"I hate that I'm missing Tribute to the Troops this year," Zack sighs, his good arm thrown over his eyes as he lays on the couch and holds a phone to his ear with his recovering one. One of the best events of the year to be apart of, and of course his arm would keep him from being involved in yet one more thing. "But hey, bro, I'm not sure if you've noticed yet... Rolling Stone's released its end of year list and you were listed as the best wrestler of 2014."
Dolph perks up at this as he leans against a wall leading towards the ring that's being set up, watching various people go back and forth, getting ready for the event that night. "Really? Lemme look." He searches for it on Twitter and blinks, reading and rereading the headline. "Wow," he says into the phone. "I can't say I saw that coming."
"Why not, bro? You deserve it," Zack says honestly. "You were the last man standing to get rid of the Authority, you're the Intercontinental champion, you won multiple slammys..."
"Thanks, kid," he smiles, feeling warm at Zack listing his accolades. He glances over at his phone, his mind working. "I have an idea." It takes awhile to walk from one end of the base to the other, but he does it, stopping to talk to the various soldiers and their families wandering around, letting those interested talk to Zack on facetime. He makes it back to where the event will be taped at, leaning against the wall once more and checking the clock. "We're about to start the show, kid. I'll record what I can for you, and I'll call you as soon as it's over."
Zack smirks, leaning back against the cushions, feeling a little more comfortable after getting to talk to some of the people responsible for keeping the country and its people safe. "Alright, bro. Thanks. Good luck tonight."
"I don't need luck, kid," Dolph says smugly, waiting until Zack laughs softly. "I'll talk to you later."
"Bye, bro," Zack murmurs, hanging up.
When Dolph returns to New York after Tribute to the Troops concludes, Zack is waiting for him with a grin. "Hey, kid. How are you doing?" he asks, leaning in and kissing him before he drops his luggage by the closet door and wraps his arms around him in a warm hug.
"Good," Zack says, hugging him back.
It takes a minute but Dolph notices he's only using one arm to hug him, pulling away to look up at him with a worried frown. "Kid, is your arm-?"
Realization crosses Zack's face and he quickly pulls his arm out from behind his back, grinning when Dolph looks down to find a bag of miniature Crunch bars dangling from his fingers. "Sorry, just wanted to surprise you with these to celebrate you making Rolling Stone's list, I didn't really think about how that would look. My arm feels about the same. Don't worry."
Dolph rolls his eyes and swats at Zack's good arm before grabbing the candy and going into the living room, Zack joining him a moment later. "I'm not sharing," he decides, smirking as Zack pouts. "Maybe one," he relents when Zack leans against him, eyes fixed pleadingly on him.
"Two?" Zack asks, glancing down at the first candy bar that Dolph unwraps.
Dolph mulls this over. "Maybe, what do I get for it?"
Zack exhales before leaning in and kissing him deeply, curling his fingers around Dolph's jaw and humming into it. "That?" he asks, pulling away slowly and pressing his forehead to Dolph's.
"Keep that up, you can have five," Dolph says dazedly.
"Let's make it ten," Zack suggests, his eyes gleaming as he pushes Dolph back against the couch cushions and settles in for another lengthy kiss.
