Chapter Fourteen: Return to Work
Jeff's POV:
Amy and I told Taylor that we were dating, at least that we were giving it a chance, so Amy would be staying in Cameron indefinitely. Taylor was ecstatic. She was less ecstatic on Wednesday afternoon when some of my co-workers from TNA started showing up at the house to meet her. She got very shy all of a sudden. Silently, I prayed to my own mother that I wasn't messing up by introducing her to the people in my life before taking her to events with me knowing that she was still adjusting to how different her life with me was compared to her life with her mother.
Taylor insisted on taking over the grill as people got to the house. By the time Dixie and the others got there, she was cooking enough to feed an army. She sat down with us, but only ate half a burger and some salad. It was a lot for her and I was proud of her. I made a mental note to tell her when the others were gone.
Amy and I cleaned up while Taylor got to know my co-workers. She seemed to get along with James Curtin, aka Rockstar Spud, but I think it was because he was small and less intimidating to her. Jessie Godderz, Rob Strauss, aka Robbie E, and Michael Paris, aka DJ Z, were trying to get her to let go and just have fun with them. Dixie loved that she had southern manners even though she dressed and looked like me, as if I didn't have the manners of a southern boy. Jamie Lynn Szantyr, aka Velvet Sky, was trying to convince Taylor that she should dress more feminine while Gail Kim and Ashley Cabot, aka Madison Rayne, told her to leave her the way she was because Taylor was fine the way she was. Michael Hutter, aka Ethan Carter III, seemed to enjoy the way Taylor would just bounce around in her discomfort. I didn't know what to think of that. Eddie Edwards and Davey Richards were trying to get her to cut loose and follow her "wolf" instincts. They liked her and I think she liked them because she spent more time with them than some of the others. Kurt Angle was genuinely trying to make her feel welcome in the TNA family like the rest of them, but she knew he was an actual Olympian and it intimidated her in ways none of the others intimidated her. Ken Anderson was loud as always and it seemed to make her laugh, which I appreciated. Bobby Roode was trying to get her to talk to him, but she was nervous to have all the wrestlers around her, even though she did try to talk to him. Jeremy Fritz, aka Eric Young, kept trying to get her to show her what kinds of stunts she could do. She seemed to like him. Jessica Kressa, aka ODB, was trying to get her to show her true colors, but Taylor was still trying to figure that out herself. Christopher Parks, aka Abyss, seemed to both intrigue and scare Taylor, so she kept going over to him and keeping her distance at times. Finally, it was Mark LoMonaco and Devon Hughes, aka Bully Ray and Devon, who were trying to get her to be tough like them that got the biggest reaction out of her.
Mark and Devon were joking around with her and Mark grabbed her like he was gonna power bomb her through a table. They were near one of the trees on the property and Taylor grabbed a branch while on his shoulders and performed a perfect skin the cat to pull herself off of Mark's shoulders into the tree. She then climbed another two branches up.
"Hey, Jeff!" Devon called out.
I came back out from the kitchen.
"What's up, guys?"
"I thought you had a teenaged daughter, not a monkey," Mark said, pointing up to Taylor.
I couldn't help it. I started laughing and so did everyone else at the party. Amy came out to see what was so funny and I explained.
"Why did she end up in the tree, Mark?" Amy asked.
"I may have picked her up," he said innocently.
"Picked her up or picked her up like you were gonna power bomb the girl?" Amy asked.
"Power bomb," he mumbled. "But I wasn't actually gonna do it! I just wanted to see what she would do if someone picked her up like that! I didn't know she'd climb the tree!"
We all started laughing some more.
"Come on down, Tay," I called up to her. "Mark won't hurt you. He knows if he tries he'll have to go through me and Amy. And Amy's kicked his ass more than once over the years."
Mark grumbled under his breath. Taylor giggled and started climbing back down to the last branch. When she got down to it, she swung herself around the branch a few times before releasing into a triple twisting layout, landing it with only a slight step. She looked up at Mark.
"Gymnast, not monkey."
"Nice one, Kid!" Mark said, patting her on the back.
"When you gonna start training her, Jeff?" Devon asked.
"Yeah! She'd make an awesome addition to the Knockouts Division in a few years," said Gail. "The girl's got talent."
"I wouldn't mind seeing her join the TNA family as a wrestler someday," Dixie said. "If that's what Taylor wants, that is. Just because her Daddy and her Uncle Matt are wrestlers doesn't mean she's got to become one."
"I don't know. I hadn't thought about it really. I just saw pro wrestling for the first time when I came to live with Jeff. My mom didn't want me to watch it. She was probably afraid of what I'd do if I did. Gymnastics was the most extreme thing I've ever been allowed to do," Taylor said.
"Nobody is trying to rush you into anything, Taylor," Amy said.
"Remember, you find yourself, not my life. If that leads you to wrestling, you have a wrestling family. If not, we're still here for you, aren't we?" I asked my friends.
"Of course, Darling. You're Jeff's little girl. Whether you wrestle or not, you're part of the family now," Dixie said.
"And we could always go hang out and go do crazy things," said Jeremy.
"We'll be here to protect you and be your extended family no matter what from now on, Taylor," Gail Kim said. "We protect our own and their families."
"Thanks guys. Who knows? Maybe I will venture into wrestling. I'm already into so many things that Jeff is already. It might happen, I just don't know," Taylor said.
Taylor's phone started ringing for a text message.
"Do you mind if I check this, Jeff?" she asked me.
"Nah, go ahead," I said and she walked away.
Taylor's POV
I walked towards the house and opened my phone. I had told Collin and the few other people that I had considered friends at Union Pines that I was busy and couldn't really be in touch that night. When I opened my phone, I saw that it was Collin.
Can we talk?
Is something wrong? I sent back.
It took him a few minutes to answer.
Addison broke up with me.
I knew Addison was a bitch and I was pretty sure she did this because of me. She hated that Collin liked to spend time with me, which took away from his time with her.
Where are you? I asked him.
The football field. She broke up with me right after practice and I haven't been able to get myself to leave.
I didn't hesitate. I'd talk to Jeff after.
Come over. We have company, but we're out back. I'll tell Jeff you're coming.
R u sure?
Yeah. Come over. You need a friend.
Thanx. B there soon.
I put my phone back in my pocket and went back outside. It took me a minute to get Jeff alone, but I finally did so I could tell him.
"Collin is coming over," I started.
"I thought we agreed none of the kids from school tonight, Tay," Jeff said.
"We did and I had no intention on breaking that, but he just texted me. Addison, that girl who's been a pain in my ass since my first day of school, broke up with him after football practice tonight. That's why he texted. He was my first real friend here, Jeff, and I'm pretty sure that's why Addison broke up with him."
"Did he know what we were doing tonight?"
"No. He just knew I had a family obligation which was why I had told him and my few other friends I would be out of touch tonight. When he texted I knew he had to be upset if he'd forgotten. I never told them you were essentially holding a TNA barbecue here tonight. But I told him we had company and we were out back. He should be here any minute."
"I guess this is okay. Just next time, talk to me before you invite someone over when I have my co-workers here?"
"I'll try to remember if they're not in crisis mode," I said and Jeff hugged me.
"Is anything going on between you and Collin?"
"We're just friends. I've made it clear to everyone that my priorities right now are my schoolwork and getting to know my family. Everything else can wait. Matt actually encouraged me to give Collin a chance as a friend and it's been nice to have him around."
"Alright. I love you, Taylor."
"I love you too, Jeff."
Collin arrived shortly after and was shocked to find all the wrestlers there. When I explained he was my first friend since coming to live with Jeff, they gave him the same welcome they had to me. They indulged him with pictures and autographs. The night became more fun after that. It was easier for me to relax with Collin around, I was less intimidated by all the wrestlers. Amy came out with a plate of food for Collin and I sat with him while he ate.
"This was your family obligation?"
"Yeah. Jeff wanted me to get to know his co-workers because he's going back to work this weekend starting at a show in Raleigh."
"Seriously?! They didn't announce that!" Collin said, getting excited.
"Yeah, why?"
"I have tickets to the Raleigh show. I was supposed to take Addison, but obviously that's not gonna happen. I was gonna ask your dad if I could take you instead."
"You should invite one of your other friends, Collin."
"He won't let you go?"
"Actually, I'm gonna be there with him and Amy. I'll be backstage. That's why Jeff did this tonight. He wanted me to meet some of his friends before he brought me on the road with him."
"That is so cool. Maybe we'll see each other there?"
"Maybe."
"I wish I had family obligations like this."
"They're kinda nice and intimidating at the same time. Mark, I mean Bully, picked me up like he was gonna power bomb me earlier! I grabbed hold of a tree and got away. They think I should consider following Jeff's footsteps to become a pro wrestler someday. I told them I'd never thought about it."
"It would be awesome. You and Jeff Hardy wrestling together."
"Maybe. We're so alike, maybe that is where my destiny lies. But I just want to piece my life back together before I figure that out."
"So, Sir, Madam, are you a couple?" James asked coming over to us, sitting next to me.
I giggled. It was weird to be called Madam.
"No, James. Collin and I are just friends. He's been my best friend since I got to Cameron. Besides, he's just coming out of a relationship with a cheerleader. He's a jock. Football and track."
"Really?"
"Yeah, three years now. And my girlfriend broke up with me because she was the jealous type," Collin said confirming my suspicions. "So, why is your character so weird?"
"It's what they want from me, so I do it. It means I get to be in the business and that's more important to me right now," James explained, letting Collin drop the subject of dating.
"Collin is gonna be at the Raleigh show. I just found out he had bought tickets. He was gonna invite me, but I'm already going."
"Would you like to come backstage before and after the show?" James asked.
"That would be awesome!"
"I'll get you backstage passes. You can meet more of the roster, forget about the jealous ex for a night," James said as he got up, smiled at us and walked away.
"Your father's friends are way cool, Tay," Collin said to me.
"I'm getting that. I like James. He doesn't intimidate me. Neither does Davey Richards or Jeremy, I mean Eric Young. They're not really big like some wrestlers. And the BroMans are funny."
"Where's Matt?"
"He and Jeff aren't talking right now."
"What happened?"
"Amy and Jeff started dating a few days ago. Matt got pissed off and they got into a fight. Matt actually hit Jeff. He's acting like Jeff's betraying him by dating Amy. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Matt and Amy break up almost a decade ago?"
"Yeah, they did. You're serious? Lita is dating Jeff Hardy?"
"Yeah, and it's about time. They had been giving each other these looks when the other wasn't looking. I'm glad that I didn't keep them apart."
"Why would you?"
"Jeff is so focused on me, I didn't think he'd see something like that if it smacked him in the face."
"So you're happy that your father, who you're just getting to know, is dating already?"
"I like Amy, so yeah. I don't know how I'd feel if it was anyone else, but I'm okay with Amy. She's been with me almost as long as he has. She's helped me in so many ways, ways you don't know."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not ready to tell you everything, but for one thing, she helped me become me in the way I dress. I used to have to dress in dresses, slacks, dress shirts, cardigans, and carry a purse. I hated it. She was the first person to buy me cargo pants and t-shirts. She helped me realize how I like to dress."
"You really were a completely different person in San Antonio, weren't you?"
"Yes, not because I wanted to be, but because I had to be to live up to my family's expectations of me."
"Can I ask you one other personal question? To put a rumor I don't believe to rest in my own head?"
"Go ahead. Only because I want to distract you tonight."
"Were you in the hospital before you came to Cameron?"
I sighed.
"Yes. But not the psych ward like Addison and her friends say. Mama and I were in the car arguing about me getting suspended from gymnastics again when another car jumped the divider and hit us head on. Mama died instantly, but I was in a coma for a few days. I barely got out of the hospital before her funeral. That's why the school couldn't put me into a gym class when I got here. I was still recovering from the crash and was barely getting around on my own. It's why Matt was in the school on my first day. I had all this homework, but I couldn't carry my books home on my own yet. I'm just about done with physical therapy, so maybe next semester they'll put me into a gym class, but since I was an elite gymnast for years, they were happy to give me experience credit."
"Are you gonna do gymnastics again?"
"No. I told Jeff I never wanna do that again. I never wanted to do it to begin with, but it was the most Mama would let me do. I wanted to do Junior Dragster Racing. She said it was for boys. Obviously she's never heard of the Enders sisters."
"You've been into extreme stuff all your life and your mom tried to make you prim and proper?"
"Pretty much. I rebelled with my paintings and by skateboarding, which she didn't know about, but she was massively controlling of everything I did."
"You had a hard relationship with her?"
"But I loved her. And I miss her," I said as I started to cry, talking about my mom with someone other than family for the first time.
Collin hugged me and I let him. All of a sudden, Jessie, Robbie E, and DJ Z were in front of us, mocking our relationship and saying Collin's kissing made me cry. We got up and chased them. It made both of us laugh and distracted us both from the internal pain.
Jeff's POV
Taylor, Amy and I got to Raleigh and went to dinner before heading to the arena. Taylor ate half her food so both Amy and I told her we were proud of her as we left to go to the arena. When we got there, the fans weren't there yet, but the other wrestlers were starting to filter in. As I went to my dressing room to get changed and paint my face, Amy took Taylor to introduce her to some of the wrestlers who weren't at the party.
Half an hour later, Taylor and Amy came into my dressing room. Amy had Taylor stand with me and take a picture with me in full make-up. I was proud to have her at my side. Then there was a knock at the door.
"Jeff, is this a bad time?" Jeremy Borash, one of the announcers asked.
"Nah, JB. What's up?"
"Well, this is kinda last second, but we have a Make-A-Wish visitor in the arena today. He's down the hall, but he'd really love to meet you. I told him I'd need to talk to you first because tonight is your first night back and we didn't get to clear it with you."
"You know I'll do it. Just tell me about him."
"Well, he's fifteen, from Texas, and was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer last month. He's here with his older sister who is his legal guardian. Their parents died when she turned nineteen two years ago and she took him in."
I pulled Taylor closer to me. She looked like her world might cave in. Amy came and put her hand on her shoulder.
"Bring them in, JB. It would be an honor to meet them."
JB left the room and a minute later he came in with the Make-A-Wish kid. Taylor started crying.
"Taylor?" he asked as he came into the room. "What are you doing here?"
"Nick, I'm so sorry that you're so sick! I had no idea!" Taylor exclaimed as she ran to the sick boy and hugged him before turning to his sister and hugging her too. "Grace, I'm sorry that I haven't been in touch."
"Taylor, would you mind introducing us?" I asked.
She sniffled and nodded, letting Grace go.
"Nicholas and Grace Alvarez, I would like to introduce you to Jeff Hardy and Amy Dumas. Jeff, Nick and I were in the same classes since kindergarten. I had no idea he was sick," she said, trying to choke back tears.
"It's an honor to meet old friends of Taylor's, especially a friend as brave as you, Nick," I said.
"Taylor, what are you doing here?" Nick asked again.
"Nick, Jeff Hardy is my father."
"You're not serious, are you?"
She nodded.
"You knew he was my favorite wrestler of all-time! Why didn't you tell me?"
"I just found out after Mama died and then we moved to Cameron and everything's just been craziness," she said as she hugged Nick again.
"I'm sorry about your Mama. I didn't get a chance to come see you at the funeral."
"I'm sorry you're sick. I wish I could help."
"I've accepted it."
"So, would you like a picture with Jeff Hardy?" JB asked.
"Can Lita and Taylor be in it, too?" Nick asked.
"That's up to them," JB replied.
"Of course," Amy said.
"Anything for you, Nick," Taylor said.
We took some pictures and then Nick spent some time getting to know me. Amy stayed by Taylor's side the whole time. I took Nick to the merchandise stand with Grace and got him some of my merchandise, a program, and autographed some of the merchandise. I brought them around to some of the other wrestlers who also took pictures with them and signed his program, before bringing them back to my dressing room, where I found Taylor crying on Collin's shoulder with Amy watching on helplessly.
"Taylor?" I said, letting her know we were back.
She wiped her tears and pulled away from Collin.
"Jeff, James got Collin and Mika backstage passes. I forgot to tell you the other night. Mika, this is my father, Jeff Hardy," She said.
I nodded at Collin and Mika.
"Collin, Mika, I'd like you to meet Grace and Nick, two of my longest and best friends from San Antonio. Grace, Nick, Collin was my first friend in Cameron and I met Mika through him not long after."
"Nice to meet you," Grace said.
"What's up?" Nick asked.
"What brings you two here all the way from San Antonio?" Mika asked.
Taylor started crying again. I explained why Grace and Nick were there as Nick went over to try to comfort her. Collin smacked Mika in the back of his head and I appreciated the boy a bit more as he glared at his friend for being so insensitive.
Taylor finally stopped crying and it was time for Grace, Nick, Collin, and Mika to go take their seats. Taylor and Amy had decided they would stay backstage until my match and then they had ringside seats for the match. After the event was over, Grace, Nick, Collin, and Mika would all be allowed to come backstage with us again.
Taylor's POV
"How do you do this?" I asked Jeff when my friends left.
"What do mean?"
"The Make-A-Wish stuff. How do you put on a happy face for sick kids who want to meet you as their last wish before they die?"
"It's an honor to be someone's wish, Taylor. I'm sorry this time it was someone you were close to and that you didn't know he was sick, but doing this puts smiles on the faces of these kids. And a lot of times it gives them something to fight for."
"I can't believe Nick is dying," I said as I tried to fight off another wave of tears. "He seemed fine a few months ago. We were out boarding just a few months ago like nothing was wrong."
Jeff got up and held me. I pushed him away.
"I don't want to cry on your ring gear," I said to him when I saw his hurt face.
"Sometimes things like this come on really fast and progress even faster. You heard JB. He was diagnosed with stage four cancer a month ago. He may not have been feeling sick until after you were gone," Amy said, hugging me.
Too soon, a stagehand came and told Jeff his match was next. Amy and I left for our seats, which security escorted us to. When Jeff came out I recognized his theme music as "Reptilian" off of his Similar Creatures album. The crowd went nuts. He went over to Nick and Grace, giving Nick the ripped up t-shirt that he had in his back pocket. He came over to Amy and kissed her before giving me a hug. Then he got into the ring to face his opponent, a wrestler named Magnus.
Magnus seemed to be a brawler. Jeff slid under him, and hit him with the Twist of Fate, then ran up the ring post and performed a Swanton Bomb on him. Magnus kicked out at two and started pummeling Jeff. Jeff did a reverse mule kick on him before hitting him with Whisper in the Wind. The match went back and forth like that until Rockstar Spud came out interrupted the match. Jeff used the distraction to roll Magnus up for the three count. Then, while Magnus and Spud were arguing outside the ring, Jeff climbed up onto the ropes and performed a Swanton Bomb on both of them.
When Jeff got back up, he brought Nick into the ring to celebrate with him. He even gave him the shirt off his back and his armbands. Looking at that, I thought to myself even if Nick was dying he would never forget tonight or my father. For the first time, as I was facing one of the hardest moments of my life, I was looking at Jeff as Dad instead of Jeff because of what he was doing for my dying friend.
A/N: I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed this fic so far:
CelticPrincessx3, Kenn. Faith. Dawn (sorry about the spacing, the page wouldn't post your name otherwise), TabbyoftheSun, & Kitkat1488
I hope you continue to enjoy the fic.
Also, I would like to apologize on the delay again. I spent three days last week at TNA in NYC so I had no time to write. On the plus side, I've met a bunch of the TNA wrestlers now!