Chapter IX: Emotional Encounters
Stephanie thought she was going to have a nervous breakdown. The weekend of a pay-per-view was always hell. That never included pulling together false paperwork for her father to prove that she had handled a particular incident to his liking. She knew that the elder McMahon would not be happy to find out that he had been lied to. However, she could care less. She was the general manager of SmackDown! and had the authority to do as she pleased. If Vince had a problem with it, well, it would be too late. The stressed woman only hoped that she would live to see next Thursday. That had more meanings than one.
When the scurry of the day died down and the only noise was Therese's television, Stephanie could only think of what those sounds meant. She was terrified of what could happen to her. Now, the only time she felt safe was in her hotel room. The flight to North Carolina made her so nervous that she couldn't get any work done on the plane. After that, she found no reason to need to step foot out of the room. Shawn would have been the only reason.
Michaels called her Saturday to check on her. Somehow he knew when she was up to her ears in work and about to vent her frustration on the nearest object. He listened patiently as Stephanie let everything go about Thursday's incident and the preparation for Judgment Day. When Stephanie was tired of ranting, she apologized for him having to listen to her.
"Hey, princess, we all need someone to just let us vent every once and a while. Therese not listening to you?"
"She's too busy," Stephanie sighed.
"I can't imagine what you would be going through right now if you didn't have her because the way you have her so busy," Shawn said with an apologizing tone.
Stephanie rolled her eyes. Outside of her assigned job, she's a useless lump. "Yeah, I don't know where I'd be without her."
"Let's go out and get some late-night drinks. You need something to help you relax and sleep."
Stephanie glanced at the clock. She really could use a drink and Shawn would keep her safe. She entertained the thought of sneaking out but thought of what could easily happen on the other side of the hotel door. Fear kept her on this side. "I'm going to pass this time. I'll see you tomorrow. Okay? Stop by the office. Bring Kevin…as if the two of you are inseparable."
"You know he called her this week?" Shawn lightly inquired.
"Really?" Stephanie straightened up in her seat. "Give me the gossip."
"I wish I had some to give. I just know he did it and that it went okay."
"Trust me. I'll find out. As a matter of fact, I'll find out now. See you tomorrow." Stephanie placed her cell phone beside her laptop and immediately headed for Therese's door that was perpetually ajar. She caught her with her nose in a book, which highly surprised her. With a knock on the door, Therese closed her book and beckoned Stephanie in. Her surprise dissipated when she saw that it was a Harry Potter book. "I hear someone got a call this week," she said in a sing-song voice.
"Um, yeah, I got several calls this week. I do have friends and family," Therese sarcastically noted.
"And a boyfriend?" Stephanie coaxed.
"If you're talking about Kevin, you've put him in the wrong category." She re-opened her book in hopes of dissuading Stephanie from the congregation.
"Tell me about it," the younger woman prodded.
Therese muted the Ottawa-New Jersey hockey game and dropped the remote control beside her. "There's not much to tell. We talked about his match, talked about when we might see each other next."
"When?"
"Well, probably tomorrow since it's the pay-per-view," she said with a shrug.
"Oh…well, okay, goodnight." With that, Stephanie abruptly left the room. She and Shawn needed to start devising ways to get them together.
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About an hour before the beginning of Judgment Day, Stephanie retired to her office to rest her feet from scurrying about to make sure that her part of the evening went as it should. No matter how much she delegated, there was always work that had to been done the day of a pay-per-view. She kicked off her heels and lay down across the maroon couch. Her fear was dissipating as she got into the swing of her work. Therese settled at Stephanie's desk, leaned back in the chair, and propped up her feet. She was already tired and could only imagine how Stephanie was feeling.
The two of them had almost drifted into a light nap when a knock sounded at the door. Stephanie suddenly sat up, causing her to tumble from the couch. Startled, Therese sent her chair backward, almost sending her head over heels. "I've got it," she said, righting herself and striding to the door. They were both giving each other a 'you didn't see that, so don't comment' look. "Who is it?" she called, lightly but audible through the metal door.
"Ima!" a rough masculine voice called back.
Stephanie giggled. "It's Shawn," she whispered. "Play along."
Rolling her eyes, Therese asked, "Ima who?"
"Ima comin' in!" The door handle turned and a thud sounded on the other side. "Or maybe not," the dejected voice added.
"It's locked. Just a second," Therese laughed and slowly turned the stiff deadbolt. Shawn Michaels stood on the other side, rubbing his forehead. He beamed a goofy grin at her and walked by while she held the door for Kevin, who rolled his eyes at Shawn and smiled at Therese. Shawn hugged Stephanie before taking a seat on the edge of her desk. She sat down in her over-sized leather chair and daintily crossed her legs. Therese purposefully took the only arm chair, leaving Nash the sofa.
"We just wanted to come by and see the two perrttiest women in wrestling." Did he just say 'perrtty'? Therese thought to herself.
Stephanie gave him a flattered smile. "Coming from the two self-proclaimed sexist men in wrestling, I'll take that as a compliment," she purred.
Therese couldn't even believe she had even spoken until the words came out of her mouth. "Kevin, how's it going getting ready?"
"Taking it slow. Thought I'd take a break and come by to see you." She couldn't help but smile.
"If he hadn't taken a break soon, I was gonna leave him. I am tired," Shawn said, dramatically falling across Stephanie's desk in a fake swoon. Stephanie playfully swatted at him and he pulled himself back up. "I don't keep up with SmackDown! What's going on tonight?"
Stephanie talked animatedly about the upcoming matches while Therese and Kevin kept stealing glances at one another, thinking the other hadn't noticed. He looked really annoyed at Shawn and Stephanie continually talking, so Therese threw all caution to the wind and went over to sit beside him, slipping out of her heels and tucking her feet up under her. "I'll be glad when this is all over with," she whispered.
"Me too. It's not everyday I have a match of this caliber," he sighed. His golden brown eyes gave away his weariness and struggle over the match with a man to whom he was once close. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the couch.
"Tired?" she asked. Duh, stupid, keep trying to make small talk like that and you'll definitely get rid of him.
"Yeah," he replied, rubbing his hand over his face.
"Let me help," she said before she had realized the words had come out. He raised his head to ask her what she meant but she stopped him. "No, lean back." Without question, he rested his neck on the crook of the cushion. Rising up on her knees to reach his face, she lightly traced her fingertips around his eyes and across his temple and forehead. The wrinkles seemed to melt away with the gentle massage. "Does that help?"
"Hhmmm…" She took that as a 'yes' and laughed softly. In that moment, Nash would have taken her home with him if for nothing but to do this every night. All he could think of was her cool fingertips drawing out his anxiety and physical weariness.
"Let me know when you want me to stop," she said, shifting one of her knees for better balance where it rested against his thigh by accident.
"Never," he muttered, soaking up every bit of her touch as he could. After a moment or two, they both realized that the room was entirely silent. Therese turned around as Kevin leaned up to see Shawn and Stephanie watching them.
The couple at the desk immediately turned to each other and started talking at the same time. They had been so engrossed in their conversation that they never noticed Therese settle on the couch with Nash. Shawn had hushed Stephanie in mid-sentence and pointed at the two on the sofa. He looked down at her from he sat on the desk and grinned at Stephanie. She returned the smile and they both turned back to look at Therese and Kevin just as the two caught them. Stephanie was thinking about how cute they were and was wondering if she could pull off the same trick on Shawn just to touch his handsome face.
Embarrassed, Therese sat back down, tucking herself in the corner of the couch and growing silent. Nash rubbed his hands across his eyes trying to wake himself from the blissful oblivion in which he had almost fallen. He glanced at his watch and then over to Therese. "I really need to be going. Thanks so much. That helped more than you know."
"You're welcome," she replied shyly.
"Shawn, bud, I'm leaving. You coming with me?" he called out, standing up.
"Yeah, I better," he answered. Therese scrambled up to get her shoes on and to open the door. Shawn kissed Stephanie on the cheek and tweaked her on the ear. "See ya, doll." Shawn winked at Therese as she shut the door behind them.
Therese leaned up against the door and sighed as Stephanie leaned back in her chair and sighed. They glanced at each other and began laughing. "Someone's going soft," Stephanie chanted.
"Am not," Therese retorted, flopping down on the couch. "Well, now what?"
"Let's go back out and run through the checklist one last time. The first match of the night is ours."
With the last walk-through, the two withdrew to the safety of Stephanie's office since the staff from both shows were so numerous, along with the possibilities of the stalker being present. Stephanie watched the monitor and made notes throughout the show, including the RAW matches. With the review of the Intercontinental belt's history, Stephanie muttered a curse under her breath and threw the Styrofoam cup of water sitting on her desk across the room. Therese glared at her for such insensitivity to a quite moving moment. "They're just doing that to get back at me for introducing the U.S. belt on SmackDown!" Stephanie yelled.
"You're bringing back the U. S. belt?"
"That was my intention. Bischoff found out! Somehow, someway, that bastard found out! I will kill him!" Not satisfied with the water puddle on the floor, she threw her pen at the calla lily plant in the corner.
Therese retrieved the pen and set it back on the desk. "You know, that plant did nothing to you."
"Just shut up!" Stephanie bit out.
"Look, I know you're pissed off, but you could try not taking it out on the people around you," the blonde casually remarked.
"Oh, excuse me, Miss Anger Management."
"You know what, I am going to shut up, not because you told me to but because I'm not in the mood to beat the hell out of you," Therese indifferently commented, picking up a magazine on the coffee table.
"You're not in the mood to—"
The knock preempted what could have been a great impromptu match. Therese answered the door to find Mr. America on the other side. "Miss Blair, right?"
"Yes, but you can call me Therese." She wasn't a fan of Hulk Hogan but she had to give him credit for being the star that he was and for the road he had paved for professional wrestling. She deemed it an honor that he remembered her name.
"Is Ms. McMahon here?" She nodded in response. "May I come in?" She glanced back at Stephanie and the brunette nodded her assent.
"Yes, please."
"Thank you." Hogan stepped in and pulled the mask from his head when the door was shut. He held the colored mask in front of him as if he was a bit nervous. Stephanie greeted him and he shifted nervously from one foot to the other in his reply.
"What can I do for you today?" Stephanie smiled at him and folded her hands on the desk.
"I, uh, I brought Zach Gowen with me tonight," he answered glancing up at her.
"I guess that's—"
"I know I should have asked you first but I was afraid you would say 'no.' I understand if you're mad at me, but I really thought he should be here tonight," Hogan added with sweeping gestures.
Stephanie quickly came around from behind the desk and laid a hand on his arm. "It's okay. Yes, I wish you would have run it by me first, but it couldn't hurt. Just keep him out of trouble. Deal?" She smiled at him. He grinned back, pulled the mask back over his head, and saw himself out the door.
The visit had taken the previous verbal assault off the women's minds and they settled back into their comfortable silence. However, silence was not characteristic of the room when Mr. America went out to the ring with Zach Gowen before his match with Roddy Piper.
Between clenched teeth, Stephanie muttered, "I told him to keep that boy out of trouble." Just as quickly as she was angered, a smile spread across her face. While her father would be even more incensed at her, this would boost ratings later on without her having to even try. People were going to get behind Zach and, in turn, support Hogan. Having signed Hogan was continually looking up. Now, all he had to do was keep his mask on. Stephanie rooted for Hogan throughout the match as if she was another wrestling fan. With Gowen's interference, Mr. America won the match against the odds of Piper, O'Haire, and McMahon. "I'm sure my dad is coming directly to me. Let's go find something else to do."
"But Kevin's match is next," Therese protested.
"We'll watch it somewhere else," Stephanie replied, grabbing the other woman's hand and tugging her out the door. They turned the corner at her office to see Hunter Hearst Helmsley coming down the hall. Therese immediately turned around to go in the opposite direction, thinking Stephanie was right behind her. It only took a few steps for her to realize that her client was not by her side. With a deep breath, she turned around to see Stephanie standing with Triple H.
When Stephanie saw her ex-husband, she felt like there was a tractor beam between him and herself. Knowing his match was next, something propelled her towards him. She has seen what he was capable of when he put Shawn in a wheel-chair last summer, so she could only imagine what Nash was capable of doing to him. She didn't know what she was going to say when she stopped him. An encouragement to be careful was all she could get out before getting choked up. He acknowledged her and they parted ways.
Therese stomped up to her. "What the hell were you doing?"
Stephanie put a hand up to stop her. "I don't want to hear it. Scold me and mete out my punishment for another time. I have bigger things to worry about than you could imagine."
Therese was about to light into her for that comment but the tears in the woman's blue eyes made her stop. "Why torture yourself?"
"I don't know," she said, wiping a tear away that made it half-way down her cheek.
"Let's go watch the match, okay? Where do you want to go?"
Stephanie led the way as they continued to talk. "I know he doesn't deserve my attention, just as much I don't deserve his. He could have completely ignored me when I stopped him, but I had to tell him to be careful. Nash could literally kill him. I don't hate him that much. A part of me will always love him and that part is not ready to move on. If he can do that to me just by his presence, I can't date anyone else."
"Don't think of like that," Therese replied, hooking her elbow with Stephanie's like they were good friends. "Yes, you got burned in your marriage but at least you were mature enough to own up to your mistakes and end it instead of killing each other. Would it ever work between the two of you again? Was that what you thought when you stopped him?"
"I don't know what I thought would happen by talking to Hunter. But I do know this, our relationship, us together, we could never happen again. What he has become now…he's not the same person I fell in love with." They stopped before a monitor that some production assistants abandoned when the two arrived.
"Exactly. So why keep reliving your past with him? Make a new past."
"With who? Shawn?" Stephanie responded with a sarcastic laugh.
"You don't need anyone to make new memories with. If it's Shawn, so be it," Therese answered as encouragingly as she could.
"I'm not ready. It wouldn't be fair to him that I can't give myself over to a relationship with him."
"Tell him what you're thinking," Therese urged.
"Are you crazy?" Stephanie retorted with a furrowed brow.
"Be friends. Go out, have fun, enjoy being together. If it turns to more for the both of you, then good. If not, you still have your friendship, a friendship that will probably have deepened by then."
"Do you write newspaper columns or something?" the co-GM asked with a half-smile.
"The bigger things that you have going on that I can't imagine, maybe I can."
"I'm sorry, I—"
Therese quickly interrupted. "Let's just watch the match, okay?" They turned their attention to the two behemoths trying to slaughter each other. Triple H looked like he was just trying to survive. Once Hunter earned himself a disqualification by hitting the referee with sledgehammer, Nash took his vengeance out on his opponent. They were both amazed when Shawn tried to stop Nash from powerbombing Helmsley through the announce table and were even more surprised when Nash pushed Michaels away. With a satisfied look on his visage, Nash stalked off the stage. With the match over, backstage activity picked up and the two moved on.
Therese was pushing the office door closed when Vince McMahon slammed it back open, knocking her into the wall. What she wouldn't have given to sweep his feet out from under him and then stomp his head in. She held in her urges and went to stand beside Stephanie since it was obvious that the man was angrier than normal, if that was possible with the WWE chairman.
"What in God's name were you thinking?!" he shouted at her.
"About what?" she said innocently but extremely convincing.
"I thought you were handling the Gowen incident." McMahon planted his hands firmly on the desk and leaned across it, staring her down.
"I did. He took my offer and I sent him home that night," she nonchalantly replied, tossing her hair over her shoulder.
"Your offer? That was your offer?" He pointed behind him in the general direction of the ring. "I ought to kill you myself." With that comment, Therese slipped a hand inside her jacket to toy with cold metal. She didn't think that he was the culprit behind the letters but she wasn't taking any chances.
"No, that was not my offer. That was all Mr. America's idea that I had nothing to do with."
"Mr. America? Come on, Steph. Why do you insist on being so stupid?" he asked condescendingly.
"Why can't you leave well enough alone? The contract with Mr. America is binding and there is nothing no one can do about it now. I was just as surprised as you when I found out that Zach Gowen was here. We can't change that either. Now, if you have something to say regarding a situation that can be changed, I'm willing to listen. Otherwise, you can leave my office and I'm going to do the job that I was hired for. I will see you next Thursday." Vince McMahon was so flabbergasted at her cool speech that he just stalked out and slammed the door. She knew that he would be back next week trying to control someone or something else.
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Author's Note: I did not have Judgment Day recorded, so this chapter was written off of recaps I found on the Internet. If you catch a mistake, e-mail me and let me know! Thanks everybody!