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{I still remember
The world from the eyes of a child
Slowly those feelings
Were clouded by what I know now

Where has my heart gone
An uneven trade for the real world
I want to go back to
Believing in everything and knowing nothing at all...}

Lisa Marie kept her head turned to her right, gazing unseeingly out the window as she sat in the passenger's seat.

She was weeping, and somehow, she'd managed thus far to keep it silent - to the point that none of the car's other occupants were even aware of it.

"Damn it, what's with this traffic?" Randy muttered from the driver's seat. He pounded one hand on the steering wheel in his impatience.

In the backseat, Adam held onto the battered and distraught Amy. In fact, the redhead seemed to become hysterical whenever the tall Canadian wasn't touching her. At the moment, he was holding her to his side, the diva's head resting on his shoulder.

The blond man held tightly to one of Amy's hands, his heart nearly breaking at the way her body seemed to shudder somewhat. All he could think of was getting his hands on Matt Hardy - the bastard!

He wondered how he'd never suspected anything before. He and Amy had been friends for so long, and although they hadn't seen much of each other for some time - thanks to her being out with an injury up until September, and him being on SmackDown - they'd still spoken regularly. He'd asked her about Matt, and about their relationship, every so often. Usually, when that subject had been broached, she would either keep her responses minimal or else change the subject.

Why the hell hadn't he ever suspected? The blond man had about a million questions swirling through his head, but he bit back, knowing that now was not the time to voice any of them. Adam still wondered how long Hardy had been abusive toward Amy, and whether he'd forced himself on her before tonight.

And jeez - he had to stop entertaining thoughts of breaking every bone in the man's body. At the very moment, he had to concentrate on the redhead in his arms. She was the most important concern right now. He had to be strong for her, as she had obviously chosen him to lean on during her horrible time.

"What's the name of this street?" Randy asked, his voiced tinged with nervousness. He glanced around anxiously, desperate to locate the hospital Stacy Keibler had told Lisa Marie about when the diva had called her friend sometime earlier. When no one replied to his question, Orton turned quickly, reaching out to grasp the raven-haired woman's wrist.

"Lisa?" When she turned to face him, the young man nearly flinched at the teary brown eyes, the redness in them that, even in the meager light, he was easily able to detect.

The diva's lips parted as though she were about to speak, and she glanced around to get the name of the street Randy was pointing to.

"Beech..." she said softly, but loudly enough for him to hear. "Stacy said the hospital is a couple of blocks past this intersection."

Randy gave her hand a gentle squeeze as he sped off down the street, the traffic a bit clearer. He glanced at the dark-haired diva again, knowing how torn up she was inside over what had befallen her friend. But she was so damn tough and obviously determined not to let Amy know she was dying on the inside. God, how he admired and respected her. He, on the other hand, was a nervous wreck and terrified as hell. He didn't know what to say or do to make things better for the redhead in the backseat. Hell, there was probably nothing to do or say that would make her feel better. The fact that her own boyfriend - who was supposed to cherish her - had so brutalized her had to be the worst feeling in the world.

From the backseat, he could hear Amy and Adam speaking softly to each other.

"Adam...?" the redhead spoke, her voice sounding so childlike, so vulnerable. In fact, her voice made the blond Canadian man's heart ache.

"I'm here, sweetheart..." he said gently.

She stared up into his face with such a pleading yet uncertain look on her own that he damn near burst into tears.

"Please don't... don't leave me..." she cried softly. "I-I don't want to be in some creepy hospital and have them tell me you're not in the waiting room... w-waiting to see me..."

Adam tightened his grip around her, dismayed to discover she was shaking ever so slightly.

"That's not going to happen, Ames... I swear it."

The redhead burrowed into his side even more closely, and she clung to him tightly.

In the passenger's seat up front, Lisa Marie ducked her head, her face in her hands as she resumed her silent weeping.