He won, Mark had never thought the outcome of their match to be any different, but turning he saw that Jeff was getting up, with the help of the ropes, but nevertheless the punk was getting up… His promise popped back into his mind, he had told him that he wouldn't be walking out of their encounter, and he couldn't go behind his words now could he, even if every beating he gave the kid was hurting him, he had to break him so he would finally understand, you don't mess with the Undertaker, point, subject not open for discussion…
Jeff on the other hand wasn't seing the match as over, he still was burning, alive, and ready to show the older man that he had it to beat him, his respect, he would give everything to just see a glimpse of respect in the eyes of the Undertaker, he couldn't just stop this now, he had to proof him that he was back, back for good and that the title finally belonged to him… Hanging in the ropes, he willed his last strength and managed to stay halfway up, only to enrage the Taker, who watching from the side of the ring what Jeff was doing, had enough and got back into the ring…
He approched Jeff who was kind of hanging in the ropes and got him to the center of the ring, lifted him and crashed him down… Et voilà, the punk wouldn't get up after this, he was a little sad that it had had to come to this but since Hardy had insisted, he just had gotten his wish fulfilled, destroyed by the Undertaker…
Mark got back to his bike, put his belt around his neck and drove off, that pitch feeling in his heart nearly crushing him, jeez he was going mellow now…
"Hey"
Noooo, never, he must have not heard right…
"Hey Taker"
He stopped, actually he had heard right, there was nothing else left there to do now, the little punk wasn't giving up was he, he couldn't believe it, ok he prooved to be tougher than he at first believed, but this was in no way how things were supposed to be… No, why did he have to insist now…
"You haven't broken me Taker"
Again, no, really, he started to get foolisher and foolisher… Leaving his bike he got back, his mind settled on breaking more than just his bones now, if he was stupid enough to continue to want to play, good, he would give him the lesson of his lifetime…
He saw him come back, good, now he could show him what he really was made of, even when standing without the ropes would proove to be difficult, bordering impossible, he would survive this, he had to, a once in a lifetime opportunity to show the one you want to impress the most what you're made of…
And then their eyes crossed, Mark couldn't believe it, that look, how not to get all warm and fuzzy and want to hug the punk, he patted his hair, then made a decision he wouldn't comprehend for a long time, he lifted Jeff's arm in aknowledgement of his… his strenght, will, stubborness, his instinct to survive…
Jeff couldn't believe it, not that he was able of getting much what was going on, a slap on his chest, aah yes, the Taker had gotten back and then that look, those fierce green orbs that pierced right through him, into his soul… He couldn't but lose himself in the eyes of the one who had his life practically in his hands… And then that hand which patted his hair, Jeff just stared at him, not believing what was happening, and the second the Undertaker let go of his arm he fell to the floor in a rather brutal way, but all his muscles just had stopped working, as if with his little yet enormous gesture the Undertaker had taken away his will to stay up, there was no reason anymore, he had gotten what he had been seeking all along…
He shook his head, jeez, that look, those eyes, no man had ever managed to stirr up so many mixed emotions at once in him, and he felt like carrying him out, how could he leave him laying in the middle of the ring, bruised, battered but far from broken… Jeez, he couldn't even feel like he was the winner of this match, how could he when Jeff had given him living proof that he was just as tough and resilient than the Deadman himself.
Walking from the ring he couldn't help but turn again and take a good measure of the guy who just brought his world kinda collapsing down, and then it became clear to him, the punk just had won his respect, and that made him stirr, aargh, life wasn't easy, he who had shielded himself from ever developping friendly feelings for anyone was having some butterflies in his stomach when he thought of the man winding himself on the ring floor.