"ITVR: Chapter 32"
Plans.
By Jadedoll, Penumbren, & Raising Kane
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"Sir...please cast your vote." Grinning broadly at his lover's antics, Kevin brought a hand up to his chin, pretending to think deeply about the topic... while taking a surreptitious look at the people around him, particularly at the three they'd been quietly not-discussing just minutes earlier. Shawn was laughing, as expected; the man had a passing acquaintance with shame at best. Hunter was practically ignoring it, but then, he had a lot to think about, judging from the body language between him and Shawn a few minutes ago. Dave... well. The poor guy was trying to equal Glen in the "who can imitate a fire truck better" contest, but then, he'd never had this sort of exposure to them before. Things were still incredibly tense between those three, but after watching Hunter and Shawn, Kevin had faith that they would work it out. Well... as long as Hunter managed to avoid the foot-in-mouth problem that he'd always seemed to suffer from outside the ring. Of course, if that happened, Shawn would probably fix it... after tearing him a new one. Kevin finally shrugged as he turned back to Scott, raising his hands in a dramatic pose. "I'm sorry, but I think... it's a tie!" Looking at Sean, who was still being muffled by a flustered Big Red Machine, he smirked. "Looks like we might have to have a sound-off to break it... but not today. Maybe on our next flight." Standing up, pleasantly surprised when his knees didn't complain at the movement, he grabbed their carry-on bags and wrapped an arm around Scott's shoulders, pulling him out of the way as Shawn led the others off the plane. "I think..." Letting his voice trail off as he leaned in closer to Scott's ear, he said, "... that you are a very bad guy, Scott Hall. That was an awful thing to do to Dave. Maybe when we get home, it'll be your turn to enjoy our room, hmm?" Looking at his lover with a straight face, only the twinkle in his eye giving him away, he let his hand slip down to Scott's ass, pinching it firmly before pushing him up the aisle. "I think we've earned ourselves some time away from the madhouse, don't you?" he said in a louder tone as they passed Sean and Glen on the tarmac. The hotel was fairly close by, so the car ride was short... which was a good thing. His ass was starting to get sore again, probably from all the sitting aggravating the marks that were still there; and Scott was giving him The Look---the one that promised definite payback. He couldn't keep from tangling his fingers in the dark curls that just begged to be played with---the little shivers that that gave Scott was just icing on the cake. He knew he was making things worse for himself when they were finally alone... but he couldn't resist. He'd been so out of control all day, so lost, that he found himself trying to reclaim his normal attitude by acting like his normal obnoxious self. Letting Scott deal with the front desk clerk at the hotel while he got their luggage in, he was a little surprised to see a familiar face, although since it was the day for a Smackdown taping, he really shouldn't have been. Waving at Mark as he carried their bags to the elevator to wait for Scott, he nodded at the Dead Man as he joined him. "What's up, Mark? It's been a while," Kev greeted him. He and Mark had been friends for years, and although the period of time after the breakup between Calaway and Shawn had been strained, they'd never lost it. Mark shrugged, looking tired. "Not much. I've got that stupid shit with Heyman tonight... other than that, pretty much the same old thing." He paused, raising a curious eyebrow at Kevin. "Why in the hell did Vince make you two come over here? Is there some surprise change in the works or something?" "Not that I know of... but that doesn't mean much. You know how Vince likes to keep his ideas to himself." Kevin's voice was wry, thinking of previous experiences with that sort of "surprise", usually sprung moments before hitting the ring. Mark snorted and nodded in understanding. "Been there, done that. What're your plans for tonight?" Kevin was prevented from answering as Scott joined them, holding out a keycard to him. He took it, suddenly wondering just how Mark would react to the new dynamics between Shawn, Hunter and Dave. The Dead Man might have been the one to break things off between them, but Kev suspected he'd never really gotten over Shawn. He'd had his occasional flings since then, but nothing serious... and he'd always been a little protective of his ex-lover when Shawn had been around backstage. Well, now. This could be interesting. Trying to keep his thoughts off his face, he smiled at Scott. "Mark was just wondering what we were gonna be up to after the show tonight, Scotty. Any ideas?" He kept his voice noncommittal; Mark had known about them for years and he was a pretty good friend... but Kev wasn't sure how sociable he'd be feeling by the time the taping was done. In fact, he suspected that he'd be feeling more like dragging Scott back to the hotel by then... but if Scott wanted to visit, he wasn't about to say no. Scotty had complained about missing his friends, and Mark was someone that they'd usually spent a lot of time around. So... shrugging mentally, he left the choice up to his lover. **** Adam sighed over Chris' suppositions about Jay. He knew that Jay wasn't due back until some time in August at the earliest. Jay shouldn't even be on the road but resting at home instead. Adam had asked him several times why he wasn't taking it easy and resting his back, but Jay brushed it off every time he'd asked. If anyone knew about how aggravating it was sitting at home waiting for injuries to heal... it sure as hell would be him. He'd missed everything... his friends, the work, the sucky food in catering, and he'd even missed the traveling, believe it or not. Jay had stopped in as often as possible and others had too including Chris. It hadn't made it any easier. The whole mess with Terry had just increased his anger, frustration, and desire to get back to work as soon as possible. Jay had only been out since early May and had been told he would probably be back within three months. Yeah it sucked, but that didn't explain the reason he felt it necessary to stay on the road all the time. Ty would have gone to Jay's on all his off days; Adam could almost guarantee it. In the short time the two of them had been together they'd stuck to each other like glue. So it couldn't be missing Ty that would keep him here... or could it? Jay had been his sounding board while he was out. He'd had to listen to all of Adam's whining and bitching about what Terry had done... for months. Jay had been there when he'd first sworn never to date anyone in the company again because it was too hard to trust they'd be there for you if you got put on the shelf. Still...just last night Jay had convinced him that not everyone was like that... that Chris wasn't like that. Surely Jay wouldn't suspect that Ty of all people would... nah, no way. That just couldn't be it. He'd have to corner Jay later and find out what was up. Groundless suspicions would get him nowhere at all. The weight of Chris' head against his shoulder was nice. He could really get used to all this casual touching as long as they were careful to keep it out of the public eye. That really wouldn't go over well with the boss. Although he personally couldn't care less who knew about he and Chris, he wouldn't take the chance of hurting Chris' career. When the weight was suddenly gone, he turned to look at his companion, watching appreciatively as he stretched out all the kinks from sleeping and sitting in the semi-comfortable car seats. They could have been worse, though not by much. Feeling the fingers walking not-so-stealthily down his leg when they stopped at a red light, Adam turned to find Chris looking at him and damn... the way he was looking at him had an immediate effect. Grinning, he knew that all he had to do was look at Chris and he'd have suffered the same results. "I don't know if Shelton would survive another round of me room hopping in the morning." Adam laughed loudly then slapped a hand over his mouth so as not to wake the other two in the back. Smiling indulgently he acted as if he were actually considering another option. "That was pretty damn funny. Maybe I should have a video camera ready next time to record the reactions." He said winking at Chris. "I suppose for the safety of the rest of the roster and innocent bystanders I should keep you locked in the room until you are fully clothed. We wouldn't want anyone tripping and giving themselves a concussion or anything like that." Turning back to the road as the light changed, Adam decided maybe it was time to get back a little of his own. He wasn't taking needless chances. After all, he was going to keep one hand on the wheel and both eyes on the road so if his other hand happened to go wandering... Letting his right hand drop from the wheel onto Chris' thigh, he grinned wickedly. "Whoops. Now where did that gear shifter go?" He might even have gotten away with it... if the car hadn't been an automatic. **** "Maybe when we get home, it'll be your turn to enjoy our room, hmm?" As if that hadn't been his plan all along. Just thinking about their room was enough to kick the slow simmer up a notch. It had been way, way too long. The subtle pinch didn't do much for his composure either, but he did manage to make it down the aisle without a noticeable limp. Maybe it had been a bit much, but it had also helped in pointing out that they weren't going to treat what had happened with Shawn, Hunter, and Dave any differently than what had happened with Glen and Sean. If Dave was with Shawn and Hunter then he was already a part of the family as far as Scott was concerned and should be treated as such. Wouldn't it be worse if they coddled him and then later exposed him to the way they actually behaved? Better to start off as you intended and all that. Scott wasn't about to argue against more alone time with Kevin. He wasn't stupid after all. After making the arrangements with the others to meet them later, they headed to the hotel. He definitely owed Kev for that little pinch, though he wouldn't be targeting the same spot that Kevin had. That would definitely hurt and that wasn't on the agenda for right now. There were other things he could do that would be just as effective though and he definitely planned on giving Kevin back a little of his own. The fingers tangling in his hair weren't really a surprise... Kevin liked pushing his luck... but they did draw the expected response, subtle shivers dancing through his frame. This little game of theirs was adding kindling to the embers which would eventually fuel a full-out blaze when they found themselves alone tonight... guaranteed. Kevin wandered off as Scott headed for the desk. Oh the joys of checking in. The girl at the desk gawked at him for a moment and he wondered for just a moment if Kevin had done that big of a number on his hair, but those were the breaks. He figured out exactly what her problem was a moment later... though it should have been obvious. "You... you're Scott Hall." Way to state the obvious there, chica. Obviously a wrestling fan. "That's what it says on my driver's license." It might have come out sounding snarky if not for the smile that accompanied it. "Think you can check me in?" After enduring a dozen or so sighs and shy smiles, he finally found himself in possession of two room keys that the girl was happy enough to trade him for an autograph. 'If you only knew, darlin', he thought to himself with a smile as he walked off to join Kevin. Actually if she really knew she'd probably have passed out on the floor. That invoked an even bigger smile. Turning around, he looked for Kevin and spotted him with a familiar figure. Damn, he hadn't seen Mark in so long... the last time he remembered was around the time he'd been 'let go.' It would be nice having a chance to catch up. His smile still firmly in place, he approached the two, Kevin's keycard in his hand. "Mark was just wondering what we were gonna be up to after the show tonight, Scotty. Any ideas?" Hmm. Ideas? He had tons of ideas, very few of them involving the Dead Man. Not that he wasn't interested in talking to him, but Scott wasn't so sure that Kevin would be up for a night out. "Nothing that I know of, but we did have a late night last night, so it depends on if Kevin lets me catch a nap or not," he said, smiling at Kevin. Kevin would more than likely figure out what he was doing and play along accordingly. He wasn't really tired, but Mark didn't know that. "Maybe we can catch a late supper or something, but we'll have to get back to you on that, if that's okay?" That left their options open. If Kevin felt up to going out for a bit they would, if not then Scott could plead tired and no one would know the difference. He was kind of interested though in how Mark was going to react if things worked out between Shawn, Dave, and Hunter. Despite the long fling he'd had with Copeland, Scott had a feeling that it had never been serious and he was curious if Mark was still hung up on Shawn. Even if he was, Scott couldn't see him trying to cause trouble or anything, but Mark might need someone to talk to. As they entered the elevator, Scott wrapped his arm around Kevin's waist, careful not to touch below the belt. Having Kevin flinch in front of Mark would not be a good thing... Mark was way too intuitive and Scott had already embarrassed Kevin once today, he wasn't about to do so again in front of one of their friends. Noticing that Mark had shown up by himself, Scott let his nosy/curious side come to the fore again. "So... rooming alone tonight Mark?" Not that Mark having a roommate necessarily meant anything, but most of the guys found one to help cut the costs on the road. Mark's response might just enlighten him as to the Dead Man's current fling, it all depended on how Mark reacted to his question. **** "...all sorts of things involving a king-size bed with a view and some of Shawn's cuffs." Listening almost bemusedly to Hunter's verbal outpouring, Shawn couldn't help but raise a curious eyebrow even as he smiled. First of all, why was it an automatic assumption that they'd be his cuffs, and secondly, what better view could you ask for than the two men he was looking at? Hunter would have to get a personal introduction to the cuffs he'd so casually mentioned, Shawn resolved, and possibly some other things... later on, of course. But the man would definitely have to get the point that he shouldn't take things for granted. Not, Shawn mused as he watched Dave struggle to remain expressionless, that that would be a hard lesson to learn, after the series of debacles the three of them had experienced over the last day. Hopefully this would be the last one; Shawn really didn't want to have to lock them into a room by themselves just to tell each other that they were upset about something. At least it looked like they were finally getting somewhere. The spate of honesty was definitely helping, and Hunter finally getting to the point and telling Dave how he felt---well, mostly---was incredibly a Good Thing. "Just the three of us." Shawn hadn't been able to fully pull his mind away from the bed and the handcuffs, and hearing that from Hunter... he bit his lip to keep from laughing, although he knew that Hunter could probably feel him shaking with it. God, what he wouldn't do for a nice long evening of "just the three of them". Too bad it probably wouldn't happen tonight... maybe tomorrow night. Hopefully. He deeply suspected that this afternoon and the shoot tonight was going to send him screaming around the bend in frustration. He'd achieved some satisfaction not that long ago---and how!---but he was almost aching to see his two lovers naked... together... touching... touchable... tastable... A quiet noise escaped him and he bit his lip. This was definitely not the time for fantasies, no matter how tempting these two were. They still had the rest of the day to get through... and god only knew how tonight was going to go. He'd definitely have to have a word with Dave later about helping with his little "teach Hunter to touch" project, though. If nothing else, sleeping in the same bed would help with that little problem. Watching Dave slowly start to open up, seeing the easing of the tension in those broad shoulders when he laced his fingers together with Hunter's... Shawn was almost reaching for Dave's hand again even as Dave reached for him. Clasping their fingers together sent a tingle down his spine, and he wondered just how those fingers would feel other places. Shaking his head a little at himself, his lips quirked. No matter how serious it was, he just couldn't not think that way. He'd acquired the interesting reputation that he had now pretty honestly, after all, and he'd never been ashamed of his appetites. He wasn't going to be now, either... but it made it damned hard to concentrate sometimes. "I'll have to tell you about that dream sometime." Nodding as he remembered the effects that dream had had on the big man, the tone of voice as he'd moaned their names... he made a note to remind Dave later on when they were alone about that. His smile softened as Dave admitted his crush, and his reaction to being in the ring with him. Not only was it sweet, it was telling that Dave was saying this now, and that he was willing to admit just how long he'd felt something for both him and Hunter. Shawn could feel his hopes rising as they sat there, and realised that he was convinced this would work. If it didn't work... it would probably break his heart. "...I wanted you both to be there because it just felt... right." God, did it. The circuit they were in now, all their hands entwined... it gave Shawn chills. It felt so right, so perfect. He never wanted it to end, and he didn't want it to change. "...so I'll have to make sure whatever I'm wearing doesn't clash with the color red." Rubbing his thumb gently over Dave's hand, Shawn looked directly at him. "That might take a while... or it might not. Earlier was... pretty normal, for us. But don't get me wrong---it's not a Clique orgy every time we're together. In fact, although I've been with Scott and Kevin and was for quite a while, I'm not sure if there've been any other... encounters between the rest of us. I've never been with Sean; he's too much like a little brother to me... and you know I haven't been with Hunter." He paused to cast a gentle look at his long-time friend, squeezing his hand a little. Maybe this wasn't the best time to bring up past relationships, but he really wanted any possible misunderstandings about the Clique cleared away right at the beginning. "Things like that aren't expected, and they aren't demanded, Dave. We've never been one big happy sexual group, although we've never been shy about doing things in front of the others, either. Everyone on that plane... except maybe for Ric, and I wouldn't swear to that... everyone there but you had seen or heard me like that before." Pausing to draw in a slow breath, he met Dave's eyes as he continued, "I have quite a reputation backstage, Dave. It's fully deserved, and I earned every bit of it, good and bad. Some things may be exaggerated, and some things are out and out lies, but for anything that's been blown up in the telling, some other story doesn't do the truth justice; and for every lie there are three facts that just didn't get made public. I'm not proud of everything I've done... but I am not ashamed of anything I've done with the Clique. I love them too much to be." He would've said more, hoping that Dave understood what he was trying to say, but the arrival of the waiter with their food broke the moment. Ignoring the almost-smirk on the man's face, he slowly withdrew his fingers from the other two, wondering if they were ever going to have a meal where hand-holding didn't have to stop for the eating part of it. Feeling a little subdued, his unexpected confessions having surprised himself, he dug into his chicken salad, eating quickly but calmly. He very much wanted to get to the hotel. They wouldn't have too long before they had to be at the arena, but he suspected they all had a few more things to say that they just didn't want to say in public... no matter how secluded the table was. And that reminded him... "Hunt? Dave?" He took a sip of his water as he waited for their attention. "Did we want to change our reservations for tonight? I don't know about you two, but I'd feel kind of silly paying for three rooms if we're only going to use one. Bad enough that Dave wasted his money last night without more of us doing so tonight." He smiled a little at the surprised expressions. "Because regardless of anything else, I'll be damned if I'm sleeping alone tonight... or if any of us are." **** Glancing out the window, Chris saw they were almost at the hotel. They had plenty of time to check in and find a gym before heading to the arena tonight. Maybe even a chance to have that conversation with Bunnykins. Not that CJ thought himself a master of advice giving, his own private life generally sucked beyond the telling of it. But he’d learned a few tricks over the past few years about dealing with Jay and his issues, not from a romantic aspect of course, no god help him, but maybe as an outsider he could help. A bit. Probably make it worse. But he’d give it a try. Why he suspected the issue was Jay’s only, he’d have to consider. Just because Reso tended to live life on an emotional roller-coaster didn’t mean he had to be the one with the ‘thing’, did it? Ty had the whole strong but silent thing going and Chris was sure that would drive him batshit in a week, let alone the irrepressible Jason. He suspected it might be a general lack of communication going on, which was odd for Jay, but you never know how an injury will affect someone. If he wasn’t talking and Ty was being Mr. Quiet and Brooding, then they were probably at an impasse that two interfering blonds might be able to break. He was glad this ‘something’ with Adam was so new, eighteen hours to be exact, that they were enjoying the honeymoon time without the drama. Adam and Chris generally got on brilliantly in any case, as long as the sexin’ didn’t mess that up, they’d be fine. Unlike Ty, Adam kept himself to himself most days, but CJ could still get better than monosyllabic replies on most occasions. The reciprocal hand on his leg bought Chris’ thoughts back from the relationship of two other men, and focused it quite directly on his own. Whoops. Now where did that gear shifter go? Chris just managed to stop the words, "I got your gear stick right here Baby!" from being spoken by his shameless lips. While he sincerely doubted Adam had actually been feeling for the gear stick, being a brazen hussy about it might be going a bit far. Not that he hadn't been doing the teasing thing himself every chance he got, just that he did know where the line was. Sure, he usually said 'line what line?' and jumped into everything feet first, nevertheless, Adam was teasing him now and CJ would enjoy the moment without being completely crude about it. Shifting a little so his back was almost against the passenger door, Chris thought briefly about Adam’s video camera comment. While it was certainly a compliment, the idea of people tripping over if they saw him naked wasn’t true in the slightest. His ego wasn’t actually that big, despite appearances to the contrary. There were plenty of gorgeous half-naked bodies around the WWE, a beautiful example of one being right here in front of him. Adam had such an eye-catching handsomeness about him that Chris was inclined to lock him in a room so no-one would get to see too much skin. At least they both worked in tights rather than trunks. CJ knew his lust factor would be driven to new heights if he’d had to see Adam’s long bare legs on show for everyone, it was bad enough when he wore just the coat over that smooth golden chest. Turning his face from the sunlit window, Chris pushed his sunglasses into his hair and raised a saucy eyebrow at the hand on his thigh. His own fingers had traveled up Adam’s arm and lay lightly on one muscled shoulder. Canting one knee up half onto the seat, he watched as Adam’s palm was shifted inwards by his movement. Okay… so he was a hussy after all. “Hmmm yeah. Those gear sticks can be murder to find on these funky-new automatic cars. But you’re getting a lot hotter there Adam, just a little to the right and you’ll be dead on.” Asking your driver to feel you up while doing 60 wasn’t a terribly great idea. But the food and Chris’ nap had done wonders for his flagging libido. He certainly couldn’t go another three rounds anytime soon, but a bit of harmless groping never hurt anyone. “You want to wake up Bill and Ted or should I do it?” Chris couldn’t keep the evil tone out of his voice. He loved to wake up peacefully sleeping people as viciously as possible. He copped it back in good grace and Ty was deserving of revenge after the unoriginal but effective ‘fingers in the ice’ trick from last week. “Please can I? Please? Please?” **** Hunter had been short of breath before. On one memorable occasion he’d been unable to take in enough air after a spectacular match and almost collapsed a lung. The tight constricting bands on his chest hadn’t just made it difficult to inhale, it had been impossible. This was almost like that. Hunter could breathe if he wanted to, but he had a definite ‘heart in the throat’ thing going as he watched Dave consider his reply to Hunter’s almost maniacal explanation of his feelings. Imprecise and scattered would have been the terms he’d use to describe what he’d said, but hey, emotions were like that, they didn’t make sense, that’s why they were feelings. You pick.. .as long as it's not linguine. I made enough of a mess with that last night. Blink. Okay… that sounded good. Hunter let out his breath before he turned blue, giving Dave a cautious once over. The closed, hard face had relaxed and that awful anger and tension from earlier was gone by the wayside. Although still slightly flushed, Dave’s fingers had turned to grasp Hunt’s own and the grip was firm rather than crushing like he’d half expected. Looks like you just bought yourself a second chance Champ. Right now his ‘conscience that sounded like Vince’ could berate Hunter all he liked, as long as the relief coursing through him wasn’t misplaced. He’d been on tenterhooks about Dave’s reaction, since his abrupt departure from their kiss on the plane. Now at least he’d had some kind of answer. Also the sunglasses were gone and Hunter could get some clue as to his friend’s responses from those bruised eyes. While listening to Dave’s remarkable confession, Hunter began planning in his mind their ‘date’. Had it really been that long since he’d had the chance to go all out to impress someone? To lead his beloved or in this wonderful case his beloveds, into an expensive restaurant? To order fine wine, good food, no linguine check, and just be together? It had been a while certainly, but Hunter knew a good time when he arranged it, and Greg was a marvel of information about any city the WWE happened to land in, so he had help right there. This was going to be his chance to prove to Shawn and more particularly Dave, that he was serious about them as a... a… threesome... get it out Hunter, you can think it at least can’t you? Maybe trio? It didn’t matter, he was committed to this and he’d show them his intentions were, while hardly honorable, at least respectable. Dave’s words grabbed Hunter’s attention like he’d been slapped. Dave had been nervous, around Hunter? No way in hell would he have guessed that. Talk about playing Mr. Cool there Dave. It seemed like Hunt wasn’t the only one who’d made an art form of suppressing his inclinations. He honestly hadn’t had a clue that Dave saw him as attractive, by his actions Hunter may as well have been a ring-post for all the attention he got from Dave. No… that wasn’t strictly true. Dave was a good friend, a stand up guy who’d had Hunter’s back from the word go, both in character and in the locker room. But yes, their friendship had cooled somewhat after Dave returned from that shitty injury. Hunter remembered that time with a great sense of loss but also, weirdly, pleasure. Steph was… entirely not appropriate for this discussion. Dream? What dream? Hunter’s curiosity piqued like a cat’s, then he smiled as Dave spoke of his crush on Shawn. Looks like his Heartbreaker had snagged himself a hell of a catch in this one. Dave just flat out adored the blond and Hunt didn’t blame him in the slightest. Shawn was the reason they were both here after all. His determination to have his two idiots, despite themselves, was unbreakable and Hunt would send up a few Hail Marys to any god that would listen for giving him Shawn back after he’d almost wrecked everything. because it just felt... right It had indeed, so very right that Hunter had been almost lost to the pleasure he was touching through both Dave and Shawn. Near perfect, up until the moment Hunter panicked and it had all gone pear-shaped. As Shawn calmly explained how the Clique behaved around each other, Hunter returned the small hand-squeeze sent his way. They hadn’t been together in any way and Hunter hadn’t ever had an ‘encounter’ witnessed by their friends. Not that he cared if he was watched or not, Hunt tended to lose awareness of those around him, focusing instead on his partner’s pleasure and his own, rather than that of any audience. It must come for years of performing publicly, people looking at him and their reactions barely registered on Hunt’s radar these days. He’d have to add his voice to Shawn’s as they reassured Dave. The Clique were his family and they were whatever Hunt and Shawn wanted them to be. Friends, lovers, audience, confidants, brothers, nothing was set in stone, no rules Dave had to abide by to keep their favour. If the big man was uncomfortable being intimate around the others, then they wouldn’t be. It wasn’t even an issue as far as Hunter was concerned. Getting to the intimate was his stumbling block. “Thanks Dave, “ he said softly, hoping he conveyed through his hand and his eyes the depth of his gratitude for his second chance. “It’ll be a night to remember I promise you both.” With that vow in mind, Hunter wondered if he could get a violinist to serenade them. Vince would have a fit if it hit the gossip sheets, but they could always brush it off as a practical joke or part of a storyline. They’d done worse and got away with it. I'll be damned if I'm sleeping alone tonight... or if any of us are. Thinking of the sad, lonely bed he’d occupied last night, Hunt felt a hot, fierce desire to never sleep alone like that again. “I second that ‘I’ll be damned’,” he chimed in while inspecting a sun dried tomato on his fork. “It’ll take a moment to call Greg and have him change our booking,” realizing that might come off as bossy, he glanced at the two other men. “If that’s okay with you?” **** Shawn had been with Kevin and Scott. That explained why he was seemingly so comfortable with the idea of the three of them together. Dave wondered briefly why Shawn had left that particular trio, but considering what he'd seen of Scott and Kevin earlier he thought he could probably guess. Constantly being on the fringes of the seemingly perfect thing that the two men had going and not being a part of that would have to be difficult. He could tell that both Kevin and Scott loved Shawn as well, but it wasn't the same all consuming thing that surrounded the pair. That made him consider his own situation for a moment. Shawn and Hunter had loved each other for a hell of a long time. Would he be facing the same situation that Shawn had with Kevin and Scott? Maybe, but even if it turned out that way, he'd still want to be a part of this. Considering the depth of his own feelings, he really didn't have a choice... he had to give it a shot. It didn't really bother him at all that Shawn had a reputation, even if Shawn admitted to earning it. The past was the past after all and you couldn't change anything about it. His own past wasn't sterling either... some of the antics he'd gotten up to in OVW were interesting to say the least, though he and his partners had kept things on the down low. He couldn't fault Shawn because the man lost his head in the fog of passion sometimes and didn't notice if he had an audience or not... after all Dave had been a part of just such an occurrence earlier that day, hadn't he? Knowing that it hadn't been out of the ordinary for that group did help and it also cleared up the subject of "touching" at least in front of the rest of the Clique... but what about the rest of the backstage population? That was something they were going to have to talk about before they went to the arena. Catching Hunter's thanks, he smiled at the other man. Dave had a feeling that tonight was going to memorable and extremely interesting no matter what actually happened. That feeling increased when Shawn brought up the rooming arrangements. Hard decision there... sleep in a room all by himself or share a room with Hunter and Shawn? That was probably one of the easiest decisions that he'd end up making regarding this relationship. "If that’s okay with you?" Surprised that Hunter didn't have the phone to his ear already, Dave smirked at him as he poked his fork into a piece of grilled swordfish. "You want me to dial that for you?" he said, pointing his knife in the direction of Hunter's cell phone. Deciding that he should at least acknowledge what Shawn had told him, Dave looked his way as he took a sip of water. "Shawn, I knew all about your reputation before I asked you out and I still asked. I'd rather make my own decisions about someone than go by what people say. Deserved or not... it doesn't bother me. It's not like I'm lily-white myself. The only reason you haven't heard anything is because my playmates were more often than not the extremely quiet type when it came to that kind of thing." Dave shrugged and took another sip of his water. "I think the reason I've been reacting the way I have has a lot to do with how unsettled things really were between us. Once we've passed the brand-new stage, I most likely won't give a second thought to what we do or where we do it. That brings me to something else I think we should talk about now... before we go to the arena." Turning to look at Hunter, he fidgeted with his fork for a moment. How exactly did one ask if one's wife would mind there being talk about that person backstage? "I know you haven't talked to Stephanie yet, but what do you think she's going to say about... us? Are we going to need to keep this quiet backstage so that Vince doesn't find out about it? I understand if that's the case, but I'd like to know either way before we get there so I know how to handle things." Dave could help but grin. Handle things... like Hunter. They were back to that whole hands-on/hands-off issue. Maybe this wasn't the perfect time to bring it up with Hunter already having issues with it, but it was better if they knew now before things got out of hand and caused even bigger issues. Knowing Shawn... and if he were honest himself as well... neither one of them would think twice about touching Hunter now that they had a green light. If it were going to be a problem... like causing Vince to have a coronary... then they needed to be aware of that. **** This was pathetic, standing here in front of the elevator, staring at it like it was the gate to hell... Just because he didn't have anyone waiting for him, did he have to act like a damned coward? Letting out a breath almost in a sigh, he pressed the "up" button, shouldering his bag. A wave from across the lobby caught his attention, and his eyes widened for an instant when he saw a familiar face. What the hell was he doing here? And if he was here, then... glancing over to the front desk, he nodded slightly. Yep. They were never far apart, after all. At least, not normally. "What's up, Mark? It's been a while." Smiling at the blond, Mark nodded. It was good to see Kevin again; they'd been friends for so long that he couldn't remember where they'd actually met, and it was better to see Scott with him. He hadn't spoken to either of the Outsiders often over the last few years, but he'd kept in touch and was aware of the problems that had arisen. He'd hoped that they'd work through them; of all the relationships he'd seen over the years, theirs was probably the only one that had held together through all the shit they'd been through. It was definitely the only one he'd seen that had that spark to it. At one point, he'd thought that maybe he'd found his own spark. Pulling his thoughts away from that path before they could get any darker, he answered Kevin, suddenly wondering why exactly they were here. "Not much. I've got that stupid shit with Heyman tonight... other than that, pretty much the same old thing." God... Heyman. He'd love to choke that fat little bastard until he turned purple... but with the creative control Paul had right now, that would probably be a bad thing to do. His gimmick was already turning to shit because of the prick. Hopefully this angle wouldn't last much longer and he could move on... not like there was all that much time left in his career, after all, and he'd like to go out with a bang, not with a whimper. No quietly passing away into the night for the Undertaker; no way in hell. Raising an eyebrow at Kevin, he asked curiously, "Why in the hell did Vince make you two come over here? Is there some surprise change in the works or something?" That'd be just like Vince, too. Bring the Outsiders back and surprise everybody by putting them in a huge tag match or something. Not that there was all that much time left before the pay-per-view... in fact, if anything was going to happen before Bad Blood, it'd have to be during taping tonight, since nothing out of the ordinary had happened last night. Hmm. That was an intriguing thought, to say the least. They still weren't overlapping much between shows, but maybe that would change. Snorting at Kevin's half-disgusted tone of voice, he nodded in understanding. Vince loved to pull last-minute shit with his people. If something was going to get changed, no one would know but him until he did it. "Been there, done that. What're your plans for tonight?" Maybe not so surprisingly, he found himself almost hoping that the two would want some company for a while. He could use somebody to talk to... but at the same time, he really didn't want to spend hours whining at these two about how lonely and miserable he was. They both knew what had happened between him and Shawn, and whose fault it had been... and it hadn't been the Heartbreaker's. Kevin's sudden smile told Mark before he even turned around that Scott was approaching. It was nice to see that some things just didn't change. Watching these two had always made him smile. "...but we'll have to get back to you on that, if that's okay?" A late night, huh? Perfectly believable, but Mark was pretty sure that they hadn't stayed up watching a late-night movie marathon. Hiding the small smirk that wanted to appear, he shrugged slightly as they entered the elevator and hit the buttons for their floors. From the little that he'd heard, they'd been apart for two years and had only gotten back together recently. If they wanted to spend more time together, that was understandable. He was sure to run into them on a regular basis, so they'd have plenty of time to catch up on things. "So... rooming alone tonight Mark?" Shit. Hopefully that wince hadn't been visible. Turning slightly to lean against the side of the elevator, the sight of the two of them with their arms around each other didn't really help lighten his mood this time. It just reminded him of what he didn't have. Drawing a breath, Mark started to answer Scott's question. "Well..." The elevator stopped with a quiet ping and the doors slid open. Feeling far more relief than he should, he straightened up and smiled apologetically at Scott. "My floor. Guess we'll have to catch up later. See ya at the arena, guys." Hopefully he didn't look like he was running; he sure as hell felt like he was. What the hell was up with him lately, anyway? This wasn't normal for him... of course, tonight would be the first time he'd seen Shawn in quite a while, too. They'd missed each other at the last few cross-brand pay-per-views, and he'd been out for a few months in between that. Letting himself into his hotel room, he dropped his duffel bag with a quiet thud and sank into the chair next to the bed. This wasn't really about Shawn, though. Yeah, he still loved the man, but that didn't mean all that much. He always would love Shawn... but that was over, and they both knew it. It had been six years, after all. Even though he still had feelings for Shawn, he'd moved on, and so had Shawn. Heartbreaker was probably just a convenient excuse for him tonight, considering. Tipping his head back against the back of the chair, he let his eyes close. Just because the person he was interested in didn't seem to realise that he existed outside the ring didn't mean that he was going to dwell on thoughts of Shawn all damned night. Hopefully Shawn had found someone else and was happy with them, even if Mark seemed to be failing miserably at achieving the same thing. His time with Adam had been exactly what he needed after their breakup: Fun, relaxing, and absolutely no strings attached. It had lasted longer than he'd thought it would, and the hot-as-hell sex hadn't hurt, but there had never been anything deeper there. Briefly, he wondered if Adam had ever gotten the balls to make a move for Jericho. The "smart and sexy" guy he'd fallen for hadn't been too hard to figure out, after all. Sighing, he levered himself up and out of the chair. He needed to get something to eat and head over to the arena. Maybe he'd have time to stop in the gym before the show started. A good workout might take his mind off of things. **** Kev relaxed immediately at Scott's touch, the arm around his waist drawing away tension he hadn't realised he had. Shifting one of the bags he was holding, he draped an arm around Scott's shoulder, trying to watch Mark without being too obvious about it. Something was up with the Dead Man, and the faint wince at Scott's question told Kev was that something probably was. "My floor. Guess we'll have to catch up later. See ya at the arena, guys." Frowning, Kevin watched Mark until the elevator doors closed, then looked at Scott. "That was weird. I wonder what's up with him. Usually he's more than happy to sit and talk." The elevator signaling their arrival at their own floor interrupted him, and he headed down the hall, arm still wrapped around Scott. Fuck Vince. It wasn't like it was out of the ordinary for them, even in public, after all. Stopping in front of the room door, he waited for Scott to open the door before walking in, dropping their bags with a sigh. He sank onto the mattress, flopping backwards, his arms out to the sides as he relaxed. "Well... wanna order room service and eat in?" He waggled his eyebrows at his partner, expecting the eye roll that he received. There were times that he really did curse his age... this wasn't quite one of them, but he was a little wistful for an instant before he pushed the feeling away. They might not be able to have sex five times a day these days, but they more than made up for that lessened quantity with higher quality. The aftereffects of the morning were fading, but he was almost surprised by how much he was enjoying the teasing they were doing. They didn't indulge themselves this much that often. That would definitely have to change, Kevin mused, letting his eyes roam over his lover's figure as Scott picked up the phone. Letting his thoughts wander for a minute, he wondered again what was up with Mark. As concerned as he was about Mark's weird behavior, he just couldn't bring himself to worry about it at the moment. Maybe his worry meter was maxed out already; whatever the reason, if their old friend wanted to talk, he'd come to them, and Kev wasn't going to dwell on it until then. **** Snickering quietly over being caught out, Adam kept both eyes on traffic even as he let his hand drift slowly along the inner seam of Chris' jeans. He paused long enough to snarl at a driver who hadn't signaled before changing lanes, giving Chris enough time to get his question out. "Please can I? Please? Please?" Tearing his eyes from the road long enough to look in the rearview mirror at the sleeping pair, Adam grinned wickedly before turning to Chris. "I would have gone with Dumb and Dumber myself, but yeah... go for it." This should be interesting... no matter how he planned to wake them. Chris' sense of humor was just as evil as his own, if not more so. And Chris did owe Ty for the trick from last week so it was only fair to let him get his own back. Maybe it'd further drive away some of the tension between the pair as well if they banded together to try to one up Chris. While Chris was considering his plan for waking them, Adam moved his hand fractionally, finally letting it smooth over the front of Chris' blue jeans in an almost casual caress. They couldn't take it much further than that while he was driving 60 mph on the parkway in dense traffic with the sun shining brightly, but random groping was always fun. In fact his life was overflowing with fun right now. He was living his dream with his job, he had fun and entertaining friends, and he had one hand on his boyfriends nuts... it didn't get much better than that. He wondered briefly if they would see Mark tonight. His friend would more than likely be happy for him... having finally gotten around to getting together with Chris. Shelton would almost certainly spread the word as soon as he got to the arena. That brought up another thought... he'd seen Shawn with Dave last night and he wondered if the man would get up the nerve to make his move with Shawn. If he did... how would Mark take it? He knew that Mark was over Shawn in the sense that they couldn't get back together, but that didn't mean that the Dead Man was completely over his feelings for the man. He'd have to check in with Mark later and give him a heads up if he hadn't gotten one already. At least he would be able to prepare for possibly seeing Dave and Shawn together. Spotting their hotel from the road, he merged right and took the exit that would lead to their temporary home for the night, his hand sliding back to the relative safety of Chris' thigh. Speaking of home... he still wanted to ask Chris about coming home with him during their off time. It would give them plenty of time to explore this new thing they were getting into... without the unique observations of Jay's not always prudent mouth, Ty's penetrating stare, and the nosy stares or ribald comments of those in the back. "Chris, I was wondering... were you flying home tomorrow? I have an afternoon flight and I was kind of hoping that you'd... come stay with me this week. Unless you have other plans?" **** to be continued... |