Disclaimer: I absolutely positively own none of the characters used in this story. They belong to Vince McMahon, the WWE, or themselves. No profit is made from this story; it is strictly fictional and strictly for fun!
A/N: I would like to take this opportunity to wish everybody a very Merry Christmas! I also want to send a special shout out to Jodi, Nina, and Liz. You three have been the best support system that I have ever had! Thanks from the bottom of my heart;-)
That being said.... on with the story! Please remember all reviews, good or bad, are welcome!
Trish had just finished putting the hamburgers on a tray to take out to the guys when she noticed Stephanie looking at her. She smiled a sad smile. She knew that Stephanie was dreading telling Jay and Chris about Lilian as much as she was. She also knew there wasn't any way around it. They had to tell them. "I say that we plead guilty by reason of insanity."
"I don't think that one is going to work," Stephanie said with a small smile. She went back to setting the chicken breasts and hotdogs on the other tray. There were times when she wished she knew the right way to handle situations. This was one of those times.
"Yes it will, we're dating them so we have to be just a little bit insane," Trish said with a grin. She knew the guys would eventually forgive them. They had to; they didn't have a choice in the matter.
Stephanie just smiled at her friend and shook her head. She knew that Chris was going to be angry and that bothered her. She was looking forward to a having a good weekend with friends, not fighting with her boyfriend. It seemed like it was always a struggle just to stay on an even keel.
Trish noticed how quiet Stephanie was and knew that she was worrying about telling Chris. She really didn't think that Chris would be that mad but unfortunately Stephanie did. She walked over and put her arm around her shoulder. "Cheer up, it will be ok. Besides, they still have to tell us about the grocery store. I think makes us all about even."
"You know, I never even thought about that," Stephanie said with a gleam in her eyes. "They might get mad at us but at least we didn't terrorize a little old lady in a grocery store."
"That's my girl," Trish said giving her shoulder a squeeze. She picked up her tray. "Well, let's get this meat out there to them."
"Ok," Stephanie said picking up her tray. She followed her outside wondering if this weekend was going to be a lot of fun or a total disaster. "I'm betting on disaster," she thought to herself as she went out the door behind Trish.
Lilian smiled at Benoit. He had been so attentive that she couldn't help but smile. He seemed to be one of the very few men that she had ever met that really seemed interested in what she had to say, not just how she looked. "You know, we've never really sat down and talked like this before have we?"
"No, we haven't," Benoit said with a smile. He had to admit that he had really enjoyed her company. They liked a lot of the same things, which really meant a lot to him. He liked her more now than he did before. "I didn't realize that we had so much in common."
"I know," Lilian said with a shrug of her shoulders. "It's nice though. I get tired of talking about work and the people I work with. Now, I've got somebody to talk to about other sports with instead of just talking about baseball. Between you and I, it's a pretty boring sport to me."
"I know what you mean," Benoit said with a laugh. "Personally, I love football. That's my favorite. Besides, most of the guys backstage are too busy staring at you on the monitor to talk about anything else."
"You're being silly," Lilian said with a swat on his arm. "Besides, I look the same every week. My hair might be fixed a little different but other than that, it's just plain old me."
"See now that's where you're wrong," Benoit said putting his arm around the back of the couch. "You don't wear the same outfit each week. That's what the guys talk about."
"Wow, sounds like some of them need a life," Lilian said with a slight blush on her cheeks. "I'm not that important."
Benoit looked at her and noticed that she really meant what she had said. What puzzled him was why did she feel that way about herself. It didn't make sense. She was a beautiful girl with a great personality. "You know, everybody is important. Some more than others, but everybody is important in one way or another."
Lilian looked into his eyes and could see that he was being honest. She also knew that he was the kind of guy that would say anything to make anybody feel better. It wasn't that she didn't believe him; she did, just not that much. She knew from her past experiences with men that things were not always what they seemed. She shrugged her shoulders. "If you say so."
Benoit sat there and mentally made a note that Lilian didn't seem to think much of herself. That surprised him in more ways than one. He didn't understand where it came from but he made a promise to himself to find out before the weekend was up.
Jay elbowed Chris in the ribs when he heard the backdoor open. He was not looking forward to this confrontation with the women and neither was Chris. They decided not to lie; they were having fun at the time and that was all that there was to it. There was no law against that.
Trish set the food down on the table before putting her hands on her hips. She looked at Jay with a 'I'm disappointed in you' look which made him mentally groan. "What do you have to say for yourself?"
Jay shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing really, I was just having fun."
"Having fun? You call running into a little old lady with a shopping cart fun," Trish said feeling the anger rush through her veins. She closed her eyes, counted to ten, and waited for him to speak.
Chris couldn't believe that Trish was actually that mad. If he had looked at Stephanie, he would have seen the same look on her face. He didn't. He looked at Trish and said, "First off, we didn't hit her, we hit her cart; big difference there dear. Secondly, we were just having fun. It was not that big of a deal as far as I am concerned."
"No big deal huh," Stephanie said walking up beside of Trish. "Well, then I guess it isn't a big deal that you knocked over two displays either."
"Nope," Chris said with an almost bored look on his face. He had been waiting for her to speak and knew it was coming. While he understood a little why they were upset, he really didn't think what they did was that bad. "If you're looking for an apology from us, you're looking in the wrong direction."
"He's right, we didn't do anything other than have some fun. I refuse to apologize for having fun," Jay said with a stubborn look on his face. As long as he had Chris there, he had to save face. He knew that once they left, he would be kissing some major ass. He had to take advantage of the moment while he could.
Stephanie looked at Trish and Trish looked at Stephanie. The looks on their faces were practically identical. The irritation was there and so was their stubbornness. Stephanie spoke up. "Well, then we refuse to apologize for inviting Lilian here for the weekend."
"What? What are you talking about Princess?" Chris said with a confused look on his face. He couldn't understand why they were talking about Lilian. Where did that come from?
"Yeah, we didn't do anything wrong but have fun too so there," Trish said with a determined look on her face. She turned to look at Stephanie. "Do you want to help me with the fixings?"
"Yes, I believe I do," Stephanie said turning to follow Trish into the house.
They had made it to the door reaching out to grab the handle when Jay spoke quietly but firmly. He hoped that he didn't hear what he thought he just heard. If he did, then it was going to be ugly around here really quick. "You did what?"
Trish and Stephanie turned around with stubborn looks on their faces. They quietly walked back down the steps and in front of their boyfriends. Stephanie was the first to speak. "We invited Lilian over for the weekend."
Chris and Jay looked at each other. They then turned to look back at the girls and then back at themselves once again. "Excuse us for a minute," Jay said grabbing Chris arm and pulling him out of earshot.
"I told you that they were up to something. Poor Benoit, they are trying to set him up," Jay said with a knowing look on his face. He kept slapping his hand with the back of his other hand to emphasize what he was saying. "I knew it! I knew it! I knew it!"
"I did too," Chris said rubbing his chin. He had known something was not right, he just didn't know what. Now, he knew why Stephanie was so interested in talking about Benoit on the plane. It was suddenly as if a light bulb went off in his mind. The secret phone calls with Trish and Stephanie chewing her bottom lip all the time. "They have been planning this for a while. The question is how can we use this to our advantage?"
"Just follow my lead," Jay said with a knowing look. He had tried and tried to make Trish understand that trying to fix up people was just wrong. Ok, so he had attempted to fix up Stephanie and Chris but that was different. They really liked each other.
Jay and Chris walked back in front of their girlfriends with serious looks on their faces. They crossed they arms in front of each other. Jay looked at both of them before he spoke. "I thought that we had discussed this before. I thought that you two knew that fixing people up without them knowing is wrong. Evidently, you two didn't listen."
"Now wait a minute," Stephanie said with anger on her face.
"Hush Stephanie and listen to the man," Chris said interrupting her.
Stephanie felt the anger coursing through her veins like a wildfire in a forest. The fire flashed in her eyes and for a second, she saw fear on Chris's face. He quickly covered it but not quick enough. She started tapping her foot but listened to what Jay had to say.
"Stephanie, I expected this from you but Trish," Jay said turning his attention back to his girlfriend, "you promised me that you wouldn't do this anymore. How can I trust you after this?"
"First off, I promised not to meddle, that has nothing to do with matchmaking. You want to talk about trust. I can't even trust you to go to the freaking grocery store without getting kicked out. And another thing, who are you to stand there and jump me when you tried to do the same exact thing to them," Trish said with anger flashing in her eyes pointing her finger at Stephanie and Chris.
"That was totally different and this isn't about me," Jay said with a determined look on his face. She was not winning this argument, but not this time. She had made a promise and she broke it. It was as simple as that.
Stephanie and Chris just stared at each other while Jay and Trish continued to argue. Stephanie was furious and it showed. Chris was aggravated and it did showed. Finally after a few minutes, she finally spoke.
"Let me tell you something right now Chris Jericho," Stephanie said slowly walking right in front of him getting in his face. She took her finger and started poking it in his chest. "Don't you ever tell me to hush again!"
"Princess," Chris said shaking his head. "Hush!"
Stephanie opened her mouth and then shut it again. She closed her eyes and counted to ten. "You know Chris, I don't want to do this. I don't want to fight with you."
"Admit that you were wrong and we don't have to," Chris said with a smug look. He had her there and he knew it. For the first time, Stephanie was going to admit that she was wrong about it. He had to admit that this was a long time coming.
Stephanie stood there for a few minutes trying to control her anger. If he thought for one second that she was going to admit that she was wrong, then he was in for a rude awakening. "You know, if you are waiting for me to admit that I'm wrong, hell is going to freeze over first."
"How can you say that?" Chris said with an incredulous look on his face. He couldn't believe that she wasn't going to admit that she was wrong to interfere. "You know that you are wrong."
"You know what is wrong. I'll tell you exactly what is wrong. You want to stand there and judge me for something that you know nothing about. I would never intentionally hurt anybody and I didn't think then that I did anything wrong and I still don't that I did anything wrong," Stephanie said with anger flashing in her eyes. She was getting ready to lose it and she didn't want to do that. The McMahon blood was in her veins and could take over at any time.
"You know what Princess," Chris said with a smirk. He grabbed her by the arm gently but firmly. He softened his voice and whispered in her ear, "I'm right and you're wrong. That is the only thing that is pissed you off right now. Admit it."
"Go to hell Jericho," Stephanie said jerking her arm out of his. She walked beside of Trish and grabbed her by the arm. If they wanted to go this route, that was fine by her. "Come on Trish, we've got guests."
Lilian and Benoit were laughing when they heard the backdoor slam. They looked at each other with puzzling looks. Lilian shrugged her shoulders while Benoit just laid his head back with a small smile.
"What is so funny?" Lilian said intrigued.
"I am betting that our two lovely couples are fighting right now," Benoit said with a wry grin. He had a pretty good feeling that the girls had just told the guys about their secret plans. It would be interesting to see how things played out this weekend. He shook his head over thinking that he might actually get bored being here earlier. He knew better than that.
"Oh no, that can't be good," Lilian said with a sad look on her face. She was having such a nice time with Benoit. She also couldn't help but think that maybe Stephanie and Trish were right; maybe he really did like her. She didn't want anything to ruin the moment but it looked like the fighting couples just might.
"No but it sure will be entertaining," Benoit said with a wink. He noticed Lilian smile and thought she had the best smile in the world. He spoke his mind without realizing it until her smile got just a little bit bigger. "You know, you just have the best smile."
"Thanks, I like yours too, even with a tooth missing," Lilian said smiling freely. He just seemed to have the knack to say the sweetest things. The more she was around him, the more she liked him. She just hoped that he liked her.
Benoit laughed out loud and slapped his leg. "I'm glad you like it. My mom sure doesn't."
A cabinet slammed in the kitchen that caused both of them to look that way. Benoit turned to Lilian and said, "I'll go outside and check the guys. You go in there and check on the girls. We'll swap notes later."
"Sounds like a plan," Lilian said with a smile. She stood up and walked into the kitchen wondering what she was walking into. By the sounds of things, it couldn't be good. She tried to cover the worried expression on her face as she walked into the kitchen.
Benoit decided to walk out the front door and out back. With all of the commotion coming from the kitchen, he felt this might be the easiest way to stay out of the line of fire. With a slight smile on his face, he opened the gate listening to Chris and Jay vent about their girlfriends as he silently walked towards them.
"You know what really pisses me off," Jay said flipping the burgers and smashing them into the grill. "What really pisses me off is that they act like we did something wrong."
"I know, we didn't do anything wrong as far as I can tell," Chris said with a smirk on his face. He was not backing down. He was right, she was wrong, and that was that. He shrugged his shoulders. "Who cares?"
"Evidently, you two do," Benoit said walking up beside of them. He didn't believe a word that either one of them had said. He knew them way too well. When everybody left, they would be on their knees kissing the girl's asses to make things right. He never understood the 'male macho bullshit' until now.
"Dude, we had no clue to what they were doing," Jay said with an embarrassed look on his face. He still couldn't believe that Trish had broken her promise. He shook his head. "Seriously, we had no clue."
Benoit laughed out loud and slapped his leg again. He couldn't believe that this was going on but damn, if it didn't make things more interesting. "I didn't think that you did."
"Still, we've warned them about doing stuff like this," Chris said with a serious look on his face. "They know better than to mess with people's private lives."
"Oh really?" Benoit said with an amused look on his face. "You know, it's funny. You two act like they have committed a crime or something. First off, what they did, they did to me, not you. Both of you need to quit whining and get over it."
"But dude," Jay said turning away from the grill for a second. "You don't understand."
"No, I'll tell you what I don't understand is the two of you. You've got great girlfriends who really care about you. All you two can do is bitch and moan about the bad things that they do. What about the good things that they do?" Benoit asked while arching an eyebrow.
"Damn, I didn't know you could do the eyebrow thing," Chris said with a shocked look on his face.
Benoit looked at him with a small grin. "First off, there's a lot about me that you don't know. Secondly, you two need to grow up a little. Look, it's okay to have fun and act childish but you two seem to do it more often than not."
"He's got us there pal," Jay said with a serious look on his face. He closed his eyes for a second and sighed. "I guess we need to apologize to them."
"Oh but hell no," Chris exclaimed with a serious look on his face. "We didn't do anything wrong, they did."
"Well, I'm the one that they 'wronged' and I'm not mad," Benoit said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I have to be honest, I was more amused about it than anything. I mean, come on. They did it because they care about me, not because they were out to get me or out for revenge. If you'll stop and think about it, nine times out of ten, they do something because they care, not for meanness or spite."
"He's right, you know," Jay said with a slight grin on his face. "The question is how do we make it up to them?"
Chris let his friends work sink in. Technically, they didn't do anything wrong. They were only trying to help a friend. He shook his head and smiled. He knew how to save face and still be right in his mind. "I know exactly what we can do. Benoit, can you cover for us?"
Lillian walked into the kitchen to find Trish destroying a good head of lettuce and Stephanie taking her frustrations out on a head of cabbage with a shredder. She shook her head and walked up beside of Trish with an amused look on her face. "Trish, if you're making salad, that's fine but not for burgers."
"Huh?" Trish said with a glazed look in her eyes. She looked down and noticed how small the pieces of lettuce were. "I wasn't planning on making a salad but maybe I should."
"It's ok," Lillian said with a smile. She knew that the girls were irritated. She wished there was a way to make things right for all of them but she didn't really know what was going on. "Why don't you work on something else and I'll finish up here."
"Sure," Trish said walking up beside of Stephanie. She noticed her rubbing the cabbage against the shredder like a woman possessed. "Looks like I'm not the only one guilty of food abuse."
"Very funny," Stephanie said between her teeth. She put what was left of the cabbage down on the counter. "Would you like to try it? I imagined that it was Chris's face that I was doing that way and it made me feel so much better."
"Nah, I think I'll just start slicing the tomatoes," Trish said with a smile. "Besides, Jay's face in a shredder would probably be an improvement at this point."
Stephanie laughed and wiped her hands on a towel lying on the counter. "You know, I just don't get it. I just don't get them at all."
Lillian stood there quietly finishing up the lettuce with an intense look on her face. Normally, she wouldn't get involved in a couple's dispute. This time, she couldn't stop herself. "You know, you two are lucky. You've got two very nice looking guys who are crazy about you. Don't you think that you could find a way to meet in the middle?"
Stephanie and Trish looked at each other thinking that Lillian was right. Too bad for Jay and Chris that they wanted to stay mad for a while. They then shrugged their shoulders and went back to doing what they were doing.
"Look, I don't know what is going on and I don't really want to know," Lillian said with a warm smile. "All I know is that you two are very lucky to have guys who care about you as much as those two do. Don't be foolish and hurt your relationship this way. Find a way to meet in the middle."
"Great, just great," Randy said with a disappointed look on his face. "Where could he be?"
He had just arrived at Chris Jericho's house and there wasn't anybody at home. Common sense should have told me to call first but he wasn't sure that Chris would take his phone call. Now, he wished that he had called first.
He was standing there deep in thought when his cell phone rang. He opened it up and grinned. "Hey man, what's up?"
"Not much," Dave said with a smile. "Did you tell them yet?"
"Nope, seems that Chris had other plans this weekend. He's not home," Randy said leaning against the doorway. "I think I saw a motel up the road. I'm just going to get a room and keep coming by. Maybe he'll come back home before my return flight."
"Damn it, I was hoping that you would get to tell them," Dave said sitting down on his bed. "Thanks again for doing this buddy. I really appreciate it."
"Hey man, that's what friends are for," Randy said with a smug grin. "Don't worry dude, I've got your back. If nothing else, I'll stop you from kidnapping her Monday. Nobody knows that we still talk so that should work."
"Maybe but I would like to try and keep you out of Hunter's line of fire," Dave said.
"Dude, I've been in his line of fire for months now. I don't think that is going to change anytime soon," Randy said with another smirk on his face. "Look, let me call you after I've gotten checked in and we'll work on a Plan B."
"Ok man, thanks again for doing this," Dave said with a relived look on his face.
"No problem dude, any time," Randy said taking the phone down from his ear and folding it in half. He had his doubts but he had to try for Dave's sake. Dave was his best friend and he would be damned before he started letting him down now.