“A Wolf In Sheep's Clothing”
Here’s a little fact about the young man named Carter McKinney that you might not be aware of; when he first came to the famed “City of Sin” to train under the Stevens in the hopes to become one of the next big Superstars in the sport of professional wrestling, he did so alone and without a figurative security blanket. Because when he left his hometown of Seattle to pursue his dream, he did so under the protest of the two women we have come to know as of late, his mother Joanna and Joan aka “Grams”. Despite his own interests, his mom and grandmother detest the business to this day, viewing it as barbaric. A sentiment they hold to this very day, even if their support for Carter had softened in recent months. Both women had hoped Carter would attend college just as they had done, but instead he had taken every sent he had saved from graduation gifts and his job as a barista at Starbucks and had risked everything to travel to Las Vegas before he even had a notion he would be accepted as a student at the prestigious GO Gym. It was a risk that had paid off, as both Odette and Gabriel had seen the fire in the eyes of this young man, the desire not only to fulfill a dream but serve as an example for others of the LGBTQ community that they too could be all they wanted to be in this world.
And when he came to Las Vegas to petition the Stevens to take him under his wing, he had stayed in one of the cheapest, dingiest hotels that he could find in order to save money. Lucky for him, he was accepted into the ranks of the newest GO Gym classes and while he trained, he also worked part-time at another local coffee shop so that he could move into a small brownstone apartment that Odette had helped him find. It was a small place, little more than a three hundred square foot studio, but it was surprisingly rent controlled and Carter always did have a fondness for brownstone apartments, almost as much as he loved lofts. Plus, it got his foot in the door. But there was one other reason why Carter stayed and didn’t seek out larger, more comfortable surroundings…
Las Vegas, Nevada -
Five years ago
When he first moved into this small studio apartment, it was a sight quite different than in later times when it was more tastefully decorated with simple but modern decor. Gabriel and Odette had gifted him with one or two pieces to help the eighteen year old get started, and despite their own misgivings, Carter’s mom and Grams lent a helping hand as well. But for the most part, Carter’s first place on his own was furnished mostly with second hand furniture and almost bare of decor.
There was also the simple fact the young man felt terribly alone. He had met but yet to truly bond with his current bestie, Ariana Angelos - and there was also the simple fact that he was more than a thousand miles away from his family in the state of Washington. Many times he had called his mom and Grams back home just to hear their voices, and each time they had offered to purchase him a plane ticket to come home. And if he was to be perfectly honest, there were a few times when he was banged up enough he had almost contemplated accepting.
Almost.
But he stuck with it, because he had a dream. And that first night he spent in his new place, that was the night he felt at his loneliest, were it not for one single person…
*****
Carter was relaxing back on the headboard of his small, single bed, eating from the box of Chinese takeaway with chopsticks when there was a soft knock at his door. He looked up in surprise, as he was not expecting any visitors. Only the Stevens had been here to assist him in getting settled, but other than that…?
He set his dinner of Kobari beef on the nightstand and slid his legs over the side of the bed, standing upright. He walked over to the door to his home and used the peep hole to get a look-see at his visitor (safety first) before he undid the deadbolt and chain, then opened the door to an elderly woman with thick glasses and the warmest of smiles.
“Welcome wagon!” She said merrily, extending in her gnarled hands a plate filled with homemade brownies. That was the day Carter had met his downstairs neighbor, the widow Adaleide Wagner.
Lonely perhaps? But certainly not alone.
*****
Mrs. Wagner became one of Carter’s closest friends, despite the vast difference in ages. He was pushing nineteen and she was well in her early seventies. But the budding friendship benefited both of these two lonely souls, as she served as a surrogate grandmother to Carter, so too did he serve as a substitute grandson for her. She had told him in confidence that what family she had rarely if ever visited her here in Las Vegas, despite the fact they lived a short distance away in Carson City. It was her late husband’s work that brought her to Las Vegas, and after his passing only a few short years ago, she just did not have the stamina mentally or physically to move again. And like it was with most elderly people her own family had practically swept her under the rug and only visited when it was convenient for them - which was only at holidays. So in many ways, Carter was a true blessing for a lonely old woman.
Even a couple of times when Carter was sick with the flu, Mrs. Wagner had done what little she was able to help nurse this young man back to health; bringing him her homemade chicken soup and as much hot tea as he could drink.
Despite her vision detriment, the woman proved an outstanding cook. Several times a week she invited Carter to her place downstairs for supper. There were times where Carter had eaten at the Stevens following a class, only to return home and find an invitation from this delightful but lonely old woman. The end result being Carter ended up eating two suppers every now and then simply because he did not have the heart to turn down her invitation. Carter just loved spending time with this elderly woman, eating her top tier pot roast and just chatting.
That was why when Lazarus had talked him into getting a place together, it broke his heart to tell her the news that he was moving. There were tears in his eyes, and he could see the same in her own. If he was being perfectly honest, he didn’t want to move. He wanted to stay right where he had lived for the past four years but this was a time when Lazarus had firm control over him, and what Lazarus wanted, Lazarus got. And even after the move was complete, Lazarus had worked overtime in isolating Carter - Mrs. Wagner being one of the first he had coerced him into severing ties with. Things simply hadn’t been the same for Carter after that move, and a small piece of his heart felt as if it was missing something in order to be complete.
A fact not lost on either his boyfriend Miles nor best friend Ariana…
“Miles, are you going to tell me what this big surprise is now?” Carter said as he set foot out of the room he had been given for his stay in Miles’s own Las Vegas condo until he could get his own place. This after the fact of the implosion of the relationship he once had with an abuser and manipulator, and slowly coming into one more loving and passionate.
Miles looked up from where he was putting the finishing touches on the dining room table’s settings and he felt his breath catch in the back of his throat. Carter had showered and emerged from his room, dressed in a button up dress shirt, violet in color, and off-white slacks. Had they not been expecting guests, this site alone tempted Miles into the idea of taking Carter by the arm and steering him around and back into his room for – well, you know! Of course Miles’s own attire of a blue dress shirt and matching slacks was putting similar thoughts in Carter’s own mind, especially considering when Carter had first set foot outside of his bedroom, Miles was bending over to pick up a fallen spoon and gifting his man with a spec-TAC-ular view!
Miles had told Carter that he had a special guest coming over to join them for dinner, along with Ariana and Francisco. Carter accepted this at face value - then - but the longer he waited, the more the curiosity gnawed away at him. Miles just turned and smiled brightly, shaking his head in the negative, “Now where would the fun be in my spoiling the surprise?”
“Is it mom?” Carter asked, approaching. “Grams?” Prompting Miles to laugh and exclaim, “Stop trying to guess! – And no to both guesses.” He then slapped Carter hard on the backside, adding, “Now stop trying to guess or else you’ll be THIS close to not getting a spanking.”
Carter made a comical pouting face, when there was a knock at the condo’s door, causing both men to turn their attention briefly away from one another and to the door itself. Miles then looked to Carter and nodded his head toward the door in a prompt, “Well? Go be a host!”
Carter frowned, clearly not understanding what Miles was up to, yet did as instructed. He walked over to the door and with a flick of the door handle, he opened the door and stopped in his tracks, his mouth hanging open as between a smiling Ariana and Francisco stood…
“Mrs. Wagner!” Carter dove into the waiting arms of his elderly woman, her rheumy eyes brimming with tears!
“You know something, Malachi? When you first announced that you were returning to SCW, you turned a lot of heads. You surprised a lot of people because if I’m going to be perfectly honest, nobody expected you to come back. You had a great run your first time around, especially with Bella when the two of you won the World Mixed Tag titles - one more title than I’ve managed to snag since coming from SCU to SCW I might add. Kudos to you! But we were surprised you returned because you already had so much on your plate elsewhere that I imagine people assumed you didn’t have enough time and room to add one more place to conquer. Well, I guess you showed us, hm? Not only did you come from out of nowhere to make a return, but so far you’ve gone undefeated since! And considering I think the competition is hotter now than during your first run, that is saying something!”
“And now look at us. After all this time, we have the chance to step into the ring with one another and show the other what we’re made of. I can’t speak for you, but I’ve seen every one of your matches here in SCW, and I even went so far as to watch some of your best showings elsewhere. I’d be a fool not to, all things considered. I was taught time and again to study and pay heed to every opponent, no matter what tier of the ladder they stood on. And I’d rank you right up there with some of the best and brightest future champions. I dare say it’s only going to be a matter of time before you have your first championship here, and who knows? It might happen at Blaze of Glory XI when you challenge Goth for the Roulette title. But before you go there, first you have to get past little ol’ me. And after everything that you and I have gone through these past couple of months on social media? I am not going to make that easy by any means.”
“I guess the best way I can describe you is a sharp edge knife, just with a bit of a dull blade. You know what I’m saying?”
“When you came back, you told everyone that you had changed, that you were different. Or at least, somewhat so. But that was all just a great big load of BS, wasn’t it? Way back when you were a dirty player and mean to almost everyone that ever crossed your path. And now…? Well, after what I went through and how you were making light of it, you showed me and the world that deep down, you're still just as cruel as you ever were before. You just changed targets so that you could cast yourself in a more sympathetic light. Because if you were honest, if you were sincere, then how could you have ever - ever - been as cruel as you were to me given what I had gone through, and the feelings that I was experiencing for a man that you yourself call a friend? Oh I know, you didn’t know exactly what I was going through in my own personal life and not knowing me, I dare say you didn’t really care. But I dare say that my feelings for Miles were one of the worst kept secrets ever in the SCW locker rooms. Those two things combined made for one of the hardest points of my life to deal with and yes - things worked out even better and in more unexpected ways than I could have ever hoped for! But that still doesn’t excuse you for the way you made light of it - and me. For how you taunted me with something that, at the time, I thought I did not deserve or have a chance with. No excuses, Malachi. You were a cold, cruel dick. Pure and simple.”
“And granted, I know that you didn't do it alone. Fenris was also involved, but I’ve come to expect that man to act like an ass. He’s never claimed to be otherwise, even when he opened his home to me in order to keep me safe. But you? You say one thing, and behave in an altogether different way. This weekend is going to be therapeutic in so many ways. Because we haven’t really spoken ever since things between Miles and myself worked out for the best, and he played the both of you and collected on that little betting pool. You felt like a damn fool then, and I’m going to make you feel even worse now.”
