DISCLAIMER: As much as it breaks my heart to admit it, I do not own anyone or anything connected to Vince McMahon and his awesomeness. I can only claim property rights of OC.

*** A/N – This is Part 2 of 3. If you're curious about Rosalyn check out Chapter 15. This chapter is the short version of what happened. ***

Bob Orton opened the door to find his son standing on the front steps in a circle of pale yellow light. He knew that something was wrong the minute he saw Randy. Nothing good ever happened at this ungodly hour of the morning. He pulled the door open wide without a word and moved into the house. He went down the short hall to the kitchen and quietly put on pot of coffee. He pulled two cups from the cabinet next to the sink and sat them down on the counter. He wiped up spilled water from the counter and set the dishcloth in the sink before turning to face Randy. His eyes narrowed as he looked his son over from head to toe. His clothes were wrinkled as if he'd slept in them. His eyes were dull and glassy. The boy looked like hell.

"I know there's a good reason you're standing here instead of being in your own bed." Bob leaned against the counter as he folded his thick arms over his chest. He studied Randy with narrowed eyes.

Randy took a deep breath then pulled out one of the pine chairs and sat down heavily. He moved as if his body weighed a thousand pounds.

"I really fucked up this time." Randy couldn't force himself to meet his father's eyes.

Bob silently regarded his son as he waited for Randy to continue. Randy pulled in a deep breath as he rubbed his hands over his denim covered thighs. Silence stretched between, the air heavy with tension. Being a wise man, Bob knew the only thing he could was wait for Randy to decide he was ready to start talking. He poured two cups of steaming coffee then carried them across the kitchen. He put one in front of Randy before sitting across from him. He slowly rolled the cup between his large hands, feeling the warmth seeping into his bones.

"If you're hungry I can fix something." Bob glanced at Randy before raising the cup to his lips. He continued to study Randy over the rim. Sighing heavily he placed the cup back on the table.

Randy shook his head slowly, "Not hungry."

"Whatever it is, son, you can tell me."

Randy pushed his cup away before forcing himself to meet his father's eyes. He looked into the blue eyes so like his own and felt even worse. He knew his father wouldn't say anything against him, no matter how much he deserved it. "I did something really fucking stupid. I hurt Claire."

Bob stared silently at Randy, waiting for him to continue.

"She found out about Rosalyn." Speaking that name let a bitter taste in his mouth. It had been so long since he had uttered her name that it sounded harsh to his ears.

Bob carefully set his cup down on the table as he looked at Randy, "What do you mean 'she found out'? You didn't tell her?"

Randy's head dropped in shame. He couldn't look at his father, "No, sir." Randy thought back to earlier in the day. It hadn't made sense then but now it did. Claire had found the box of letters and photos he'd kept all these years. No matter how hard he tried, he'd never been able to bring himself to get rid of it. He'd kept it for some reason he really didn't understand. It was so fucking fitting that his inability to get rid of the past would blow his future to hell and back.

Bob sucked in a deep breath. What was he supposed to say now? He had always tried to instill honesty in his children. No matter the cost, he had always expected them to be straight forward and direct. He must have failed somewhere along the way. "Why don't you start from the beginning?"

Randy's eyes flicked up to meet his father's. He was surprised that he didn't see pity in those blue eyes. All he saw was concern. "I left early yesterday morning. I was gone a couple of hours. When I came back, I went upstairs. Claire was getting out of the shower. She asked me "Who is Roslyn?" He sucked in a sharp breath, hating to hear the awful story out loud. It only made it seem ten times worse than he thought.

Bob watched Randy struggle for breath. He didn't realize Rosalyn's hold on Randy was still so strong. After more years than he could count, that girl was still torturing his son. Couldn't the dead leave well enough alone? "What did you tell her?"

Randy shook his head slowly, hating himself even more. Each time the scene replayed itself in his head, it became just a little bit uglier. "It was like I wasn't myself any more. It was like a scene out of a really bad movie. I was outside myself, watching this crazy man hurt her."

"What did you do, Randy?"

Randy scrubbed both hands over his eyes. He wished the motion would erase that horrible memory from his brain. He slowly lowered his hands and looked at them, as if he had never seen them before. "I grabbed her. And I shook her. I was in her face, yelling at her. She kept saying I was hurting her, she was scared. But I couldn't stop. I just couldn't stop." Randy stared at his hands as he fell silent. He just couldn't believe those hands, the same ones that had brought Claire so much pleasure had also caused her so much pain.

"Where is she?" Bob was suddenly worried about the girl he had heard so much about. It wasn't like Randy to be physically abusive but the boy still had one hell of a temper. He knew one thing for sure, if Randy had hurt that girl, there would be absolute hell to pay.

Randy sucked in a deep breath and shook his head, "I don't know."

"Is she alright?"

Again, Randy shook his head, "I don't know."

"Don't you think you better find out?"

Randy didn't know how to tell his father that he was scared. He knew he had crossed that invisible line. He had done the unforgivable and hurt Claire, both physically and emotionally. There would never be enough ways for him to make amends. Randy felt the urge to scream, to pull his hair out, to hurt something. All he knew for certain was that there was a hollow, aching pit of despair that had taken root. No matter what happened, he would never be able to forgive himself. He had hurt Clair in ways that he could never take back. And for what? Because she had asked him about some woman that was still somehow tearing his life apart?

Bob rose slowly from his chair and moved to stand beside Randy. He dropped a heavy hand onto his shoulder and squeezed gently. "Remember when that girl killed herself? How I told you that it was your job to help her Daddy make peace?"

Randy nodded slightly and swept away a tear with the back of his hand.

"You never did make your own peace, did you?" Bob asked gently. He knew how much guilt Randy carried around with him. No matter how much he denied it, Randy carried the weight of the world on those broad shoulders. He had never allowed himself forgiveness. He'd never felt as if he truly deserved it.

"I thought I had." Randy sniffld loudly as he wiped away another tear.

"Don't lie to me. You never did make your peace. You let that girl poison your blood. You let her get to you, take away your soul a piece at a time. Guess who's paying the price for that?"

Randy didn't have to answer. They both knew who was paying the price for his inability to make peace with the past. He knew Claire was the one suffering because he had never learned how to forgive himself. Now, he would have an even stronger reason not to forgive himself. What he had done to Claire was unforgivable.

"How do I fix this?" Randy looked up at his father, tears making his deep blue eyes shine with emotion.

"By doing what you should have done all along. Tell Claire the truth and let her help you make your peace." Bob nodded decisively, as if speaking the words would make the deed happen.

Randy shook his head, "I can't ask her to forgive me. I don't deserve it."

Bob squeezed Randy's shoulder in a tight grip, "That's not your choice. Does she love you?"

Randy nodded, praying he was right and Claire did still love him.

"Do you love her?"

"God, yes." Randy squeezed his eyes closed tightly and nodded. No matter what, he knew Claire would always have his love and devotion.

Bob reached for Randy's hand and tugged him from the chair. He pulled Randy into a tight hug and thumped him hard on the back. "Then you know what you have to do?"

Randy nodded as she squeezed his father tight, "Make it right."


It was well after 3 A.M. when Claire finally forced herself to go upstairs. She'd spent the past several hours pacing the length of the living room. No matter how she tried, she couldn't stop herself from replaying the scene over and over. She kept looking for some explanation; some reason why things had gone so horribly wrong. Nothing made sense. This was ten times worse than Randy's usual mood swings. This was far beyond anything Claire had experienced. To make matters worse, Randy wasn't answering his cell. She had lost count of how many times she'd called and been sent straight to voice mail. Being a stranger in the city didn't make things any easier. She had no idea where Randy would go, who he would turn to. So all she could do was wait; wait and pray that things didn't get any worse.

Claire crawled into the center of the bed and pulled Randy's pillow against her chest. She breathed deeply, taking in his scent. She felt the ache in the center of her chest grow worse. Worry was weighing her down more as each minute passed. She lay still, straining to hear the slightest sound. She kept hoping to hear something besides the utter silence of the house. Never had she felt so alone. Claire squeezed her eyes shut and forced herself to breathe deeply. A few moments passed like this but Claire couldn't stand the darkness or silence. Her eyes opened in time to see a dark shadow cross the threshold. Her breath caught as Randy slowly came into the room. In the space of a heartbeat, Clare shoved the blankets aside and launched herself at him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and squeezed with all her might. As angry as she had been, worry had won out. She was so relieved that he was home safe. It was proof that the last few hours of prayer had not been in vain.

Randy took a step back as Claire plastered herself to him. He had expected her to be angry or even fearful. He never expected her to look so damn relieved. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulled her against him. Burying his face in her hair, he took a deep, steadying breath. He knew he didn't deserve this but he grateful beyond words that she was still here. Silently, Randy pulled away from Claire and crossed the room to the closet. He picked up the black box from the floor where Claire left it. Going back to Claire, he wordlessly took her hand and lead her downstairs. He pulled her through the dark silent house, down the hall to the back door. He moved across the stone patio to the built-in fire pit. He set the box down on the edge and dug in his pocket. He pulled out a box of matches and quickly struck one. Leaning down, he set the match under the stack of kindling. After a few moments, the fire caught then blazed.

Wrapping her arms around herself, Claire shivered against the chill of the night. She glanced down at herself, realizing she was so cold because she was barely dressed. She wore a pair of plaid pajama bottoms and a blue tank top. Her feet were bare. No wonder she was freezing. As if sensing her sudden distress, Randy quickly pulled off his fleece pullover and held it out to her. Claire accepted it without a word and slipped it on. She wrapped her arms around herself again as she studied Randy. She wasn't sure what to say, where to go from here.

After a long, tense moment, Randy finally spoke, "You will never know how sorry I am."

Claire nodded slightly as she waited for him to continue. Randy reached out and pulled the lid from the box. He reached inside without looking and removed a photo. It was the one she had found of him kissing Rosalyn.

"I met Rosalyn not long after I joined the Corps. I went out with a few guys from the unit. That's how we met. I'd never met anybody like her before. She was so young, so beautiful. She was everything a 19 year old kid could want. I think I fell in love with her as soon as I saw her." Randy continued staring at the photo as he spoke, "I thought we would spend the rest of our lives together. I wanted to be with her forever."

Randy laughed bitterly as he glanced at Claire. "I guess I was the only who thought that. One day she came to me. She said that she was pregnant."

Shaking his head sadly, Randy looked down at the photo he held. "And the baby wasn't mine."

Claire felt her heart stop beating in her chest. She had figured there was something dark and ugly in Randy's past. But she had never in a million years thought it would have been something like this. How horrible it must have been for the truth to come out.

Randy shook his head slowly, "I was in training when my CO called me into his office. Rosalyn had taken a bottle of pills and a drank a bottle of vodka. They found her dead. She never left a note. Never said why. I went to her funeral but I couldn't believe it was really her. I couldn't understand why she had done something like that. I mean how could she? If she wanted to kill herself, that's one thing. But why take the baby with her? God, that poor little baby."

Randy's voice broke as he continued, "Her father blamed me. He said it was all my fault. He said I should have done something to stop her. I left the funeral and got stone fucking drunk. I stayed that way for a while. It was easier that way. As long as I drank, I didn't feel anything."

Claire couldn't breathe past the lump in her throat. Her heart broke for Randy; for the young man he was and the man he could have been. She couldn't imagine how horrible that time in life must have been. Suddenly, so much of what had passed between them made sense. Claire remembered once when she had asked him if it bothered him to be the bad guy. His answer had been "Not anymore." Now she knew what he hadn't wanted to tell her. The thought of how much Randy had suffered brought a sting of tears. She cried for him, for how much he had hurt for so long, without ever having a way to make things better.

"I never thought I would get over losing her." Randy wiped away a tear with the back of his hand. "I never thought I would love anybody as much as I loved her."

Claire felt a sting of emotion she really didn't know how to name. She had always guessed that Randy had been keeping secrets but hearing him say he had loved someone else struck a raw nerve. She had foolishly wanted to believe she was the only one that held a piece of his heart.

"But I was wrong." Randy turned slightly toward the fire as he looked at the picture. The shimmering light cast his face partially in shadow. Without a word he tipped his hand, letting the photo fall into the flickering flames. It was quickly swallowed by the smoky flames. Randy reached for the box and pulled out a handful of photos and letters. Without looking at them, he added them to the fire. He watched as the flames danced over the paper, slowly absorbing them into nothingness. Claire watched as Randy grabbed the box and shoved the entire thing into the fire. The fire popped and sizzled as it quickly consumed the box. Suddenly weary, Randy turned to Claire, "I've hated myself for so long. Hated myself for not stopping her, for not being good enough for her. Now I know why it happened the way it did. I wasn't meant to be with her."

Randy took a step closer to Claire and gently reached out to touch her with trembling fingers. He slowly traced the trail of tears down her cheek, "If she hadn't made the choice she did, I wouldn't have you."

Claire swallowed hard, trying to clear the emotions suddenly clogging her throat. She had never seen Randy laid so bare. He was more vulnerable than she had ever seen him. Her heart ached for what could have been, for the man Randy could have been. But part of her was infinitely glad that life had brought them to this point. There were no more secrets, no more lies between them. Randy was finally admitting his fears and letting go of the past.

"You have to believe me, Claire, I'm sorry for the pain I've caused you. I never meant to do this to you. I know I cant undo the pain I've caused you " Randy leaned down to be eye level with Claire, "I swear to you, I will spend the rest of my life making this right."

Randy gently pressed his lips to Claire's, sealing the solemn pledge. He knew that if he lived a thousand years, each day would be spent trying to prove to her that he was the man she deserved. He was finally laying the past to rest. Never again would he take Claire or their love for granted.

*** A/N – I totally have to give a shout out to my inspirations for this chapter. I found an awesome local band – Five Star Fiasco. Their song Unperfect is so freakin' awesome. I also have to thank Shinedown for their song 45. It really helped me figure out how to bring out what Randy was feeling. As always, thank you so much for your reviews.***