"Stop." Our Hero thought this was his voice, but then again he wasn't very sure of very much of anything anymore. "Joanie, stop."
Breathlessly, she pulled away from him. "What's wrong? Didn't you...didn't you like that? Didn't you need it?"
Well, in a way he did. He wasn't complaining, most definitely. For the ten seconds it was worth, she was a great kisser. But not yet, and definitely not here. He shook his head. "It's not that, I just..need a little time."
Joanie smiled and nodded as if she did this kind of thing every day. "I understand, honey. Take your time." She leaned in a little closer to him. His eyes quickly moved over to see if Her Paul would awake and kill them both. "I really like you, Chris."
His mind couldn't find anything to respond, but his mouth could. "Thanks." Duhhhhh.
"Seriously. I want you to know that any time you need me I'm here. I like you. A lot."
He started to get up, but Joanie took his hand and looked into his eyes. Hers were starting to well up with tears. "Please. I need you."
Great. This was not what he needed to hear, and it was definitely something he didn't want Her Paul to hear. "We can't do this," he answered, after a moment of reuniting brain, penis, and mouth.
"We can," she whispered, almost desperately. "You don't understand, Chris. Him?" She motioned over to her sleeping boyfriend. "He doesn't do things for me like he used to. It's like he doesn't care anymore. See...you and me, we aren't so different. We're alone and we need each other. Can't you see that?"
At that point she broke down and leaned herself against him for support. CJ *really* didn't need this on his first day on the job. But what was he going to do? Sit there and let her cry? Of course not. He did what any other real man would do.
They left and went back to that empty hotel room of his.
The Initiated - 13 "Some Paragon Of Virtue"
CJ couldn't believe what he was doing as soon as he was doing it. Literally. Doing it. It seemed like a blur, actually. Entering the dark room, sitting on the bed as she undressed in front of him, then lying on the bed as she undressed him. And ohhh man was she good at even just undressing him! Slowly, carefully, as if his body was a work of art. She took his shirt off first, running her hands down his chest and down to his jeans, where she found his quite obvious erection. Teasing, taunting, her hands fondled around with the zipper before she undid his pants and pulled them off of him.
So there he lay, in soft cotton boxers {tented by now, of course} as she moved her hard naked body over him. The heat between the two of them was intense as she began kissing him. First on the lips, then down his neck, chest, stomach....ohhhoh, tongue in the navel, then down to his basket, kissing at him through the soft blue fabric. This was obviously planned, he was thinking...but nothing else mattered except for the sensations she was giving him on his cock.
Joanie pulled down the waistband and began her little show. She licked at his organ, making it throb even harder and causing CJ to moan softly. God, he didn't realize how bad he NEEDED this. She kissed and licked at the engorged member, almost making him shoot off right there. Up and down the shaft...even on the sensitive underside. This was indeed heaven.
She licked back up to the top, up to his cockhead, already glistening with precum. Joanie smiled and wrapped her lips around the tip and suckled, making him moan a little louder. "Ohhh God," he managed to murmur, placing his hand around her head as if to keep it there forever.
She sucked him off like a pro, flicking her tongue around his hard prick, making him squirm with pleasure. Each moan or murmur that came from him was followed by a murmur of pleasure from her. The smooth vibrations from her hums enhanced the sensation even more. He had forgotten everything around him...nothing mattered more than this one moment.
Her hands were all over his very full balls, confusing him as to what part he enjoyed more..of course that was no matter, because he felt it...he felt it now and it was about to do it now and there was no stopping it...no stopping...don't stop...
"Ohhh fuck.."
He felt himself explode in her mouth, volleys of his hot load shooting down Joanie's throat. She murmured her pleasure one last time as she sucked him dry. Breathless, he tried to gasp his thanks. She grinned, watching him pant and attempt to catch his breath without much avail.
After a moment he sat up, finally clear-headed. She continued to kiss him and rub at his stomach and chest.
"You're good, Chrissy. Really good. You know that?"
"You're great."
She gave him that smile again. "Am I? Why thank you sir, I take any compliment I can get."
Our Hero chuckled. "I'll bet you can take a lot of things."
"You'll have to show me my limits, I guess?" Joanie laughed and started to get up to find her clothes that she'd so conveniently lost earlier.
CJ had other plans. He took her arm and pulled her back down, close to him. She responded with a genuinely surprised gasp, to which he responded by moving himself on top of her.
"We can start pushing those limits...right now."
The Initiated - 14 "Moving On"
Our Hero Chris Jericho was undoubtedly making a smooth transition from WCW midcarder to WWF beloved superstar. He shined at the Raw tapings the following night after bliss and heaven. The crowd loved him, and anything he did was greeted with cheers and the standard markish "boos at the primadonna." CJ loved it. He had friends now, plenty of them, and Joanie was on the top of his list. Hell, even Her Paul had warmed up to Our Party Host and took him under his wing as if he'd always been in the WWF. After Summerslam and into the beginning of September the three were almost inseperable.
Somehow, it almost seemed as if he was *trying* to forget Clearwater, FL, as he'd been on the road, milling around backstage at house shows. He was definitely leaving something behind. This was evident when he put up no argument as his newfound friends helped him pick out a small hideaway home outside of Greenwich, not far from their own place.
It was a little cozy house, single-story, two bedroom, two bath. He made his last trip to Clearwater after the pay-per-view, to pick up a few more things to move to Conneticut with. After locking the door and leaving a note for the caretaker, he left Florida behind. At least for a little while.
And so was the beginning of his "new life" as he put it. The front office was more than pleased with him; in the following weeks he'd be working in a feud with X-Pac, yet another guy that had befriended him in the past few weeks. A few nights after he'd gotten word from the office about his new angle, Joanie called. She hadn't talked to him in a few days as their schedules conflicted, and Our Hero hadn't worried much about it at the time, but hearing her voice on the phone made him more excited than he had been in days.
"Hey stranger," she said. "Sorry I've not talked to you in a few days. You know how it goes."
"Too well," he answered, happy to have said something that didn't make him sound completely stupid. "It's okay, I understand."
"Well I want to make it up to you. I hate it when a few days go by and I haven't spoken to my close friends. Have you eaten yet?"
"No, I'm still trying to unpack boxes and figure out where the hell I packed stuff."
Joanie laughed. "Fine. I'll come over and help. Then maybe we could go out? They just opened a new Chinese place in town."
Chris fought HARD the urge to make a little joke at that. Use your imagination to what it may have been.
"Um, sure.." he answered, trying to stifle a laugh. "Is Paul around?"
"Not tonight. He's out with Waltman tonight, he's in town. I heard about what's going down between you two soon. I like it."
"Me too. I'll tell you more about it when you get here." For some reason he felt a little lurch in his tummy when she announced that Her Paul would NOT be tagging along. Maybe he should pull that mattress out of the corner...
"See ya then."
The Initiated - 15 "Is This Love?"
Well, is it?
A very long and strenuous two hours were spent hauling and moving around boxes in the little place. Who'd have thought he'd packed so much stuff? By the time they were done, needless to say he needed a shower.
Our Paragon of Virtue knew where this was headed, of course. He just wanted to let it play out rather slowly.
Chris closed the bathroom door behind him, but didn't lock it. He prepared the hot shower, enjoying the mist on him. Very refershing. As if he were waiting on something, he slowly stripped off his damp t-shirt and jeans, then down came the boxers.
No sign of her yet. Huh. He stepped into the shower and closed the stall door behind him, almost instantly enjoying the feel of warm water all over him. He'd just about forgotten Joanie was in the living room, still helping him unpack those damned boxes...
CJ turned around and let the water flow through his long blonde hair, murmuring softly to himself about how damn good a hot shower felt after such a long day. Quite blissful, really.
And so was the sight of him completely naked, as Joanie realized. She hadn't been standing at the door long, watching him, watching the water run off of him. The windows were just about completely steam-fogged and her good viewing spot was becoming blocked. So maybe it was time for her to..
And she did. She stripped down to nothing as his back was turned to the door. Ever so quietly she came up behind him, opened the shower door, and stepped in.
CJ gasped when he felt her hand sneak around and grab at his stomach. Then he remembered. Oh yeah...I wanted to have hot shower sex with her. At least that was what he planned earlier...wasn't it?
She was more than willing. He turned around to face her and met her with a long kiss, their tongues probing around in each others mouths for a few moments, then breaking away so she could kiss at the rest of him, her tongue snaking out every now and then just to drive him crazy. And it did. She was *such* a good lover...
Wait, what was that? He almost stopped cold when he realized what he'd just thought. Love?
Then he stopped for real. He pulled away from her sweet lips and exploring tongue at that moment, breathing a little more heavily than he thought he was.
"Stop. I can't. I'm sorry."
She was a little out of breath herself. "Why?"
He reached over and turned off the water. "I just can't. I don't know why." And he really didn't. He didn't know how to feel about his new "friend" Joanie and if he should feel anything about her at all. With that, he opened the door to the shower and got out.
The Initiated - 16 "No Control"
CJ wrapped a towel around himself and nearly ran out of the bathroom. To where, he didn't know. He just knew he had to get away from her before something happened and he'd lose control of how he should feel. At the moment, he knew one thing. He was falling in love with Joanie Lee Laurer; he was falling in love with someone that was already supposed to be in love with someone else.
He sat outside of the bathroom on the floor, trying to collect his thoughts. Don't cry, he thought to himself fiercely. Don't CRY, there's nothing to cry about!!
Damn it. He was crying already. Why is it always easier to cry in situations when you tell yourself there's nothing to cry about?
Well, that was that, and he couldn't stop. He was sobbing. And it wasn't necessarily just the fact that he was falling for Joanie. It was everything. He seriously had no control over this situation and that was what scared him the most.
He felt her hands on his shoulders, gently massaging. Joanie then knelt next to him and held him as if he were a little boy. He didn't fight against it this time; he just let her hold him as his sobs subsided.
"I apologize," he finally said. "For everything. I didn't mean to break it off like that. I don't really know what I was thinking."
"You did nothing wrong, Chris."
"I shouldn't lead you on like I've been doing. You're with someone else and I should respect that."
She didn't answer that. Instead she took his hand, helped him up, and gave him a warm hug, which he gladly accepted.
"I'm just really confused over what I want right now," he said, feeling a little more comforted now that he admitted his problems to her for a second time. It's not easy to do that in front of a woman, especially when you're both standing there dripping and in towels.
She grinned a little. "I noticed."
"So you think I'm a complete idiot now? Or insane? I don't blame you." He shook his head. "I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to leave now."
"Well, I know what I want," she said with finality. "I want to make you feel better. Let me take you out. Let's start over. We'll talk about this over dinner."
He was too powerless at the moment to say no.
The Initiated - 17 "Bombshell"
The little Italian place was just that...very little. Almost *too* tiny. CJ felt a little awkward at being with a "taken woman" at such a private, intimate setting. However, Joanie's calm manner did much to ease his unsettled feeling. They sat in the corner, separated from the rest of the world, or at least it felt that way. Our Hero felt a little more at ease after dinner and a few glasses of wine. Now he was willing to talk even more.
"I've been a little confused myself, lately," said Joanie, not touching her wine, more absorbed in the little candle placed between the two of them in the center of the table.
"I'm sure I haven't helped your situation."
"No, you're wrong, Chris. Actually you've helped me see a lot of things. I really do value the time I spend with you."
"Same here." He tried to disassociate the conversation as far as he could from sex. At least for now, so they could sort things out.
She paused, as if she were trying to find the right words to say. "Of course you know I haven't told Paul anything about us. I never plan to. He doesn't need to know, and I'm believing more and more that he doesn't *deserve* to know."
Chris nodded, letting her talk. She was in control now, and he didn't mind that.
Joanie looked up at him. "I have to tell you, Chris, very very soon, it's going to be over between me and Paul."
He blinked. Huh? What? Over? The conversation just got a tad more complicated. Fighting for something to say, he finally blurted out "Why?"
She laughed in spite of herself and shook her head. "Why NOT? I told you before he's basically ignoring me. There's nothing I can do or say that puts him and me on the same level anymore."
"You love him, though." Please say you do, he thought.
"Sure I love him. But I won't continue feeling and being hurt like this. I don't deserve that. I've been damn good to him." CJ didn't have an answer for this. Joanie reached past the candle and put her hand on his. "Chris, you know the reason I kissed you? The real reason?"
Uh oh. He saw it coming.
"Because you understand it. You understand what it's like to be hurt like I've been hurt. You and I are so damned alike it's not even funny. You know?"
"I don't think I know much of anything anymore."
She squeezed his hand and looked into his eyes. The candle glow made her gaze seem even more grave and serious. He noticed her lip quiver slightly as she tried to make her words come out right. Finally, she asked *it*. "Do you love me?"
He didn't answer. She tried again. "Chris, do you ever think there could be just me and you?"
CJ still didn't answer. He couldn't. What could you say to that? He hadn't even been here a few weeks and yet here he was, falling head over heels for a woman that could very well be his soul mate. Of course it didn't help matters that she was taken by someone else. But she'd just said herself that it was over. Did Paul think it was over between them? And why did she always have to be so damned dramatic when he'd had something to drink?
"This is going too fast." He felt like getting up and running away, just like he ran away from the little sexcapade in the shower earlier that evening. But there was really nowhere to run, anyway. She'd dropped this bomb on him and now here he was, stuck.
To make matters worse, she started to cry. "I just had to tell you. I'm sorry if I confused you more, I just have to talk to someone and you're the only one that understands me."
"I can't do this, Joanie." Something flickered inside him at that moment, something that wanted to regain control of the situation.
"Just hear me out....please?" She squeezed his hand again and the flicker went out.
The Initiated - 18 "Too Much Too Soon"
"You may not want to hear this, Chris, but I do know that I have some definite feelings for you." Joanie hadn't let go of his hand yet. He felt like it was iron weighing on him and holding him down. There was a lot he felt for her, but this was one hell of a dangerous situation. Career suicide, as some called it.
"Joanie," he said, finally sure of what to say. "This is not right. This is not the right thing to do. For either of us."
"How can you be so sure? We could be so happy together."
"Not working here, we can't. Joanie, I don't mean to sound selfish but I can't do this. I could go on so much easier just being your friend for now. It's too early for me to have this kind of pressure. You told me...remember? You told me you understood a stressful situation? This is the best damn example you're going to find of a stressful situation, Jo.."
She let out a choked sob. Damn it, this was not working out very well.
"Don't cry. Please. I like you, a lot. You know this already. This is just not the right time for me, that's all."
That didn't do much. It was easy to tell she was hurting inside, having buried her face in her hands and openly weeping now. Wonderful. Very smooth, CJ. Now what?
Well, one thing was for sure. He couldn't work this way. And how damn selfish did that sound? Here she was, obviously pained and stuck in a bad relationship as she'd said, and here he was concentrating on himself. What was he gonna do now?
She made the decision for him. "Just go then," she whispered, dabbing at her eyes. "I don't want to trap you."
"Hey...Joanie..." He reached over to try to comfort her.
"Just go. Please."
Never in his life had Chris Jericho felt like more of an asshole. He deliberated overkilling the situation and staying around to try and comfort her, but something told him to get out while he could, jerk or not.
He got up and left her there, softly weeping. He swallowed back the lump in his throat and told himself for the second time that night not to cry. However, he wasn't sure that there was nothing to cry about this time.