______________________________________________________
Dawn Marie stopped just before the diner's parking lot and glanced at her watch. There were still a few more minutes remaining before her shift was to officially start. She decided to stand out here and just wait.
The brunette leaned against the side of the building, uneasy thoughts running through her head. Sighing, she rummaged through her purse and pulled out a cigarette as well as a lighter. Placing the cigarette between her lips, she raised the lighter and lit it, then took a deep drag before exhaling the smoke.
God, that felt good... While it was unfortunate that she'd recently taken up smoking again - a habit she'd abandoned several years earlier - she couldn't help it. Lord knew, she was so overly stressed these days - especially now. She still had trouble believing he'd finally caught up to them.
Dawn continued smoking her cigarette with utmost pleasure when she was suddenly startled. The sound of a female voice muttering unhappily struck her ears, and she looked up to see Torrie Wilson emerging from the restaurant. The tall platinum blonde looked unhappy, to say the least. She seemed completely unaware of Dawn's presence as she turned back toward the building and let out an enraged snarl.
"Screw you! Screw you *all*!"
The brunette arched an eyebrow as Torrie then scurried off to her car in the nearby street. She wondered exactly what had happened but guessed it had everything to do with the blonde woman finally getting fired.
Soon after, finished with her cigarette, Dawn Marie shrugged. She tossed the butt of her smoke to the ground and smashed it with the toe of her heeled shoe, then walked calmly into The Stop.
*
Lita's guard instantly shot up about five hundred notches as she suddenly realized who had just entered the establishment. It was strange that, once upon a time - and not long ago at all - she had considered the woman one of her very closest friends. Funny how things change so quickly. Now, as far as she was concerned, Dawn Marie was nothing but the enemy. How could she screw Edge over like that? She *and* Christian! If a person couldn't trust their significant other and their own brother, then who *could* they trust?
The redhead moved swiftly around the tables at her stationed area. She wanted to just ignore the brunette, but somehow she sensed that would be an impossibility. Dawn would, more likely than not, act as though everything were the same as it had been a few days ago - play oblivious. She wondered what the woman's reaction would be once Adam returned from the men's room and she saw him. There would be no escaping, that much was for sure.
All the fine hairs on the back of Lita's neck stood on end. While she would much prefer to just ignore Dawn, she sensed a confrontation between them was inevitable. But whatever were to happen, the brunette had it coming!
"Lita..."
There, that was it. She didn't look up as Dawn Marie spoke her name, instead pretending as though she were so immersed in the dishes she toted that she hadn't even heard her. Lita strode to the double swinging doors leading into the kitchen, her breath held and her shoulders straight. Chris gave her a speculative look as she edged over to the sink.
"Uh oh... What's wrong *now*?" the blond man questioned. Somehow, he didn't think she was still miffed about what had happened with Torrie a few moments earlier.
She shook her head but didn't bother to answer him. And that was when Dawn Marie pushed her way into the kitchen.
"Hey, Chris... Lita."
The cook uttered a greeting in response, but the redhead didn't say a word. Jericho arched a brow at her silence, wondering what was up. There was no reason for Lita to be pissed with *him*, so he had to assume she was angry with the brunette.
Dawn gave her a strange, hurt look, but it went unnoticed. Then, grabbing an apron, the brunette whisked away to change into her uniform.
"Hey, what was that all about?"
Lita looked up and met Chris' blue eyes, a glum expression on her face. She definitely didn't feel up to explaining it all now - not to mention, it really was none of his business. She was about to step away as Dawn Marie reappeared.
"Lita, are... are you mad at me or something?" she asked, hurt brown eyes gazing up at her.
The redhead grimaced, her blood positively boiling. The memory of the hurt in Adam's green eyes when he'd told her, the slight quaver in his voice, all came back to her... and it made her want to kill the bitch.
"Mad at you?" the redhead echoed. "Am I *mad* at you?" A vein throbbed in Lita's temple as she glared at the brunette. "You God damned bitch! You lied to me! How could you *do* that to him?!"
In an instant, Dawn's eyes widened in shock and fear. What was Lita talking about? It sounded as though... No... Fear coursed through her as she realized just how angry the redhead was. Lita was bigger than her and could certainly hurt her if she really wanted to. And besides, Dawn Marie was no fighter!
"Lita, I-I..." Her words were cut short as the other woman pulled back her arm and decked
her squarely in the jaw. Dawn staggered backward, falling on her butt to the floor from the
impact. As she clutched her aching face, she stared up at her once friend, tears swimming in
her eyes. And it was then that she knew for certain that Lita knew exactly what she had done.