Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.
Chapter Sixty-One
Paul was a broken man. After completely losing his composure with the coming of his former wife's departure, he was drawn upstairs to his daughter's bedroom like moth to a burning flame. Perhaps it was his pathetic attempt of comforting himself after being told that he would no longer have the right to see his child.
He sat on the edge of the bed. His hazel eyes slowly scanned each and every toy that litter the carpet floor: stuffed animals, Barbie dolls, and pink plastic teacups. It was all untouched from where she had left it. The cheerful pink room felt so lifeless and empty now as he sat in it by himself. This had to be like what a parent of a deceased child went through. Being surrounded by things that remind you of said child and knowing that she would never be back inside that room, let alone in her parent's life. It felt the same with Aurora. Thank God she wasn't gone from this world, but for Paul being banished from being with her, it felt like he had truly lost her.
Levesque's mind was still in a haze when he reached into the pink and yellow nightstand beside his daughter's bed, and removed her favorite possession at Daddy's house: the photo album. In the light of the room, his eyes immediately focused on the square picture on the front. His large muscular frame began to tremble while he gazed upon him and Stephanie with their baby daughter. That album, that he held in his hands, contained what had been most precious in all of the world to him. Slowly, he ran his thumb over the picture while a fresh tear dripped from his eye, running down his bearded face.
As if he was rubbing salt in his own open wound, Paul pressed on, slowly opening the album cover to reveal the contents. He began to breakdown again at the sight of all the pictures from his and Steph's life together. Each and every milestone captured in a picture was like a frozen memory in time that he could never have back. It was over. And, God, did he wish he would have had the chance to do things differently.
Levesque let out a low painful sob after snapping the album closed; there was no way he was going to be able to look through it in its entirety, his heart just couldn't take it. Slowly he shifted the album off of his lap and allowed it to rest on his child's bed. His hands, he then placed at his side, both thumbs began to play with the denim belt loops.
He wasn't wearing a belt, he contemplated, as his thoughts started drifting to a darker place. The vivid imagery of knotting one of the leather belts around his neck and hanging himself right there in his three year old's closet came seeping into his head. He could use one of the belts that Steph had bought him during their marriage, that'd be fucking poetic. Paul wasn't afraid to die. Hell, he had lost everything that mattered in his life, so why not?
Then suddenly he thought about his baby girl. It was going to be hard enough on the both of them that they couldn't see each other anymore. Aurora Rose would be completely crushed if Daddy took his own life, leaving her forever, because of his own selfish reasons. Shit, and it wouldn't be just his daughter who would be devastated by his suicide. The thought of his mother and father having to bury their own son was too terrible to imagine. Levesque knew that he couldn't do that to the people he loved. Death wasn't the answer, but life, at this moment, felt utterly impossible without his child in it.
Stephanie's sparkling blue eyes stared blankly at the plain white garage wall. She was just sitting there in the driver seat of her Porsche. The engine was off, the garage door down, all that was left for her to do was go into the house where her family awaited her return. Steph was hesitating; so much so that she had taken a scenic drive after leaving her ex-husband's home. It had been during her night drive of the back roads of Greenwich, that she allowed herself to have a catharsis. The purging of her raw emotions was through her tears. Tears not just out of anger for her ex, but also out of sadness for Aurora.
She massaged her hands on the leather steering wheel, telling herself mentally to keep it together. She couldn't sit in her garage all night. Well, she could, but she wasn't going to. Steph felt a little trepidation at the possibility of crying in her husband's presence. At the sight of tears, Kurt would immediately know that something was wrong. That was why she couldn't let that happen. The blow up between her and Paul was over. She was relieved to be back home with her husband and children, and so, she would act like it.
Stephanie took a moment to stand back in the hallway and surveyed the scene in the living room. The sight that she returned home to, mirrored the one she had seen before she left. Both Andrew and Aurora were still in Kurt's lap, but now they were asleep. Her husband was watching the television, but seemed quite tentative while holding the two sleeping children within his muscular arms. He was having to hold them both in place so neither one of them would slump over in their slumber. Any onlooker would easily assume that both children were his. The sight spoke volumes to Stephanie because it validated her view of him as a worthy father figure for her three year old daughter. Not that she had any doubts before, but after finding out about Paul's enormous shortcomings in that role, Kurt definitely looked like the best choice for both of her children. He didn't seem to be favoring his biological child over his stepdaughter.
"Hi babe, you okay? You were gone for a long while." Angle inquired in a soft whisper once he saw his wife enter the living room, making her presence known to him.
"I'm okay. I see you literally have your hands full. What time did my babies conk out?" She asked back matching his voice volume with hers. She figured that if she could keep the focus on her children instead of on her, she stood a better chance of keeping her emotions in check.
"They both crashed not even a half an hour ago. I didn't even think to get them ready for bed. They were little balls of energy one minute and the next they were dead to the world." He explained as Stephanie approached him.
Steph smiled weakly while reaching down to pick up her sleeping daughter so that she could take her up to bed. She was careful not to wake her as she lifted her up into her arms.
"So what's going on? Why did you need to take a long drive?" Angle asked again as he too slowly rose to his feet with his sleeping one year old still in his arms after shutting off the flat screen television.
"Shh, we'll talk about it after we get the kids to bed." She whispered back taking the lead in carrying her child out of the living room with her husband following closely behind.
"I have to fly out to Tennessee tomorrow morning. Mike called earlier and already made the arrangements for us to fly out. We need to get this Karen bullshit wrapped up quick." Kurt divulged in a low voice as they ascended the stairs.
"I'm sure it will be fine." She muttered back when they reached the second floor. Steph really didn't have much else to say on the subject. Her mind was still focused on her own drama.
When both children were safe and soundly tucked into bed, the Angles adjourned to their master bedroom. After nighttime routines in the master bathroom, Kurt and Steph went to their respective sides of the bed and immediately began to undress.
"Okay, so what's going on with Aurora?" He asked after taking his t-shirt off to reveal his muscular torso.
Angle had been left wondering for most of the evening why Aurora had acted out the way she had, and what had transpired between his wife and her child to make her need to go out for a drive. He didn't attempt to probe Aurora Rose while she was left in his care; he didn't feel it was his place to do so. Kurt trusted that Stephanie would fill him in when the time was right. Well that time had come now, and he was awaiting a response.
"Oh she was just acting out because she was over tired and a little jealous of the baby. I talked to her, it's taken care of." Steph answered back nonchalantly to play it all off. She didn't want him to know the magnitude of the situation. She had handled it herself, so there was no reason for him to know every little detail.
Stephanie had purposely changed into her night shirt with her back to her husband's side of the bed . She was afraid that he might have picked up on a look on her face while she spoke about the situation. Steph really didn't think she could have a poker face when it came to matters concerning her children.
"I just think it's weird that she acted like that. Aurora's always been good with Andrew since he was born." Angle pointed out stepping out of his shorts before he got into the bed with just his white briefs on.
Steph didn't reply. She didn't want Kurt to find out that it was Paul who was responsible for Aurora's jealousy of her younger brother. Hell, she didn't even want to think about it. The idea of her three year old daughter thinking in her little head that her mommy could love one of her children over the other, made her sick to her stomach.
"You okay, Steph? You've been acting a little weird since you got home." He then asked narrowing his eyes after seeing the look on Stephanie's face. Her look of worry was finally enough to compel him to ask what was wrong.
His inquiry caused her tears to begin to flow again. She quickly brought her hand up to her face to wipe them away, hoping that her husband wouldn't notice. But he did, and Angle was quick to speak up again because of her reaction.
"Baby, what is it? Whatever it is, you can tell me. I'm here for you and I love you." Kurt professed in a gentle voice as he inched his body across the bed to her side, and pulled back the sheets for her to get in.
Hearing his loving words of concern for her was enough to bring forth a weak smile as she took his invitation to slide into bed with him. It was the simple things about Angle that she appreciated. Not only was he loving to her, but she knew that he loved both of her children; not just the baby son that they had made together, but Aurora Rose too. That's where Kurt was a better man than her former husband.
Him pleading with her to divulge the reason she was so upset almost made her do just that. It wasn't like she wanted to protect her ex from the wrath of Kurt; after all, the bastard did deserve to have his ass kicked for what he had put her children through. Still, the thought of causing more drama and heartache for her family, compelled her to keep quiet about her encounter with Paul. Sure he was going to find out the details eventually when she petitioned to have sole custody of her three year old, but there was no reason to fill him in now, when it had all just happened. It was raw and fresh in her memory. There was no way she could tactfully explain it all to him without causing him to fly off the handle. Stephanie definitely already had enough drama for the day. She wasn't going to cause more with Kurt.
"It's-it's just the pregnancy hormones making me an emotional mess." She heard herself lie in a voice that she didn't believe sounded very convincing.
Perhaps Angle felt the same way; his blue eyes were cast upon her with a look of uncertainty. While her excuse seemed plausible, he didn't look like he wanted to buy it. God, what if he was going to probe her for the real reason she was acting strange.
Steph instinctively bit her bottom lip as she awaited a response from her spouse who was closing the space between them in their king size bed.
"Well, I'm here for you. If there's anything I can do to help: a back rub, or maybe another kind of rub." Angle replied with a smirk. He had slowly and deliberately rubbed his lower half into hers to entice her as he spoke.
"Mhm, that's a tempting offer, but you know that the doctor said that we can't make love this week." admitted Steph with a smile of her own as she then felt his hand then begin to rub her inner thigh.
"I don't think I can wait a week to have you." He breathed with a large amount of sexual frustration and lust within his words while his hands began to further explore her body.
Experiencing pleasure from his touch, she felt her libido begin to kick in, driving away all of the angst and sadness she had brought home with her. Stephanie moved her hands to him, while at the same time, she caught his lips with hers. They both breathed deep in unison as their kiss turned passionate rather quickly. Their tongues moved rhythmically together as their tilted heads bobbed up and down matching each other's want. Steph would have been completely into it if it wasn't for the feeling of his facial hair rubbing against her face. She abruptly broke the kiss causing both of their eyes to open before Kurt gave a look of confusion.
"You okay? He asked breathing heavy because of his arousal.
Stephanie brought her hand up to his face and ran her fingertips across his beard. She had been the one who told him to grow it in. A man with facial hair used to be such a turn on for her. Now, feeling it against her skin, it was a complete turn off.
As her manicured fingers nestled into the dark brown hairs, she quickly realized how much facial hair reminded her of Paul. God, he's the last person she wanted to be reminded of now.
"I don't think I like you with a beard. I know I asked you to grow it, but I changed my mind about it." She commented scrunching her nose up to show her disapproval.
Angle let out a small chuckle because of her new opinion about his appearance that had caused a break in their intimacy.
"I'll shave it off first thing tomorrow." He promised before moving quickly to bring his lips back to hers so they could get things going again.
More than satisfied with her husband's response, Steph took charge; shifting her position in bed so that she was now lying on top of him. Her brown locks of hair surrounded his face while she controlled the kiss. Angle's hands caressed her curves under both the covers and her garment.
Over and over again in her mind, Stephanie told herself that she was proving her unwavering love for Kurt Angle. She envisioned that she was doing so with Levesque right there in the master bedroom watching them. It would be a small amount of retribution for what he had put her and her babies through. Being with Angle felt so good, and knowing how angry Paul would be to see her in the throes of passion with him, made their encounter even hotter. Despite the fact that she had to refrain from intercourse, she was determined to make love to him.
Steph broke the lip lock again, but this time continued her wet kisses down the side of his neck. Kurt let out a soft moan and simply laid there and reveled in feeling her kisses on his skin. And then his lips pulled taunt into a smile when Stephanie's head moved under the covers and her mouth traced a path between his pectorals and then in the middle of his six pack.
Angle folded both arms behind his head when he felt the material of his brief slide against his skin. He bit his bottom lip in anticipation; knowing what he was going to be treated to. And then, came a wave of warm pleasure surging through his entire body. Kurt moaned her name in a whisper followed by a raunchy turn of phrase. He involuntarily arched his back slightly. His mouth remained gapped open; his eyes closed tight from the unrelenting pleasure he was experiencing courtesy of his wife. If he couldn't make love to her, this was certainly the next best thing.
Paul had been up all night. How could he ever be expected to sleep again with his personal life being in complete shambles? Having all night to reflect on where he now was in life, and how he had gotten to that point, Levesque had come to a conclusion. A conclusion to which he planned on acting on as soon as possible. For Paul, it felt like a lifetime in darkness before the sunlight brightened the New England sky. With the new day came his will to shower and dress in a simple pair of warm up pants and a t-shirt and pull his damp hair back in a loose ponytail. He took the time to bring with him a cherished item which he placed on the passenger seat of the Hummer before heading out to make good on his fateful decision.
As if the Humvee had been on autopilot, Levesque found himself driving into the parking garage of World Wrestling Entertainment headquarters. He had no recollection of the drive to Stamford; he was still very much in a mental haze due to the lack of both sleep and caring about himself.
After finding a sizable parking spot, Paul used the parking garage elevator to take him directly to the executive office level. A chime sounded signaling the elevator's arrival at the desired floor before the doors parted allowing him to exit. Levesque was like a man on a mission. He went straight for Mr. McMahon's office as soon as he got off the elevator, without being deterred by the few corporate employees who made it a point to greet him.
Before he could breach Vince's office, the receptionist quickly looked up and then glanced at McMahon's schedule for the day.
"Oh, Mr. Levesque, I don't believe Mr. McMahon has you penciled in for a meeting this morning? Mr. Levesque?" The little blonde receptionist said in a voice that was both polite and a bit nervous at the same time.
Paul continued onward, completely ignoring her words. He didn't bother calling ahead to make an appointment with the boss. For what he was going to tell him, he didn't need to.
"Please Mr. Levesque, Mr. McMahon has asked specifically not the be disturbed." She pleaded when she saw that he was going for the double doors that lead to Vince's office.
He wasn't going to abide by his former father-in-law's wishes. Following Mr. McMahon's rules was the absolute last thing on his mind at that point. This visit to titan tower was about him doing what he had to do, not placating to Vince.
With one quick tug of the handles, Paul sent McMahon's office doors flying open causing the wrestling tycoon to jump in his executive office chair. His brown eyes were wide. He looked quite surprised and startled to see his ex son-in-law barging into his office completely out of the blue, especially after he had blew off his obligations to the company on Tuesday.
"You've got a lot of nerve showing up here after what you pulled! Who let you in here? I told Jillian that I wasn't to be interrupted!" McMahon barked from his desk while watching Levesque cross into the large corporate office.
"I let myself in, Vince." Paul replied in an unexpectedly calm voice while his hazel eyes stared directly into the eyes of the man he had once thought of as a father.
"Well, you can let yourself out too, God damn it! I'm working here, which is something you've forgot about doing lately! You're lucky you still have a job in my company!" continued Vince as his face started to turn red from his intensity.
"That's actually why I'm here." answered back Levesque nonchalantly when he approached McMahon's desk.
In contrast to how upset Mr. McMahon was, that was how cool and calm Paul seemed to be. This was the first time that he had ever went face to face with Vince without letting his emotions run high. He wasn't angered by McMahon's ranting and raving. In fact, it didn't even phase him. After enduring Stephanie's wrath yesterday, this was nothing. He had already lost all he cared about, so right now, Vincent Kennedy McMahon was insignificant to him.
"Oh yeah, I'm sure that's why your here! You caught wind that you were out of the running for the move to RAW and number one contender spot for Jericho's WWE championship, so you decided to come here bright and early and beg me to reconsider you and give you the spot! Save it, Levesque! I wouldn't care if you came over here and bent over and puckered up to kiss my ass, I still wouldn't put you in the main event!" McMahon screamed slamming his fists down repeatedly on his desk.
"Well you can take that main event spot and shove it up your ass, Vince, because that's the furthest thing from my mind. I'm here to tell you that I'm finished with you and your company." Paul explained flatly in an uncharacteristically passive voice.
Vince breathed in before letting out a forced scoff in response to his statement. He almost looked humored by Levesque saying that he was done with the company, as if it was a big joke.
"Oh, that's funny. Am I suppose to buy into the idea that you're just going to walk away from this company? Spare me the 'playing hard to get' game, it's insulting! I'm calling your bluff, you're full of shit!" McMahon's voice boomed before he flashed a cocky smile and leaned back in his leather office chair.
"Well, believe what you want, but I'm telling you right now that I'm done; scratch Triple H off your talent roster. There's nothing left for me in WWE anymore." Paul explained folding his arms in front of him as he shrugged his shoulders.
He was speaking the truth. With all hope lost that he would ever get to be with Stephanie and their little girl, he didn't want to be a part of the company. Why would he put himself in the position to have to see the McMahon-Angle family as their employee and jobber? His heart wouldn't be able to take it; not because he wouldn't main event, but because he couldn't see himself continuing to wrestle in that company without Steph and Aurora at his side.
"I don't give a shit if you're a happy employee, you're under contract! I own you! I own Triple H! You walk out on me and you will find yourself in one sweet lawsuit, boy! I will make it so you never step inside of a ring again!" hollered McMahon as he rose to his feet with such force that he knocked his chair backwards onto the floor.
"Sue me for all the money in the world, Vince. I don't care. I wipe my ass with that contract, because it doesn't mean anything to me anymore. What mattered most was already taken from me." Levesque replied in a way that was reminiscent of his promo work as the Cerebral Assassin. Nothing his boss was saying was bothering him.
Feeling like he had said his piece to his former father-in-law, Paul turned his back on him and attempted to walk out the double doors of which he entered. McMahon wasn't finished with the conversation though. His loud arrogant voice stopped Levesque in his tracks as soon as he began to speak again.
"Oh I get it, this is about Stephanie. You've got sour grapes because she's moved on and found the real love of her life..." McMahon commented in a hiss that was accompanied by an evil smirk.
Vince had figured out his weakness and was hell bent on exploiting it to the hilt. He sashayed out from around his desk and began to make his way over to where Paul was still standing with his back to him.
"Oh yeah, you're jealous because you know that Kurt Angle is more of a husband and Daddy to Steph and Aurora than you ever were to them! Do you think Steph would give a shit if you left WWE? You're nothing to her! I'm sure that if she was given the chance, she'd erase you from her past! Kurt is her present and future, oh it's true! It's damn true!" Vince ranted after he strutted over to face Paul. He was now standing nose to nose with him.
McMahon's cruel sermon penetrated deep into Levesque's consciousness. It wasn't the fact that his ex father-in-law was saying those things to him. It was more of the fact that he knew that what he said was true because of what Stephanie, herself, had said the night before. She had told him that she no longer wished to know him. That, in itself, was the truth in black and white, and Vince attempting to scrub it in his face wasn't going to hurt him like hearing Steph say it did.
"Get out of my face..." Paul growled as he used his right hand to roughly wipe off the droplets of spit that had hit his face during Mr. McMahon's obnoxious insult.
"Oh what now, are you going to strike me? Go ahead, I'll give you a free shot! Come on, we can go!" Vince hollered, while at the same time he was removing his suit jacket and threw it on the floor. He balled his fists up and held them out like he was ready to fight right then and there.
Levesque just stood there glaring at the man who had once given to him his only daughter for marriage. If someone would have told Paul on the day of his wedding that the proud man who was walking his beautiful bride down the aisle would one day be so loathsome and disrespectful to him, he wouldn't have believed it. It was clear that after the affair with Michelle North had come to light, Paul had become detestable and worthless in Vince McMahon's eyes. The old man had gotten it in his mind that because he had been unfaithful, he could never redeem himself and be the man that Stephanie had fallen in love with and married.
"Come on, chicken shit! Let's go! Take the first shot! What, are you afraid to you get your ass kicked again like when you tried to take on Angle? Come on, damn it!" McMahon continued motioning with his hands for him to bring it. He was doing his best to try and bait Paul into taking a swing at him.
As much as Paul had come to despise his former father-in-law, he was not going to take him up on his offer to get physical. It wasn't that Vince didn't deserve an ass kicking, because he definitely did. The guy had been a constant thorn in his side before and after the divorce from Stephanie. If it had been months, hell, even weeks ago, Levesque would have gladly knocked him on his ass; But things had changed since then. Paul's life had taken a quick and severe spiral downward to the depths of which it might never reemerge. Mr. McMahon's insults had become as empty as Paul felt inside of himself.
Instead of indulging Vince, Levesque just shook his head and moved to circumvent McMahon and leave the office. Once he was out of there, he never looked back. This was it. He wasn't just leaving the WWE corporate building. When he walked out the doors of Titan Tower, it symbolized the end of a career that had spanned well over a decade.
While there was some nostalgic sadness leaving the company that he helped shape and grow, it was going to be nothing compared to what he was going to face when he arrived at his next destination. Paul Levesque may have been prepared to say goodbye to his career, but he wasn't ready to part with his little girl.