Disclaimer: I hate these things. I own nothing but ideas and Serenity.
I was numb. For you I come night and day. And I can't stay away. No I can't stay away.
Serenity knew there was only one way to solve this. She was going to do the unthinkable. She left her room and went down the hall to Jim's room. Serenity knew what she was about to do was wrong, but it was the first step to take when going her own way.
She forced herself to knock at the door, despite the pit growing in her gut. It only got bigger when he answered.
"Oh, hey there kid. Whatcha doin' out this late?" he asked.
"I…I just told off Elijah" she explained.
"Great work, kid. Feels great doesn't it?".
"If you consider an internal fight good, then yeah…".
"Oooo, we all know that ain't no good".
"I'm here because you're the only Original I feel I can trust".
"Yeah, Rob was bein' a shit earlier over what happened out there. Did ya call ya brother like I suggested?".
Serenity nodded. "I did. Yeah, Elijah was saying how what I did out there with you was worse than what he did to me".
Jim scoffed. "Bull…shit".
"I know! I was totally outraged. So…I'm here to ask if I could-".
"Spend the night with me?".
"How'd you know?".
"I knew eventually you'd wanna turn away from 'em".
"How long would you have waited?".
Jim shrugged. "However long it took. Luckily it only took a day. Get your ass in here, kiddo. I got two beds in here".
Serenity stepped inside and was surprised to find the room was nicely kept. Suspiciously, she looked over at Jim.
"For a drunk, you keep your room really nice".
"Force of habit I guess. Plus, I just like making other people's lives a little easier".
"I thought you give them hell".
"Depends on the person. You, definitely not. Burke, oh, wait 'til I get my hands on him. He's gonna regret all he said to ya back there".
Serenity turned and faced him. "You promise?".
"I do, kid. There's nothin' wrong with talkin' to an Original".
Serenity sat down on the bed meant to be hers. Not once did she ever take her eyes off Jim.
"So what really started this?" she asked.
"When Vince McMahon brought ECW back, he brought it back so that he was in control. Not us. The one thing that any ECW original can't live without is freedom".
"Why would Vince wanna take that freedom?".
"Because he hates us".
"Good point. And what? He likes Burke?".
"He thinks Burke is the leader of the New Breed assembled especially for bringing us originals down".
"It won't happen…I know it won't".
Jim sighed. "I don't know about that, Kid. Slowly but surely, our time's comin' to an end. All that matters to the New Breed now is where we'll make our final stand".
"Where do you think that'll be?".
"I don't know. But it'll be sometime soon".
"So…what'll you do then?".
Jim shrugged. "I got a construction company back in Philadelphia. It's almost time for me to settle down here soon, anyway".
He sprawled himself over his bed and Serenity joined him, not wanting to feel too far away from him.
"I don't want you to go" she said.
"Well kid, I'm 45 years old. I'm gettin' too old for this".
"This as in wrestling or what?".
"Depends on what is".
"My brother…he told me that you keep away from most girls now, but you used to be a total ladies man. What happened? Did someone hurt you?".
"I'm not askin' for ya sympathy, Serenity. Granted, it's appreciated, but think about it, kiddo. After you get hurt so many times, your heart just shuts down and you forget about it".
Serenity looked down at the floor. "I'd never hurt you".
"I know you wouldn't. You're too sweet, Serenity".
"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?".
"Could be both. It'll get you into the hearts of plenty of fans, but I doubt it'll get you far as long as fights are on the table".
"I didn't come to WWE to fight. I came to watch my brother grow. He's all I got left. I just…I feel so alone all the time whenever I go up to Chicago. Phil talked to Vince and well, here I am".
"Hm…a change in scenery can do ya some good, huh?".
"You got that right, Sandman".
"Serenity, don't make me hurt you".
The two were enjoying themselves like they had known each other for forever and a day. All the while, she was only getting closer to him. A desire to trust her at least was getting stronger, but another part of him was fighting that desire. At the end of the night, Serenity moved close to Jim and put her head on his chest, over his heart, where she could listen to it.
"For a drunk, you have yourself a strong heart".
"Metaphorically or physically?".
Serenity smiled. "Both".
"Both is good, ain't it?".
"Yeah, it sure is, Jim, it sure is".
A/N: Well, I think this is my favorite chapter so far. I enjoyed typing probably every bit as much you loved reading it. See ya!