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Chapter Text

Many would describe Shawn Michaels as being a cocky, arrogant, flamboyant, and overly confident man with the talent to back it up. But he hadn’t always been that way.

Amongst his family and peers, he was usually the shortest, the youngest, or the smallest in the room, far from the stereotypical idea of what society deemed as an ‘alpha male.’

His insecurities only grew as he got older, causing Shawn to develop a bit of a Napoleon complex. He always made it a point to be the loudest in the room, as if he had to prove a point, obviously overcompensating for what he lacked.  

That soon became a constant theme throughout Shawn’s life.

Despite being popular, attractive, the captain of the football team, and having a great personality, it wasn’t enough. It was never enough. The blond constantly sought validation from whoever would give it to him.

The one person that always made him feel like he was enough, like he didn’t need to put on a front to feel accepted, was his friend-turned-lover, Marty Jannetty. They’d known of each other throughout high school but hadn’t really associated with one another until senior year. 

Marty thought Shawn was so unbelievably pretty, as most guys at school did, but didn’t have the guts to say it aloud. Shawn was so easy for Marty to spot in a crowd. Whether it was looking at him from across a classroom, or briefly locking eyes when they passed each other in the hallway, Shawn always caught his eye. 

Meanwhile, Shawn thought Marty was some creep who couldn’t stop staring at him in 4th period. 

It took some time, but Marty eventually worked up the courage to talk to Shawn. Shawn was a little hesitant, and understandably so with how weird Marty seemed at first. But all it took was one conversation for the two to realize how much they had in common. Pretty soon, what started as a genuine friendship quickly turned into something more. 

Shawn had always known he was different from his brothers, often drifting out of the conversation whenever they fawned over how hot some girl was. It’s not that he didn’t find women attractive. But when it came to getting butterflies in his stomach or his heart skipping a beat, he only felt that way with guys.

Shawn hadn’t been with a guy before being with Marty. Everything was so new to him. Marty was more experienced, so Shawn often followed his lead. Their flirting turned into kissing, which turned into experimenting, which eventually turned into Shawn losing his virginity to Marty his senior year. They began dating shortly after that once Marty worked up the courage to ask the blond out.

Throughout their relationship, Marty made it a point to constantly remind Shawn of how beautiful he was. How talented and athletic he was. How Shawn didn’t have to be the tallest or loudest guy in the room to command attention.

He just needed to be Shawn. 

As confident as Marty made him feel, Shawn still thought he was crazy for the wild idea he threw at him after graduation. 

Run away and become wrestlers. 

They’d been lounging around, cuddling in Shawn’s bedroom as they watched a wrestling tape when Marty brought up the idea. 

Shawn snorted, lifting his head off of Marty’s chest as he said, “Yeah, right.” But the look on Marty’s face told him he wasn’t joking. “Wait, you’re serious?” 

Marty shrugged, “Yeah, why not?”

Shawn raised a brow. “You’ve got to be kidding me. We’re not as big as those guys.”

“Hey, I thought you said size didn’t matter,” Marty said suggestively. 

Shawn gave a playful slap on Marty’s chest. “I’m being serious, you pervert! I mean look at us and look at them,” Shawn said, pointing at the wrestlers on tv. “We wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“You don’t know that though, Shawn. Come on. What else does Texas have to offer you?”

Shawn had thought about that question on multiple occasions.

Before graduation, Shawn had no idea what he wanted to do with his life, and he still didn’t. Thankfully, his parents weren’t pushing him to make a quick decision. If anything, they would love for him to stay under their roof for as long as possible. But he didn’t want to depend on them forever.

But wrestling? It didn’t seem like a likely choice for him. 

“Marty, I don’t know.”

“Why not? What’s holding you back?”

“How do you know if this would be worth it in the end? If we’ll even be able to make ends meet?”

“We’ll figure it out. We’ve got to at least try, Mikey. Remember when you told me that you wanted to be free? To see the world?”

“Yeah, but-”

“This is our ticket. Let’s do this together, baby,” said Marty as he tightened his arms around Shawn. 

It took some convincing, but that’s how they decided to start training, determined to take on the wrestling world no matter their size. 

Things hadn’t been easy for the two. There were times where either Shawn or Marty considered quitting, but the other one was always there to remind them that the pain was only temporary. They had to keep moving forward. 

“I can’t do this anymore,” Shawn sobbed into his hands from the passenger seat of their rental car. 

It had been about eight months since they’d decided to give wrestling a try. They were still amateurs, which meant that they were often put in shitty matches, jobbing just to get some more experience under their belt. Sadly, it also meant that they were given the most grueling traveling schedules, oftentimes running on little to no sleep.

They’d just finished up a show a few hours ago and were on the road, driving another three hours to the next town. Marty should’ve known something was wrong when Shawn spent the majority of the car ride in silence. He thought the younger man was just catching up on sleep, but he was proven wrong when he heard Shawn breaking down next to him.  

Marty swiftly pulled the car over to the side of the road, parking so he could properly give Shawn the attention he needed. He leaned over to get a better look at Shawn, saying softly, “Baby, what’s wrong?”

Shawn sniffed as he rubbed his eyes. “Fucking everything! I’m just tired, Marty. I’m so fucking tired. My body’s exhausted and I just need a break. I need a moment to breathe! I miss my family and I just want to go home,” he sobbed harder at the thought of seeing his parents again. He really missed them.

It hurt Marty to see Shawn so upset. The younger man was really good at bottling up his emotions, Marty sometimes not even knowing anything was wrong until Shawn had an outburst like this one. 

He grabbed Shawn’s hands that were still rubbing at his eyes, bringing both of the blond’s hands to his lips to place a gentle kiss on them. Shawn responded best to affection, so Marty was doing his best to get the man to calm down.

“I know you’re tired, and I know you want a break. But you’re doing so well, Shawn. José has said nothing but good things about you during training. I promise you, this is all going to pay off. I just know it. Just hang in there, ok? For me?”

Shawn sniffled, “I’m trying-”

“I know you are. And I’m proud of you. We’re in this together, ok? Remember that.”

To be honest, Marty knew Shawn was the better of the two. Their trainer made it pretty evident during their sessions with the amount of attention he gave Shawn compared to Marty. Shawn’s in-ring ability was unmatched. Marty really wished Shawn had the confidence to see it himself. 

Marty leaned forward to place a light peck on Shawn’s lips, wiping a lone tear from the blond’s cheek as he said, “We have a couple more hours to go, so get some rest. You’ll feel better once you wake up. I love you.”

Shawn didn’t respond, staring blankly as Marty pulled away to crank up the car. Once they were finally back on the road, Shawn decided to do what Marty suggested and get some much-needed rest.

They’d get past this. They always did. 

“Why the Midnight Rockers?” Shawn asked the question with a look of disapproval on his face, as if the name alone was a war crime.  

He and Marty had been wrestling full-time for a year and a half before they caught the attention of the American Wrestling Association, the promotion desperate for young new talent.

It was a huge milestone for the two, their hard work finally seeming to pay off.

The only issue Shawn had was their name. Well, that and their ring gear. They hadn’t made enough money to afford better outfits, but Shawn wasn’t a fan of the bold neon colors Marty insisted on them wearing. But he went along with it, trusting Marty’s judgment.

Marty snorted in amusement as he walked up to Shawn, poking at the blond’s bottom lip that was jutted out. “You got a better name?”

“…No.”

“Exactly,” Marty gloated, placing his hands on Shawn’s shoulders. “Just trust me on this.”

Shawn nodded, giving a small smile. “Ok, I trust you.”

Much to Shawn’s surprise, they did pretty well after debuting as The Midnight Rockers. It took some time, but both Shawn and Marty were proving to the wrestling world that they were just as good as the big guys. The fans, as well as other wrestlers, were amazed at the agility the two had in the ring for guys their size.  

Their popularity was not only due to their talent, but their looks as well, mostly Shawn’s as he was dubbed the heartthrob of the duo. The promoter was also pleased they were attracting more women to the shows who made it known that they only came to see The Midnight Rockers.

Their popularity did wonders for Shawn’s confidence. Slowly, but surely, the insecure man who once questioned their ability to be successful in the wrestling industry was nowhere to be found. Marty was so proud of him. Shawn was finally starting to see what Marty had been telling him all along, that he didn’t need to be anything or anyone else but Shawn Michaels.

As great as their popularity had been, there were times where their relationship seemed to suffer because of it.

The relationship wasn’t perfect by any means. The couple had plenty enough arguments throughout their wrestling career, most of which were caused by Marty’s jealousy, and Shawn’s heartthrob status only seemed to make it worse.

Marty had gotten into quite a few arguments and fist fights with men he thought were hitting on Shawn, which certainly didn’t help dispel their unruly reputation as troublemakers.

But despite all of that, they still stuck by each other’s side. Shawn didn’t know if he’d have made it as far as he had in his career without Marty.

Shawn thought he was dreaming the day he and Marty were offered contracts from the WWF.

They’d been wrestling as The Midnight Rockers at various wrestling promotions for a few years at that point, improving each year since their debut. With the buzz they’d created for themselves, it was no wonder why Vince wanted them.

It was a huge accomplishment for them, not only as a tag team, but as a couple as well. They’d been together for four years at that point. It amazed Shawn that after everything they’d been through, they were still together, which was something he was extremely grateful for.  

Bret had to do a double take the moment he saw The Rockers arrive. He’d heard that Vince was bringing in new talent, but he was expecting the typical burly men with bad spray tans. Nothing could have prepared him for the moment he’d first laid eyes on a certain blue-eyed blond backstage. 

“Close your mouth before you start drooling,” Owen teased as Shawn and Marty walked past them towards the general locker room area. 

Bret quickly averted his eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Sure, you don’t,” Owen said sarcastically. Of course, Owen didn’t believe Bret. He’d known him his whole life and knew the look his brother got when someone caught his eye. But before he could tease him any further, Bret had already walked off to talk to Jim Neidhart. 

This should be fun, thought Owen as he practically skipped along the hallway, thinking of various ways to annoy his big brother about his little crush.

Unfortunately for Bret, Owen’s teasing continued that night, Jim and Davey Boy Smith joining in after Owen informed them of Bret’s interest in the new guy. It also didn’t help that Owen noticed Bret’s failed attempt to not look at Shawn who was sitting across the bar from them.

“What are you waiting for? Go talk to him,” Owen egged on.  

“Yeah, you better lay your claim on him before someone else does,” Davey commented with a giggle before downing another shot.

Bret rolled his eyes at their antics. They’d been chastising him all day about making a move on Shawn. It was pretty annoying. He’d barely seen the guy for a second backstage, and Bret had idea if the guy even liked men. Or if he’d even like Bret for that matter.

He may be Bret Hart, but even he knew he wasn’t guaranteed to get any guy he wanted.

But no amount of reasoning could stop the teasing coming from his brother and brothers-in-law.

“Just go right on over there,” Jim encouraged. “We believe in you!”

Bret glanced over at Shawn again, catching a certain twinkle in his blue eyes caused by the neon lights in the bar.

That seemed to be all of the encouragement Bret needed.

“Fuck it,” he said, downing a shot for liquid courage as he leaned forward to stand up.

“That’s what I’m talking about!” They all cheered in support as it seemed that Bret was finally going to make a move on the young blond.

And that was the intention.

That was until Bret looked back in Shawn’s direction, noticing Marty sitting in the chair next to him. But not just that.

Bret also noticed just how close the two were sitting, how close their faces were to each other, how Marty’s hand was placed on Shawn’s waist as his other hand traveled up Shawn’s thigh, gripping it tightly before whispering intimately in Shawn’s ear, earning a smile from the young man once he pulled away. 

Bret didn’t like jumping to conclusions, but based on what he saw, there were two possibilities floating in his head. Marty and Shawn were either really close friends or, unfortunately, Shawn was taken.

Deflated, Bret sat back, turning his attention to his now empty shot glass. “I’d better not.”

Owen looked at him like he’d lost his mind. “What?! Why not? You better get in on that before someone else beats you to it.”

“Seems like someone already has.”

Everyone at the table then glanced to see Shawn and Marty hastily leaving the bar hand in hand with mischievous grins on their faces. Bret didn’t even want to imagine what they were so excited about. 

“Damn,” was the only word of comfort Owen could offer. 

“Yeah,” Bret said as he picked up another shot glass, this one full of Jack Daniels. “Damn.”

Chapter Text

Bret intended on ending his interest in Shawn after seeing him leave with Marty that night. He wasn’t a home wrecker, and he definitely didn’t want to be someone’s second choice.

Even if he did want to still pursue Shawn, he found out pretty quickly backstage that wherever Shawn went, Marty followed. It never failed. So it was highly unlikely that he’d get a moment alone with the man, which is probably a blessing in disguise. 

So to avoid temptation, he planned on ignoring Shawn, purposely avoiding the blond whenever he could. 

Or at least that was the plan. 

A few days later after another house show, Bret agreed to go out drinking again at the hotel bar. He’d convinced himself that he just needed to unwind, but the truth was that he needed something to take his mind off of a certain blond, not that he’d ever admit it. 

Unfortunately for Bret, the man that he wanted to take his mind off of was directly in his line of sight, sitting across the bar with Marty again.

Bret let out a breath as he shook his head, planning to look elsewhere to spare himself of the pair’s PDA. That was until he noticed something different about the two. 

Instead of the light touches and intimate glances they’d given each other a few nights ago, it seemed like the two were in the midst of a heated exchange of words. Marty appeared to be doing most of the yelling while Shawn more so reacted with furrowed brows, delivering sharp responses of his own. 

There was a short moment where Bret was getting a little concerned with how close Marty was getting as he yelled in Shawn’s face, but the younger man didn’t seem too fazed, as if he were used to the behavior.

“Uh oh, trouble in paradise,” said Owen as he watched on with Bret. 

The argument had gained quite a few spectators – Bret and Owen included. Bret didn’t know how long he’d been watching, but thought it’d be best to give them some privacy. 

As soon as he made the decision to turn away, that’s when Marty stormed off, knocking Shawn’s drink over in the process. Shawn mouthed the words ‘fucking asshole’ at Marty’s retreating back before turning around to ask the bartender for another drink. 

Bret’s attention was pulled from the blond when Owen gave an encouraging pat on his shoulder saying, “It’s your time to shine, Prince Charming!” 

Bret shoved him off as he said in irritation, “Will you give it a rest?”

“Dude, come on. This is the only time we’ve seen the guy alone all week. Here’s your chance!”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because he’s taken.”

“You don’t even know that for sure! Are you really not even going to try?”

Owen brought up a good point. Bret still didn’t know the depths of Shawn and Marty’s situation. He assumed they were together, but maybe they weren’t. Maybe they were friends. Or friends with benefits. Maybe they weren’t even exclusive.

There was only one way to find out. 

Realizing that he finally had Bret where he wanted him, Owen emphasized, “Just talk to him.”

“I’m not hitting on him, Owen.”

“I’m not saying to do that. But I know you want to talk to him. And he looks like he could use a good conversation right about now. Don’t let your opportunity go to waste.”

“Why do you even care?”

“Because I don’t want to hear you bitching later on about what you should’ve done. Just do it! If it doesn’t work out, then at least you tried.”

Bret hated admitting when Owen was right, and there were very few times that he was. This seemed to be one of those times.

“Fine.”

Owen clapped his hands in celebration. “Woo! There you go, brother. Good luck! And if you do end up getting lucky, please let me know if I need to sleep in Davey’s room tonight. I’d rather not walk in on you fuc-”

“Yeah, yeah, bye Owen!”

Bret left in a haste, no longer being able to stand Owen commenting on him potentially getting laid. He hadn’t even had a conversation with the blond man yet, so talks of sex was a bit premature to say the least.

Not that he was opposed to it either. Shawn was without a doubt the most beautiful man Bret had ever laid eyes on. If he indeed did end up getting lucky that night, that would just be the cherry on top.

However, all thoughts of potentially getting Shawn in bed went away once Bret walked a little closer to him, seeing a silver band shining from Shawn’s ring finger. Bret hadn’t noticed the ring before anytime he’d briefly seen the man at the arena. But it was shining proudly in the bar lights for everyone to see.

Bret almost turned around in that moment. What was the point? He’d be wasting his time and probably make Shawn feel uncomfortable, the blond probably having to think of a way to turn down Bret’s advances gently. Bret still had pride, you know?

But when he looked back to see Owen flashing a bright smile his way as he gave two thumbs up, Bret knew there was no going back. So he decided to just use the moment to talk to Shawn, nothing more. He was still curious about the man, so it was the perfect opportunity to get to know him.

Shawn was unaware of Bret standing a few feet behind him, the blond having his own internal battle going on. He stared gloomily into his half empty cocktail as he thought about the fight he and Marty had just gotten into.

The night had been going so well until a few moments ago. Marty was drunk off his ass and got pissed that Shawn didn’t want to go back to the hotel yet. Shawn knew all Marty wanted to do was leave to go have sex and he just didn’t feel like it. He wanted to enjoy himself and get to know some of his new colleagues. He barely had the chance to do so with Marty hovering around him all the time.

After standing his ground and telling Marty he could go back to the hotel himself, that’s when Marty flipped out, not used to Shawn telling him ‘no.’

‘Why the fuck would you want to stay here without me?!’

‘Oh, I don’t know! Maybe to introduce myself to some of the guys we’ll be working with?! Maybe because I need a little me time?! God, I feel like I haven’t had a moment alone since we got here!’

And apparently that was the wrong thing to say because it only seemed to further fuel Marty, the man calling Shawn every name in the book and alluding that the real reason Shawn wanted to fuck someone else instead. It was stupid, but there was no reasoning with Marty when he was like that.

So when Marty stormed off, Shawn was honestly relieved. He’d usually chase after Marty, which was no doubt what the older man probably expected, but Shawn was tired. He just needed to breathe and take his mind off of Marty for a moment.

Too engrossed in his own thoughts, Shawn barely realized that Bret had sat next to him. That was until he saw the bartender coming over his way. “I’m good. I don’t want to get anything else.”

The bartender gave a confused look before pointing a finger in the direction of the chair next to Shawn. That’s when Shawn looked and nearly froze when he saw Bret Hart.

“I’ll take a gin and tonic,” he said to the bartender. “You want anything?”

And it took a slight second for Shawn to realize that Bret was asking him the question. “Oh, no I’m good,” he said as he lifted the drink in his hand.

At that, the bartender walked away to work on Bret’s drink, leaving the two men to sit in silence amongst the loud environment of the bar.

Bret was the first to speak up saying, “Hey, I never got a chance to introduce myself.” He held out his hand. “I’m Bret.”

Oh, Shawn knew exactly who he was. He had a huge amount of respect for him as a wrestler. The fact that he was talking to Shawn right now seemed unreal. But he had to play it cool.

Shawn shook his hand saying, “Hey, I’m Shawn. Nice to meet you.”

“You as well. Sorry I’m just now getting around to meeting you. I know you’ve been here for a few days.”

Shawn gave a soft smile, a smile that Bret knew he wanted to see more often.

“It’s ok. Don’t worry about it. I’ve been a bit…occupied anyway. I haven’t had a chance to meet everyone yet.” Shawn’s smile slightly faltered as he was reminded that the reason he hadn’t been able to meet everyone was because of Marty.

“You came as a tag team or are you wrestling singles?”

“Tagging. Marty’s my partner. We’ve been tagging ever since we broke into the business.”

“I see.” There was a short pause before Bret decided to ask. “Is he always like that?”

Shawn didn’t need an explanation to know what Bret was talking about.

It was embarrassing that Marty behaved like that in public, airing out their dirty laundry for everyone to see. But Shawn also wasn’t one to back down from a confrontation. They were like oil and fire when they argued, and if they happened to have an argument in public, it wasn’t going to stop them from standing their ground.

Shawn sighed as he sank lower into his seat, staring into his glass. “So you saw that.” Bret nodded prompting Shawn to say, “He’s not like that all the time, no. Most days, he’s the more levelheaded one out of the two of us. But when he drinks… I don’t know. He can be pretty hard to deal with. But he’ll be fine in the morning, though. It’s just… it’s complicated.”

Shawn really didn’t want to talk about Marty, but who was he to tell Bret Hart what to talk about?

The bartender then brought Bret his drink before leaving the two alone again. Bret took a sip, sighing as the familiar burn of the alcohol traveled down his throat. “Yeah, marriages can be tough.”

Shawn tilted his head in confusion, furrowing his brows as he looked up at Bret. “Marriage?”

Shawn’s reaction threw Bret off as well. He gave a nod as he pointed at the ring on Shawn’s finger.

Shawn looked down at the ring, chuckling lightly as he held out his hand to examine the silver band. “Oh, this? Trust me, it’s not a wedding ring.”

Oh? Bret perked up, interested in the possibility of Shawn being single. Unfortunately for him, Shawn hadn’t stopped there.

The blond continued, “Marty gave it to me a few years ago. He likes it when I wear it out so people know I’m taken.”

And just like that, Bret’s excitement went down the drain, Shawn confirming that he’s off limits.

Bret took another sip of his drink, using it as an excuse to collect himself before asking, “Oh, you two are…,” he trailed.

“Together,” Shawn said with a nod. “High school sweethearts, actually,” he said as another smile made its way onto his face.

Genuinely curious, Bret asked, “If that’s the case, why not replace the promise ring with a real wedding ring?”

Shawn’s smile slowly faded away as he went quiet, his eyes focusing back onto the cup in his hand.

He was hesitant to answer, unsure how much of his personal life he should divulge to Bret. Was it wise to delve into his relationship problems with a guy he’d just met? Probably not.

But he’d be lying if he said it didn’t feel good to talk to someone that wasn’t Marty or Marty’s friends. He’d been holding in so much for so long, and Bret’s questions seemed to open the floodgates.

Bret noticed the shift in the blond’s mood, making him wish he hadn’t opened his mouth. “Sorry, you don’t have to answer that,” he rushed out.

Shawn shook his head as he looked back up at Bret. “No, no, it’s fine. I sometimes ask myself the same thing. To be honest, I think it’ll be a cold day in hell the day Marty proposes, if ever,” he said before finally downing the rest of his drink.

That certainly wasn’t the response Bret was expecting. He didn’t want to pry any further, but now he was interested. “What makes you say that?”

Shawn shrugged. “I think the idea of marriage scares him, which I can understand to a certain extent. But we’ve been together for so long. I don’t think getting married would be too far-fetched for us.”

Bret took another sip, finishing off his drink before asking, “In that case, what is he waiting on?”

It was more of a question to himself. Maybe it’s because he was envious, but Bret couldn’t understand how Marty could have gone this long without marrying the blond. He was sure if he’d been in Marty’s position, Shawn would be sporting something nicer than the promise ring that was on his finger.

Shawn ran a hand through his hair as he answered, “It’s hard to make sense of that man. But he’s not going anywhere, so it is what it is, I guess.” Another dagger to Bret’s heart. “But thanks for listening to me rant. You must be dying to talk about something else.”

Bret gave a gentle smile to ease Shawn’s worries. “No, it’s fine. I’m not bothered.” Maybe he was bummed that Shawn was off limits, but that didn’t mean that he wanted to stop talking to the man.

Shawn sighed saying, “I hope everyone else here is as nice as you. Marty and I haven’t had the greatest luck in the past, especially with us being a couple. You couldn’t even imagine the homophobic remarks we’ve had to deal with since getting into this business.”

And that made Bret’s skin crawl. One thing he couldn’t stand was judging a person because of their sexuality. He was bi himself, but even before figuring that out about himself, he’d never felt the need to belittle someone because of their sexuality.

He said seriously, “You won’t have to worry about that here. Vince has a strict policy against shit like that. I mean yeah, there are some people who are ignorant of that type of stuff, but most people here don’t care. I surely don’t.”

Shawn felt a sense of relief wash over him. “Really?”

“Yeah. And if anyone does mess with you, you let me know. I’ll take care of it.” And he meant it.

Shawn smiled appreciatively, truly thankful that someone not only accepted him, but was willing to stand up for him should the time arise.

Feeling guilty for taking over the conversation, Shawn decided to switch topics. “So, you’ve learned a little about me. What about you? You married?”

Bret raised his left hand, displaying no ring in sight. “Happily divorced.”

“Oh,” Shawn said awkwardly, “Sorry.”

“It’s fine. Trust me, I’m much happier now.”

“Still… getting divorced couldn’t have been fun. Do you…do you think you’d ever get married again?”

Bret thought it over briefly. During the divorce process, he swore he’d never get married again. It had been a messy divorce, his ex-wife attempting to milk him for every penny he had.

But after the divorce was finalized, Bret felt rejuvenated. Instead of being put off by the thought of love or marriage, he was eager to get it right the second time around.

Bret answered assuredly, “If I meet the right person,” his gaze lingering on Shawn.

The moment was brief, barely lasting a couple seconds, but there was an unexplainable connection felt between the two. Shawn was the first to break eye contact, looking off to the side as he felt his cheeks heating up. That’s when he caught sight of Marty stumbling and pushing his way through the bar in his direction.

Shawn let out a dreadful sigh, not wanting his conversation with Bret to end, but knowing he needed to talk Marty. “I should go check on him.”

Shawn pulled out his wallet to cover his tab, but came to a halt when Bret said, “I got it.”

Shawn looked on in surprise. “Really?” Bret nodded, but Shawn still wasn’t convinced. “Are you sure?”

Bret nodded again as he slapped a few bills on the table. “Yeah, it’s fine. Think of it as a welcome gift.”

Shawn wanted to protest further, but he really needed to get to Marty. He put away his wallet saying, “Thanks, Bret. I owe you one. See you around.”

Before Bret could tell the blond that he didn’t have to repay him, Shawn was off to find Marty.

Bret said to himself, “Yeah, see you later.”

Bret slumped in his chair as he watched Shawn walk away to meet Marty halfway across the bar. Part of him expected the couple to start arguing again, but once they were within each other’s reach, Marty pulled Shawn into a hug, burying his face into the younger man’s neck. All seemed forgiven as Shawn rubbed the man’s lower back in comfort before guiding them both out of the bar, further digging the knife into Bret’s chest.

Chapter Text

Despite the proven success of The Rockers in other wrestling promotions, Shawn and Marty had to work just as hard to prove their worth in the WWF. Other wrestling promotions usually consisted of talent that was subpar at best. So it was easy for The Rockers to stand out.

However, the WWF was the big leagues, and there was too much talent in the company for everyone to shine. Thankfully for Shawn and Marty, their size, talent, and charm allowed them to exceed beyond their peers, inevitably becoming a crowd favorite in the WWF.

Unfortunately, their success quickly became a double-edged sword.

In the few short years that it took the couple to take over the WWF’s tag team division, it took just as long for their relationship to start crumbling.

It started out as light, silly arguments that neither men took to heart. It then evolved into the two arguing almost every day for reasons that Shawn couldn’t even keep track of anymore.

At one point, it was the drugs that had neither of them in their right mind that caused them to say the most vicious things to each other. At another point, it was the jealousy. Shawn had lost count how many times Marty accused him of being sneaky or cheating on him, specifically with a particular Canadian man. 

“He was just being friendly, Marty! We’re coworkers!”

Shawn and Bret had become very friendly with each other over the years, but they weren’t close. Granted, Shawn wasn’t close with a lot of men at the company, courtesy of Marty who’d managed to get them in so much heat backstage that few people wanted to interact with them.

Even when Shawn wasn’t the cause of the issue, Marty’s constant locker room confrontations and fights over Shawn cause him to become an enemy by association.

There were only a few people who hadn’t completely written him off yet, one of those people being Bret Hart. Though their interactions were limited, Bret was always nice to him and was great company to have around. He was always able to take Shawn’s mind off of whatever was bothering him, always finding a way to bring a smile to the blond’s face.

But apparently that was a problem for Marty. That night, he had been searching for Shawn backstage, only to find him leaving the Harts’ locker room with smiles on both his and Bret’s faces.

“Friendly my ass. What the fuck were you doing in there alone with him?!”

“Nothing! I don’t get it, Marty. What’s the big deal with him talking to me?!”

“The big deal is that he looks at you like he wants you, like you don’t belong to me!”

Shawn had to pause a moment at Marty’s audacity before shouting, “I’m not some piece of fucking property! I don’t belong to anyone. And there’s nothing going on with Bret, or anyone else for that matter-”

“Like hell, it ain’t!”

Shawn was so close to pulling his hair out in frustration. He took a breath in an attempt to calm himself down, knowing yelling would get them nowhere. He asked calmly, “Why are you acting like this?”

Marty scoffed, “Oh, don’t act like you don’t know. We haven’t had sex in almost three weeks, Shawn! You’ve got to be getting it somewhere else. I know it!”

Shawn was at a loss for words, his attempts at being calm forgotten about. “That’s what this is about?! The fact that you’re not fucking me every hour of the day?! Has it ever crossed your mind that there are times where I’m too tired for sex?! Or maybe that all we do is fucking argue, and sex is the last thing on my mind?! I’m exhausted, Marty!” 

“Don’t feed me that bullshit! You used to beg for my dick every day! You really want me to believe that you’re not getting it from somewhere else-”

“Yes! Because I haven’t been with anyone but you! The fact that you’re accusing me, yet again, of cheating on you is really pissing me off! Especially with Bret, of all people. He knows we’re together. He’s not like that.”

Marty tsk, saying mockingly,  “He’s not like that. As if you being in a relationship would stop him.”

Shawn’s blood was boiling at this point, completely baffled at the way Marty was behaving. “Marty, you’re being ridiculous. What the hell has gotten into you?”

“You fucking around on me is what’s gotten into me!”

“This is like the third time this week you’ve said that! You don’t see me constantly asking you if you’re cheating on me! It never even crossed my mind because I trust you! I know you would never hurt me like that. But you know what? Since we’re talking about it anyway, I’ll ask. Are you cheating on me?” Shawn asked, folding his arms indignantly. 

The topic itself was so juvenile in Shawn’s opinion. There was no doubt in his mind that Marty would never cheat on him, and he’d never do the same. They’d dedicated too much of their lives together to let a stupid decision like that ruin them. But since Marty wanted to play a fool, Shawn had no problem playing the role too. 

What Shawn didn’t expect was for Marty to get quiet at the question, the fire in his eyes dissipating as he shifted his eyes away from Shawn’s. 

“Marty?”

Marty sighed, rubbing a hand tiredly down his face, still not answering Shawn as he stared at the floor. 

Shawn’s breath hitched, panic rising as his thoughts started racing a mile a minute. “Marty, this is the part where you’re supposed to say, ‘No, you’re being ridiculous, Mikey. I would never do that.’”

Marty took in a deep breath before letting it out and looking into Shawn’s glistening eyes. “Shawnie, you know I can never lie to you, right? I’ve never been good at it in the years we’ve been together.”

Shawn nodded, swallowing hard, anticipating what Marty’s next words would be. 

Marty attempted to hold Shawn’s hand. “Shawn-”

However, the blond man quickly snatched away, giving Marty a pointed look as he said, “Answer me, now.”

There was a deafening silence, time seeming to stand still before Marty whispered with a nod, “Yes, but Mikey-”

Marty rushed towards Shawn as the man swiftly backed away in pure shock, only stopping once his back made contact with the wall behind him. A rush of tears pooled in Shawn’s eyes, and it was in that moment that Marty regretted ever making the dumbest mistake of his life. 

Marty walked up to Shawn, attempting to place a gentle hand on Shawn’s shoulder “Mikey, I’m sorry-”

But Shawn smacked his hand away as he shouted, “No! Don’t you dare fucking touch me!”

Marty backed away reluctantly as he watched Shawn’s breath quicken to a dry heave, tears falling relentlessly down his face as he slid down the wall, crumbling onto the floor beneath him.

Shawn felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. He was heartbroken. Completely devastated. Totally blindsided. He couldn’t even process it.

Even on their worst days, even after their worst fights, even after they’d said the most horrible things to each other, never in his wildest dreams did Shawn think Marty would ever cheat on him. It was never even a possibility in his mind. But now that Marty had admitted to it, the first emotion Shawn registered was betrayal.

“How could you do this to me,” Shawn said weakly, voice cracking as he sobbed into his hands. 

Marty helplessly looked on as Shawn broke down. It pained him to see Shawn so broken, and the fact that he’d been the cause of it was another reminder of how much he had fucked up.

Honestly, he was just as puzzled as Shawn. Marty never thought he’d ever do something like that to the younger man. But his own jealousy and insecurities were eating him alive. He’d let his paranoia drive him to the decision out of spite.

He was spiteful of the fact that Shawn wasn’t giving him the attention he wanted lately. That Shawn was becoming friends with Bret hart. That Shawn was becoming less dependent on him as they became more successful.

When it happened, Marty thought he was justified, talking himself into believing that Shawn was doing the same thing behind his back. However, as Marty stood there looking down at Shawn’s vulnerable state, he knew it wasn’t worth it.

Marty crouched down in front of Shawn, his own voice slightly quivering as he said, “Baby, please look at me. Talk to me.”

But Shawn only sobbed harder, Marty’s soft words not helping. Shawn felt completely mind fucked. The fact that Marty did something so horrible but was talking to him so softly, comforting him as if he hadn’t been the cause of his breakdown was too much.

Shawn had enough. He sniffed, rubbing at his eyes before standing up abruptly and walking towards his duffle bag that sat in the corner of the room. 

Marty immediately followed, caught off guard by Shawn’s sudden movement. “What are you doing?”

“I’m leaving.”

Marty went stiff behind Shawn as he processed what the man had said. “What do you mean by leaving? Leaving like you need space for the night?”

Shawn sniffed again, aggravated at his runny nose as he zipped up his bag, throwing the strap over his shoulder in a huff. He turned around, facing Marty to say, “Leaving as in I’m done. I’m not going to stand being cheated on.”

And just like that, like it’d been for most of their relationship, Marty’s short fuse was lit.

He yelled, startling Shawn enough for the blond to drop his bag, “You’re done?! After 7 years together, you’re done just like that?! You’re really willing to just throw us away so quickly over this?! Without even trying to talk it over?!”

Shawn snapped, his own anger taking the forefront, “You’re the one that’s throwing us away, Marty! You’re the one that cheated! Not me! I’ve been faithful and loyal to you for all of these years!”

“Shawn-”

“I’m not done! And the fact that you’ve had the fucking nerve to question me about cheating when you’ve been the one fucking around the entire time?! You know how many guys I’ve had hit on me, guys that if I were so tempted, I could’ve had so easily?! But guess what? I turned them all down. Why? Because I love you, you dick!”

Feeling another wave of emotions rushing forward, Shawn covered his face with his hand, this time sobbing so hard that he was sure the whole hotel could hear him. 

Marty’s own eyes glistened as his bravado wore away. He had no right getting defensive, and he knew that. It was his last desperate attempt at gaining control over the situation. He was out of options, never being so close to losing Shawn.

Marty desperately wanted to pull Shawn into his arms, the blond basically hyperventilating at this point. “Baby, please don’t cry. You know I hate it when you cry.”

Shawn snapped his head out of his hands, red eyes beaming onto Marty as he hissed, “Then don’t cheat on me then! And don’t accuse me of cheating either when the only man I’ve ever been with, the only man I’ve ever shared my body with is you! You’re the one that fucked somebody else-”

“Shawn, I didn’t fuck anyone! That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you! It was just a kiss. That’s it!”

Shawn went still at the revelation, realizing his perception of the situation seemed to be different than what had actually happened. Still, he asked, “Who was it?”

“Some random bitch at the bar. Nobody important.”

Shawn scoffed, wiping away a tear on his cheek as he said, “Well, apparently that random bitch was important enough for you to do this to me. And you’re acting like it being ‘just a kiss’ makes it any better. That’s if you’re even telling the truth about that!”

“It is the truth, Shawn! It was nothing! It meant nothing! It was a stupid mistake that never should’ve happened. You mean so much to me, baby. I’m sorry. You gotta believe me-”

“I don’t gotta believe shit! I believed when you told me you loved me. I believed you when you said you would never hurt me. I believed you when you said you were committed to me. Believing you has led me to nowhere but a broken heart! I’m done! I need to leave.”

Marty panicked as he saw Shawn reaching for his bag again. He stopped Shawn in his tracks as he grabbed the bag, holding it out of reach before saying, “Baby, please. It’s late. Where are you gonna go?”

“That’s not for you to worry about. Now give me back my bag!”

Before Shawn could react, Marty put the bag down and pulled Shawn into a hug, tightly wrapping his arms around the man knowing that Shawn would try to shove him off. And he was right.

Shawn shouted, “Let me go!”

But he didn’t listen. He held onto Shawn’s thrashing body until the blond settled down, giving up out of physical and emotional exhaustion as he let out choked sobs. Marty still had some fight left in him, which was his only advantage over Shawn in the moment.

A few silent tears trickled down Marty’s cheeks as well, no longer able to keep them in as he pleaded, “It was only one time, Shawn. I swear! It will never happen again. Please believe me, baby. I’m so sorry. Just-”

And now it was Marty’s turn to break down, sobbing into Shawn’s neck as the reality of the situation settled in, that Shawn was so close to walking out of his life.

“Please don’t let this be the end. Please give me another chance. If you need space, that’s fine. I’ll give you that, but please don’t leave me. I’m stupid, selfish, an asshole, I’ll be all of that. Just don’t give up on us.”

Shawn remained silent, tears never ceasing to stream down his face throughout Marty’s plea. He felt so drained and all he wanted to do was run away from reality. He was still struggling with the fact that it was reality. The situation wasn’t a feverish dream or a horrible nightmare.

It was real.

With nothing else left to say, Shawn slowly detached himself from Marty, sniffing and wiping the last few tears from his face, saying emotionlessly, “I’m going to bed. We have a match tomorrow.”

Marty watched cluelessly as Shawn walked towards the bed, not knowing where their relationship stood.

Shawn silently cried himself to sleep that night, curled up into a fetal position facing away from Marty as he contemplated what his next steps should be.

Shawn woke up the next morning with a slight headache, feeling a little disoriented after what had happened the night before. He was still in denial, still in awe at how the dynamics of their relationship could change so much in one night.

He let out a yawn, bringing up a hand to rub at his bleary eyes. As he stretched his legs out, that’s when realized the weight on his waist. He looked down to see Marty’s arm draped there as if that’s where it belonged.

Shawn then turned his head, seeing that Marty was pressed up behind him in a deep sleep. He must have somehow crept over to Shawn’s side of the bed in the night.

Under any other circumstances, Shawn would have thought it was sweet. But after last night, he wanted to be as far away from Marty as possible. So he tried to wiggle himself free of Marty’s grasp, but his shifting woke the man up instead.

Marty tightened his grip around Shawn’s waist, whispering with a rough voice, “Good morning, baby.”

Shawn stilled, rolling his eyes at the irony. Nothing about that morning was good after the night they had.

Sensing Shawn’s discomfort, Marty lifted his arm, gently rubbing a hand along Shawn’s side before saying, “Sorry about last night. I love you so much. Just…please just give me another chance, Shawn. Please don’t let this ruin us.”

Shawn didn’t respond for some time. He wasn’t sure how many times Marty had apologized to him, but he was starting to get sick of hearing it. ‘Sorry’ didn’t make the situation any better, didn’t make Shawn hurt any less, didn’t make him trust Marty any more than he already had.

Marty was starting to second-guess if Shawn had heard him, not being able to see his face as the blond was still facing away from him.

Just as he was about to speak again, Shawn said pointedly, “Never put me through this again.”

Marty’s hand on Shawn’s waist came to a halt at Shawn’s word. The blond then turned around to fully face Marty, looking him sharply in the eyes as he said, “You understand?”

Marty stuttered, surprised that Shawn wasn’t trying to leave again. “Y-Yes, baby of course-”

“Because if I find out you’ve cheated again, even if it’s ‘just a kiss,’ I swear to you we’re done. For good. And I fucking mean it.”

If looks could kill, Marty would be six feet under right there.

But Marty was beyond grateful, nodding profusely before bringing Shawn’s hand to his lips, kissing the finger with the promise ring on full display. “Ok. It won’t happen again. I promise.” 

Marty was smiling like a kid in a candy store that entire morning as they got ready to travel to the next town, elated that he hadn’t ruined the best thing that happened to him.

While he was in a celebratory mood, Shawn was on the opposite end of the spectrum.

Shawn didn’t want to admit it, but he was a little disappointed in himself. He wanted to be strong enough to leave Marty after the man had blatantly disrespected their relationship. He’d been taught by his parents not to put up with shit like that. 

But what’s he supposed to do?

They were still a tag team. They relied on each other to make money. Vince depended on them as a duo and would probably freak out at their sudden split.

Furthermore, they had a life together in Texas. They shared a house together, they were intertwined with each other’s families, they had so many dreams and plans for the future involving each other.

It was just too much to throw away over something Marty deemed as a one-time mistake. Marty was adamant that it wouldn’t happen again. 

Shawn decided he just had to take his word for it. 

Chapter Text

Despite the tension between the two, The Rockers put on an excellent performance in the ring later that night, as if their fight never happened. Ignoring the issue was the only way Shawn knew how to cope, and Marty certainly wasn’t going to rehash anything if he didn’t have to.

No one seemed to notice Shawn’s shift in mood that day – except Bret.

Earlier that day at the arena, it was clear to Bret that something was bothering the younger man. Shawn wasn’t his usual cheery self, and when Bret had greeted him backstage, Shawn barely gave a wave.

What was even weirder was that whenever Shawn did seem more willing to talk, he would quickly become a shell of himself whenever Marty came around. 

“Hey, is everything alright,” Bret asked after stopping Shawn in the hallway.

Shawn gave a tired smile, “Yeah, I’m good.”

That was hard for Bret to believe. The blond looked noticeably exhausted, his eyes puffy and a little red at the rim. “Where are you headed?”

“I-,” Shawn stopped himself from answering when he looked past Bret, locking eyes with Marty who was walking towards them. “Sorry, I can’t talk right now.”

Before Bret could ask why, Shawn was already walking away from him, meeting Marty who promptly wrapped a possessive arm around Shawn’s waist before guiding the two of them away from Bret.

Bret felt uneasy as he watched the couple walk away, not missing the cold look Marty threw over his shoulder.

Bret wasn’t the only one who’d picked up on Shawn’s odd behavior. 

“Go see what’s wrong with your boy,” said Owen as he and Bret looked across the catering hall at Shawn.

Shawn was sitting at a table not too far away from theirs, eating in silence as Marty sat next to him. Shawn stared gloomily at his plate, head resting on the palm of his hand as his other hand stabbed at his broccoli. There was no mistaking that something was bothering him.

Marty then placed a hand over Shawn’s, halting the stabbing which caused Shawn to look Marty’s way, smiling shyly at the gentle touch. Both men seemed to get lost into each other’s eyes, forgetting about the food in front of them.

Bret grimaced as he looked away. “He’s not my boy, and it’s none of our business.”

It wasn’t Shawn’s intention to be a recluse that day, especially with Bret. If anything, Bret was who Shawn wanted to talk to the most, the older man always finding a way to get him out of a funk.

But for some odd reason, his friendship with Bret really seemed to bother Marty. And since he and Marty were making efforts to move on from the previous night, Shawn thought it would be best to limit his interactions with Bret to avoid another blowup. 

Bret had been a topic of their arguments one too many times, so it was better to be safe than sorry. 

It was months later when shit really hit the fan for the couple.

As soon as they seemed to be on the right track, another nagging issue threatened their relationship. Marty was envious of Shawn’s success. 

It was no secret that Vince McMahon had taken a liking to Shawn over Marty. What Shawn didn’t expect was for Vince to pull him into his office to discuss plans of going solo. It was a huge opportunity that Shawn knew he would be a fool to pass up.

But he needed to talk to Marty first.

Shawn expected Marty to be just as excited for him, but the revelation led to yet another fight between the two. Marty had just returned to their hotel room after a night of drinking when Shawn told him the news.

“I thought you would be happy for me!” 

“Why would I be happy about you running off to do singles?!”

“Because you were always the main one telling me how good I would be on my own!”

“And guess who was the main one saying he didn’t want to do it alone? You! And now that we’re in the height of our careers, you want me to be happy about you leaving me?!”

Shawn sighed, knowing how difficult it was to talk to Marty in this state. He said calmly, “I’m not leaving you, babe. I’m right here-”

“As much as I didn’t want to believe it, I knew this day would come. I fucking knew it!”

Shawn rubbed a hand tiredly down his face as he groaned, “Honey, you’re not sober right now. We can talk about it tomorrow, ok?”

Marty stumbled closer to Shawn, his words seeming to blend together as he shouted, “No! We’re going to talk about it right fucking now!”

“Marty,” Shawn said thickly, still trying his best to remain calm, holding up his palm to keep Marty at a distance. “I’m going to need for you to back up right now.” Marty’s behavior did not make him feel comfortable being so close to him.

That only seemed to fuel Marty as he shoved Shawn’s hand out of his way, getting into his space as he exclaimed, “Tell me what the fuck you did!”

Shawn furrowed his brows, purely confused at what Marty was alluding to. “What the fuck are you even talking about?!”

“Don’t try to act all innocent, like I don’t know! I’m talking about you sneaking around on me. Not telling me where you’ve been disappearing to for the past week, especially last night!”

It took a moment for Shawn to realize what Marty was referring to. For the past few days, he had been summoned to Vince’s office to talk about the offer. Vince distinctly told him not to tell anyone anything until things were finalized.

And because Shawn sucks at hiding things from Marty and he hates lying to him, he couldn’t give the man a good excuse as to why he couldn’t leave the arena with him and would have to meet him later at the hotel. Or why he couldn’t party with Marty last night at the bar. Shawn could understand why his behavior seemed suspicious from Marty’s point of view.

“Marty, it’s not like that. I-”

“Tell me now, who have you been fucking?!”

Now, Shawn was getting pissed. “Really, Marty?! You really have the nerve to ask me that shit?!”

Fed up with where the conversation was headed, Shawn attempted to walk away, but Marty moved around to block him. “Don’t fucking walk away from me when I’m talking to you! Tell me now, Shawn!”

“I haven’t done anything! I’ve been discussing the offer with Vince all week! That’s it! He didn’t want anyone to know, so I couldn’t tell you.”

Marty tsked, “Yeah, right! You probably made that story up. Or you’re fucking Vince for all I know!”

Shawn almost cracked, thinking how ridiculous and hypocritical Marty was being. Last time he checked, Marty was the one who cheated on him in the first place. If anything, Shawn should be the one with the suspicions. But he knew bringing that up would further escalate the situation, so he held back.

Shawn begged, “Marty, please just go to sleep. I told you we’ll talk about it in the morning.”

“So you’re not going to tell me the truth,” asked Marty, ignoring Shawn’s request.

“I’m choosing to remove myself from this conversation,” Shawn said as he turned to head to the bathroom.

“Fine, then I’m going back out to the bar since you don’t want to talk!”

Shawn paused, heading back to Marty saying, “Don’t be stupid! It’s two in the morning. Just go to bed. Marty!”

But Marty ignored Shawn as he headed out the door, slamming it on his way out.

Shawn stood there in silence, staring at the door in concern knowing that a riled-up Marty was not good for anyone. “Fucking toddler,” he whispered to himself in disbelief at Marty’s temper tantrum.

He had no idea how their conversation veered so far off track the original topic – Vince’s offer.

It hurt Shawn to know that Marty wasn’t as excited as he was about what was in store for him. For Marty to react so strongly, Shawn really wondered if accepting the offer would be a bad idea. That on top of the accusations Marty hurled his way was alarming.

But then again, Shawn knew Marty wasn’t thinking clearly. That’s why he insisted on talking about it the next day with a sober mind. But Marty seemed so eager to leave, so Shawn let him.

Exhausted, Shawn turned around and headed back to the bathroom to take a much-needed hot shower. He figured there was no helping the situation. So he may as well settle in for the night and talk to the man later in the morning.

It had been a few hours since Shawn drifted to sleep when he was awakened by the sound of the room door closing. Shortly after, he felt the mattress dipping, immediately knowing it was Marty as the man scooted closer to spoon him from behind.

Shawn sighed in content, easily settling into Marty’s embrace. No matter how intense their arguments got, he always found comfort in Marty’s arms.

“Hey, baby,” Marty whispered, his alcohol-laced breath immediately hitting Shawn’s nose.

“Hmm,” Shawn murmured, already attempting to go back to sleep.

However, his efforts were interrupted as he felt Marty’s hand move, slowly roaming up his back before traveling down to cup an ass cheek. As receptive as Shawn wanted to be at Marty’s advances, the blond was still tired and all he wanted to do was go back to sleep.

Shawn squirmed his hips forward to create a little space between them, hoping to signal to Marty that he wasn’t in the mood for sex.

Unfortunately, Marty didn’t get the message. His hands continued to travel, gripping Shawn’s waist before shifting the blond’s hips back, Shawn’s ass now against Marty’s crotch.

With his eyes still closed, Shawn muttered lightly, “Stop, I’m trying to sleep.”

Marty seemed to take that as a challenge, saying gruffly, “But I’m not.”

He began kissing on Shawn’s neck, and it was in that moment that Shawn got another strong whiff of the alcohol on Marty’s breath, so strong that he felt almost nauseous.

He also noticed the smell of something…sweet, almost like a light perfume. But Shawn didn’t think much of it at first.

He shot his eyes open in irritation as he whined, “Marty.”

“Kiss me and I’ll stop,” Marty said in amusement.

Shawn would much rather not kiss his boyfriend when he smelled like a liquor store, but he also reveled in the attention that Marty was giving him.

Shawn smiled lazily, turning around to fully face Marty before bringing the man’s head down to give a soft peck. “There. Happy?”

As Shawn looked up at Marty’s dopey expression, that’s when he noticed something out of the ordinary.

“Babe? What’s that?” Shawn asked, noticing a bold red stain on the collar of Marty’s shirt.

Marty was half-listening, his heavy-lidded eyes zoning in on Shawn’s lips now that Shawn was facing him. He placed a hand on Shawn’s cheek, attempting to kiss him again when the blond snapped his head back, separating himself from Marty as he sat up saying, “Marty, answer me!”

Obviously still under the influence, Marty blinked slowly at Shawn, having no idea why the man was upset. He sat up sluggishly as he asked, “What?”

Shawn’s heart rate picked up both out of frustration and anxiety over how Marty got that stain on his shirt. He said slowly with gritted teeth, “What is that on your shirt?”

The question alone seemed to sober Marty up a little, the man quickly snapping his head down to his collar before saying flippantly, “Oh, that’s just red wine.”

And that’s when Shawn’s nightmare began because he knew that Marty was lying.

“Don’t you dare fucking lie to me.”

“I’m not!”

“You are! Do you think I’m fucking stupid?!”

Marty squinted, Shawn’s shouting bringing on a headache. “No, no-”

“Well, obviously you do! I know what a wine stain looks like and that does not look like red wine! It looks like…like lipstick and…”

As Shawn examined Marty closely, he saw what looked like glitter on the man’s neck, and just below his color was what looked to be a bruise, no…a hickey.

Shawn felt his heart drop. No. No. This couldn’t be happening. Shawn wouldn’t allow himself to believe it.

Marty saw the panic forming in Shawn’s eyes. He said as calmly as possible, “You’re getting yourself worked up over nothing, baby.”

“Nothing?! You come back smelling like perfume, with lipstick on your shirt, glitter on you neck, and a fucking hickey and you call that nothing?!”

Marty sat there stunned, not having a thing to say to defend himself. But his silence was just as irritating for Shawn.

The blond shot up out of bed, rounding his way over to Marty’s side, looming over him as he said sternly, “Tell me right now. I’m giving you the chance to be honest with me, Marty. What did you do?”

It was at that moment that Marty knew he was caught. But selfishly, he didn’t want to tell Shawn the truth, knowing there was a possibility that the blond would try to leave again.

Marty looked up at the man, sighing, “Nothing happened, Shawn. Come lay down.”

It was also in that moment that Shawn knew it was over.

A tear escaped one of Shawn’s eyes and rolled down his cheek. “You’re actually going to look me in the eyes and lie to me?”

“I-” Marty cut himself off, realizing there was no getting out of this.

When Marty had stormed off earlier in the night, he’d gone back to the bar as he said he would, ordering more drinks to forget about his fight with Shawn.

He was pissed. Pissed that Shawn would ever consider wrestling without him. Pissed that Shawn was keeping Vince’s offer from him. Pissed that he was meeting with Vince in secret. Pissed at the realization that Shawn didn’t need him as much as he liked to make the blond believe he did.

To make matters worse, Marty had worked himself up to believing that Shawn was messing around on him again. Maybe it was his insecurities or the guilt he still harbored for being unfaithful himself, but his mind always assumed the worst whenever Shawn was around other men. It was an issue Marty always had, but it seemed to be getting worse.

When he went to the bar, he intended to just drink and then return to the hotel. But then he struck up a conversation with a woman who looked like the female version of Shawn. It wasn’t long before he was kissing her out of spite like he’d done the first time he cheated on Shawn.

It was meant to be a kiss. Just a kiss. But the kiss somehow turned into them fucking in the backseat of the woman’s car in the parking lot.

As thrilling as it felt when it happened, guilt came just as quickly as it was over, and all he wanted was to be with Shawn.

He’d planned on taking the secret to the grave, but he should’ve known Shawn was too smart to let something like this slip by.

Shawn let out a choked sob as he shook his head, refusing to believe it. “No,” he whispered as he backed away.

Marty stood up to follow Shawn. “Baby, let me explain-”

Shawn asked straight up, “Did you cheat? Yes or no?” Although Marty’s appearance provided plenty of context clues, Shawn needed to hear it from him directly.

Marty considered continuing his denial, but the broken look from Shawn was enough for him to finally come clean. He let out a sigh, nodding his head in confirmation.

In a flash, Shawn grabbed a pillow off the couch, chucking it in Marty’s direction as he screamed. “Fuck you!” He threw another pillow, then a tv remote as he continued to screamed, “Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you!”

Marty dodged each item, stumbling a bit as he stretched his hands out towards Shawn, walking closer to the man as he yelled, “Shawn, stop! Calm down!”

“You want me to fucking calm down?! After you’ve just told me you cheated?! AGAIN?!”

“Shawn-”

“Why can’t I ever be enough for you,” Shawn asked pitifully with a crack in his voice.

“Baby, you are-”

“How far did you go this time? Huh?! Just a kiss again?”

“It doesn’t matter-”

“You don’t get to tell me what doesn’t fucking matter just because you don’t want to talk about it! Did you fuck the person?” Shawn didn’t know if he was ready for the answer, but he needed to know.

But it was Marty’s lack of an answer that told Shawn all he needed. A new wave of tears pooled his eyes, voice quivering as he said, “Oh my god, you fucked them?!”

“See, this is why I didn’t want to tell you.”

Shawn had to do a double take, letting out a humorless breath before saying, “Are you serious?! How the fuck else did you expect me to react?!”

Shawn’s reaction was now causing Marty to become frustrated. He knew he had no reason to be with what he’d just confessed, but he was starting to panic. He needed to fix this, and quick, but that was nearly impossible to do with Shawn going on a tirade.

“Would you just listen to me?!”

“There’s nothing you can say to make this ok, Marty! You fucked someone! You cheated! Don’t you get that?! And the fact that you had the fucking nerve to come back in here, trying to have sex with me after what you just did? You’re a fucking pig! We’re done!”

Although Shawn put a stop to them having sex, he still felt dirty. He felt used. Marty’s actions were a level of disrespect Shawn had never experienced. But it was just the reality check he needed.

He was done crying, done breaking down and hurting over their relationship, done giving his all to a man who wasn’t doing the same for him. There was no turning back now, and nothing Marty could say would change his mind. 

Marty’s whole demeanor changed after that. He furrowed his brows, saying aggressively, “What?”

Shawn backed up a little to create more space between them, but he wasn’t backing down. “You fucking disgust me, and I want absolutely nothing to do with you!”

Marty narrowed his eyes, “There you go again, always running away from your problems! I shouldn’t be surprised you’re so quick to throw us away again.”

“Me?! I told you months ago that if you cheated on me again, we were done! Obviously, you didn’t take me seriously.”

“Me, me, me,” Marty said mockingly. “It’s always about you, Shawn! You’re always the fucking victim. But what about me?! You’re the one pushing me to cheat-”

“Excuse me?! So now it’s my fault-”

“Yes! When you’re out sneaking around, keeping secrets, denying me sex, what else do you expect me to do?!”

“Oh, sorry I can’t be at your every beck and call whenever you want to fuck, which seems to be  all the fucking time! I’ve had enough!”

Marty stalked closer to Shawn as he said menacingly, “You’ve had enough, huh? You really want to leave me?”

Shawn crossed his arms saying, “Yes.”

Marty scoffed, calling Shawn’s bluff as he shouted, “Fine! Go ahead and run off to Bret!”

The mention of Bret really made Shawn’s skin crawl. It was really irritating how Marty always found a way to bring the man into the conversation. “Bret has nothing to do with this-”

“Don’t lie to me! I know you like him, probably think he’s attractive, probably think about having his dick up your ass instead of mine-”

“Oh, fuck off! I don’t have time for this shit!”

“Just go then! Leave me! I’ll just go find the next bitch to fuck!”

There was only so much disrespect Shawn could put up with, and he’d finally reached his breaking point.

“You know what? Fuck this! You want to know the truth about me and Bret? We’re only friends! But since we’re letting it all out tonight, I do think Bret’s attractive! He’s hot, nice, funny, and he treats me with way more fucking respect than you do! And if he asked to fuck me right now, I’d probably let him!”

You could hear a pin drop.

Before Shawn could see it coming, Marty suddenly shoved him into the wall behind him, tightly gripping the blond’s arm as he angrily hissed, “What the fuck did you just say?!”

“Marty, what the fuck?! Get your hand off of me!”

That only caused Marty to tighten his grip on his arm, and before Shawn could tell him to back off, Marty did something that Shawn never expected. Marty slapped him hard on his right cheek, forcing Shawn’s face to turn in the direction the hand had gone.

And that’s when Shawn knew that this was truly their demise. 

He could handle Marty’s random drug-induced tirades. He could handle being accused of cheating. Hell, he’d even handled Marty actually cheating on him. 

But the one thing he knew he could never get over was Marty hitting him.

No matter how much they fought, Shawn never thought Marty would ever lay a hand on him. It didn’t matter that they were both men and that he could handle himself. Shawn believed the moment you hit someone you loved, the love no longer existed.

After getting over the initial shock, Shawn forcefully pushed Marty away from him as he shouted, “Get the fuck away from me!”

Shawn tried to shuffle away, but Marty grabbed his arm again, slamming Shawn back onto the wall as he shouted, “No, you’re staying right here! You’d let Bret fuck you, huh?! Is that what you fucking said?!” Marty raised another hand, intending to hit Shawn again.

Shawn looked on in fear, an emotion he thought he’d never feel looking at the man before him. That was all it took for Shawn to snap, his fight or flight activated as he began wailing on Marty, hoping to get the man off of him.

Unfortunately, Marty took that as a sign to continue with his aggression and the situation turned into both men getting in a violent tussle that ended in tears, bruises, and a messy hotel room. 

Marty’s last words to him before storming off still rang clear in Shawn’s head:

“You’ve made the biggest mistake of your fucking life! You’ll never find someone like me! Don’t forget I’m the reason why you started wrestling, why you got popular, why you’re even in the WWF! Without me, you’re nothing! Remember that!”

Shawn had no idea where Marty ran off to, and for the first time, he didn’t care. He looked down at the silver promise ring that still sat on his ring finger before sliding it off and throwing it with full force at the wall.

Shawn spent the remainder of his time curled up on the dirty hotel floor, crying and wishing that he could disappear.

Chapter Text

Marty tried to apologize the next morning, which normally worked after a particularly bad argument, but Shawn wanted no part of it. He’d reached his breaking point, no longer willing to allow himself to continue the cycle of their failing relationship.

With Shawn’s mind made up, he and Marty met with a very concerned-looking Vince McMahon that morning to discuss the offer.

Upon laying eyes on the two, Vince asked lightheartedly, “You two get into a bar fight?”

The question came after Vince noticed the poor condition the two were in. Shawn had a bruised cheek and a cut on his lip, while Marty had a slightly discolored nose and a black eye. 

Shawn ignored the question, no longer wanting to reflect on the events of last night. Instead, he explained to Vince that the tag team was over, and they would wrestle as singles.

That was all Vince needed to hear, his concern quickly melting away as he beamed at the news. He had so many great things planned for Shawn that he knew would pay off if Shawn were allowed to shine on his own.

Marty was quiet the whole meeting, seething in his seat as it became apparent that Vince only saw a future for Shawn. Under any other circumstances, Shawn would feel bad and ask Vince what his plans were for Marty. But after what had transpired between the two, Shawn couldn’t care less.

Marty left in a huff as the meeting concluded, storming off somewhere backstage to brood. Shawn gave Vince a grateful smile and a firm handshake, thanking him for the opportunity before picking up his gym bag and leaving the office.

He wandered aimlessly down the hall, lost in his thoughts as he brainstormed what his next steps should be. Unaware of his surroundings, he accidentally bumped into someone coming from the opposite direction.

“Oh, sorry,” he muttered before looking up to see that it was Bret.

Shawn nearly blushed, averting his eyes as he was reminded of what he’d said about the man during his heated argument with Marty.

“If he asked to fuck me now, I’d probably let him!”

Shawn had shocked even himself when he said it. Bret was his friend, and that certainly wasn’t something normal to say about a friend. Did he mean it? He didn’t know. He hadn’t really had much time to think about it due to dealing with his Marty issues.

So for his sanity, he’d convinced himself that he’d only said it out of spite. It was just to get under Marty’s skin. Totally.

A friendly smile spread across Bret’s face, a greeting on the tip of his tongue until he noticed the bruises on Shawn’s face. He lifted a worried brow, wondering what could have caused such an appearance.

Before Bret could say anything, he was cut off by Shawn saying desperately, “Don’t ask.”

Shawn had barely come to terms with what happened to him. He definitely wasn’t ready to be questioned about it.

Bret still couldn’t get past the bruises sitting on Shawn’s beautiful face. But he didn’t want to pry, the young man looking like he could break at any moment. He instead asked, “You ok?”

It was obvious that Shawn wasn’t ok, but Shawn appreciated the concern. “I’m alright.”

“Are you going somewhere,” Bret asked, eying the gym bag Shawn was toting.

Shawn gave a tired smile before saying, “Home.” 

Bret tilted his head slightly asking, “Home?”

“Yeah. I need a few weeks off TV to heal,” Shawn said, bringing a hand up to gesture to his face.

It was then that Bret noticed that the hand no longer sported the silver ring that usually rested there. Why wasn’t he wearing his ring?

Bret glanced down the hallway, also noting that Marty wasn’t anywhere in sight, which was odd.

He turned his attention back to Shawn asking, “How long will you be away?”

Shawn shrugged. “I have no idea.”

The truth was that Shawn needed space from Marty. It would be nearly impossible to do that with them both working in the same company, sharing in the same locker room, walking the same halls, and staying at the same hotels.

Shawn’s injuries provided him with a good enough excuse for some time off the road.

Bret deflated a little, realizing that Shawn probably wouldn’t be around for a while. He shook his head to himself in disapproval. “Well, it’s going to be a hell of a lot more boring without you here.”

That managed to get a genuine smile from Shawn. “Well, it’s a hell of a lot of guys who’ll be happy that I’m gone.”

“Screw them,” said Bret which got a chuckle out of the two of them. “It’s their loss.”

“I guarantee that you’re the only one that thinks so. But thanks.”

Bret nodded, a brief awkward silence passing between the two before he said, “Well, if you ever find yourself looking for some company when you get back, you should come by that Harts’ dressing room.”

“Come by? Like use your locker room?”

Shawn’s puzzled look caused Bret to quickly stammer, “I mean that’s if you want to. Just thought you could use company other than Marty.”

Bret intended for it to be a light comment, but Marty’s name was all it took for a small grimace to make its way onto Shawn’s face.

Not wanting to get emotional, Shawn decided to end the conversation, putting on a bright smile as he nodded before saying, “I gotta go. See you later, Bret.” 

Bret watched on dreadfully as the blond walked away, uncertain on when he’d get a chance to see Shawn again. 

Shawn decided to spend his break in Texas with his parents. With the type of thoughts he had swirling around in his head, he didn’t trust being alone at the moment. Plus, he could really use his family’s support. 

His parents were beyond excited at the news of their youngest child returning home. It’d been only a few months since they’d last seen him, but it felt like years. His last visit was very brief, only two days before he was back on the road. So when Shawn told them that he’d be staying for a few weeks, they were ecstatic.

However, their excitement was soon overshadowed by worry once they laid eyes on Shawn’s face.

Their immediate thought was that his bruises were wrestling-related, but when Shawn struggled to give a clear answer on how he’d gotten his injuries, supported by the fact that Shawn hadn’t returned home with Marty who was basically attached at their son’s hip, it became pretty apparent who was responsible for Shawn’s condition.

“I never liked him,” his mother ranted, huffing as she examined Shawn’s face. He sat on the living room couch, both parents hovering over him with troubled looks. “I could never put my finger on it, but something always seemed off about him! A mother knows!”

Shawn’s dad chipped in, “Where the hell does he get at thinking he can put hands on my son?! After all of the empty promises that asshole made about loving and protecting you, this is how he treats you?!”

Needless to say, his parents were pissed. And rightfully so.

Shawn was their baby boy. With him being the youngest and the last to leave the house, they treated him like precious cargo, especially his dad. It was safe to say his dad spoiled him even more than his mom as a kid. Shawn had always been appreciative of how loving and supportive his parents were, and he knew he was lucky to have them. 

However, their support could be a bit much.

“That son of a bitch better hope I don’t ever see him! Because when I do-”

“Dad,” Shawn stressed, closing his eyes in exhaustion. He whispered, “Please.”

He appreciated his parents’ concern, but he was so drained. He’d spent the whole plane ride and the drive home thinking about what happened, and he was mentally spent. He didn’t want to think about it anymore, at least for the time being. 

His parents shared a knowing look with each other before looking back at Shawn. There was plenty more they wanted to get off their chest about Marty, but Shawn was their main priority.

They spent the rest of the night trying their best to cheer up Shawn, hoping that they could help him forget about what happened, if only for the night. 

Shawn ended up spending a month at his parents’ house, which was longer than he’d intended.

The first week of that month was spent holed up in his childhood bedroom, crying his eyes out as he grieved over the end of the relationship. As brave as he tried to be the first night he’d arrived, he couldn’t keep up the facade.

He was no longer in an arena, forced to put on a careless persona around his fans and colleagues. He was with his parents, the people who really knew him, who really loved him unconditionally. With them, he was safe to be vulnerable, to be emotional, to comfortably express himself.

So that’s what he did. Unfortunately, his form of expression often came in waves of emotional breakdowns.

It broke his parents to see Shawn so upset. Their upbeat son they were usually greeted by was nowhere in sight. He was now a shell of a person, the only emotions displayed being pain and heartbreak.

They were at a loss on what to do to fix the situation, especially since Shawn still didn’t want to talk about what really happened. They’d known that things had gotten physical, only because of Shawn’s bruises. Anything beyond that was left to speculation which served no one any good. 

After the first week of nonstop tears from their son, they’d enlisted the help of their other kids, hoping that Shawn being surrounded by his siblings would help him open up and feel better.

Fortunately, they were right. They planned a family dinner, and with Shawn being surrounded by the comfort of his whole family, he decided to tell them everything.

The family sat at the dining table, food going untouched as all eyes were on Shawn. They waited anxiously as Shawn breathed deeply, tears welling up in his eyes as he struggled to find the right words.

His sister sat to the right of him, rubbing his arm in comfort as his brother sat to the left of him, a light hand placed on Shawn’s shoulder in encouragement.

Deciding there was no right way to start the conversation, Shawn decided to just come out with it. He stared at his hands as he said flatly, “He cheated on me.”

The whole room went quiet, everyone in disbelief at what Shawn had just said. “We argued about it, and when I said something he didn’t like, that’s when…that’s when he hit me. I...I panicked. I didn’t know what else he would do to me. I had to stand up for myself. I-”

He broke down as memories of that night flashed before his eyes. 

A loud sob escaped his lips as he brought his hands up to his face, shielding himself from the remorseful looks he knew his family was throwing his way. 

“Oh, Shawn,” his brother said. 

“That’s horrible,” another brother added. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that.”

“We’re proud of you, Shawn. We didn’t raise you to take shit like that,” his dad said as softly as he could muster. He really wanted to go haunt Marty down, but Shawn needed his family right now.

“You deserve better than that,” his sister said before bringing him into a hug. 

The family gathered around Shawn as best as they could in a group hug, and it was everything he needed. His family had never seen him so upset, and it angered them all that it was at the hands of someone they trusted would never hurt Shawn.

Things got a little better for Shawn after he’d told his family.

He felt like a huge weight was lifted off of his shoulders. Bit by bit, and week by week, he was able to genuinely smile and laugh for the first time since he’d arrived in Texas. 

However, as was common in his life, the good times never lasted. 

Things took a turn for the worse during the third week of his stay when Shawn decided to get the last of his things from Marty’s house. Marty was still on the road, so it was the perfect time for Shawn to get his belongings without Marty getting in the way. 

Shawn thought he was ready, that he was strong, that he could handle it. Initially, he was.

He was fine when he walked into the house. He was fine when he packed up his boxes. But it was when he saw their pictures hanging on the wall, reminding him of how happy he and Marty used to be, and how Marty threw it all away, that the empty void within him only grew bigger. 

After loading the last box in his dad’s truck, sealing his fate, that’s when Shawn finally lost it, breaking down as he looked up at the house that he used to call a home.

“Oh, it’s ok, sweetheart,” his mother soothed as she gave him a warm hug, gently rubbing at his back. “Shh, I know. It’s all over now. You can finally move on. You’ll be ok.”

But he wasn’t ok.

His parents found him later that night, strung out from the last few pills he’d kept in his bag. It was such a scary moment, Shawn barely responding to their panicked calls as he groaned incoherently to their pleas.

He didn’t mean to worry his parents. He just wanted the pain to stop, wanted to forget about his problems. But unfortunately, he’d just caused an even bigger mess.

His parents stayed up with him all night, feeding him water and making sure he was still breathing, assuring to him that everything would be ok.

Shawn spent the last week finally accepting that the relationship was over, that he’d never go back, and that things would never be the same again.

He was starting over. 

As much as it hurt him, as much as he still had love for Marty, he knew that he would be a fool to go back.

He’d already given Marty a second chance after he cheated on him the first time. There was even a small moment where Shawn considered staying with him after the second time. But the fact that Marty would not only cheat, but also hit him was the final nail in the coffin. 

His family was right. He did deserve better. But he also deserved to be able to take a moment to mourn the death of the 7-year relationship he’d lost. 

Shawn was in better spirits by the last few days of his stay. He wasn’t over the heartbreak yet by any means. But he didn’t cry at the drop of a hat anymore, and his mind was finally starting to become occupied by thoughts other than Marty.

Despite how unstable he’d been for the past month, he’d kept in contact with Vince in preparation for his return to the ring as the Heartbreak Kid.

Shawn thought that the name itself was quite ironic given that he’d just gotten his very own heart broken in the process of pursuing the angle. But Shawn was also excited. He was finally being given the opportunity to show what he was truly capable of, no longer being held back by Marty, and he had no doubt in his mind that he could pull it off.

The moment was bittersweet when Shawn had to hit the road again. As excited as he was to get back wrestling, he unfortunately had to leave the comfort of his family again. 

“If he fucks with you, you let us know,” Shawn’s dad warned before pulling Shawn into a tight hug.

Shawn chuckled, hugging back just as tightly as he said, “Sure, Dad.”

“I’m serious! Your brothers and I will make the trip to kick his ass no matter where you are.” Shawn certainly had no doubt about that. “So you let me know if things get out of hand with him again, ok?”

Shawn pulled back, nodding as he said, “I will. I love you, guys.”

His mom pulled him into a hug as well as she said, “We love you too, honey. Drive safe.”

After his final goodbyes, Shawn was back on the road, eager but also anxious on what’s to come.

Chapter Text

Shawn was a nervous wreck the entire way to the arena.

It was a big night – the night that The Rockers would officially end as a tag team. The plan was for Shawn to turn on Marty during a barbershop segment, which would begin Shawn’s heel run as the Heartbreak Kid.

As excited as Shawn was, he was also anxious to see Marty face-to-face. The two hadn’t seen or spoken to each other since their meeting with Vince, not that Marty hadn’t tried.

For the first few days of Shawn’s break, Marty had called Shawn’s parents, demanding to speak to Shawn. However, the threats from Shawn’s dad were enough to convince Marty to give Shawn the space he needed.

As Shawn approached the arena, the only thing he looked forward to was throwing Marty through a glass window at the end of the planned segment. 

After parking his car, his nerves hit an all-time high as he realized that he’d have to use the general locker room – the same locker room that Marty would likely be in as well. 

It had been a whole month and Shawn still wasn’t ready to see him, at least not before his segment. He had no idea what state of mind Marty would be in. As much as Shawn hoped Marty would ignore him, he knew there was a chance that the man would cause a scene once laying eyes on Shawn.

Shawn groaned, resting his head on the steering wheel as he contemplated what to do. It was then that he remembered what Bret had said to him the day he left. 

“If you ever find yourself looking for some company when you get back, you should come by that Harts’ dressing room.”

Had Bret meant it? Was the offer even still on the table?

Shawn wasn’t sure. But he had to at least try. Anything would be better than being forced to be anywhere near his boyfrie-, ex-boyfriend. He still had to get used to saying that. 

So it was settled.

After gathering his belongings, Shawn walked into the arena, scouring the backstage area in hopes of finding the Harts’ locker room before running into someone he didn’t want to see. Luckily for him, he didn’t have to look too far.

Shawn knocked lightly on the solid door, tightly gripping his gym bag in anticipation. It was only a few moments that he stood there staring at the door, but it felt like minutes. As soon as he began to second-guess himself, the door slightly opened to reveal a surprised-looking Owen Hart who gave the biggest grin once he saw that it was Shawn.

“Hey, Shawn,” he cheerfully greeted.

“Uh, hey,” Shawn said. He looked awkwardly down the hall over his shoulder before turning back to Owen. “Mind if I hang out in here?”

Shawn didn’t know a grin could get any wider.

Owen answered, “Oh, of course! I was just leaving, but Bret’s in here to keep you company.” Owen turned his head back into the room, giving Bret a wink and a thumbs up before turning back to Shawn, widening the door to let him in as he exited the room.

Shawn entered the locker room cautiously, a small smile settling on his lips as his eyes met Bret’s who was sitting on a bench across the room.

Bret’s heart nearly skipped a beat when he saw Shawn. Because of the blond’s abrupt exit a month ago, Bret had no idea when he would be returning. So he was shocked yet pleased to see Shawn’s beautiful face once again.

Shawn was just as relieved to see a friendly face, his nerves instantly melting away as he laid eyes on Bret.

Bret was the first to break the silence between them, standing up hastily from his seat as he said, “Hey. You’re back.”

Shawn nodded, his smile widening as he said, “Yep.”

“For good?”

 “Yeah, for good.”

“Good,” said Bret, genuinely thankful that Shawn was here to stay. “Here, have a seat. I’ll take this for you,” Bret said as he took Shawn’s bag before the blond could protest.

Shawn stood there, watching as Bret put his bag in the corner of the room, before deciding to take a seat on the bench. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” Bret said as he made his way back over to Shawn before taking a seat next to the blond. “I’m so glad you’re back.”

Shawn raised a brow as if not believing Bret. “Really?”

Bret chuckled, “Yeah. It was weird not seeing you walking these halls.”

Shawn could only smile, not sure how to respond, but it did feel good knowing that someone appreciated his presence. “Well, you’re going to be seeing a lot more of me for a while now, so I don’t want to hear you complaining that you’re sick of me,” Shawn joked.

“Not a chance,” Bret snickered. “So what brings you by?”

“Well,” Shawn trailed, “You said I could swing by if I ever needed company. And, well, I could really use a distraction right now. I mean, that’s unless you don’t want-”

“No, no,” Bret said quickly. “You’re welcome here anytime. I’m…happy you’re here,” he ended with a reassuring smile. And that was all Shawn needed to ease his worries.

Bret cleared his throat before saying, “You look a lot…better. Healthier.”

And he really did. Shawn’s bruises were mostly healed, the only one remaining being a faint mark on his cheek that was only noticeable if you looked too closely.

Bret also noticed that Shawn looked a lot less…sad? Stressed? He couldn’t put a finger on it, but leading up to Shawn’s break, the blond constantly looked like he was on the verge of breaking down. But not now.

It looked like his break really did him some good.

“I feel a lot better too,” said Shawn.

Bret leaned back, getting more comfortable in his seat asking, “So, how was your break?”

Shawn took a moment to respond, answering slowly, “It was…eventful, to say the least.”

Bret tilted his head inquisitively. “Did you enjoy yourself?”

Shawn thought carefully on the question. To say he enjoyed himself would be a stretch. Although he did enjoy being around his family, much of his break was spent dealing with heartbreak.

Not his ideal vacation.

Shawn shrugged, “It was fine.”

Bret easily picked up on Shawn’s mood, the blond looking spaced out as he stared ahead of him. Bret sat up, leaning closer to Shawn as he asked earnestly, “Hey, are you doing alright?”

“Yes,” Shawn said immediately, as if he were programmed to say so. In a sense, he was.

Not buying it, Bret emphasized, “Are you sure?”

Shawn slowly turned his head to look at Bret, and it was then that he deflated, leaning against the wall behind them as he stared at the floor. “No.”

Just like the night they met at the bar, Bret always had a way of making Shawn feel comfortable enough to let down his guard and open up to him. Shawn often wondered if it was secretly one of the reasons why Marty didn’t like him talking to Bret, paranoid that with just one concerned look from Bret, Shawn would go spilling all of their secrets.

However, with Marty no longer around to be a thorn in his side, Shawn decided to be honest with one of the closest friends he’d made at the company.

“No?” Bret raised a brow as he asked, “What’s wrong?”

Shawn shifted his eyes to Bret asking, “Honest?”

Bret nodded and that’s when Shawn decided to come clean with everything.

“Marty and I are done.”

Bret blinked a few times, wondering if he’d heard right. Not wanting to misinterpret, Bret asked for clarity, “Done? As a tag team?”

Shawn nodded, resting his head against the wall as he blankly stared up at the ceiling. “Yeah. We’re filming the breakup tonight. I’ll be wrestling singles going forward.”

Bret looked on at Shawn, truly surprised at the news. With how attached at the hip Shawn and Marty were, it seemed like there was no possibility that the duo would ever split. But Bret also knew that Shawn was too talented to only wrestle in the tag team division.

This was great news. Or at least it should be. Bret was about to congratulate Shawn, but stopped himself as he took note of Shawn’s gloomy expression.

“You’re not happy about it?”

“No, no. I’m ecstatic. It’s just,” Shawn sat up again, shifting more towards Bret. “That’s not it. The…the relationship is done as well.”

Bret had to do a double take. The relationship was over? As in no more Marty? As in Shawn’s single?

Bret was ashamed to admit that a small part of him was a bit relieved. Despite his crush on the younger man, Bret had yet to make a move out of respect for Shawn’s relationship.

However, instead of harping on his relief, Shawn’s painful expression instantly made Bret sympathize with Shawn. It was obvious to Bret that Marty meant a lot to Shawn and the blond was taking the breakup hard.

“Really?” Bret said in almost a whisper.

Shawn shrugged as nonchalantly as he could muster. He cleared his throat, feeling it start to close up, before saying, “I should have seen it coming.”

“Why do you say that?”

Shawn mulled over the question, answering honestly, “It’s been toxic between us for a while now, but it’s been so bad these past few months. There was a brief moment where things were getting better, where I had hope. I thought we could work it out like we always did but-,” his voice cracked, cutting himself off as tears pooled at his eyes.

Shawn rubbed at his eyes frustratedly, pissed at himself because swore he was done crying over that asshole.

Bret was stunned as he watched Shawn get emotional. It was the first time he’d ever seen the man so vulnerable. He was used to seeing Shawn gallivanting backstage, displaying a cocky, overconfident persona.

However, the man in front of him wasn’t putting on some façade. He was hurting.

Not knowing the right words to say, Bret placed a comforting hand on Shawn’s shoulder as he said, “I’m sorry, man. Are you ok?”

Shawn nodded, staring blankly at the floor again as he tried to calm himself down. “Yeah, I’m doing better now. As much as it hurts, it was for the best.”

“How did he take it?”

Shawn froze, not going unnoticed by Bret, before he answered with a sigh, “Not good. The breakup was really bad. I mean really bad. Hence the bruises on my face a month ago.”

Bret’s brows almost flew off his face. “He did that?” Bret had wondered where the bruises came from the last time he’d seen Shawn, but he didn’t want to pry at the time.

“Yeah,” Shawn said emotionlessly, completely disconnected from the situation. “He cheated so… yeah. I’d just had enough.”

Bret remained calm on the outside, but he was seething on the inside. The fact that anyone, especially a lover, would attack Shawn pissed him off. It didn’t matter that the two were men. It never should have happened. 

That on top of the fact that Marty cheated was pretty damning to Bret.

“Shit, Shawn.” Bret said, truly taken aback.

“Yeah,” Shawn said again, dejectedly.

“I’m so sorry you went through that. No one deserves that, Shawn,” said Bret as he gently rubbed his hand on Shawn’s shoulder.

Although it was comforting, it didn’t stop more tears from pooling in Shawn’s eyes, the younger man one step away from breaking down. He whispered, “I know.”

His family had drilled it into his head enough that it wasn’t his fault. He didn’t do anything wrong. And he certainly didn’t deserve the way Marty treated him. But there was still a part of him that needed to be reminded of that.

Seeing Shawn so shaken up brought an anger to Bret that he couldn’t even describe. “ What a dick. That motherfucker. If only I were around to-”

Bret was cut off by something he wasn’t expecting. A short laugh escaped Shawn’s lips as a lone tear escaped down his cheek. There wasn’t a smile on his face, but there was no doubt he found humor in what Bret had said.

The blond said, “You sound just like my dad,” Shawn being reminded of the same threatening statement his dad had made about Marty.

“Sounds like a good dad to me.”

And that was enough to cause the corner of Shawn’s lips to tug upwards. He took a deep breath, wiping his eyes in hope that his tears wouldn’t be replaced. “I’ll be ok. Marty and I are done for good, so I’m just trying to move forward.”

Bret nodded, bringing his hand down to rub comfortingly on Shawn’s back. “Yeah, I get that.”

There was a quiet moment between them, the two letting the silence linger, before Shawn said, “Sorry that I’m unloading so much on you. I know it’s a lot. Didn’t mean to kill the vibe,” he said in attempted humor. “It’s just that aside from Scott, I don’t have many people here to talk to. Everyone else either doesn’t like me, or they’re friends with Marty, and I’d rather not be associated with them."

Bret could only imagine how tough of a situation that must be for Shawn. He couldn’t imagine being forced to work around his ex. When Bret was going through his divorce, work was his escape. And seeing that Shawn didn’t have an escape, Bret was more than happy to be Shawn’s shoulder to lean on.

Bret said softly, “Don’t worry. You can always talk to me, Shawn. About anything.”

To be honest, this was the most he and Shawn had talked to each other in one sitting since their time at the bar years ago. Marty was usually around to make sure their conversations didn’t last longer than a few minutes.

Shawn was put at ease at Bret’s reassurance, taking it as an open invitation to be as vulnerable as he’s been with anyone aside from Marty or his family.

Shawn shifted to lean back against the wall, Bret’s hand still firmly pressed against his lower back in encouragement. “As dramatic as it sounds, I feel like I’m starting my life all over again, like I have to relearn how to go about my daily life without it involving Marty.”

Bret knew that feeling all too well. “I get it. He’s been such a huge part of your life, it’s going to take some getting used to.”

“Yeah,” Shawn said in deep thought. “Holidays are certainly going to suck now. I mean, I’ve always been with him through it all. Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays. Not to mention Valentine’s Day. It’s going to be my first time spending it alone since high school and I don’t know how to feel about it. I-” Shawn was cut off by an unexpected sob as his emotions came crashing down, quickly leaning forward to place his head in his hands as tears pricked at his eyes.

He knew he shouldn’t feel embarrassed, especially talking to Bret, but he was getting annoyed with himself at how emotional he still was over this. The fact that he couldn’t just talk about it without feeling like he was going to have a mental breakdown was too much.

The only thing seeming to hold him together was the hand that was still placed on his back.

He took a deep breath, sniffing before wiping the tears from his cheeks, whispering, “Sorry.”

“No, don’t apologize. It’s ok. Take your time.” Shawn nearly cried just at how gentle Bret was being with him.

Shawn took a moment to collect himself, letting out slow deep breaths until he felt like he was calm enough to talk through it. “It’s…I just can’t believe it’s over, you know? It’s crazy to think you can spend 7 years with a person and still don’t know them. It’s just so surreal.”

Bret could definitely relate to that feeling. He experienced the same wave of emotions before getting divorced. 

 “I understand how you feel more than you know. Trust me.”

Shawn turned his head to look at Bret. “What do you mean?”

Bret took in a breath, letting it out before saying, “Remember when I told you I’m happily divorced?” Shawn nodded. “Well, a few months before filing, I found out my ex-wife was having an affair. She had been having sex with a childhood ‘friend’ of hers for almost a year before I found out. I should’ve known to trust my instincts that the man was anything more than a friend. But I trusted her. What a mistake that was.”

Shawn was stunned, his eyes widening at the revelation. It was hard to believe that someone as nice and sweet as Bret could go through a situation so similar to his own.

“I’m sorry, Bret,” Shawn whispered in disbelief. He knew more than anyone how painful that experience could be.

Bret gave a shrug saying, “It’s fine. Don’t get me wrong. It tore me up at first. We’d been married for 9 years.”

“Really?!” Shawn never thought to ask Bret about his ex or the divorce, assuming that the topic was off limits. But it was a complete shock to him how someone would be willing to ruin their marriage after being together for so long, much like his situation with Marty.

“Yeah, I never imagined being with anyone else but her. But when trust is broken like that, there’s no going back. Our relationship was already pretty rocky, but that was the cherry on top. In hindsight, it was really a blessing in disguise. I probably would’ve never left if it hadn’t happened.”

“That’s a…different way of looking at it,” Shawn pondered, wondering if he would have stayed in his unstable relationship if Marty hadn’t cheated.

“It’s easy to harp on the negative, but the only way I’ve been able to cope is by focusing on the positive.”

That was easier said than done, thought Shawn.

Out of curiosity, Shawn asked, “Are you happy?”

“I’m much happier now. It took some time, but that’s ok. These feelings, these emotions that you’re experiencing are ok, Shawn. It’s normal. Allow yourself to feel them but know that brighter days are ahead if you allow them to be. You’ll find someone more deserving, but in the meantime, try to use this as a time to focus on yourself. Be kinder to yourself.”

Tears welled up in Shawn’s eyes again, but not because he was upset. He was simply touched by Bret’s kind words. Bret had no idea how much Shawn needed to hear them, to know that everything was going to be ok.

Shawn swiftly pulled Bret into a hug, burying his head into Bret’s neck as he said, “Thank you, Bret.”

Bret relished in the embrace, tightening his hold on Shawn in hope that his comfort was enough for the blond.

Shawn was the first to pull away, looking up at Bret before noticing how close they were. He moved away from Bret as he said jokingly, “You must think I’m a trainwreck.”

Bret grabbed one of Shawn’s hands, squeezing gently as he shook his head, “No. No, you’re not, Shawn. Remember what I said. Be kinder to yourself.”

That would take a lot of effort on Shawn’s part, but he decided not to voice that.

The blond nodded as he looked down at Bret’s hand on his own, thinking to himself how perfectly their hands fit together. Shawn then closed his eyes, shaking his head to get the thought out of his head.

A moment passed until Shawn said, “I guess the only good thing that came out of this whole shitshow was that I got to spend some time with my family. Dealing with the breakup was difficult even with their help. I can only imagine how I would have been if they weren’t around.”

“Family is really important in a time like this.” It put Bret a little at ease knowing that Shawn was getting the support he needed from his family.

“Yeah, they’re great. But now that I’m away from them again…I don’t know. It’s going to be so hard seeing him in the locker room now. I don’t trust myself not to do anything reckless.”

That was concerning to Bret. He didn’t know what ‘reckless’ fully entailed with Shawn, but he wanted to prevent it from ever having to get to that point.

“Hey,” he said, fully getting the blond’s attention. “No need to be reckless. You can use our locker room whenever you want. ”

Shawn asked slowly, “Like…use the Harts’ locker room?” Although Bret’s invited Shawn to their locker room before, he never thought Bret would offer to make it a permanent thing.

“Yeah,” Bret said, squeezing Shawn’s hand comfortingly. “Why not?”

“I don’t know. I wouldn’t want to be, like, in the way.”

“You wouldn’t be,” Bret answered quickly, wanting to dispel any worries Shawn had.

“Really? The other guys wouldn’t mind?”

Bret shook his head. “No, they’re barely in here anyway. It’s really ok, Shawn. You should hang with the Harts. We’ll make sure you’re taken care of, and that Marty doesn’t bother you.”

As tempting as the offer was, Shawn didn’t want to be a burden. He didn’t need the Harts playing as his bodyguards. He was a grown man, and if there came a time where he had to face Marty, he could do it on his own. But just the mere thought of it was making him anxious again.

He was conflicted.

He flashed Bret an appreciative smile saying, “I’ll think about it. Anyway, I should get going. I need to meet with Vince about my angle tonight,” Shawn said, detaching his hand from Bret as he shifted away, the older man already missing his warmth.

Bret nodded reluctantly, standing up and handing Shawn his bag before walking him to the door. “Good luck tonight. I’ll be cheering you on from the back.”

Shawn smiled fondly saying, “Thanks, Bret. See you later.”

Bret leaned against the doorway, watching longingly as Shawn walked down the hallway towards Vince’s office, still processing the conversation they’d just had.

Bret’s thoughts were cut short when Owen snuck up behind him, startling the older man when he whispered, “So, how’d it go?”

Bret jumped at Owen’s unannounced presence, turning to see a mischievous grin on his brother’s face. He gave an annoyed look, asking “How long have you been waiting by the door?”

Flustered, Owen quickly stammered, “Hey, I asked you a question first.”

Bret rolled his eyes, turning to walk back into the locker room as he said, “Not talking about it. Get ready for your match.”

Owen smacked his lips, whining as he followed Bret, “Come on, man!”

Chapter Text

Although Shawn appreciated Bret’s offer to use the Harts’ locker room, he feared Bret was only being nice, and Shawn didn’t want to become a burden to Bret or the other Harts.

But after talks of his and Marty’s breakup spread rapidly amongst the roster, Shawn’s time in the locker room became increasingly difficult now that he was on his own. So difficult that Shawn would often shower at the hotel or wait until everyone left the arena.

Ultimately, that was enough to convince him that maybe hanging with the Harts wouldn’t be so bad.

Surprisingly to Shawn, all of the Harts seemed to welcome him with open arms, especially Owen. The two got along very well, Bret often joking that Shawn and Owen shared the same brain cell.

Getting close to the Harts was definitely not on Shawn’s bucket list, but he was beyond grateful to have them in his corner, especially Bret.

Spending nearly every day with Bret allowed Shawn to become increasingly aware of his attraction to the older man. He caught himself on more than one occasion getting lost in Bret’s eyes, noticing how nice and curly his hair was, or purposely making a fool of himself just to see Bret’s smile. Not to mention, Bret had a really nice body, and sharing a locker room granted Shawn the privilege to see more than he was used to in the ring.

But regardless of how attractive Bret was, Shawn vowed to himself that he would not date another wrestler, or at least not a wrestler in the same company. His experience with Marty left a sour taste in his mouth, and he wanted to avoid ever putting himself in a situation like that ever again.

So he settled on just enjoying being good friends with Bret. 

Upon arriving to the arena, Shawn headed to the Harts’ locker room just as he would any other day. But he stopped dead in his tracks when he rounded a corner, locking eyes with the person he’d been trying to steer clear of for the past couple months.

Marty was anxiously pacing the hallway, lost in thought when he glanced up, looking relieved once he spotted Shawn.

It had been a little over a month since the pair filmed the breakup of The Rockers, and Shawn had been mostly successful in avoiding Marty since then. He was able to convince Vince that there was no need for the two of them to interact now that they were building up the Heartbreak Kid, and thankfully Vince agreed.

However, Shawn’s luck soon ran out.

Marty walked briskly toward Shawn with urgency as he said, “Shawn. Hey-” But he was cut off when Shawn put up a hand between them.

“Stop. Just…don’t come closer to me.”

Marty looked dejected as he watched Shawn slowly drop his hand before attempting to walk away. “Can we talk?”

Shawn closed his eyes, sighing to himself before turning to face Marty again. “I don’t want to talk to you.”

“Please,” Marty stressed. “Just five minutes and I promise I’ll leave you alone.”

Shawn scoffed, “You’ve proven to me time and time again that your promises don’t mean shit.”

There was an awkward silence that lingered between them, Shawn slightly nervous that Marty would snap. Surprisingly, that didn’t happen.

Marty nodded to himself. “You’re right. I don’t blame you for not wanting anything to do with me. But this may be the last time I get to see you.”

That got Shawn’s attention. He furrowed his brows, asking, “Huh?”

Marty motioned to an empty locker room. “Can we talk in there?”

Shawn looked at the room, panic slowly rising at the idea of being alone with Marty. He said pointedly, “I don’t want to argue with you, Marty.”

“Me neither. It’s just a talk. Nothing more.”

Shawn knew he should’ve walked away, should’ve told Marty to go fuck himself. But against his better judgment, he said, “Make it quick,” and followed the man to the room, his own curiosity getting the better of him.

Once inside, Shawn stood next to the door just in case he needed to make a quick escape. He leaned against the wall, folding his arms as he said, “Go on.” He didn’t want to be around Marty any longer than he needed to be.

“Right,” Marty fidgeted. “I…uh…I got released today.”

Shawn’s brows raised as he tilted his head in surprise. That certainly wasn’t what he expected to hear. “What? Released?”

“Yeah…I’m going to WCW. I just…thought you should be the first to know.”

Shawn stood there stunned, honestly not knowing what to say, or what Marty expected of him. Did Marty want Shawn to congratulate him? To beg for him not to go? To go with him? Because none of those thoughts came to mind.

Marty said solemnly, “You know we’ve never wrestled a single promotion without each other, right?”

It was true. Ever since their training days, the two stuck by each other’s side. Even when it was obvious early on that Shawn was the better of the two, Shawn would refuse to wrestle at a promotion if Marty weren’t included.

With Marty going to WCW, this would be the first time that they would be truly separated, no longer working under the same roof, and Shawn wasn’t sure how to feel about it.

Marty continued, “It’s going to be so different going there without you, Shawn. Hell, it’s gonna be weird for me not having you around, period.”

A million thoughts smarmed through Shawn’s head before he said slowly, “Yeah. Same for me.”

Marty had always been there, and there was a very small insecure part of Shawn that desperately held onto his love for Marty, that yearned for the man not to leave, to continue being a silent presence that haunted him in his life because it’s what he was used to.

However, the larger part of him that craved separation and independence was relieved. He would no longer have to constantly look over his shoulder or walk on eggs shells because of Marty.

He was finally free.

Shawn took a deep breath, saying genuinely, “I’m sorry you got released, but I’m glad you have something lined up. I’m sure you’ll do great in WCW.”

Marty frowned as if he were expecting a different reaction. “Yeah. Thanks.”

There was another awkward silence that Shawn refused to subject himself to. He uncrossed his arms, turning toward the door saying, “Well, if that’s all-”

“No, wait,” Marty said swiftly. “There’s one more thing I wanted to talk about. About that night-”

Shawn grimaced, not even wanting to think about what happened months ago at the hotel. “Marty-”

“No, I need to say this. If I could take everything back, I would. You didn’t deserve the shit I put you through, Shawn. I’m sorry.”

Shawn would be lying if he said it didn’t feel nice hearing a sober Marty apologizing and taking accountability for his actions instead of blaming Shawn as he usually did. However, Shawn just wanted to leave, not knowing if he had any more strength to be in the same room as Marty.

Shawn gave a slight nod saying, “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

He hoped that would have been the end of the conversation. But before Shawn could register what was happening, Marty abruptly pulled him into a hug.

The blond stood there frozen in shock as Marty tightened his hold, relishing in having Shawn in his arms again before whispering, “I miss you.”

Shawn let out a shaky breath as he said, “Don’t.”

Marty pulled away slightly, his face just inches from Shawn’s as he said, “You can’t tell me that you don’t miss me, too. That you don’t miss us.”

Shawn didn’t say anything, avoiding eye contact and feeling like a trapped animal in Marty’s arms.

Unfortunately, Marty mistakenly took Shawn’s silence as admission. He leaned a little closer, intending to kiss Shawn, but the blond quickly shoved him back exclaiming, “What the fuck are you doing?!”

“Shawn, I-I’m sorry! I thought-”

“You’re clearly not thinking shit!”

“Look, I know I’m out of line-”

“You think-”

“But this is probably the last time I’ll see you for who knows how long! Please, just one more time, me and you.”

And it was tempting, oh so tempting, to fall back into old habits. Because that’s what Marty was. A bad habit that Shawn struggled to let go of for so long. And as always, as soon as he started doing well for himself, Marty found a way to slither his way back into his life.

If this had been Shawn a few months ago, he may have fallen for it. He may have given Marty yet another chance as he’d done countless times before just for Marty to screw up again.

But Shawn knew he had to put a stop to it for good.

Shawn said firmly, as if he were talking to a misbehaving dog, “No, Marty! No.”

Marty seemed a bit taken aback, not used to Shawn being so stern. As a desperate last attempt, Marty begged, “Please, Shawn. This is killing me. I love you.”

Marty thought that was what Shawn needed to hear, but that was all it took to set him off.

“Love?! Are you fucking serious,” Shawn scoffed in disbelief. “The fact that you can even utter that word after the shit you’ve put me through is insane!”

This is what Shawn didn’t want to happen. He didn’t want to get worked up, to get angry and emotional over someone who was supposed to stay in the past. But he had so much pent-up feelings and unresolved issues with Marty that were clawing to come out.

Marty looked like a deer in headlights. “Please don’t be upset-”

“You’ve ruined me, Marty. Don’t you get that?!” Shawn’s voice cracked as tears pricked his eyes. He emphasized, “Ruined me!”

“I never wanted that-”

“Never in my life would I have thought you would have cheated or hit me. But you did that. You! You can’t just expect me to move on from that. So I don’t ever want to hear you say shit about loving me!”

Marty was left speechless as he watched Shawn wipe his eyes, attempting to calm himself. “Shit, I can’t stop fucking up,” Marty said disappointedly to himself. “I’m not trying to make things worse, Mikey.”

Shawn sniffed, “Too fucking late.”

Marty nodded, “Yeah, I know. I just… I just want you back, Shawn. And I know I don’t deserve it, but the time I’ve been away from you has been awful. I need you. So fucking bad. I just need to know if we can work this out. Do you think you can give us another chance?”

There goes that temptation again. It would be so easy to fall back into that safety net. Shawn knew it. That’s what made his next decision even more difficult.

Despite his inner turmoil, Shawn answered confidently, “I think it’s best if we both just focus on ourselves.”

Marty’s mouth hung open, not wanting to believe the words coming out of Shawn’s mouth. “You can’t mean that.”

Shawn swallowed hard before answering, “I do.”

“What…what am I supposed to do without you? What are we both supposed to do without each other?”

Shawn often asked himself the same question. Throughout their relationship, Marty and Shawn had grown equally unhealthily codependent of each other. And as toxic and unstable as the relationship was, Shawn knew what to expect. He’d grown accustomed to taking Marty’s abuse, both mentally and physically.

But enough was enough.

“We’ll figure it out, Marty. But not together. We’re just not…we’re not good for each other.”

What he didn’t expect was to see Marty’s eyes well up with tears of his own, the tightening of Shawn’s own heart hard to ignore. “But we can be.”

As much as Shawn wanted that to be true, history’s proven that it was not. Shawn lamented, “No. This is it.”

Marty sighed, dragging a tired hand across his face, realizing that his pleading was a lost cause. He wasn’t getting Shawn back this time, and it was no one’s fault but his own.

“I’m sorry,” he said, this time sounding genuinely remorseful.

“I know,” Shawn whispered before making his way towards the door. He gave Marty one last look as he said, “Goodbye, Marty.”

Before he could change his mind, Shawn left the room with his head held high, leaving Marty and their 7-year relationship behind.

When Shawn entered the Harts’ locker room, Bret could immediately tell something was off. Despite the forced bright smile Shawn flashed when he greeted everyone, Bret could see the sadness in his eyes. It also looked like the blond had been crying which was hard for Bret to ignore.

Bret waited until his brother and in-laws were out of the locker room to ask, “Hey, you ok?”

Shawn was in the midst of stretching on the floor when Bret approached him, the older man forcing down inappropriate thoughts on how flexible Shawn was.

Shawn got up from the floor with a snicker saying, “Why are you always asking me that? I’m good.” But the look Bret gave Shawn told him that he didn’t believe him.

Shawn let out a sigh before sitting down in the nearest chair. Bret also pulled up a chair, sitting next to Shawn as he patiently waited for the blond to open up.

After a moment of hesitation, Shawn finally said, “He got released today.”

Bret didn’t have to ask to know who Shawn was talking about. Knowing how much turmoil Shawn’s been in since the breakup, Bret thought Marty’s release was perfect timing. But as he looked at Shawn, he noticed that the blond didn’t seem as elated as he imagined he’d be.

Bret asked, “How do you feel about it?”

Shawn shifted his eyes to the floor as he answered honestly, “I’m…conflicted. It’s like, I’m happy that I don’t have to worry about him anymore.”

“But,” Bret prompted.

“But a part of me is sad, I think. Sad that we couldn’t make it work. Sad that we failed. Sad that all of these years we spent together were washed down the drain. But…never mind, it’s stupid.”

Bret leaned forward to get in Shawn’s line of sight, the blond locking eyes with Bret’s as he urged “No, it’s not, Shawn. It’s not stupid. It makes sense.”

“Does it?”

“Yeah. I mean, you were with the guy since high school. Feelings don’t disappear overnight, no matter how much we’d like them to. What else?”

Shawn blinked, not expecting Bret to be this interested. He gave it some thought before responding, “I guess I’m feeling a little anxious.”

“Why?”

Shawn shrugged. “I don’t know. I think it’s because I’ve always relied on Marty, probably more than I should have. I guess I’m just starting to realize how much control I allowed him to have over my life.”

“Control how?”

“I mean he’s the reason why I got into wrestling. He chose our team’s name and outfits. He even bleached my fucking hair. So much of who I am is because of him, and I just feel like I don’t even know who I am without him.”

Bret listened intently, albeit concerned. He had no idea how much Shawn depended on Marty. With the man having so much of an influence on Shawn, it was no wonder why the blond was having an identity crisis.

But Bret wanted, no, needed Shawn to know that his identity and success was not because of Marty. It’s because of how amazing Shawn is. The fact that Marty even got Shawn to the point of feeling like he needed Marty to know who he was as a person really pissed Bret off.

“Hey,” Bret said softly, “You’re Shawn Michaels, one of the most talented wrestlers this generation has seen. You don’t need anyone else to tell you that.”

“No. I’m Michael Shawn Hickenbottom.” That was the first time Shawn had told anyone his real name since he started wrestling. It was certainly the first time Bret had heard it.

Shawn continued, “Shawn Michaels is cocky, arrogant, confident, talented, and has the whole world ahead of him. But Michael…Mikey-”

Bret heard Shawn’s breath hitch, the blond on the verge of breaking down. He finished Shawn’s sentence, saying soothingly, “Is a talented, intelligent man that wears his heart on his sleeve, who’s doing the best he can with the cards life has dealt him.”

Shawn said defiantly, “You’re just being nice.”

“No, I’m being honest. Must I keep reminding you to be kinder to yourself?”

Shawn frowned. “I’m trying, Bret. It doesn’t come easy for me.”

“Then I’ll just be here to keep reminding you.”

Shawn smiled slightly before leaning back in his chair, groaning, “I should hate him. Curse his name. Wish the worst upon him for what he’s done to me. But-”

“But you’re not that kind of person. You’re kind, thoughtful, and loving. It’s not in you to be vindictive. Though if you were, your feelings would be completely valid. But you’re a genuinely good person, Shawn. I wouldn’t lie to you about that.”

That managed to pull a larger smile from Shawn. “I know.”

“Good. Your kindness is one of the reasons why I like you.” Bret quickly caught himself, stammering, “Uh, I mean as a friend,” he ended with an awkward smile. 

Shawn chuckled, “Of course. Thanks for being a good friend, Bret. I mean it. I feel like all I ever do is bring my problems to you, but you’re always willing to listen.”

“That’s what friends are for.” Bret certainly wouldn’t mind being something more than friends, but he wasn’t going to let Shawn know that. At least not yet.

There was a comfortable silence between the two, the moment being interrupted when Bret said, “So, Hickenbottom, huh?”

“Don’t you even start,” Shawn warned playfully, both men laughing jovially before getting ready for the show.

Chapter Text

Shawn noticed a shift within himself after his run-in with Marty.

Although their talk was hard, it was oddly therapeutic. Saying goodbye to Marty for the last time allowed Shawn to get the closure he didn’t know he needed. It solidified that they were done for good, and Shawn was ok with that.

He could finally move on with no regrets.

In the spirit of moving on, Shawn decided to take his own advice and focus on himself. After so many years of relying on someone else for happiness and validation, he needed to put himself first.

It was during his time away with his parents that Shawn realized just how many red flags he ignored in his failed relationship.

One thing that stood out like a sore thumb was Marty’s possessiveness. Anything involving Shawn came down to Marty’s decision. From his hairstyle to his clothes, to who he could hang out with, even down to his diet. Marty had to have a say in all of it.

At the time, Shawn didn’t give it much thought. He usually wrote it off as Marty knowing what’s best for him, Marty caring for him, Marty showing him that he loved him.

It took Shawn being far removed from the situation for him to realize what it truly was.

Control.

Marty needed to feel like he was in control at all times – in control of their careers, in control of their relationship, and more importantly, in control of Shawn.

And Shawn let him.

But now that Marty was a nonfactor, Shawn was determined to find himself again, and part of that included working on himself and focusing on the things that mattered to him. Not anyone else.

His first order of business was throwing out his leftover boxes of bleached hair dye. He’d rather rock his natural blond than to ever lighten his hair again. Although it gave him his signature look in The Rockers, it wasn’t Shawn.

He also made a conscious effort to eat a cleaner diet and work out more frequently. Now that he was solo, he no longer had to skip workouts or cut his sessions short due to Marty not being in the mood.

But Shawn didn’t just want a healthier body. He wanted a healthier mindset as well.

The toughest decision for the blond was cutting down on his consumption of drugs and alcohol.

Marty introduced Shawn to multiple substances throughout the relationship. And although Shawn didn’t use as heavily as Marty, he knew he was on the verge of having a problem if he didn’t at least try to slow down.

Shawn also took it upon himself to bury the hatchet with some of the guys he’d burnt bridges with in the locker room, which was no easy feat. Some of them were willing to forgive and forget. However, many of the guys were not as receptive, understandably so. But to be fair, Marty was the cause of 95% of Shawn’s locker room troubles.

Regardless of the mixed reaction, Shawn felt better after clearing the air, no longer having the pressure to ignore the guys or be rude to them in hopes of appeasing Marty.

Closing the chapter with Marty also allowed Shawn to finally acknowledge the complex feelings he’d been having for the one person who’d been a constant comfort in his life lately – Bret. 

He tried to ignore it at first – the butterflies in his stomach, the smile that spread involuntarily across his face when Bret spoke to him in passing, the way his heart skipped a beat when his hand accidentally brushed Bret’s, or the way his face reddened whenever Bret gave him a compliment.

But that was easier said than done.

“Earrings,” Bret asked incredulously as he watched Shawn scrutinize his appearance in great detail via the locker room mirror.

Shawn locked eyes with Bret through the mirror, asking, “It looks silly, doesn’t it?”

Seeing the doubt in Shawn’s eyes, Bret smiled softly, “No. I think it suits you.”

Shawn flashed a hopeful smile, turning towards Bret as he said, “Really? You don’t think it’s a bit much?”

“No, Shawn. You look good in anything, so stop psyching yourself out in that pretty little head of yours.”

Shawn raised an interested brow before batting his eyes and asking playfully, “So you think I’m pretty?”

Without missing a beat, Bret said matter-of-factly, “Yes.”

Shawn was stunned into silence, abruptly retreating back to the mirror to hide the blush that was quickly making its way across his cheeks as he continued getting ready for his match.

Unfortunately for him, Bret caught the blush in the mirror, sporting a smile of his own before leaving the room to find Owen.

Shawn’s feelings became even more complicated once he began having wet dreams that involved Bret. He was quick to write it off the first time it happened. He’d even avoid Bret for two days after it happened just to try and clear his mind.

However, it wasn’t long before it became a regular occurrence for the blond to wake up a sweaty mess in his hotel bed. And he felt so horrible and guilty about it – guilty because he knew he shouldn’t be thinking of his friend in such a leud way.

But that’s what made it so complicated. Bret was such a good friend to him, and Shawn would hate to ruin it just because he allowed his feelings to get in the way.

He was also hesitant to act on his feelings because things with Marty had started out the same way. Marty was such a good friend, so sweet to him, and made him feel special. And then it all went to shit. Shawn just couldn’t allow himself to go through that again.

Unbeknownst to Shawn, Bret was going through his own inner turmoil when it came to the blond. Despite being around Shawn nearly every day, Bret never got tired of the younger man. And his attraction to Shawn only seemed to grow the more time they spent together.

He appreciated that Shawn allowed him to see another side of him – a side that was only reserved for close friends and family. He wasn’t the cocky arrogant man that many people deemed him as in the locker room. Bret got to see him for who he truly was.

Bret so desperately wanted to pursue Shawn. It was hard not to when they got along so well. However, he didn’t want to push. And it’s not like he knew if Shawn would return his feelings. So until Shawn was ready, Bret would be the friend he needed.

However, Owen had a plan of his own. 

While Bret and Shawn were unaware of the other’s interest, their connection was painfully obvious to Owen. Watching the two of them dance around each other was really exhausting, and he intended on letting Bret know about it.

“This is getting really annoying,” said Owen as he barged into the locker room.

Bret lifted his head, rolling his eyes when he saw Owen standing there with his hands on his hips as he irately tapped his foot on the floor. Bret continued lacing his boots saying, “And you’re really annoying. What are you even talking about?”

“You and Shawn. Just seal the deal already!”

Bret came to a stop, dropping the laces that were in his hands as he looked up at Owen. “Huh? What do you mean? Shawn and I are friends.”

“Oh really?”

Bret said flatly, “Really.”

“Hmm.” It was now or never, Owen thought to himself. “What if I told you that Shawn likes you, too?” Bret gave a straight face, causing Owen to insist, “I’m serious! He just told me!”

Shawn had, in fact, NOT told Owen anything of the sort. But Bret didn’t need to know that. 

Bret tilted his head inquisitively. He wanted to believe Owen. He really did. Bret had been so careful about not letting his feelings be known to Shawn, especially considering everything he’d gone through with Marty.

But if Shawn actually felt the same way about him, that certainly changed things.

However, Bret knew his brother was a prankster, and he wasn’t sure if he could trust anything coming out of Owen’s mouth. “Yeah, right,” said Bret as he finished up lacing his boots.

Owen looked on in disbelief, saying in exasperation, “You’re seriously not even going to try?!”

Done with his boots, Bret sat up in a huff, asking, “Why do you even care?”

“I…because you deserve to be happy, too, Bret.” That was the honest truth. As annoying as Owen could be, he really did love his big brother.

Owen was the first person that Bret reached out to when he found out his wife cheated on him. Owen was there for Bret throughout the entire divorce process, and he saw how upset and broken his brother was because of it.

He thought Bret would never find love again, the man being completely put off on the idea due to his failed marriage.

But things were different when Shawn came around.

It was the first time in a long time that Owen saw Bret take a serious interest in someone. It quickly became apparent to Owen that Bret wasn’t talking to Shawn just for a quick hookup. He actually liked the man. And Owen liked Shawn too. He thought Shawn would be a perfect fit for his uptight brother.

Shawn’s sneaky glances and soft smiles to Bret when he thought the man wasn’t looking – but Owen caught, of course – were enough for Owen to know that Shawn also felt something for his brother.

They just needed something to push them towards each other, and Owen would happily be that force. But it was kind of hard to do that with how oblivious Bret was.

Bret sighed as he stood up, walking towards Owen as he said, “Look, I’m glad you want to look out for me, Owen. I appreciate it. But my love life’s off limits, ok?”

Bret walked away, heading towards the door, but stopped at Owen’s words. “Fine. But don’t throw away your chance to let him know how you feel.”

Bret and Shawn weren’t able to see each other until later that night due to their conflicting schedules. Vince was really serious about pushing Shawn in the singles division with his Heartbreak Kid gimmick, so he’d become busier than usual, which was fine by him. He’d rather focus on working than worrying about his life’s problems.

After his match that night, Shawn returned to the Harts’ locker room. He was expecting to have a quick chat with the guys, but upon opening the door, he found that the locker room was empty.

After showering, he came to see that the room was still empty. Shawn really wanted to wait for the guys to return, but he was in a rush to get to the hotel. So after getting dressed, he picked up his bag and made his way towards the door.

Before he could reach the doorknob, the door opened to reveal Bret along with Owen, Jim, and Davey trailing behind him. 

Owen’s eyes lit up as soon as he saw Shawn. “Hey, Shawn. You’re leaving already?”

“Yeah. I haven’t booked a room yet at the hotel, so I need to go see if there’s anything available.”

Owen turned to Bret, grinning proudly – a smile that usually meant trouble. “Oh, why don’t you just stay in Bret’s room-”

“Owen,” Bret hissed. 

Owen shrugged innocently. “What? Jim and I are sharing, and Davey’s going home, so you’re not sharing with anyone. You’d really let Shawn chance being stranded at the hotel without a room?”

Shawn perked up, actually not minding rooming with the older man. But he shrank back a bit at Bret’s reaction, the room arrangement seeming to bother him.

Shawn chimed in, “It’s ok. I don’t want to be a bother. I could room with Scott if all else fails. See you later, guys.” He left the room quickly before he could hear Owen’s protests.

With Shawn out of sight, Bret turned to Owen, saying with much disdain, “What the hell are you doing?!”

Owen frowned, “I’m just trying to help you out because heaven knows you’re not helping yourself!”

Jim nodded saying, “He’s got a point.”

Davey agreed, “Yeah, why is it such a big deal?”

Owen exclaimed, “See?! Even they agree with me.”

Bret groaned, “All you’re doing is making things weird for us! You don’t know the shit Shawn’s been through and you trying to force us together isn’t helping anything!” 

Owen threw up his hands in defeat. “Fine, whatever! I’m throwing in the towel. But when he gets swooped up by some other guy, I don’t want to hear you say shit about what you should have done!” Owen walked away in a huff as he headed towards the showers. 

Owen’s last words rang clear in Bret’s head, and he really hated the few times that Owen was right.

Given Shawn’s past with Marty, Bret wanted to give him space, to treat him as a friend, to let Shawn see that he really was interested in getting to know him as a person.

However, Bret knew he would be devastated if he missed out on telling Shawn how he felt. 

With his mind racing, Bret rushed out of the locker room hoping to catch Shawn before the blond left the arena. After searching through empty hallways, Bret spotted Shawn right as he was about to open the exit doors. 

“Hey, Shawn! Wait up!” Bret shouted down the hall loud enough for Shawn to hear him.

Shawn’s hand rested on the door handle as he turned to see Bret jogging towards him, the older man slightly out of breath once he reached him.

Shawn asked with concern, “Hey. Is something wrong?”

“No, no,” Bret panted. He took a moment to get his breathing under control before saying, “Um, are you sure you don’t want to share a room? It really wouldn’t be a bother, Shawn.”

Shawn raised a brow, surprised that Bret had chased him down the hall to ask that question. “I’m sure I’ll be fine. Thanks for offering, though.”

Ok, that’s not the way Bret expected the conversation to go, but he wasn’t giving up.

“Oh, ok. Well…you could still swing by my room later if you want to hang out.”

Shawn tilted his head asking, “Hang out?”

Bret shifted awkwardly, saying as nonchalantly as he could muster, “Uh, yeah only if you want to. Here.” He pulled out a pen from his jacket as well as an old receipt that was tucked in his jeans before writing down his hotel room number on the back of the receipt.

He held out the piece of paper to Shawn saying, “Just in case.”

Shawn slowly took the paper from Bret, tightly gripping it between his fingers as if his life depended on it.

Bret gave Shawn a gentle pat on the shoulder before turning and walking back towards his locker room, heart pounding the whole way there.

Shawn watched for a moment as Bret left down the hallway. He then looked down at the paper in his hand, smiling gently to himself before walking out of the arena.

Chapter Text

It was nearly midnight when Bret heard a knock on his room door at the hotel. He was beginning to think that Shawn wouldn’t show up as the night progressed. However, he was put at ease upon opening the door to see Shawn standing there with his duffle bag slung on his shoulder and a sheepish smile on his face.

Shawn shrugged, saying, “Things didn’t work out with Scott. So, it looks like we’re rooming tonight if you still want to.”

To which Bret responded all too eagerly, “Oh, yes! Yes, of course. Come in.” It’s not like he’d stayed up past his bedtime waiting for Shawn to come by or something. Nope. Not at all.

“Thanks,” said Shawn.

Shawn made his way into the room, wasting no time making himself comfortable. He left his bag by the door before plopping down on the couch, sighing in satisfaction as he leaned his head back with his eyes closed. It had been a long night and Shawn was so relieved to finally have a place to rest.

Bret followed suit, sitting next to the blond as he said, “So I’m guessing you couldn’t book a room.”

“Nope. The place is full and Scott’s out getting fucked up. So he’s not coming back until much, much later.” Shawn then opened his eyes and turned his head towards Bret. “Are you sure you don’t mind me staying?”

How could Bret ever mind when Shawn was looking up at him with those beautiful eyes?

“It’s fine. I promise,” he said as he held out his pinky finger.

Shawn smiled brightly, looping his own pinky around Bret’s as he said, “Good.”

There was a moment where their gaze lingered, both men smiling softly at each other as the silence of the room served as a constant reminder that they were alone. As short as the moment was, it was enough for both of them to feel something that they weren’t quite ready to make sense of yet.

Shawn was the first to break the tension as he unlinked their hands, clearing his throat before saying, “So you said you wanted to hang out tonight. What does ‘hanging out’ on a Monday night look like for Bret Hart?”

“Um,” Bret didn’t even know the answer to that. “We could watch a movie? Or just talk. Whatever you want to do.”

 “Do you ever go out drinking?”

“Eh, it depends. Sometimes, Owen drags me out. But it’s a rare occasion when I go out on my own. I typically stay in.”

“Hmm,” said Shawn inquisitively. “No wonder I barely see you out with the boys.”

Bret nodded, “Yeah. It’s a bit lame, right?”

“No. It’s good. That’s what makes you, you. I would’ve avoided a lot of trouble in the past if I hadn’t gone out drinking so much.”

“Wait, so you’re good with us staying in?”

“Yeah,” said Shawn as he wiggled out of his jacket to get more comfortable. “I’m fine doing whatever, Bret. You name it.”

After throwing out a few ideas, they settled on ordering pizza and watching an old horror movie.

Shawn was glued in on the film, clinging to a pillow in suspense with one hand as he gripped his pizza with the other. Bret glanced over at him every so often, finding Shawn’s antics amusing, especially because the movie wasn’t even that scary.

But unlike Shawn, Bret hadn’t been able to entirely focus on the movie. His mind was clouded with thoughts about what Owen had told him earlier that day.

Was he really fumbling his chance to be with Shawn? Was it the right time to tell the man about his feelings for him?

Bret knew regret would eat him alive if he didn’t at least try to pursue Shawn. But he really didn’t want to jeopardize their friendship. Shawn meant too much to him for him to let that happen.

It was Bret’s hesitation and contemplation that made him hold off a little longer on confessing to Shawn as they continued to watch the movie.

Before he knew it, the movie was over, and Shawn was stretching beside him as he let out an exaggerated yawn. “That was good.”

Bret teased, “How would you know? Your face was behind the pillow the whole time.”

“Hey,” Shawn said in a fake hurt voice, lightly hitting Bret with the pillow in question. “Don’t be rude.”

Bret put his hands up in defense, “Just an observation.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Shawn said flippantly before letting out another yawn. “Sorry, I’m getting sleepy. Think I’m gonna call it a night.”

“It is pretty late. We both could use some rest. I’ll head down to grab some extra blankets. I don’t want to freeze on the couch tonight,” said Bret as he got up from the couch.

Shawn watched in confusion as Bret put on his shoes, saying, “It’s your room. I’ll take the couch.”

Bret responded adamantly, “I invited you. I don’t want you sleeping on the couch, Shawn. I’ll be right back. I’m not sure how long it’ll take, so go ahead and get some rest.”

“Bret-” But Bret was already heading out the door, stifling Shawn’s protest.

Shawn sat there, staring at the door in bewilderment. He knew that Bret was a gentleman, but he had no idea the man would be willing to give up his bed for him. Shawn didn’t feel right about it, but he surely didn’t feel like going back and forth with the older man all night.

So he slowly got up and shrugged out of his jeans and t-shirt before moving the pile of clothes on top of his duffle bag.

Shawn slithered under the covers, letting out a content sigh as he sank down onto the soft mattress knowing that a good night’s sleep awaited him.

Or at least that’s what he intended.

Shawn had a very difficult time falling asleep as countless thoughts raced behind his closed eyes. Most of these thoughts consisted of Bret, more specifically, Shawn’s ever-growing feelings towards the man.

He was annoyed at himself for not being able to ignore it, constantly asking himself why. Why couldn’t he just allow himself to enjoy their friendship?

What they had was simple. It was safe. It was comfortable. Falling for Bret, not even knowing if the older man liked him back, would only make things more complicated.

Shawn curled into himself, thoughts consuming him like a starved parasite as he desperately tried to shut off his brain.

Bret came back to the room about 15 minutes later with fresh sheets. He closed the door softly behind him before walking towards the couch quietly in an effort to not make any noise, not knowing that the blond was fully awake, head peeking out of the comforter as he looked at Bret.

Bret set the sheets down before turning around to tug off his shirt and pants, leaving on only his boxers.

Shawn tried his best to look elsewhere, but his eyes were instantly drawn to Bret’s chiseled chest and toned legs once the man turned back towards him.

Although they’d already seen each other in the bare minimum, it was something about seeing Bret outside of his ring gear, casually wearing nothing but boxers and socks, that made the moment feel more intimate.

Shawn had to force himself to turn around, not wanting to have another stiff problem in the morning.

After putting away his clothes, Bret unraveled the sheets and grabbed a pillow from the bed before turning off all of the lights. “Good night, Shawn,” he whispered after settling onto the couch.

Shawn didn’t answer, which Bret assumed was because the younger man was already asleep. However, about five minutes later, he heard the sound of Shawn moving briskly against the sheets. Bret didn’t think anything of it until he heard Shawn shuffle in the sheets again a few moments later.

It was after the third time that Bret heard Shawn let out a frustrated huff as he shoved the comforter off of his upper body. A few seconds of silence floated in the air until Shawn whispered, “Bret?”

With his eyes still closed, Bret tilted his head in Shawn’s direction, answering, “Hm?”

“Are you up?”

“I’m talking, aren’t I?” The smart comment would’ve made Shawn laugh in any other circumstance, but he wasn’t in a joking mood.

“I can’t sleep.”

Bret furrowed a brow as he whispered back, “Why not?”

Shawn paused. “I- Can you just come up here?”

That was enough to make Bret’s eyes shoot open, attempting to get a good look at the blond in the dark room.

Shawn wanted him in the bed? With him?

“What? Shawn, I don’t know-”

“It’s just…I feel bad that you’re sleeping on some uncomfy hotel couch. There’s plenty of room up here for the both of us.”

Well, that was half of the truth. Yes, Shawn did feel bad about stealing Bret’s bed. However, his request stemmed from something deeper.

Ever since breaking up with Marty, Shawn always had a difficult time falling asleep since he wasn’t used to going to bed alone.

It wasn’t as much of an issue when he roomed with Scott. The man allowed Shawn to cuddle with him, no questions asked. Scott knew that Shawn wasn’t doing it to hit on him, but because it really did help him fall asleep.

But since Scott was out partying that night, Shawn didn’t have him as an option.

“I promise you, I’m fine. I’ve slept in worse places.”

“Bret,” Shawn pleaded. “Please.”

The urgency in Shawn’s voice was enough to cause concern. But as concerned as Bret was, he had his own reasons as to why he didn’t want to share a bed with Shawn – the main reason being that he didn’t trust himself being so close to the man in such a private setting.

But with Shawn basically begging him, who was he to say no?

“Ok, ok. I’m coming up.”

Shawn felt relieved when the bed shifted behind him, his breathing already beginning to even out now that a familiar presence was near him.

Bret made a conscious effort to keep a respectful distance between them, but after a few silent minutes had passed, he felt Shawn shift closer, the blond’s back now pressed firmly against Bret’s chest.

Bret went still, afraid of how his body would react if he moved too suddenly. Shawn let out another content sigh as he felt Bret’s warm skin pressed onto his back.

Realizing that he was probably making Bret uncomfortable, Shawn turned around, facing Bret as he laid his head beside the man’s shoulder. “Is this ok,” Shawn whispered.

Bret thought he should be the one asking Shawn that question. He answered, “Yeah. Is-” Bret stopped himself before deciding to go ahead, “Is this ok?” He asked as he placed a hand gently onto Shawn’s waist.

A blush quickly made its way onto Shawn’s face, which luckily Bret could barely see in the dark. Shawn answered softly, “Yes.”

Bret then tightened the hold, bringing Shawn closer to him. He had no idea what was going on or why it was happening, but he wasn’t going to question it.

Bret then heard Shawn ask, “Is it ok if I lay my head on your chest?” Shawn knew he was pushing his limits, hoping that Bret wouldn’t literally kick him out of the bed.

But he was pleasantly surprised to hear Bret say, “Go for it.” Bret only hoped that Shawn didn’t pick up on the sound of his quickening heart rate.

Shawn shifted closer, placing his head on Bret’s chest as he sighed, “You’re so warm.”

Bret trailed a hand lightly up Shawn’s lower back, causing the younger man’s heart to quicken as well. “You too,” said Bret.

With both men finally settled in, they went quiet for a while, enjoying the feeling of being wrapped around each other. They’ve hugged plenty of times as friends. But this felt different, their close embrace seeming to affect them in ways it never had before.

And with Shawn so close and the mood feeling right, Bret felt like now was the time to tell Shawn what he’d been wanting to for so long. “Shawn,” Bret whispered, hoping the younger man hadn’t fallen asleep yet.

Shawn tilted his head up in Bret’s direction, the older man looking down into Shawn’s eyes as they twinkled in the moonlight. God, he’s so beautiful, thought Bret.

“Hmm,” Shawn asked.

“I, um, I-” and just like that, Bret lost his confidence. “Never mind.”

Just as Bret was turning his head to look away, he felt Shawn’s hand resting on his cheek, guiding his face back down to his.

With Bret looking down at him, lips just a breath away, Shawn moved forward, softly kissing Bret on the lips. Bret quickly reciprocated as he pressed his lips firmly against Shawn’s, the kiss turning into sensual, light pecks.

Shawn was the first to pull away, slightly panting as he rested his head onto Bret’s. Bret was panting just as heavily as he tried to catch his breath and calm his pounding heart.

“Shawn-” But he was cut off by the motion of Shawn shaking his head ‘no.’

Shawn settled back onto Bret’s chest, fully relaxing as snuggled closer to the man before whispering, “Thank you. For being here.”

Bret nodded, hoping Shawn felt it because he didn’t trust his voice at the moment.

Bret had so many questions. Questions that Shawn didn’t seem ready to answer.

What did the kiss mean? Did Shawn like him? Did this mean he had a chance with the blond? Did it mean nothing at all?

Bret wrapped his arms tighter around Shawn as the blond’s breathing slowed to a steady rhythm. Bret stayed up a little bit longer, sleep being harder to find as their kiss replayed in his head on a constant loop.

Chapter Text

Despite the obvious elephant in the room, both men carried on the next day as if the kiss never happened, which wasn’t Bret’s choosing.

Bret was the first to wake up that morning, Shawn now curled into his side in a deep slumber. Bret tucked a loose hair strand behind Shawn’s ear, anxiously awaiting to ask the blond about last night. He needed to know where the younger man’s head was at.

Did he return Bret’s feelings? Did he want to pursue anything further? Did the kiss mean anything?

In an effort to calm his racing thoughts, Bret decided to take a shower, figuring he’d talk to Shawn as soon as he got out.

Unfortunately, the conversation never came.

Upon exiting the bathroom, Bret discovered that the room was empty, Shawn nowhere to be found. Bret surveyed the room as if expecting the younger man to jump out and scare him. He’d rather that than the silence of the room.

After realizing that Shawn had indeed left the room, Bret let out a disappointed sigh. But he remained optimistic. Maybe Shawn had somewhere important to be that morning. He wouldn’t just leave without a good reason, right?

Bret quickly threw on some clothes before packing his bags. As he was double-checking to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything, he heard a knock at the door. There was a moment of hope that Shawn would be on the other side.

But Bret was sadly mistaken, the older man visibly deflating after hearing Owen’s faint voice asking, “Bret, are you ready? We need to hit the road.”

“Yeah,” Bret said loud enough for Owen to hear. After giving the room one final glance, He grabbed his bag and opened the door to see Owen’s cheeky smile, an expectant look in his eye.

Owen’s creepy grin stretched on longer than Bret was comfortable with, prompting the older man to ask with much annoyance, “What?”

“So?”

“So what?”

“How was your night,” Owen asked as he tried to peek his head into the room, hoping to see Shawn inside.

Bret huffed in irritation, walking out of the room before shutting the door behind him. He began walking down the hallway, Owen trailing beside him, saying, “We didn’t have sex if that’s what you’re wondering. Not that it’s any of your concern.”

Owen’s smile wavered, “Oh.” He gauged his brother’s neutral expression before asking, “Well, did you at least tell him how you feel about him?”

Bret slowed to a stop, thinking over his response before saying, “Sort of.” He could practically see the fireworks in Owen’s eyes, so he decided to just come out with it. “We kissed.”

Bret barely got it out before Owen clasped his shoulder, exclaiming, “My man! Who knew you still had it in you?!”

Bret couldn’t help but smile at his brother’s enthusiasm, playfully shoving his hand away, saying, “Don’t get your hopes up. He left this morning before either of us could even talk about it.”

Owen recoiled, “Damn, was the kiss that bad?”

“Owen.”

“Joking, joking!” Bret could only shake his head before continuing to walk towards the main lobby.

Owen followed in tow, attempting to comfort Bret as he said, “Look, don’t overthink it, man. You guys made it this far, and it’s obvious to me that he likes you. He’ll come around.”

Bret surely hoped so.

As Bret was getting a pep talk, Shawn was going through his own crisis.

“I hate you,” he sulked to Scott as he watched the older man pack up his belongings in his hotel room.

Scott barked out a laugh, highly amused. “I didn’t force you to kiss Mr. ‘Hart’-throb. That was all you.”

“But it wouldn’t have happened if I stayed with you last night!”

“If I knew you needed a room, I would’ve given you a copy of my key earlier. You’re the one that decided to book a room last minute. Don’t blame me.”

Shawn folded his arms in a huff knowing Scott was right. He was quickly regretting coming to Scott for comfort, the older man not telling him what he wanted to hear. “Still.”

After zipping his bag, Scott asked, “What’s the big deal, anyway? So, you kissed some guy-”

“But Bret isn’t just some guy, Scotty. He’s…different. Special.”

“Aww, how sweet-”

“I’m being serious, asshole.” Shawn rubbed a tired hand on his face before saying, “Fuck, I shouldn’t have done it. I was vulnerable and kissed him in a moment of weakness. That’s all.”

“Sure,” Scott said flatly. “Keep telling yourself that.”

“Gee, thanks for listening,” Shawn said sarcastically.

Fed up with Scott, Shawn turned to leave the room, but not before hearing Scott say, “Just talk to him.”

However, even after running into each other in the hotel lobby, backstage at the arena, and in the parking lot after leaving the show that night, the conversation still never came.

Bret was trying his best to remain hopeful, but he was beginning to wonder if Shawn regretted the kiss, if he wanted to forget that it happened, or if he ruined any chance of getting with the younger man.

Too afraid of the truth, Bret played along with Shawn’s ignorance in hopes that, maybe one day, they could gain some clarity.

Neither man would get proper clarity until a couple months later on Valentine’s Day.

Ever since his breakup with Marty, Shawn had been dreading the holiday. For 7 years straight, whether they were fighting or on good terms, he and Marty always celebrated the day together.

Now that Shawn was spending it alone as a single man, he wasn’t sure how to feel about it. Instead of the usual melting of the heart or butterflies in the stomach that the day would bring, Shawn felt nauseous.

Fortunately for him, he worked a house show that night, which was a much-needed distraction, although temporary.

By the time Shawn decided to head back to the hotel, the backstage area looked like a ghost town as most of the wrestlers and crew members had already left for the night. It wasn’t typical for Shawn to stay so late, but he was holding off going back to the hotel as long as possible, not ready to be alone with only his depressing thoughts to keep him company.

Shawn lazily pushed open the Harts’ locker room door with every intention of wallowing in self-pity. But those plans came to a halt as soon as he walked into the empty locker room, spotting a slender rectangular black box and a white envelope placed on top of his gym bag.

“What the hell,” Shawn muttered to himself. He looked around the locker room baffled, wondering if someone had left the items by mistake.

After searching the empty locker room, Shawn turned his attention back to his bag, walking closer to pick up the envelope. He glanced it over before slowly opening it to pull out a red card. But it wasn’t just any card.

It was a Valentine’s Day card. 

Shawn arched a brow in alarm. In theory, he really shouldn’t be too surprised. After word got around that he and Marty were over, there had been a lot more guys openly interested in him. But even so, Shawn didn’t wake up that day expecting to have a secret Valentine. 

He opened the card anxiously, immediately snickering after reading the bold printed text stating ‘Happy Anti-Valentine’s Day!’ with a drawing of cupid throwing his bow and arrow in the trash.

Shawn’s eyes then trailed down to the handwritten note at the bottom of the card: 

Shawn,

Here’s to spending Valentine’s Day as singles in solidarity.

Alone, but never lonely - B

The card was short and sweet, yet comforting in a way.

‘Alone, but never lonely.’

Shawn’s eyes lingered on the ‘B’ signed at the end. He tilted his head curiously as he thought of who could have given him the clever card. He had his suspicions, but he didn’t want to jump to conclusions.

He then shifted his attention to the black box sitting on his bag. Setting the card aside, Shawn picked up the box, examining its slender shape before opening it to reveal a pink rose laying on black velvet material.

Shawn picked up the rose, twisting the stem between his fingertips as a knowing smile grew on his lips. There was only one person, a certain ‘Hitman,’ that came to mind.

For the first time that day, Shawn experienced the familiar sensation of his heart melting as butterflies fluttered in his stomach.

Later that night, Bret received an unexpected knock on his hotel room door. His floor of the hotel was pretty empty. Many of the guys either went home, spent the night with ring rats, or were at the bar trying to find someone to bring back to the hotel.

So he wasn’t expecting any visitors.

Bret looked through the peephole, nearly flinging the door open once he saw Shawn standing there, a shy smile on his face as he held up a bottle of wine and a heart-shaped box of chocolate.

“Shawn. Hey,” Bret said breathily.

Shawn’s smile widened as he waved the wine bottle saying, “Who says we have to spend Valentine’s Day alone?”

A smile slowly making its way onto Bret’s face, realizing that Shawn must’ve gotten his card.

Bret beckoned the blond in, closing the door behind him before turning around to accept the box of chocolate from Shawn’s outstretched hand.

“Sorry, I don’t have a card,” Shawn said as he sat the wine bottle down on a nearby table. “I’ve always sucked at writing those.”

“It’s ok,” said Bret, just happy that Shawn was there. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”

“And neither did you,” Shawn challenged. “But you did. So now we’re even.”

Bret gave a crooked smile saying, “I guess so. Want to help me dig into this?” Bret asked as he held up the box of chocolate.

Shawn declined, “Nope, that’s all yours.”

“I’m not really a big chocolate guy. It’ll take me forever to finish this box by myself.”

Shawn thought on it briefly before saying slyly, “Well, if you insist.”

They sat on the edge of the bed, the room unfortunately not having a couch, as they dug into the box to explore the different types of chocolate inside. Bret was three pieces in before tapping out. But Shawn had a big sweet tooth, happily finishing off the box.

When Bret went to grab the bottle of wine off the table, Shawn warned, “Beware. It’s the cheap shit.”

Bret snickered, “It can’t be that bad.”

Shawn watched as Bret poured them both a cup of wine into the cheap plastic hotel cups that were in the room. “You first,” Shawn said after Bret handed him his cup.

The older man took a sip, his face twisting into a disgusted expression almost instantly which caused Shawn to explode into laughter. Shawn asked in a wheeze, “H-how was it?”

Bret said with a strained voice, “It tastes like ass.” That only caused Shawn to laugh harder, this time with Bret joining him.

And that’s how they spent most of their night – sitting at the edge of the bed drinking ass-flavored wine and enjoying each other’s company.

Though the wine was cheap and not tasty at all, both men finished the bottle, working up a light buzz on the way.

“Thank you,” Shawn said to Bret as their night winded down. “Not just for the card or the rose, but for everything. Really.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” Bret said earnestly. The things he did for Shawn were purely because he wanted to, having no other agenda than to see the man smile.

“But I do,” Shawn drawled. “I mean, I would probably be sulking in my room right now if it weren’t for you. Being with you helps to take my mind off things. Being with you is so easy, Bret.”

Shawn was close to saying more than he probably should have, but with liquid courage running through his veins, all caution flew out the window.

Before Bret could think of a response, Shawn got up to tinker with the clock radio that was sitting on the nightstand. He complained as he flipped through the stations, “The reception in here sucks. Nothing’s coming through, but jazz.” He straightened up, sighing, “I guess jazz will have to do.”

Shawn walked back towards Bret with a hand stretched out in invitation.

Bret slowly grabbed Shawn’s hand, asking, “What are you doing?”

Shawn pulled Bret up off the bed before wrapping his arms around the man’s shoulders, causing Bret to gulp at how close they were. “We’re going to end the night in a dance. What’s more romantic than that?”

Bret brought his hands up to Shawn’s waist, getting flashbacks of the night they kissed. Shawn tightened his arms around Bret as they both swayed lazily to the jazz music playing on the staticky radio.

Shawn’s eyes were low, the cheap alcohol making him a little drowsy, but he didn’t close his eyes. No, they were zeroed in on Bret’s lips in deep thought. He then looked up at Bret who was looking at him as if nothing else mattered.

Bret found himself moving his face closer to Shawn’s in a trance. A few silent seconds passed as they looked at each other, lips just a few inches away. 

Shawn gave a coy smile, nuzzling Bret’s nose before whispering, “What are you waiting for?”

That was all Bret needed to hear as he brought his lips forward, crashing them onto Shawn’s. 

The kiss was nothing like their first. The first one was slow and careful. But this kiss was hot and heavy, sloppy and passionate as both men threw caution to the wind, finally giving in to what they’ve been wanting from each other for so long.

They kissed for what felt like minutes straight, gripping and grabbing at whatever of each other they could get their hands on.

Bret backed Shawn up onto a wall, further shoving his tongue down the blond’s throat as Shawn placed a hand on the back of Bret’s neck to hold him in place. Both men writhed in pleasure with no end in sight. That was until Bret gripped Shawn’s ass, an involuntary moan escaping from Shawn which seemed to snap the younger man out of his stupor.

Shawn lightly pushed at Bret’s chest, panting heavily as he exclaimed, “Wait!”

Bret, breathing just as heavily and slightly disoriented, quickly pulled away asking in concern, “What? What’s wrong?” Bret was already mentally cursing himself, worried that he’d pushed Shawn into doing something he didn’t want to do.

But that was Shawn’s dilemma. He did want it. He wanted it so badly, but he was conflicted.

Yes, he was concerned about their friendship. But his worries ran so much deeper than that.

He was nervous – nervous that he wouldn’t know how to please Bret.

Although Shawn was the furthest thing from a virgin, he’d only shared his body with one man for the past 7 years. He only ever learned how to please Marty, and honestly, Shawn was anxious that he wouldn’t know what to do when it came to Bret.

He was embarrassed, so embarrassed that he had no idea if he could even explain it to Bret.

“Did I do something wrong,” Bret asked, which immediately made Shawn feel like shit.

“No, no,” Shawn quickly soothed, holding Bret’s face in his hands as he softly pecked him on the lips. “You did nothing wrong, ok? Nothing. You never have.”

That was somewhat reassuring for Bret, but he still didn’t understand what was bothering Shawn. “Then what’s wrong,” he asked as he rested a hand on Shawn’s wrist. “Talk to me, Shawn.”

Shawn looked down as he let out a frustrated breath, really hating that he was ruining the mood. His buzz from the wine also wasn’t helping to clear up his thoughts. “I don’t know how to say it.”

Bret placed a hand under Shawn’s chin, gently tilting his face up to his, saying patiently, “I’m listening.”

Shawn whimpered, placing his head into the crook of Bret’s neck. Bret wrapped his arms around Shawn in comfort as the younger man collected himself.

After a moment, Shawn lifted his head to look at Bret again. “I’m sorry. I’m …it’s just that I haven’t been with another person like…like this in a while. Marty’s the only guy I’ve ever, you know…please don’t make me say it.”

The revelation came as a shock to Bret. He knew that Shawn and Marty had been together for a long time, but he assumed that Shawn would have had sexual experiences with other guys at some point in his life. It made complete sense to him why Shawn was panicking.

He whispered, “Shawn, it’s ok. We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”

“But that’s the thing. I do want to do this with you, Bret. I-” he cut himself off, trying to find the right words, but deciding to be completely honest. “I’m so attracted to you. I have been for a long time, ok? And kissing you feels right. Being like this with you feels right. I’m just- I’m a little worried. This is new territory for me all over again. I feel like I don’t even know how to satisfy anyone other than my ex.”

Bret said lightly, “You definitely don’t have to worry about me being satisfied,” the erection in his jeans achingly obvious. “But in all seriousness, I care about you, Shawn. It doesn’t matter what I want right now. If you’re not ready, that’s fine.”

It was moments like this one that made Shawn wonder what he did to deserve someone like Bret in his life. The man was so authentic, so selfless, so understanding.

As Shawn looked up into Bret’s caring brown eyes, he realized that there was no need to be ashamed. Bret had never given him a reason to doubt him. So why start now?

“I want this, Bret. I-I think I’m ready.”

“Are you sure,” Bret reaffirmed. He wanted Shawn to make this decision for himself, not to appease him. It would be Bret’s worst nightmare if Shawn later regretted it.

Shawn nodded, saying with certainty, “Yes. I trust you.”

Bret took Shawn’s word for it, trusting that the blond would tell him if he changed his mind. “Ok. We can go slow. If you need me to stop at any point, just tell me, alright? I promise I won’t take it personally.”

“Ok,” Shawn said before eagerly bringing Bret into another kiss. 

Chapter Text

They started out slow, just as Bret had promised. Their lips moved in sync in an unhurried kiss as their hands slowly traveled along each other’s body. Bret was first to break away from the kiss, placing his head on Shawn’s as he whispered, “Let’s take this to the bed, ok?”

Shawn nodded, holding Bret’s hand as the older man led them to the bed.

“Oh, wait,” Shawn said after Bret sat him on the end of the bed. “I still have my shoes on.”

“I got you.” Bret kneeled in front of Shawn to help the blond tug off his boots. Shawn could only blush at the sweet gesture.

After setting Shawn’s shoes aside, Bret walked up to Shawn saying, “Scoot up some,” as he guided Shawn towards the headboard. He then helped Shawn lean back until his head made contact with the soft pillow placed on the mattress.

After making sure that Shawn was comfortably settled in, Bret crawled on top of him, placing an elbow near the blond’s head to hold himself up as he placed his other hand lightly on Shawn’s cheek.

He guided Shawn’s lips to his, initiating another painfully slow kiss. Shawn brought his arms around Bret’s shoulders, letting out a content sigh through his nose at the euphoric feeling of Bret’s lips on his again.

It was when a tongue slipped into Shawn’s mouth that things began to heat up once more, the kiss turning increasingly passionate as Shawn allowed Bret’s tongue to toy with his own.

Bret’s hand traveled from Shawn’s cheek down to his torso, stopping to rub at Shawn’s left nipple through his shirt. Their rhythmic kiss faltered as Shawn let out light moans, his nipples hardening just at the touch.

Bret broke away from the kiss, briefly pausing his hand as he asked, “You good?” He wanted to be certain Shawn wasn’t just going along with it. 

Shawn nodded, desperately bringing Bret back into the kiss, this time shoving his own tongue into Bret’s mouth. With that confirmation, Bret confidently trailed his hand down to Shawn’s waist. His hand stopped in hesitation before trailing further down to palm at Shawn’s crotch.

Shawn threw his head back onto the pillow as a moan escaped his lips. Satisfied with the blond’s reaction, Bret trailed his lips down to Shawn’s neck, kissing the sensitive area as he continued to touch Shawn through his jeans.

Shawn’s breathing quickened as he rolled up into Bret’s palm, so unbelievably turned on by Bret’s gentle touches. It’d been so long since someone touched him like this. Feeling cared for and having someone put Shawn’s sexual needs first before their own was…different. In a good way.

Towards the end of his past relationship, it became apparent that the only agenda in their sex life was to make Marty feel good. There were even times where Shawn wasn’t able to reach an orgasm, not that Marty cared.

But this? What Bret was doing? Shawn hadn’t realized how much he missed a gentle touch.

Bret pulled away from Shawn’s neck, intending on pulling Shawn’s pants down, but stopped when he looked up to see Shawn’s face. The blond’s eyes were closed, but he had a scrunched expression that looked as if he were about to cry. 

Bret whispered, “Shawn, are you ok? Do you need me to stop?”

Shawn slowly opened his eyes, which were indeed a little misty. “No, keep going. It feels…really good.” Yes, Shawn was a bit overwhelmed, but there was no way he wanted this to stop.

Bret brought his hand back up to Shawn’s cheek, stroking it softly before leaning down to peck his lips. “Ok. Just let me know if it’s too much.”

“I will,” Shawn whispered back.

At that, Bret leaned back on his knees to unbutton Shawn’s pants. After pulling down the zipper, he gripped the waistband as he slowly pulled down Shawn’s pants along with his underwear to reveal Shawn’s semi-hard cock.

Shawn let out a hitched breath as his dick was freed.

After setting Shawn’s bottoms aside, Bret returned to Shawn’s lips, kissing the blond ravenously whilst steadily stroking his cock. Shawn wrapped his arms back around Bret’s shoulders, spreading his legs wider as he moaned erratically into the kiss, struggling to keep up with Bret’s tongue.

It was evident to Shawn that Bret knew what he was doing. The way Bret gripped his cock with just the right amount of pressure, speeding up his strokes just to slow down at the right moment before speeding up again, never losing his rhythm while kissing Shawn was very impressive.

And Shawn knew he wouldn’t last much longer like this. 

Bret then moved down to kiss Shawn’s neck, Shawn’s moans no longer trapped as he began bucking his hips up to match Bret’s strokes. Sensing that Shawn was close, Bret slowed his strokes to a stop before placing a hand on Shawn’s waist to hold him in place. 

Shawn opened his bleary eyes after feeling Bret leave the bed only to see the man standing up with a large tent in his pants. Bret then pulled down his own pants and underwear, his shirt following suit. 

Shawn’s cheeks heated up as he watched Bret stand there in full naked glory, his girthy cock standing at full attention. It was without a doubt that Bret was a lot bigger than what Shawn was used to. That’s for sure.

Bret helped Shawn lift off his shirt, adding it to the pile of discarded clothing on the floor, before crawling back onto the bed. 

With them both now stark naked, Bret kissed Shawn as he placed a hand on the blond’s bare hip the before asking, “How are you feeling?” He felt things were going well, but still needed Shawn’s confirmation.

“I’m good,” Shawn whispered as his lips ghosted over Bret’s. “So good.” He pulled Bret’s head down to kiss him again, never tiring of the man’s lips on his own. He brought his arms back around those broad shoulders, fully appreciating Bret’s muscles now that his shirt was out of the way. 

As their passionate kiss continued, Shawn rolled his hip, their erections pressing against the other, causing both men to break the kiss in a moan. Bret rested his forehead against Shawn’s as the blond continued his motion, driving both of them to the edge with lust. 

Bret said through gritted teeth, “I don’t know how much longer I can hold back.”

It became apparent to Shawn that Bret was purposely holding off, the man going slower than he was probably used to. All for Shawn’s comfort. 

“Then don’t,” he whispered.

With Shawn’s permission, Bret fully gave into temptation. He held Shawn’s hips in place before getting out of bed to walk to his gym bag. He unzipped the side compartment, searching it for a moment before pulling out a small bottle of lube and a condom. 

The fact that Bret was stocked with lube and condoms would’ve normally raised questions for Shawn, but he was thankful that Bret came prepared. 

Bret briskly made his way to the bed, placing the condom on the nightstand before lathering up his fingers with lube. He kneeled beside Shawn on the bed, leaning over the blond to bring him back into a kiss.

As he inserted his tongue back into the blond’s mouth, he chose that moment to slowly insert a finger into Shawn’s entrance. 

Shawn clenched at the intrusion, taking in a breath as he allowed himself to relax around Bret’s finger. Bret continued to kiss and finger Shawn, deciding to insert another when he noticed Shawn’s moans starting to pick up.

Bret inserted a second finger, this time causing Shawn to gasp as his brows furrowed in slight discomfort. Bret moved his lips down to kiss at Shawn’s neck as he continued stretching the younger man. It was when Bret inserted the third finger that Shawn stilled, grunting as he gripped tightly at Bret’s shoulders. 

Bret paused, asking, “Are you ok?”

Shawn took a moment to respond, needing to just breathe. He nodded, “Yeah.”

“Do you want me to stop?”

Shawn shook his head no. He was so appreciative of Bret’s concern for him, but he made it this far and was not turning back. So he brought his hands to both sides of Bret’s face, guiding the man back to his lips. 

Bret took that as a sign to continue, stretching Shawn carefully as he kissed the man. Pretty soon, the kiss turned sloppy as Shawn’s mouth went slack as he felt his pleasure rising.

With Shawn now fitting perfectly around his fingers, Bret broke the kiss as he slowly pulled his fingers out, causing Shawn to quiver slightly in the process. Bret reached over Shawn to get the condom, ripping it open with shaky hands before rolling it onto his dick.

After lathering himself with a generous amount of lube, Bret looked up to see Shawn looking at his cock in a daze, pupils almost looking dilated. Shawn really wanted this. And Bret was more than willing to give it to him. 

Shawn widened his legs as far as they could go, his flexibility paying off, as Bret got in between them. He leaned over the blond as he used a hand to align his dick to Shawn’s ass. As the tip of his dick touched Shawn’s entrance, Bret moved his hand from his dick to Shawn’s hip, gripping it firmly before slowly pushing into the tight muscle. 

Shawn let out a sharp cry at the insertion, hands springing up to wrap around Bret’s back. Bret briefly stopped moving in concern for Shawn, but the blond shook his head in defiance, signaling that he wanted Bret to keep going.

So Bret continued to push until he was all the way in. Shawn groaned the entire way, legs shaking as he was stretched open more than he’d ever been. Once Bret was fully inside, both men let out breaths that they were both holding.

Shawn felt so full, like he could feel Bret in his stomach. Bret buried his head into Shawn’s neck, internally fighting the urge to slam into the younger man as he tightly clenched around his dick. 

Shawn rested a hand on the back of Bret’s head, rubbing it softly as he continued to breath. His breathing eventually slowed as his ass adjusted to Bret’s width. Shawn uttered softly, “You’re bigger than what I’m used to.”

Bret replied with a strained voice, “You’re tighter than what I’m used to.”

Shawn let out a humored breath. He turned his head slightly to peck Bret’s temple, thankful that he was being so patient with him. After a moment of allowing himself to get comfortable, Shawn whispered, “You can move.”

Bret lifted his head from Shawn’s shoulder, resting it onto Shawn’s forehead as he began to slowly thrust into the younger man. Shawn let out small whimpers, his ass stinging as bit as Bret’s dick continued to stretch him into shape. 

Sensing Shawn’s discomfort, Bret gave Shawn light kisses to distract him as he continued to move in and out of the man. It seemed to work as Shawn’s whimpers slowly turned into light moans, the blond finally relaxing as he loosened around Bret’s cock.

Bret steadily rocked into Shawn for some time, wanting to make sure the man was not in pain. Eventually, all signs of discomfort seemed to disappear once Bret hit that certain spot that caused Shawn to break out of the kiss, letting out a boisterous moan that seemed to surprise them both. 

Bret gave another thrust in the same spot, causing Shawn to moan loudly again as he slightly arched his back. That’s when Bret knew that he found Shawn’s prostrate. 

Bret placed his lips back onto Shawn’s, their kiss soon losing its rhythm as Bret sped up his thrusts, never leaving that spot that satisfied Shawn to no end. It didn’t take long before Shawn was a moaning mess, clenching tightly around Bret’s his dick as the feeling in his stomach became tighter. 

“Mmm, yeah. That feels so fucking good, Bret. Ah!”

Bret let out satisfied grunts, tightly gripping Shawn’s hips as he rocked fluidly into the man. The bed creaked loudly, almost drowning out the noise of their skin slapping with each thrust.

“Shit, Shawn,” Bret said, feeling his orgasm building up. 

“Go faster… mmm, yeah!”

Bret gave Shawn exactly what he wanted, balls slapping rapidly onto the younger’s ass as he pounded into Shawn with no mercy. It was a type of pleasure that Shawn had never experienced, the blond not even being able to think straight.

Greedy for more, Shawn pushed up on Bret’s chest, causing the man to stop his thrusts, nervous that he was hurting the younger man. Quite the contrary.

Before Bret knew it, Shawn used what little momentum he had to roll them over, hissing as his ass stretched a little wider now that he was sitting fully on Bret’s cock in a straddle.

“Slow down,” Bret cautioned upon seeing Shawn’s pained expression, but Shawn had no intention of slowing down.

After allowing a short moment for himself to adjust to the new position, Shawn slowly rolled his hips forward, moaning in complete bliss as Bret’s cock fully hit on his prostate.

Bret was also in his own ecstasy, groaning as his hands gripped Shawn’s waist, slightly lifting him to help guide him on his dick. “Mmm. Like that, Shawn. Fuck! Ride me just like that.” And Shawn did just that, confidence through the roof at Bret’s encouragement.

It was taking everything in Bret not to lose control. However, his resolve soon crumbled after hearing Shawn basically beg, “Oh, fuck me. Please! Bret, fuck me!”

“Come here,” Bret said as brought Shawn down to his chest, tucking the blond’s head into his neck before thrusting relentlessly up into Shawn.

Shawn wailed loudly in Bret’s ear as drool pooled outside of his mouth. “Yes! Yes! Oh, just like that. Ah, fuck!”

Shawn’s endless moans were a huge turn on for Bret. “You like that, huh? You like the way I fuck you?” Bret asked the question this time not to check if Shawn was ok, but because he had no doubt that the blond was enjoying it.

“Yes! Give it to me,” Shawn pleaded, orgasm on the horizon. Bret was getting close as well, but he wanted Shawn to finish first.

After one particularly hard thrust that hit Shawn’s g-spot perfectly, Shawn’s eyes nearly rolled into his head as he shouted, “Oh my god! Don’t stop. Don’t fucking stop!” Not long after, Shawn was letting out short, rapid moans as he came. 

Shawn’s orgasm alone was enough to bring Bret to the edge. He turned his face towards Shawn, kissing him sloppily as he jutted into the man greedily. His thrusts came to an abrupt halt as he gave one final slam into Shawn’s ass, grunting as come shot into his condom, sparing Shawn’s ass of the heavy load. 

Shawn shook violently in aftershocks, collapsing onto Bret’s chest after coming down from his orgasm, both men breathing heavily in exhaustion.

Bret let out a sigh as he rubbed his hands across Shawn’s back soothingly. He brought a kiss to Shawn’s temple, closing his eyes as he tried to calm his racing heart, which was nearly impossible to do with his dick still inside of Shawn.

“Shawn,” Bret whispered.

“Hmm,” Shawn said faintly.

“I need to pull out, ok?”

“Hmm,” Shawn said again, not really paying attention. He was still out of it, his head feeling fuzzy. That was until Bret slowly pulled out, causing Shawn to let out a mixture of a moan and hiss until the man was all the way out.

Bret rolled them over, laying Shawn on his back before tending to his cum-filled condom. He pulled it off, tying it lazily before tossing it somewhere across the room. He then tugged Shawn back into his arms, guiding the blond’s head to his chest as he placed an arm around his waist.

Both men laid there for a moment, completely spent. 

When Shawn felt Bret’s hand stroking the side of his face, he fluttered his eyes open and looked up to see Bret smiling down at him. “Hey. How are you feeling?”

Shawn smiled lazily at him as he answered, “Tired.”

“I figured. Did I hurt you,” Bret asked worriedly. 

Shawn placed a hand on Bret’s cheek, caressing it to ease his worries, “Besides stretching my ass to next Tuesday, no.”

That did manage to bring a smile to Bret, but there was still something he needed to be sure of. “Did you…did you enjoy it?”

“God, yes. If you couldn’t tell by my vocal performance, it was really good, Bret,” Shawn said bashfully, though they were way past the point of being shy. “Fuck, I don’t think I’ve experienced an orgasm that intense in a long time.”

“That’s good to know,” said Bret, pecking Shawn on the lips just because he could. “If you ever need to experience it again, I’m at your service,” he said, giving a sly grin. 

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Shawn watched with a smile as Bret intertwined their hands together before kissing the back of Shawn’s. “Thank you for being so careful with me. I really needed this.”

 “Of course.”

They laid in each other’s arms for some time, both relishing in the silence as they each replayed the moment they’d just shared. They both knew they needed to take a shower, but neither wanted to be the first to break away from the hold.

With Shawn so close to him, and after they’d just been so intimate, Bret felt he needed to tell Shawn exactly how he felt about him. There was no better time.

“Shawn?”

“Hmm?” His eyes were closed again as he laid comfortably on Bret’s chest.

“Look at me.” Shawn slowly opened his eyes at the request, his smile faltering when he noticed Bret’s serious expression.

“Is there something wrong?”

“No,” Bret said as he tread his fingers through Shawn’s hair. “I need to be honest with you because I don’t know if I’ll ever get the chance again.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “Look, I really like you. I’m sure that’s not hard to guess after what we just did.”

Shawn cheeks reddened, nodding his head before Bret continued. “But I’m not just interested in your body, Shawn. You’re funny, smart, talented, and so damn beautiful. How could anyone not fall for you?”

Shawn’s heart melted at the kind words, especially coming from Bret. However, panic slowly began to rise as he realized where Bret was going with this. “Bret-”

“And I know that you just got out of a shitty situation, but I’ve got to be honest with you. I’d really like to give us a chance.”

The blond looked at Bret speechless, not knowing what to say.

He’d just recently come to terms with the fact that he had feelings for Bret. The man was so sweet to him, he listened to him, and cared about his feelings. Plus he was Shawn’s type looks-wise. And apparently was really good in bed.

A relationship with Bret Hart sounded so appealing, and there should really be no reason why Shawn should say no. 

However, Shawn was a complicated man, and he still had doubts.

It was hard to forget how much Marty shattered his heart into a million pieces, and as much as Shawn didn’t want to admit it, he still wasn’t over it. He wanted to be, but it was so hard, especially after spending such a long time with him.

Kissing Bret, having sex with Bret, cuddling with Bret – that all felt right, like it was meant to be. But jumping into another relationship so soon didn’t sound like a good idea. 

Shawn looked down at Bret’s chest, not having the courage to look the man in the eyes as he said, “Bret, I’m sorry. I really am, but I don’t know if I have it in me to start dating again right now. I really like you, too, but the truth is I still haven’t completely healed, yet. I don’t know if I’m ready for something serious right now.”

That certainly stung, Bret’s heart feeling like it had been stabbed by a hundred needles. He didn’t know what he expected Shawn to say, but it certainly wasn’t that.

Bret put a hand on Shawn’s cheek, lifting his face so that Shawn was looking up at him. As much as he understood where Shawn was coming from, he couldn’t hide the hurt in his voice as he said, “I get it.”

Shawn frowned, “Bret, I’m sorry-”

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me, Shawn. I just needed to get it off my chest. That’s all.”

Shawn furrowed a brow asking, “Are you mad at me?”

Bret immediately softened at how vulnerable Shawn sounded. He was disappointed, yes, but he couldn’t be mad at Shawn.

He stroked a thumb across Shawn’s cheek as he said lightly, “No.”

“Why,” Shawn asked genuinely. If anything, it made less sense for Bret not to be angry.

Bret sighed, “I know how much Marty hurt you. It takes time to get over something like that. And I never want you to feel like you need to spare my feelings. I’ll always be here for you, Shawn. Whether it’s as a friend, an acquaintance, or something more. I want to be here for you. You don’t have to go through this alone.”

Shawn teared up a bit as he said, “You’re so sweet, Bret. I don’t want you wasting your time on me.”

Bret wiped at the corner of Shawn’s eye at the tear that threatened to fall. “Trust me. You’re not a waste of time. Whether you know it or not, you’re special. And you deserve someone who’ll treat you right, even if it’s not me. Even if you don’t want to be with anyone and just want to focus on yourself, I’ll still be here to support you.”

Bret’s thumb caught another tear that escaped down Shawn’s cheek. Shawn smiled sadly, his voice trembling as he said, “Thanks, Bret.”

He placed his head back onto Bret’s chest as the older man tightened his arms around him, sighing heavily at the weight of the situation .

It was silent for a moment, Bret thinking Shawn was starting to drift off to sleep before he heard the blond whisper, “Try again in a couple months?”

That was all Bret needed to hear to remain hopeful. It wasn’t a hard ‘no.’ Just a ‘not right now.’ He could live with that.

Bret nodded saying, “I like that sound of that.”

Both men eventually got up to properly clean themselves and collect the scattered articles of clothing from the floor. Although the status of their friendship was still uncertain, they ended the night in each other’s arms, both thankful that they did not have to spend Valentine’s Day alone.

Chapter Text

Inevitably, Shawn and Bret grew much closer after the passionate night they shared.

Bret’s feelings were a little more on the forefront than Shawn’s, but he didn’t push his luck. He kept his promise to be there for Shawn, to wait until he’s ready, and to be the friend he needed. And although he was giving Shawn time to sort himself out, it didn’t stop Bret from going the extra mile to make the blond feel special.

One of Shawn’s favorite moments was when Bret surprised him with a cupcake for his birthday, a single candle lit in the middle to celebrate him turning 27.

“What’s this all about,” Shawn asked as he entered the locker room, spotting the cupcake cupped between Bret’s hands.

“This is for you.”

An effortless smile tugged at Shawn’s lips as he said, “You got this for me?”

“Yeah, uh, happy birthday,” Bret said awkwardly.

Touched, Shawn asked in almost disbelief, “You remembered my birthday?” He recalled telling Bret the date once a long time ago, so long ago that he wouldn’t blame the man if he forgot.

Bret gave a tender smile, “Of course. Make a wish.”

Noting how quickly the candle wax was melting, Shawn closed his eyes, wishing for happier times before blowing out the candle.

Shawn made a move to grab the cupcake, but not before leaning forward to kiss Bret softly on the lips. “Thank you,” Shawn whispered as he grabbed the cupcake from a flustered Bret.

Shawn ended up splitting the cupcake and sharing half of it with Bret before they got ready for their match.

There were so many other moments, too many to count, that made Shawn’s heart skip a beat – such as the times where Bret would wait for him after a show to make sure he made it to his car safely, or when Bret would snag an extra sandwich from catering when Shawn would skip lunch, or even the times where Bret would force himself to go to the bar to be Shawn’s drinking buddy for the night despite the late hour.

Regardless of the scenario, Shawn became increasingly aware that these ‘little moments’ were having huge impacts on his feelings towards the older man.

Not to mention, the two still occasionally had sex, the dick being too good for Shawn to only have once. But as pleasurable as it was, it didn’t help to uncomplicate either of their feelings.

It was approaching a year after his breakup when Shawn began to seriously think about being something more than friends-with-benefits with Bret.

“Fuck, I don’t know what to do, Kevin” Shawn whined to Kevin Nash, the new guy he’d convinced Vince to bring to the WWF to better help with his HBK gimmick. 

Although the two hadn’t known each other very long, they quickly became friends, both feeling as if they’d known each other for a lifetime. Kevin was beyond appreciative of Shawn for giving him a job and promised to always have Shawn’s back.

And Shawn was grateful to have another friend in his corner besides Scott.

Marty had been long gone by the time Kevin came to the WWF, but from what little he heard from Shawn about the relationship, he knew it must have been pretty volatile. The somber look that flashed in Shawn’s eyes anytime Marty’s name was mentioned told Kevin that the topic was off limits. 

It was during Kevin’s second week at the WWF that he picked up on something going on between Bret and Shawn. The way Shawn’s eyes lingered on Bret, the way he’d blush and look away when they locked eyes, and especially the way he would leave their hotel room late at night to ‘visit’ Bret’s room only to return the next morning.

Kevin never said anything, but Shawn’s crush was all too obvious.

Kevin sighed as he watched Shawn frantically pace their locker room. “Here’s a clue,” he said mockingly, “why don’t you just go talk to him?”

Shawn rolled his eyes before saying, “It’s not that simple.”

“Why not?”

“Because,” Shawn cut himself off, looking down at the floor as he said weakly, “I’m damaged goods, Kev. Why would Bret want someone so broken like me?”

Kevin said sternly, “You’re not damaged goods, and I don’t ever want to hear you say that again. Got it?”

Taken aback by the serious tone, Shawn hastily retracted, “Ok, ok. Sorry.”

But Kevin didn’t let up. “You had a bad breakup with a guy. So what? Does that mean you should never give yourself a chance to find love again?”

Shawn folded his arms as he moped, “No…But what if he changes his mind? What if after realizing how fucked up I am, he runs for the hills and breaks my heart just like Marty did?”

Finally understanding Shawn’s self-doubt, Kevin softened a bit, saying, “Then I’ll beat him up for you. I’m not your bodyguard for nothing, right?”

That got a smile out of Shawn. “Promise?”

Kevin smiled back, pulling Shawn into a hug as he said, “Promise.”

So it was set. He was going to tell Bret how he felt – that he was finally ready to give them a shot.

Bret had been not so secretive about liking Shawn, but there was still a voice in the back of the blond’s head that told him things could change. However, there was no turning back, especially with Kevin knowing. The taller man would probably tell Bret himself if Shawn failed to do so. 

After the live show that night, Shawn knocked on the Harts’ locker room door, waiting briefly before Bret opened the door with that perfect smile of his.

“Are you free tonight?” Shawn sort of blurted it out, certainly not playing it cool as he intended. “I mean, can I swing by your room tonight?”

The question itself brought a light blush to both men’s faces as the question could have been interpreted in multiple ways.

Bret looked behind him at Owen who was unashamedly eavesdropping on the conversation, as per usual. Owen said all too happily, “Oh, you don’t have to worry about me. I’ll room with Davey tonight.”

Bret turned his gaze back to Shawn, nodding as he said, “Yeah, you can swing by. I’ll wait up for you.”

Shawn nodded. “Ok. See you then.”

As Shawn turned to leave, he was stopped when Bret asked, “Hey, is everything ok?”

“Yeah. We just…we need to talk.”

We need to talk. 

Those words replayed in Bret’s head all night as he awaited Shawn’s arrival. Out of all of the phrases, why did it have to be that one? Bret only associated that phrase with bad news, and the more the night dragged on, the more he wished Shawn hadn’t said it.

Did he do something to upset Shawn? Did Shawn want to stop being friends? Did he find a new lover?

There was one point where Bret wondered about Shawn and Kevin, the two seeming to get close pretty fast. What if that’s what Shawn wanted to talk about? Did something spark between the two?

Bret surely hoped not. 

He had no idea what time the younger man planned on coming over, but his nerves rose with every passing hour.

He decided to occupy his mind by tidying up the hotel room, though it was already clean. He then took a shower, though he’d already taken one at the arena. He settled on reading the takeout menu of a nearby Chinese restaurant, though he was far from hungry.

Anything to keep him distracted.

His heart pounded when he heard a knock at the door. Bret took a deep breath as he made his way to the door, putting on his best carefree smile before opening it. However, his smile dropped as soon as he opened the door to reveal a widely grinning Owen.

Why was it always Owen?

“What do you want,” Bret tsked.

Owen said defensively, “I was just dropping by to say good luck.” Bret made a move to close the door in Owen’s face, but stopped when Owen exclaimed, “Hey, wait! I also came to drop this off.”

Owen handed Bret his signature Hitman jacket. The fact that Bret had forgotten it in the locker room spoke wonders to how frazzled he was.

Bret took the jacket from Owen as he said, “Thanks.”

He was stopped from closing the door again when Owen asked, “Just to be sure, am I good to come by later tonight or will you be…occupied?” Owen wiggled his brows suggestively, obviously alluding to Shawn.

“Bye, Owen.” Bret then shut the door for good, drowning out Owen’s whining on the other side of the door.

It wasn’t until an hour later that Shawn would finally arrive, this time Bret looking out the peephole after hearing a knock on his door.

“Hey,” Bret said after opening the door to reveal Shawn who looked as stunning as ever.

“Hey,” Shawn said meekly, barely making eye contact with Bret.

The men stood there in slight awkward silence, prompting Bret to ask, “Are you coming in?”

“Yes, sorry,” Shawn said as if snapping out of his own thoughts.

After closing the door, Bret turned to see Shawn standing in the middle of the room, twisting his hands nervously in front of him. And that’s when Bret knew that the conversation they needed to have was happening right then.

He let out a breath, walking closer to Shawn as he said, “So, you said we needed to talk.”

“Yeah. Yeah, we do. Can we sit,” Shawn asked as he gestured to the bed.

“Sure,” said Bret, both men sitting on the edge of the bed at an arms-length apart, the distance not going unnoticed by Bret.

The silence seemed to linger on as Shawn gathered himself. Regardless of how much he prepared, he still had no idea where to start.

In essence, it should be easy. It was Bret he was talking to, the most understanding and nicest guy he’d ever met. He shouldn’t be so nervous to tell him how he feels, especially after knowing how Bret feels about him.

Bret’s mind was racing a mile a minute as he thought of all of the various ways Shawn would end their…whatever it was they had going on.

Shawn meant so much to him, and if couldn’t be around the blond anymore, Bret honestly had no idea what he’d do. So much of their lives consisted of each other now, and there was no doubt that Shawn’s absence would leave a mark.

Shawn broke the silence as he said lowly, “Um, so…uh…fuck, I have no idea how to say this.”

That did little to ease Bret’s nerves, his palms beginning to sweat as he listened intently. “Is something wrong?”

Shawn shook his head, “No, no.” He was becoming frustrated, thinking to himself ‘fuck it’ before saying bluntly, “I like you. Like, a lot. Like…more than friends. And it scares me. I-,” Shawn closed his eyes, slouching into himself as he said, “I don’t know.”

Bret looked on at a loss for words, not expecting that to be Shawn’s confession. It was apparent to Bret that the blond was nervous, but he wanted Shawn to know there was no reason to be as this conversation was long overdue.

So he stretched out a hand, lightly grabbing Shawn’s and giving it a squeeze in encouragement. “Tell me what’s scaring you,” Bret said gently.

Shawn opened his eyes, drifting his gaze to their hands as his heart beat harder against his chest. He took a breath, finding comfort in Bret’s touch before finally lifting his head to look at Bret.

“I’m scared that I don’t know how to love anymore. I’ve been through so much shit that…I don’t know… I don’t know if I can be a good partner. I just don’t want to get hurt again.”

Bret nodded, brushing his thumb against the back of Shawn’s hand. “I understand-”

“That’s the thing. You always understand. You get me so well, it scares me. It’s weird. I feel like you know me better than I know myself. And I feel like I’m not worthy of your love, Bret. That’s the honest truth. It’s like, you’re the perfect guy and I’m…not.”

Bret shifted a little closer to Shawn, their thighs touching as he closed the distance between them. He said, “Nobody’s perfect, Shawn. Not even me, as hard as that is to believe,” which caused Shawn to form a slight smile.

Bret said seriously, “I like you for you. That means the good, the bad, and whatever else comes with it. I would never expect you to be perfect. What makes me like you is the fact that you’re not that. You’re unapologetically yourself, and I’ve never met anyone like you.”

Shawn let out a small whine as he placed his head onto Bret’s shoulder. “You always know the right thing to say.”

Bret unlinked their hands to wrap an arm around Shawn’s shoulder, bringing the man much closer. “I’ve said nothing but the truth. Promise.”

They sat there for a moment just holding each other, Shawn finding much-needed comfort in Bret’s arms. A comfort Bret gladly provided as he waited patiently on Shawn, not rushing the man to finish his thoughts.

Neither man was sure how much time had passed, but their silence was interrupted when Shawn said matter-of-factly, “I have trust issues.”

The comment came seemingly out of nowhere, but Bret had a feeling he knew what Shawn was trying to do – give him a reason to change his mind.

So Bret decided to play along, tightening his hold around Shawn as he said, “I snore sometimes,” as if that were a worse dealbreaker.

Shawn snorted, caught off guard by Bret’s response. He lifted his head from Bret’s shoulder to look up at the man, biting his lip in an attempt to hide the smile that was trying to form.

Shawn continued the charade, “I can be a brat.”

“I’m a serious cuddler.”

“And I can be clingy.”

Bret grinned, ghosting his lips over Shawn’s as he said, “Looks like we’re a match then.”

Shawn smiled lazily, realizing that his plan had failed. “You’re really hard to scare off, huh?”

“I’m not one to give up easily, especially for those I care about.”

Shawn broke eye contact, dropping his head onto Bret’s shoulder before lifting it again to look at the man. He took a deep breath before saying, “Ok. So, I like you. And you like me. What does that make us now?”

Bret reached up a hand to tuck a strand of hair behind Shawn’s ear, stroking the blond’s cheek as he said, “That’s for you to say.”

Shawn really wished Bret wouldn’t make him say it, the blond barely being able to form a coherent sentence with the man so close to his lips.

With his last ounce of courage, Shawn planted a soft peck onto Bret’s lips, pulling back slightly to whisper, “I’d like to date – exclusively,” he emphasized. “If you’d like?”

Bret felt like doing cartwheels out of sheer excitement, and he probably would have if it didn’t involve him having to detach himself from Shawn. The radiant smile that spread across his face was enough to let anyone know how happy he truly was.

“I like the sound of that.”

“Really?” Shawn questioned as if expecting Bret to say otherwise.

Instead of responding, no longer able to contain his joy, Bret gave Shawn a kiss that took the blond’s breath away. He kissed Shawn as if he’d never be given the opportunity again, as if Shawn would run away as soon as he let go.

It wasn’t just a kiss. It was a kiss that eased Shawn’s worries, telling him that everything would work out just fine, that they would figure it out if things got tough, that it was ok for Shawn to fully allow himself to love again.

Shawn was first to pull away, needing to catch his breath before he said coyly, “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Bret smiled, pulling the blond back into a kiss, this one deeper and more sensual. “I’ve been waiting so long for this moment. You have no idea how happy I am.”

That truly made Shawn’s heart melt. He wrapped his arms around Bret’s neck, saying sheepishly, “I’m happy, too.”

Both men took the moment to look at each other, getting lost in each other’s eyes as reality set in. They were a couple. They were together. They were boyfriends.

They spent the night in each other’s arms, discussing their relationship – their wants, desires, expectations. Their future together. Bret was optimistic, ready to show Shawn how much he cared about him and how he should be treated.

Shawn was content, honestly excited to share his future, his new journey, with Bret as he welcomed love like an old friend.

Chapter Text

EPILOGUE – 2 Years Later

The sun beamed a soft orange hue as its warmth traveled in the light summer breeze. Shawn’s loose hair danced in the wind, Bret’s being contained in a low ponytail. The couple ascended the mahogany steps of the front porch, Shawn’s hand tightly holding Bret’s left as the older man clenched a bouquet of daisies in his right hand.

It was a big day – the day Bret would meet Shawn’s parents.

Shawn and Bret had come a long way in their two years of dating – two years that Shawn claimed as the best years of his life. All because of the man walking beside him.

Bret was the perfect boyfriend in Shawn’s eyes, always putting Shawn first before himself. Shawn was still getting used to that as he’d been so accustomed to putting himself last for so long.

It’s because of Bret that Shawn learned what a healthy relationship was supposed to look like.

The door of their hotel room slowly creaked open as Shawn made his way into the dimly lit space. As he kicked off his shoes, he said apprehensively, “Sorry for coming back so late.”

Bret set aside the book he’d been reading before getting up from the bed to walk towards Shawn, pulling the blond into a hug once he was within reach. “It’s ok. Did you have fun?”

Shawn knitted his brows, pulling his head back to look at Bret as he asked, “You’re not mad?”

Bret tilted his head, saying with a confused look of his own, “No? You were out with Hunter, right?’

“Yeah. I know I was supposed to be back sooner so we could watch movies. I just lost track of time-”

“Shawn,” Bret stopped him short. “How many times do I have to tell you that you don’t have to explain yourself to me? I figured you were out enjoying yourself.”

Shawn lowered his eyes from Bret, lips downturned like a scolded child. Bret placed a finger under Shawn’s chin, lightly lifting his head to meet his gaze, saying gently, “I trust you, ok?”

The sincerity in Bret’s tone along with his tender eyes were enough to suffice Shawn’s worries. The blond nodded, saying breathily, “Ok.”

Bret placed a reassuring kiss on Shawn’s temple before whispering, “Let’s go to bed.”

That was early on into their relationship, but Shawn still looked back on the moment warmly. Not only did he learn that it wasn’t normal to always expect an argument, but it was also the first time he truly realized how much Bret trusted him.

Not only did Bret trust him, but he was a very supportive boyfriend. Whether it was helping Shawn with a match, standing up for him against locker room bullies, or just listening to Shawn rant about whoever pissed him off that day. Bret was always there, never failing to build up Shawn when he was tearing himself down, to be the hype man that he needed.

Bret had even been the biggest supporter when Shawn threw out the idea of getting “HBK” tattooed on his ass cheek, which they still got a laugh out of.

“You’re really encouraging him to get that tatted on his ass,” Kevin asked Bret flatly in disbelief.

Kevin, Bret, and Shawn were in the dingy basement of some guy’s house in a shady part of town. It wasn’t the most ideal circumstance, but it was the only way Shawn could have Bret there as moral support without breaking kayfabe.

“Shut up,” Shawn directed at Kevin through clenched teeth in defense of Bret.

The blond rested chest-first on the tattoo table, face pressed firmly against the leather padding as one arm hung off the side of the table, the other pulled towards Bret to interlock their hands. He squinted in discomfort as the sharp needle dug deeper into his fully exposed ass cheek.

Bret rubbed his thumb soothingly on the back of Shawn’s hand before responding to Kevin’s question. “If it makes him happy, then yes. I encourage it.”

Honestly, Bret was a little thrown off when Shawn first suggested the tattoo, but the blond seemed so excited about it. And what type of boyfriend would Bret be to tell him no?

Kevin faked a gag as he said, “You guys make me sick.”

Shawn let out a low whine at the slight pain of the needle, squeezing Bret’s hand for support before saying with a strained voice, “If you’re jealous, just say so. AH! Fuck,” he groaned as the needle lingered on a tender spot.

“It’s ok,” Bret whispered, bringing Shawn’s hand towards his lips to kiss his knuckles. “You’re almost done.”

Despite Kevin’s jokes, he looked on at the couple in adoration, glad that Shawn had someone like Bret in his life.

Shawn was out of action for a few weeks to allow his tattoo to heal. That somehow turned into Bret staying with him for a few weeks in San Antonio to make sure he was taking care of the tattoo properly. It was during those weeks together that the blond almost told Bret that he loved him.

Despite being so content with each other, the couple did experience a few bumps along the way – most notably, Shawn’s drug abuse.

Although he’d slowed down his usage after ending things with Marty, it was a struggle for Shawn to completely wean himself off of pills.

He initially thought he didn’t have a problem. It’s not like he needed them every day.

But whenever memories of his past began to haunt him, Shawn would quickly revert back to his old unhealthy habits, trying to get high enough just to make himself numb. He would shut down in these instances, often distancing himself from Bret both figuratively and literally.

However, the more Shawn tried to create a barrier, the more determined Bret was to not leave his side.

Bret sat on the bathroom floor, cradling Shawn in his arms as the blond cried into his neck. He gently swayed their bodies side-to-side as Shawn came down from a particularly bad high, the relapse being triggered by rumors of Marty returning to the WWF.

“You don’t need them, Shawn,” Bret whispered softly, referring to the pills sitting on the sink.

Shawn sniffed, as another sob racketed through his body, “I do.”

Bret sat back, coaxing Shawn’s head out of his neck before placing both hands firmly on the blond’s cheeks. He rested his forehead onto Shawn’s as he emphasized, “You don’t. Please. Let me help you. Don’t shut me out.”

Shawn closed his eyes, too tired to keep them as he said weakly, “Why am I like this? I don’t like feeling like this, Bret.”

“I know you don’t,” Bret soothed. “I’m here to help.”

“I just don’t get it.” He opened his eyes, backing up a little from Bret as he said almost angrily, “I’m such a fucking mess. Why are you still with me?”

It took just a second for Bret to respond with much conviction, “Because, I love you.”

It was the first time either of them officially said it out loud.

Shawn looked on astonished, asking with a shaky breath, “You love me?”

Bret nodded, tucking an unruly strand of hair behind Shawn’s ear. “Yes, I do. Without a doubt.”

Shawn’s vision became blurrier as Bret’s words settled. Bret tugged the blond closer, guiding his head onto his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around him.

Shawn hugged him back just as closely, hands grasping tightly at the back of Bret’s shirt, his mind now occupied with Bret’s confession.

 After taking a moment to calm himself down, Shawn took in a deep breath, letting it out before saying, “I love you, too.”

Shawn couldn’t see it, but Bret was grinning ear-to-ear. It probably wasn’t the most romantic way to discover Shawn loved him back, but Shawn’s never been the most conventional guy.

Bret turned his head slightly to kiss Shawn’s cheek, whispering, “We’re going to get through this, ok? Together.”

It was then that Shawn knew that Bret was someone he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

They’d shared so much of their lives together in the span of a couple of years, but the one thing that was missing was Bret meeting Shawn’s parents.

To be honest, Shawn felt a little guilty that it took this long for it to happen.

He’d had it easy with Bret’s family as he’d met many of the Harts on multiple occasions throughout the business. It had only been a couple of months into them dating when Shawn was invited to spend Christmas in Calgary, being proudly introduced to Bret’s family as his boyfriend.

On the other hand, Shawn’s parents were well-aware of Shawn dating Bret. It was hard not to when nearly every sentence leaving Shawn’s mouth included ‘my boyfriend’ this and ‘my boyfriend’ that.

But as much as Shawn liked to brag about Bret to his family, he was a little hesitant on introducing them, especially with how badly his last relationship ended. It also didn’t help that his dad made it no secret that he believed no man was worthy of his son’s heart, and that the next guy would have a hell of a time proving his worth to him.

That ‘next guy’ being Bret.

Upon reaching the front door of his parents’ home, Shawn turned to Bret, saying with a tender tone, “Don’t be nervous.”

“I’m not,” Bret said unconvincingly.

Shawn gave a soft smile as he unlaced their hands to smooth down a crease on Bret’s collar. “You are.”

Bret let out a sigh, bringing Shawn’s hand back into his own as he said, “Ok, maybe I am a little.”

“Aww,” Shawn said with a pout. “It’s going to be ok, babe. I promise. If they get out of line, we’ll leave. Let’s come up with a safe word.”

Bret raised a brow, shaking his head in disapproval. “Shawn, you haven’t seen your parents in five months. I’m not going to be the reason your visit gets cut short.”

Shawn narrowed his eyes as he repeated, “Safe word.” Yes, it had been awhile since he saw his parents, and he missed them dearly, but he had no issues making an abrupt exit if they disrespected Bret.

Seeing that Shawn wasn’t budging, Bret said begrudgingly, “Mushrooms.”

Shawn asked, slightly amused, “Why mushrooms?”

“Because you hate them. Thought it’d give you enough of a clue that I want to get the fuck out of there if need be.”

“Ok,” Shawn said with an affirmative nod. “Mushrooms. Let’s do this.”

Shawn lifted his free hand to knock on the door but halted as if remembering something important. “Oh, and just to let you know, I’m a bit of a daddy’s boy,” he warned. “So try not to be intimidated if my dad goes all ‘protective dad’ mode.”

It was something Shawn probably should have mentioned well in advance instead of seconds before Bret was to meet said dad.

“Oh, lovely,” Bret said uneasily.

Shawn pecked Bret on the cheek for one final confidence boost before ringing the doorbell, the familiar tune barely finishing as the door flung open, the nostalgic scent of the house rushing out as if to welcome Shawn home.

Mrs. Hickenbottom stood at the door, flashing a radiant smile as she jumped for joy, exclaiming, “Is that my Mikey?!”

“Mom!”

Shawn detached his hand from Bret’s, the older man reluctant to let go, before being pulled into a loving embrace by his mom. “Oh, my baby boy. I missed you so much!”

“I miss you, too, Ma,” he said as he pulled away to get a good look at her.

She placed her hands on his cheeks, cooing, “Look at you. Just as handsome as always.”

“Oh, stop smothering the boy,” Shawn hears his dad bellow as he comes up behind his mom.

“Dad!”

Mr. Hickenbottom took his wife’s place, hugging Shawn as if he’d fly away in the wind. “Welcome home, son! I missed having you around here.”

“I missed being around here,” Shawn chuckled, having to blink a few times as he felt his eyes watering. The warmth of his parents’ love never got old.

Shawn backed out of his dad’s embrace as he heard his mom say, “And you must be the ‘Bret’ we’ve been hearing so much about.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Bret answered politely as he held out the bouquet of daisies. “These are for you.”

Her face lit up like a kid on Christmas. Shawn rejoined Bret at his side, linking their arms together as he smiled fondly at his mother. He quietly whispered, “See? I told you she’d love them.”

Shawn’s mom was a simple woman to please. But his dad was a different story.

“Oh, these are lovely! Look, honey,” Mrs. Hickenbottom said as she turned towards her husband.

Shawn’s smile faded seeing his dad’s expression, the older man seeming unfazed by the kind gesture. Mr. Hickenbottom walked slowly towards Bret as he looked at him with a stoic expression.

Shawn looked back and forth between the two men, unsure if he should step in. Bret noticed Shawn getting antsy and wanted to put him at ease.

Not wanting to show how nervous he truly was, Bret held out a hand saying, “Pleased to meet you, sir.”

Shawn’s dad looked at the outstretched hand for an uncomfortable moment of time, before finally reaching out his own hand to strongly grip Bret’s in a firm handshake. “Likewise.”

It wasn’t quite a warm welcome, but it was as good of a reaction as Shawn could have hoped for.

Unbeknownst to Shawn, it was pretty surreal for his parents, especially Mr. Hickenbottom, to finally be in front of Bret. Shawn had gushed to them countless times about the man – about how well Bret was treating him, how much Bret cared for him, how much he loved him.

And it’s not that they weren’t happy about that. They truly were, but they’d all heard it before with Marty.

In essence, Bret was paying for the crimes of another man, and getting into the good graces of the Hickenbottoms was going to be an uphill battle. But Bret was willing to go through it all for Shawn.

After the awkward handshake, Mrs. Hickenbottom looked at the young couple, noting, “You two look so cute together.”

The men both gave soft smiles, Shawn’s cheeks reddening as he and Bret shared a loving look with each other.

Unfortunately, Shawn’s dad didn’t seem to have the same sentiment, the older man huffing as he turned to walk back into the house.

Shawn looked at his dad’s retreating back with a frown, not loving the way the man was acting. But he was pulled from his thoughts when Bret gave his hand a squeeze in reassurance, a sign that he could handle this. But there was only so much Shawn was willing to let slide without saying something if his dad kept up this act.

Mrs. Hickenbottom either didn’t notice the tension or decided to ignore it as she brightly said, “Well, come on inside, boys! Hope you’re hungry. We’re just about done setting up the dinner table.”

Despite the rough start, dinner was actually pleasant. Or as pleasant as it could be with Shawn leading the conversation between his parents and Bret, his mom engaging in most of the conversation while his dad sat quietly observing everyone at the table. Mainly Bret.

It was towards the end of dinner that Shawn became worried when his dad suddenly asked Bret, “Hey, can I talk to you outside?”

Shawn’s fork stopped midway to his mouth as he froze, alarmed at the thought of his dad being alone with Bret. He quipped, “You can just talk to him right here, Dad.”

“I just need a moment for a one-on-one, son. Guy talk.”

“But I’m a guy, too!”

Bret placed a gentle hand on Shawn’s arm saying, “It’s fine. I’ll be right back.”

“But-” Before Shawn could finish, both men were already out of their seats, making their way towards the front door.

Shawn looked at his mom for some sort of help, but she didn’t seem too concerned.

As soon as he heard the front door close, Shawn shot up from his chair, hastily making his way to the door. He pressed his ear up against it in hopes of hearing something. Anything! He needed to be sure that Bret was ok.

However, his plans were foiled when he felt a sudden pinch and tug on his left ear. His mom dragged him away from the door as she lectured, “Michael Shawn Hickenbottom, didn’t we teach you better than to eavesdrop?! Now, let them be and come help me clear the table!”

Shawn whined the whole way to the kitchen, reluctantly listening to his mother as he was pulled further away from Bret.

Outside on the porch, the air was thick as the two men stood by each other, staring ahead with tense expressions.

Mr. Hickenbottom broke the silence by asking, “I need to know, and answer me honestly. What are your intentions with my son?”

It was one of many things he’d wanted to ask Bret a soon as he laid eyes on the man. But he knew it would have been nearly impossible to ask any tough questions with Shawn around.

Bret furrowed his brows, turning to look at Mr. Hickenbottom, the elder man keeping his face forward as he answered, “It’s my intention to make him happy. And to be with him for as long as he’ll allow me.”

“Hmm,” Mr. Hickenbottom said, unimpressed. “Are you serious about him?”

“Of course.”

Mr. Hickenbottom then turned towards Bret, narrowing his eyes as if he didn’t believe a word coming out of the man’s mouth. He said with much bitterness, “The last idiot my son was with said the same thing. All nothing but empty promises. I’m sure Shawn’s told you all about him.”

“He did, sir.”

“He left my son in a state I never want to see him in again. You can understand that, right?”

Mr. Hickenbottom was still haunted by the memory of Shawn being strung out on whatever drugs he took to ease the pain, his own heart breaking at witnessing his son’s demise. He never wanted Shawn to have to experience that again.

Bret nodded because he did understand. He’d seen how broken Shawn was after Marty, and that was only the half of it. He could only imagine the state of mind Shawn was in when he visited his parents fresh after the breakup. He felt Shawn’s dad had every right to be skeptical of him.

Mr. Hickenbottom then asked, “Do you even know my son? I mean really know him?”

The accusatory tone of the question caught Bret by surprise, the man getting defensive and a little offended that Mr. Hickenbottom was acting as if their relationship were only superficial.

Feeling the need to prove himself, Bret answered matter-of-factly, “He bites his nails when he’s nervous. It’s a problem he’s had since he was a child. His favorite color’s red. He hates mushrooms with a passion. He claims he loves horror movies but can only watch them with a pillow blocking half his face.”

Mr. Hickenbottom tilted his head inquisitively as Bret rattled off a list of things he’d grown to learn and love about Shawn.

“He has a huge sweet tooth, but surprisingly has only had one cavity in his life. He dreams of living on a ranch when he retires. He loves his family and hopes to have a family of his own someday. He-” Bret hesitates before saying, “He looks up to you a lot. He aspires to have a relationship as loving and long-lasting as yours and your wife’s. And he hopes to be just as great of a dad as you are to his own kids.”

The older man stood still, mouth slightly agape as Bret revealed details about Shawn that he hadn’t known. He tried not to show it, but he was impressed.

“Anything else I don’t know, I’ll learn along the way. But regardless of how long he and I have been together, I know him very well.”

A silent moment stretched on, the only sound coming from the faint chirping of the crickets outside.

Mr. Hickenbottom gave Bret a final hard look before letting out a sigh, his demeanor seeming to soften as he said, “Look, I’m not trying to come off as a hard ass. It’s just that when it comes to Shawn, my baby boy, I worry about him. He’s been through so much pain, too much. All I want is to see him smile, for him to find someone who will love him and be committed to him.”

Bret listened intently, knowing exactly where the man was coming from. “I agree with you on that. All of it. So I’m telling you, man to man, that I do love Shawn. I take him and our relationship very seriously. I wouldn’t be meeting his parents if he didn’t.”

Though Mr. Hickenbottom appeared to be lightening up, the older man seemed to still have his reservations. So Bret decided to be completely honest.

Bret cleared his throat, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he said, “I was married once.”

Mr. Hickenbottom certainly wasn’t expecting to hear that, the man’s brows raising slightly in surprise.

“For nine years. I know all too well the pain of heartbreak, of having your trust broken by someone you thought you’d spend the rest of your life with. Shawn and I could relate on that. Sir, I can confidently say to you that I’d never put Shawn through that type of pain, as I wouldn’t want the same for myself.”

The elder man went quiet as he processed what Bret had revealed, not knowing what to say. He found his transparency to be admirable, and it became apparent to him that there’s more to Bret than what meets the eye.

Bret then asked, “Sir, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“You know about mazes, right?”

Mr. Hickenbottom was unsure on how to answer, the question seeming to come out of left field. Skeptical that it was a trick question, he answered carefully, “Yes?”

“I’ve always had this analogy that love is like a maze. You start out with so much confidence, hyping yourself up to believe it’s easy to navigate. But all it takes is one wrong turn into unchartered territory to lose that confidence, to question if you should accept defeat with your head hung low. But if you don’t give up, remain level-headed, and use every wrong turn as a learning experience, it’s inevitable that you’ll reach that reward at the end. Shawn’s that reward for me, sir. And knowing how hard it was to get to this point, I never intend on letting him go.”

Mr. Hickenbottom was left in awe, finding the analogy to be a very insightful and optimistic take on love. It was a vow, a promise, that regardless of how many hard times or ‘wrong turns’ they’d encounter, Bret was in it for the long run.

For the first time that evening, Shawn’s dad was put at ease, relieved even, that Bret was the man his son had chosen to carry on his life with.

Mr. Hickenbottom stretched out a hand towards Bret, shaking his hand as he said earnestly, “Please take care of my son.”

The request was simple, but it had a deeper meaning. He approved of their relationship.

Bret answered just as sincerely, “I will.”

Shawn practically flew to Bret as soon as the front door opened, looking the man over as if expecting to see an injury.

His dad grumbled, “Oh, don’t be so dramatic. I didn’t hurt the boy!”

“Better not have,” Shawn moped as he latched himself onto Bret, wrapping his arms around the man’s neck, Bret bringing his hands onto Shawn’s waist.

Mr. Hickenbottom excused himself to the kitchen to go check on his wife. When his dad was out of sight and hearing range, Shawn looked at Bret whispering, “What did you guys talk about?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Bret taunted.

Shawn whined, “Hey, don’t tease me.”

Bret grinned, pecking Shawn on the lips before saying, “Sorry, baby. It was a good talk. So don’t stress about it. He just wanted to know my intentions-”

“Uh, he’s so embarrassing,” Shawn groaned. “Was he mean to you?”

Bret quickly refuted, “No. Concerned, yes. But understandably so. Who wouldn’t be if some random Canadian came to snatch up a son as beautiful as you?”

A bashful smile involuntarily made its way onto Shawn’s face, the blond hiding into Bret’s shoulder in retreat. “Stop it.”

Bret smiled down at Shawn, tightening his arms around him, both men unaware of Shawn’s parents looking on at them fondly.

The rest of the evening went on without hitch – Shawn curling up next to Bret on the couch as his parents told embarrassing stories about him, Bret promising to come back the next time Shawn decided to visit, and Shawn’s parents having a newfound appreciation and respect for the man that would be in their son’s life for many years to come.