Dark Saviour
Chapter 11 - Chance Encounters
….
Shawn paced excitedly around the hotel room. He was so happy, that each step had a slight bounce to it. Rey was sitting cross-legged on the bed watching Shawn with an amused look on his face.
"So, how did you get him to come again?" Rey asked.
"What can I say?" Shawn shrugged. "He was just so charmed by my beauty."
Rey laughed. "I highly doubt that."
Shawn stopped pacing as he stared at Rey. "Aw, come on. You know I'm beautiful," he said striking a pose.
Rey smiled, getting up from the bed. "No, you're more then that," he said as his arms encircled Shawn's waist, bringing the Showstopper closer to him.
"Oh really?" Shawn asked, his brow rose slightly.
"You're beautiful," Rey replied, kissing Shawn on the lips. "You're gorgeous," he kissed Shawn on the cheek. "You're breathtaking," he nuzzled Shawn's neck.
"Stop it, Rey," Shawn sighed, putting his arms around Rey. "Or we won't be going anywhere."
"And what's wrong with that?" Rey replied, his eyes full of mischief.
Shawn looked at Rey, his own eyes reflecting Rey's mischief. "I thought that I was supposed to be the mischievous one?"
Rey cocked his head to one side. "Not always."
"Oh? Is this a glimpse into the dirty mind of Rey Mysterio?"
Rey shrugged. "It could be," he whispered as he kissed a path along Shawn's jaw.
Shawn shuddered. "You're giving me goose bumps."
Rey smirked. "Then I'm doing my job right."
"Very well I might add," Shawn replied, kissing Rey softly. "How about we just skip the whole thing and have a wild night, just the two of us?"
"We couldn't do that," Rey replied hoarsely, clamping down on his growing desire. "I mean it was your decision to go out today."
"So?" Shawn said, his lips hovering above Rey's.
"So," Rey whispered, his lips brushing up against Shawn's. "We can't make him go alone."
"Sure we can."
"No, we can't."
"He won't be alone," Shawn said, nibbling at Rey's bottom lip. "He was going to drag some other helpless soul with him."
"Oh? Who?"
"I don't know," Shawn answered before capturing Rey's lips with his own.
Shawn held Rey close to him, his one hand cupping the back of Rey's head, deepening the kiss. Rey let out a low moan as he held onto Shawn tightly, closing his eyes. They were so lost in each other that they barely heard the knock on their door. As the knocking got louder, Shawn growled slightly, annoyed at being disturbed.
"We should really invest in a 'do not disturb' sign," Shawn sighed as he broke away from Rey.
Rey merely nodded as he backed away, licking his lips. "Yeah," he nodded breathlessly. "We should."
Shawn shook his head, trying to clear it as he walked to the door. When he opened it, he saw Undertaker standing outside, his arms folded against his chest.
"Oh, hi, Mark."
Taker had his eyebrow raised as he looked over Shawn. "You practically beg me to death to go with you and Rey to that stupid place," he looked past Shawn to where he could see Rey standing off to one side, his clothes slightly disheveled. "And you decided that you were going to make me go by myself, while you stayed here and fucked Rey." It was more a statement of fact then a question.
Shawn shrugged, slightly embarrassed. "No."
"Don't lie to me," Taker shook his head, clearly not amused.
"Sorry, Mark," Rey said from behind Shawn. "That wasn't our intent."
"Sure it wasn't."
"It wasn't," Shawn said in their defense. "It just sort of, happened."
"Right, just like you sort of get high on Pixie Stix's?"
"Why don't you believe me?" Shawn whined.
"Because it's you," Taker replied simply.
"True," Shawn nodded reluctantly in agreement. "So, you ready?"
"I think the question is, are you?" Undertaker smiled.
"We're ready," Rey said quickly, grabbing a backpack.
"What's that for?" Shawn asked, his brow furrowed slightly as Rey walked past him.
"It's got water, some snacks . . ."
"Why?"
"So we have something to eat and drink without having to go and buy anything," Rey answered, walking down the hall. Stopping, he turned to look at the two men behind him. "You coming?"
….
Jeff looked up at the sign above him. "You've got to be kidding me?"
"Wish I was, Jeff," Undertaker whispered, not wanting to be overheard. "Told you that I needed to call in that favour. I couldn't let him drag me here to suffer alone."
Jeff shook his head, smiling slightly. "Well, that's just great."
"Just wait, it will get better."
Jeff rolled his eyes at Taker, following Shawn as he walked through the gates. Taking a quick look around, he could see multiple paths heading into different sections of the park. Sighing, Jeff stopped behind Rey and Shawn, putting his hands into his pockets. Shawn was looking around with wild-eyed wonderment, taking in everything at once while Rey was holding onto Shawn's hand. Jeff assumed that it was to keep Shawn in one spot more then for affection.
"So, uh, where to first?" Jeff asked, rocking slightly on the balls of his feet.
"I want to go see the tigers! And lions! And bears!" Shawn chattered excitedly.
"Oh my," Rey rolled his eyes.
"Come on! Let's go this way first!" Shawn exclaimed, dragging Rey down one path, quickly getting lost within the crowd.
"Do we even try and follow them?" Jeff asked, looking up at Undertaker. "Or do we wonder aimlessly like last time?"
Taker shrugged. "I guess, for a change of pace, we should try and follow them."
Jeff nodded as he made his way down the path to the far right, Undertaker following behind closely. After a few minutes, they found Shawn pointing at some monkeys in a cage, chattering on excitedly to a confused Rey. Jeff and Undertaker walked up behind them, stopping to look at the monkeys too.
"Who would have thought that the Deadman would go to the zoo?"
The four of them turned to see Jericho walking toward them, a smile on his face. Shawn smiled and waved Jericho over to them.
"And who would have thought that you would come here either," Taker replied coolly.
"Especially alone."
Jericho shrugged. "I'm not alone, I was invited. Besides, can't a guy enjoy seeing some sites when he's in a new town?"
"Of course he can," Shawn interrupted. "Mark, play nice."
Undertaker shook his head, turning his attention back to the monkeys in front of them. He didn't even notice when Shawn started pointing and whispering to Rey and Jeff. After being poked slightly in the ribs, he looked down to see Jeff nodding off to their left. Looking up, with his brow furrowed, he saw what Shawn had been pointing at. He fought hard to suppress his laughter as he watched Hunter and Edge walking down the path together.
"Seeing Rey and Shawn hold hands is one thing," Jeff whispered to Taker. "But seeing those two together . . ."
"Is something else entirely," Taker whispered back.
"Hey there, lover birds!" Shawn yelled. "Why don't you come join us?"
Hunter and Edge turned to see Shawn waving at them. Hunter quickly let go of Edge's hand, his face turning a bright shade of red. Edge smiled and waved toward Shawn and the others, before grabbing Hunter's hand again so that he could drag him over to where the group stood.
"Hey, how come you guys are here?" Edge asked.
"I wanted to come and see the zoo," Shawn replied simply. "And of course I would bring Rey along."
Edge nodded, turning to look at Undertaker. "What about you?"
"Dragged here."
He turned to Jeff. "And you?"
"Dragged here."
Hunter looked at Jericho. "What about you?"
"I just got here actually. Shawn invited me out for the day to do some site seeing."
"Hmm," Edge looked thoughtfully at Jeff and Taker. "And here I was beginning to think that you guys were double-dating."
Jeff looked at Edge in shock. "Why would you think that?"
Hunter shrugged. "Well, weren't you originally four before Chris showed up?"
"Well yeah," Jeff shrugged.
"So," Edge prompted.
"So what?" Taker asked, his brow rose as he waited for Edge to continue.
"Nothing," Edge replied, backing away slightly.
"So," Hunter said, staring up at the Deadman. "We both know that Shawn and Rey are together," he looked between Jeff and Taker.
"What?" Jeff asked, not quite believing what he was hearing.
"Well, I just assumed . . ."
"Don't you know that assuming something makes an ass out of you and me?" Jeff replied sarcastically, shaking his head at the two newcomers.
Edge shrugged. "You got to assume sometimes."
"If that's the case," Jeff smiled, looking between Hunter and Edge. "I guess I can assume that you two are officially dating now."
"No," Hunter responded quickly.
"No what? No, I can't assume that because it's true?" Jeff joked, enjoying the look of discomfort of Hunter's face.
"You just can't go assuming something like that," Hunter replied, looking away.
"What's the matter? You can dish it but can't take it?" Taker asked, shaking his head in amusement.
"I was looking for Shawn," Hunter sputtered.
"That's an interesting way to look for him," Taker mused.
"I ran into Edge while looking for Shawn. Shawn invited me to come here with him and apparently Rey had invited Edge so we started to look for them together," Hunter replied.
"And you just happened to decide to hold hands at the same time," Jeff laughed as he saw Hunter begin to blush.
Before Edge or Hunter could reply, Shawn stepped in between them. "None of that really matters. The important thing is that we can wonder the zoo together," he smiled.
"Yes, let's do that," Hunter agreed, jumping on the chance to change the topic.
They all nodded in a silent truce before they continued to walk down the path. Shawn and Rey were in the lead, Hunter and Edge following behind, keeping an obvious distance between them. Jeff and Taker were in the back of their little group while Jericho was walking just a few steps in front of them. He seemed to be trying to come between the Deadman and the Rainbow Haired Warrior.
After awhile, they made their way to a food court and bought some food. After choosing a picnic table that was large enough to hold all of them, they took their seats. Shawn and Rey were at one end, sitting next to Jeff. On the opposite side of Shawn and Rey sat Edge and Hunter leaving Taker to sit across from Jeff while Jericho sat beside Taker. At one point, Shawn grabbed Rey's arm and dragged him off down the path, far enough that they were out of sight.
Shawn stopped halfway down the path and turned to Rey. "What do you think?"
"About what?" Rey asked, confused.
"About Mark and Jericho?" Shawn prompted.
"They're good guys," Rey shrugged.
"You didn't notice?"
"Notice what?"
"That if Jericho sat any closer to Mark, he would have been sitting in his lap."
"Oh? No, I didn't notice."
"I think he likes him," Shawn mused, looking off to one side as if trying to peer around the bush to spy on their companions.
"Who likes him? Who's him?" Rey asked, getting more confused by the minute.
"Jericho."
"Who likes Jericho?"
"No," Shawn shook his head, smiling mischievously. "Jericho likes Mark."
"What?"
"I was watching them all morning. Jericho has been following Mark around constantly."
"He's what?"
"He was following Mark like a lost puppy," Shawn smiled, clapping his hands together.
"Wait a second," Rey waved his hands quickly. "How do you know he was following Mark and not Jeff?"
"Because, he hasn't taken his eyes off Mark," Shawn sighed.
"How do you know that?"
"I've been watching them. Wherever Mark went, Jericho did to."
"So did Jeff," Rey shrugged. "Does that mean that Jeff likes Mark too?"
"No, silly," Shawn waved off Rey's question. "Jeff doesn't have the same look that Jericho does. Jericho is definitely in love."
"Oh, please," Rey shook his head. "What look could Jericho possibly be giving to signal that he likes Mark?"
"I know the look when I see it," Shawn said defensively. "It's the same look you give me."
"I don't think so," Rey shook his head. "You'd have an easier time convincing me that Jericho still wants Jeff and is jealous about Mark and Jeff spending time together."
"Now who's being silly," Shawn smiled. "Just watch. I will prove it to you."
"Please Shawn," Rey begged. "No more playing matchmaker."
"I promise nothing."
"Just leave Mark alone. You've been trying to set him up with someone since Chris died. It's time to stop."
"He just doesn't deserve to be alone," Shawn pouted.
"No, he doesn't," Rey agreed. "But let him find the right guy when he's ready. It's too soon."
"Look whose talking. What changed, Rey?" Shawn asked, his head cocked to one side.
"I talked to Mark."
"You did what?"
"I talked to him. I wanted to know how he was doing and he was as evasive as ever, Shawn. He doesn't want to get attached right now."
"He just . . ."
"No," Rey interrupted sharply. "He doesn't want a relationship right now. He doesn't want to feel like he's trying to forget Chris."
"Oh," Shawn looked a little deflated.
"If he gets into another relationship, he wants it to have meaning."
"And he told you all of this?"
"No," Rey admitted. "But I could sense it from him. He really loved Chris and his death has affected him strongly. He won't want a fling."
Shawn nodded. "Okay. I won't play matchmaker anymore."
"Thank you," Rey smiled, patting Shawn's shoulder before heading back to where everyone else sat.
But I will get him to notice and eventually want, Jericho. Shawn thought as he followed Rey.
….
Jeff sat at the bar, alone, staring blankly at the counter-top. They had come back from the zoo three hours ago and since then, Jeff had been sitting there, his thoughts for once, silent. The only movement that he made was when he took a drink from the bottle in front of him. He was slightly unnerved by the silence in his head, but grateful for it at the same time. He had tried hard to enjoy the outing, but it hadn't been easy. His mind kept filling with thoughts from two nights earlier.
"I heard thinking can give you wrinkles."
"Is that way you have so many?" Jeff smiled, looking up at the man in front of him.
"I don't have wrinkles," Undertaker replied, taking the stool next to Jeff.
"Sure," Jeff joked, rolling his eyes before falling silent.
"So, what's got you so quiet?"
"Nothing actually," Jeff said, slightly surprised that it was the truth for once.
Taker shrugged. "Just in one of those moods?"
"I guess so," Jeff replied, taking another drink. "It's kind of strange."
Undertaker didn't reply, he merely took a drink from his own glass, a comfortable silence falling between the two of them.
"Hey listen, Mark . . ." Jeff started, turning to look Taker directly in the eye.
"What are talking about?" Jericho asked, putting one arm around each of their shoulders.
"Um," Jeff looked at Jericho, feeling a little awkward.
"Something wrong?" Jericho asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.
"Um, I was hoping to talk to Mark for a bit. Alone," Jeff replied slowly.
"Oh," Jericho stood back. "I get it."
"No, it's not like that," Jeff said.
"It's okay. I'll let you spend some alone time with Mark," Jericho replied as he turned and walked away.
Jeff looked after Jericho, concern and worry etched on his face.
"Don't worry about him, Jeff," Undertaker said, nodding to where Jericho had disappeared.
"I'm not. I just didn't mean to hurt his feelings," Jeff replied sadly, looking down at his drink.
"I'm sure you didn't," Taker smiled slightly. "He'll probably forget about it by tomorrow."
"You think so?" Jeff asked, looking hopefully up at Taker.
"I know so."
Jeff smiled then, downing the last little bit of his drink. "Thanks, Mark."
"No problem," Taker shrugged.
"No, really. You've been . . ."
"Did you miss me, hun?"
Jeff stiffened as he felt Cena's arms encircle his waist from behind. He could see the look of confusion on Undertaker's face and wished that he could reassure him that it wasn't what it looked like, but before he could say anything, Taker downed his drink and got up.
"I guess I'll leave you two alone."
"Mark," Jeff said softly, silently pleading that he stay, but as Undertaker disappeared around the corner, he knew that his silent plea went unheard.
As if it would be other wise.
Cena moved away from Jeff to take the seat that the Deadman had just vacated. Smiling, he looked at Jeff, enjoying the look of turmoil on his face.
"What were you talking about?" Cena finally asked.
"Nothing," Jeff replied, turning away from Cena.
"Now, now," Cena tsked. "You can't lie to me."
"Who says I'm lying?" Jeff asked bitterly.
"Why are you being like that?"
"Like what?"
"You're being so hurtful. I'm only trying to look out for you."
"Ha, sure you are. That's why you drugged me, right?" Jeff replied sarcastically.
"If you would only cooperate, then you wouldn't have had to be," Cena replied softly. "I do hate to resort to that."
"Sure you do," Jeff scoffed. "I think you just didn't want to exhaust yourself by tying me down again."
"Although that was a little fun," Cena smiled, running the back of his fingers lightly down Jeff's cheek. "I thought I would make you a little less . . . tense last time."
"Fuck you."
"No, I'd rather fuck you."
Jeff tried to get up to leave, but Cena forced him back onto the stool. "I didn't say you could leave."
"You're not my father."
"Or your brother."
Jeff looked at Cena, confused. "What does Matt have to do with anything? You said . . ."
"I know what I said," Cena smiled. "I remember everything very clearly."
"Then why would you say something like that?"
"Because I thought we should talk about what I told you yesterday on the phone."
"I'm not talking to you about anything," Jeff snapped.
"Tell me something though. Has Matt called you lately?"
Jeff was taken aback by the question. "Why do you want to know?"
"Has Shannon called you?"
"No, but . . ."
"Why has Jericho been acting so weird around you?"
"Where are you going with this?" Jeff snapped.
"I'm just naming some of the people in your life that have just gone and left you alone."
"I'm not alone."
"Yes, you are."
"No, I'm not."
"Tell me, why hasn't Matt called you?"
"He's busy," Jeff replied. "He's off on promotions."
"But he's not doing that all day is he?"
"Well, no."
"See, he doesn't care about you. He only pretends to when he's here because he has too."
"You're wrong."
"No I'm not," Cena said, putting his hand under Jeff chin so that he was looking at Cena. "I didn't want you to be hurt by him."
"He hasn't hurt me. He would never hurt me."
"Oh, really," Cena looked skeptically at Jeff.
"Really, he cares enough for me that he wouldn't hurt me," Jeff paused. "Not intentionally anyway."
Cena shook his head. "Oh, how simple minded you are."
"What are you talking about?"
"Think about it. Matt left and you haven't heard a word from him since. Shannon hasn't called you either since Matt left. Coincidence, I think not," Cena explained.
"He's busy with SmackDown and ECW," Jeff replied, trying to convince himself more than Cena.
"No, it's because he figures he doesn't have to watch over you anymore."
"But he . . ."
"He what? Talked to you once since Matt left? He's done his duty."
"You're wrong," Jeff said, shaking his head as he blocked his ears.
"It's the truth, Jeff," Cena replied, taking a hold of Jeff's head and took his hands away from his ears. "Did you ever wonder why you went on that outing today?" he didn't wait for Jeff to respond before continuing. "It's because Matt didn't want you to feel left out, to feel like anything's changed."
"No," Jeff choked back a sob, trying to hold back the emotions that threatened to break him. He hated the doubts he was allowing Cena to plant in his head.
"Yes," Cena said. "He has to bribe the other Superstars to include you because they wouldn't otherwise."
"Why?" Jeff asked, tears threatening to fall.
"Because they are afraid of you."
"Why?" Jeff repeated, confused.
"You're far more talented then all of those guys combined. They hate you because of that," Cena answered, taking hold of Jeff's hand, leading him toward the elevator.
"But Matt . . ."
"He's leading them," Cena said as the elevator doors closed and they began to go up.
"He wouldn't. He couldn't"
"He would," Cena nodded, as he led Jeff off the elevator and toward Jeff's room. "And he could."
Jeff fell silent, allowing himself to be guided toward his room. He gave Cena the key, not even fully realizing that he did so. Jeff felt himself being steered into the room and vaguely heard Cena tell him to sit on the bed. His head felt so numb, thoughts racing around, not letting him grab a hold of them before they were chased away by other thoughts. He barely felt Cena sitting behind him.
"It will all be okay," Cena cooed as he wrapped his arms around the smaller man. He pressed up slowly against Jeff back as he whispered softly into his ear, "If you do as I say, everything will be as it was before."
….
A/N: Well, there it is, my strange concoction of a chapter. Hope you like . . .