tell you man. She hasn't really spoken to me since I got back."

"Matt won't let her." Jeff muttered and Kane tilted his head to the side. The smaller man glanced up at him and shook his head. "Nothing…I'll handle my brother."

For a long moment, Kane's gaze was fixed on a spot near Jeff's feet. He stared for so long that Jeff started to get nervous. "Is there something I should know about him?" Kane growled shifting his gaze back to him. It made Jeff's skin crawl slightly, the anger brewing behind his eyes was so raw. Suddenly, Jeff was glad Lita had him. It was obvious how much he cared about her.

"Not yet." He sighed. "I was hoping you'd know more than I do."

"No, I wish I did. She's doing what she did before as far as I can tell." Kane sighed and rubbed his eyes through his mask. The longer Jeff stood and talked to him, the more respect for Kane he gained. It was more than obvious that this was not the first time Kane had thought about the situation. He actually looked tired of thinking about it. "You know your brother better than I do. If you see something I don't, let me know Hardy. I'll kill him if he hurts her again." It was clear he was deadly serious. Jeff nodded resolutely.

"Thanks Kane." He said and meant it. Jeff couldn't help but grin when the big man actually stepped back. "For looking out for Lita when I wasn't around."

"Don't worry about it. She's the sister I always wanted. I'd never let anything happen to her if it was in my power to prevent it." He said held his hand out to Jeff again. Smiling, he took it.

"You'd better go. Don't wanna keep a woman like that waiting." Jeff was still grinning as Kane glanced the way Robin had gone. "I'll see you around."

The sound of the man's true laughter caught Jeff by surprise. "No, she gets…impatient." He said and turned to leave.

Jeff watched him go and felt a bit better. Suddenly he it was like he had a partner in crime. Since he'd found out about Lita and Matt he'd felt quite alone but after speaking with Kane the thought seemed completely ridiculous. No, they definitely weren't friends but the old proverb says, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend", so a partnership of sortshad been formed. Neither of them trusted Matt and should Matt step out of line, Jeff had no doubt that Kane would be right there in the thick of whatever happened with him. It was definitely good.

Jeff glanced back toward Kane's retreating form and smiled, turning in the opposite direction. His mind was a bit clearer now; it was time to start to prepare for the show.

"Hey Jeff." He heard and turned back to see the big man stopped halfway down the hall facing him. "Welcome back." Then he turned and took a corner to the right.

Jeff smiled broadly. Yeah, going to Kane had probably been the best idea he'd ever had.