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Nick opens the door to the insistent knocking and is surprised to see Chris Sabin on his front porch. He stares at him for a moment before remembering what he’s doing, stepping back to let him inside his house. “What’s going on?”
Chris nods in thanks, coming into the house. “I uh…..I didn’t know where else to go.”
Nick frowns as he closes the door behind them, turning to face Chris. “What do you mean? What happened?”
“Alex and I got into a fight, kinda, and I needed to get away from him and…….his stupid little twink.” Chris doesn’t even want to say Jay’s name right now, he’s so angry.
Nick blinks, trying to work out who the “stupid little twink” is for a moment. “….you mean Switch?”
Chris nods, sharp and jerky.
“You wanna talk about it?” Nick gestures Chris into the kitchen where he had been up, getting a late night snack when Chris had knocked.
Chris follows him, sitting down at the island. “I asked him to marry me.”
Nick can’t help the gasp that escapes him and quickly clears his throat to try and cover it. “I take it it did not go well.”
"He fucking……he chose him over me! He never chooses him over me!” Chris grits his teeth, a swell of anger rising in his gut.
Nick makes a noise of sympathy. He’s not usually great at the comforting role, that’s more Matt than him, but he knows that Chris is here for him and not his brother, so he’s doing the best he can. “What exactly happened? If you wanna tell me about it, I mean. You don’t have to.” He puts a bottle of water down in front of Chris.
Chris is silent for a long moment, staring daggers down at the counter top. The wave of anger just builds and builds, rising higher and higher in his gut, burning through him. He’s never wanted to shoot hit someone as bad as he wants to find Jay White and beat the shit out of him. He barely hears Nick’s question over the dull roar of blood pounding in his head. Finally, he manages to pull himself together enough to take a deep breath and explain. “We had a moment tonight when we got home. We had sex and, at the end, we were being really sweet and loving towards each other and I just….I asked him to marry me. I wanted to marry him. I want to marry him. He starts crying and I try to calm him down and he just keeps saying he can’t marry me if it means he has to give up his bitch. Well, he didn’t call him that, but I am.”
Nick nods along to Chris’ words, taking a drink of his own water. “Right.”
“I tried to tell him he didn’t have to give him up completely. Just divorce him, so we could be married.” Chris frowns, fingers picking at the label on his water bottle.
“Why not something like what me and Matt have with Adam? You’re married in all the ways that count. You don’t need the piece of paper to prove it.” Nick says, trying to be helpful. He shrinks a little under the look Chris gives him, all ice-blue eyes and steely gaze.
“Because I want the piece of paper. I want all of it. I want everything that comes with being married legally. Why does he get it and I don’t? I’ve loved Alex far longer. I’ve known him far longer. He doesn’t deserve shit, if you ask me.” Chris snaps, that white hot wave of anger growing again.
“Sorry, I’m sorry. Just thought it might be an idea.” Nick mumbles.
Chris sighs and goes on. “He wants to keep his promise he made to the bitch, but why does it have to be at my expense? I know I waited for a long time to really want this with Alex, but goddamnit, I do now. Doesn’t that count for something?”
Nick holds his tongue on this question, thinking that waiting nearly twenty years for someone to be ready to want to be married was way too long, but what did he know? His longest relationship was with his own brother, so he chooses to keep that particular opinion to himself.
“I can’t fucking believe he’d actually choose him over me. I’ve been there through it all. All the good times, the bad, everything in between, I’ve been there! Me! Not him. Never him. How many times did Alex break up with him for me anyway? Shouldn’t that be a sign that I mean more to him, that he loves me more?” Chris looks up at Nick with a kind of desperation Nick’s never seen on the usually calm and collected man’s face.
“I’m sure he does love you very much. I’m sure he’s glad you’ve been there for him through everything.” Nick says, not really sure where to go with this.
“But it’s still not enough. How could he do this to me?!” Chris shoves the barstool back and gets down, pacing back and forth in the kitchen.
Nick watches him warily. He’s never seen Chris this angry before and it’s more than a little intimidating.
“I’ll make him leave, one way or another. I’ll get rid of him for good.” Chris mumbles to himself, hands flexing into fists again and again, wishing Jay was actually there, so he could punch him in his stupid face.
“I thought you were all happy with the way things were?” Nick treads lightly in this territory. “I thought you loved him too. Switch, I mean. Like, he belonged to both of you.”
Chris pauses in his pacing, staring down at the floor as he considers Nick’s question. “He’s always been Alex’s little pet more than he’s been anything to me. He became a threat when Alex let him move in with him. That’s when I knew he was different than all the other wrestlers Alex liked to take under his wing, that it was more than just sex. Did you know Alex was his first?”
“First what?” Nick asks, looking a little confused. “First match? Yeah, I knew he debuted against Alex in Japan, right?”
Chris shakes his head. “No, I mean, yeah, he did. But that’s not what I’m talking about. Alex was his first ever lover. Alex took his virginity.”
Nick looks stunned as the information sinks into his brain. “Whoa, no shit? Did not see that coming.”
Chris nods and rakes a hand through his hair. “Alex has always favored him over everyone else, except me. Until now.”
“Right. I’d imagine it was jarring to see him acting differently with Switch than he did. He didn’t even treat me like that.” Nick shrugs a little, unbothered. He knew his place and it had been fine.
“Yeah. I knew Alex was in love with him when he let him come home with him. He was always around too. There was no getting rid of him.” He sighs and sits back down, some of the immediate rage worked out with his pacing. “I made a mistake not breaking up their engagement. I made a mistake not asking Alex sooner, but I didn’t know how happy he’d be, being married. I didn’t know how important it was to him. I never thought he’d go through with marrying that little brat. I thought they’d be engaged for a while and then one of them would call the whole thing off because they’re not meant to be together. Not like that. I thought Alex would get bored of him again and come back home to me. But he didn’t. He actually got married to him and it happened so fast. I never thought they’d last. I gave it six months, honestly. I didn’t do anything to hurt them. I waited. I thought, If I was patient enough, they’d fall apart on their own.”
Nick winces, unsure of what to say. Thankfully, he doesn’t need to say anything.
“I should have pushed harder for Alex not to marry him, but he was so dead set on doing it. I couldn’t believe it when he told me he’d actually proposed to him. I thought he’d been joking. I knew he wanted to get married, but I didn’t think he’d settle for him either. Because that’s what he’s done. He’s settled. He really wants me, but now he’s trapped himself in this sham of a marriage and thinks he can’t just leave Jay to get out of it.” Chris presses his hands flat on the cold granite of the countertop.
Nick wishes Matt were here. Matt always knew what to say when he didn’t. “Well, I mean, I guess he figured you were serious about never getting married and that was something he really wanted, so he…..found what he wanted in someone else.”
Chris looks up at him. “But we’re the ones who are soulmates! They didn’t even buzz naturally! They had to learn how to do it!”
Nick nods. “I get it. I’m sure it hurt when he said no.”
“You have no idea. More than that, I’m angry. Not at Alex, but at him.” Chris spits out.
“Yeah, I can understand that too.” Nick reaches out carefully and rests his hand on top of one of Chris’.
Chris looks at Nick, a certain kind of desperation in his eyes. “He’ll come back to me, right? He always comes back to me in the end.”
“I know he loves you very much. Anyone can see that. This is a bump in the road for y’all. But I’m sure you can work through it if you really want to.” Nick pats Chris’ hand.
Chris sighs, hunching over a little. “I just want him to go away. He’s ruined everything.”
“Maybe you need to sit down and talk things out. Without Alex.” Nick suggests.
“I don’t want to talk to him. I want to hurt him.” Chris says, pulling his hand away from Nick.
Nick sits back a little. “Well, I don’t think that’ll help smooth things out with Alex. It didn’t get David Finlay very far.”
Chris huffs through his nose, looking away. “That’s because Finlay still loves him.”
“And you don’t?” Nick asks, tilting his head.
Chris doesn’t answer for a long moment. “It’s complicated.”
“So uncomplicate it. Have an open and honest discussion about all the relationships and what’s going on.” Nick leans back in his barstool.
“I don’t know if we can do that.” Chris feels exhausted all of a sudden and scrubs his hands over his face. “Hell, I don’t even know if I want to do that or if I just want him gone and out of my relationship with Alex. I want things how they used to be when I was number one and he was off with Finlay. Why can’t he just go back to Finlay?”
“You want him to hurt Alex like that?” Nick arches an eyebrow.
“Of course I don’t want it. But I can love him better and make him forget all about ever loving Jay White.” Chris snaps.
Nick raises his hands. “Don’t bite my head off. I’m just asking. Alex is really in love with him.”
“He’s really in love with me too.” Chris glares at Nick before relaxing again. “I’ll get him back. I always do.”
Nick nods, wondering if that’s even a good idea. “Well, you wanna crash here for a bit?”
Chris nods. “Yeah, you don’t mind?”
“Nah, house is plenty big enough. No one else will care either.” Nick gets to his feet and gestures to Chris.
Chris gets up and follows Nick upstairs to one of the guest rooms. “Thanks for letting me stay and for listening.”
Nick smiles at Chris. “Of course. I’m. Not as good as Matt is with the whole comforting thing, but I’m here if you need me.”
Chris nods and tugs Nick into a hug. “It means a lot to me.”
Nick hugs him back tightly, not letting go until Chris does. “Make yourself at home. There’s cleans towels and stuff in the bathroom if you want a shower or anything. Pantry and fridge are stocked, help yourself.”
Chris nods again.
“I’m right down the hall if you need anything.” Nick pats Chris’ arm.
“Thanks.” Chris turns to go into the room as Nick heads down the hall to the bedroom.
Nick opens the door quietly, wondering just how to explain they’re now harboring one half of the Motor City Machine Guns after a fight. He’ll figure it out later.