Erchomai [Ricochet/Adam Cole]

chapter 19: to all the ones i've wrestled before

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On Trevor's birthday, at exactly 12:01 AM, he starts getting messages in his group chat.

MIA: HAPPY MF'N BIRTHDAY, TREV!

BIANCA: Yessir, happy birthday!

JOHNNY: Happy Birthday!!! Love you, man!

LACE: Aye, congrats on being born!

LACE:

MIA:

JOHNNY:

BIANCA:

TREVOR: Y'all are fools, but I love you. Thank you.

They're at a hotel in St. Charles, Missouri for the NXT Live Event and Adam's already asleep. So, after Trevor responds to his friends, he snuggles up to him and drifts off, too. He's woken up later in the morning by Adam peppering him with kisses. "Mmm, happy birthday to me," he mumbles, still half asleep.

"Happy birthday," Adam reiterates. Trevor wipes the sleep from his eyes and flops onto his back, opening them just as Adam leans down to kiss him. Trevor's aversion to morning breath faded somewhere between Lancaster and Tampa, he believes. "I got you a couple things," Adam says when he pulls back, sliding out of the bed and heading over to his suitcase.

"I told you that you didn't have to do that." Trevor lifts himself up with his hands to lean against the headboard, watching as Adam comes away with two gifts. When he sits back down on the bed, Trevor snakes a hand around the back of his neck, resting his forehead against Adam's. "As cheesy as it sounds, I'm just happy to spend it kicking your ass tonight in our championship match."

"I'll allow you to fantasize this time since it's your birthday," Adam jokes, and Trevor moves away with a flick of his hand as Adam chuckles. "But on a serious note, I hope you like them."

Adam hands Trevor the bigger box first, and Trevor is still a little tired, so he fights back a yawn as he carefully unwraps it. Inside he finds a shoebox that holds a pair of blue Vegeta Jordans, and he's never been more mesmerized by a sight than he is now. "Holy shit," Trevor exclaims, suddenly wide awake. "These are amazing."

"I was confident that you'd love those." Adam's smile fades and he bites his bottom lip, looking nervous as he turns the other gift over in his hands. After a long moment, he hands it over. But it's a tepid handoff. As if he's not sure if he should give it to Trevor or wish he never bought it. "This isn't exactly what I was looking for, but I hope you like it anyway."

It's a small, thin package and Trevor knows what it is to some extent. "I'm sure I'll love it," he assures Adam as he starts tearing the wrapping paper away. He doesn't get very far with it because the moment he catches sight of the first picture, he freezes. Then, slowly, he peels back the rest of the paper to reveal a DVD collection of four black romance movies that are littered around his childhood: Love & Basketball, Love Jones, Love Don't Cost a Thing, and A Thin Line Between Love and Hate. Trevor can't find it in him to say anything right away.

At his silence, Adam looks sheepish, rubbing at the back of his neck awkwardly. "I know some are more romantic drama than comedy, but I remember you telling me about all of them." He scoots closer to Trevor so he can see the case, pointing to the movies as he talks about them. "Like how you enjoy Love Don't Cost a Thing despite the shitty ratings, and how you don't really like A Thin Line Between Love and Hate but enjoy the nostalgia anyway."

"Love & Basketball still makes you cry every time," Adam continues, a small smile returning on his face. "And Love Jones was your favorite romance because of the chemistry between Larenz Tate and Nia Long, both of which you fell more in love with the more you watched the movie." He chuckles softly. "Great choices, by the way."

Adam doesn't say anything else, waiting for Trevor to respond. If anyone ever asks Trevor, he will say that this is it. This right here is the moment he fell back in love with Adam Cole. Maybe it should've been too much. To feel one's heart overloading with such intense emotion in the span of a single second. But Trevor feels lighter than he ever has.

His heart doesn't hold too much at all. In fact, it holds just enough for him to feel like he has everything.

As an answer, Trevor turns his head towards Adam for a passionate kiss. Adam's taken off guard at first, though he kisses back with just as much fervor as Trevor offers. "It's perfect," Trevor tells him when he breaks the kiss, but doesn't pull away because he wants to be close to Adam. "These shoes are really nice, but this?" He directs his gaze down at the collection, running a hand over the case. He picks his head back up to make eye contact. "This means everything to me. Thank you."

Adam beams, reaching up to cradle Trevor's head in his hands. "You're so very welcome." He moves in to kiss his lips then places a lingering kiss on Trevor's forehead. "You know," he starts, pulling back with a look in his eyes that has Trevor intrigued. "There's a DVD player and we've got some hours until we have to be at the arena." He shrugs, index finger tapping at the DVD. "We could probably knock out a few if not all of them right now."

Trevor smiles, eyes full of as wonderment as he brushes a strand of Adam's bed hair behind his ear. "I love the way your mind works, Cole."