Need You

AJ was sound asleep in her room. Punk had given her the master bedroom once they decided to sleep in different rooms and even though she insisted he keep it she was happy. It had a huge closet, a bathroom and a beautiful view of Chicago. She was woken up by the shrilling sound of her cellphone and reached over and without looking answered.

"Hello?" she asked half asleep still.

"Baby I need you." Seth said into the phone.

"Seth?" She asked turning on her light and sitting up.

"No, your husband." Seth laughed and AJ could tell he was either drunk or high. "I can't go home to Denise like this you have to come get me."

"Well you can't come here." AJ hissed into the phone.

"I just need a ride to my buddies I have no cash on me, please?" He begged.

"What time is it?" She asked yawning.

"2:30." He said to her. "Please baby?"

"Where are you?" She asked.

"I'm at the bar on Decker." Seth said to her. "You know where that is?"

"Yea." AJ said throwing her covers off of herself and hung up the phone.

AJ threw on a pair of sweats and a hoodie. She crept out of her room and down the stairs but was caught by Punk who was up in the living room watching TV.

"I thought you were working." AJ said surprised.

"Not tonight." He said keeping his eyes on the TV and he looked over to her. "Where are you going?"

"To pick up a friend." She shrugged putting on her sneakers and he nodded and went back to the TV.

"At this time?" he asked her.

"Why do you care?" She asked him and he laughed.

"Why do you think I don't care? Why do you keep saying that shit?" He asked looking back at her.

"It's the only honest thing we've said to each other in years." AJ reminded him.

"That's not true." Punk said to her. "What is your problem tonight?"

"It's nothing." She mumbled tying her shoes. "Why are you in tonight?"

"No work, nothing to do." Punk said simply.

"No Maria?" She asked.

"Why do you keep bringing her up?" Punk asked AJ. "Does it really bother you that much? I don't bring it around you."

"You don't but we do have the same friends." AJ reminded him. "I hear all about it Phil."

"You want me to end it with her?" Punk asked annoyed.

"You would do that?" AJ asked him.

"If you wanted me to even though I don't know why you care." Punk shrugged.

"Maybe because she was my best friend." AJ said to him. "And no matter what we are to each other you're still my husband at the end of the day."

"So I'll end it." He shrugged. "I don't really care."

"Don't." AJ said to him. "Do what makes you happy forget I said anything at all."

"It would bother me too." Punk said to her and she frowned. "If I found out you were with one of my friends, I'd be upset."

"We're married but we're not together." AJ reminded him calmly. "We can both do whatever we want."

"Are you unhappy here?" Punk asked bluntly. "Is that why you've been so miserable these last few weeks?"

"No Phil I've been miserable since PJ died." AJ said to him and his face fell. "I'll be back later."

"You want me to come with you?" He offered almost hopefully.

"No Phil." She said then walked out the door.

AJ picked Seth up and even though he was wasted he was still sober enough to want sex. She pulled down an aisle and in a matter of minutes she was in the backseat with her pants off and Seth was buried inside of her. Whenever she communicated with Punk she was at her neediest.

"Fuck AJ." Seth groaned slapping into her. "Jesus I'm so fucking close baby."

AJ was crying but not from pain or pleasure but from the fact that she couldn't even seem to enjoy this anymore. Seth was an alright guy but she knew it was a dead end relationship. She could have her pick of the litter and plenty of men would have loved to date her properly but she gave herself to Seth knowing it wouldn't lead past some quickies.

Seth pulled out of AJ after he climaxed and she rolled her eyes because she didn't reach hers. He ran his fingers up and down her slit and rubbed her clit until she orgasmed herself.

"You good?" Seth asked pulling the condom off of himself and tossing it out the car window.

"Yea." She said sitting up and pulling her pants on. "Ugh." she groaned as he immediately lit a cigarette.

"What?" he asked. "The window is open."

"Phil still smells it." AJ said annoyed looking at him as she caught her breath. "He's going to figure this out."

"So?" Seth snorted.

"You're married." She pointed out.

"He's not telling Denise." Seth said blowing the smoke lazily, not even trying to smoke out the window.

"He won't like it." AJ said to him.

"And do you like that your husband is fucking Maria?" Seth asked her. "Come on!" he laughed. "At least me and him don't really talk you, Maria was your sons godmother. Do you still talk to her?"

"I see her at the gym and she's one of Eve's bridesmaids so I'll be seeing a lot of her." AJ said almost painfully. "Let's go away this weekend." She said out of nowhere.

"I thought you had your sister-in-laws party?" Seth questioned.

"Fuck it." AJ said coldly. "He can bring Maria."

"Alright." Seth smirked. "I'll book us a room and tell Denise I have a work thing."

"Where do you want me to take you?" AJ asked him.

"Donny's." Seth said to her and slapped her ass she climbed into the front seat.

The next night Punk saw AJ sitting on the couch watching something as he got ready for work.

"I left my car charger in your car the other night." Punk said to her.

"Here." She said passing him her keys and not even looking at him.

Punk headed outside in the cold and opened AJ's car door and the smell of smoke hit him hard. He groaned and opened all of her windows to clear out the smell and began to search for his car charger. He reached under the seat and pulled out his charger and a piece of paper. He looked closer and saw it was a condom wrapper. He knew AJ wasn't just sitting around celibate for the sake of his sanity but seeing the wrapper drove him mad. He slammed the door closed and stormed back into the house.

"What the fuck AJ?" Punk demanded.

"What? The smoke smell again?" She asked annoyed.

"No this." he said holding up the wrapper. "I didn't buy you that car so you could romp around it like a prostitute!"

"Excuse me?" AJ demanded standing up. "You have some nerve calling me that! You're the one screwing my best friend! The woman who was the godmother to our child! What I do is my business."

"At the end of the day you're still my wife." Punk reminded her.

"And you're still my husband yet I don't bitch about your affairs." AJ reminded him.

"I don't like it happening in my car!" He yelled.

"So keep the car." AJ said annoyed. "I didn't want in anyway!"

"Fine." Punk said putting the keys in his pocket. "Don't bring him around here either." he warned her and she rolled his eyes. "Do whatever it is you do in private, we agreed to never bring it home."

"And I haven't." AJ argued.

"The car is bringing it home." Punk informed her.

"Fine Phil." She laughed. "Continue to be a hypocrite and I'll just meet up with my friends elsewhere."

"If you were with someone who actually respected you you wouldn't be using your car." Punk hissed.

"I don't want respect." She informed him coldly. "I just want to feel good once in a while. Maybe I'll do what you do and meet up with him in my office."

"What?" he asked innocently.

"I know all about Maria showing up at your office almost every night to fuck you." AJ said to him. "I smell her on your clothes when you come home I know that's why you shower every night before work and shave."

"You know what? Fine, keep your car." he said tossing the keys at her but she just let them fall then stormed out of the house.

Punk was in his office cooling off with Maria who was laying across his body on the couch located inside.

"You were like an animal." Maria grinned running her finger up and down his chest.

"Do you still talk to AJ?" he asked and Maria sat up.

"Not often. Just a hello and goodbye at the gym, why?" she asked and he pushed her off of him and grabbed his pants and pulled them on.

"How does she know you come here?" Punk asked her.

"It's not a well kept secret." Maria shrugged dressing as well. "Why? Did she say something?"

"Who is she seeing?" Punk asked her and Maria's eyes widened.

"I have no idea." Maria admitted. "Last year I know she was seeing that guy who worked here."

"Who?" Punk asked her.

"David or Daniel or Donald." Maria said trying to remember. "I can't remember."

"David?" Punk asked. "The bartender?"

"Yea him." Maria confirmed. "Why?"

"Why?" Punk laughed. "Why would it bother me that my wife was fucking around with one of my employees?" he asked her.

"She's not your wife in your heart." Maria reminded him putting on her shoes. "Besides she broke it off with him ages ago."

"Why would you tell me?" Punk asked her.

"Why do you care?" Maria asked him.

"I don't." Punk lied. "I just found something in her car and was curious."

"You can't expect her to not live her life. It's bad enough she stays married to you for the sake of your parents but you can't tell her not to have fun." Maria reasoned.

"Yea I know." Punk sighed putting his shirt on.

"I heard she was seeing someone new but nobody knows who is he." Maria confided. "She's keeping him quiet a few the girls at the gym think it's because he's married."

"Huh." he said slowly to himself.

"Nobody knows for sure." She said standing up. "She needs something in her life." she pointed out to him.

"Are you on my side or hers?" Punk asked her.

"AJ was one of my best friends." Maria reminded him. "I feel guilty enough about all of this. She doesn't look at me the same. Imagine she was sleeping with Colt or Cliff?"

"Is she?" Punk asked her and she rolled her eyes.

"I don't know but I doubt it. I think you should leave it alone. You two have a good thing, a good friendship- don't blow it or you'll lose your money." Maria told him and kissed his cheek as his door opened.

"Sorry." AJ said looking away. "I'll come back."

"I was just leaving." Maria said grabbing her jacket and quickly passed AJ who glared at her.

"What are you doing here?" Punk asked her moving behind his desk and sitting.

"I came to apologize." She admitted. "You did get me that car."

"I did and I gave it to you I shouldn't have dangled it over your head like that." Punk said to her. "I just flipped out and it was wrong."

"It was." AJ agreed.

"Are you being safe?" Punk asked her.

"Excuse me?" AJ asked with a laugh.

"Not with sex." He cringed slightly. "I mean with your heart." he clarified.

"I don't even think I have one anymore." She admitted sitting across from him. "I buried it five years ago."

"I feel the same way sometimes." He admitted quietly. "I thought time healed all wounds."

"Some nights are harder than when it first happened." AJ added and he nodded. "We just have to try to be happy."

"Are you?" Punk asked her. "Is living with me and our arrangement not making you happy?"

"I'm as happy as I think I'll ever be." She said to him.

"Do you ever think about having more kids or getting remarried?" he asked her.

"If I wanted that I would have told your parents to bug off and divorced you four years ago." She said to him. "I don't want any of it. What about you? If you and Maria are getting serious I'd understand if you want me gone."

"I never want you gone." He said to her. "And I feel the same way about marriage and kids. No matter what's happening I don't want us to lose each other I love you, you know that right?"

"I do." She smiled sweetly.

"You want to eat? I can have the bar bring up food." He offered.

"I could eat." She admitted and took off her jacket.

"Cheeseburger and fries?" He asked her picking up his phone and she nodded. "Oh before that, were you really dating David?"

"Maria has a big mouth." AJ snorted. "Barely. I'm sorry I know I shouldn't have fooled around with someone who worked for you."

"You're an adult." Punk shrugged. "What happened?"

"I'm not discussing that." She laughed. "Just order my food hungry." she joked and pulled out her phone.

Punk and AJ stayed in his office, ate, watched TV then he walked her down to her car and waved her off. He was glad they put this behind them because he hated fighting with AJ more than anything. Before heading back into his office he walked behind the hire and waved David over.

"Everything alright boss?" David asked.

"Yea." Punk smiled. "You're fired."

"What?" he asked stunned.

"You fucked my wife." Punk said to him calmly. "Be happy all I'm doing is firing you."

Punk was disappointed AJ blew off his sisters party but it was probably for the best. It was filled with stuck up people that she'd hate and his mother who he knew she hated.

"Where's your wife?" his mother asked.

"She had plans." Punk shrugged.

"Where's the bar tart you've been screwing?" His mother asked next.

"I thought you'd frown upon me bringing her." Punk teased sarcastically.

"I hope this isn't a sign of a divorce." His mother warned him.

"You wish." Punk laughed.

"Oh believe me the only thing I wish was that you never married that child to begin with I knew it would end like this. Now you're trapped in a marriage." His mother spat. "And what was it all for? A baby that only lived five months?"

"Don't fucking go there." Punk warned her. "Don't talk about him." he hissed pointing in her face.

"We know it was that wife of yours fault this happened to begin with." she pointed out. "I told you she was incapable of caring for a child."

"What happened wasn't her fault." Punk reminded her coldly. "She wasn't even home when it happened I was." he pointed out. "It's my fucking fault so I wish you'd stop bringing this up!"

"What is going on?" Punk's father asked walking by.

"I'm leaving." he said to him.

"We didn't even have cake yet." his mother frowned.

"Fuck it." he hissed and stormed out of the yard where the party was being hosted.

Punk's father caught up with him as he was getting in his car and grabbed his arm.

"You can't let her get to you like that." His father insisted.

"She does it on purpose." Punk hissed. "Always shit talking AJ and my kid."

"You know her." His father sighed. "How is AJ? I didn't see her here today."

"She had other plans." Punk said quietly.

"How's she doing?" he asked him.

"She's alright, I don't know." Punk shrugged. "I think she's seeing someone."

"There are ways out of this marriage." His father said to him.

"I don't want her gone." Punk said to him. "I like having her around, I love her." he shrugged.

"I know you do." his father smiled. "Why don't you two try again?"

"How can I look at her?" Punk asked him.

"You have to stop blaming yourself she doesn't blame you either." His father reminded him. "The marriage fell apart when you pulled away."

"I let her down." Punk said to him. "I let my son down, I'll never forgive myself."

"You need to start. Or you two are going to grow old in that mansion together." He warned Punk.

"What's so bad about that?" Punk asked with a faint smile.

"You'll be together but still alone." he pointed out. "If you love her just love her freely."

"How do you put up with mom?" Punk asked him seriously. "How could you two have two completely different views on things."

"I love her." He laughed. "In spite of her opinions of course. You know she never liked AJ because she felt she took you away from her. Deep down she knows AJ isn't bad, your sister and I love AJ."

"I know." Punk said to him. "It doesn't matter though." He said to him then he frowned. "What is it?" Punk asked.

"My chest." His father gasped almost falling but Punk caught him.

"Help!" Punk yelled out helping his father to the ground.

AJ was laying in the hotel room bed naked flicking through the TV channel. AJ had assumed that Seth would spring for a nice room but instead they ended up in a cheap motel. But it was for the best, they were both married and better off not getting too invested. Seth wasn't AJ's type anyway she would never have spent time with someone who parties as much as he does or was married for that matter but AJ was in the state of 'not caring' for the past couple of years.

"Hey turn that down!" Seth yelled opening the bathroom door.

"Why?" AJ asked not lowering it.
"I have to call Denise." He hissed and she rolled her eyes lowered the volume.

AJ put the TV on mute so she could read the captioning then Seth came out of the bathroom and sat up on the bed.

"Oh no." AJ said shaking her head.

"What?" Seth asked. "It's just coke." He shrugged grabbing something to lay the white powder down on.

"I'm starting to think you wanted this weekend so you could do your drugs in peace rather than be with me." AJ said as he snorted a line.

"What the fuck do you care?" he asked with a laugh. "You just want a fuck and believe me you're going to get it."

"With a coke head?" She scoffed.

"Would you prefer your husband?" Seth mocked.

"Why do you always bring him up?" AJ asked throwing the sheets off of her.

"Where are you going?" He asked getting out of the bed.

"Home." She said pulling on her pants.

"Come on baby." he cooed grabbing her around her waist and pinning her to the door then kissed her. "Don't go, we're only getting started. You can have some." He offered. "Free."

"I don't do drugs." She reminded him pushing him off of her and grabbed her bra but he pulled it out of her hand and kept it out of her reach.

"Stay, I'm sorry I won't do it anymore." He swore.

"Seth-" She began but her phone began to ring.

"Oh look at that." Seth smirked grabbing her phone. "It's your husband."

"Give it to me." AJ said holding her hand out.

"Promise you'll stay." He smirked keeping the phone high above her head.

"Fine! Just give it!" She yelled and he handed it to her. "Hello?"

"AJ." he sniffled and her face dropped, she hadn't heard or seen him cry since PJ.

"What's wrong?" She asked nervously.

"I need you." he said trying to sound strong.