A/N: It's... been a while. I apologize for that, but the reason for my negligence has been because I haven't been too sure on what to do next. I was in a bit of a (wrestling) writer's block for a few weeks, so once again, I'm sorry. Please let me know if you're still enjoying this story, it'd be a big help. Also, if i wrote a Christian/Chris (slash, obviously) fic, would any of you read it?

I just need to know these things, I'm odd like that. I also apologize for the lack of intensity in this chapter, which only happens to be a filler. Trust me, the drama is arriving next chapter and if you stick around, I think you'll enjoy that. So yeah, this is getting long. xo.

Pure Intentions
Chapter Twelve: The Hardest Part

"Where've you been?" Chris asks when Violet comes back from her day long rendezvous. And since she's not ready (neither is Shawn) to tell him the truth, she fibs that she's been at Evan's, working things out. The lie suceeds, because her clothes are no longer soaked as a result of her earlier swim.

Surprisingly, he doesn't question her further about what supposedly happened between the two ex-lovers, but merely asks if they're back together. She shakes her head no. And least thats an honest answer, she thinks, but it's not justifying enough.

With him distracted by the television, she guiltily walks to the bathroom. There, she changes from her bathing suit (that lay under a layer of casual wear) into warm, comfortable clothes. The weather had turned quite a bit chilly after her swim, unbelievably.

In front of the mirror, her wavy blonde hair frames her delicate face. She stared at her reflection and recollected the past events.

She and Shawn hadn't made love like they were about to (much to her dismay), but they had gotten awfully close to doing so. Although both they wanted to, evident with their shallow breathing, their roaming hands, they were interrupted by the constant ringing of her cell phone. With the caller being her brother of course, she wished she hadn't brought it. But she had, and when she offered to turn the device off, the man positioned atop her quickly climbed off and insisted they stop what they were doing.

Just because her sibling was worried, he assured her, not because he wanted their sensuality-filled session to end.

They dried off in the sun with continuous exchanging of kisses. And luckily before the dampening grey clouds blocked them from the warming rays, they drove back into the city. His hand comfortably on her knee, and her hand ontop of his, sometimes both venturing upwards to her lower thigh.

Through the entire ride, she knew he wanted to pull over and hold her in his arms again, press his lips against hers as if this was the last day he'd see her. She wanted the same thing, but simply had more self-control, enough for the both of them.

"Relax," she'd told him, a mischevious tone to her voice and a smirk planted on her mouth. If he weren't directing the vehicle down the car laden highway, he'd glance at her and would joke about how evil she looked. He had said it a few times before, and all Violet would say was "thank you, Mr. Obvious."

In joking manner, every time.

Now back to the present hour, with the image of herself right infront of her, she smiled. Temporarily forgetting the fact that she was hiding something relatively important from her older brother.

She noticed that there had hardly been building up to the relationship she had abruptly, and recently gotten into, but that didn't make in any less of a wonderful thing.

Since the first day she had seen him, Violet believed Shawn was a great guy, whether a friend or lover. And within the last month, she had experianced both perspectives. Through highs (like what happened today) and lows (mainly the involvement with Evan).

Footsteps from outside the room ushered her from her thoughts, snapping her back to reality, which in perspective was a bit like her fantasy. Being with a man she adored, the only drawbacks were the facts that she was in a mess with Evan, the sweetest man she'd ever come by (besides Chris) and was keeping her affair with the Heartbreak Kid a secret from the only family member she had in her life.

She scowled at the rememberance, but re-emerged into the main room moments later with a smile at her lips nonetheless.

"Had a good day?" she asks Chris, and with a grin creeping onto his unusually stoic face, he wishes he could tell her about it.

The evening passes by quickly and later that night Violet talks to Shawn on her cell phone. Because her brother is sleeping soundlessly in a bed just metres away from her, she walks out into the hallway to gain a little more distance in fear of waking him, and seats herself on the floor beside the enterance. She isn't stupid, she made sure that definitely she had one of the two keys the hotel staff had given them. It was hidden safely in the confinements of the pocket of her pajama shorts.

Now a wall is in between the kin, and hopefully Chris stays sleeping.

The new couple talks for well about an hour, until the young women yawns and is vaguely reminded that she is tired.

"Sing me to sleep," she requests silently, listening intently to her boyfriend's somewhat audible breathing. That by itself almost lulls her into unconsciousness, but his deep and scratchy chuckle a few minutes afterwards partially sobers her up.

"I thought we weren't going to be one of those 'cliched' couples," he remarks, mostly to make her laugh but it doesn't affect her at all; Violet still wants to hear him serenade her.

"Please."

He stops laughing and pauses. "But you're the real singer here," Shawn tries to reason, referring to multiple the times that he had heard her belt out her favorite songs perfectly. He can't forget those memories, they replay in his head daily.

"Please," Violet repeats, her voice considerably faint now. Exhaustion is setting in, making its way throughout her body and mind. If she doesn't end the conversation soon, she'll fall asleep slumped against the wall.

He lets out a partly agitated sigh but agrees. "Fine."

Anxiously, she waits for him to begin, and when he does, she's rendered speechless. His harmony being far more better and less country sounding than what she though it'd sound like.

"I might have chased a couple of women around, all it ever got me was down. Then there was those who made me feel good, but never as good as I feel right now... Baby you're the only one thats ever known how; to make me wanna live like I'm living now."

The girl was suddenly as awake as if somebody had (once again) thrown ice cold water on her. Shawn's voice was enchanting, if not breath-taking. It was enough to keep her from drifting into her dream land. And although she wanted to tell him how insanely wonderful he was, she knew that he wasn't finished.

"The waiting is the hardest part. Every day you see one more card. You take it on faith, you take it to the heart. The waiting was the hardest part."

Now, he was done singing her her lullaby. Violet remained quiet, searching for words that explained her awe; her amazement.

"Nice choice," she finds herself blurting out instead of complimenting him, but her words ring true. The song was one of her favorites. Shawn is the one being drained of energy now. "You were astounding," she adds as well.

He smiles from the other line, as he sits up from his bed. Hunter is not back from the bar yet, and he knows that he (or Stephanie) will have to locate him and bring him back.

"Thanks, Vi," he returns, "Tom Petty is a personal favorite."

She nods in agreement, but remembers to voice it as well. "Same for me, though, I like his song Walls most."

And although both want to stay where they were, to keep talking into the early hours of morning, they can't. For reasons fairly obvious.

"You should get your beauty sleep, Shawny," the younger Irvine teases, and stands up, knowing fully well that they're about to say goodbye.

He grins. "I can say the same to you."

They share a quiet but intimate moment of 'gonna miss yous'. Violet hesitates before bading him goodnight for the final time.

An accidental 'I love you' was about to slip from her mouth, and she doesn't know if it was because she had grown accustomed to saying it to Evan, or if it were true. It couldn't be, she realized after she caught herself, it takes a lot more time to actually love a person who's not blood-related.

But, like every other thing she's been distraught over, she isn't sure of what she's trying to convince herself of, so she brushes the arguable subject away. Just as she crawls into her awaiting bed, the realization of Shawn's changing of lyrics occurs to her.

The waiting was the hardest part.

She's going to see Evan, she decides the next morning. It's both an irrational, and rational decision.

It's prioritized before seeing Shawn, only because she owes the boy an apology. Despite his intolerance towards her much older boyfriend, she still cares for him, and finds herself flinching everytime Chris mentions the high flyer's name. She knows that the same has happened to said man everytime her (or Mr Wrestlemania)'s name has been spoken. It was unavoidable, for every hurt lover in the world.

Violet leaves a note for her sleeping sibling. Scribbled messily on the yellow post-it are the words:

I'm off to seek more closure with Evan. Please, don't worry about me.

Love, Vi.

So with her heart considerably heavier than before, she walks out and heads to room 405.

I can do this, Violet tells herself with a deep breath, I must do this. Just to face the man's door has taken a lot of bravery. A lot for her to have ventured this far into his territory. The possibility of having a door slammed in her face isn't appealing, but the guilt of being such a bad person to someone who clearly didn't deserve it wasn't at all more desirable.

So she risks having the former happen.

Her knuckles tap the wooden surface softly, but loud enough to be heard. A muffled trudging of feet comes from within the room, and within seconds, the girl was face to face with her ex.

"Hi," she greeted dumbly, not sure of how he'll react, but judging by the disapproving frown on Evan's face, he isn't exactly pleased at seeing her.

"What do you want?" he asks bitterly, and she admits she had that coming.

"Evan-"

His anger is clear, his eyes are of a darker shade - or is this lighting making him look almost meaner?

"Just tell me what you want," he snaps, his intentions to drive her away so that she wouldn't agitate him more. Violet wasn't having any of it, though.

"I want to talk to you," she says, and shifts her weight so that her other foot is supporting it. Evan's expression changes from annoyance to exasperation. Why couldn't she just let him be hating and spiteful alone?

They soak in akward and terrifying silence before he answers.

"Okay than," he waves his hand in mid-air, motioning for her to begin, "talk to me."

She ignores the distaste of his gesture, and gets on with her apology. Although it might be a little harder than she expected seeing as he's making it really hard to be remorseful.

"I'm sorry, I know it probably doesn't make you feel any better, but I'll tell you as much as possible how much I mean it." Violet manages to choke out, trying not to let herself be taken over by her over sensitive range of emotions. "I'm not asking for forgiveness, because I surely do not deserve it." She shakes her head at herself but resumes. "You, on the otherhand, didn't deserve to have your heart broken by a girl who doesn't even take the time to appreciate how caring you are." After indicating her sympathetic self, she pointed to him but lowered her hand shortly after.

"You're a wonderful guy, Evan. Any person can see that. I was just blinded by another, and I realize now that I've wasted your time, I guess I'm sorry for that, too."

More of the awful quiet that she hated so much. He seemed to be considering her words.

With that, Violet made a move to leave, but with a sudden arm against her back, the young man pressed her body against his in a unexpected hug. She, with a grateful smile, rested her head on his shoulder.

Out of all the possibilities that she could've imagined, the Canadian didn't even think of this one taking place right now.

"Are you with him?" Evan asked precariously, and felt her tense at his inquiry. But with a nod that could be felt against his shoulder, she confirmed it. He didn't give her time to say anything more before asking another. "Does he treat you right?"

They slowly pull away from eachother's grip, and he's left gazing at her in all seriousness.

"Of course. We wouldn't be... together if he didn't."

Evan nods, accepts this little bit of information. He looks down at his feet for a moment before glancing back up at the anxious girl who asks, in turn: "So where does this leave us?"

Violet meets his eyes with her own, and realizes why she had fallen for him in the first place. But, that gleam of innocence isn't quite enough to overpower Shawn's glint of endless reassurance. At least, she thinks so.

"Friends?" He offers, and finds himself back in the woman's arms. The oncoming well of tears flooding to Violet's green eyes is a sign that she'd like nothing more, nothing less.

Review, please? :)