"Dude you killing me!" Owen exclaimed. Bret slid in the booth next to Davey. He flashed Owen an apologetic smile even though he knew it was probably in vain.

"I'm sorry bro. I lost track of time."

"Yeah I bet," Owen grumbled. "So drink up. I figured you'd take your sweet ass time getting here so I ordered you a beer."

"Thanks." Bret took a sip of the ice cold beer doing his best to ignore his brother's knowing gaze but it was damn near impossible. After several seconds of undergoing his scrutiny Bret finally chose to indulge him. "What? Spill it Owen. I know you wanna ask so just do it."

"Alright," he grinned. "Why were you late? And none of this 'I lost track of time' bullshit. You got caught up."

"Maybe."

"With who?" Davey asked.

"No one important," he replied. He hoped that the finality of his tone would give them the hint but not Owen. He quirked his brow.

"I see."

"You don't believe me and that's fine but I don't care. I don't have to indulge you." Owen and Davey both laughed.

"Chill out bro. I wasn't meaning anything by it. It's just…it's not like you to be so…Davey help me out here."

"Concerned," Davey answered.

"Yeah that's it. Concerned. So who are you concerned about?" Owen asked.

"Look Owen, I'm not concerned—

"Bret please," Owen smirked. "I saw you when you walked in and judging by the look on your face I'd say something had you worried. So just spill it already otherwise—

"Fine! If you must know I got caught up talking with Shawn."

"Shawn?" Owen asked. "You mean the kid?"

"Yes the kid," he snapped irritably. Both Owen and Davey frowned.

"So uh…what's his deal?" Davey asked.

"Nothing. He was just…upset about something."

"Marty right?"

"Yeah. He…said tonight was his last match."

"Really? Dude I didn't…But I thought…"

"Yeah well I didn't know either and Shawn's pretty upset about it too."

"Well I mean…I'd be pretty upset too if my lover left me like that," Owen commented. Bret almost blurted out that he didn't think they were lovers but he caught himself. Who was he to decide whether or not they were lovers? Besides it wasn't really his business and so what if they were lovers? Images from earlier suddenly flashed through Bret's mind. He bit his lip as he recalled the way Shawn's hair smelled and how it felt holding him in his arms. It felt too natural…

"Hello? Bret? Is anybody home?" Bret jumped.

"Huh? What?" Davey and Owen cast each other concerned looks. "Oh come on guys. What was that look for?" Owen just shook his head.

"Go to the hotel and get some rest," he urged. "You look tired and whatever's on your mind, it's got you pretty spaced out."

"But I thought you guys wanted to hang out and drink?" Owen and Davey just shook their heads grinning.

"You were late and I'm already on my fourth drink. Davey's gotta drive us back and you look too tired to even make it to a fourth round. Go. Get some rest. We'll do the heavy drinking when you're champ."

"Oh…well…alright then. Are you sure?"

"Yes now go! I hope to never see you this distraught about something again. At least not until after you've won the big one," Owen grinned. Bret shook his head as he stood to his feet.

"Night guys. I'll give you a call in the morning to make sure you're okay."

Bret left his brother and cousin feeling slightly guilty but relieved at the same time. While he really did feel bad about abandoning them, he knew he would probably get in trouble if he didn't leave. Already his brother Owen picked up on his mood. He wasn't in a bad mood but it was pretty obvious that he wasn't himself. His brother knew he wasn't one for worrying about others so for him to be so worried about Shawn was just out of character. When Bret finally made it to his room, he kicked off his shoes and pants collapsing on the cool linen. He was tired yet try as he might he could not fall right asleep. The image of Shawn in his arms – and a naked Shawn at that – kept popping in his head despite his best efforts to block it. Plus, he could almost still feel him in his arms. What the hell is up with me? Bret tossed and turned for several hours until he wore himself out. It was only then he was able to finally fall asleep.

*~*~*

"I uh…slept for a few hours that night but I wouldn't call it a sound sleep. Even in my dreams I saw his pathetic face though at the time I said pathetic to keep myself in check. I uh…I thought that if I called him pathetic it would make it easier to accept that I was concerned about a guy."

"So after that night, did things change for you?" Chris asked. "Did you finally stop thinking about Shawn?" Bret shook his head.

"No. It uh…it actually got worse. I guess you could say that I found myself curious—

"More than curious," Shawn added. Bret rolled his eyes.

"Yeah later on I was more than curious but at the time, I was just curious. Before Shawn and Marty, I mostly kept to myself. I socialized with Hart Foundation members only and occasionally Pat Paterson or people like that. I just didn't feel the need to have any other friends. Friends only complicate things which I later found out."

"They complicate things?" Chris asked. "In what way?"

"Just…I don't really know how to explain it," he grumbled.

"I'll help him," Shawn piped up. "What he means is that friendships emitting strong, unexplainable chemistry can lead to unwanted feelings that can ruin you forever."

"Well…I guess you're right," Bret shrugged. "They really were unwanted feelings."

"Feeling's mutual," Shawn grumbled.

"Okay then. Well…before we move on," Chris continued. "Shawn, can I get you to comment on the story Bret just told us? And can you maybe respond telling us a little bit about the rest of your night? I know you told us that you eventually got used to Kenneth's actions but that night…you had to have been feeling kinda down."

"My emotions were all over the place, moreso than Bret's anyway."

"How you figure?" Bret asked.

"Unlike me Bret, you weren't raped by a guy. When all your life you've been attracted to one sex, being raped complicates things. It makes you question yourself as a person. That's something I've struggled with for a long time, even marrying when my heart wasn't in it. I made myself believe that I was in love with her and I think I was but for the most part, my heart wasn't in it. I loved someone else. She knew it. We both knew it which is why I don't have any regrets about my failed marriage. We're still really good friends to this day, but it took me years to find myself. Falling for you didn't help matters either."

"Hn. You fell for me?" he scoffed. "You could have fooled me." Shawn just continued on ignoring Bret's words.

"To answer your question Chris, I'd have to say that it feels good to know that I wasn't the only one on edge after that incident. That night, I was also very aware of Bret, more than I should have been too. I knew that he was holding me in his arms, sheltering me from my demons but at the same time, I knew it was wrong. Well…wrong in the sense that it wasn't socially accepted at the time. I also knew that he was probably uncomfortable though he did a pretty good job of hiding it. That's why I pulled away. That's why I left."

"You left because you thought I was uncomfortable?" He scoffed. "That makes no sense unless you can read minds. I held you like it was the most natural thing in the world and you know it."

"But I could still sense…never mind. Forget it."

"No I wanna know. Why did you leave?" he pushed.

"WHY DOES IT MATTER?" he snapped irritably.

"BECAUSE I REALLY WANNA KNOW!" he shouted. "TELL ME HOW YOU FELT! I JUST SPILLED MY GUTS…SHARING A PRIVATE MOMENT…MY PRIVATE THOUGHTS WITH THE ENTIRE WORLD SO DAMMIT THE LEAST YOU CAN DO FOR ME IS TELL ME HOW YOU FELT! THIS WAS SOMETHING THAT I NEVER WOULD HAVE ADMITTED IN A MILLION YEARS SO DAMMIT TELL ME SHAWN! TELL ME HOW YOU FELT!" he demanded.

"FINE! YOU REALLY WANNA KNOW BRET?!"

"YES! I WANT TO KNOW!"

"THEN MAYBE YOU SHOULD HAVE SATISFIED YOUR DYING CURIOSITY BECAUSE IF YOU WOULD HAVE KISSED ME THAT NIGHT, I'D HAVE GLADLY WELCOMED IT! THERE! YOU HAPPY NOW?" he breathed. The room became eerily silent except for the heavy breathing of an angry blonde. Bret cut his eyes towards the divider, his heart beating rapidly.

"You…would have let me kiss you?" he managed.

"Yes!" he snapped. "I…I imagined you kissing my lips and before my brain could play anymore tricks on me, I pushed you away and I left. I left because I didn't understand what was happening with me. Like I said before, it took me years to find myself but you…you only seemed to complicate things."

"By being a friend I complicated things?" he frowned.

"You said the same thing about me so how does it make me wrong and you right?"

"That's not what I meant."

"Then don't. Please…drop it."

"Fine."

"Anyway Chris," Shawn continued. "I could tell you everything that was going through my head but it was so much. Just…a jumbled up mess and it wasn't until Bret was holding me in his arms that I felt at ease." Shawn glanced over at the divider and sighed. "Bret and I…while we…no. Wait. I better not try and speak for him so I'll just say this. After that night, I felt strangely connected to him somehow. Even after I left and went back to the hotel, I laid in bed and thought of nothing but Bret. I could remember his eyes and how they showed genuine concern. It meant a lot to me."

"Wow. So…so no hard feelings about that night?" Chris asked. Shawn shook his head.

"Nope. In fact, if it wasn't for him I probably would have gotten drunk and killed myself. It was just that bad. But uh…the next Monday night I made it my business to find him and thank him. I felt like I needed to and I'm glad I did…or at least at the time I was glad…"

~*~*~

Shawn's match was near the opening of Raw. He wrestled a guy named Max Moon practically destroying him then left the ring with Sherri. Since Marty was no more, some of the elders thought that Sherri would be good for him, but Shawn knew better. While he was open to the idea of getting famous quick, he knew the real reason for Sherri's companionship was just that – companionship. Now that Marty was gone, it was no secret to Vince that he was completely alone so he was sure Sherri was put in the equation to help him get over Marty. But whatever. Sherri was a beautiful woman who loved wrestling so he was sure they'd get along just fine. She offered to drive him back to the hotel but Shawn politely declined. He had something important he needed to do but it would have to wait until the end of the night. Shawn grabbed a quick shower, changed clothes and then headed to the break room to wait.

Since Bret was in the main event again, Shawn had to wait almost two hours before getting a chance to speak with him. Even after the show was over, he still had to wait a while. He wanted to speak with Bret alone so that he could avoid any unwanted confrontations especially since Kenneth was still stuck on him. Plus, he wasn't sure how Bret would feel about him in public. Not that he thought Bret was shallow but…he didn't know Bret well enough to know this so he decided to play it safe.

People came and went throughout the evening. It was when he spotted Owen and Davey leaving the arena that he thought it was finally safe to look for Bret. Shawn started in the locker rooms only to find Bret's stuff was already gone. Damn. I missed him. Feeling slightly bummed Shawn left the locker room and headed out the back of the arena.

"Hey kid." Shawn jumped, quickly spinning around to see Bret leaning against the wall near the exit. He smiled. "You okay?"

"Yeah. I was just…looking for you," he managed.

"I thought so. I thought maybe you'd find me after my match but when you didn't show I figured you'd already left. Saw your car was still here so I figured I'd wait up."

"Oh…well…" Shawn noticed something about Bret that he didn't notice in all the two years they'd been working together. Bret…was handsome. He was wearing some dark blue jeans and a white tank; the tank clung to him revealing nice, hard abs that Shawn only wish he had. His dark hair complimented his darker skin tone and his eyes… Damn. What am I doing here? He's a fucking guy for Christ's sake! Shawn looked down nervously cursing himself inwardly for having such thoughts and feeling this way but he couldn't help it. It was as if he'd gone mute all of a sudden. He opened his mouth and tried to apologize again but he wasn't even sure how to begin. Bret must have sensed his feelings because he ended up saying everything Shawn wanted to say for him.

"Don't worry about last week. It's cool." Shawn looked up, his face turning hotter by the second.

"I'm sorry," he managed.

"Don't worry about it. You were upset," he shrugged.

"Yeah but still. I wanted to thank you for…" Bret reached out and squeezed his shoulder reminding him of the warmth from last week all over again. Shawn suppressed an unwanted shudder from going through him.

"You're welcome." An awkward silence ensued, mainly because Shawn wanted to talk but wasn't quite sure what to say. Once again, Bret came to his rescue. "So…you and Sherri now huh?" Shawn forced a smile.

"Yeah uh…Vince seems to think it'll be good for my character. The Heartbreak Kid," scoffed.

"Well…I think it could work," he grinned. "I mean seriously. You'd have to be pretty stuck on yourself to pull your character off anyway – and confident," he added. Shawn chuckled a little running his hand nervously through his long hair.

"Yeah but…I'm not all that confident."

"Oh come on!" Bret laughed. "Are you kidding me? Look at you. You got the best of both worlds. Looks and skill. What woman wouldn't want that?"

"I…don't know about that," he laughed.

"Oh a laugh," Bret grinned. "I have done my job for the night." Shawn blinked a few times staring at him incredulously. Bret's grin just got wider as he explained. "You haven't smiled all evening except when you did your piece in the ring with Sherri. When I saw you exit the building I decided to make it my business to cheer you up or at least make you smile." Shawn was so taken back and touched that he almost threw his arms around him but he didn't. He reminded himself that men didn't act like that and instead opted for a genuine smile.

"You did both and I'm glad." Shawn glanced down at his watch and saw that it was getting late. "Uh…well I guess I should be going now."

"Yeah. Me too."

"So uh…"

"See you next week? And you'll be smiling right?" Shawn grinned.

"I'll try. Good night Bret."

"Good night Shawn."

~*~*~

"I went back to my lonely hotel room and cried myself to sleep." Shawn's voice was cracking as he recalled the memory, but little did he know, Bret was fighting back tears as well but unlike Shawn, Bret had no earthly idea why he was feeling so emotional. Chris decided that this was the perfect time to take a break. They'd already been filming for two hours so a lunch break was desperately needed. Chris rose to his feet.

"Gentlemen, we're going to take a short lunch break. Meet me back here in an hour and we'll pick up from here." Both men nodded as Chris left the room. Funny thing is that neither one of them wanted to move just yet. Or rather, they did but just wasn't sure what to say to the other not to mention both were hesitant to see each other's faces. After several long seconds of debating, Shawn finally rose to his feet.

"I'm going now. Should we discuss a time for my return so we can avoid seeing each other?"

"That won't be necessary Shawn. I'm not that bad."

"Tell it to the people who made me leave the Hall of Fame Ceremony an hour early."

"I didn't feel like listening to the 'You Screwed Bret' chants."

"Never bothered you before."

"Whatever. Just…go get you something to eat," he snapped. "I'm not hungry."

Shawn quickly left the room without another word leaving Bret all alone to his thoughts. A part of him hated to leave Bret like this but it wasn't enough to make him stay. Two hours he'd been stuck in that tense environment and all he wanted now was to get back to the hotel room so he could breathe again. His current love interest was waiting for him there and right now, he needed to see him or else he might not make it through the rest of the interview.

AN: This will be the last update for a while and I hope it turned out well. Anyway, it could be a week. It could be two weeks. I am graduating in a couple of days and with finals coming up, I won't have time to update. So I hope you enjoyed this and I plan to continue it when I get the chance. In the meantime, read some JBL/Shawn stories. A friend of mine has a series of OSTs that are really good so check them out. She does such good work yet has very few reviews. vadg is the name so look her up. And if you check out 'Adnacia' and 'Nefatiri' between the two of us, we have some good reads favorited and/or written. Also, for the love of God I need more ShawnCena stories to read otherwise I'm going to explode. I need more. They are the fuel that feeds my slash muses so write me some or force good writers to write me some or else I'm going to cry. Seriously. It's that bad. I'm having withdrawls. ShawnCena or ShawnJBL. Either will do:D