December 26, 2011
Monday Night Raw
Immediately after walking into the arena in Chicago the carefree good mood that Punk had been in over the holidays evaporated. Punk had been happier than he had even seen him and John couldn't help but feel especially euphoric that he had been the one who put that all too rare lighthearted expression on his face. Even the prospect of confronting Kane could not erase his happiness. His dimpled smile was in full display because every time his pants brushed against the sore spot on his hip he was reminded that they had committed to each other on a level that even a ring couldn't overrule. The love that they shared was now permanently etched onto their bodies. They were joined for life now and the brief pain he had experienced was well worth the result. The pleasure they had shared after the inking had been slow and sweet, Punk finding absolutely genius methods of getting him off due to the limitation of not being able create any friction due to their names being etched on each other's skin. Punk had absolutely wrecked him, being so satiated that he could barely summon the strength to bring Punk to the heights that he had brought him to. It proved to not be an issue as Punk had derived as much pleasure as he had from his actions that the favor was returned quite quickly. They had spent the rest of the night lifting each other's bandages, John thrilling every time at the sight of his name inscribed on Punk's skin. They had removed the bandages today so that they wouldn't broadcast what they had done to the roster. Not that it seemed to matter since according to Evan practically the whole locker room was on to them. The only person who would have definitely noticed what they had done was Randy but he had been seriously injured by Barrett on Friday after pushing Randy down a flight of stairs. While he was mad Punk was seriously ticked off. He wouldn't be surprised if Barrett found himself pushed down a flight of stairs himself if he showed his face on Raw tonight. He wasn't going to bother Randy when he was injured, but on his return Randy would have a lot of explaining to do about why he ratted out his relationship with Punk to his father. He wasn't very angry since it had all turned out for the best due to an inexplicable mood of acceptance that had overtaken the Cena family.
As per usual the road agent didn't have anything for him and Punk which meant absolutely nothing. Laurinaitis didn't seem to be a fan of planning ahead or he really just liked to torture Punk, the latter probably being closer to the truth. John went to walk away but Punk didn't move a muscle.
"Come on, we need to go get changed."
"I'm not leaving until Dave explains that strained expression he has on his face. Laurinaitis is a jackass, there's no need to keep his confidences. If I'm going to end up in a 15 man handicap match I should be entitled to know beforehand."
"I really don't know anything about what you're scheduled for but I can guess that it's not going to be good."
"Just come out with it," Punk said getting more and more annoyed, but obviously trying to rein it in so that Dave would talk.
"Have you seen the ratings for last week's Raw?"
"I've been on vacation and I don't make a habit out of obsessively checking the internet."
"The ratings for the main event last week, the 6 man tag, were bad."
"How bad?"
"It was the lowest rated match of a non-holiday airing of Raw since 1997. I wouldn't be surprised if you were scheduled for something fucked up as punishment."
"Thanks Dave" and Punk walked away, John trailing behind him.
Punk started banging on every door they passed until he found one that was unlocked. Punk walked into the room with John following behind him, locking the door as he went. Punk kicked the first thing he could reach, sending a chair careening into the opposite wall. Punk continued to abuse all the available furniture until there was nothing left to take out his frustration on. Punk sunk to the ground, John sitting down next to him, wrapping an arm around Punk's waist. They were both making a habit of having emotional breakdowns in abandoned rooms in arenas all over the country.
"I don't understand. You hear the crowds when I come out into the arena, they go crazy."
"There were 5 other people in that match."
"Yeah, but I'm the Champion, it's on me to get people to tune in but apparently I'm making them do the exact opposite."
"Ratings…"
"Don't you dare say that ratings don't matter because you know they do. I don't sugar coat things for you so don't even try to pull that on me. 6 months ago you and I were on top of the world and now you're getting booed out of every arena we're in and I seem to be repelling viewers," Punk said, dropping his head on John's shoulder. They stayed that way for sometime. "Well, time to face the one man firing squad; you know Laurinaitis is laughing it up somewhere."
They reached the locker room and all conversation halted. No one would look Punk in the eye.
"Don't you guys dare try to walk on eggshells around me! I damn well know that I'm a fucking ratings sinkhole," and Punk chose an alcove and started to pull his gear on angrily. John took the spot next to him and silently started to change as well. A few of the braver guys tried to talk to Punk but were only met with a glare and a turned back.
They found a place in the back of the monitor bay, hopefully discouraging any more of their co-worker's from trying to approach Punk, John knowing in Punk's current mood that anything coming out of his mouth would be with emotionally lethal intent.
The show started and Punk's music started blaring through the arena. Almost the entire roster looked back at Punk who was very obviously not entering the arena. The crowd blew up but their yelling quickly turned to boo's when Laurinaitis walked out into the arena wearing a CM Punk shirt and parodying Punk's entrance.
"Fuck this!" and Punk stood up abruptly, sending his chair clattering behind him and stalked toward the arena entrance. John hoped that Punk didn't pass any monitors on his way there because Laurinaitis started talking out his ass about being a CM Punk believer, when anyone listening knew that was an outright lie. Laurinaitis was intent on humiliating Punk, the WWE Champion, in the ring in front of his hometown crowd. John had a feeling that no matter what pipe bombs Punk dropped tonight he would end up being screwed in front of his biggest supporters.
Punk's music finally cued up and a sneering Punk entered the arena, complete with the usual ring entrance. Punk entered the ring, saying something to Laurinaitis; John could only imagine what was coming out of Punk's mouth. Punk took more time than usual to pump up the crowd, no doubt trying to show both Laurinaitis and himself that he had the support of the fans. Punk motioned for a microphone and John knew that Punk couldn't resist tearing down Laurinaitis, most likely digging himself into a deeper hole than he already was.
Punk came at Laurinaitis head on and accused him of intentionally antagonizing him and then threatened to kick Laurinaitis in the face. Laurinaitis responded by saying he was giving Punk the night off which only seemed to incense Punk more. This was doubled when it turned out Laurinaitis was just screwing with him and had scheduled him for a Gauntlet match, having to face 3 guys in succession that night. If one of them should beat Punk they would get a title shot at next week's Raw. It didn't seem to faze Punk but that was probably because after talking to the road agent Punk had already suspected something like a Gauntlet match would be on the menu tonight. John had no doubt that Punk could handle the match, it was the three men that Laurinaitis was going to hand pick which worried him.
Punk countered with the stipulation that if he was to beat all 3 guys then he would get a shot at Laurinaitis himself. After much pressure was brought to bear by the Chicago crowd Laurinaitis agreed to the match but the smarmy look on his face did not bode well for Punk. Punk stayed in the ring for some time playing up to his crowd. By the time Punk had returned to the monitor bay the snarkiness he had displayed in the ring was gone and replaced by full-blown rage. He took his seat next to John and threw the title into the chair next to him.
As the show progressed Lawler announced that the three people he would be facing would be Jack Swagger, Dolph Ziggler and the Mark Henry.
"Well?" John asked Punk, probably risking his emotional health by trying to communicate with Punk when he was like this.
"Well, Swagger won't be a problem as long as I can keep Vickie out of the equation and everyone knows that Henry is injured, it's Ziggler I'm worried about. I've said before that Ziggler is on the short list of those who I consider actual competition and on top of that I'll already have wrestled one match. Johnny must still have a handful of marbles bouncing around in his head," Punk said derisively.
It was too much to ask that Punk wouldn't be further riled up, but the last of the freaky promos aired, the so-called force would be arriving at next week's Raw. The roster started bouncing around names of who could be returning to Raw. The last return was Jeff Hardy and John didn't know if it could get any worse than that. He and Punk were not involved in the conversation but one name kept being brought up more than any others, Chris Jericho.
"You mean on top of everything else I'm going to have to deal with that rock star wannabe Jericho? No doubt he's going to have plenty to say to me."
The subject of Jericho at least quieted Punk's rage down some and put him into a more contemplative mood. John could only guess what was going on in Punk's mind but it was no doubt centered around Jericho and all the denigrating pipe bombs he could drop on the returning wrestler.
They watched as Zack and Eve took on Tyson Kidd and Natalya.
"You win a little gold and the chicks just start coming out the woodwork," Punk said, shaking his head at how quickly the two new champions had seemed to find female hangers-on.
"You do realize that statement also describes how you and I got together, don't you?"
"Yeah, lucky for me I was in the market for a groupie and you filled the position wonderfully."
"Haha. Now that your homicidal mood has alleviated somewhat we need to have a talk."
"What, you're gonna drop me because I'm a ratings suck?"
"No, we need to talk about Kane. I'm getting ready to go out there and confront him and we need to set some ground rules. No matter what happens out there I need you to stay in your seat here in the monitor bay and not come running to my rescue."
"Are you crazy! The last time he attacked you he tried to smother you to death and you just want me to sit idly by while that happens."
"Glossing over your last statement which doesn't put my abilities in a very flattering light, you need to give me the same respect I give you. You always tell me not to get involved in your matches because it makes you look weak, I'm just asking for the same courtesy because in this situation I can't look even remotely weak if I want to get the better of Kane."
"You want me to leave you at the mercy of some basement dwelling freak!"
"That's exactly what I'm saying. You need to promise me not to get involved or I'm going to get Show to sit on you for the duration."
"Fine, we'll play things your way and you don't need to leave me in the care of a babysitter while you're out there."
"I'm glad we're in agreement. I'm going out now to become the star in my very own horror movie."
John left Punk in his seat, hoping like hell he would control himself and made his way to the arena entrance. While the Chicago crowd wasn't as deafening as it had been at Money in the Bank he would not exactly call it positive. If Kane came to the ring and choked him out the bloodthirsty crowd would probably cheer their approval. John tried to pump up the crowd but it was like hitting a brick wall. John called Kane out to the ring but instead he got Miz.
Miz demanded a match with John on the spot. At least Miz seemed to realize that his victory over him at WrestleMania was in question because of the Rock's interference. If Miz wanted a match he would give him one. Kane's no-show was frustrating and what better way to relieve that then taking out those frustrations on Miz. After about 2 minutes Miz bailed out of the match and elected to subject the crowd to his ramblings about beating John at WrestleMania, no matter how it had been achieved, and Miz was counted out in the process.
After Miz seemed to finally be wrapping his little speech up, music started blasting through the arena that hadn't been heard in a month, Truth was back and went right after Miz. Truth began beating Miz up all over ringside. John took that opportunity to exit himself from the situation. Kane wasn't going to magically appear it seemed. He returned to the monitor bay to catch the end of the brawl. After that del Rio came out in a wheelchair, announcing to the crowd that he had a groin injury and would be out of action for a while.
"Good riddance, del Rio. That's one less boring monologue I'm going to have to be subjected to every Monday night."
"Give the guy a break; you know how it sucks to be injured."
"Fine, it's a tough break, but I can only say that I hope he asks the doctor for a personality transplant while his other injury is being looked at."
It was finally time for Punk's Gauntlet match. John snapped Punk's belt into place and sent him on his way to meet Swagger. While the match went back and forth, it only lasted for 3 minutes with Punk winning with a kick to the head. Seconds after the 3-count Ziggler's music sounded through the arena. Before Ziggler even entered the ring, Swagger clipped him behind the knee while his back was turned leaving him at the mercy of Ziggler. Ziggler concentrated on Punk's aching knee, Punk barely able to put up the barest offense.
Even after Ziggler spending the match punishing his knee he was finally able to come back, getting Ziggler set up for the GTS but Vickie got involved and was holding his leg down on the mat so he couldn't drive it into Ziggler's face. While Punk was regrouping he could hear Laurinaitis' grating voice saying something. Punk had a match to win and couldn't be bothered with Laurinaitis. Punk recovered and kicked Ziggler in the head and went for the cover but the official was nowhere to be found. Laurinaitis had the official monopolized with kicking Vickie and Swagger out from ringside. While this would be welcome normally, it was most definitely unwelcome when he had Ziggler down and pinned.
For some reason Laurinaitis stepped onto the ring apron and started haranguing him about the match between them that Punk planned to enjoy later on that night. When Punk suddenly went down and was too stunned to kick out he knew Laurinaitis had planned this as was evidenced by the sickening smile on his face. Laurinaitis had gotten the better of him and now Ziggler had a title match for the next Raw. Punk had his hands full with Ziggler tonight but next week he wouldn't be hobbling around on one leg.
Punk recovered and searched ringside for Ziggler. He found him parading around the ring with HIS title. Was the guy insane or something, he had to realize that he would pay for his stupidity next week. Punk was enraged as Ziggler took the title all the way up the ramp, kissed it, and left it lying there. Ziggler was going to get the shit kicked out of him next week. Punk knew that it wouldn't be the GTS on tap for next week but the Anaconda Vise. Ziggler needed to be taught a painful lesson.
Punk had intended to go to the locker room to shower but as he passed the monitor bay he saw everyone turned around in their seats staring at John. He finally picked up the music playing through the monitor bay because everyone else was in complete silence. Kane had entered the ring. It didn't take John long to jump up from his seat and head to the ring and Punk had no idea what was going to happen when John got there.
John's music cued up and John started down the ramp but was met with a wall of fire. He really needed to make an effort to get on the good side of the guys in charge of pyro, but if they were doing Kane's bidding then they were probably a lost cause. John remained at the head of the ramp while Kane explained in his demented mindset why he had chosen John to be his victim. He attacked John's mantra of rising above hate, throwing in John's face all the people that hated him and that even while John was encouraging the fans to treat him as they will, inside John hated those fans that ridiculed him.
Punk knew that John didn't have a hateful bone in his body but knew that the hatred of the fans, no matter what John said in the ring, were getting to him. Kane had found John's most vulnerable spot and was sadistically twisting the knife. John seemed susceptible to Kane's vile words until out of nowhere a "Cena" chant broke out. Punk teased John about his prepubescent fan base, but they certainly knew when to pick their spots and John seemed buoyed by their support.
Kane went on about John needing to embrace his hate so that he could be free. Punk couldn't deny that he felt John needed to put his detractors in their place but he couldn't subscribe to anything someone like Kane said. Of course the anti-Cena fans could pick their spots as well as the usual "Let's Go Cena, Cena Sucks" chant broke out. Whatever courage John had gained from the crowd's brief support of him had now been washed completely away. John looked like he could burst into tears at any moment. Kane gleefully started leading the "Cena Sucks" chant. John bowed his head at the unbearable sound of the crowd's chanting and then the feed to the monitor bay shut off.
The roster sat in silence while they waited for John to reappear. They watched as John solemnly walked into the monitor bay and stopped in front of Punk holding his hand out. Punk paused briefly before placing his hand in John's and letting him lead him to the locker room to collect their things. Punk wasn't sure if it was the best idea to display their relationship to the entire roster, but in John's current state of mind there was no way that he would have refused John's hand.
They caught a cab and made their way to the hotel and up to their room. John started taking off his clothes. Punk didn't feel particularly sexy at the moment and he couldn't believe that John would either. After he finished undressing he started to divest Punk of his clothes as well.
"John, I don't think…"
"You need a shower and right now I couldn't stand the separation for even a few minutes."
Punk tried to shower as quickly as possible but was hindered somewhat by John plastering himself against his back, keeping his head tucked against Punk's neck. Punk ended up doing most of the washing as John didn't seem capable of even the simplest of tasks. Punk dried John off and got him into bed, pulling the covers up over both of them. John turned on his side, his back to Punk. Punk was hurt for a moment that John was now trying to shut him out. Punk could see John's shoulders shaking and hear his labored breathing. John suddenly reached back, pulling Punk's arm around him and placing his hand over the ink that bore his name. Punk molded his body to the back of John's and held him tightly placing a kiss between John's shoulder blades.
"Phil, I love you, you're the only thing keeping me together right now."
"John, I love you too," Punk said softly but he had never wanted to be the center of someone's world less.
AN: I've caught hell trying to wrap my head around this Kane thing so the updates will probably be slow in coming for a while. I want to sincerely thank my reviewers because the updates keep me writing even though I find this current material especially difficult and was a step away from abandoning this story because I couldn't make it all make sense in my head. Hopefully this chapter makes lives up to expectations because it took some time to make the pieces fit.