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I Couldn’t Make It Right
A/N: Life has been a bit hectic lately, so it’s been hard to work on WIPs. Things are frustrating and there’s nothing I can really do about anything except keep going, day by day, until things work themselves out. So, born out of those emotions was this. Fic and title inspired by the Sleeping At Last song “Anger.” <3
“Anger looks good on you.”
The not quite empty trainer’s room that smelled of iron and antiseptic was simultaneously cold yet heated. The simmering fury coming from Evil Uno was like a fiery knife cutting through the chilly air. The masked man scoffed, slowly wiping more blood off his face and around his mask, careful not to disturb his new stitches.
“I don’t know if you’ve been hit in the head too hard lately, Omega, but I’m not Adam.”
Kenny gave a small half-smile, pulling up a folding chair and sitting across from him, eyes falling to the second bloodstained rag on the other side of the padded bench that Uno occupied. He gingerly rubbed the back of his head, wincing at a sore spot before speaking again.
“I know. I already told him that. But I mean it.”
Uno sighed, taking in the sight of a battered and bruised Kenny Omega. There was something… different about him. The last time they’d been face to face, the man had been filled with ill intent, an arrogance and overconfidence that had made him sick to his stomach. Now… Now Kenny seemed genuine. He was guarded, yes, and Uno didn’t trust him for one second. There was a tenseness to his body language and clear unease. But this was a very different man, and maybe his curiosity was getting the best of him again, but he wanted an answer to his question.
“What do you mean anger looks good on me?”
Kenny visibly relaxed just a fraction, half expecting to be turned away rather than invited to stay. He looked up at Uno.
“You’re standing up for yourself. You’re showing everyone what you and Adam and the rest of Dark Order already knew: that you’re capable of hanging with anyone in that ring. It’s… It’s nice to see some fire out of you, after all this time.”
“You came all this way… to tell me you’re happy that I’ve stopped letting people treat me like a joke?”
Uno’s question was half confused, half insulted, and Kenny grimaced.
“Adam cares about you, Reynolds, and Silver a lot. You mean the world to him. He told me that he feels like it’s his fault that things went this far, that he let you get hurt and that he should’ve done more, that he should’ve, have, beaten Mox and put him out of commission.”
“I’m not a damsel in distress,” Uno growled, feeling the anger from his match start to return with a vengeance.
“I know,” he replied again, quieter, but no less insistent. “And I told him that he doesn’t get to decide whether or not you can handle yourself. I told him that you needed this, to prove as much to yourself as to everyone else that you could do and be more. It’s… the same thing I did to him. For years. And I wanted him to realize what was happening before he let it ruin the best thing to happen to him in so, so long.”
Evil Uno’s expression softened at the sincerity and concern in Kenny’s voice, the guilt in his eyes.
“The three of you have been so good to him. You’re better friends to him than the Bucks and I have ever been, could ever be. And I’m grateful.” He gave a short, sad, shaky laugh. “He means well. I hope you know that.”
“He said he didn’t want to drag us into his fight with the BCC. After everything, he still feels like he has to fight alone.”
“Yeah.”
The room had cooled some, anger replaced with worry. Uno fiddled with the bloody rag in his hands, picking at a loose thread and watching it slowly unravel, like the Dark Order had over the past year.
“He’s been through a lot these last few years. He’s grown. He’s come so far.” Uno couldn’t help but smile a little at Kenny’s proud, loving grin when he looked up. “But he’s not used to people being there for him when shit hits the fan and things go wrong. That…” Kenny took a deep breath, clearing his throat and averting his eyes before he continued. “That’s something he forgave me for, for some reason. But the forgiveness doesn’t erase the effect it had on him. So, yeah. Anger looks good on you. I’m glad you’re standing up for yourself, and I’m glad you’re reminding Adam that he has friends that’ll fight like hell for him, whether he wants them to or not.”
A minute or so passed before either of them spoke again, and Uno’s disbelieving chuckle was what broke the silence.
“If I didn’t know any better, Mr. Omega, I’d say that was a long-winded roundabout way to say, “Thank you for looking out for my boyfriend.” Or am I wrong?”
They shared a laugh as Kenny blushed, nodding.
“Something like that.” Kenny ran a hand nervously through his curls as some of his tenseness and concern from earlier returned, laugh trailing off into a sigh. “I know we’ll probably never be friends, and that you don’t owe me anything. Just… Please take care of him? I… The Elite are…” He scowled at the way his words refused to cooperate, and Uno waited patiently for him to gather his thoughts. Another minute passed before Kenny finished his sentence. “The Elite are—We’re in over our heads, and it’s my fault. It’s all my fault. Don…” He grit his teeth angrily at himself. “Don’s a problem. And something tells me things are going to get ugly soon, that something bad’s going to happen. I don’t… I don’t know if I’ll be able to be there for him, how he needs. So…”
“He’s in good hands. I promise.”
Kenny nodded again, vigorously, in relief and in grief, frustration and anger and guilt threatening to drown him with each passing moment.
“ ‘Kay. Okay. Okay, I—That’s—As long as he’s—”
“Kenny. Breathe.”
He hadn’t noticed he was starting to hyperventilate until Uno said something. Kenny took a deep breath, letting out a shaky exhale before repeating the process until his breathing was level again. He nodded in thanks.
Uno frowned, but held his gaze as he said, “He’s going to be okay. You’re going to be okay.”
“I don’t know how to fix it, Uno.” Kenny’s whisper was so quiet he could barely hear it, but he did. “I don’t know how to keep them safe. All of this is happening because I was too stubborn to just listen to them when they needed me to. I don’t know what to do.”
For the first time he could recall, Kenny Omega didn’t feel like an untouchable, larger than life, living legend. He felt like a human, an openly vulnerable, hurting person showing care towards someone that meant a lot to both of them. Uno carefully slid to his feet, retrieving a pair of ice packs from a nearby cooler and tossing one to Kenny. He caught it with a questioning look before pressing it to the back of his head.
“The first thing you should do is chill out and trust that you all know how to keep going after whatever happens happens.”
“We don’t exactly have a great track record with that,” Kenny admitted sheepishly.
“I know. But Adam isn’t the only one that’s grown. Even if you haven’t seen it, he has. He speaks… quite highly of you, how you’ve helped him become a better person. How you’ve become a better person.” His voice was soft and gentle now, and for some reason it soothed the worst of Kenny’s anxiety. He made his way to the door, throwing the ruined rags away as he pressed his ice pack to his forehead. “You’ll get through this just like we’re getting through what’s going on with us.”
“I… Thanks, Uno. Really.” He gave an awkward toast of sorts with his ice pack that instantly made him feel silly, and the motion got rid of what tension was left in the room with its sheer ridiculousness. Uno returned the gesture with a laugh as he stopped in the doorway. “Don’t let me keep you.”
“Take care of yourself, Kenny.” As Uno made his way into the hallway, he told him, “You know where to find us if you need anything.”