Change of Heart

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Lita sat back in the women's locker room in front of the TV monitor later on as Kevin Kelly was interviewing Edge, Christian and X-Pac.

As she listened to all the rude, mindless comments emerging from the mouths of the three young men, she shook her head, wondering why on earth she suddenly couldn't seem to stop thinking about Edge - about what they'd shared the night before.

The redhead smirked at X-Pac's little crack about not having seen a "Texan run so fast since the Dukes of Hazzard," referring to Stone Cold Steve Austin.  A little earlier, Rikishi, who turned out to be the person who'd run the Rattlesnake over at last year's Survivor Series, had vandalized Austin's pickup truck.  Even worse, the big Samoan man had also roughed up Good Ol' J.R., and for no other reason than the sheer "fun" of it.

Although Edge's final comment of the interview was pretty mean and obnoxious - he'd said the three of them would be "donating the money we earn from tonight's match toward the cleaning of J.R.'s drawers" - Lita couldn't help laughing.  One thing she had to admit was that the tall blond man did have a sense of humor - even if it was at someone else's expense.

She noticed Michael Cole's response to the taunting "jokes": "These guys are idiots," as the camera cut to the arena, where the Hardys were making their entrance, Y2J Chris Jericho following, and then their three opponents went to the squared circle together.

The match was underway, starting off fast and furiously, but Lita knew these six men wouldn't have it any other way.  She winced as Jeff took quite a lot of punishment from all three of his opponents for awhile.

Normally, she would have been out there at ringside, but she wasn't because she was supposed to be preparing for her match against Trish.  Yet, she wasn't doing that, either - she was sitting here, watching the six-man tag match - or, more aptly, watching Edge.

Ironically enough, the tide shifted in the bout when Jeff, who'd been pummeled mercilessly for the longest time, was in there with the tall blond man.  Edge bodyslammed the younger Hardy brother in the corner, then climbed the turnbuckles to do what the redhead assumed was a guillotine legdrop - because the next thing she knew, the Canadian was suddenly mimicking Matt's gun signs and "war cry."  The antics made Lita laugh out loud, and she found herself glad she was the only one currently in the diva's locker room.  Anyone watching her reaction to what was going on in the ring would think it odd.

However, the redhead found herself wincing a moment later, when Edge launched himself - jaw-first right into Jeff's boot.  It got to the point where, unbelievably enough, even to her, she didn't know who she was rooting for.

Jericho missed nailing X-Pac with the Lionsault due to the dark-haired man putting his knees up - and then chaos ensued soon after...

Edge brought a chair into the ring.  He never got to use it - but that didn't mean it wasn't used at all.

Suddenly, the sounds of shattering glass filled the arena, and as the six competitors continuned brawling, Stone Cold Steve Austin, who'd evidently returned from his little chase with Rikishi, ran to the ring.  The redhead gasped as the man picked up the fallen chair, swinging it into the heads of each man in the six-person tag match - hard.  They all dropped to the canvas - with the exception of Jericho, who fell to the arena floor - one-by-one.  It was horrible.

"That son of a bitch!" the Women's champion muttered furiously, her hands clenching into fists.  What the hell was wrong with Austin?  Why take his frustrations out on these six guys?  What had they ever done to him?

Nothing! she answered her own question.  She knew the answer, plain and simple, boiled down to one thing, and one thing only - testosterone.  The jerk...

Lita wished she could go out there and check on her friends.  Matt had a tendency to get busted open very easily, as he had when he and Jeff had faced Edge and Christian in a steel cage for the Tag Team titles last month at Unforgiven.

However, she had to acknowledge that Matt, Jeff and Chris weren't the only ones she was worried about...

She hoped Edge was all right as well - and decided she would go see him later on, damn all else.

*

"Oh..."  Edge held his head as he winced in pain.  He and Christian had just returned to their locker room after they and the four other men in their match had gotten their heads smashed by the chair he'd brought into the ring.

"I second that," Christian said as he gritted his teeth, a makeshift icepack held up against his head.

"I'm sorry I brought that damn chair into the ring in the first place," the taller man muttered as he sat down on a nearby chair.  Stone Cold had completed dented the back of the chair, and he had been the first person the Rattlesnake had hit.

The two looked up simultaneously as a knock suddenly sounded on the door.  It sounded frantic.  Christian mumbled something unintelligible under his breath as he stood up to answer it.

Stephanie McMahon practically threw herself into his arms as she kicked the door shut behind her.  "Are you okay, Christian?"

Edge glared over at the brunette through the corner of his eye.  It was at times like these that he really couldn't stand her.  Not a word did she ask about his condition.

"Yeah, I'm all right.  A little bump at best," the Canadian replied as he held his girlfriend back slightly to gaze into her worried face.

"Oh...well, thank goodness you're all right!" she said with a smile.

"My head hurts like hell, but I think I'll live - thanks for asking," Edge snapped as he glared over at the couple, but particularly Stephanie.

"Sorry, Edge...Are you okay?"

The tall blond man rolled his eyes.  "Great...I feel just great.  I nearly got my head bashed in by a chair I was stupid enough to bring into the ring by some drunken Texan...I feel absolutely on top of the world," he muttered.

As Stephanie stared at him with surprised large blue eyes, for he'd never spoken so nastily or sarcastically toward her before, Christian attempted to calm him down.  "Chill, dude..."  He put up a hand as if in a placating gesture, but Edge would have none of it.

"I don't want to chill!" he shouted.  "Look, I'm sick of you two!"  His tag team partner's facial expression turned angry as the brunette looked shocked, letting out a little gasp.  "You are two of the most selfish, inconsiderate, rude people I've ever met...what you did to me last night, and what you've done to me countless nights since you started your pathetic little relationship - it's not happening anymore!"

"Edge!  What's the matter with you?!" Christian exclaimed, his eyes glancing over in his girlfriend's direction.

"I'm tired of you and your little princess treating me like a second-class citizen, that's what!" the taller man yelled as he stood up and came over to them, pointing an angry finger into his friend's chest.  "And believe me when I say last night was the last time it'll ever happen - because you're never going to do that to me again."

"But we need-"

"I don't care what you need!  Get your own damn hotel room from now on, Christian, because I quit!  If you insist on kicking me out of my own room to screw your little girlfriend here, tell me right now - because I'll rent my own room!"  Edge turned and stormed over to the door, and although the other man called his name, he didn't turn back.

Instead, he marched down the hallway, not having anyplace in mind to go.  He figured he'd let his feet take him wherever they wanted.






Part 10

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