Title: The End of the Beginning
Author: Emono
Rating: FR-T
Fandom: Wrestling
Pairings: Codiasi
Summary: Cody and Ted tell their dads about their relationship.
Disclaimer: The WWE is not mine nor are any of it's child branches, it is the 96% property of the McMahon's and God bless the bastards that work for them. I respect the sexual preferences and identities of all the wrestlers on WWE roster, and who they share a bed with is really none of my business.
Warnings: A bit of angst, slash, love

AN: This was actually supposed to be a Randiasi fic, but Cody demanded some attention. Please try not to get confused by both sets of one sided conversations. To make it easier, Cody's set is in italics while Ted's is in regular "…" without any treatment.

Cody rested his cheek in his hand, elbow braced against the open window frame. He watched in disinterest as hills and trees passed by, the car going at a steady speed along the highway. Blue eyes followed the top line of a fence as they passed it, sighing when it broke off at the end of the property. He stared at scenery he'd never see again, for it was rare they didn't get an arena in a big city.

Cody was so used to the concrete jungle, shrubs and corn rows held no appeal to him.

Ted glared at his lover out of the corner of his eye, hands firm on the steering wheel as they cruised along the nearly empty highway. It was early, the work traffic hadn't yet started. They had a flight soon, they were heading to the airport. That's what their lives were, plane rides and hotels. It was better than most jobs, but they both knew they had a heavy day ahead of them.

"Those are some heavy thoughts yer thinkin' there, Baby-boy" Ted began, breaking the comfortable silence "Care to let some go?"

"I was just thinking…" Cody trialed off, eyes still outside.

Ted didn't push, he never did when it came to his love. He sat there and let Cody mull through his thoughts, glancing at the clock and knowing they had plenty of time. It was a work-out day, and that meant they'd both be exhausted long before the sun was.

"We haven't…told our dads about us."

This surprised the blonde.

"Well Codes, when we started this, I believe it was you who wanted to keep a low profile" Ted teased lightly, it was such a serious topic for a road trip "Of course our dads don't know, not a lot of people do. In the WWE, the fans don't like it when you break kayfabe. Who you date depends on the storyline."

Cody tore his gaze from the window, eyes locking on his lover's profile, "Our dads should know about us. But only if we're serious."

"Of course we're serious" Ted briefly looked the brunette over, surprised to see an uncharacteristic solemn hardening his features "Damn, Cody, you really mean this? You wanna tell our parents about this? 'Cause I don't know about you, but my momma already knows."

"So does mine."

"Never could keep secrets from them" Ted muttered, keeping his eyes on the road now "Ok, Codes, alright. We'll tell our dads the next time we're home for a bit."

Cody paled at the thought, "Uhm, actually…I'm going to tell my dad over the phone."

Ted mulled it over briefly, then nodded, "That'd be a helluva lot better for the both of us. Does Dustin know?"

"Oh hell no."

"Good" Ted sighed, leaning his head back on the seat "That means I don't have to tell Mike or Brett."

"When should we do it?"

"The next time we get a chance."

x-C-O-D-I-A-S-I-x

They got off their flight and settled into another hotel, getting a suite together (as usual.) They both changed into their work-out gear, not bothering with a shower when they were just going to get horribly sweaty before the day was over.

Ted was struck with an idea, "Give me a half-hour, will ya? There's something I gotta take care of."

Cody shrugged, not minding one bit, "I'll be in the car, then."

After a quick kiss, DiBiase was left alone.

Little did either know, they had the same thing in mind.

x-C-O-D-I-A-S-I-x

"Hey Mom, is Dad there?"

"Put Daddy on the phone, Brett."

"Hey Dad! It's good to hear from you too. Yeah, you know how it gets on the road."

"Yeah, it's actually me. We've been busy here, too. Everything's fine on this end, how 'bout you?"

"Yeah, Ted's been making sure I'm eating right. Speaking of Ted…"

"Too bad, Mike knows to be more careful than that. Did they pop his arm back into place right there? Ouch. Yeah, that sure is something Cody would do. Actually, I was calling about him…"

"You know he's a good man, and he'd never hurt anyone. Yeah, just like a cuddly bear. He's always been so good to me, you know that."

"He's fine, really. I'm always lookin' out for him, Daddy, you know that. I care about him a lot. Maybe…m-maybe more than normal, actually."

"I wanted to tell you myself, since mom already knows."

"What I mean is…for the past year and a half, Cody and I have been dating. Yeah, we're a couple."

"I love him, and we've been seeing each other…yeah, like a couple."

"Daddy, stop yelling!"

"…dad? Can you at least say something?"

"Come on! You're being unfair! I've never looked at another guy besides Cody, it's always been him. No, he didn't seduce me!"

"I know I'm young…he's not taking advantage of me! He's protected me from all that!"

"Don't you dare say that about him! Yer sayin' shit you know nothin' about, and he deserves more respect than that!"

"He's been perfect to me, why can't you be happy? You've never said anything when Dustin brought home boyfriends when he was my age! Well, yeah, he did get married, but that's not the point."

"If you call him a 'whore' one more time-"

"That's none of your business! God, fine…yes, we're sleeping together."

"He's more than a fuck!"

"I'm not just a fuck! Don't be a prick, Dad!"

"Why're you bein' like this? It's not like I'm bringin' a stranger into the home or anything. It's Cody, I've known him for years."

"Dad, please, you don't mean that. You can't mean that."

"…what do you mean he won't be coming to the house? Dad, you can' t just kick him out of the family's life! He practically helped me raise Brett!"

"J-Just calm down, talk to mom. You don't know what you're saying."

"If you shun him, you'll never see me again, I swear it!"

"I'm your youngest son!"

"I don't need your God-forsaken money!"

"You bigoted bastard, Ted was right! I shouldn't have said a God-damn thing to you!"

"Lose my number, old man. I don't want you anywhere near me or Cody again!

"Fine! You're dead to me too!"

Both young men hung up.

"Bastard" Ted spat, tossing his cell onto the bed.

Cody's phone dropped to the floor of the car, tears in his eyes, "H-How could he…?"

x-C-O-D-I-A-S-I-x

They spend the day working out their problems through sheer physicality. They lifted heavier, made their reps longer, and sweated out any tears that threatened their eyes. All others in the gym backed off them immediately, afraid to cross the raging youths path. Ted and Cody kept close to one another, either in machines right beside each other or spotting. It either of them had been in the right mind, they would have saw how their lover craved touch and comfort. They drank in each touch hungrily, letting their hands linger longer than necessary or standing too close.

Neither caved, too strong and too lost in their own head space.

Randy sat up in a crunch, glancing at his boys once more, "Something's wrong."

"Looks like" John stated, silently counting 'twenty-six' while he held his lover's feet firmly to the floor "You shouldn't butt in."

"I'm not butting in" Randy snapped, laying down and folding his hands behind his head "They're my boys, and if someone's messing with them-"

"They can take care of themselves. They're stronger than everyone gives them credit for."

x-C-O-D-I-A-S-I-x

Ted and Cody trudged back to their room, exhausted and sweaty. They had almost collapsed in the ride up in the elevator, struggling to breath now that they were away from everyone else. They had pushed a bit too hard, wearing themselves down more than they should have.

As soon as they were in the room, their gym bags were tossed in a heap by the table.

"Shower" Cody grumbled "Rock-paper-scissors you for it?"

"Yeah."

Two quick rounds and DiBiase was declared the winner of the first shower.

Cody plopped down onto the couch, legs splayed carelessly and arms folding out along the back of it. He stretched and whined low in his throat, whole body worn out. He wasn't exactly sore, but he didn't have a drop of energy left in his system. The brunette let his head fall back against the couch, eyes closed as he listened to Ted shower off. Sweat still clung to his own skin, and he stank. The memories of earlier threatened to bite him again, but he tried to push it off.

He had to tell Ted.

Cody must've dozed off, because the next thing he knew a hand was under his chin and tilting his head back. His eyes fluttered open, blue eyes meeting a darker shade of azure, a smile quirking both their lips.

"Your turn, Baby-boy" Ted murmured, leaning down and pressing a kiss to his forehead "Get your hot ass in the shower, 'cause yer not sleeping under the same blanket as me all sweaty."

"You've never complained before" Cody teased.

"That was when I made you that way" Ted pet his head soothingly "Now get."

Cody bobbed his head in confirmation, picking himself up and dragging his tired body over to the bathroom. Ted crossed the room as well, shedding his towel and grabbing a pair of boxers. He slipped them on, knowing they were his and not Cody's by the little green dollar signs along the hem. Ted found himself standing beside the bed and staring down at it. The simple mattress looked better than anything he'd seen, beckoning him in a siren weaved way.

Ted sighed heavily, finally tipping and landing on the bed with a plop on the surface. He groaned in relief as the plush surface gave way just enough beneath his weight, the sheets scented with the same freshener his first nanny used to use. Why he remembered this, he wasn't sure.

Maybe to remind himself that his father never really gave a shit about him until he was old enough to wrestle.

Ted buried his face in the mattress, screwing his eyes shut. No, no way. He couldn't think like that! His dad loved him, doted on him, gave him the same opportunities that he gave Mike and the same he's giving Brett. It was just that he had more determination, he'd been pushing himself harder, and he had gotten into the WWE. His dad had been happy, proud of him…what was different?

Just because he loved Cody he was kicked out of the family?

//If only he knew what a little whore Brett is in FCW// Ted thought bitterly, pursing his lips. The exhaustion beat out the anger, and he soon melted into the bed completely.

Minutes ticked by, his senses lulled into numbness by the sound of the shower and the soft hum of the air conditioner by the window. He drifted off for who knows how long, not really asleep but too out of it to consider moving.

A slow dip in the mattress woke him up a bit, golden lashes fluttering against the bedspread. He raised his head, turning to prop his weight up on his elbow while peering sleepily at what had woken him up.

Cody gave him a sweet smile from beneath his towel, he absently scrubbed his hair while he settled himself comfortably on the bed with one leg tucked underneath him and the other draped over the side. He had grabbed his blue boxers with his initials printed on them, akin to his old wrestling trunks. He loved the sight of sleepy Teddy, damp hair spiked up at odd angles and those perfect lips pouting at him for disturbing his nice little nap.

"So…" Cody wiped the last of the water from his face, tossing aside the towel for the hotel maid to pick up tomorrow after they left "I, uh, called my dad."

Ted raised a brow at this.

"I know I shouldn't have done it so soon, but you said yes and-"

"Shhh, baby" Ted soothed the suddenly frightened youth, whispering "I did say yes. I called my dad today too, I told him about us."

It was Cody's turn to look surprised, "Really, Teddy?"

Both saw the underlying sadness in each other's eyes, reading one another so well after all this time.

"It didn't go well, did it?" Cody murmured.

"No" Ted drawled lowly, looking off as those same fucking tears tried to reappear "Not at all."

Sour thoughts.

"But my dad's a jackass" Ted shook his head, dislodging the thoughts "What about Dusty? What did he think?"

"He…he got real quiet" Cody began, running his nails up and down his bare forearm "He told me that…he said some horrible things."

Ted sat up, "Oh, Baby-boy…"

"He said I was dead to him" Cody spat out, eyes on the coverlet.

Ted scooted forward silently, trailing his hand up his lover's arm and letting it come to rest along the curve of his neck. Cody nuzzled into the familiar touch, taking comfort in such a simple act. That was the basis of their entire relationship: love and familiarity. They had been best friends long before they had been lovers, and together they had even realized their bond extended beyond brotherly.

"My dad told me to never come back" Ted confessed as well, tears that would never touch his cheeks welling in his eyes "He…he cut off my inheritance money, even said he was gonna take me outta the will."

A DiBiase was nothing if not about money.

Cody's jaw unhinged at this, blue eyes round as could be, "Teddy, I can't let you do that!"

"It's not your choice, it's mine" Ted stated firmly "I can make my own money."

"That's not the point" Cody was getting flustered now, trying to wrap his head around what this all meant.

"But it's my point, and that's what matters" Ted gave a weak smile "Just…make all this ok and tell me I still have you, Codes. Make this all right and tell me I haven't lost you."

"Shit, Ted, you could never lose me" Cody waved it off, nearly missing the complete expression of relief that passed over the blonde's face "But these are our fathers."

"Fuck 'em" Ted drawled.

Cody was taken aback, "You don't mean that."

"We don't need 'em, baby, we don't need any of 'em" Ted stated genuinely, brushing his thumb along the brunette's smooth jaw "We're our own men. We've made our careers on not being our fathers, remember? We'll cut them out of the promos, we'll save up every penny we earn, we'll work three times as hard for every match we get. We'll lift heaver, run, whatever we have to do to get better and stronger than the competition."

Cody stared at the older man as he made such a passionate speech, heart racing at the true pride and hope in those words.

"But…" Ted cupped both sides of his face, rising up on his knees to peer down at the brunette "I don't think I can do it without you. You asked me if we were serious…are we?"

"Yes" Cody whispered "I love you, Teddy, I always have."

"Good, ok, we'll do it" Ted sniffled through his smile, nodding as if to affirm himself "But tonight, it'll just be us, ok?"

Cody knew what that meant, so attuned to his best friend that he knew what he wanted without saying it. Cody laid himself back on the mattress, head at the end without a pillow, and gave a warm smile. Ted sighed, breath stuttering, before he eased up over him. He laid his cheek just above the brunette's arms, wrapping his arms around his narrow hips. Cody shivered at he first caress of Ted's wide palms along his hips, but embraced him back with just as much love. His hand found a home in hay colored hair, the other splayed across the plane of his shoulder blade. Another heave of his lover's chest told him he was content, simply lying together while trying to banish negative thoughts from their minds.

"Love you, Codes."

"Love you too, Teddy" Cody murmured, eyelashes fluttering shut "Is it going to hurt less in the morning?"

"Give it time, Baby-boy."

This wasn't the end of them, oh no. It wasn't even the beginning of the end, like most relationships would've been. But it was something for them, both could tell. A turning point, a chapter, something to be looked back on.

Perhaps…it was only the end of the beginning.

HA! Bet you thought it was going to be a lemon, didn't you? Nah, just fluff.

Yes, I stole a Winston Churchill quote, it's the quote they put on the back of our volleyball team's t-shirts and I looked up in history class and saw it on this jock girl. I read it again for about the fifth time, and then…bam! It hit me. That's a good title!

So, did you love it or hate it? Let me know!