Canada. It feels like it's been a life time since they'd last been, Miz reflects as he stares out of the hotel window. Despite the soft, red gleam of a setting sun demanding attention from all in its presence, his focus is elsewhere, scattered. Just the week before Morrison and he had talked for the first time since Miz had helped Truth leave him laying in the middle of the ring on that regretful Raw. Despite the tension still remaining between them, they had agreed to split a hotel room while in Canada. John wasn't as angry anymore but he was... careful around Mike, hesitant. More quiet than usual. The slowly regained trust between them had been shattered yet again, to Miz's self-disgust.
It's definitely all my fault but man, I'd love to get my hands on R Truth, he thinks once more, the idea having teased him for the past few days more and more as time passes. How would he react though? His eyes glance to the side as he registers John shifting on his bed, a book crinkling in his hands as he passes time reading. It would also, hopefully, keep them away from each other? That thought cinches it and he slowly turns around, frowning as John doesn't glance up from his book despite the intense stare aimed his way. "I have an idea."
It comes out of nowhere, slips past his defenses, surprising even Mike, and has the desired effect- Morrison finally peers up, his uncertain gaze locking on Mike's face. "What?"
"Wait, Alex needs to hear this too. I'm gonna call him."
John watches, stupefied, as Mike crosses the room purposely and grabs his phone, the younger man's number dialed before he even has a full grip on the small device. "Alright."
He's off the phone a few moments later, Alex quickly agreeing to come over. "He's at a soup place, he's bringing some for all of us," he mentions quietly, settling down at the hard wood table not far from the couch as he fiddles with the phone, rethinking his plan- going over every detail, trying to find any weakness. To him, it's perfect and he relaxes further, knowing if there's anything wrong with it John and Alex will let him know as soon as they're told.
"What is with him and soup? He does realize it's still summer, right?" John asks after a strained silence, frowning bemusedly as Mike looks up, smirking slightly.
"You weren't complaining a few weeks ago with the pea soup." His humor slips, fades away as Morrison looks away, his body tensing up. Dammit, he thinks, remembering. You had to remind him of that time period. Smooth, idiot. The tense silence remains, John's focus back on his book and Miz's on the imperfections on the wood before him, until a knock at the door and Mike gets up in relief, never happier to see Alex's face as he is in that moment. "Come on in," he urges, stepping back to make room for the carefully held bag full of food and his former protege.
Alex's smile slips slightly as he takes in the look on Mike's face and John's defensive position despite being sprawled out on the hotel bed with a book. "You two alright?"
"We're perfect," John mumbles, up in a blink of an eye and taking the bag from Alex in one fluid movement. As he settles it on the table, Alex and Mike glance at each other, Mike shrugging helplessly at the curious, worried look on the kid's face.
"Ah, yeah, well..." Alex clears his throat and steps away from Mike, helping John pull the various containers of soup out of the bag. "I got cream of mushroom, pea soup and... pumpkin." He flushes slightly as both men look over at him oddly. "What, it's good!"
"It sounds like something you'd get out of an Illinois festival or something," Mike comments, quickly claiming the mushroom as his own.
"Nothing wrong with that," Alex mumbles as he takes the overlooked pumpkin container, John content with the pea soup once more. They eat for a bit in silence, Alex glancing back and forth as no conversation is forthcoming at all. "So, uh, about this plan of yours..." he finally says, the quiet grating at him.
"In a second," Mike mumbles, allowing the plastic spoon accompanying his soup to drop into the styrofoam, his eyes falling onto the half-full container of pumpkin soup. Alex and Morrison had both used separate bowls in case they wanted to salvage the leftovers, so he has no qualms pointing to the remainer of Alex's, despite his earlier words. "Mind if I...?"
Alex rolls his eyes, amused and exasperated all at the same time, knowing that the only way to get answers is to let Miz have what he wants. "Help yourself."
"Thanks." Mike quickly pulls the soup over and savors a few bites, mulling over the slightly spicy pumpkin mixing with the savory taste of the mushroom, before looking up. "Ok, well... here's what I'm thinking..."
By that Monday, all possibilities of Mike's plan have been talked out backwards and forwards until they're all rather sick of hearing about it and antsy to just do it. John and Alex end up going to the arena together, the plan depending on Mike going alone to entice Truth. Sure enough, barely half an hour after he arrives, the mentally deranged man finds him and starts going on about conspiracies and main eventing once more. Unlike weeks before, he actually makes like he's listening, agreeing in the right places and disagreeing in others.
Truth's words still in his ear, he fights to keep his concentration even as the monitor in the locker room shows Morrison wrestling Alberto Del Rio in an impromptu match, his lingering neck issues visibly giving him trouble early on. Before long, ADR goes after the arm, as always, but despite that John keeps his offense up, getting many frustrating near falls. It's only when John fails at the Starship pain- by now, Miz thinks its title is only deserving because it almost always provides John with more pain than anyone- that the match advantage changes and ADR locks in the armbar. John struggles and fights, Mike mentally urging him just to tap out before he gets hurt further, until finally he gives up, his palm slapping against the ring in defeat. It takes all Miz has to not lash out, do something despite Truth still babbling onto him, when Morrison rolls out in front of Ricardo Rodriguez and gets mocked, just for ADR to follow and lock in the armbar for a little while longer. "Son of a bitch," he mumbles, unable to stop himself.
Truth, however, is mid-rant and only glances up at the screen for a second. "Alberto Del Rio might be part of the conspiracy too," he announces excitedly, his dark eyes gleaming as he peers up at the end of Morrison's match, not even paying attention to his former tag partner sprawled out at the Mexicans' feet. "Not entirely sold on that one though..."
Mike gets a breather during Alex's match, slipping away while Truth is walking to catering, still going on about spiders and random conspiracies. I didn't really think all of this through... actually spending time with him is more taxing than I figured, he thinks, his lips twisting as he stands by the gorilla position and watches Dolph and Vickie argue, the woman losing her balance and sitting heavily on the entrance ramp. Swagger joins the argument then, and yells at Dolph. "That's a mistake," he murmurs, watching as Alex recovers and waits, in prime positioning to get the roll up victory on Swagger. "Geez, who was the rookie here?" He hangs around as Alex catches his breath and makes his way to the back, an amused look on his face.
"Oh, hey, Mike," he greets his mentor. "Tired of Truth already?"
"Something like that. God... He never stops talking," Mike grouses, rolling his eyes as Alex attempts not to chuckle. "It isn't funny!" Shaking his head, he moves on. "How's John?"
"Sore. Aggravated. But I think he'll be ok," Alex ventures. "Trainer looked him over, said the usual-"
"Ice, rest. Blahblah," Mike recites, aware that he could say it in his sleep by now.
"Yep. Are you ready?" he asks as they wander back to the locker rooms, knowing that they'd have to separate soon for Mike to put his plans into motion.
"Yeah. Of course. I was born ready." He smirks, his eyes narrowing slightly as he catches sight of Truth down the hallway, peering from side to side and talking to thin air once more. "What have I gotten myself into...?"
"Well, look at it this way. If you ever want to bail, you probably could and Truth wouldn't think twice- he'd probably just think you were a figment of his imagination or something," Alex offers with a strained smile, watching as Truth continues carrying on from a distance.
"Yeah, something." Mike sighs. "Wish me luck."
"Good luck."
Going public, such as it is, feels weird- they beat down Santino until hitting the ring. Miz demands microphones and stares off into the audience, his lips twisted in disgust as Truth goes on and on about conspiracies, remembering Friday night and the look on John and Alex's faces as he tried to explain this idea to them.
"But why would you want to allign with R Truth after all of this?" Morrison asks, the anger on his face even more raw and somehow fragile, like one wrong word or action and he'll shatter into a million, sharp, unfixable pieces.
Alex, however, looks confused, worrying his lip nervously. "Mike, what if this doesn't work? How long will you let it drag on? I thought you wanted to stop isolating yourself, we just worked out the whole aftermath of the Anon GM nonsense... now you're tacking more on?"
He closes his eyes, knowing that the timing leaves much to be desired. As he spins the spoon around the empty soup container, he thinks about how best to explain his logic. "Listen, I know this is bad timing but..." He peers up at Morrison and takes a deep breath, wanting... needing to make this work. "I feel like I owe this to you, John. Make up a little for what I've done... if I can get him to trust me enough to sabotage whatever he's going to attempt in the future, then isn't it worth it in the long run?"
"I can fight my own battles," he mumbles, his eyes downcast to avoid the other two's gazes. "I proved that this past week, didn't I? I beat him. I don't need you to defeat him from within or whatever."
"I'm not saying you can't. I just think it wouldn't hurt to keep an eye on him," he says, suddenly feeling foolish at thinking that they would find this plan as worthwhile, fault proof, as he does. "Besides, he's been after me for weeks about this conspiracy and that. Why not just let him think I'm giving him what he wants, an ally?"
Pulled from his memories, he looks over at Truth and waits for a good time to agree, suffusing just enough truth (no pun intended) into what he's saying that no one will think twice of his suddenly falling in with the man who had successfully put his former tag partner on the shelf for months. As Truth raps and Miz yells at the audience, he tries to keep the trepidacious grimace off of his face. I hate this but it needs to be done.