Post by “The Better Man” Warren Kidd on Jul 31, 2024 14:15:01 GMT
Less than twenty-four hours after Lineage, Warren Harper sat shirtless and with his ribs taped up in Dr Nicole Kingsley’s office. Warren felt this follow up appointment was entirely unnecessary. He was fine, and it could have been so much worse. Cyrus Daniels had let him off far easier than he could have, Warren knew. Still, if Warren wanted to heal up for facing Pax Stormcrow at Legacy and give the two time Heir to the Throne winner the match he deserved without the excuses, Warren had to keep every appointment and follow every medical recommendation, no exceptions.
“How are ya this mornin’ Mr Harper?” Dr Kingsley asked, with a soft warm smile.
“Fine,” he lied. He had his pride. He didn’t want to be stripped of his title due to injury by a cautious doctor again. “I got lucky, I guess,” Warren tried not to wince and let on that it still hurt him to talk.
“Ya sure?” Dr Kingsley double checked.
Warren nodded, mercifully that didn’t hurt as much.
“Well then, yeah, I’d say ya got damned lucky,” Dr Kingsley smiled. “Especially considering who it was who attacked you.”
“I know,” Warren said. “You think I’ll be good to go by Legacy then?”
“If you take it easy and don’t aggravate things further, I don’t see why not.”
“You know that depends on how the suits choose to use me in the build up.”
“I could recommend a lighter schedule, with no matches?”
“No,” Warren insisted firmly. “Since I can’t guarantee that Pax won’t have matches before our inevitable clash, I need to be on his level and just as ready to go as he is. Please can we keep this on the downlow?”
“Alright, I can try,” Nicole sighed reluctantly. She shouldn’t feel as responsible for when Cyrus lost his temper and people got hurt anymore. He’d clearly moved on and had a whole different life now, but still part of her reflexively shouldered the blame still. “But I won’t lie for you, if management asks, I’m going to tell them ya insisted on competin’ still.”
“Thank you, I owe you big time,” Warren smiled. “I can take the heat, I’m used to it.”
“What is it about men and their stupid insistence not to appear weak?” Nicole asked, mostly rhetorically, knowing she would never get a satisfactory answer to that particular mystery between the sexes.
Even if Warren had an answer for Nicole, he couldn’t give it as his phone started ringing. He quickly fished it out of his jean pocket and smiled at the caller ID before pressing the phone to his ear. He never missed a call from Shea O’Hara.
“Hey! How’s your Pops? I miss you! Please tell me you’re coming back soon, I could use a friend and you’re the only one I got left I think,” Warren joked. There was a lengthy silence as he listened to Shea talking a mile a minute, obviously incensed. “No, no. You got it all wrong. I had nothing to do with Dean attacking Viv. Listen, honey, I appreciate you’re hot right now, and you’re right I should have stopped him. No, I agree, it was absolutely too far, but I didn’t know a damned thing about it, I swear! Please believe me!”
Whatever Shea said next drained all the colour from Warren’s face, “No, damn it, you can’t throw away our friendship too, I won’t allow it. Just tell me what I need to do to set this right and I’ll do it. Please, you know how important you are to me, I love you.”
Warren hadn’t really registered his own words, until he heard Shea demand that if he really loved her, he would prove it.
“I mean sure, anything. Just say the word and I’ll do it, just please don’t leave me,” Warren took another earful from his longtime best friend. “No you can’t ask me to do that. That’s not fair!” Warren felt his hands shake as he almost dropped the phone, in his fumbling to maintain his grip on both the phone and his own sanity, he misclicked and put the call on speaker and Nicole heard what she really shouldn’t have.
“Cut the shit Warren, I’m not in the mood. It’s your choice, him or me, I’m serious. I’ve watched you for years taking all kinds of crap from him, I’m done,” Shea said firmly. “You broke the promise you made me that Vivienne, our best friend, would always be safe and protected as long as one of us was around. I trusted you. So either grow some balls and divorce the bloody psycho, or stick with him forever without me or Viv in your life.”
Warren finally muted the speaker again, “I’ll call you back. I need time to think this through.” Warren ended the call and slipped his phone back in his pocket with a heavy sigh. He looked at Nicole. “Don’t suppose what you just heard falls under patient privilege, does it?”
“Hey it really ain’t any of my business,” Nicole said. “But thanks for making me feel a little better about still being single. I don’t have to deal with upsetting anybody I love anymore.”
“Count your blessings,” Warren said softly. He shook his head and blinked back tears. He wouldn’t cry infront of Nicole, he’d let his guard down too much around her already.
Cyrus Daniels wasn’t the only one putting Warren’s back up against the wall now. Spike would know how to handle all this shit, he thought. Too bad, he was dead and had died by Dean’s hand six years ago today in fact. Warren had let him get away with that too. He had forgiven him, they were supposed to be good now.
Warren rubbed his temples as he felt a migraine coming on.
How many more times could he forgive Dean for everything?
How many more times could he convince himself they were happy?
How much more was he willing to sacrifice just to not feel so alone?
He thought taking out Rowan would bring them closer together, and that they’d bond over the mutual downfall of an abusive bitch, but now Dean had once again taken it way too far. It wouldn’t be pretty but this had to end.
Warren Harper had to be something Dean was incapable of being; the better man, for the sake of everyone he still cared about.
“How are ya this mornin’ Mr Harper?” Dr Kingsley asked, with a soft warm smile.
“Fine,” he lied. He had his pride. He didn’t want to be stripped of his title due to injury by a cautious doctor again. “I got lucky, I guess,” Warren tried not to wince and let on that it still hurt him to talk.
“Ya sure?” Dr Kingsley double checked.
Warren nodded, mercifully that didn’t hurt as much.
“Well then, yeah, I’d say ya got damned lucky,” Dr Kingsley smiled. “Especially considering who it was who attacked you.”
“I know,” Warren said. “You think I’ll be good to go by Legacy then?”
“If you take it easy and don’t aggravate things further, I don’t see why not.”
“You know that depends on how the suits choose to use me in the build up.”
“I could recommend a lighter schedule, with no matches?”
“No,” Warren insisted firmly. “Since I can’t guarantee that Pax won’t have matches before our inevitable clash, I need to be on his level and just as ready to go as he is. Please can we keep this on the downlow?”
“Alright, I can try,” Nicole sighed reluctantly. She shouldn’t feel as responsible for when Cyrus lost his temper and people got hurt anymore. He’d clearly moved on and had a whole different life now, but still part of her reflexively shouldered the blame still. “But I won’t lie for you, if management asks, I’m going to tell them ya insisted on competin’ still.”
“Thank you, I owe you big time,” Warren smiled. “I can take the heat, I’m used to it.”
“What is it about men and their stupid insistence not to appear weak?” Nicole asked, mostly rhetorically, knowing she would never get a satisfactory answer to that particular mystery between the sexes.
Even if Warren had an answer for Nicole, he couldn’t give it as his phone started ringing. He quickly fished it out of his jean pocket and smiled at the caller ID before pressing the phone to his ear. He never missed a call from Shea O’Hara.
“Hey! How’s your Pops? I miss you! Please tell me you’re coming back soon, I could use a friend and you’re the only one I got left I think,” Warren joked. There was a lengthy silence as he listened to Shea talking a mile a minute, obviously incensed. “No, no. You got it all wrong. I had nothing to do with Dean attacking Viv. Listen, honey, I appreciate you’re hot right now, and you’re right I should have stopped him. No, I agree, it was absolutely too far, but I didn’t know a damned thing about it, I swear! Please believe me!”
Whatever Shea said next drained all the colour from Warren’s face, “No, damn it, you can’t throw away our friendship too, I won’t allow it. Just tell me what I need to do to set this right and I’ll do it. Please, you know how important you are to me, I love you.”
Warren hadn’t really registered his own words, until he heard Shea demand that if he really loved her, he would prove it.
“I mean sure, anything. Just say the word and I’ll do it, just please don’t leave me,” Warren took another earful from his longtime best friend. “No you can’t ask me to do that. That’s not fair!” Warren felt his hands shake as he almost dropped the phone, in his fumbling to maintain his grip on both the phone and his own sanity, he misclicked and put the call on speaker and Nicole heard what she really shouldn’t have.
“Cut the shit Warren, I’m not in the mood. It’s your choice, him or me, I’m serious. I’ve watched you for years taking all kinds of crap from him, I’m done,” Shea said firmly. “You broke the promise you made me that Vivienne, our best friend, would always be safe and protected as long as one of us was around. I trusted you. So either grow some balls and divorce the bloody psycho, or stick with him forever without me or Viv in your life.”
Warren finally muted the speaker again, “I’ll call you back. I need time to think this through.” Warren ended the call and slipped his phone back in his pocket with a heavy sigh. He looked at Nicole. “Don’t suppose what you just heard falls under patient privilege, does it?”
“Hey it really ain’t any of my business,” Nicole said. “But thanks for making me feel a little better about still being single. I don’t have to deal with upsetting anybody I love anymore.”
“Count your blessings,” Warren said softly. He shook his head and blinked back tears. He wouldn’t cry infront of Nicole, he’d let his guard down too much around her already.
Cyrus Daniels wasn’t the only one putting Warren’s back up against the wall now. Spike would know how to handle all this shit, he thought. Too bad, he was dead and had died by Dean’s hand six years ago today in fact. Warren had let him get away with that too. He had forgiven him, they were supposed to be good now.
Warren rubbed his temples as he felt a migraine coming on.
How many more times could he forgive Dean for everything?
How many more times could he convince himself they were happy?
How much more was he willing to sacrifice just to not feel so alone?
He thought taking out Rowan would bring them closer together, and that they’d bond over the mutual downfall of an abusive bitch, but now Dean had once again taken it way too far. It wouldn’t be pretty but this had to end.
Warren Harper had to be something Dean was incapable of being; the better man, for the sake of everyone he still cared about.
Well howdy there pardner.