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Climax Control Archives / thebutterflyeffect 5.0 🎔 secrets
« on: May 03, 2024, 11:46:43 PM »
thebutterflyeffect 5.0 🎔 secrets
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“What do you mean you can’t watch him?”
The question came out with a squeak at the end of it even though it absolutely wasn’t intended. I sat on the sill of one of our large bay windows, my phone up to my ear and my eyes on my child as he cruised around on the floor, zooming on his hands and knees like it was the easiest thing in the world. Somehow, I just wasn’t prepared for the answer I got.
Tasmin sounded completely apologetic on the other side of the line, and I understood why. “Adam and I are taking Dawn out to see my mum,” she told me, her British accent making everything sound a bit more cheery than she probably meant. “We haven’t been able to get over there recently and she wants to see how big she’s gotten. Adam also hasn’t seen too much of Norwich…”
I nodded slowly, pressing my hand to my head. I was booked this week, and so was Aiden. “No, no I totally understand…” I trailed off. I did. Family was important; after all, we had been with Aiden’s family just a couple of months ago. It was hard, you know, when you lived in different countries – heck, different hemispheres even. “I’ll just ask Kay…”
A peel of laughter echoed over the phone and I could hear Tasmin shaking her head. “Kayla will not watch a baby, and you know it, no matter how much she likes them for the thirty minutes she’s got them. Besides…she’ll be over there too. Champions are always at the shows. No days off, you know.”
“Right…”
Dax babbled and cackled as he reached out to grab Willow, our illegal wombat, who merely looked at him slightly, snuffed, and then settled down again. I had been afraid the overgrown guinea pig that she was would end up aggressive with him, but really, she’d taken to him like a protective dog.
“Why can’t you take him with you?”
“I’d have to expedite a U.S. Passport.” Stupid government rules. I’d gotten him a passport application and did all the steps when the tournament got announced, but I still didn’t have it and I couldn’t travel with him. “I’m sure I’ll have it next time, but I just…ugh.”
I turned my head and looked out the window to the park below. Finn had a beautiful entire floor, and we rented out the secondary apartment from him. There was a door that joined the two apartments together, but for the most part, we stayed out of Finn’s and he stayed away from ours. He was a good landlord, if a bit uncouth and a bit…well…
…out a lot lately.
I was by myself anyway, and I didn’t really like it. Aiden was off with Dickie somewhere now that he’d gotten his head out of his ass, and Finn was still in England. My husband regularly texted me with
Spring was coming in, though, and the beautiful greenery that showered Central Park in the summer was blooming and blossoming. Leaves were almost present on all of the trees…not that anyone really noticed, what with the hustle and bustle of New York City being what it was. Sometimes, being here made me long for the mountains of my home state. Even though people were busy in the downtown sector of Denver, it wasn’t quite what it was here.
Something blinding flashed in my eyes as I spoke to Tasmin, and I winced briefly before looking for the source. And that’s when I saw…. My skin paled. My temperature plummeted. I didn’t even hear Tasmin as she asked if I was okay. I just fumbled with my phone, and I started texting Aiden quickly. But when I looked up again to get a better look, there was no one there.
I was rattled. And I just wanted my husband now.
Aiden was at Wolfslair when I got there. I walked into the building, scanned my keycard, and caught Sonja at the front desk. The voluptuous blonde looked up from her papers again and then grinned widely when she saw Dax on my shoulder. “How’s my little boo-baby snugglekins!?” She squealed, reaching out for him immediately.
At least it was positive that pretty much everyone loved my child. “Do you mind?” I asked, hiking my bag up on my shoulder and smiling.
“Absolutely not! Daxie and I will go ahead and work on our contracts that are due in the summer,” she bounced him, taking his diaper bag too and walking off into her office. I smiled, and then inhaled, before heading into the main gym area.
“Oi, nah, nah, yeah,” Aiden was saying to, of all people, a person I was surprised to see here in this part of the country. “I mean, you could do that, but it might be better to–”
The man leaning on the turnbuckle of the ring across from Aiden sneered a bit and shook his head, his blonde bun shaking as he pursed his lips. “Nah, I know how to do this – I don’t need guidance from someone like you–”
“Zachary,” our fearless, mostly-retired leader snapped from the apron on the other side, both hands planted on the canvas and an eyebrow raised. “Part of this business is being able to work with people you don’t necessarily like.” Alex told him, inclining his head. “I didn’t bring you up here from Orlando because you weren’t flourishing. You’re doing a good job, but you have to get over this hump.”
“Yeah, Alex is right, mate.” Aiden chimed in, pressing a hand to a rope. “I know you don’t like me, and hey, I don’t blame ya, but we’re kinda sorta related now because of ya sister…ya know, me wife.”
Zachary didn’t like this, and I knew he didn’t. I saw the flash in his eyes as he snapped, dashing at Aiden from a dead stop. Aiden’s eyes widened, and I could see that he’d easily put it together that it wasn’t about to be an attempted wrestling move. He did his best to evade him and slid out of the ring, landing with a thump in front of me.
“Oh, hey darlin’.” He leaned forward and gave me a kiss on the forehead.
“Zach!” Alex snapped again, and we both looked up to see him leering over us from the ring. I placed my hands on my hips and stared up at him.
“Are you still upset about this? My life, my choice!”
“He’s a fuckin’ dipshit!” Zach yelled.
You see, Zachary was my brother. My twin brother, and the younger one by eight minutes. I don’t know what it was between the two of us, but I was the one that was calm and collected most of the time, while he was out there causing issues on every day that ended with a “Y”. For almost every year in school, he was nearly suspended for getting into fights and mouthing off to everyone who could hear him in a ten mile radius. Teachers asked us why we were so different and I always said that it was better that we were, because at least it was eventful.
He also hated Aiden.
Which is why my wedding was held at a courthouse and not the church house like my mother wanted it to be. And it was held without most of my family members, because Zach wouldn’t have let it happen and my mother was too busy to deal with my shenanigans. My dad came though, and he gave us his blessing.
My life, my choice.
“You’re not lookin’ much better here,” I countered, sliding my hand into Aiden’s. “We have this argument everytime that we’re all in the same room. Aiden and I have been married for almost two years. Like, get over it!”
Like, get over it. Yeah, my voice sounded exactly as you could expect. Valley Girl 101, which is what happened when I got nervous, angry, upset, sad…really any emotion other than my standard chipper self. I stalked off, and so did he. For the rest of the time we were both in the same vicinity, we didn’t even bother looking at each other. Sibling rivalry, I guess.
Aiden helped me with my weights, carrying some of the larger ones and chose to be my spotter after I’d gotten changed and warmed up. As he stood over me, and I laid back on the weight bench, he frowned. “I got your texts,” he said quietly. He knew me well enough to know I was upset by something that wasn’t my brother. “What happened?”
I frowned, folding my hands over my stomach and looking up at the ceiling past him. He cared, and I knew that, but at the same time, I still wasn’t very forthcoming with any of the information in my life. I didn’t want to be. It was old, it was over, it was done with, and I’d moved on. I thought, anyway. “Just saw something that creeped me out at the house. Just…well, I kinda needed you.”
“Of course, love.” He nodded, leaning on the bar. “You know you can tell me anything, right? I may be a dipshit, but I’m always here for ya.”
“I know…”
“I know ya know, I’m just remindin’.” He winked. “I had me an idea, and I sent a text off to Finn…but you might think I’ve gone bloody bonkers, aye.” His eyes floated back up to Zachary.
Aiden? An idea? If it wasn’t half-baked, I would be surprised. This was, of course, the man who came up with Cunt-Hulu because his opponent was a fuckin’ caricature of a man who worshipped Cthulu.
“We both have matches at Climax Control in England this week.”
“Mhm…”
“Your dickhead brother does not.” I paused and looked directly at his eyes as he said this. “Maybe he could get used to the idea of us by actually being an Uncle this weekend.”
Zachary? Kids? Part of me was terrified by the idea. He wasn’t the most responsible, but…it would solve a lot of the issues. Maybe…. I sat up and looked at my brother, who was practicing kicks and punches with a dummy stand. The thought of asking him also made me nervous, because I had no idea how to even do it without envisioning thirty ways he could get angry.
But I didn’t have to. Finn poked himself out of his office, took the steps down to the main floor, walked all the way over to Zachary and stood in front of him. He held out a hand and dangled a key in front of his face. “Finn’s Wayward Home for Wrestlers,” he started, “you can earn your keep by babysitting Dax for Kallie and Aiden.”
Zachary’s face turned red. “I don’t fuckin’ watch kids.”
Finn smirked and grinned slightly. “I’m doing this as a favor to your sister – more so her husband. Unless you’d rather sleep on the streets of New York City.” He titled his head and jutted his chin towards me. I blushed as Zach looked at me. “Your choice. All the food you want, warmth, a little suite for yourself, all for the charming price of watching your nephew. You in? Or are you a bitch?”
Oh god, I was going to die one of these days.
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“So I know, like, things didn’t really go for me at the pay-per-view.”
Kallie Reznik stands with her hands behind her back, teetering on her feet as she stares ahead of her, hoping that her hazel eyes are boring into the viewers. She wears a pink shirt with her likeness on it, the words “The Wolfcub” and her name across the bottom with sparkles and wolf faces all over the design of the tee. She smiles, but that’s because she’s still working on how to present herself.
She knows confidence is key, but it was more of a comfort to pull her hands behind her.
“I mean, Harper Mason won and then gave me my first loss here, and I know the like…typical thing for me to do is to get upset and then post a whole buncha tweets that are venomous and scathing and rude. But I’m not like that…I honestly don’t know how to do that, and I don’t really want to. I’ll own my loss like a big girl, and continue on.
I mean, does it really set me at a disadvantage going into this whole thing? A little. I wish I could have gotten a win, but Harper was better that night and I have to deal with the consequences. But it’s not a huge deal, and it’s not like my life has suddenly gone, like, awful just because of one match. And it doesn’t mean either that I’m set up to do badly for Blast From the Past. In fact, all it did was renew my vigor and my desire to do well.
So like, the tournament itself is kinda wacky. A whole bunch of people sign up and then get stuck together as mixed tag team partners, but the result is that the winning team gets to go for the choice of their own individual championship contest. At the end of the day, the only thing that this means is that I could potentially get up to the top of the pops and face either my super angry bestie Kayla Richards, or…Juliana DiMaria. I know that match is comin’ up and while I would love to face off against either of them, I have to make sure I can get there first.
But to do that…I guess me and my partner have to face off against some people that are known-ish to the company. Except…except…
Um.
Hold on.”
Kallie disappears for a moment, and you can hear over the microphone her asking the following: “Finn, what’s a Konrad?” Murmuring his heard, and then the crackling of paper, and Kallie reappears a moment later, brushing her hair behind her ear and returning her happy expression. She looks down at the paper.
“Yeah, me and my partner have to face off against Konrad Raab and Bea Barnhart. I mean, I’m sure it’ll be a positive match, you know? It doesn’t seem like anyone is too aggressive…I mean, except for Bea, who like, Aiden would say has sand shoved up her hoohaa. I giggled when he says stuff like that. He’s a bit more vulgar…ehheh. But I mean, it’s all the same. You see, even with sand shoved anywhere it shouldn’t be, it doesn’t change the fact that I’ma be comin’ and doing my best for everyone watchin’ the show. And after all, my partner, Artie, he–”
She glances at the paper one more time, and her smile disappears for a second.
“...um, Artie…”
She looks up at the screen.
“...it’s his first time ever wrestling. Because…because some paperwork got fudged and…”
She swallows slightly, and then lowers the papers.
“...okay, I can…I can work with this. See, Artie, I know, is married to Bobbie Dahl, who is currently the Women’s Roulette Champion, which is like…really good, right? So maybe it’s possible that he’s getting training to do the best he can in a super short time, and we’re gonna have a great match. I mean, it can’t be anything like Konrad has been wrestling forever…”
There’s a cleared throat from off camera, and then Kallie looks in the direction, then down at the paper.
“...oh, he has been wrestling for a long time. At least eight years, by the calculations that Finn helped me find…but that’s okay, it’s not like Bea has been wrestling forever, right?”
Silence, and then she looks at the paper again.
“Oh. She’s been here forever too. I mean, that’s okay. I think it’s okay. No, it’s going to have to be okay. See, somehow, I just feel like Artie can take on Konrad, because he doesn’t really show himself around anymore. I know it’s like, detrimental to be on social media sometimes, but I also think it’s best to show your face to everyone instead of hide behind a wall. Wasn’t there a bunch of movies that kinda depicted that very same scenario, where a wall kept them from experiencing the other side? Usually that other side is paradise, but really, I’m not sure that it’s that way here.
But really, I’m a firm believer that if anyone puts their mind to it, they can succeed. I know I’ve been training for a long time, and I’ve been wrestling for a couple of years . I have championships, I’ve done good things. It’s not always about how much time you’ve done something, but how much heart and drive and passion and wonderment that you put into your work. And in this case, I know that I have put in all of my drive and everything I have into who I want to be, and how I want to grow. Artie, like, in this case probably has too. I bet he’s nervous, but I was nervous for my first match too. It’s not always the easiest thing, and now we’ve gotta perform in front of a crowd in England and he’s gotta hope he doesn’t break something.”
She pauses.
“I might have to do a lot of the match, so that means that I’m gonna be looking at Bea Barnhart’s icky face for like, most of the time, right? I mean, there is a way to approach all your matches and the things you’re supposed to do. You’re supposed to go out there and you’re supposed to have a great time, and fight with everything that you have. And I think like…Bea does that, right? She’s always going out there and doing her like…her total best. She can be a beast and a wrestling submissionist…but like, how often has she actually like…won anything?
Oh, I mean like, it’s possible. She has a championship reign, but was that fluke and the other person just kinda mucked up their chances? It could be. I dunno, I wasn’t here for it. But I can tell you right now that it isn’t how it’s gonna be when it comes to facing me.
Bea, I am fast, I’m agile, and I love this business more than anything except for my husband and my child. Oh, who am I kidding…sometimes more than my husband, but he understands that just as much as I do. We’ll do anything to get ahead, and we’ll fight as hard as we can to be the best that we can be. I want to be a good mother, but I also want to be the best wrestler on this side of the continental divide, and I can’t do that unless I’ve put all of my guts and glory into every step of the way that I’m going.
So let me tell you how this is gonna go. You and I, we’re gonna fight, and we’re gonna dominate the match because there’s no way in heckolza that I’ma let Artie get hurt by Konrad, who was like, super in the deathmatch scene for a minute. In the event that he’s in there, I’m gonna cheer him on and keep the crowd going. I don’t have to like who I’ve been assigned with, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to treat them badly. We’re gonna be a team, and we’re gonna ride the wave higher than anyone thought we could have.
So strap up and strap-on, Bea! Konrad! You’re gonna have a fight on your hands that you’re not prepared for, because when Kallie and Artie come on the scene, you’re not going to know what hits ya…”
“Is he even going to know where to hit?” Finn’s voice came off camera one more time, and Kallie scowled.
“It’s not that hard, Finn! Don’t you doubt my partner. We’re gonna do great things!”
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I stood in the doorway of Zachary’s new room. It was an offshoot of my apartment with Aiden, and really was simply a set of rooms that wasn’t utilized. There was a small room with a couch and television connected to a bathroom and a bedroom, a perfect little suite that was on the opposite of all our rooms: the nursery, my bedroom I shared with Aiden. I hadn’t even really noticed it was there, but here it was.
He came out of the bedroom and looked out the window at the park, crossing his arms. It was hard for him to say anything nice, but when he looked at me, he sighed and nodded. “Nice living space.”
“It is,” I agreed, smiling slightly. “I enjoy it. It’s a lot bigger than the apartment that I shared with Aiden before, so I really have to thank Finn for everything he’s done for us.”
“Yeah, he seems…” he struggled for a second, and then snorted, “he seems like a dick, but a well-meaning one.”
“Yeah…he’s kind of a protector, I guess.” I took a step into the room and looked at his surroundings. “Aiden and I are going to be in London for three days, and then we’ll be on the first flight back. We both want to get back to Dax as soon as we can.” In the background, I could hear Aiden playing a video game with Dax in his lap – I think it was Forza, which meant Aiden was leaning into all the turns and making our son cackle.
Zach frowned, but he sighed and looked at me. “I thought it was just a fling, you know?” He started, opening up a bit more than he usually did. I nodded.
“I know.”
“He’s just…a fucking idio–”
“It’s easier to put off a front that you’re an idiot when everyone is going to question your intelligence anyway.” I cut him off. I didn’t like to be mean to my brother, but I wasn’t about to let him insult the man I decided to marry anymore either. “He’s fun-loving, he’s calm, and he’s a good man, Zach. He’s perfect for me, and if he acts a bit silly because it makes him and me happy, then that’s okay with me. He has aspirations, and he works hard. He makes me laugh. I don’t need another douchecanoe that’s just going to treat me badly.”
His face fell, and he looked at me. “I wasn’t trying to bring that up…I swear…”
“I know.” I nodded, stopping to stand next to him and look out the window. In fact, I looked out the window and at the same spot I saw before. “Can I share a secret with you?” I asked, quite suddenly, and looked up at him.
“‘Course,” he scoffed.
I nodded again, and let out a long sigh. “I keep thinking I’ve moved on. It’s been years since all of it happened, and I just…I’m a wrestler with championships to my name, I have a happy little family, I have a son I adore, a great husband and,” I knocked into him, “a brother that, despite his anger, cares a lot.”
Another scoff, but I saw a smile too.
“But I keep seeing him.” I looked away, my lips turning into a frown. “Lately…I don’t know. Since last month, my nerves have just been shot. It’s been almost eight years, and I just…I see his face in my dreams.” I shook my head. “You’re the only one here that knows anything about it and I just…I feel like something is going to happen. I can’t shake it. I feel like I just saw him outside earlier today and I couldn’t speak, my tongue was numb, my fingers barely moved….”
Zachary didn’t say anything. Not initially. He pressed a hand to my shoulder though, and when I looked up at him, he looked mutedly furious.
“He’s still in jail, sis.” He told me, certain. “The bastard had ten years for what he did to you. Don’t worry about it. Besides, I’m here now. No need to feel worried.”
“Aiden is here too.”
Zach looked at me, a smirk rising on his lips. “Oh, I know. But I’m assuming this little conversation means you haven’t told him, and you’re not intendin’ to.” When I said nothing, that smirk just grew. “Probably better that he doesn’t know. Wouldn’t be able to do anything anyway.”
I frowned. “Do you think he wouldn’t do everything to protect me too?” I hated that he always put Aiden down. “Because he would.”
“Kallie,” he sighed. “You really are just as much of a dipshit as he is.”
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“What do you mean you can’t watch him?”
The question came out with a squeak at the end of it even though it absolutely wasn’t intended. I sat on the sill of one of our large bay windows, my phone up to my ear and my eyes on my child as he cruised around on the floor, zooming on his hands and knees like it was the easiest thing in the world. Somehow, I just wasn’t prepared for the answer I got.
Tasmin sounded completely apologetic on the other side of the line, and I understood why. “Adam and I are taking Dawn out to see my mum,” she told me, her British accent making everything sound a bit more cheery than she probably meant. “We haven’t been able to get over there recently and she wants to see how big she’s gotten. Adam also hasn’t seen too much of Norwich…”
I nodded slowly, pressing my hand to my head. I was booked this week, and so was Aiden. “No, no I totally understand…” I trailed off. I did. Family was important; after all, we had been with Aiden’s family just a couple of months ago. It was hard, you know, when you lived in different countries – heck, different hemispheres even. “I’ll just ask Kay…”
A peel of laughter echoed over the phone and I could hear Tasmin shaking her head. “Kayla will not watch a baby, and you know it, no matter how much she likes them for the thirty minutes she’s got them. Besides…she’ll be over there too. Champions are always at the shows. No days off, you know.”
“Right…”
Dax babbled and cackled as he reached out to grab Willow, our illegal wombat, who merely looked at him slightly, snuffed, and then settled down again. I had been afraid the overgrown guinea pig that she was would end up aggressive with him, but really, she’d taken to him like a protective dog.
“Why can’t you take him with you?”
“I’d have to expedite a U.S. Passport.” Stupid government rules. I’d gotten him a passport application and did all the steps when the tournament got announced, but I still didn’t have it and I couldn’t travel with him. “I’m sure I’ll have it next time, but I just…ugh.”
I turned my head and looked out the window to the park below. Finn had a beautiful entire floor, and we rented out the secondary apartment from him. There was a door that joined the two apartments together, but for the most part, we stayed out of Finn’s and he stayed away from ours. He was a good landlord, if a bit uncouth and a bit…well…
…out a lot lately.
I was by myself anyway, and I didn’t really like it. Aiden was off with Dickie somewhere now that he’d gotten his head out of his ass, and Finn was still in England. My husband regularly texted me with
Spring was coming in, though, and the beautiful greenery that showered Central Park in the summer was blooming and blossoming. Leaves were almost present on all of the trees…not that anyone really noticed, what with the hustle and bustle of New York City being what it was. Sometimes, being here made me long for the mountains of my home state. Even though people were busy in the downtown sector of Denver, it wasn’t quite what it was here.
Something blinding flashed in my eyes as I spoke to Tasmin, and I winced briefly before looking for the source. And that’s when I saw…. My skin paled. My temperature plummeted. I didn’t even hear Tasmin as she asked if I was okay. I just fumbled with my phone, and I started texting Aiden quickly. But when I looked up again to get a better look, there was no one there.
I was rattled. And I just wanted my husband now.
Aiden was at Wolfslair when I got there. I walked into the building, scanned my keycard, and caught Sonja at the front desk. The voluptuous blonde looked up from her papers again and then grinned widely when she saw Dax on my shoulder. “How’s my little boo-baby snugglekins!?” She squealed, reaching out for him immediately.
At least it was positive that pretty much everyone loved my child. “Do you mind?” I asked, hiking my bag up on my shoulder and smiling.
“Absolutely not! Daxie and I will go ahead and work on our contracts that are due in the summer,” she bounced him, taking his diaper bag too and walking off into her office. I smiled, and then inhaled, before heading into the main gym area.
“Oi, nah, nah, yeah,” Aiden was saying to, of all people, a person I was surprised to see here in this part of the country. “I mean, you could do that, but it might be better to–”
The man leaning on the turnbuckle of the ring across from Aiden sneered a bit and shook his head, his blonde bun shaking as he pursed his lips. “Nah, I know how to do this – I don’t need guidance from someone like you–”
“Zachary,” our fearless, mostly-retired leader snapped from the apron on the other side, both hands planted on the canvas and an eyebrow raised. “Part of this business is being able to work with people you don’t necessarily like.” Alex told him, inclining his head. “I didn’t bring you up here from Orlando because you weren’t flourishing. You’re doing a good job, but you have to get over this hump.”
“Yeah, Alex is right, mate.” Aiden chimed in, pressing a hand to a rope. “I know you don’t like me, and hey, I don’t blame ya, but we’re kinda sorta related now because of ya sister…ya know, me wife.”
Zachary didn’t like this, and I knew he didn’t. I saw the flash in his eyes as he snapped, dashing at Aiden from a dead stop. Aiden’s eyes widened, and I could see that he’d easily put it together that it wasn’t about to be an attempted wrestling move. He did his best to evade him and slid out of the ring, landing with a thump in front of me.
“Oh, hey darlin’.” He leaned forward and gave me a kiss on the forehead.
“Zach!” Alex snapped again, and we both looked up to see him leering over us from the ring. I placed my hands on my hips and stared up at him.
“Are you still upset about this? My life, my choice!”
“He’s a fuckin’ dipshit!” Zach yelled.
You see, Zachary was my brother. My twin brother, and the younger one by eight minutes. I don’t know what it was between the two of us, but I was the one that was calm and collected most of the time, while he was out there causing issues on every day that ended with a “Y”. For almost every year in school, he was nearly suspended for getting into fights and mouthing off to everyone who could hear him in a ten mile radius. Teachers asked us why we were so different and I always said that it was better that we were, because at least it was eventful.
He also hated Aiden.
Which is why my wedding was held at a courthouse and not the church house like my mother wanted it to be. And it was held without most of my family members, because Zach wouldn’t have let it happen and my mother was too busy to deal with my shenanigans. My dad came though, and he gave us his blessing.
My life, my choice.
“You’re not lookin’ much better here,” I countered, sliding my hand into Aiden’s. “We have this argument everytime that we’re all in the same room. Aiden and I have been married for almost two years. Like, get over it!”
Like, get over it. Yeah, my voice sounded exactly as you could expect. Valley Girl 101, which is what happened when I got nervous, angry, upset, sad…really any emotion other than my standard chipper self. I stalked off, and so did he. For the rest of the time we were both in the same vicinity, we didn’t even bother looking at each other. Sibling rivalry, I guess.
Aiden helped me with my weights, carrying some of the larger ones and chose to be my spotter after I’d gotten changed and warmed up. As he stood over me, and I laid back on the weight bench, he frowned. “I got your texts,” he said quietly. He knew me well enough to know I was upset by something that wasn’t my brother. “What happened?”
I frowned, folding my hands over my stomach and looking up at the ceiling past him. He cared, and I knew that, but at the same time, I still wasn’t very forthcoming with any of the information in my life. I didn’t want to be. It was old, it was over, it was done with, and I’d moved on. I thought, anyway. “Just saw something that creeped me out at the house. Just…well, I kinda needed you.”
“Of course, love.” He nodded, leaning on the bar. “You know you can tell me anything, right? I may be a dipshit, but I’m always here for ya.”
“I know…”
“I know ya know, I’m just remindin’.” He winked. “I had me an idea, and I sent a text off to Finn…but you might think I’ve gone bloody bonkers, aye.” His eyes floated back up to Zachary.
Aiden? An idea? If it wasn’t half-baked, I would be surprised. This was, of course, the man who came up with Cunt-Hulu because his opponent was a fuckin’ caricature of a man who worshipped Cthulu.
“We both have matches at Climax Control in England this week.”
“Mhm…”
“Your dickhead brother does not.” I paused and looked directly at his eyes as he said this. “Maybe he could get used to the idea of us by actually being an Uncle this weekend.”
Zachary? Kids? Part of me was terrified by the idea. He wasn’t the most responsible, but…it would solve a lot of the issues. Maybe…. I sat up and looked at my brother, who was practicing kicks and punches with a dummy stand. The thought of asking him also made me nervous, because I had no idea how to even do it without envisioning thirty ways he could get angry.
But I didn’t have to. Finn poked himself out of his office, took the steps down to the main floor, walked all the way over to Zachary and stood in front of him. He held out a hand and dangled a key in front of his face. “Finn’s Wayward Home for Wrestlers,” he started, “you can earn your keep by babysitting Dax for Kallie and Aiden.”
Zachary’s face turned red. “I don’t fuckin’ watch kids.”
Finn smirked and grinned slightly. “I’m doing this as a favor to your sister – more so her husband. Unless you’d rather sleep on the streets of New York City.” He titled his head and jutted his chin towards me. I blushed as Zach looked at me. “Your choice. All the food you want, warmth, a little suite for yourself, all for the charming price of watching your nephew. You in? Or are you a bitch?”
Oh god, I was going to die one of these days.
🎔🎔🎔🎔🎔🎔
“So I know, like, things didn’t really go for me at the pay-per-view.”
Kallie Reznik stands with her hands behind her back, teetering on her feet as she stares ahead of her, hoping that her hazel eyes are boring into the viewers. She wears a pink shirt with her likeness on it, the words “The Wolfcub” and her name across the bottom with sparkles and wolf faces all over the design of the tee. She smiles, but that’s because she’s still working on how to present herself.
She knows confidence is key, but it was more of a comfort to pull her hands behind her.
“I mean, Harper Mason won and then gave me my first loss here, and I know the like…typical thing for me to do is to get upset and then post a whole buncha tweets that are venomous and scathing and rude. But I’m not like that…I honestly don’t know how to do that, and I don’t really want to. I’ll own my loss like a big girl, and continue on.
I mean, does it really set me at a disadvantage going into this whole thing? A little. I wish I could have gotten a win, but Harper was better that night and I have to deal with the consequences. But it’s not a huge deal, and it’s not like my life has suddenly gone, like, awful just because of one match. And it doesn’t mean either that I’m set up to do badly for Blast From the Past. In fact, all it did was renew my vigor and my desire to do well.
So like, the tournament itself is kinda wacky. A whole bunch of people sign up and then get stuck together as mixed tag team partners, but the result is that the winning team gets to go for the choice of their own individual championship contest. At the end of the day, the only thing that this means is that I could potentially get up to the top of the pops and face either my super angry bestie Kayla Richards, or…Juliana DiMaria. I know that match is comin’ up and while I would love to face off against either of them, I have to make sure I can get there first.
But to do that…I guess me and my partner have to face off against some people that are known-ish to the company. Except…except…
Um.
Hold on.”
Kallie disappears for a moment, and you can hear over the microphone her asking the following: “Finn, what’s a Konrad?” Murmuring his heard, and then the crackling of paper, and Kallie reappears a moment later, brushing her hair behind her ear and returning her happy expression. She looks down at the paper.
“Yeah, me and my partner have to face off against Konrad Raab and Bea Barnhart. I mean, I’m sure it’ll be a positive match, you know? It doesn’t seem like anyone is too aggressive…I mean, except for Bea, who like, Aiden would say has sand shoved up her hoohaa. I giggled when he says stuff like that. He’s a bit more vulgar…ehheh. But I mean, it’s all the same. You see, even with sand shoved anywhere it shouldn’t be, it doesn’t change the fact that I’ma be comin’ and doing my best for everyone watchin’ the show. And after all, my partner, Artie, he–”
She glances at the paper one more time, and her smile disappears for a second.
“...um, Artie…”
She looks up at the screen.
“...it’s his first time ever wrestling. Because…because some paperwork got fudged and…”
She swallows slightly, and then lowers the papers.
“...okay, I can…I can work with this. See, Artie, I know, is married to Bobbie Dahl, who is currently the Women’s Roulette Champion, which is like…really good, right? So maybe it’s possible that he’s getting training to do the best he can in a super short time, and we’re gonna have a great match. I mean, it can’t be anything like Konrad has been wrestling forever…”
There’s a cleared throat from off camera, and then Kallie looks in the direction, then down at the paper.
“...oh, he has been wrestling for a long time. At least eight years, by the calculations that Finn helped me find…but that’s okay, it’s not like Bea has been wrestling forever, right?”
Silence, and then she looks at the paper again.
“Oh. She’s been here forever too. I mean, that’s okay. I think it’s okay. No, it’s going to have to be okay. See, somehow, I just feel like Artie can take on Konrad, because he doesn’t really show himself around anymore. I know it’s like, detrimental to be on social media sometimes, but I also think it’s best to show your face to everyone instead of hide behind a wall. Wasn’t there a bunch of movies that kinda depicted that very same scenario, where a wall kept them from experiencing the other side? Usually that other side is paradise, but really, I’m not sure that it’s that way here.
But really, I’m a firm believer that if anyone puts their mind to it, they can succeed. I know I’ve been training for a long time, and I’ve been wrestling for a couple of years . I have championships, I’ve done good things. It’s not always about how much time you’ve done something, but how much heart and drive and passion and wonderment that you put into your work. And in this case, I know that I have put in all of my drive and everything I have into who I want to be, and how I want to grow. Artie, like, in this case probably has too. I bet he’s nervous, but I was nervous for my first match too. It’s not always the easiest thing, and now we’ve gotta perform in front of a crowd in England and he’s gotta hope he doesn’t break something.”
She pauses.
“I might have to do a lot of the match, so that means that I’m gonna be looking at Bea Barnhart’s icky face for like, most of the time, right? I mean, there is a way to approach all your matches and the things you’re supposed to do. You’re supposed to go out there and you’re supposed to have a great time, and fight with everything that you have. And I think like…Bea does that, right? She’s always going out there and doing her like…her total best. She can be a beast and a wrestling submissionist…but like, how often has she actually like…won anything?
Oh, I mean like, it’s possible. She has a championship reign, but was that fluke and the other person just kinda mucked up their chances? It could be. I dunno, I wasn’t here for it. But I can tell you right now that it isn’t how it’s gonna be when it comes to facing me.
Bea, I am fast, I’m agile, and I love this business more than anything except for my husband and my child. Oh, who am I kidding…sometimes more than my husband, but he understands that just as much as I do. We’ll do anything to get ahead, and we’ll fight as hard as we can to be the best that we can be. I want to be a good mother, but I also want to be the best wrestler on this side of the continental divide, and I can’t do that unless I’ve put all of my guts and glory into every step of the way that I’m going.
So let me tell you how this is gonna go. You and I, we’re gonna fight, and we’re gonna dominate the match because there’s no way in heckolza that I’ma let Artie get hurt by Konrad, who was like, super in the deathmatch scene for a minute. In the event that he’s in there, I’m gonna cheer him on and keep the crowd going. I don’t have to like who I’ve been assigned with, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to treat them badly. We’re gonna be a team, and we’re gonna ride the wave higher than anyone thought we could have.
So strap up and strap-on, Bea! Konrad! You’re gonna have a fight on your hands that you’re not prepared for, because when Kallie and Artie come on the scene, you’re not going to know what hits ya…”
“Is he even going to know where to hit?” Finn’s voice came off camera one more time, and Kallie scowled.
“It’s not that hard, Finn! Don’t you doubt my partner. We’re gonna do great things!”
🎔🎔🎔🎔🎔🎔
I stood in the doorway of Zachary’s new room. It was an offshoot of my apartment with Aiden, and really was simply a set of rooms that wasn’t utilized. There was a small room with a couch and television connected to a bathroom and a bedroom, a perfect little suite that was on the opposite of all our rooms: the nursery, my bedroom I shared with Aiden. I hadn’t even really noticed it was there, but here it was.
He came out of the bedroom and looked out the window at the park, crossing his arms. It was hard for him to say anything nice, but when he looked at me, he sighed and nodded. “Nice living space.”
“It is,” I agreed, smiling slightly. “I enjoy it. It’s a lot bigger than the apartment that I shared with Aiden before, so I really have to thank Finn for everything he’s done for us.”
“Yeah, he seems…” he struggled for a second, and then snorted, “he seems like a dick, but a well-meaning one.”
“Yeah…he’s kind of a protector, I guess.” I took a step into the room and looked at his surroundings. “Aiden and I are going to be in London for three days, and then we’ll be on the first flight back. We both want to get back to Dax as soon as we can.” In the background, I could hear Aiden playing a video game with Dax in his lap – I think it was Forza, which meant Aiden was leaning into all the turns and making our son cackle.
Zach frowned, but he sighed and looked at me. “I thought it was just a fling, you know?” He started, opening up a bit more than he usually did. I nodded.
“I know.”
“He’s just…a fucking idio–”
“It’s easier to put off a front that you’re an idiot when everyone is going to question your intelligence anyway.” I cut him off. I didn’t like to be mean to my brother, but I wasn’t about to let him insult the man I decided to marry anymore either. “He’s fun-loving, he’s calm, and he’s a good man, Zach. He’s perfect for me, and if he acts a bit silly because it makes him and me happy, then that’s okay with me. He has aspirations, and he works hard. He makes me laugh. I don’t need another douchecanoe that’s just going to treat me badly.”
His face fell, and he looked at me. “I wasn’t trying to bring that up…I swear…”
“I know.” I nodded, stopping to stand next to him and look out the window. In fact, I looked out the window and at the same spot I saw before. “Can I share a secret with you?” I asked, quite suddenly, and looked up at him.
“‘Course,” he scoffed.
I nodded again, and let out a long sigh. “I keep thinking I’ve moved on. It’s been years since all of it happened, and I just…I’m a wrestler with championships to my name, I have a happy little family, I have a son I adore, a great husband and,” I knocked into him, “a brother that, despite his anger, cares a lot.”
Another scoff, but I saw a smile too.
“But I keep seeing him.” I looked away, my lips turning into a frown. “Lately…I don’t know. Since last month, my nerves have just been shot. It’s been almost eight years, and I just…I see his face in my dreams.” I shook my head. “You’re the only one here that knows anything about it and I just…I feel like something is going to happen. I can’t shake it. I feel like I just saw him outside earlier today and I couldn’t speak, my tongue was numb, my fingers barely moved….”
Zachary didn’t say anything. Not initially. He pressed a hand to my shoulder though, and when I looked up at him, he looked mutedly furious.
“He’s still in jail, sis.” He told me, certain. “The bastard had ten years for what he did to you. Don’t worry about it. Besides, I’m here now. No need to feel worried.”
“Aiden is here too.”
Zach looked at me, a smirk rising on his lips. “Oh, I know. But I’m assuming this little conversation means you haven’t told him, and you’re not intendin’ to.” When I said nothing, that smirk just grew. “Probably better that he doesn’t know. Wouldn’t be able to do anything anyway.”
I frowned. “Do you think he wouldn’t do everything to protect me too?” I hated that he always put Aiden down. “Because he would.”
“Kallie,” he sighed. “You really are just as much of a dipshit as he is.”