Draft week always comes with a special kind of tension in the air. Mike thinks tonight is a little bit different, John sitting in their locker room, picking at the embellishments on his pants while they wait and watch for Stephanie to make more announcements through the show. their match is next, against Jeff Hardy and Matt Riddle. Mike isn't necessarily looking forward to it, with the way things have been going for both he and John lately, but there's only so much they can do about it so they continue to sit and stew until finally John looks up, a faint smile on his face. "Hey, Mike."
Mike looks up. "Yeah?"
"We're going to be ok. Raw or Smackdown, it doesn't matter. We both agreed this changes nothing."
Mike nods, relief undercutting the tension in his shoulders, but then they both fall quiet when it's time to move, Big E vs Sheamus over with and their match up next. Neither of them are fully with it, minds on a certain night back in 2009 when everything had changed for both of them, and they pay for it when Riddle and Jeff defeat them... but that is quickly forgotten when Lars Sullivan comes to the ring. Mike is slumped down on the side of the ring, discreetly watching as he bulldozes through Jeff and Riddle, and he does try to get away when he feels Sullivan's eyes on him, but it's not enough- John has his arms and he's trying to pull him to safety but Lars snags him, pulls him back in, and he gets only a moment's glance of the helpless horror and guilt in John's eyes and then... everything goes dark.
He's not sure how much time has passed when things begin to register with him again, but John's kneeling over him, the coolness of the floor flush against his back, and he's lightly tapping Mike's jaw, whispering to him. "Hey, man, wake up. I'm really sorry, I tried, it's just..."
"John," he mumbles, disinterested in the man's apologies.
"Yeah, hey, I'm right here, you're safe, he's gone."
Mike exhales a little and squints up at his best friend. "Thank you. For trying."
John exhales shakily and squeezes Mike's neck carefully before helping him when he tries to sit up. "Take it slow," he says softly when Mike wavers, pressing a hand to his forehead. "It's ok, we have some time."
After Mike's dizziness passes, John helps him to his feet and they walk little by little up the ramp, Mike still unsteady after the attack. They're sitting in the trainer's office still, a little later, when Smackdown comes off of commercial and there Stephanie is to announce the third set of draft picks. Time slows when she announces Raw has selected The Miz and John Morrison and they sit there for a long, silent moment before finally Mike turns and looks at John. They'd been drafted solo quite a few times in the past, sometimes to different brands, sometimes together, but to hear it like that, drafted as a team, leaves a funny warmth in Mike's chest and he exhales slowly. "Well," he whispers. "I guess you were right."
John snaps out of his own funk and looks up with a grin. "Hey, man, I told you. Everything's going to be fine."
Mike nods. "Yeah," he says softly. "You did."
After a weekend in Florida, waiting for Raw to come around, Mike stands in the middle of the Thunderdome for the second time in three days, best friend by his side, waiting for MizTV to start. They originally have Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke on, but it falls apart when Lana and Natalya interrupt, and then Mike decides on the fly to just interview John, who's in the middle of talking about live editions of the Dirt Sheet, when horribly familiar music hits and they both freeze, staring at each other. Lars Sullivan is approaching the ring and they stand side by side, waiting to fight him together, or...
Mike remembers Friday, how it had felt, for a moments, like his soul had left his body after Lars attacked him, and he expects John to be right behind him as he dives out of the ring to relative safety, but then... he turns and John is still inside, cornered by Lars, and Mike does run around and grab for him as he rushes for the ropes, but Lars is on him and Mike can see his demented eyes, fixed on John before shifting up to gaze into Mike's and he lets go, lets John get pulled back into Lars' hold, and all he can do is stand there and watch on in horror as John is hoisted up and slammed down with as much brutal impact as he himself had experienced just a couple of nights ago.
Thankfully John seems to come to faster than Mike had and rolls out of the ring on his own recognizance, making himself as small as possible against the barricade and looking on with fright in his eyes as he holds the side of his neck and tries to catch his breath. Mike doesn't wait for Lars to leave, just scrambles around the side of the ring to join his friend, watching carefully until Lars leaves.
"You let go," John mumbles, and it's the most heartbreaking words Mike's heard from him since... well, since he confessed he couldn't feel his fingers after Braun had attacked him.
"I'm sorry," he says, almost hysterically. "I'm so- I'm so sorry, I just- I caught his eye and I had to... I had to get out of there... Friday was just..."
John slowly makes it upright and leans his head against Mike's shoulder, still trembling a little. "I get it. It's fine."
But there's a haunted note to his words, and Mike isn't sure how either of them will be able to put either this night- or Friday- behind them all that quickly.