1 I want to thank ALL of you for reading and for the wonderful reviews and e-mails! I couldn't have continued without your support!
Chapter Nine: "Passing Her By..Again"
Dawn had crept over the city like a silent curse, filling the streets with a soft morning glow. A thin seet of fog clung to the top of the buildings as if it were holding on for dear life. Nothing seemed wrong as she looked out over the vast jungle of concrete. It was peaceful to see the world at ease around her. If only she could feel that peace inside. Trish felt as though she could relate to the fog..as if she were holding on, just so she could last another day. What was Dave doing, at this very moment when she thought of him? Where was he at this exact second? She closed her eyes as if this could somehow stop the thoughts from flowing. She couldn't keep battling herself on a daily basis. It had to stop..but could that ever come to pass? How can you just simply forget all that you hold dear? As hopeless and impossible as it seemed to be with Dave, Trish still held onto a tiny glimmer of faith. She could only hope, however, that it wouldn't let her down..
xxxxx
If only Torrie would stop the dreadful twirling of her hair, then he'd be more at ease. John Cena stared in soft annoyance as she continued to mess with her blonde locks, in what appeared to be nervousness. The gentle glow of her hazel eyes seemed to reflect all the light around them. She couldn't look more beautiful..yet, something about her made John cringe with discomfort. Torrie was mysterious to him..very much like Stacy. Here he was, drawn to both of them equally, but for different reasons. He very much knew why he yearned for the leggy blonde. But why he felt for Torrie Wilson was a complete mystery. John was brought from his own mind when he heard her clear her throat softly, her eyes on anything but him.
"Why..uh..why did you invite me to lunch?" she asked softly, her voice barely audible to his straining ears.
"Does it really matter, Torrie?" She blinked at this unexpected reply, her lips gradually pursing into a thin line.
"Yes. Well, at least it does to me. I don't like to be in the dark, John." His features twisted into obvious humor.
"You and Randy left us all in the dark about a lot," John smirked, leaning forward to bring his water to his dry lips. Torrie studied him with a mix of resentment and shame shining through her wide eyes.
"What's the purpose of bringing that up? I swear," she growled, her hands flying up to massage her temples. "You men are all the same."
"Are we now?" he taunted, his smirk only increasing at the glare she sent his way.
"Yes! You're just like Randy!" Torrie hissed. John's humor faded the instant he processed her words.
"Never, ever compare me to him!" The threatening tone of his voice sent a ice cold chill through Torrie's entire body. She blinked at him, wordless as she watched his cheeks flush. It was in this instant did she actually realize how blue his eyes were..they had the shine of a crystal ocean in July. Her heart began pounding against her breast as she soaked in the rest of his handsome features.
"I..I'm sorry.." her breath was forced as she smiled softly at him.
"Nah, please..I need to get over it all," John laughed dryly, his head bowed. Torrie had the sudden urge to reach out and touch him but it took everything she had to ignore such a irrational thought. This was insane..she still had no idea exactly why he'd invited her to lunch. But trying to talk to him after this was like attempting to communicate with a tree. It was more than obvious that John still had bitterness towards Randy..but if he resented her like he said he did, why was he sitting across from her? And why were they alone..?
xxxxx
His crystal eyes refused to stop staring at her, much to Stacy's extreme annoyance. Randy had been watching her ever since their last encounter. She couldn't deny that the weight of his body on top of her felt like heaven..and the way his tongue melted against hers seemed like pure bliss. Nothing could hold her back from fantasizing about that moment..but the guilt of it was unsettling. Stacy had never felt like such a whore. She raised her head once again at the feeling of his eyes burning into her turned back. Enough was enough..she wanted to march right over to him and give him a piece of her mind. But it seemed he'd already taken this step.
"Can I sit down?" Randy asked softly, one of his hands rubbing at the back of his neck. Stacy stared up into his deep eyes, suddenly losing grasp on all the hatred she'd felt inside for the man that was now towering over her.
"Sure.." He took a seat with caution, as if she were going to reach out and strike him at any given second. "What is it, Randy?"
"You should know why I'm here, Stace. Why did you leave the other night?" She rolled her eyes, not in anger but in exasperation. Randy could never beat around the subject..he always had to be so blunt.
"Oh God, I don't want to talk about it.."
"You never want to tell me anything! That was one of the problems we've always had." Stacy grabbed at her hair, digging her nails into her tender scalp.
"You think I owe you an explanation? You've practically been attempting to get me into bed, by catching me off guard.."
"Oh, bullshit!" he hissed, anger etched on his usually gentle features. "Always fucking excuses with you, Stacy." Randy pushed up from the spot at which he'd been previously sitting, turning without a second thought. Stacy heard the back door slam shut, wincing at the terrible noise. As much as it pained her to admit it, she hated having these little "fights" with Randy. That was actually the last thing she wanted to do with him..
xxxxx
Dave paced the sidewalk repeatedly, attempting to avoid the pleading eyes of his wife Angie. She held onto his bags with shaking hands, large tears welling in her dark eyes. It wasn't like he felt good about watching her cry..but he couldn't stay another day.
"Ang, I can't help it that I'm needed back at work." His deep voice rang out into the silence that had hung around them.
"Don't they understand that you want to be with your wife? And your daughters?" Angie's head fell again, the sudden motion causing one of her tears to fall onto the hot pavement. Dave stared down at the fallen drop with interest. He wanted to avoid her eyes at any means necessary.
"Hun, you know that I can't. Look, I'll be back as soon as I can." Angie leapt forward and threw her arms around his thick neck. Dave jumped in surprise before he clung to her softly. She couldn't help but notice that the passion she used to feel from his arms had seemed dull recently.
"I love you," she whispered, pressing a kiss to his lips.
"You too." Dave felt the icy glare from his wife at this lame reply to what was supposed to be a confession of their mutual love. He squeezed her hand before turning to head towards the plane that would take him to New York, back to work. Truth was, he wasn't needed until Monday..but, something else was calling him back..and that was Trish Stratus.
xxxxx
Trish couldn't bring herself to get up from where she lay, enclosed in complete darkness and surrounded by terrible silence. She listened to the sound of the city; the cars zooming by, the police sirens sounding into the night..it somehow brought her a sense of peace. She'd always been a city girl at heart. Trish rolled over onto her side to now stare at the bright lights that flickered across the concrete jungle like small flames. Her eyes swelled with hot tears unexpectedly. Why in the hell couldn't she stop crying? But how dumb could she be to pretend that nothing, absolutely nothing was eating at her twenty-four seven. There wasn't an hour that passed without her longing to be where Dave was..in the arms that made her feel..alive. Trish swung her legs over onto the floor and pushed herself up from the bed, a large tear now escaping her eye to fall onto the floor. Anger had swelled up inside of her like a demon. This was her life, wasn't it? She felt as if she existed only to be tormented. Her messy blonde hair hung in knots against her face. The reason why exactly she felt so angry was beyond her. Attempting to stop the tremble in her lips, Trish stepped out into the evening air, this being her last hope to clear her mind. After all, tomorrow was a new day..but little did she know, that she'd have to face Dave earlier than expected..
xxxxx
John wiped another drop of sweat off of his brow with the back of his hand. He checked his wrist watch carefully, a small frown tugging at the corners of his mouth. She said she'd be here by five..and it was already half past the said time. John shrugged it off as he grabbed at the loose barbell that was sitting nearby on the floor. He'd been in the gym for almost two hours. But it wasn't like he had anything else to do.
"John!" He whipped around to meet Stacy's beautiful face, the smile on her face sending his heart into overdrive. He swore that, at the rate it was going, his heart would surely explode. Her extra long legs were covered barely by her small workout shorts and the lack of fabric covering her mid section didn't help matters any. "I'm so sorry about being late. There was a lot of traffic on the way here, it's nuts!"
"Hey, no prob..I was just gettin' worried." She smiled softly at him, pushing past him to head towards the treadmill, one of her slender hands coming up to caress his shoulder. His burning hot skin soaked in the chill of her fingertips with pleasure. There was nothing in the world that could compare to her touch.
"So, how long have you been here?"
"About two hours..tryin' to catch up on some lost time, ya know?" He shrugged, setting down the weights to follow in her direction. "Bein' on the road is tough."
"You're not kidding," she laughed, closing her eyes as she picked up her pace on the noisy machine. John watched her legs with soft admiration, his icy blue orbs attempting to ignore the fact that he was staring in between her thighs. John forced himself to stare at anything but Stacy, a task he found a little too hard. He might as well continue on with his weight lifting while he waited for her to finish up on her cardio training. The two kept to themselves for the next thirty minutes as they worked out. The silence that rung in John's ears was almost unbearable and he had the sudden urge to scream into the annoying quietness. "You ready to grab a bite to eat?"
"Huh?" He turned to see Stacy standing next to him, a large gym bag slung over her shoulder. "Oh, yeah, sure." After throwing all of his things into his pack, the two set off to the car, reliving the boring details of their day.
"I pretty much spent my morning alone, thinking," Stacy said dreamily, yawning as she collapsed into the passenger's seat.
"Thinkin'? 'Bout what?" he asked deeply.
"Uh, nothing..it's nothing." As John opened his mouth to protest, Stacy suddenly cut him off. "And don't dare give me any lip!" He couldn't help but break out into a chorus of laughter, his eyes connecting with hers as she followed his lead. But his smile quickly faded as her eyes became more serious, the light from her eyes draining. "Please don't look at me like that.."
"Like what?" he whispered hoarsely, unintentionally leaning closer to her. Stacy realized his sudden closeness and pulled back, swinging open the door to step out.
"I better get going..I need to meet up with Trish anyway..I'll just get something with her.."
"Trish can wait, can't she? I mean..we haven't really caught up on old times yet." Stacy got out of the car and turned to look at him, the paleness of her cheeks becoming evident to him.
"I don't think this is a good idea right now. I'll catch ya later." And with the slam of the door, Stacy Keibler walked away, leaving a dumbfounded John Cena wide-eyed, his mouth agape to protest. But as he watched her disappear, his face melted into what appeared to be deepest despair.
xxxxx
Trish's blonde hair swung behind her as she pulled a heavy trunk from the back of her rental, the weight of the object not a problem to the strong diva. Her body ached with exhaustion and the dark circles under her eyes were proof of her lack of rest. She yawned aloud as she forced herself into the arena where she'd be performing yet another house show. Whether or not she'd make it through the night was unknown. If she was to wrestle, she would damn near collapse in the center of the ring. There was no way in hell she'd survive even five minutes in that squared circle. Trish entered the barren Womens' Locker room, her dark eyes scanning for any sign of life.
"Trish, I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about the show!" Stacy grabbed Trish's arm and pulled her into a sudden hug.
"Stace, you scared the hell outta me!" Trish exclaimed, pulling back from her best friend to study the features on her delicate face. The same dark bags were under Stacy's eyes as well. "You look exhausted."
"Look who's talking," she mumbled, barely smiling at the feisty Canadian blonde.
"What..what's up, girl?" Trish tossed her bag to the floor, her brows furrowing in confusion as she sat herself next to Stacy.
"It's nothing. I've just been so busy, haven't gotten much sleep." Stacy gave her friend a reassuring smile before she turned the other way, secretly trying to conceal the pained expression that was now lingering on her face. Trish turned tired eyes to the floor, studying the concrete thoroughly.
"Yeah..I know that feeling," she replied slowly. "Anyway, you on the card tonight?" Stacy turned back in her direction, shrugging slightly as she grinned.
"Just working with the Tag Champs again..boring, I know." Trish rolled her eyes in bitter annoyance..so much for management using her in a real storyline. It was a year ago that she'd..no, working with Randy wasn't the exact bliss she had in mind..that led to too much shit.
"Yeah, well, you'll get it good real soon, Stace."
"You seen Dave lately?" Trish had just turned to go and unpack her gear but after processing Stacy's words, she swung back around.
"What makes you say that?" she replied quickly, her words barely audible. Stacy blinked in confusion, her arms swinging up to cross them, her eyes gently studying the panicked look upon Trish's face.
"Uh, no reason," she spoke slowly, her brow raising in question. Trish flashed her best cheery smile before parting ways with the leggy beauty, mumbling something about needing to get dressed. Stacy stared after the door that had just hidden Trish from view, her eyes now wide with wonder. "Yeah, sure.."
xxxxx
The steam of the shower had clouded the bathroom like a thick fog, making it almost impossible to see through the mist. Torrie stepped out onto the chilly floor, a sudden shiver traveling up her spine. She felt eyes burning into her, the very feeling causing a large lump to rise in her throat, which had suddenly gone dry.
"Long time, no see, baby," Randy whispered into her ear, his voice thick with sensuality. He stood behind her, his bare, hot chest meeting with the bare, damp skin of her back. Torrie sucked in a sharp breath the second he put his hands on her hips, his strong fingertips pressing hard against her curves.
"Hey.." she squeaked.
"Why so tense, hm?" he whispered again. Randy pressed his open mouth against her cool skin, onto the spot just behind her ear that made her seep with desire. Torrie let out a soft groan, her hand immediately reaching up to grip at his short hair.
"I didn't realize that I was."
"Mm, well, how would you like me to dry you off, baby?" Randy reached through her arms to snatch the towel from her hands before Torrie could reply. She tensed up as his fingers traced over her navel, the soft fabric absorbing the droplets of water that still clung to her satin skin. Randy never ceased in his touch..he still made her knees weak. "You know..I feel like we've been away for forever.." His hot breath tickled her neck as he whispered delicately into her ear. Randy's fingers slowly began to caress down her navel, soon finding their way to stroke her inner thighs. "Relax, baby." Torrie melted into his chest, her eyes closed as she awaited his next move. He ran his hands up and down her thighs in one simple motion, a motion that made her moan in approval.
"We really ought to get some rest," she breathed, grinding the back of her head into his neck, trying her best to fight back the moans that wanted so badly to escape. Randy chucked softly into her ear, one finger now tracing across her clit, the other now teasing to slip inside of her wet opening. Torrie's eyes rolled back into her head as she continued to give into him, her lips now shivering in excitement. She trembled against him as he dipped two hot fingers into her, straining to bury themselves as far as they could. Randy sucked on her earlobe as his skilled fingers moved rapidly inside of her, up and down. This simple motion was driving her crazy..she felt as if she'd lose her mind if he didn't stop. The word "harder" threatened to escape her dried lips. But she'd be damned if she moaned it..he couldn't make her so easily.
"How about I go a little harder," Randy growled. Torrie mouth hung open to moan out his name and to beg him to stop but it felt too good..that she lost her ability to speak. "You like that, don't you?"
"Oh God..yes," she breathed, no longer caring if it meant that he had won once again. She just wanted him to never stop, to bring her over the edge. Torrie's hips began to move to his pace, her soft whimpering becoming louder by the second. Randy bit down on her neck, his tongue sneaking to soothe the burning skin.
"Cum for me, baby," he said, his voice firm and demanding. As though his words had power, Torrie reached her peak with one last moan. Randy held her against him as she gasped for her breath, her knees buckling as they threatened to give out from under her. "That's my girl..I'll meet you in bed, okay?" Randy pressed another kiss onto her neck before he left the room, shutting the bathroom door with a soft click. Torrie's eyes filled with hot tears the second he'd left her. Why did this continue to happen? And why did she allow him to do it? Because of his threats she had gotten herself into this never ending shit. But sometimes she didn't regret a thing..like when he was touching her. Nothing mattered but the pleasure he gave to her endlessly. Torrie choked on a sob that had risen in her throat. She felt like a dirty whore..but when didn't she feel like this? The blonde bombshell lived in misery almost every waking second..and on top of all this shit with Randy, she now had John Cena following her around. What else was she going to be forced to go through? What other hell awaited her?
xxxxx
Trish slammed her fist repeatedly against the firm punching bag, ignoring the fact that her knuckles were almost blood red from the impact. She wasn't exactly sure how long she'd been taking out her rage and frustration but all her senses of time no longer mattered. She didn't care. All that was on her mind was relieving herself of all the anger that she'd built up inside over the last day. And she knew exactly what drove her this time..Dave. Trish had seen him yesterday arrive at the scheduled meeting for all the Superstars. After reliving him telling her that he couldn't be near her anymore, Trish had made her best effort to avoid him and he did the exact same thing. As much as this made sense, Trish was infuriated to no end. She half expected him to run to her, with his arms wide open and tell her it was all a mistake, that he wanted to be with her. But no such bliss had taken place. Dave had ignored her the whole time. And so that brought her here, banging her fist into the innocent punching bag, as though it were Dave's face. Sweat poured from Trish's face, the salty substance stopping to linger on her lips, the uncomfortable taste making her gag with disgust.
"You okay?" Trish whipped around at the familiar voice, her brown eyes wide with both surprise and anger.
"Nice of you to ask, Dave, after that little stunt you pulled yesterday!" Dave stepped closer to her, his eyes lingering on her blood red fists with concern.
"C'mon Trish, you know why I did it." Although her back was turned to him, he had a feeling that she had tears welling in her eyes. And it didn't surprise him that he was right. Trish wiped at her eyes with a desperate groan, her shoulders beginning to tremble as she sobbed silently. Dave's face melted into sorrow as he reached forward and pulled her back up to his warm chest, his strong arms finding their way around her slender waist. Her sobs could no longer be held back when she felt him wrap the arms she'd been dreaming to feel around her body. She rested her head against him, her eyes squeezed tight to avoid making contact with his.
"I missed you," she cried, moving along with him as he rocked her side to side, his arms still cradling her with care.
"I know..I couldn't stop thinking about you." Trish blinked rapidly to fight back more tears that were threatening to fall. She didn't need to hear where he went..she was aware that he'd been home, with his wife, who she'd grown to despise over the course of the last few days.
"Why are you holding me like this?" she whispered, turning herself in his arms so that she could stare into his chocolate eyes. "You told me..you couldn't." Dave bowed his head, now being the one that was clearly avoiding her eyes.
"I know..I shouldn't be doing this," he said hoarsely, dropping his arms from around her body and backing away.
"I didn't tell you to stop.." Trish whispered again, blinking again at the hot tears in her eyes. Dave bit down on his bottom lip as he studied her, the pain in his chest almost too much to handle.
"You know we can't do this anymore." She pursed her lips into a thin line as she processed his words in her mind. The previous anger that had burned inside of her, now roared back to life, as if someone re-lit the fire.
"Do you know what you are, Dave Batista? A fucking coward! Look at you! Pretending like your feelings for me don't exist! Is that what you're gonna do? Run from me your whole life? Well I've got news for you, I'm not goin' anywhere..I fucking love you, Dave! But this is all you give me..this sentimental bullshit that you can't do this anymore! I'm fucking sick of it." Trish saw the hurt that darkened his features but she was far from caring. He had the nerve to repeatedly lead her on, like he just had, only to build her up and watch her go crashing down. And she hated him..hated him more than she'd ever hated anybody. And she loved him..more than she'd ever loved anybody. Trish stared back at him for longer than she would've liked to. His eyes were dark with pain and his beautiful features were twisted with hurt. But she felt numb to it..numb to hurting him. "Nothing is left to make me feel anymore..I want you more and more each passing second. The only thing stopping you is a woman who you no longer love. But here I am, so damn in love with you that I can no longer see anything but your face..and you pass me by..again.." Tears were falling freely from her eyes once more but she didn't dare move to wipe them away. Her words had moved Dave to the point of no return but he didn't make a move. Trish waited for him to say anything but didn't want to stay one more second in his brutal silence. She left her bags behind without a care and stepped out into the night, looking back one last time before letting the door slam behind her, leaving Dave standing all by himself in the darkened room.
