AUTHOR'S NOTE: Surprise!

So one of my new year's resolutions is to finally finish this story I started almost a year ago and that includes regular updates. Yes I can hear the applause, thank you all. You're too kind.

We've also reached a huge story milestone, with Chapter 20 with is great in itself. I just want to thank you all for the endless support. You've been too kind. So without further ado, Chapter 20 everyone!

WARNING: This story may contain triggering scenes and strong language not meant for all audiences. Viewer discretion is advised. (I love to get that outta the way)

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of these characters except my OC Kendra and other OC's I might have forgotten to mention. This story is a pure work of fiction (hence its written on) and most of the events and facts are completely made up so... I guess that's it.

Chapter 20 - Haunted By The Past

Owen knew something wasn't right.

What he thought was gonna be a joyful family breakfast with two of his favorite siblings turned an awkward quiet mess and he couldn't seem to figure out why or what the hell was even going on.

"Check please" Bret spoke up to the waiter as he had finished his meal early.

"Going so soon?" Owen asked. Bret nodded.

"I have a press conference and a meeting with Vince about some Austin shit. Plus I have to talk to Eric" Bret said fiddling around for his credit card. "So busy day"

"Oh alright" Owen said turning over to Kendra who hadn't eaten much and was busy typing away on her phone. He hadn't even heard a single more than 5 words from her since they got to this café which was rare as she was a chatty person around him.

Something was up. His brother instincts were tingling. For both Bret and Kendra. They had both been quiet for the past twenty minutes and the tension in the air was so thick you could cut it with a chainsaw.

"Okay so I need to go so later Owen." Bret said standing up abruptly. "Bye sis"

"Bye" She said quietly not taking her eyes off her phone. Bret took a deep breath looking clearly frustrated.

"You could look at me when I'm talking to you Kendra" He said. Kendra rolled her eyes before she looked up at him.

"Anything else your highness?" She asked in a sarcastic tone. Bret glared at he but ultimately said nothing before walking out. "Good riddance" She spoke up once he had gone out.

"What's going on with you two?" Owen asked.

"He's an ass and tries to treat me like one." She said dropping her phone. "And it's better he left, I have something important to talk to you about bro" She said biting her lip.

"Are you alright?" He asked his voice laced with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm great as always."

"Then what happened to you?"

"This isn't about me. It's about Davey." She said. Owen looked visibly relieved. "Why do you look relieved?" She asked with a small smile.

"Because!" He said taking a deep breath. "Between you and Bret, the way you were acting, other things... I thought something was up with you or something and I was scared. Phew" He said wiping off a fake sweat. Kendra giggled. "So what's up with Davey? You guys barely talk so this should be interesting"

"Yeah we don't but on the contrary you two travel together so I just think you're the right person to talk to" She said. Owen nodded slowly.

"Okay... I wasn't worried before but I think I'm getting there or... should I be worried?" Owen asked laughing nervously.

"Has Davey been acting weird lately? Any unusual behavior? Quirks? Strange things? New friends?" She questioned.

"No... is there something going on? Is he alright? And like I said earlier should I be worried?"

"I don't know. But brace yourself for what I'm gonna say next"

"Why are you...?"

"I think Davey's cheating on Diana!" She blurted out. Owen's mouth fell wide open. "There, I said it"

"Kendra that's a huge accusation. Where did you even get that idea from?"

"I've been hearing rumors" She half-lied. "I'm not saying anything and I sure as hell don't wanna say anything to Diana unless I am really sure but please just keep an eye on him."

"Kendra I've known David for over a decade. He loves Diana and he would never do anything to hurt her. That's why we all allowed him to marry her in the first place. Just think about that. Especially Bret allowing that. He's cool trust me"

"Owen I'm your sister. Just do this for me please" Owen was silent. "Pleeeaaasssee" She egged.

"Kendra you know I'd do anything for you and our sister. And I will. But I honestly think you're being paranoid" Owen said truthfully. "You know your history and the fact that we're going to Canada in three weeks" He said in a whisper.

Kendra was in shock. "I really can't believe you just brought that up now. I can't even... and I told you two I'm not bothered about going back to Canada!"

"You can't keep ignoring these things Kends. You know you can't. You're still affected by it I can see it"

"Owen... I think I made a huge mistake coming to talk to you" She said attempting to stand up but he held on to her gently.

"No. Please." He sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just don't want a relapse of any sorts."

"I can assure you I'm not being paranoid okay. I'm over that phase of my life. I've been off my meds for almost four years. I'm healthy and I'm fine. But you know what I care about, my sister's marriage." She said. Owen nodded.

"I see that. I'll keep an eye out for David in case he does anything suspicious. I just hope you're alright"

"I'm fine Owen, I'm not a kid anymore" She said with an eyeroll. "You're lucky I love you, you seriously pissed me off right now" She confessed.

"I'm sorry." He said. She nodded.

"I know. I have to get going" She said standing up. "I have stuff to take care off"

"Work related?" Owen asked. She smirked.

"You could say that." She said kissing him goodbye before leaving the café.

"So apparently everyone has something to do except for me" Owen said to himself as he continued to drink his coffee. "Last time I plan a family breakfast"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

You're not having fun are you? - Shawn

Hardly. Bret's making it all weird and tensiony by not saying anything and glaring at me - Kendra

Sucks to be you. I shiver at the thought of being related to him - Shawn

Lol me too - Kendra

What's Lol? - Shawn

Laugh Out Loud. How don't you already know this? - Kendra

I will answer that in due time - Shawn

"In my years of knowing you Shawn, I would've never pegged you for a texting addict. Nope. Never." Hunter said shaking his head.

"I'm not an addict. Texting is actually really nice-ish" Shawn replied not looking up from his phone.

"This is really beginning to bother me." X-Pac said.

"How so?" Hunter asked.

"He hasn't touched his beer once and it's making me uncomfortable" He joked as he and Triple H laughed. Shawn didn't seem to pay them any mind and continued typing away. "Okay that's it. Who the hell are you texting man?"

"A friend" Shawn replied still not taking his eyes off his phone.

"I bet" Hunter said sarcastically.

My friends are wondering why I'm texting so much - Shawn

I better get off now, don't wanna get you into any trouble - Kendra

No you can stay - Shawn

No, I'm fine. Plus I need to talk to Owen about the whole Diana and Davey thing - Kendra

Good luck with that. Hopefully he won't think you're crazy - Shawn

You have no idea - Kendra

"Okay and I'm done" Shawn said dipping his phone into his pocket. "So what's up?"

"Oh wow. Suddenly he has time for us. Are you hurt by this Hunter?" X-Pac asked.

"Nope. I always knew he'd leave us one day for a girl" Hunter said taking a sip out of his beer. "So, do we know her?" Hunter asked.

"I won't even dignify that question with an answer" Shawn said as he opened his can of beer. "Like I said to you two before, I'm done with girls"

"I'll say" Hunter said. "Anyways better hurry up. We've got a code yellow today."

"Meaning?" Shawn asked confused.

"I knew you didn't pay much attention any of our secret kliq codes memos"

"What?" Shawn asked expressing more confusion.

"His girlfriend is taking him birthday shopping and he's forcing me to accompany her" X-Pac said.

"Oh Chyna, you're steady with her now?" Shawn asked.

"Oh yes. You see when I like a girl I ask her out and she says yes. Then we date. It's easy really" Hunter explained mockingly as he and X-Pac shared a laugh. "But yes Joanie and I are steady now. Hell she's been dying to see you since but Mr. WWF Champion is also so busy"

"Hell I'm busy today but send her my regards. And my birthday was last week so I need my gift as well"

"Uh huh, sure. I will remember that" Hunter said in a passive voice. "C'mon Waltman" Hunter said to X-Pac as they made their way out of Shawn's room.

I'm done with them, I'll be back to the hotel in 15 minutes. Are you packed? - Kendra

Yep. I'll meet you downstairs soon. Any news from Shane? - Shawn

He said he'll be free to talk to me tomorrow evening - Kendra

Did you ask if I could come along? - Shawn

Yep and he agreed. Only if Austin could as well - Kendra

Well we've got ourselves a full house baby girl. This will be interesting - Shawn

I'm already here. I'm in my rental. Get your skinny ass here already - Kendra

My ass is freaking sexy Miss Hart. And I can see you - Shawn

"Hey stranger" Shawn said as he stepped into her rental.

"Are you sure it's a good idea for us to travel together" Kendra asked. Shawn nodded.

"It's a great idea. We can discuss more on the Russo thing and... I get to know you better. I say win-win" Shawn said with a grin. "By the way you look pissed, I'm guessing Bret"

"Owen" She replied as she started driving.

"Your brothers are dicks." Shawn said.

"You're a dick" She fired back. "And Owen's not a dick. He just didn't believe me about Davey and he said I was paranoid" She said.

"Well, you can't really expect him to straight up believe you like that. Without proof or evidence or anything."

"I know that but he had no right to call me paranoid. I just care about my sister"

"I know and you're awesome for that" He said. "Don't mind Owen. He will come round."

"I hope so otherwise I'll be forced to talk to Bret. And at this rate no one knows how he's gonna react to me" She said with a shudder.

"What does that mean?" Shawn asked.

"I don't know" She said. Shawn kept his eyes fixed on her trying to figure out what the hell was going on with her. "It's impolite to stare you know"

"Yeah but I'm trying to figure you out girl."

"I'm an open book" She said with a shrug. Shawn chuckled.

"Point of correction, you're a locked diary. With chains. I literally know nothing about you and I barely understand you sometimes" Shawn said.

"Yet there you were crushing on me not too long ago. Good times" She said sarcastically. Shawn shook his head trying not to laugh. "Yeah I'll admit I'm a tough nut to crack sometimes but at the same time I barely know anything about you either."

"Well, 20 questions is an option. After all this will be a long drive."

"Alright I'm in. But I'll start" She said.

"Whatever you say baby girl" Shawn replied.

"Okay first off and foremost, why do you and my brother hate each other so much?" Kendra asked. Shawn laughed knowing that question would be asked sooner or later. "Like I can't be the only that doesn't know the reason"

"The answer is plain and simple Kendy. I have an ego, Bret has an ego. Management loves me, management loves me. I fight hard for the top spot, he fights hard for the top spot. I have power in backstage politics, he has power in backstage politics. I'm an asshole and he's the biggest asshole on God's green earth"

"So you guys are literally the same that's why you can't get along?" Kendra asked.

"Yep that's literally the best way I can explain it. It never started off personal, it was purely work-related. We both respect each other but at the end of the day we both see each other as threats so we can't get along. Simple yet complicated truth"

"Huh." Kendra replied not really knowing what else to say. "Your turn"

"Okay. Why did you choose a career in wrestling? Is it due to family reasons or personal reasons?' Shawn asked.

"It's actually quite a mixture of both. For as long as I can remember wrestling has been a constant staple in my life. Bret taught me how to wrestle and I constantly chased that dream. Somewhere along the line, I lost interest in being an actual wrestler..."

"Why...?"

"I was scared of getting hurt" She answered truthfully. "But I loved this business so much and I was and am still grateful for everything it has done for my family and I so I said hey, why not be a writer instead. I love writing and it's a powerful way to make an impact on the business I love dearly without having to be in front of a camera"

"That's beautiful Kendra." Shawn commented,

"Thank you. So, my question for you Michaels. How did you have feelings for me when we barely knew each other?" She asked. "It's something I've been wanting to know"

"Of course you have. You just love rubbing it in" Shawn joked dramatically. Kendra giggled. "But I'll give you an answer. You caught my attention that day you stopped Bret from punching me. All that was running through my mind was, who is this girl? She's bold, daring, Bret doesn't like her... of course like I said I couldn't have guessed that he was your brother" Shawn paused.

"He has his moments"

"But either way I just wanted to find out more about you and it sure as hell didn't hurt that you're smoking hot. But then you know the story. Alas I had to get over it. Sucks but what are you gonna do?" He shrugged.

"Oh wow." She laughed. "This past month has been pretty wild alright"

"You're telling me. But anyways, my turn. Why do you seem so scared of Bret?" Shawn asked completely shattering the playful atmosphere that existed previously.

"I'm not afraid of him Shawn. He's my brother." She said simply.

"No, I don't think so. You mostly play it off but you're scared of Bret. He's an asshole alright but you make it seem as if he could actually hurt you" Shawn said. Kendra forced a laugh.

"I have no idea what you're talking about Shawn. Honestly. We have our differences but like I said before he is my brother" She said keeping her eyes on the road.

"Alright, my bad. You can ask your question now. I just wanted to make sure" Shawn decided not to pry. Not because he didn't wanna know but mainly because he didn't want to make her upset. He hoped that with time they'd get closer and she would be more open to him.

Until then...

"What is up with that theme song of yours?" Kendra asked laughing heartily. Shawn wanted to talk but ended up laughing along with her. His theme song was really ridiculous but who would argue with him?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

By the time Shawn and Kendra arrived in Indianapolis it was almost 6pm. It was a fun car ride filled with jokes, laughter and they could both feel the initial tension wearing down. She was happy, Shawn made her happy, she felt happy and she hoped that their friendship would last and everything would work out at the end. She was reminded by the little voice in her head that according to Russo, she had 6 more days before she would leave the WWF. What a scary thought.

Shawn was to make an appearance on a late night talk show which she was sure she'd watch but was eventually too tired to. She was out cold as early as eight thirty pm hoping to have a peaceful nd restful night.

But that wasn't the case on this fateful night.

"Are you done yet Kenny? We have to go now" A voice called out to her from outside the room she was she was in.

"I'm coming babe. Please can you come in and give me a hand here?" She asked fiddling with the zip in the mirror. A figure came up behind her and zipped up the dress with ease. "Thanks Elijah. For a second there I was thinking I've gotten fat or something" She said placing a soft kiss on his lips.

"I'd love you all the same" He said. "You look ravishing in that dress. Part of me just wants to rip it right off..."

"Elijah!" She squealed. "You're so gross. We can do all that after the dance okay. Tonight's gonna be magical" She said placing another kiss on his lips. "We're set to go?"

"Yep. But hold on your sister wanted to take a picture so go get her and then we'll be on her way" Elijah said as his phone rang. "I have to take this but I'll meet you downstairs"

Kendra kept twisting and turning in her sleep as the dream progressed. She tried to wake up but her body wouldn't let her...

"Oh my God you look so pretty. Gorgeous. Almost as gorgeous as me!" Diana said with a giggle. "Where's Elijah?"

"He'll be down soon. He's on a call" She said biting her lip. Diana raised an eyebrow.

"Kendra don't tell me he's talking to..."

"Kendra!" A voice called out making her turn around. "Wow, you look like a total knock out."

"Bret!" She squealed in excitement running over to meet him. "I thought you had someone to train"

"Train someone and miss my little sister's junior prom? I must be insane no matter how much money I lost" Kendra giggled. It was always good to have her brother show her support.

"Oh please, at this rate you should be training people for free" She said.

"Just cause I did it for you doesn't mean I'll do it for others." He said with a tone of finality "So, where is the boyfriend?"

"Right here. Good to see you Bret" Elijah said respectfully, bringing out his hand which Bret shook enthusiastically.

"Take care of her kid. Make sure she has fun" Bret said. "Remember if she doesn't, sharpshooter time!" They all laughed.

"Come here, time for pictures" Diana said.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no..." Kendra kept repeating over and over again as the dream went on...

"Those pictures came out great. I'm so freaking happy" She said.

"And I'm so happy to have you here with me" Elijah said to her as he brought here close to him and kissed her forehead. "The most beautiful girl in the world"

"Awwn and you're the most amazing guy in the world" She said.

"Really, so I'm not the most handsome?" Kendra giggled and shook her head. "Damn, that hurt"

"You're second"

"Who's that motherfucker in first then?" Elijah asked knowing fully well that nothing good could come from her answer.

"Bruno Sammartino!" She yelled at the top of her lungs making both of them laugh. Even the limo driver.

"We're here. Shall we?" Elijah asked. Kendra nodded.

"Let's do this."

Kendra shot up awake from her dream and looked over at the bedside clock. 10;51. It boldly read. She shook her head and fell back to her pillow convincing herself that the nightmare was over.

What she didn't know was that it hadn't even started yet...

Kendra danced and danced without a care in the world swaying her body from side to side. She was having the time of her life with the guy she loved. That is until...

"Kendra, baby we have to go" Elijah yelled over the music.

"Huh, why? It's barely 11pm" She replied as she looked at a big clock on the wall which read 10:51

"Yeah but uh.. you're curfew's 11:30 pm remember? I don't want your folks getting upset with me for keeping you out so late"

"Ugh. Alright. Lemme just say goodbye to everyone" She said turning around but Elijah gripped her hand.

"No!" He yelled, startling her. "I mean... we'll see them on Monday anyways. Let's go" He said pulling her away.

"You're acting really strange but I'm too drunk to care so lead the way!" She screamed as he dragged her out of the school building.

"No, stop. STOP!" Kendra yelled in her sleep as the dream progressed...

"Hey this isn't the way to my house. Where are we going Elijah?" Kendra asked as she began to sober up a little. Elijah was clearly driving into the woods.

"Yeah. It's a shortcut. Don't worry. You'll soon be home free" He announced. Kendra had a gut feeling telling her something was wrong. That or she desperately needed to puke.

"Driver stop please. I need to puke." She announced.

"You're not going anywhere Kendra. We'll soon be home" She noticed the sudden hoarseness in his voice. Something didn't make sense. "Kendra?" She didn't respond as her eyes were suddenly fixed on the neck of the driver in the front seat. She suddenly froze.

"Elijah I don't feel good. I need to come down. It won't be up to a minute" She pleaded.

"Puke in the fucking car!" Elijah yelled. "Speed up Guillermo!" He said to the driver.

"I'm getting out of here" She said to herself trying to open the car door but it was locked. She tried to unlock it only to turn and be on the receiving end of a close fisted punch which hither right in the face. knocking her out instantly.

With that, she jumped up wide awake. She was sweating profusely and noticed that she had been crying too not to mention shaking! Her hands quickly reached out for her phone as she looked for a trusty number she hadn't called in years.

"Hello, Dr. Ortiz. I'm having nightmares again"

Boom. That's what I'm talking about. Honestly I hope this chapter delivered cause I pulled out a drawing board in my head for this one trying to connect some things. Boy it was fun.

Thank you all for the support, please continue with it. Share your thoughts (and confusion if any). I'll see you all in Chapter 21 in 2021.
Remember to always stay safe lovelies.