Different.

That was the buzz word for the day Christian decided. Different faces, different place, different atmosphere… He knew it was probably much too early to decide whether it was better or worse so he thought that under the circumstances 'different' was the best word to use.

"It's been different," he said as he took a long sip from the rapidly warming bottle of Bud in his hand.

Rhino looked at his old friend and frowned. "Is that good or bad?"

"It's neither," Christian said with a smile. "Just different."

The shot of whiskey in Rhino's hand quickly disappeared down his throat before he responded. "I was expecting the big 'fuck the WWE speech' from you tonight."

"That's pretty pointless don't you think?"

"Maybe," Rhino partly agreed, his hand waving a $20 note in the barman's direction, "but it makes you feel better."

Christian laughed. He'd missed Rhino and his take no prisoners attitude since his 'release' from the WWE earlier in the year. They'd spent so many nights on the road getting drunk and righting all of the wrongs in the world and Christian had always assumed that it was the alcohol that made the nights so enjoyable. But then Rhino had been released and no matter how drunk he'd got either Edge or Jericho neither had been able to strike the right balance between being philosophical and ridiculous quite like Rhino could.

"I like this though."

"Hm?"

"Management not only accepting our need for a post PPV drink but actively encouraging it," Christian said, his half empty bottle gesturing in the direction of a slightly drunk Jeff Jarrett. "You'd never see Hunter drunk on a Sunday night."

"I've always thought Monday was a shit night for a live TV show or house show," Rhino explained, "but taping every other Tuesday? Now that's fucking perfection."

Christian laughed again. It had been a long time since he had felt relaxed and happy enough to laugh at any gathering of WWE talent yet here he was, surrounded by a few old friends like Rhino and several dozen people he'd only met a few hours ago and he was laughing. He was enjoying himself. Of course he knew that was all due to the lack of an appearance from a certain long haired Canadian so-called friend but he was trying to ignore all thoughts of him.

"Don't let that bastard upset you again Christian," Rhino said seriously.

Christian tried to mask the hurt that was no doubt showing on his face but he could see from the look in Rhino's eyes that he was being unsuccessful. "Dammit Rhino, will you stop being so fucking perceptive."

"Not possible my friend," Rhino placed a loose arm around Christian's shoulders and pulled his old friend's lean body against his stocky chest, "look, forget about him. It's his loss and your gain. Look at this locker room. Makes me wish I was still man-whoring."

"I think the locker room should be grateful you're not," Christian smiled.

"Ah these young kids wouldn't be able to keep up with the man beast. Although I'd like to try a few of them out!"

"I bet you would," Christian said, his attention stolen by the frantic waves of a mask-less Abyss on the dance floor. "I think you're wanted Rhino."

Rhino stared at the dance floor of the bar for a few seconds waiting for his whiskey filled eyes to focus on the beckoning figure. "I promised I'd show him a few moves. He's quite light on his feet for a big fuck ya'know." He squeezed Christian's shoulder gently before speaking again. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah," Christian sighed although he was glad of Rhino's concern, "I'm big enough to look after myself for a couple of hours."

"Do you know what I suggest?" Rhino asked as he moved away from the bar, "get some X Division ass. That'll help you forget about Edge."

Christian leaned back against the bar as he watched Rhino walk away and join Abyss on the dance floor. He barely suppressed a chuckle as he watched the two big men dance with all the rhythm and grace of mating elephants. As Abyss and Rhino continued to terrorise the dance floor and send everyone running for safer ground Christian's thoughts returned to Rhino's last words. He'd never been a one night stand kind of guy. Like most he'd experimented with loose, meaningless sex while working the Indies but he'd come to learn that no faceless stranger could compare with sex that meant something.

It was a shame that Edge had never come to that same conclusion.

Another beer joined the four that already lined his stomach and he glanced around the bar. It was small, dirty and cheap, exactly the type of place that the vast majority of the WWE roster would never dare step foot in but it had one thing that those expensive hotel and posh wine bars didn't. And that was character. He could see that the walls were covered in a mixture of damp and dirt and that the few glasses being used for shots were clouded instead of sparkling with the legacy of a hundred trips in the dish washer but that did not take away from the electric atmosphere. If anything it added to it.

And when in such a different surrounding with such different people it was so much easier to forget about those things that had made him run from his security and the job he'd known for several years.

The shock of an ice cold beer being thrust in his hand interrupted Christian's musings.

"Welcome to TNA!"

Christian smiled at the two men that stood before him and clinked bottles with the cowboy who'd spoken. "Do you wear that hat everywhere?"

James Storm grinned. "Hell yeah! Every guy and gal loves a cowboy!"

"Or so he believes," Chris Harris answered with a playful shove to James' back.

James flung himself against the bar, face contorted in agony as he sold the shove like it was a vicious chair shot. Chris rolled his eyes and ignored his team mate instead concentrating on the bottle in his hand. "So what do you think of our little company?"

Christian watched the still writhing in agony Storm before answering. "It's different."

Chris laughed and dumped his empty bottle on the bar narrowly avoiding James' outstretched hand. "We certainly are that!"

The Cowboy finally realised that neither the Wildcat or Captain Charisma were paying any attention to his overselling antics and abruptly stopped a definite pout on his lips as he ordered another two bottles of Bud. The first bottle was quickly drained and the second held in his hand for a few moments while he waited for the alcoholic warmth to spread through his veins.

"You're finished then?" Chris asked James.

"Yep, I've done my selling for the week," he laughed as he tipped his cowboy hat to the barman who collected the empty bottles.

"Fuckin' flirt," Chris joked.

"He calls me a flirt," James said to Christian with a theatrical shake of his arms which only succeeded in drowning Christian's leather shoes in a shower of beer, "but you should see what he does with those fucking handcuffs."

Chris' eyes widened in a perfect picture of shock and embarrassment prompting loud laughter from James. "I... I don't know what he's talking about."

Christian joined James in laughing at Chris' embarrassment and couldn't help but warm to the two men stood either side of him. They were both wasted, if the slurred speech and reddened eyes were any indication, but Christian got the distinct feeling that a drunk America's Most Wanted was much like a sober America's Most Wanted - utterly insane.

They reminded him so much of he and Edge during better days. The 'Bill and Ted' of the locker room as Chris Jericho had so aptly named them they had always been the life and soul of any party. There was always some joke, some rib going on between the two and they had been practically inseparable for years. Christian's heart ached as he though of all of the late night long distant drives that had been made not just tolerable but enjoyable purely because it was Edge seated next to him.

"Yeah you do," James said ignoring Chris' frantic protestations that he didn't, "or shall I ask Chase Stevens?'

"Chase? What's Chase been saying?!" Chris asked, his face fading from golden brown to a deathly pale colour before settling into a frown. "He hasn't said anything has he?"

Storm nudged Christian and flashed him a wicked grin. "He's said a lot of things… All good but I didn't know you could be that kinky."

The wild smile that stared up at him from underneath the brim of the leather cowboy hat was enough to make Christian temporarily forget about Edge and focus on the friendliness of the people around him. He was surprised at how easily strangers like James and Chris could welcome him into their circle and how naturally the conversations could flow when even friends that he'd worked with for years could not find any words.

But that was a different locker room on a different day.

"Kinky is good," Christian said, smiling back at James, "there's no need to be embarrassed about handcuffing one of the Naturals. I'd be quite happy with that."

"Yeah?" Chris asked. "You owe me $20 Storm."

James sighed but continued smiling as he struggled to pull his wallet out of his too tight jeans. His smile turned into an amused laugh at the look of confusion on Christian's face. "Dammit Christian, did ya have to be an ass man? I mean it's great that you swing our way and we'd always be open to a swing or two with ya but fuck, making me pay Harris? It's almost not worth it!"

"Sorry man." Christian half apologised, "but you should know better than to make that bet about any wrestler."

"S'pose," James conceded before turning to Chris, "ha, there's your friend Chase. I'm gonna ask him if he's got any more bedtime stories."

James tipped his hat to Christian before speeding away to speak with the Naturals at the other end of the bar. He could see that Chris was trying hard not to laugh at his partner's drunken antics but was failing miserably as a light chuckle reached Christian's ears over the loud and invasive sounds of the bar.

"Here," Chris said as he handed Christian the $20, "have a drink on AMW and welcome to the asylum."

Christian remained at the bar alone for awhile, content to merely watch the guys that were to become his colleagues, opponents, travelling buddies and hopefully friends interact with each other. The dance floor was full and Christian mused on how a group of guys who could be so skilled in the ring could be so lacking in co-ordination when music was involved. They were all so consumed with enjoying themselves that any sense of self consciousness or pride had been completely forgotten and replaced by a desire to have fun.

AMW and the Naturals were still fooling around a few feet away from him and he suddenly felt lonely as an uncharacteristic craving for some company came crashing down on him. In his last few months on Smackdown he'd purposely avoided being around other people as much as possible as he could not cope with seeing that same look in all of their eyes. It was a look that said so much, that they pitied him because his long term lover had found someone new.

He couldn't decide what was worse - Edge's betrayal or having his personal hurt placed behind a glass cabinet for the entire locker room to see and comment on like it was an exhibit at a museum.

But that wasn't a worry here. Only Rhino knew about what had happened and Rhino knew better than to show any pity or indulge in idle gossip. TNA was a fresh start, a chance to achieve more in his career and to no longer be the guy Edge dumped for a wannabe rapper and a shot at glory.

He turned the $20 over in his hands a few times. The clock behind the bar showed that it was now the early hours of Monday morning and the beers he'd drank were starting to have their affect. The alcohol induced haziness in his mind that caused the walls to move ever so slightly was a welcome feeling but the nausea and headache they'd bring in the forthcoming hours was not so Christian decided to call it a night.

He said a silent 'goodbye' with a wave of his hand to the still dancing Rhino and headed for the bar entrance, the relative coolness of a November Orlando night washing over him as he stepped outside. There was no car in the car park for him to drive so he waited silently as occupied taxis drove past. He didn't mind waiting for a cab. The freshness of the breeze was enough to blow away any lingering doubts that still remained in his mind about joining TNA but did little to ease his loneliness.

The kerb was clean he was glad to see so Christian sat down, his legs stretched before him into the road but shielded from oncoming traffic by a row of cars parked outside the bar. He'd never been lonely before. He'd never had the chance due to Edge always being there whether that be the first day at high school or seeing the world from inside a wrestling ring. Christian knew it was corny and he shuddered slightly as the thought ran through his mind but he hadn't just lost a lover - he'd lost his best friend too.

The $20 bill that was still in his hand fluttered slightly in the wind as soft footsteps walked up to him. "You'll never catch a cab sitting down there."

Christian craned his neck to see who was standing over him. "Huh?"

Bobby Roode drained the bottle in his hand before sitting next to Christian. "These cars are hiding you, the cab drivers won't be able to see you hailing them."

"Maybe I'll walk home, I could do with the exercise."

"To Tampa?" Bobby asked. "That's a lot of exercise. I'd stick to an hour in the gym if I were you."

Christian laughed lightly. "Yeah, I'm not one for walking anyway."

Bobby set his empty bottle down onto the tarmac of the road taking great care to make sure it was secure against the rise of the kerb. Christian was silent now and Bobby could see out the corner of his eye that Christian was staring up at the blackness of the sky. Bobby looked up also but couldn't discern what had Christian so transfixed. It was a typical post midnight sky devoid of any stars or any colour at all apart from the small silver sliver of a crescent moon.

"You can tell me to mind my own business if you want," Bobby said softly, "but I'm guessing that there's more to you sitting out here all alone and hidden from cab drivers than just nerves at joining a new company."

Christian stiffened but he didn't remove his eyes from the moon that hung above him. It looked so lonely up there in the great expanse of dark sky without a single star to keep it company.

He sure could emphasise with that.

Bobby was watching him, he could feel the softness of his stare upon him and knew that he should answer. He'd spoken to Bobby earlier in the night briefly both backstage and in the ring and had found him to be as pleasant and welcoming as everybody else in TNA but that didn't translate into pouring his heart out about something he'd rather keep hidden.

"This is between you and me," Christian said softly, "but I may have had too much to drink."

It was only a little lie but it didn't ease his feelings of guilt. He knew from experience that little lies about having too much to drink could easily escalate into larger lies about spending the night on a friend's sofa and working late in the gym. If he concentrated hard enough he could still hear Edge using those very same lies to explain his nights away from home.

"You don't seem drunk to me," Bobby answered just as softly.

Christian pulled his eyes away from the moon and turned slightly so that he was facing the man seated next to him. "Yeah, I don't feel drunk either but there has to be some reason why I'm sitting out here, right?"

Bobby nodded in agreement. "I guess so."

The hidden meaning behind Christian's words were all to evident to Bobby. It was a polite way of asking Bobby not to press the issue further from one who wanted to keep his secrets but remain friendly. Bobby had no desire to push any further than Christian allowed but he didn't want to leave the man alone.

Their meeting earlier in the day to discuss their promo had been brief and the conversation largely work related but Bobby had seen enough in the awkwardness Christian radiated when asked by D'Amore about Edge to guess what was happening. Perceptive. That's what Petey always called him and Bobby had no doubt that his powers of perception had struck gold again with Christian.

"I'm sure a lot of people will make a big deal over why you came here," Bobby said finally, "but some of us, like me, don't care."

Christian raised a wary eyebrow. "Really? You don't want to hear my 'fuck the WWE' speech?" he said drawing on Rhino's earlier words.

"Doesn't interest me. I've never been in the WWE so why should I care about what happened there and made you leave? Why should any of us care? We're just glad you're here. I'm just glad you're here."

Christian stood up slowly, his hands straightening any creases or brushing off any dirt that may have accumulated on his jeans from the pavement. He looked down at Bobby who watched him expectantly and analysed his words before speaking. "Things aren't that easy though are they?"

Bobby looked at him puzzled but made no effort to stand. "Why not?"

"Because the past follows you wherever you go. I've carried with me to TNA whatever happened in the WWE and I can't shake that."

Bobby stood now, his foot knocking over the carefully placed beer bottle and both he and Christian watched for a moment as it rolled into the road and under the wheels of a passing car. "You can if you want to. Its your past Christian, you choose what to keep and what to throw away. TNA can be a fresh start but only if you allow it to be."

Christian's response was stolen by the feel of Bobby's fingers against his own. The touch was fleeting and was over before it had been processed by Christian's alcohol dulled mind but once recognised it burned brightly and scorched the borders of those painful memories. Just as Christian was about to question what had happened he saw that the $20 Chris Harris had given him was now held tightly in Bobby's right hand.

"I think you've drank enough for one night," Bobby said quietly.

Christian could only nod in agreement and watch silently as Bobby hailed a passing cab for him. Bobby opened the cab's back door and waited for Christian to step inside and fasten his seat belt before shutting the door. Christian mumbled his address to the driver and was about to tell him to pull away when he noticed Bobby gesturing for him to wind the window down.

"If you ever need any help in throwing out old memories or making new ones then give me a call."

Christian smiled. Maybe it really was the time for a fresh start and the creation of some new and better memories. "I will."

Bobby stepped back and smiled shyly in return and Christian could only laugh when a staggering and extremely drunk Petey Williams embraced Bobby from behind and gripped him in a fierce bear hug that Bobby frantically tried to escape. As the cab pulled away Christian could see that Bobby's attempts at escape had only resulted in Petey pulling him down to the pavement and capturing him in a body scissors.

Welcome to the asylum indeed.

THE END