Love And Marriage:
Wrestling Style
Written by Holly M. Custer
Copyright © 2002

“Mommy, do I get to meet Jer’cho tonight?” Hannah asked me for the hundredth time.

“Hannah, darling, what did mommy tell you earlier?” I asked my six-year-old daughter. I tipped her chin up with my finger so that I could look into her green eyes.

“You said that I would be in bed when Jer’cho came over, ‘cuz I have to get up early to do lessons tomorrow.” Hannah answered sulkily.

“Hannah Paige Siefert, no trouble from you this evening. Do you understand?” I said firmly.

“Yes, Mommy, I understand. I’ll go to sleep and be good just for you.”

“Thank you, sweetie. I love you.”

“I love you, too, Mommy!” Hannah threw her small arms around my neck. Gently, I tucked her into bed and turned out the light. I waited by the door and only left the room when her breathing evened out into the sleep of the innocent.

I went to my room and brushed my auburn hair. I pulled on a sweater and skirt outfit. I slipped on sandals and donned earrings.

I went to the kitchen and pulled out some chips and dip. I made sure there was soda in the fridge and some other munchies for Chris and I.

I went out to the living room and straightened the cushions on the couch . Just then, there was a gentle knock at the door. I went and opened it expecting only one person. With a smile, I let in the tall, muscular wrestler.

Chris Irvine was his real name. Chris Jericho was his wrestling name. He was a six foot, two hundred pound wrestler with a hard body. In the ring, Chris was a crazy man, but in my home, he was a sweet, caring, gentle man.  He was everything I ever wanted in a man and more.

With a smile, I let him in. He turned to me and pulled me into his arms. His kiss was passionate, as usual. He took me by the hand and we sat on the couch. I snuggled up next to him and we proceeded to talk.

I was a little nervous. I hadn’t told him about Hannah yet. I had had boyfriends before who had left me because I had a child. It was a hurtful situation and I didn’t want to drag it out any longer.

“Chris, I have something I need to tell you before our relationship goes any further.” I said looking up into his gorgeous blue eyes.

“Is everything all right, Holly?”

“Everything’s fine, really. I just need to show you something.” I got up off the couch and held out my hand to him. He took it and we went towards my daughter’s room.

.”You hiding a man?” He joked. I smiled up at him.

I quietly opened the bedroom door and stood back so that he could see in. He gazed at the sleeping child for a long moment, then stepped back. I closed the door and we walked out to the living room.

“She is yours?” Chris asked subdued.

“Yes, she’s only six, but very bright. She loves wrestling and is very excited to meet.....” Chris stopped me by pressing fingers gently to my lips.

“I think I should go now, Holly. This was rather a shock and I need to think on it. I’ll call you.....later” Chris turned and went to the door. He turned as if to say something, but stopped himself. He let himself out and closed the door quietly behind him.

I was stunned. He just walked out. What else did I expect? No man wants to be tied down by a child. After berating myself thoroughly, I went to bed and slept fitfully.

Two weeks later.....

I sat in the front row of Anaheim Pond in Anaheim, California. It had been two weeks since I had heard from Chris and I desperately needed closure if our relationship was over. I watched match after match waiting for Chris to appear.

Finally, it was time for Chris’ match. He was fighting Val Venis and Ivory would be at ringside. My breath caught as Chris turned and the lights had come up after his intro video. He was as handsome as ever. I watched as he slid under the ropes and stood to his feet. I listened as the fans cheered and applauded for Chris Jericho, Y2J.

Val Venis came down amidst boos with Ivory at his side. I stood to my feet as the match took off.

I was totally into the match when I saw Ivory blindside Chris with a steel chair. I cringed at the thud I heard and without thinking, I jumped the barrier and headed for the ring. Security started to come after me but I saw that Vince McMahon was waving them off. I had met Vince several times and wondered what he was up to.

I ran to the ring and slid in like I had seen so many wrestlers do. I was amazed at how easy it was. I jumped to my feet and knelt down next to Chris. I turned to see what Val Venis was up to. He had a chair and had started coming towards Chris when I got between him and his target. Val had stopped and was hesitating on what to do. I turned back to Chris when I heard him speak.

“Holly, get out!” I looked him square in the eyes and saw the pride and fierceness of his wrestling spirit. I stood and waited until he got to his feet. Chris pushed me aside. I rolled out of the ring and stood at the apron. I looked at Vince McMahon and saw that he was smiling.

I turned back to the ring and saw that Chris had been knocked down by Val again and was once again rising to his feet. I stood at the apron next to him and shouted encouragement to him. Startled, he glanced at me. I pointed behind him as Val Venis came up with a steel chair. Chris ducked and put Venis down with a drop toehold, then he put Venis in the Walls of Jericho.

Ivory attempted to get in the ring to stop Chris’ finishing move, but I ran and pulled her out by grabbing her legs. She turned and started yelling in my face. I suddenly realized where I was and backed away from her. I looked up into the ring and saw that Chris had won the match. He stared back at me with an unreadable expression on his face. I turned and ran to the backstage area. As I started to head for the exit, I heard my name being called. My heart gave a leap as I turned hoping it was Chris who had called out to me.

It wasn’t Chris. It was my brother, Mark Calloway, who was also known as the Undertaker. I waited as he trotted up to me.

“Hey, Sis. What was the deal out there?” Mark asked, not unkindly.

“I don’t know, Mark, my body just seemed to do it’s own thing out there. I saw Chris get hit and that was it. I made such a fool of myself!” I started to cry and Mark pulled me into his arms.

“Come on, Sis, it’s not that bad. Apparently, Vince liked it. He let you go on with it, didn’t he? “

“It’s not Vince I’m worried about, Mark, it’s Chris. I told him two weeks ago about Hannah and he walked out on me. He hasn’t called or anything. I don’t know what to do.” I said. I pulled back and looked up at my six foot, seven inch brother. “I’ll be OK, honest.” I tried to smile, but it was rather a failure.

“You go on home, Holly, I’ll take care of Chris Irvine.” Mark stated with a pat on my shoulder.

“Mark? What are you going to do?”

“Don’t worry about it, girl. Just go home.” Obediently, I did as my older brother told me too.

Later that evening, I fixed hot dogs and macaroni and cheese for Hannah. It was her favorite meal. After dinner was over and the dishes washed,, we sat down and watched The Emperor’s New Groove.

About halfway through the movie, the doorbell rang. As I got up, the door opened and in came Mark.

“Uncle Mark!” Hannah exclaimed.

“Hi, little one.” Over her head, Mark motioned towards the door and mouthed “Jericho.” I nodded in understanding and was suddenly nervous.

“Hey, Munchkin, how would you like to come home with me and spend the night? We still have your pajamas from the last time you stayed.”

“May I go Mommy? Please?!”

“Of course you may, darling.” I kissed her and then kissed my brother. I watched as they went out the door. I could hear Hannah laughing all the way down the walk.

I walked to the door and opened it. Chris Irvine stood there.

“Please, come in.” I said in almost a whisper. “Um, would you like to sit down?”

“Thank you.” Chris answered. “This is crazy.” He muttered.

“What?”

“Look, Holly, I am sorry for running out on you that night. It was rather a shock. I don’t care if you have one kid or ten. I care about you very much and I want to continue seeing you.”

“I care about you too, Chris. I was so hurt when you walked out. I have had so many men do that.”

“I know, sweetheart. It won’t happen again, I promise.” Chris said pulling me into a warm embrace. I sighed happily and suddenly remembered his match.

“Oh, Chris!” I said looking up into his blue eyes. “I’m so sorry about your match tonight. I didn’t mean to get involved, but I care about you too and I didn’t like seeing you get hurt, pretend or not.”

“Actually, Vince loved it. He wants to see you tomorrow.” Chris answered with a smile.

“Seriously?”

“He kept raving on about how you protected me and stood against a man twice your size. He loved it, Holly. It wouldn’t surprise me if he wanted you to wrestle.”

“Oh, I couldn’t do that! Although, I wouldn’t mind being your manager or valet.” I answered, almost shyly. Chris laughed and pulled me into his arms again. He pressed his lips to mine in a warm, wonderful kiss that sent my head spinning.

“Your birthday is next week, right?” Chris murmured his breath warm against my cheek.

“Um hm.” I answered softly.

“Shall we go out to dinner, just the two of us. Maybe do a little dancing?” Chris asked as he kissed down the line of my jawbone.

“That would be wonderful!” I breathed softly, His mouth came back to mine and we kissed and kissed and.............

The meeting with Vince went well. He definitely wanted me in the company and as a manager or valet of Y2J, Chris Jericho. I was thrilled and knew that Chris would be too. I thanked my stars that I was homeschooling Hannah or this wouldn’t be possible. I thanked Vince and went to tell Chris my good news. He was thrilled, as well.

The weekend before my birthday, Chris, Hannah, Mark and his girlfriend, Sara, and I went to Disneyland.

Chris took Hannah on all of the kiddy rides and they both had a blast. Then the four of us took turns watching Hannah so that we all got a chance to ride the bigger rides. I enjoyed watching Chris with my daughter. It was wonderful to see the bond that grew between them.

Chris kept telling her she could call him by his name, but Hannah, my precocious daughter, insisted on calling him “Jer’cho”. Chris soon came to accept the nickname as a loving nickname from the adoring, young fan.

Later in the afternoon, Mark and Sara offered to take Hannah to my parents’ home for the rest of the evening. We agreed to meet at the Mark Twain for a moonlit ride on the riverboat at seven o’clock.

Chris and I spent the alone time talking and learning more about each other. Too soon, it was seven and we strolled hand-in-hand over to the riverboat.

“Holly! Chris! Guess what??!!” Sara exclaimed excitedly as she and Mark ran up.

“What?” I asked eagerly glancing over at the smug expression on my brother’s face.

“Mark just asked me to marry him.” Sara held out her hand. There on her ring finger was a gorgeous diamond solitaire.

“Oh, Sara! it’s just lovely!” I said with joy for the young couple. I hugged her close and welcomed her to the family. I turned to my brother and gave him a huge hug. I reached up and kissed him on the cheek and smiled happily.

After that happy moment, I noticed that Chris was very quiet as we waited in line. Once we boarded the riverboat, I took him aside and asked if he was all right.  He smiled down at me and reassured me that all was well.

He stared at me for a long moment, then took my hands in his.  “Holly, do you really know how much I love you?”

“Of course I do.”: I answered. “I love you very much too.”

“Would you marry me?”

“What?!” I gasped. This was the last thing I had expected him to ask. I turned to stare out at the lights and people on the shore. I was stunned. As I overcame the shock of what he asked, I knew what my answer would have to be. I turned back to him and said one simple word.

“Yes.”

                                               The End