______________________________________________________
RAW had finally come to an end, and Amy was relieved that she and Adam were leaving. Everything seemed to be going blessedly uneventful as they were about to leave the arena to return to the hotel.
"Hang on there," a voice called as they were making their way down the hall.
Adam glanced over his shoulder, a scowl itching to formon his face at the sight of Johnny Nitro - Eric Bischoff's assistant.
Amy stopped in her tracks as well, anxiety gripping her as she looked at the young man who'd spoken.
"Yeah?"
"Mr. Bischoff would like to see you before you leave," Johnny said.
The tall blond man frowned. The younger man seemed almost smug to deliver this news. Yet, strangely enough, after all this time, he'd honestly expected to walk out of here tonight without a hitch. He somehow managed to refrain from rolling his eyes.
"I guess I better go, then." He met the redhead's gaze and was dismayed at what he read in her hazel eyes. She looked full of anxiety and was obviously upset that he'd apparently gotten himself in trouble.
Silently, they made their way down the hall back in the direction they'd come, toward the General Manager's office.
"Adam, I-"
"Hey, it's all right," the Canadian interrupted, trying to reassure her. They came to a stop as they reached the right room, and he reached out to gently touch her cheek. She looked damn worried for him. "Whatever he hands at me, I'll deal with it." He lowered his head to kiss her, and her eyes instantly closed as she responded in kind. Then, he parted from her and spoke softly again. "Wait out here for me."
Amy's heart was in her eyes as she watched him move over to the door and then slip inside. This was awful. It was his first night back, and already there were problems. She only hoped all he would get was a reprimand.
*
"Who the hell do you think you are?" Eric Bischoff barked. The wiry little man was angry as he stared up at the much taller and larger blond man. "You messed up that entire segment!"
"I acted on impulse," Adam said. He wasn't even trying to defend his actions.
"Like hell! You screwed with the script!" Eric yelled.
Adam was finally beginning to lose his temper as he glared down into the man's beady, dark eyes.
"Right! Just like *you* screwed with the script a few months back on Amy!"
"What? Don't you *dare*-"
The tall blond man didn't give the GM a chance to finish.
"Yeah, that's right," he interrupted. "You screwed with the script on my fiancee - I said 'screw the script' tonight, and so what? So? What are you gonna do about it?" There was a challenging gleam in Adam's green eyes.
Bischoff stared at the tall, angry Canadian for a beat, his blood boiling. As he'd suspected five months earlier after that incident with him running out during Lita's segment on The Highlight Reel, the man had indeed proven to be nothing but trouble. Plus, the menacing way he was glaring at him now made the General Manager more than a little uncomfortable. Somehow, he sensed that Adam Copeland was angry and irrational enough to strike him - regardless of the fact that he was now his boss.
Finally, the GM swallowed hard, sucking down all of his fears. He was not going to let this prick get away with fucking with him - *or* a RAW segment - and so far, the blond man had done both twice.
"I'll *tell* you what I'm going to do about it!" he shouted. "I'm going to put Edge in a feud... with *Kane*!"
The tall blond man was not the least bit phased. Glenn Jacobs was a consummate superstar in the ring and out, not to mention a good guy. If Bischoff thought this was a way of scaring or punishing him, he really needed to re-think his strategy.
"Yeah?" Adam asked. "Well, that's about the best news I've heard all night." He flashed his
famous grin at the man before heading out, leaving Bischoff stunned as he stared after him.