Frozen

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Lita was still aching as she made her way out of the arena.

Her back hurt like nobody's business, and she winced as she hitched her bag higher over her shoulder.

Shit... That damn Molly Holly had tossed her into the steel ring steps earlier that night, when she'd been standing in Christian's corner during his match - against none other than her ex-boyfriend, Matt Hardy. She'd been minding her own business, merely watching the action when the brunette Women's champion had run out to attack her.

She grimaced some more as she reached her rental car, then grabbed her keys. That was when a hand suddenly touched her shoulder, and, startled, she nearly jumped. She whirled around but calmed down immeasurably when she saw who'd been standing beside her.

"Sorry...Didn't mean to scare you..."

"That's all right," she replied. "You know I don't scare easily." She gave a little nervous laugh.

"Of course not...you're extreme..." the man said with a smile, following it with a wink, echoing the exact same thing he'd said to his friend earlier. "But hey... Need a hand?"

"Oh, God, yes!" the redhead said, letting out a sigh to follow. "After what that bitch Molly Holly did to me earlier, my back is killing me."

The man put one strap of the bag securely over his right shoulder as he unlocked the driver's side door for her.

"Well, hopefully it's nothing a good soak in a hot bath won't cure."

"Yeah, hopefully." She smiled at him as he held the door open for her. After she gingerly got in, he opened the back door and lay her bag on its seat. She glanced around, biting her lip gently as she wondered if his own rental was nearby.

"Well, I'd better get a move-on," he said. "I have to get my stuff and head back myself."

"Is your rental near? I can wait for you," Lita offered.

"I didn't get a rental today," the man replied. "No time, so I took a cab over."

The redhead arched an eyebrow prettily at that.

"So, you're expecting to take one now, too?"

"Yeah."

"Listen, you don't have to do that. Why don't you ride back with me?"

The man quirked his brows up. This was certainly an interesting turn of events, and inside, he was laughing. He knew he was the one who was going to win this thing...

"You don't mind?"

"No, not at all," Lita assured him. "Why would I mind?"

"Great! And thanks, I'll go back to my locker room to get my stuff and be right back, okay?" Afterward, he made a mad dash back toward the building.

The redhead couldn't help the small smile that came to her lips as she watched him race back into the arena. She felt so grateful toward the man for how nice he'd been, for how he'd picked her up after she'd been so down when Matt had dumped her. He was really such a sweetheart - much to her pleasant surprise.

Suddenly, the ringing of her cell phone startled her from her thoughts. As she reached for it, she noted that Trish was calling from her own cell.

"Hey, Trish...What's up?"

"Hi, Lita. I'm so glad I caught you. Look, I..." The little blonde paused, and the redhead could hear her sigh on the other end. "I'm going to room with Lilian tonight. I just wanted to let you know."

"Okay..." The other diva frowned, wondering why Trish was suddenly not going to be rooming with her tonight. After all, they'd been sharing a hotel room on the road constantly since she'd returned from her injury. On the other hand, she knew the Canadian diva was close friends with the petite ring announcer as well.

Inwardly, she wondered if Trish was only saying this to cover up something else. Maybe it really had to do with Chris Jericho.

"Lita, I'm...I'm sorry."

"For what? Don't worry a thing about it, Trish," she replied. "I don't mind you ditching me for Lilian..." There was a grin on her face when she said that. If her friend wanted to play coy with her, she'd play along - for now.

After a moment, the two women hung up, and the redhead looked up to see him returning.

"All set?" she asked with a smile.

The man got into the passenger's side door, which she'd unlocked for him.

"All set," Christian replied with a grin.






Part 4

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