Mending Hearts

Matt groaned as he threw himself down onto a chair in his hotel room. The house show he'd performed in had gone well but he felt a little stiff from some of the bumps he took. Jay just looked at him with a smirk.

"What?" Matt asked tiredly.

"Nothing."

"It has to be something if you're grinning like that," the older Hardy grunted.

"Been a long time since youked ked with the big boys, huh?" Jay laughed.

"Very funny," Matt said closing his eyes. "You think Brock's not big? He did throw me through a wall, you know."

"Yeah, I saw," the blond chuckled. "Nothing worse than going through a cardboard wall."

"You're pretty smug for a 'peep'," Matt smiled though closed eyes.

"I'll be sure to alert the M'Fers of the world."

"Ha ha," Matt opened his eyes. "It's good to be back in your company, your blondliness. Why exactly did you cut your hair again?"

"Stop making hair jokes," the Canadian growled patting his short blond hair. "The writers said I needed a new look to go with my new push and the fans are finally getting used to it."

"It does look good," Matt said after careful consideration. "I just miss the Valley boy look."

"Yeah, well, you could have stayed with Shannon if you wanted long blond hair."

Matt looked away to hide his guilt. He hadn't seen or spoken to Shannon since his last match with Zach Gowan. He didn't even warn the small blond of his impending departure from Smackdown. The writers wanted it kept a secret so Matt complied, but deep down he knew Shannon wouldn't have told anyone. Matt hadn't warned Shannon because he didn't want to see the hurt look on the smaller man's face. It was a cowardly way to handle the separation, he knew, but he didn't want to see that look. Jeff was so pissed at him, too. He'd wanted Matt to tell Shannon as soon as he'd found out. How his little brother had discovered the information was still a mystery, especially considering Jeff wasn't working in WWE at the moment and hadn't been for months.

"Earth to Matt!" Jay's voice cut in.

"Sorry, man, I was just zoning out."

"I could see that," Jay smiled. "The question is why?"

"I just feel bad for not telling Shannon I was going."

"Well, the company wanted you to keep it quiet," Jay shrugged. "Besides, it's not as if he was your girlfriend or anything."

Matt looked down again, feeling his cheeks redden.

"Matt?" Jay beckoned. Matt remained quiet. "You're kidding me!"

"Jay, stop," Matt admonished. "I was drunk one night and I knew he wanted me. He always has. He made no secret of it."

"So he took advantage of you?" Jay's amused expression showed he wasn't entirely convinced of that.
o,"o," Matt sighed. "I'd been horny for a while and I'd been trying to get him into the sack for a fling but he kept sidestepping me."

"He wanted you, but he didn't want to sleep with you?" Jay asked as he quirked an eyebrow up.

"He wants a relationship," Matt corrected. "I knew that, but I don't want one with anyone else."

"I know that," Jay waved his hand dismissively. "So why did you pursue Shannon if you knew you couldn't give him what he wanted sou sounds a little harsh, man."

"I wanted him," Matt shrugged. "He kind of reminded me of him. So I got him drunk, too, and made him a physical offer he couldn't refuse. In just a couple of short hours, he was mine."

"What about how it was going to hurt him later?"

"You sound awfully offended for someone who doesn't even really know the kid."

"And that's another thing," Jay shot back undaunted. "He's your little brother's best friend. How do you think that's going to go over with Jeff?"

"Jeff's already vocalized his outrage, thank you very much," Matt grunted. "Look, I do feel bad about it. When we started, I was under the impression there was no way I would be moved over to Raw. I never lied to him about my feelings."

"You just left him without a word, though."

Matt nodded, feeling guilty again. He didn't want to hurt Shannon, but he couldn't pass up the opportunity to be near the man he loved.

"You have to get over him, you know," Jay said. "He's dating Lance."

"You should talk about getting over things," Matt replied sadly. "How long has it been since you've dated someone?"

"You didn't have to go there, Matt."

******************************

Adam watched Shannon run through his match game plan with Nunzio and grinned. He was very happy to be back near the ring again, and giving the small blond pointers was becoming the highlight of his day. Last night had been a blast, too. He and Shannon went out with a bunch of other stars and partied for a while. Shannon nursed the same beer the whole time but he did make an effort to stay in the conversations around him. Adam hadn't left the kid's side all night, either. He wanted to make good on his silent promise to cheer him up. When he suggested Shannon allow him to help with the run through, he was pleasantly surprised at how animated the young man became. He knew not to read too much into it, though. Shannon was still recovering from Matt's disappearance from his life and Adam didn't want to start a relationship under such a cloud. They had time to wait until things were right.

"That's perfect," he called to the small blond in the ring. "Just remember to keep your shoulders down so you don't wrench them."

"Like he did," Terry called as he and Chris walked over.

Adam gave Shannon a reassuring grin. He didn't want the smaller man to think they couldn't joke about his surgery. While it was a serious matter, he couldn't give it complete gravity, as that would affect his psychology when returning to the ring.

"Yeah, like I did," he said and Shannon gave him a small smile and a nod.

"He's really taking your pointers well," Chris remarked watching Shannon and Nunzio get back to practice.

"Yeah, and I'm glad to help," Adam replied.

"That's obvious," Terry smiled.

"What's that mean?" Adam asked furrowing his brow.

"Just that we noticed your interest in the kid."

"Hey, I thought you two wanted me to watch out for him," he started.

"We do," Chris replied. "We also know you've had an interest in him since before you left."

"I didn't."

"You did," Terry cut him off. "You weren't as intense then, though. It's okay. We think when he's over what Matt did you'd be good for him. That's why we asked you to help him."

"But."

"Look, Adam," Chris said. "Shannon's hurting right now and you're helping him by distracting him and getting his mind back on his work. That's already proof that you'd be good for him. And we know you won't push him into anything while he's not ready. We wouldn't have let you near him if we thought otherwise."

"Why didn't we have this conversation yesterday?" Adam asked.

"We wanted to see if you could cheer him up," Terry offered. "And you did. Spectacularly."

"I don't want him to think I'm only working with him because I'm after him," Adam admitted. "I think he's had enough of being used. If he's never interested in me, that's cool. We can just be friends."

"See?" Chris smiled and reached up to pat Adam on the shoulder. "That's what separates you from Matt. You care about what's best for the kid over yourself."

"So, once the promo tour's done, are you going back home?" Terry ask
\
"Not exactly," Adam grinned.

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, I've talked the company into letting me work with Shannon on his matches for a while," Adam's grin grew wider, more like the shit-eating grin Edge would give in the ring. "They think I can refine his already awesome aerial moves and I can work with the trainers on the road to finish bringing my neck up to full strength."

"That sounds like a win-win idea," Terry smiled.

"Hey, Adam," Shannon called. "We're just about done. You three want to see the finished plan?"

"Yeah," Adam called back. "Let her rip."

Shannon and Nunzio got into their starting positions and locked up. Chris and Terry helped Adam critique and tighten a few spots that looked iffy. By the time the match was through the small blond ran through all of the new tricks Adam had taught him, plus a few more from Rhyno and the Rabid Wolverine. The match looked awesome to the tall blond Canadian.

"That was great!" Chris exclaimed, clapping both cruiserweights on the shoulder as they left the ring. "Beautiful suplexes, man!"

"Thanks," Nunzio grinned in response. "Shannon's getting good at taking them, too."

"Funny," the small blond cocked an eyebrow.

"Who's hungry?" Terry asked.

"I'm guessing you," Chris laughed. "Anyone else want to come?"

"I've got to meet up with Chuck," Nunzio said apologetically. "Rain check?"

"Sure,\rry rry shrugged and the small Italian walked away. "What about you two."

"Can you wait a few minutes while I shower?" Shannon looked up uncertainly.

"Yes, we can," Adam smiled reassuringly. "Take your time. We'll be here."

"Thanks, Adam," Shannon grinned back and loped into the locker room.

"Yeah, you're definitely a positive influence," Chris nodded to the tall blond.