Torment of Tantalus

Chapter 5

"Aw, come on Stephy, you don't really want to go back to Triple Hag, do you?" Chris Jericho asked loudly, draping his arm around Stephanie McMahon's shoulders as they walked down the hall of the hotel, ice cream cones in hand.

"Watch it, Jericho, you're on thin ice as it is," she warned him, glowering at him over her prestigious tower of vanilla ice cream.

Chris gaped at her, knowing that she was joking, but having fun playing along anyway. "I've done tons of things for you, and I'm not forgiven yet?"

"Mmm…" Stephanie swallowed the ice cream in her mouth and looked at him, not caring about the ring of vanilla around her lips. "I'm not sure, name a few…"

"Well, for starters, I sawthat godforsaken movie with you."

"You were flicking kernels at people during the entire thing."

"Nuh-uh. I stopped halfway through," he replied, sticking his tongue out at her.

"Whatever, still not on forgiveness status," she retorted, taking a large bite of ice cream.

"I…I bought you that hat!"

Stephanie looked up to the large, fuzzy hat that adorned her head. It was loud, but soft to the touch, and she liked it. When they had left the theater, one of the street venders had it on display. Chris had bought it for her, presenting it with a smile. She figured it would end up making a part of her wardrobe the next time her father tried to call an important meeting during one of her vacation days. "It was 5 bucks, Chris. You're really cheap at asking for forgiveness," she observed.

"I got you the ice cream," he pointed out. She hesitated. "DQ," he added in a sing-song voice.

"Hmm…" she took a lick of it, pretending to ponder his statement. "Well, I suppose," she said, sighing. Chris swallowed the rest of his cone and turned to Stephanie, grinning, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Stephanie froze in motion.

"Well, in that case…" in one swift motion, he grabbed the bottom of her cone and brought the ice cream on a collision course with her face. Chris immediately took off running, tossing a look behind him to admire his handiwork.

Stephanie shrieked, giving him an evil glare before sprinting after him with no regard to the people wanting quiet. "I'll get you Jericho!" she yelled after him. Chris turned around and stopped just in time to avoid mowing down a middle-aged man. The man glared at him suspiciously before continuing on his way. Rolling his eyes behind the man's back, Chris was caught off guard when Stephanie slammed into his stomach, sending them both tumbling to the ground. With a triumphant swing, Stephanie decorated Chris's face with the rest of her ice cream.

"Oh, that's so it," Chris growled, wrapping an arm around her middle, tossing her to the side. He rolled over, pinning her on the ground, staring down at her, his hands on her wrists. Slowly he let go of them, putting his hands on his hips. "It almost seems like too much of a shame to waste that ice cream," he lowered his head, touching his lips to the skin just beside her own. Stephanie used her free hands to swat him on the chest.

"Get off of me, Jericho," she ordered, her voice muffled.

"Oh, sorry Steph, I thought you liked being on the bottom," he replied, smiling. She responded with another swat. Laughing, Chris stood, offering a hand to Stephanie. "Truce?" he prompted. Stephanie rolled her eyes, giving into his charming smile and taking his hand, allowing him to pull her to her feet.

Chris sighed, realizing that they were at her hotel room. Stephanie looked past him at the door. "I'm Prince Charming, aren't I?" he asked out of nowhere, pulling her eyes back to him.

Stephanie looked at him, considering his mental health for a moment before answering. "Why would you think that?"

"Here I am, getting young Cinderella back to her evil stepsister by eight o'clock—"

"Ew! That's so gross. Hunter is not my stepsister! It's like, illegal to sleep with your stepsister!"

"Is that your only reason?" Chris replied. "Kinky." He wrinkled his nose at the thought of Stephanie and Hunter having sex. Ew… 'Is it even possible for her to fit in bed with him?' he found himself wondering. 'I wouldn't suppose that his nose leaves any room for her to share the bed, let alone anything else.'

She smacked him in the arm. "You're so messed up, Jericho." Stephanie turned around and knocked on the door, knowing that Hunter was inside awaiting her return. Chris gave her a lopsided smile before hugging her to him. The hotel room door opened and Chris's grip around Stephanie's waist tighten. He was glad Stephanie was facing Hunter now and not him. It would be so easy to reconstruct Hunter's face. And who knew? It could help. Well, it couldn't get worse, at any rate.

Stephanie didn't look at Hunter as she hugged Chris back. Truth to be told, she had been bothered by Chris's comments about her engagement. However, she'd expected it from Chris. Hunter and Chris would never get along, and she knew it. But, heck, at least this way she'd gotten a hat and an ice cream out of it.

The movie had been a waste of seven bucks, but it had been quite fun to watch Chris squirm.

"Meet me in the lobby at two," Chris whispered to Stephanie as she stepped back. Curiosity was alight in her eyes when she looked back at him, but as soon as she turned to Hunter it was masked. Chris smiled, feeling the pride in his stomach at her ability. Hunter's eyes cut to the Canadian's, and Chris smiled. "See ya around, Trips," he said brightly, and sauntered away.

"Hey Hunter," Stephanie said brightly, turning as Hunter shut the door. He was already dressed in a trim suit, and she smiled. It was so nice of him to bring her to an expensive dinner.

"Hi Stephanie," he replied with a smile, but Stephanie could tell he was bothered by her appearance. "How about you get yourself cleaned up and dressed, and we'll head out."

"Awesome," Stephanie replied, going to give him a kiss. Hunter stopped her gently halfway.

"It's a pain in the ass to get vanilla out of suits," he told her with a smile, and she stepped away, nodding her head.

Stephanie walked into the bathroom, closing and locking the door. She laughed out loud at the dripping mess all over her face. Grabbing a towel and wetting it, the brunette started to wipe the ice cream from her face. As she did so, she found herself thinking of the quick kiss Chris had given her. She frowned, her arm motions pausing. 'Why am I thinking of that?' she wondered, but she knew. Chris had beenmostly dressed up--a farcry from his usual wardrobe, at least--and he'd given her a kiss, but her own fiancé wouldn't? Stephanie rolled her eyes and pushed the thought from her head. 'I'm being paranoid,' she thought, but the kiss kept coming back to her mind. 'Why do I care that Chris gave me a kiss when Hunter didn't?' she asked herself, frustrated.

She steadfastedly refused to think of why else the kiss would remain on her mind.

Author's Note: Hmm… Looks like Stephanie isn't quite loyal! :-P You love me, don't you? Lol. I just pulled this out of my head after finishing thefourth chapter, so sorry if it's not that good, but please review anyway!