Tears in the Rain
Disclaimer: Vince owns the personas, people own themselves.. I own pocket lint and the story idea.
Spoilers: Nope… it's A/U.
Rating: PG-13 for now
Summary: A high school reunion answers questions and stirs up countless memories. .
Characters: Lita, Trish, Victoria, Dawn, Lillian, Stacy; Jeff Hardy, John Cena, Batista, Randy, Chris Jericho, Tyson Tomko, Triple H and Christian. Many others will also be making an appearance, but, my main characters are the ones previously listed.
Notes: I'm debating if I should just have this based on the reunion.. Or if I should extend it and skip the planned sequel. Now I've spoiled, haven't I? I have so many ideas for this that scream sequel or I could just add on to the actual story. What do you think? Anywhoot, my chapters will be a little longer from this point on.. Just in case I do go with a sequel… either way, I want to lengthen chapters to include a bit more.
-x-x-x-
Just as she usually did, Lita woke up early to take the dogs out for their morning walk and her morning run. A quick check to the bedroom on the third floor, let her know that Matt and Ashley were still asleep and another quick check to the bedrooms on the second floor let her know that Dawn, Victoria and Trish were still sleeping. Of course, she knew that Jeff would be sleeping…even her step-brother didn't stay up later, he always slept in. That really wasn't a problem unless it was during the school year.. And fortunately Jeff was still on summer vacation, at least until next week. As far as she was concerned, school wouldn't be starting again for another three weeks…thanks to the school's schedule of sixty days on with twenty days off. And after this break was over, she'd have a new set of students…before the break was over, in two weeks to be exact, she would be meeting with her block schedule colleagues to select a history teacher. But that wasn't for another two weeks, which meant, she still had two weeks to enjoy her time off.
"What the fuck?" John opened one eye, met shortly with the sight of Scooby in his face. He glanced to the snickering redhead, "would ya mind?"
Lita shrugged, taking a moment to sweep her fiery red locks upwards into a ponytail. "He's just greeting one of his own kind.."
John made a face, "Very funny.. Now would ya mind callin' off the damn dog?"
The redhead smirked, "Why should I? He'll move eventually because it's time for his morning walk."
The brown haired man tried to move, only to have a paw placed on his chest. "I ain't about to argue with a dog here so.." An eyebrow raised at the Great Dane. "Get your big paw off my chest."
Lita rolled her eyes, calmly hooking a leash to Othello's collar. "Just be thankful Felix isn't down here.. He follows Scooby's lead quite often."
"Not helping," he informed her rather dryly. "Now look, I know we really aren't the best of friends or whatever, but could you please give me a hand?"
"I could," Lita hooked the leash to Brutus' collar, "or I could just leave Scooby here…who knows.. He might think you're his favorite tree."
John huffed, wincing slightly when Scooby placed his other front paw on his chest. "What did I ever do to you to deserve this?"
"Enough," she replied simply, shaking the third leash with her free hand. "Now, I'd suggest you hold still, or Scooby will bring up his hind paws in a not so comfortable place.. Assuming you have anything there."
"Please, you know want me."
Lita scoffed, "And here we see living proof behind the statement 'if ignorance is bliss…you must be orgasmic.' I wouldn't touch you with a ten foot pole." Snapping her fingers, Scooby removed his paws from John's person, the Great Dane wagging his tail in anticipation.
He stretched his arms over head, "You know I was serious… I honestly don't get what your deal is. So we got each other detention once or twice--"
"Once or twice?" She echoed incredulously, an eyebrow raising as she grabbed a hat. "Try almost every weekend for three months straight.. And that was just Freshman year."
"So?" He waved it off indifferently, "I bet you didn't have anything better to do."
"Not the point, needle dick." Lita's mouth pressed into a thin line, she counting backwards in her head. "Because of you, my grade average almost fell, because of you.. I got suspended twice and nearly screwed up my chances for a scholarship.. Because of you, I almost missed one of the biggest swim meets of the year, one softball game and one of the indoor track meets. And because of you, I had to replace five of my school uniforms in one semester." One hand flew to her hip, "should I really go on?"
John rolled his eyes, his legs swinging off the couch. "Then maybe I should refresh your memory on a few things.. Because of you, I got grounded for the entire summer…two years in a row. Because of you, I almost missed one of the most important football games of the year. Because of you, I got my car taken away I don't know how many times, had my curfew pushed back.. And.." he rose from the couch, opting to hop over the back. "Because of you, nearly all of my ties for my uniform, wound up in the paper shredder."
The redhead tugged her hat on sharply, "Would you like an apology?" She huffed, not giving him a chance to reply yet. "Well too damn bad, because you aren't getting one. You got me in trouble more times then I care to remember…and on top of that, you made my childhood and teenage years a living hell."
He huffed, "You did the same damn thing to me! Shit, you never even gave me a chance to be the least bit nice to you--"
"Like you ever would have done something nice. You did nothing but--"
"Judging me like I was some kind of low class, no good punk."
"Tease me mercilessly, picked on me and got me in trouble, so of course I would classify you as a no good punk." She let out a huffy breath, the redhead then realizing that he was standing in front of her. "Look, I don't know what kind of point you're trying to prove here, but I have three restless dogs who really need to take a walk."
"I'm just trying to figure out, how in the hell all that crap still matters." He rolled his shoulders, "I mean.. it's not like it was anything major, but you just seem to have this grudge against me and I can't figure out why."
Lita shook her head, not in the mood to argue any further. "You're right.. It's done, it's over… shit happened.. I'm moving on." She smiled shortly, "so if you would excuse me.." One of the double doors was opened, the redhead and the dogs making a swift exit.
John glanced between the now closed door and the couch, "Try to be nice, she says.. Shit, Trish should've told her that."
"What was that about?" A soft spoken voice was heard from the stairs, Trish raising an eyebrow when John glanced over. "I know I heard someone…or someones…arguing earlier."
Her cousin shrugged, "I'm just trying to figure out why she hates me so much.. I know I was an ass to her and all that, but why--"
The blonde woman nodded shortly, "Have you ever thought, that maybe… bringing up all of that isn't the best idea? Granted, I don't know why she's tried so hard to forget about what's happened, but it's obviously bothered her so much that she must have a reason."
Trish left it at that, leaving John to think about it… or not think about it, whatever the case may have been.
-x-x-x-
Lita, meanwhile, opted to take one the dogs for a longer walk then usual.. Going far enough to head to the dog park so she could have some time to think. Heaving a sigh, she settled on one of the benches in the dog park; Scooby, Brutus and Othello already running free in the fenced in area in the distance. For reasons that she could never quite figure out, John Cena just had a way of getting under her skin. And while the more cynical side of her actually welcomed heated conversations like the one a few moments ago, it bothered her that it had even taken place. While John certainly hadn't been the biggest thorn in her side…that title belonged to someone else…he had been a constant source of torment. He managed to bring out the worst in her.. And in some cases, he brought out the best. Their public speaking teacher Senior year had paired them up purposely.. And the two had presented one of the more solid debates of the Senior class. Then there was another occasion.. English, Sophomore year..
- Flashback -
Fall, Sophomore Year, Tandem Friends School
Lita held in her breath, hoping and praying that her English teacher wouldn't assign partners strictly by last name this year. .. That had resulted in her working with Adam Copeland -- designated slime of the school -- for nearly all of the projects. The populace of Tandem had the small school size to thank for that…Headmaster McMahon feeling that it was the best way to foster the ideals of the school. And as she glanced around idly from her spot, she weighed her options where it concerned her fellow students. It was almost a given that Jeff and Matt would work together, along with Stacy and Trish…even though the two blondes pretended to be friends.. Everyone else knew the real story behind that. Dave Batista would more than likely be working with Kurt Angle.. The straight A, straight edge teachers pet, while Chris and Christian somehow managed to pull of a small miracle to get each other for their partner. Victoria usually ended up stuck with Torrie, while Dawn was usually paired with Trish's on again, off again boyfriend Randy Orton. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, their teacher decided to use a lottery system this time around.
"Ms. Dumas?" One of the four resident English teachers, Mr. Malenko, raised an eyebrow. "When you're ready, please come forward.. We're assigning partners for the year and the ladies will be selecting."
Lita smiled sheepishly, "Sorry about that, Mr. Malenko…" She moved from her spot at the round table as asked, another silent prayer shot up that the initials on the sheet of paper wouldn't be A.C.
Mr. Malenko nodded, handing over the hat full of slips. "I would also like to remind all of you, that your partners carry through to your history class.. As we will be doing a survey of World Literature this year."
Lita held her breath as she reached into the hat, fingers mingling with the slips until she selected one. Wordlessly, she handed it over to Mr. Malenko before resuming her normal seat.
"Ahh.." His attention shifted to John, the redhead's expression falling faster then a fallen soufflé. "Mr. Cena, if you would please move your things…it looks as though you will be partners with Ms. Dumas."
The rest of the class had passed in a blur, Lita stuffing the curriculum for the year into one of the folders before her. She had practically fled from the classroom when the bell rang…before she realized that the majority of those in her English class shared her schedule. Lita had taken the banter from Jeff, Chris and Trish in stride.. Ignoring her designated partner for the rest of the day. It wasn't until she had gotten home from school that day, that the harsh reality of it all sank in. The redheaded teen had just changed out of her uniform when the doorbell rang.. And since her mom was on her way to pick up Billy from one of the other private schools in the area, Lita was the only one available to answer the door.
"Can I help you?"
After a moment, John nodded. "Everyone else is heading over to the library to get the first three books on the list.. There's an assignment that's due on Monday."
An eyebrow raised, "So? It's only Wednesday.. That's two school days, plus the weekend and--"
"But you have swim practice and I've got football practice after school." John pointed out then, his backpack falling on the porch with a thud. "Which leaves us after practice, during study hall and maybe Sunday.. Since I've got a game Saturday and--"
"Alright, you made your point." Lita swept her hair back from her face, "I just need to leave a note for my mom.. Let her know where I've gone."
Thanks to the slight delay, the two got to the library in town to find the books that they needed had already been checked out. That resulted in them heading to John's house.. The brown haired teen begging his older brother to give them a ride into the next town.
"At this rate, we might as well buy the books." John shook his head as they left the third library. "We've probably checked every single library in this area."
Lita bit her lower lip in thought, "I can ask my mom if she can check out the books from the library at U.V.A.. if she can get them tomorrow, we can start working on the assignment tomorrow night or Friday night."
John shrugged his agreement, the two falling silent as his older brother stopped at a fast food restaurant. It remained silent, until he decided to break it. "So.. What do you think of Mr. Malenko?"
Lita half shrugged, "It's too early in the year to tell."
"Maybe," he seemingly conceded, a smirk soon forming on his face. "Did ya get a load of that bald spot?"
- End Flashback -
Lita found herself smiling at the memory.. That bald spot had been a virtual bulls-eye for many spitballs from Randy, John, Chris and Christian that year. And that year had also been one of her best academic years at Tandem. Even with their numerous practices for various sports teams or band, the two had met up after practice or over the weekends to work on the never ending list of assignments. In one weekend alone, they had managed to get three of the assignments done… though that weekend had also been wrought with plenty of nit picking and arguing. But, that was just how things had worked.. No matter what subject and even when they weren't partners for a project.. They always argued. Shaking her head, Lita moved from the park bench.. Whistling shortly for Brutus, Othello and Scooby so they could head back to the house. She hadn't taken her watch with her, but she was getting hungry… and she was more then certain that applied to the three dogs with her. Of course, Jeff did question why it had taken her so long to walk the dogs.. Lita surprised that he was awake before 10:00 a.m. But before she answered any of her step brother's questions.. Or any questions from Trish, she excused herself to take a shower.. Thoughts fleeting from her mind with each droplet of hot water that rolled down her body.
