A/N: It's 2:15 AM and I just finished typing this up, and I just couldn't wait till morning to put it up, LOL. I know there hasn't been much Trish'Dave interaction lately, so I made sure to add it to this chapter. Please keep the reviews coming, I can't tell you how much the response means to me!
Part 18
For the next three days, Hunter had gone into a panic. He did not for one second doubt that Dave would make good on his threat to stay on Raw and face him for his title. And if that was the case, he was in deep shit. It wasn't that he couldn't beat Dave. But there was a good chance that he wouldn't. Dave learned everything he knew from him, right down to the crucial in ring psychology he used to outwit his opponents. Dave knew him too well.
Hunter hadn't spoken to Dave since their argument a few days prior. The heavy silence that filled the locker room said more than any words could have. The cold stare he felt sent the message loud and clear. Their friendship was slowly crumbling into nothing. Evolution was falling apart at the seams.
His gaze drifted up as the door swung open. An almost relieved look filled his eyes as an unusually calm Ric strutted over to the couch and sat beside him. He frowned when the relief fell from Hunter's face, and panic settled in again.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to panic?" he questioned in disbelief. "You're starting to piss me off."
Hunter examined Ric closely, shaking his head. The old man was too laid back. Hell, half the reason Dave was given a chance to stray was because Ric did not keep him on a tight enough leash.
"Easy for you to say," he replied, "you don't have a three-hundred pound animal on your ass."
Ric chuckled to himself, reaching behind Hunter to pat him on the back. He worried too much.
"Neither do you. You act like this has never happened before," he replied smoothly. "This is just another passing phase for Dave. Give him a few days to blow off the steam, and he'll come crawling back."
Any other time, Hunter would have agreed and laughed it off. But this was not just another temper tantrum on Dave's part. He had never been threatened by him before, and he would be lying if he said he didn't find it unnerving.
"This isn't like before, Ric. He didn't have anyone else telling him otherwise. He didn't have Orton or Stacy to pal around with, and he didn't have Trish," he said with disgust. "She's winning this battle. She's pulling him away from us."
His gaze still calm, Ric let go of Hunter, resting back in his seat.
"We just need a plan. So this Christy thing isn't panning out. What did you expect from a Diva Search girl?" he pointed out. Hunter nodded. Using Christy wasn't the smartest business move he'd ever made. She had no clue how things worked in this business. "Plan B needs to focus only on Dave. Forget Trish, Champ. We have to think of a way to make Tista hate Bradshaw and love you at the same time."
"And how the hell am I gonna do that?" Hunter scoffed, shaking his head.
Could it be that the Cerebral Assassin had gone dry? At the moment, even bad ideas would be welcomed. He had nothing. There had to be a way to prove his loyalty to Dave and make him loathe JBL all in one shot. How had he deceived people before?
Ric stood from the couch, his keys falling from his pocket. Hunter watched as they hit the floor with a clank, and he immediately started laughing. He stood and patted Ric on the back, a wide grin spread across his face.
"I've got it," he said proudly.
Trish groaned as she squeezed her eyes shut. The ceiling was becoming a bore to stare at. She knew she should get up and do something productive with her day, but she had no motivation whatsoever to move. She hadn't for days… not since she saw Christy with her man.
She snorted… her man. Dave had never been her man, and after all this, he never would be. No man was worth the drama. But Dave was not just some man. He was unlike any man she'd ever met, and she could not deny that she had fallen for him. She placed a stressed hand over her chest, praying that the stinging pain in her heart would go away. Christian made it easy to walk away. With Dave… she wasn't sure she was ever getting over him.
"Wake up, Stratus," Trish recognized Molly's voice. Her eyes popped open, and she watched as Molly approached her, Stacy not far behind.
"Wasn't sleeping, Holly," she replied, shifting over and patting the cushion beside her. Molly plopped down on the couch, while Stacy settled in a nearby armchair. "Just thinking."
"That explains the pained look," Molly teased. She ducked when the pillow previously tucked under Trish's arm was flung at her. She caught it and rested the pillow on her lap, wrapping her arms around it. "We've been looking for you."
"Here I am," she gestured to herself, crossing her left leg over her right. "What have you two been doing?"
"We were gonna ask you the same thing," Stacy said. "You haven't been easy to track down lately."
When Trish responded only with a shrug, Stacy sighed. Something was wrong, she could tell. Instead of pressuring her to talk – which she knew would only make Trish close up even more – she decided to let her in on what would be going on between Randy and Christian.
"Just don't go around the halls asking why they're fighting if we're all friends, ya know?" she concluded a few minutes later.
Trish nodded, but she frowned. She didn't have the heart to tell her friends that their plan would never work. Nothing got past Hunter. She'd learned that firsthand.
"Don't worry about me," she said, her eyes narrowing as a certain bouncy redhead popped into her mind. "I have my own agenda for Monday night."
Stacy raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow, tossing an expectant look at Trish. Then, she looked over at Molly, whose expression matched hers.
"And those plans would be…?" Molly questioned.
Trish snickered, her dark eyes flooding with anger.
"Lets just say Christy will regret ever shaking her trampy ass in my personal life," she spoke fiercely, her fists clenched tightly. Stacy leaned back a bit, finding the maniacal gleam in Trish's eyes to be more than a little intimidating. "She wants Dave so bad, she can have him. But not till I give her hell first."
Both Molly and Stacy's jaws hung open. Not so much at the threats Trish was barking towards Christy, but at the mention of Dave. It didn't take long for them to tie the strings together.
"Oh, Trish, no," Molly breathed, shaking her head. "You need to talk to him. You don't know what's really going on. At this point, nobody does."
"I know what I saw, Mol," Trish said firmly. "There's nothing for us to discuss."
"Yes there is, Trish," Stacy piped up. She couldn't let her walk away from Dave, not after all they'd already been through.
Trish shook her head, her lips pursed together.
"Trish Stratus, get off your damn ass and go talk to Dave right now," Molly demanded, rising from her seat. "This isn't you. The real Trish does not take this kind of shit sitting down. The real Trish doesn't let wannabes push her around. The real Trish doesn't ever give up." She raised her arm, pointing to the door. "Now, go."
Despite his labored breathing and the sweat spilling down his face, Dave pushed the speed of the treadmill up another notch, increasing his pace. He wondered out fast he could run before his legs gave out. Eventually he gave up, allowing the mat to roll to a stop before he hopped off. He threw himself down on a free weight bench, laying back on it as he paused to catch his breath. He didn't waste a minute, hoisting the bar over his chest and thrusting it into the air. He had spent so much time at the gym during the past three days, he had actually lost weight.
He knew running away from his problems was no longer working, but he couldn't face them yet. He buried all of his energy into the weights. His heart – not to mention the barbell – nearly dropped when he heard her voice utter the phrase, "Need a spotter?"
Dave dropped the weight back in its resting place, his eyes opening wide as he sat up on the bench. Trish stared down at him, and in a rare moment he saw her hesitate.
"Trish…" was all he could muster. He sent her a dumbfounded look, his mouth gaping as she sent him a nervous smile that made his heart dance.
Trish nodded, taking a step in his direction. She had so many things to say to Dave Batista, all of which had fled her mind. The look he sent her made her heart melt… but then she saw him with Christy, and she hardened.
"I want an explanation," she cut to the chase, placing her hands on his hips. "I think I deserve that much."
Dave sighed, resting his elbows on his knees. Sweat dripped from his nose as he tilted his head down, and he frowned. He definitely wouldn't cool down with her around. His gaze focused on the ground.
"All this happened so fast. One minute I'm fine, and then next you turn my life completely upside down," he told her. He paused, hoping to gather his scattered thoughts. "I… you just caught me so off guard when you…"
"Off guard?" Trish snorted, shaking her head. "Kinda like when I saw you getting cozy with Christy Hemme? You wanna talk about being caught by surprise, Dave, how 'bout me hearing about you and the skank from Hunter?"
Dave groaned, rubbing his hands over the top of his head. He held back a growl, finally lifting his eyes from the floor. He stared directly into her eyes, an intensely determined look in his own.
"I'm not gonna bullshit you, Trish. I slept with her. But it was weeks ago, and it's not something I plan on doing ever again, drunk or sober." Dave glanced at her, wincing as he noted that the look of disbelief was still on her face. He reached for her hand, but she snatched it away, stuffing it into her pocket. "Trish, she means nothing to me. The other night, she told me she could give me so much more than you ever could, and I knew. I knew she was wrong."
Her gaze softened, her brown eyes filling with curiosity. The stern seriousness in his tone was proof enough for her that he was telling the truth. Dave could not look her in the eye and lie to her. He didn't know how.
"What are you saying?" she asked him, biting her lip.
Dave's forehead creased at her question. Did she sound hopeful? He remained silent, rocking back and forth for a minute. Then he slapped his hands on his knees, rising from the bench. Swallowing every nervous butterfly that fluttered through his system, Dave approached her, placing his large hands on her shoulders.
"Know what I learned from this fiasco?" he asked her. She shook her head, and he went on. "I learned that no woman is ever gonna be what you are to me, Trish. The reason I was so confused when you kissed me is because no single kiss has ever done so much to me. I kept brushing my feelings aside because I thought they were physical, and I refused to make you a conquest. But I've realized, Trish, that my feelings are real. This is real."
Trish let her gaze slip away, inhaling deeply. This was everything she wanted to hear him say. She wanted him to admit he felt the same as her, and he did. But the second the smile touched her lips, it quickly faded. She sighed, pulling her hand from her pocket.
"You have to leave Evolution," she said flatly. Dave stared at her, blankly. "Do you want to be with me?" Her question was answered with a nod. "Then you have to leave them."
Dave simply blinked, processing her ultimatum. She wanted to be with him. But he had to quit Evolution? The issue that had plagued the back of his mind for months was shoved right in his face by the tiny Canadian. He opened his mouth, but no noise came out.
"Trish, I don't know if I can do that," he told her slowly. "We've had this discussion before. Does it really matter?"
He reached for her hand again, and this time she gripped his tightly.
"Yes, it matters. I can't be second, Dave, I just can't. And that's exactly what I'll be if you stay with Evolution," she explained, taking his other hand as well. "I refuse to come after Ric… and I will not come after Hunter."
"You wouldn't be," Dave insisted, squeezing her hands gently. "Hunter has nothing to do with you. I love you, Trish."
The phrase left his mouth with a heavy breath, and he licked his lips. He let go of her hands and placed his on her waist. His head moved down till his forehead touched hers. Trish's breath caught in her throat when his lips hovered over hers. She closed her eyes, but the second his lips touched hers, they shot open and she pushed him away.
"Dave, I mean it," she said as she watched him wipe traces of her gloss from his lips. "I can't handle this. I'm not asking for a decision this second… but it's gotta happen soon. It's them or me, Dave. The decision is up to you. Until you make up your mind, I think we should just handle our separate business."
She turned to walk away, but Dave caught her arm. His eyes pleaded with her, and Trish looked down, knowing that she was one look into those big eyes away from throwing herself into his arms. She had to do this, for herself, and for him.
"But Trish…"
She shook her head, pulling from his grasp. Once she felt she was at a safe distance, she turned back to Dave.
"It's all up to you…"
