______________________________________________________
{I feel so lonely
Since I had to leave you
'Cause all I had to say
Was not true
I'm thinking of you
Every day and every night
I'm missing your lovin'
Your face and your eyes...}
"But Daddy, how in *hell* could you release him?!" Stephanie McMahon cried, her blue eyes tearing up slightly as she fixed them on her father. They were in Vince's office at World Wrestling Entertainment's corporate headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut. Normally, at this current time, she would have just been working behind the scenes for the shows rather than here, but after learning the news, she'd taken it upon herself to book the first flight over and demand answers from the man.
"Stephanie, what's done is done," the McMahon patriarch and WWE Chairman stated emphatically. "At this point, it's out of my hands."
"Out of your hands??" the brunette exclaimed. "Daddy, you're the Chairman of this company! You can overturn any decision-"
"That's just the thing, honey," the man cut in, interrupting the young woman, "this is not something I *want* overturned. "He's released, and that's the end of it."
The tears that had been building in her eyes finally spilled forth down onto her cheeks, a sick, tight feeling in her chest and constricting her throat. Despite the moisture in her eyes, she refused to start bawling right here in front of her father. But this was absolutely horrible.
"No," Stephanie said softly, shaking her head, as though denying what had happened. "I don't understand it... You had him sent to OVW to hone his skills, and rather than bring him back to one of the brands, you *release* him?"
"Steph, to be honest with you, the guy never really made much of an impression on me once we got rid of Piper... And it wasn't even my idea to let him go."
"What?" The brunette cocked her head to one side as she searched her father's face. Vince obviously wasn't offering her any information. "Then whose idea *was* it?"
"That's not important right now, sweetheart... What *is* important is that-"
"Damn it, Dad! I want to know, and I think I have a *right* to know!" Stephanie cried.
Mr. McMahon studied his daughter intently for a beat, taking in her tears and all her anger, and despite the fact that the man they were discussing was her former boyfriend, he really was surprised by her reaction. Their breakup had not been a mutual *or* happy one, yet it was obvious the brunette still held some tender feelings for him deep in her heart. He lowered himself slowly, almost heavily into the large black leather chair situated befor his massive oak desk.
"Fine," he said, nodding. "I suppose You do have that right..." After a brief hesitation, "It was Paul's idea."
Stephanie's eyes widened in shock, although she figured she really shouldn't have been so surprised.
"What? Oh, I don't believe this..." she muttered, shaking her head as a thought occurred to her. "Dad, you can hire him back. Call him, FedEx him, whatever - let him know he *isn't* released!"
"I'm not going to do that, honey."
Stephanie stared blankly at her father. She felt all the breath leave her body, as though she'd been struck by a very heavy blunt object. This all felt like a nightmare. What was she going to do now? But she knew her father - once he made up his mind about something, *nothing* could change it.
"Fine," she finally spoke, a firm determination in her voice. Her tears oddly stopped right then and there, despite her heart breaking. A snap decision suddenly came to her, and it was so crystal clear that it nearly made her dizzy.
But she knew she had to do this... It was the only way, the only thing she could think of.
"Goodbye, Daddy..." The brunette began making her way toward the door to leave.
"I'll see you back here for our meeting on Friday," the man called back.
"No," she began as she stopped just by the door. She turned back toward Vince. "You don't understand... I quit." Then, calmly, she turned back and headed out the door - leaving her shocked father staring after her, slack-jawed.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
{I had to leave you
But I cannot, cannot forget you
I want you
I want you
I want you!
I stand by my window
And all seems so low
Slow but sure I understand
The good times we had
The good times we had
So empty is my heart
Without you
Without you
Stand apart...}
Although it was probably a stupid thing to do, Sean O'Haire had traveled to the location at which the SmackDown taping was taking place. Somehow, he needed to go to the arena and say goodbye to the people who were his friends.
He supposed he hadn't been too surprised when he'd discovered about his release. After all, he'd been sent to OVW and had spent the last few months there. When the WWE hadn't contacted him in all this time, he figured his fate would be the same as many others before him. It sucked, but what else could he do but deal with it?
Since it was hours before the taping, the tattooed, dark-haired man decided to go out to the ring. He wanted to just stand there and remember everything before he left for good.
He felt the despair gripping him as he approached the ring, the urge to step into it overwhelming. There was pretty much no one around other than a few stagehands, so what the hell? Dropping his bag, he made his way to the squared circle, stepped through the ropes and stood in its center. He turned around and around, gazing up at the empty seats throughout the arena, sorry he would never experience the cheers - or boos - from the fans on SmackDown ever again.
"Sean!"
O'Haire whirled around at the site of the feminine voice, which sounded so small yet strong. As he faced the entry ramp, he spotted a familiar form rushing down it and toward the ring. One of her slender hands raised and waved at him almost frantically, as though she was terrified he wouldn't see her.
"Stephanie?" he whispered so softly even *he* could barely hear himself. As she neared, he saw that it was indeed her. What was she doing here??
{I'd change my mind
I will take your way
Together forever
Come on, it's the last essay - yeah
I had to leave you
But I cannot, cannot forget you
I want you
I want you
I want you!
I stand by my window
And all seems so low
Slow but sure I understand
The good times we had
The good times we had
So empty is my heart
Without you
Without you
Stand apart
Since I had to leave you
I cannot forget you
Slow but sure I understand
The good times we had
The good times we had...}
Quickly, he exited the ring, grabbing his bag and then meeting her halfway as she continued rushing over to him. There was a look of anguish on her face, mixed with something else he couldn't quite grasp.
"Stephanie..." he breathed, still shocked to see her standing there before him. "What are you doing here?"
"I couldn't let you leave without saying goodbye," she said mournfully, shaking her head. She appeared about two seconds away from breaking down and crying, and it hurt Sean's heart. "I... Well, you're not the only one leaving."
The burly, dark-haired man frowned as he searched her beautiful face.
"What do you mean?"
"I quit," Stephanie explained. "What they did to you was *so* wrong, and I just quit."
"Oh, Steph... You shouldn't have done that."
"*Fuck* them!" the tall brunette cried, startling him in the process. She rarely cursed, but when she did, it was usually with good reason. "If they can release someone as talented and wonderful and-" She reached out almost tentatively with her right hand, pressing it softly against his cheek. "-special as you, then I give up..."
Sean absorbed her words, the naked emotion on her face, and closed the small distance between them. Despite the ending of their past relationship, he had to do this one more time - one *last* time.
He wrapped his left arm around her waist, drawing her against him as he lowered his lips to hers, kissing her passionately. She instantly responded, kissing him back, and he knew she was crying as he felt the hot moisture on his cheek. Her tears had transposed to him.
Reluctantly, O'Haire released the young woman, taking in the sorrow and tears on her face. He swallowed hard as he knew he had to leave. Without another word - for he didn't feel he could say 'goodbye' to her - he stepped past her and started walking away. Stephanie's sobs stayed with him, breaking his heart.
After a moment, he stopped dead in his tracks, then turned back. The teary brunette was staring after him, her blue eyes sadder than he'd ever seen. His heart began to pound wildly in his chest as an impulsive urge struck him.
"Steph... Will you... Will you marry me?"
The young woman blinked, her gaze stuck on him, her eyes wider as she realized what he'd just asked of her. She seemed to hesitate for a beat before approaching him and catching up to him. She reached down and grasped his hand, a small chuckle escaping her.
"My God... Sean, I... Yes, yes I will!"
One more kiss was shared between the two, before they made their way,
hand-in-hand, out of the arena. Somehow, they would start a whole
new life together - a life away from the WWE.
~~ End ~~