Dark Saviour

Chapter 15 - Mixed Emotions and Mixing Candy with Alcohol

A/N: As the title should indicate, this chapter is very bizarre. But, hey, it's my favourite chapter. Actually, more like the start of my favourite series of chapters.

….

Shawn walked into the locker room completely exhausted. Even though he had a great time out there, it still took a lot out of him. He plopped down on the bench next to Jeff, leaning up against the wall. He let his head roll to one side so that he could look at the younger Superstar.

"You did well tonight," Shawn said.

"Thanks," Jeff smiled slightly, looking over at Shawn. "You did to."

Shawn nodded, his head rolling back so that he was looking at the ceiling. "So, what are you up to now? Any plans for your week off?"

"I was thinking of heading to the next town early. Try and relax a bit there before the next show," Jeff replied, throwing his things into a bag.

"That sounds boring. You going alone?"

Jeff shook his head. "Don't know yet."

"How could you not know?" Shawn asked, looking at Jeff.

"It all depends on Mark's schedule."

"Mark's schedule?"

Jeff nodded. "Yeah. If he's not doing anything this week, he said he would head up with me."

"You two are getting really close, aren't you?" Shawn said, more to himself then to Jeff.

"I guess so."

"Is Jericho going to?"

"No, he's working," Jeff replied as he looked over at the Heart-Break Kid, confused slightly. "Why do you ask?"

Shawn shrugged. "No reason."

"Come on, you can tell me."

Shawn shook his head. "I was just curious."

"Right," Jeff rolled his eyes.

Shawn merely shrugged, trying to stifle a yawn. "What are you going to do if Mark's working this week?" he finally managed to ask as his yawn subsided.

"I'll still head up anyways. I'm not afraid to go alone."

"That's the spirit," Shawn said, yawning again.

"Do you need me to go get Rey so he can take you home?"

Shawn shook his head. "No. I'll be fine."

"You sure?"

"Yeah," Shawn nodded, smiling sleepily. "Just need to put my stuff together and I'll be ready to go."

Jeff nodded, shouldering his bag. "Okay then. If you say so," he said before he walked to the door and out into the hallway.

As Jeff turned back to look at Shawn one last time, he noticed that the older Superstar had fallen asleep, his chin resting against his chest. Shaking his head, Jeff made his way over to the locker room that Taker was in. Once he got to the other room, he entered without knocking, catching the only two other Superstars in the room off guard. Jeff smiled at Undertaker as the bigger man folded his gear into his bag and then nodded at Rey who was unlacing his boots.

"I think you had better hurry up and get Shawn to the hotel," Jeff said to Rey as he dropped his bag on the bench.

"How come?"

"Cause if you don't, I think he's spending the night here."

"What?"

Jeff chuckled. "He fell asleep. I don't think he can handle the long nights any more."

"Shit," Rey muttered. "I mean," he said quickly when he realized what he had said.

"Guess we know where Shawn get's his language from, don't we?" Taker joked, smiling over at Rey, who happened to be blushing and muttering incoherently under his breath.

"Slow down there, Rey. We can't quite hear you," Jeff laughed, making Rey blush even more.

"Sorry," Rey mumbled as he quickly grabbed his gear and rushed out of the locker room.

Jeff shook his head as he walked over to where the Deadman was standing. "So, do I have a traveling partner or do I travel alone?"

"If you want the company, you can have it."

The Rainbow Haired Warrior couldn't help but smile. "Really? You have the week off too?"

Taker nodded. "Almost. I just have one thing to do, but it's in the next town anyway."

"Hey, at least I won't have to travel alone," Jeff replied.

"Are you sure you can handle traveling with me though?"

"I've survived being with you so far," Jeff smiled, playfully shoving at the Deadman. "I think I can manage another trip."

"Are you sure you want to push your luck." Taker smiled, shaking his head. "This might be the trip where I turn you into a minion."

That doesn't sound so bad, Jeff thought before banishing the images those thought created from his mind. "You don't want me to be your minion."

"Why not?"

"You can barely tolerate a hyper Shawn." Jeff pointed out. "You honestly think you could deal with a hyper me 24/7?"

If it's you . . . Undertaker thought as he considered the possibility. "You're right. I don't think I could use you like that," he admitted truthfully. I could never see you as a minion or a tool. You would lose that something . . . special that is uniquely you.

"Well, that's your loss." Jeff shrugged as he picked up his bag and threw it onto his shoulder as he stuck his nose up at the Deadman.

"Do you think I need a minion?"

"No, you're a big boy now. You don't need any help."

"Are you sure?" Taker said as looked at Jeff. "Maybe I need help in my old age?"

Jeff shook his head. "The day you need help is the day you retire."

"Maybe," Taker chuckled. "Maybe I'll go work as an announcer instead."

Jeff laughed as an image of Undertaker sitting behind the announcer's desk went through his mind. "I definitely would pay to see that."

"I think I would give Vince a heart attack if I ever asked to do that."

"You would give everyone a heart attack," Jeff said, shaking his head. "Anyway, when did you want to leave here for the next city?"

"I don't know. Whenever you're ready to go I guess," Taker shrugged.

"How about tonight?"

"Eager are you?"

"Well, yeah. I'm kind of getting sick and tired of people looking at me funny," Jeff explained as he bit the inside of his cheek so he wouldn't say the full reason why he wanted to leave so quickly.

"I thought they always looked at you funny?"

"They do, but this is a different kind of funny," Jeff replied, leaning on an empty locker, thankful Taker hadn't picked up on his hesitation. "I don't know, it kind of creeps me out."

"Really? I better go have a talk with them, tell them to stop that. They're taking my job away," Undertaker chuckled.

Jeff laughed in spite of himself. "No matter how hard they try, they'll never take your job away. You're too good at it."

Taker shook his head as he continued to laugh. "Well that's reassuring," he said as he finished putting his belongings into his bag. "Anyway, I'm ready to go at any time. Just say when."

"You're ready to go now?" Jeff asked. "Before the show is over?"

"Yeah. All I have to do is get my bike and I'm ready to hit the road."

"Then I better take a taxi," Jeff joked. "I really don't feel like hitting the road at the speeds you travel."

"Fine then. You can stay here and I'll go by myself."

"Um," Jeff said, reconsidering his stance on the subject. "I think I can trust you. Besides, if you do feel like hitting the road, you'd hit first which would at least cushion my fall," he smiled as he put a hand on Undertaker's shoulder.

"I guess you're right," Taker mused. "Maybe we won't hit the road just yet then. We could still head to the next city though."

"Sounds good," Jeff said, shifting the weight of his bag from one shoulder to the other before he lead the way out of the locker room and out to the parking lot. As he stood next to Undertaker's bike, Jeff waited for Taker to get on first, before once again taking his place on the back. Holding on tightly, Jeff enjoyed the feel of Taker's muscles moving slightly under his hands as the bigger man revved the engine before taking off down the road. He took in one deep breath, letting the mix of Taker's unique scent with the smell of gasoline from the bike wash over him before completely losing himself in the moment.

If only things could be different . . .

….

Matt ran into the arena, looking through the crowd of people quickly for any sign of his brother. He saw plenty of familiar faces, but none was the one he was looking for. He slowly made his way through the crowd, continuing to look for Jeff's tell-a-tale rainbow hair. As he ran down the halls, he received a lot of strange looks; many of the Superstars were startled to see him there.

"Hey, Matt, aren't you on promotions?"

"Where's Jeff?"

"He's most likely still in the locker room down the hall. Why?"

Matt ran down the hall, not even bothering to figure out who it was he had talked to. He had only one thing on his mind, find Jeff and figure out what was going on with him. When Matt finally reached the locker room the guy had talked about, he burst into the room not bothering to knock on the door. Matt quickly looked around the room, praying that his brother was still there.

"Damn it," Matt muttered when he realized that Jeff was nowhere to be seen.

"What's the matter, Hardy?"

"Shut up," Matt replied, turning to leave without another word.

"Now, now. Is that anyway to talk to your co-workers?"

"Back off, John. I'm not in the mood for your bullshit."

"I wouldn't be in a good mood either if I heard the rumours about my brother," Cena shook his head. "But I would still be polite. Oh well, to each their own I guess."

Matt stopped and rounded on Cena. "What rumours are there about my brother?"

"Oh. I thought you knew about those?" Cena replied innocently.

"You're screwing with me."

"No, but Jeff has been or at least that's what the others are saying," Cena shrugged.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Matt snapped as he glared at the other man.

Cena smiled. "Not my place to say really."

Matt growled, rolling his eyes. "You really shouldn't have come back."

"Is that a threat?"

"No," Matt smiled innocently, though his irritation was evident. "It's just a statement of fact."

"Is that so? Well then, have fun trying to find your brother. I would hurry if I were you. Wouldn't want him losing his innocence now, would you?"

"Will you just shut it?" Matt yelled. "If you have something to say, just say it before I kick your ass!"

"Temper, temper," Cena smiled, wagging his finger at Matt. "But since you asked so nicely, I think I'll tell you where your baby brother went."

"Well?" Matt snapped as he tapped his foot impatiently.

"He left with Mark."

"What?" Matt asked, startled. Shit! That's the last person I wanted him to be with.

"He left with Mark hours ago. They seemed to be in a rush to leave actually."

"Are you trying to imply something?" Matt gave Cena a strange look as he tried to figure out what the man's motives were.

"I'm not implying anything. I'm just letting you know, in part, what the rumors are around here," Cena cocked his head to one side. "And from what I've heard about those two, they've been having lots of fun together."

"People think Jeff's gay?" Matt asked, not quite sure what to make of what he was being told.

Cena shrugged. "I'm sure you've suspected it from time to time."

"Never," Matt replied, shaking his head.

"Well, that's the main rumor," Cena smiled. "Most of it anyway."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, it's just that, well, Jeff has gained the reputation of being a whore around here."

"What?" Matt yelled.

"But that's just a small little rumor, probably made up by someone jealous of his talent."

"There is something truly wrong with you," Matt replied, backing out of the locker room.

"Maybe," Cena shrugged. "But I am right about one thing. Jeff did leave with Mark a couple of hours ago."

"That's not possible. The show isn't even over yet."

"Their part in it is," Cena shrugged. "And from what I heard they have the week off together. So, if the rumors are to be believed, they probably went to Mark's place to have some alone time together."

"Why should I believe you?" Matt asked.

"You don't have to. You can ask the next guy that comes in if you want. They will tell you the same thing I'm telling you now."

"Oh, come on. You expect me to believe that I can go up anyone and ask them about Jeff and they'll all tell me that he left with Mark?"

"That's what I'm saying."

"I don't think so."

"What can it hurt? Ask the next guy to come in here. Ask . . ." Cena paused, holding his breath slightly. "Batista."

"Dave?" Matt turned around, his brow furrowed as he looked at the bigger Superstar.

"What did I do?"

"Nothing at all. Matt just has a question for you," Cena answered, hiding the relief he felt that Batista had shown up instead of some other hapless idiot.

Batista turned his attention to Matt. "What's up?"

"Did Jeff leave with Mark a couple hours ago?" Matt asked, deciding to find out if Cena was bluffing or if he was really telling him the truth.

"Yeah, I saw them drive off on his bike," Batista replied. "Jeff seemed really excited to be leaving."

Shit. He was telling the truth. Damn it! That must mean that Mark is the one behind all of this, Matt thought, turning away. "Thanks, I've got to go."

"Why don't you stay around awhile?" Batista asked.

"Can't," Matt replied, quickly running out of the room.

As soon as Matt was gone, Cena walked up beside Batista, a twisted smile on his face. "You like him, don't you?"

Batista looked startled at the question. "No. Why would you think that?"

"No reason," Cena replied, opening the door slightly just in time to see Matt run out the door at the end of the hall. "I just want to make sure that your feelings for the older brother won't affect your job."

"Hey, even if your accusations were true, you know that you always come first."

"I better, Dave. Or it won't only be Jeff whose getting hurt."

….

Jeff lay down on the bed, stretching out after the long bike ride. He may absolutely love bikes, but even he had to admit that it wasn't easy riding on one for seven hours straight. Yawning, he rolled onto his side and watched as Undertaker rummaged through his bag for his bottle of scotch. After pouring himself a glass, he motioned the bottle to Jeff.

"Sure, why not?" Jeff smiled as he sat up.

Taker nodded as he grabbed a second glass and poured a generous amount into it. Jeff picked up the glass, downing half of it in one gulp.

"In a hurry or something?" Taker smiled.

"Nope. I've got all night. Hell, I've got all week," Jeff replied, tipping his glass to Taker. "So I might as well enjoy it while I can."

"By getting plastered quickly every night?"

"Hmm," Jeff paused. "No, I guess that wouldn't be much fun, now would it?" he looked down at his glass. "I guess I had better slow down."

"That might be a plan," Taker smiled. "Because if you want to get that drunk all week, you're paying for it yourself."

"Dually noted," Jeff replied, setting his glass down on the table. "So, what's the plan for tonight?"

"Whatever you feel like."

"Hmm, what do I want?" Jeff smiled, pondering.

"Anything but that."

"I didn't even say anything yet?"

"But I know what you're thinking."

Jeff crossed his arms over his chest. "Oh really?" he pouted.

"I would have to be a blind idiot to not know what's going on in that head of yours," Taker chuckled.

"If you know me so well, then you know that I always get what I want."

"Not with me."

"Please?" Jeff begged.

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No."

"Pretty please with sugar, marshmallows, chocolate, strawberries, cookie dough, sprinkles and a cherry on top?"

Taker burst into laughter. The look on Jeff's face was priceless, as well as his attempt at begging. "Whatever happened to the just plain old sugar and a cherry on top'?"

"That's so old school," Jeff joked.

"For your information, I happen to be very old school."

"Well, duh. You are ancient."

Taker playfully punched Jeff on the arm. "Yeah, I remember when kids were nice to their elders and dinosaurs roamed the earth."

"Wow, I didn't know you were 'that' old. I thought that was only Vince?"

"No, Vince was around way before that. He saw the dinosaurs come out of the primordial muck."

"Wow," Jeff said in fake awe. "That is so cool."

"Are you going to be like this the whole week?" Taker asked, his brow rose in speculation.

"Not if you give me what I want," Jeff replied, tilting his head slightly as a mischievous grin spread across his face.

Taker sighed before he rummaged through his bag once more. After finding what he wanted, he threw the package at Jeff. "Just promise you won't tell anyone where you got those from."

Jeff ran his forefinger and thumb across his lips. "My lips are sealed," he smiled, opening the bag of Skittles and tossing a handful into his mouth.

Taker shook his head. "You better not be as bad as Shawn is on pixie sticks."

"No, I could never be that bad," Jeff replied. "Shawn's special in that area."

"He's special all right," Taker muttered as he put his things back into his bag. As he picked up the last bundle of clothes, a picture frame fell out of it and bounced onto the floor between them. Before he could grab it, Jeff picked up the picture and looked at the smiling faces of Benoit and the Deadman intently.

"I didn't know that you two were friends."

"We were," Taker replied as he attempted to snatch the picture back.

"Oh, come on now. Don't tell me you're embarrassed about it," Jeff said, moving away from Undertaker.

"I'm not embarrassed about anything."

"Then why are you so desperate to hide it?"

"Because."

"Because what?"

"Just . . . because," Taker replied, finally snatching the frame from Jeff.

"Okay, okay. That's apparently a sensitive subject," Jeff said, holding his hands up in surrender. "But, just so you know, he meant a lot to me too."

Not as much as he meant to me though, Taker thought sadly. "He meant a lot to a lot of people."

"Yeah, I guess he did," Jeff shrugged. "What was he to you?"

"What?" Taker asked, a little taken aback.

"What did he mean to you? Was he an acquaintance? A friend?"

"A friend," Undertaker said. "Probably the only friend I have."

"Now who is selling themselves short," Jeff said as he moved to stand beside the Deadman and put an arm around his shoulders. "I'm sure you have lots of friends," he paused briefly as he thought about it. "Who aren't dead."

Taker chuckled softly. "Well, if they are all like you, then I don't."

"Ouch, that hurt," Jeff said, taking a step back, putting a hand against his chest. "I thought you had forgiven me for that."

"Did I now?" Taker asked, stealing some skittles. "When did I do that?"

Jeff lightly shoved Undertaker before running to the other side of the bed so that he wouldn't get pushed back. With a bed between them, Jeff felt safe enough to stick his tongue out. "Ha, ha, you can't get me."

"I thought that it was you can't see me?" Taker replied jokingly.

Jeff flinched inwardly as Taker's words struck home. "Only if you're a fucking pothole."

"Glad neither of us is one of those."

Jeff smiled again. "Yeah. I'd hate to have to throw you out."

"Throw me out?" Taker said, raising an eyebrow at Jeff. "How would you manage to do that?"

Jeff smiled evilly, tossing a handful of Skittles back and forth. "I have my ways."

"You wouldn't dare," Taker said challengingly.

"Oh, wouldn't I?" Jeff replied, tossing some of the Skittles at Taker, where they flew harmlessly past him.

"You missed."

"Who said I was aiming for you?" Jeff laughed.

"Well, see, if I was going to throw some and not aim at you," Taker threw a couple of the Skittles back at the younger Hardy, hitting him on the chest. "I would do that."

"You have a bad aim," Jeff shook his head, laughing.

Taker shrugged. "I thought I had a pretty good aim," he said, throwing a couple more and once again hitting Jeff, this time, on the arms. "See, my aim is pretty good."

"So you do," Jeff nodded, throwing a Skittle and hitting Taker right on the forehead. "But I've got a better aim."

Taker threw the last Skittle in his hand, hitting Jeff on the forehead.

"Touché," Jeff said, rubbing his forehead. "Hope that doesn't leave a mark."

"No, I would never stick around on your forehead."

Jeff burst into full out laughter. "Mark made a funny."

Taker rubbed at his brow. "What the hell have I gotten myself into?"

"You've gotten yourself into the wonderful world of Skittles," Jeff smiled playfully. "Catch the rainbow," he said as he ran out the door.

Taker shook his head. "Note to self; never let Jeff eat Skittles and drink alcohol," he muttered before chasing after the younger Superstar.

….

A/N: If you enjoyed that, then, good. You're as strange as I am.