Hello again all. :) I'm back with the important chapter I was talking about, haha. I hope it went well... I tried to make it near-perfect, and hopefully not too cheesy...

Anyway, enjoy! Comments are always appreciated, and a special thanks to Undertaker's Hellrider, who made my day with her comment. XD Onto the story!

"Well, we have one more free night," Shawn said absently. He was lying on the couch, letting the warm sunlight that filtered in through the windows heat his body. He looked over at the Undertaker, who was similarly lying down, on the opposite couch, only completely in shadow somehow, despite the many windows in the room. The sight made Shawn smile.

"You know, it's been a pleasure having you here," he continued, still smiling. "You're great company."

The Undertaker laughed slightly, eyes still closed as he lay there resting. "I'm only good company when I feel at home. Or if you're some kind of weirdo who likes large, strange men in your house." He heard a slight rustling sound, and was surprised to see, when he opened his eyes, that Shawn was kneeling by the couch, at eye level with him. The smaller man's deep blue eyes were wide and questioning. "Shawn…what's wrong?"

"Mark…" he began, but couldn't finish his sentence. Instead, he climbed on the sofa beside the Deadman, wrapping his arms around him to keep from falling. He placed his head against the larger man's chest, closing his eyes.

'What can I say?' Shawn thought sadly. 'Should I even say anything? This is the perfect opportunity, and yet I can't even speak…'

Mark swallowed his heart and felt it pounding furiously. 'Calm down,' he told himself, although he could feel his temperature steadily rising. 'Shawn's always been all touchy-feely…this isn't anything weird for him…'

However, his thoughts faded to nothing when he looked down and saw those blue eyes again. Shawn was staring intently at him, more focused than he had ever seen him, and it was a beautiful sight, to say the least.

"My heart…" Shawn began sincerely. "I…" He blinked and looked away. "I like being with you," he said at last, sighing.

Mark's eyes widened. Now he found himself at a loss for words. "I like being with you too, Shawn…" he said at last.

"Do you?" the Heartbreak Kid asked slowly, sitting up. "Do you really?"

"Yes, I do," 'Taker answered, sitting up as well. A look of intense sadness crossed Shawn's face at that moment, and Mark could easily figure out what Shawn was thinking, because he was thinking the same thing.

Before he could stop himself, he had pulled Shawn into a warm embrace. "I love every second I spend with you…"

That was all the invitation Shawn needed. With no warning, before his own brain could tell him to stop, he lifted his head and pressed his lips against Mark's. And this wasn't like the first time, he thought, not by a long shot.

He couldn't say the words--he didn't dare. Instead, he prayed that the message would get across through his lips.

Mark was stunned, eyes wide, and before he knew it, Shawn's slender arms were around his neck, and he had pulled him onto his lap. His green eyes closed on their own accord, and he felt Shawn's hand stroking his hair and neck in such a tender manner that he felt like crying.

'Shawn…' The Undertaker slid his arms around Shawn's narrow waist, pulling him even closer, holding him desperately. Somewhere far away, his mind screamed for him to pull away, to stop, but Shawn's mouth was insistent, and it wasn't another second before he had forced Mark's mouth open and began plundering it with his tongue.

Shawn couldn't suppress a smile as Mark moaned into his mouth, even when it was obvious that he wanted to pull away. And, if the truth be told, HBK wanted to pull away too. But he couldn't. He just…couldn't. The arms around his middle assured him of that just as much as his arms around 'Taker's neck. And the only thing he could think was 'At last…Mark. Mine at last…' He grabbed the back of Mark's head and pressed their mouths together even harder. He felt a deep shiver pass over him, and, to his surprise, over Mark as well. Colors seemed to dance behind his now-closed eyes, as he was sure they did for Mark.

After an eternity, or so it seemed, the Undertaker pulled back with a gasp, trying to catch his breath. Almost immediately after he could breathe again, he felt himself reddening. Even worse, he could feel the burning heat in his body that seemed to flow into his mouth from Shawn and down his spine…and into other areas.

"Shawn, I'm sorr--"

Before he could finish apologizing, Shawn was kissing him again, harder, grinding his hips against his, making him melt inside. 'I wonder if he's just using me now,' he thought for a moment, but realized in the next instant that he didn't really care. His heart would hurt later, but for now…

With a growl, he began to finally kiss the beautiful Heartbreaker back, slowly and gently, attempting now to convey the feelings he too could never vocalize. He knew for certain that he was completely at Shawn's mercy, but he wanted the helplessness to be mutual, at the very least.

Now Shawn Michaels was the one melting, surprised by the passion and gentleness of the kiss. He had had a feeling that Mark was a great kisser, but now he was certain… The man had the softest lips he had ever felt!

'Hmm… Now there's an idea,' he thought, sliding his hands down 'Taker's arms and to his hips. Shawn had been burning to touch this magnificent body since…since forever, it seemed. This felt tooright…

"Wait…Shawn…" he heard Mark say softly, right when his hands had reached under his shirt.

"What?" he asked, surprised at the rawness of his voice. 'I'm soooooo turned on right now,' he thought with a blush.

"I don't think we should…do anything…other than kiss…" The Undertaker had caught his breath—mostly—and was trying to reason with his body, his body that wanted to do so much more than kiss. "It's not fair to you," he said after a minute, unable to form a longer sentence due to the delicious weight of Shawn's body in his lap. His skin still burned wherever Shawn's hands had been, and his lips were still moist from the kiss.

The Heartbreak Kid sighed. "You're right… I'm sorry, it's just…" His mind flashed to Hunter and he wanted to pull his hair out. "God, this is so confusing!"

Mark smiled slightly, seeing the confusion on his companion's face, because the feeling was completely mutual. "Hey, to make things a bit easier, let's just say that we're really close friends and see how it goes from there, okay? Let's not rush anything…" He couldn't believe he was saying these things!

'Am I seriously talking to Shawn about…being in a relationship?'

"Friends…" Shawn whispered, crossing his arms and thinking it over. Well, theywere friends…even if they had just been making out… "Friends with benefits?" he asked, smiling when 'Taker began to chuckle.

"Sure, if you want to call it that," he answered between laughs. The Undertaker refused to think of the future, refused to think of what would happen when Hunter inevitably came back… For the moment, he was happy, happier than he had ever been. He reasoned that it would be best to not think beyond the immediate.

And Shawn was doing the same. "Well, at least we settled that," he said, running a hand through his golden hair. All of a sudden, he noticed that Mark was blushing, and looking very uncomfortable. "What's wrong?" he asked, blinking.

"Shawn…you're, uh, sitting on me," 'Taker said hesitantly, trying to stop blushing.

"So?"

Mark's jaw dropped. "So? You're sitting in my lap! It's turning me on, dammit!" Shawn began laughing uncontrollably before at last sliding off of the bigger man, making sure to brush himself against his crotch. 'Taker grimaced and hissed.

"Ha, you are so easy," HBK laughed. He looked up at the clock. "Well, seeing as how it's not even dark yet…how about we go out to dinner tonight, since neither of us can cook? It's been fun ordering out and watching movies with you, but I think we should go somewhere nice…"

The Undertaker smiled slightly. "Shawn, are you asking me out on a date?" he asked mockingly. Shawn, willing to play along, took the Phenom's hand and kissed the back of it, knowingly giving him shivers.

"Of course… Romance should come before…other things…" He couldn't believe the words that were coming out of his mouth, but at the same time, he knew that he meant every single word. He wanted with all his heart to date Mark, to go out with him, and eventually to make love with him… His mind wandered to Hunter again, and he pushed the thought out. 'We're still only friends, Mark and I,' he told himself. 'Just really, really close friends…'

Friends with benefits, or, as one of the girls I know would say, "Obscene friends." Comments?