DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. The characters belong to WWE. This is a work of fiction and I claim no knowledge of the actual events that went on in real life. The title was taken from a Garth Brooks song.

It was another one of those typical hot summer days in Orlando, and Hunter had never been more grateful that his office was air-conditioned. Even more so since he'd been stuck in here all day already. He'd flown in early, hoping to get most of the tasks on his agenda done remotely and still have enough time to watch some of the talent train before tomorrow's NXT taping. But no such luck. Instead, he'd had to take care of some urgent assignments Vince had emailed him about while in transit. So not only was he behind on his day-to-day duties, but he hadn't even had the chance to take a proper look at the show's final script to approve it.

Hunter leaned back in his chair, feeling just a little exhausted suddenly. He loved his job, even the office part of it, but on some days he wondered how on earth he ended up with so much paperwork. In particular when it meant he couldn't be as hands on with the kids down here as he'd like to be.

His gaze fell on the screen he'd had installed to at least be able to keep up with everyone's progress virtually when it got busy like this. He smiled immediately when he spotted Shawn working in the ring with two of the new girls that had only started last month. The hero worship was definitely still apparent, but who could really blame them? They had a great team here at the Performance Center, all the coaches were amazing, but there was just one Heartbreak Kid. He'd been badgering Shawn forever to check this place out, give it a try and see if it was for him, so naturally he'd been beyond thrilled when Shawn had finally given in and joined them. Not yet in any official capacity, but Hunter was sure that was only a matter of time. Shawn already showed up almost every day as it was to help out wherever he could since he'd moved to Florida permanently with his family.

Honestly, Hunter couldn't be happier about this turn of events. He had missed working with Shawn on a regular basis. Having his buddy by his side when things got stressful. Be silly with one another, in person instead of just over the phone.

He had missed Shawn. Period.

More than the other man would ever know.

With a sigh, he pushed the documents in front of him away and diverted all his attention to the TV and watched Shawn. From a safe distance.

And in some ironic way wasn't that the story of his life?

Many moons ago, when he started with the then WWF, he'd been lucky to strike up a friendship with the guys in the Clique almost instantly. They'd already been a tight-knit group and at first the convenience of having a designated driver probably factored in a great deal to keep him around, seeing that he didn't drink. However, the second they grasped he was as passionate about the business as they were, he was accepted into their inner circle. Just from riding with them from town to town, he learned more than any wrestling school could ever teach.

Then Kevin and Scott left for WCW with Kid following suit. It was a huge change, also for him, but for Shawn in particular. He took it hard, feeling left behind, and it didn't get any easier when they weren't allowed to travel together for a while. But it also brought them closer, now that it was just them, and definitely solidified the bond they shared to this day. It was them against the world, no matter what anyone might throw at them.

In retrospect, Hunter sometimes wondered if that was also when he began to see Shawn a little differently. He couldn't say that it was conscious on his part or when exactly his feelings shifted to something more. Back then he never thought about it. They were best friends and with the constant travel and Shawn not being too well liked by the rest of the locker room, of course they spent pretty much every waking hour with one another. There was nothing unusual about it.

It did definitely throw him for a loop when he realized there might be more to it.

Hunter distinctively remembered one night when they had a house show in some small town whose name escaped him. He just knew it wasn't long after they had been given the go-ahead that later that year they'd indeed get to team up in some shape or form, but before Joanie came into the picture. Heading back from the arena, Shawn had grabbed a six pack at a gas station and they'd been celebrating a bit in the hotel room they, as always, shared. A huge smile was plastered on Shawn's face, beer in one hand, while he agitatedly waved the other around, coming up with ideas what they could do once they were paired up and how much fun they would have.

Shawn was more relaxed and happier than he'd been in months and his enthusiasm was simply contagious. Obviously, Hunter had been as excited as he was and laughed with him.

And when their eyes met, all Hunter could think about was that Shawn had never looked more beautiful.

To say that hit him like a ton of bricks would be an understatement. With some lame excuse that Shawn didn't seem to question, Hunter all but bolted to the bathroom, fleeing from whatever had just happened. When the door fell shut behind him, Hunter desperately tried to get the hammering in his chest and his unsteady breathing under control and make some sense of his jumbled mind. It might not be anything to brag about, but he'd always had the reputation of being a womanizer and, to be fair, rightfully so. Never ever had he looked at another man that way so these new feelings for his best friend seemingly out of the blue left him utterly confused.

He did the only thing he knew how to – shove them away and treat them as an insane spur of the moment incident. Clearly, that was all it was.

However, when he dared to step back into the main room and sat down next to Shawn again, Hunter immediately became aware that denial only went so far. Shawn elbowed him and, noting his pale face, asked if he was alright; that if he didn't know any better, he'd assume he'd been drinking and praying to the porcelain god. His blue eyes sparkled with amusement, and Hunter noticed himself get lost in them. He had to fight the lump in his throat and the cheerfulness in his voice sounded forced to his own ears when he told Shawn not to be stupid. Shawn watched him thoughtfully for a moment, but thankfully didn't push it. Instead, he picked up where they'd left off before and Hunter did his best not to dwell too much on what this all meant.

Sadly, without fail, things just went from there. Hunter found himself glancing at Shawn more often when the other wasn't looking. Whenever Shawn grabbed his arm or touched him innocently when they were training, he felt a tingly sensation underneath his skin. And the worst part was, he did feel a pang of jealousy whenever Shawn picked up a rat at the bar, silently wishing it was him.

Boy, was that another aspect he couldn't deal with at all. Coming to grips with being attracted to Shawn was one thing, but admitting to himself that part of him was even lusting after him was a whole different animal.

And certainly, it wasn't more than that. It couldn't be.

So he still didn't say a damn thing to Shawn. He wouldn't know what to tell him anyway. Besides, there was nothing to tell. At least he tried to convince himself of that.

Meeting Joanie was a welcome distraction. The three of them got along great and she became a good friend to both him and Shawn. It took a lot of pestering, but eventually Shawn and he got Vince to hire her. When they started working together, he realized how much he and Joanie actually had in common; they were trained by the same guy, Killer Kowalski, and even lived in the same area. It came natural to also meet up at the gym on their off days, have lunch and talk angles. And somewhere along the line they fell for each other.

Hunter had almost managed to assure himself that whatever he'd felt for Shawn had been nothing but a crush, some misinterpretation of them becoming tighter. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so wrapped up in Joanie now, right?

Until that little shit kissed him on live TV.

Somehow, he'd been able to play it down, play along for the cameras, but in that instant it all came rushing back and took him like a storm. Kissing Shawn wasn't anything that was easy to forget, however brief the encounter may have been. In some way it had turned his world upside down, made him long for more. And forced him to face facts.

He really was in love with his best friend. There was no point in denying it anymore.

And yet he didn't have the slightest idea what to do about it. All of it was still too overwhelming for him to accept and maybe make a move.

Just a little while later Shawn kissed him again; this time on their way up the ramp when they were already off air and Hunter pushed him away. Shawn gave him a funny look, but didn't say anything, for which Hunter was grateful. It all simply became much too real for him.

Back in the locker room, he had been tempted to finally open up, but what good would it have done? It only would have made everything awkward between them. To Shawn, it clearly was only one big joke, his reaction to the "Shawn is gay" chants and signs. That was Shawn, always willing to rile up the crowd even more – and at the same time absolutely clueless to what was happening right in front of him.

Plus, Hunter didn't want to hurt Joanie, either. He did care for her. What they had was true, not some teenager-like infatuation or whatever it was he felt for Shawn that wouldn't lead to anything.

Quite frankly, he knew he was fooling himself, but what else was he supposed to do?

So he did his best to lock anything that went beyond friendship away into the farthest corner of his heart. And for the most part it worked. Joanie and he were still in the early stages of their relationship, but they were starting to build something. He concentrated on that.

Then Shawn got hurt. His back was shot for good. There were no words for how sad Hunter felt for him. Wrestling was his life and Hunter hated how brutally it was taken away from him. It became a difficult time for everyone who had to deal with Shawn. He seemed to be the only one who still got through to Shawn, but eventually he was even pushing Hunter's patience to its limits. He made it hard to remember that just a few months ago, Hunter had been thinking he might be in love with the man that now was so bitter and lashing out. He would always be there for Shawn, but his spiteful behavior was taking its toll.

When Shawn left after Mania, at first Hunter felt like he could breathe freely again. It didn't last long, though. Soon he became painfully aware of Shawn's absence and even memories of those kisses and random touches snuck into his subconscious and dreams that had him waking up with his chest feeling tight.

Hunter just couldn't shake it all off completely, no matter how hard he tried.

But he continued to push that aside. Work had become crazy for him in the months that followed and he enjoyed every minute of it. With Joanie, it had also been going well and they'd moved in together.

Yet whenever Shawn showed up at TV tapings for a random guest spot, it rattled Hunter more than it should. It was like Shawn always easily woke up that part of himself he had closed off when he decided not to act on his emotions. Sometimes it hurt, but most times it was okay. Nothing he couldn't deal with. Or so he tried to tell himself.

Only that day Shawn called him to let him know he was getting married, he doubted if he had done the right thing. It was on the tip of his tongue. No, not an "I love you" or anything as poetic. He didn't have the guts for that. But he wanted to ask him to reconsider, maybe tell him that there was something they needed to talk about. He needed to talk about. However, as much as it tore him up inside, the words wouldn't come out. Hunter felt like he was listening to someone else wishing Shawn and his bride-to-be well and exchanging pleasantries.

When they hung up, he'd felt empty inside. Like he'd given up on something he'd never even had the chance to get. If he was the romantic type, he probably would have wondered if this was what it was like to have your heart broken.

Maybe that had also been the beginning of the end with Joanie. In the months afterwards, he'd focused all the more on his career, and it wasn't intentional, but he had also started to withdraw from her. He couldn't tell his girlfriend what was eating him up inside so her imagination had been running wild. And he didn't have the energy to put her mind at ease as much as he should have. When his storyline with Stephanie took off, that had been the final straw. Things got tense between them and hardly a day went by that they didn't get into an argument. She accused him of cheating on her, claiming that a woman knew when there was someone else. She was convinced he was banging Steph long before they got together. Little did she know it was Shawn he was still trying to get over.

It always was.

The phone ringing drew him from his reverie. When Hunter answered, he couldn't stop the smile tugging at his lips upon hearing Stephanie's voice on the other end of the line. She informed him about some school event for which she was currently trying to clear both their schedules. They only had a few minutes before she had to rush off to another meeting, but it was enough to make Hunter remember how blessed he was.

After the call, his eyes lingered on the family photo on his desk. His three girls were the most precious thing in his life and Steph was his rock. He was truly happy and wouldn't want to change any of it. They were all he ever hoped for and he couldn't love them more if he tried.

Yet sometimes he let his mind wander. His gaze moved on to the two frames next to it. One was of the five of them – Kid, Scott, Shawn, Kev and him – in Germany and the other one was just he and Shawn, laughing their asses off. Steph had taken the latter at his birthday party not long ago and given it to him.

On days like today when he got stuck on memory lane a little too deeply, he always felt a stab of guilt. His wife deserved better than him being so hung up on another man, still after twenty plus years. He couldn't help it, he may have been able to compartmentalize them, but his feelings never fully went away. Despite his life being pretty damn near picture perfect, there were always moments when he ached for what he would never have. When he wished he had been brave enough back then, or any other time for that matter, to tell Shawn the truth. Hunter knew it wasn't fair to Stephanie, but there was nothing he could do about it and at this point he had given up trying.

And strangely enough Steph accepted it. She was the only person he ever confided in regarding Shawn. He obviously didn't mean to at first, but he just had to be honest with her before they got married. He loved her too much to build their future on the secret that part of his heart would always belong to someone else. Even if that meant losing her.

But she'd understood. He'd been stunned when she stayed calm, took his hand and told him she knew. He must have looked at her pretty dumbfounded because he remembered she laughed a little, before kissing him gently, already soothing his fears with that small action alone. They'd spent the whole afternoon talking and she'd explained that of course she hadn't known in the traditional sense, but she'd always had a feeling. Maybe Shawn was blind, but she had seen how he sometimes looked at him, how Shawn made him smile – and at the same time could make him go quiet and leave a trace of sadness in his usually warm eyes that he couldn't always mask straight away. She'd noticed all of that a long time ago and came to her own conclusions.

However, she'd also told him that she realized it had nothing to do with them. Stephanie had been adamant that she didn't doubt that he loved her, too. Just in a different way, but that didn't take anything away from what they had. And in her book the fact that he risked telling her was enough proof that she was right about that.

Steph was the best thing that could ever happen to him and often enough Hunter still had to pinch himself how he could be so lucky.

Over the years, it really had become easier. His love for Shawn remained, but he had managed to channel it differently. When he was younger, he used to bottle it up, only showing by small actions how much he cared about Shawn. He'd always feared he might crack if he was too open with him. Eventually he stopped being too careful to go for that hug that might be a little too tight, he sometimes let his emotions spill over into his words and the way he looked at Shawn… Nobody would ever question that all of it was rooted in their close friendship. Least of all Shawn. He would never know. And Hunter had learned to live with that. They had both found their happiness and it was good the way it was.

There was a knock on the door and before Hunter even acknowledged it, someone poked his head in.

"Are you still hidin' in here? Man, I haven't seen you all day."

Hunter just had to smile at this friend when he pranced inside, sinking down onto the chair across from him. Shawn tipped the ever-present black cowboy hat up a little, watching him intently.

"You okay, buddy? You look pensive. Told ya all that thinkin' ain't doin' you no good."

He threw a pen at Shawn, chuckling. "Oh, shut up already. Some of us actually have a job, you know?"

"See, that's why I'm not on your payroll. You'd work me into the ground."

Hunter shook his head, glancing at the abandoned script and picking it up. "How about I'll buy you dinner and you'll help me with this?"

"You think I'm not aware that there's something you're not sayin'?" Shawn continued to scrutinize him. "But lucky for ya I'm easily bribed so I'm gonna let it go. Let's head out, though. I'm tired of eatin' food out of boxes."

"Always the drama queen," Hunter muttered, rolling his eyes playfully. But secretly he was glad that Shawn wasn't pressing to know what was on his mind. At least this way he didn't have to come up with a lie.

"Hey! I heard that!"

"Who said you weren't supposed to?"

Shawn threw Hunter's pen back at him, narrowly missing his nose.

"Watch it, you could poke an eye out with that."

"I was aiming for that beak of yours. It's a surprise I missed it."

When Shawn stuck his tongue out at him, Hunter burst out laughing. It felt good after being in his own head for too long. Shawn's ability to always make him laugh was another trait he loved about him, one that never failed to make the pain of just being friends a little less.

Too many memories must have made his emotions a bit too raw for the time being and show on his face after all because Shawn laid a hand on his arm and turned serious.

"You're sure you're alright? Something's off with you today, I can tell."

He simply nodded. "I am now. Really."

And Hunter meant it. He would always have Shawn like this. Maybe he would never stop longing for lost opportunities, but his best friend was here with him. They got to see each other every week, they were working together again.

He knew that was more than he had any right to ask for.

His smile was genuine when he got up, packing up the papers in the process and holding his other hand out to Shawn. "Let's get going before somebody locks us in. You get to pick the restaurant."

Shawn grinned. "Denny's down the road it is then. There's a place next door that's got cookies. Gotta fill up my stash."

"I suppose you count on that also being my treat?"

"Darn right. Remember? Workin' for free here."

He shoved Shawn out the door.

"Maybe this would be a good time to talk contract negotiations then."

"Nah, I'm a simple man. Just continue to feed me cookies and I'll keep comin' back. Oh, by the way, that new class that started the other week? Lots of potential there. Give it another month and I can already see having one or two of them have a small tryout spot on the show. Regal was also sayin'…"

On the way to the diner, Shawn was telling him everything he missed while working the office, and Hunter immediately felt lighter than he had all day.

He would do everything the same all over again, make the same decisions if it led him right here. This was his life and despite the what ifs, deep down he knew it was just the way it was meant to be.