Spray Paint

Johnny walked up to the modest Japanese style house and looked around. He stepped at the door and then slid his hand into his pocket and checked his phone. He was at Akashi's place in Tokyo. He had come alone and was feeling a little... weird.

Everyone seemed to be weird lately. Other than him and Taylor. His brother was weird. And Cassie was weird. And now he was being asked to deal with the weirdness all by himself. He didn't know what to say. He didn't really even understand what was going on. He just kept getting a lot of "Why don't you talk to them's from various people. Why would it matter if Mamouru and Cassie were in a funk? Rather, why would them being in a funk equal a connection? Everyone was acting like they were dating or something. That was impossible. Mamouru was the worst kind of womanizer. If there was ever an expression as too good for someone, it applied to Cassie about Mamouru. She didn't even LIKE guys anyway! Cassie was just bummed out because...

Johnny didn't understand that either. She had just won the two biggest matches of her career. Her first pay-per-view event and a revenge match against her biggest rival Dark Angel. Shouldn't she be HAPPY? Everyone should be happy. Being happy was cool. Johnny figured that since that was HIS motto, that maybe they wanted him to ...

Johnny didn't really know. He shrugged and put his phone away. He looked down at himself. He was wearing some washed out, torn up jeans and a tight fitting, ratty old Black Flag shirt. it was just Cassie. No need to be fancy right? He pushed the doorbell and waited. The wait was odd... and junk.

Cassie's slippers were pigs. Her fuzzy pink feet scuffed along the floor on her way to the door, and she pulled tight the blanket that she had wrapped around her shoulders. It covered her all the way to the floor, with just the pigs on her slippers peeking out on each step.

She opened the door, and instead of Akashi or Taylor, there stood Johnny. Before she could even greet him, she instantly ran through the checklist in her mind. How was her hair? Was she gross? She lifted the blanket in her fists in front of her to cover her mouth for a moment.

"Hi, Johnny." She didn't know what else to say, and shifted from one foot to the other. "Um... come in?"

Johnny's eyes lit up when Cassie opened the door. "Heya, squirt!" He said. He stepped in and ruffled her hair as he walked past her, kicking off his shoes in the small foyer that was built into every Japanese home.

Once his shoes were off, he turned around and looked at her. "Yo, man, like, I didn't wake ya up or anything did I?" His feet trailed down to her piggie sandals. "I mean, if you wanna go change out of the pigs or... whatever, man, it's cool. Or, if ya wanna go back to bed, I can leave and come back later and junk. You know, whatever? Or, it's cool man." Johnny got a bit repetitious and frowned briefly. "I could... make some juice and junk while you changed. I've been into that lately. Juice. It's really good fresh squeezed you know. Healthy too. And if you mix apples and carrots, it tastes like apples and you still get all that carrot junk that's in there. Whatever it is." Johnny shrugged. He didn't come here to talk about his new hobby. He came to talk about Cassie. But maybe that would break the ice? How did other people do this anyway?

Cassie blushed slightly and stepped off her pigs so that they remained hidden under her blanket. She nodded attentively while Johnny went on, and it took her a moment to realize when he was done.

"Um, I-I'll go change!" She announced, and scampered off up the stairs to her bedroom, dropping her blanket on the way up. She frantically dug through her closet for something suitable, and fussed over her hair when she saw herself in the mirror. She put on a cute pair of jeans and a red flannel shirt that buttoned up snugly, with shorts sleeves and a curved hem that was shorter on the sides, and when she bent a certain way she shirt slid up and exposed her hips. It was from the smallest and most unused part of her wardrobe.

She put on a pair of bright pink socks, brushed the tangles out of her hair, checked her teeth, and went back downstairs.

"I have carrot juice, if you want." She had started keeping it in the house, originally for the health benefit, but after forcing herself to drink it long enough she had come to like it. She went to find Johnny, but didn't know what to say. She didn't know why he was there, but she didn't question it.

"Sure thing..." Johnny said as he watched Cassie run off. He grinned and then stared absently at the main room. There was a modern television and a modern couch that seemed out of place around all of the ornate and anachronistic stuff. The katanas and kabuto helmet. The wall scrolls and the old grainy black and white photos of sumo legends. Akashi clearly seemed to be the decorator around here.

it wasn't too long before Cassie was back down and offering juice. He nodded. "Yeah man. It's cool if it's not, like, fresh fresh and junk. It's all good. I think Taylor's gettin' tired of my turning everything in the house into liquid anyway. Dunno what she'd say if I started doing it to everyone else's food." Johnny chuckled as he scratched the back of his head.

He followed Cassie to the kitchen and looked her over. "That, like, one of your lumberjack outfits?" He said offhandedly. Johnny didn't really think about Cassie being Canadian all that much but it suddenly seemed like she was showing off her northern pride. Which was totally cool. "Looks like it'll keep ya warm. I mean... other than around here..." He said said as he lifted up his own shirt enough to give Cassie a peek at his rock hard body while he traced the area of skin that was exposed on Cassie whenever she leaned a certain way.

"Well... anyway, shorty, how ya been and junk? I know that we... uh.... don't spend a lot of time together and stuff but... like... Taylor's your friend and you live with Akashi and ... like... that's pretty cool man." Johnny stalled out with what he was trying to say but finished by flashing Cassie a bright and cheerful grin and nodding his head like he had said everything he wanted to.

Cassie blushed again. She didn't want to look like a lumberjack! What was he saying! And with the way her shirt didn't quite cover everything all the time, she had an overwhelming urge to run upstairs and change again, or at least put on a sweatshirt. But then, Johnny had noticed. That wasn't a bad thing.

She hugged her arms against her midsection and pulled the hem of her shirt down at the hips, and the only sound she managed was a vapid giggle.

She hurried off to the kitchen and grabbed the carrot juice out of the fridge. There was only enough for one more glass. She shook the bottle disappointedly and looked around. What else did she have? She settled on pouring it all for Johnny, and she got herself water. In a cup that wasn't see-through, so Johnny wouldn't notice that she gave him all the juice and make a thing out of it. He was so nice. Taylor was certainly a lucky girl.

She came back and handed Johnny his glass, and again remembered that she had no idea why he was there. What did he just say? Oh! "I'm doing well, thanks. I'm just, you know... stuff." She blinked.

"Thanks man." Johnny said and raised his glass a bit. He chugged the juice in two quick gulps and the slight frown on his lips afterward was an indication to the world that Johnny could never go back to bottled juice. He played it off with a smile, grinning at Cassie and nodding as he decided to flop onto the couch.

His grin faded when he heard her words though. "Yeah, man stuff... and junk." Johnny said. "Like, I've been hearing about that a lot man." Johnny said. "About stuff. Actually." Johnny said turning his head. "Everyone's kind of been worried about ya but..." Johnny paused. "No one wants to, like... approach you about it... and ... stuff..."

Johnny shook his head and smiled. "They want to give ya yer space, I guess or whatever but, that ain't cool man. When people aren't doin so great, they need people around 'em, ya know? It don't make ya tough to, like, face your problems alone, ya know?" He said. Johnny then shrugged. "But... I don't even know what the heck is goin on!" He didn't. "Like, You're doin' awesome as a wrestler. You just kicked that bitch Dark Angel's ass, man. I couldn't even do that, so, like, that means you're pretty awesome. I'd be runnin' scared if I had to fight ya, man." Johnny said with a grin. He probably wouldn't be but he couldn't even think about fighting Cassie. She was too cool for school.

Johnny shrugged and looked at Cassie. "I know I ain't the smartest around, so maybe you can tell me, ok? I won't relay the info if ya wanna keep it to yourself or... whatever, I guess but.... What's a chick who's ridin high and got the whole world in the palm of her hand got to be... uh.... whatever you are.... about. To be.... stuff... about.... and junk?"

Cassie smiled nervously and acted like she was surprised that people would be worried about her. "Why would they be worried? I'm fine."

She sobered as he continued. She didn't want to talk about it. At that point, she wanted to be left alone. But if there was someone she couldn't bring herself to throw out or ignore, it was Johnny. She silently resigned herself to her fate, she was trapped. There was no way out but to talk to him.

She was pensive, with a finger to her lips, looking down at the floor while she thought of a way to approach it. She was tense when she looked back at Johnny, with eyes full of trouble and hurt. "How much do you think you'd give up... to get what you want?"

"Doin fine is pretty cool." Johnny said, leaning back. "But isn't it better to be good? or Great?" He said. "I don't know about you, short stuff but I won't settle for fine." He smiled. "And, I think that if you were going to settle for that, it wouldn't be that cool. It's cool seeing you happy and junk. That's something that everyone can get behind." He said with a nod. It was true. The more people were happy, the happier people around them were happy. It was infectious and Johnny liked being patient zero.

He considered Cassie's next words and tilted his head. There really was something wrong with her and now she was just not even doing a good job of hiding it and it was pretty easy to hide stuff like that from Johnny. "It depends on what it is. If it was Taylor? You know, I'd do anything without even thinking about it. That's pretty easy. If it was the Title belt? I'd probably do a lot. I already DO do a lot and junk."

Johnny sat up and looked at Cassie. "I saw your match with Dark Angel man and like, I know what that's all about and junk. For some reason, I'm always gettin put in these matches where I can't just win. I gotta, like, beat the shit outta some chick because it's in the rules or she's just fuckin' crazy man." Johnny frowned. "And, I'll do it because it's my job and it ain't like these chicks didn't sign up for it or whatever but, I don't like it." Johnny lowered his head and ran his fingers through his hair. "But, ya know, squirt, Sometimes.... I kinda like it." He said and stared at the ground. What I don't like is the idea that I might like it. That match with Dark Angel, there's a part of me that thinks, maybe that might be fun. And not just cause I don't like that chick but just because... it might be fun." Johnny said and lifted his head.

He then smiled at Cassie. 'But... ain't no one around who doesn't get stuck with dark thoughts from time to time. It's just the way things are. I try not to let it bother me because I've got an amazing wife, a mostly great family and pretty cool friends like you." He said. "And I get paid to do what I love. How could I sweat that, man? I'd be totally bogus."

Johnny then blushed suddenly. "Oh, man... sorry dude. I just kind of went off. You were asking me something and I just went off and junk. Man, I probably didn't even say anythin that made any sense..." He said as he smiled sheepishly at Cassie. "Sorry..."

Cassie folded her arms and listened through Johnny's speech with an unchanging look of concern stuck on her face. Johnny wasn't wrong about anything. She could understand how he felt about everything, and she couldn't even fault him for enjoying things sometimes that he thought he shouldn't, because he thought he shouldn't. He was a good guy, there was no question. What could he have to worry about?

But that was Cassie's problem. She became increasingly serious, and her face became stoney and grave. Undeterred, she continued right where she left off.

"What if there was something you had to do for Taylor, but doing it meant you had to give her up?" She was unsatisfied, and tried to rephrase it. "What if... What if you had to protect Taylor, but after you did it you couldn't go back home?"