The final show. My last championship defense. I thought I had it all planned out. I was already planning on leaving Canada still the SCU Champion and forever being so. There is something to be said for being the final champion as the sun sets on a promotion. You remain the champion, forever undefeated for the title. It’s a bargaining chip when negotiating contracts and it’s a reminder of where you’ve been as you sit back and look at that trophy case in your home and see that championship belt sitting there; a reminder that you were - are - the best. There, at the very least. If I were to be signed to SCW, I had this image in mind of walking into whatever building still holding onto the Underground championship belt, maybe even trying to get them to book a title versus title match against Mac Bane who had come to win the World Championship for a third time. I guess this is what’s called ‘rookie tunnel vision’ when you plan for everything to go one way, and you don’t even take into consideration that it might go an entirely different direction.
“Here is your winner and NEW SCU Underground Champion… Stewart Mason!!!”
I had to have laid on that mat for an eternity, at least in my own mind, and not once did I open my eyes to look at Stewart holding what used to be MY title. I can’t fault the man for winning. He fought hard. He put in the effort that I - admittedly - didn’t match. That DDT move rattled my brains but not to the point I was going to go the route of so many other former champions that we’ve seen that cried foul and tried to convince the world that we were cheated or our titles were stolen. Stewart Mason didn’t steal anything. He beat me, fair and square. I was just having trouble accepting the fact. The fact that my title was gone. Accepting the fact that all my plans had just flown out the window. Accepting the fact that I had let down the people that had put their faith in me to be a good, strong and worthy champion. Ariana. Gabriel and Odette. Holly. I had to make that ‘walk of shame’ backstage and wait for Stewart to come through the curtains so that I could congratulate him because that was what is expected from a mature and respected champion when all I really wanted to do was curl up and cry like a big baby at its first pity party. Ari and Krystal met me right there in the gorilla position. So did Holly. They gave me the hugs and words of platitude that I knew were coming, but I also knew that I didn’t really deserve any of it. Because let’s face facts;
I was a shitty champion.
No, it’s true. I was so focused on the fact that I was the youngest Underground Champion in SCU history and caught up in wanting to keep it that way, that I lost sight of every other obligation that was expected of me. I showed up when and where I was expected to, and all I thought about was who I was defending the title against. I didn’t think of what happened before, or after the matches. I loved to stay after the show and sign autographs or pose for pictures. Sometimes I even went through the crowd after the last match to do so. But any other extra activities that were expected of a champion? Personal appearances? Pre Match interviews? Hell! Post Match interviews! I failed where that was concerned. I either waited too long and when I thought to do so or was reminded, it was too late, or I simply didn’t bother as I had other things on my mind. And now? It’s over. SCU is a thing of the past, and my own future is one great big question mark.
SCW hasn’t made any overtures toward me in months. Last I heard from them was way back when Ariana left SCU to sign with them. I had to admit at the time I felt completely abandoned because I had no more support backstage save for Holly and she had her own career to focus on. She couldn’t spend all her time playing ‘mother hen’ with me. Mark Ward had told me SCW was interested in signing me after SCU announced it would be closing its doors, but no. I had to be stubborn. I had to stay loyal to SCU because they were the first ones who had wanted to take a chance on me and gave me so many opportunities after I signed that dotted line.
“Excuse me, sir?” The voice of the stewardess, an older woman who at first glance SORT OF reminded me of my Grams, drew me out of my own toxic thoughts. I looked up at her as she stood to my left up in first class, pushing that all too eagerly awaited cart of drinks. She asked me, “Can I get you anything to drink?”
I sighed as my eyes fell from her to the cart. My eyes roamed the small row of bottles that carried what I really wanted; something strong to take a bit of the sting off of recent happenings and make my arrival home a little less burdensome. But I didn’t want to fall into that same trap that so many other former champions (and current too!) did and drown myself in alcohol. So my attention went instead to the soft drinks and I gave her my best tight-lipped (and phony) smile.
“Can I just get a Dr. Pepper please?” I answered. She smiled without saying a word and dished a scoop of ice into one of those little plastic cups and passed that, as well as the entire can over to my thankful hands. One benefit of first class accommodations; you get the whole can whereas in coach or whatever, you barely get half. I never really did understand that but I tried to push that stray and totally random thought aside as I moved to pop the tab, when I got a bit of a pleasant surprise as a second can was set down in front of me, along with an extra package of cookies.
I looked up at the stewardess and she didn’t say a word. She just gave me a friendly wink and went about her duties toward the other passengers. Maybe she sensed something was wrong and I needed a little cheering up. Maybe she was just being the doting grandma I suspected that she already was. Grandmas are scary that way, even if they're not your own. I don’t know. I just know that here I am, right now, on the flight back home from Canada to Las Vegas, caught in my own little private world of ‘woe is me.’
I looked to my left and there was Krystal and Makayla in the next row, and to my right? Who else but my Ariana who looked up from her book to give me a wisp of a smile before she went back to her reading and tearing into her own snacks. Both Ari and Krystal knew that I was depressed over losing my championship, but I don't think either one of them really realized the scope of how I was feeling or the spot I had placed myself in. It's true what they say you know? The people surrounded by the most loved ones can be some of the loneliest people in the world. And the people that put on the bravest faces, the brightest smiles and have the most people laughing can be the ones hurting the most deep inside.
I tried to deflect from my mood. I tried to pick up my own phone to surf the net or watch a movie, but I kept putting it back down. That is sort of the dilemma one faces when they suddenly find themselves out of work. I knew my mom and Grams would be expecting me to return to Seattle now that SCU had come and gone, and I would be lying if I said I didn't miss them both - a LOT. But I just wasn’t ready yet to close this chapter in my life. Or at least, I didn’t want to. I also wasn’t ready to have that particular chat with Ari. Not sure how she’d react to my returning to Seattle but I can’t think it would be good.
That was about when I felt that familiar vibration from my pants - pocket you pervs! I’m talking about my phone! I set my Dr. Pepper back down, still untasted, and fished out my phone and had a look at the latest of text messages that have been flung my way since my loss. I already heard from Gabriel and Odette. They told me that they were very proud of everything I accomplished in SCU and told me to swing by the gym first chance I got when I got back to Vegas. I thanked them but I still can’t help but feel I let them down in the long run. But no. One look at the screen and saw that it was a text from my mom.
It read, “Call me when your flight lands so your Grams and I know you got back safely.”
Typical “mom text”. Translated it probably means “Call me so we can talk about your coming home and maybe going back to school and getting a real job.” She and Grams never did fully accept my foray into wrestling, and I can guarantee you that they didn’t watch my match. They never liked or appreciated the sport and couldn’t accept me being involved in something so ‘barbaric’. And the thought of seeing me get beat up in the ring or, dare I say, losing? Unfathomable to either of those fabulous ladies. And Lazarus? I haven’t really heard much from him after my loss. Just the usual “checking in” text and a late night call between us. He’s a lot like mom and Grams in how they see wrestling and he has an even deeper lack of interest. Still… one would think my boyfriend would at least try to be a touch more supportive or sympathetic.
I sighed, careful not to disturb Ari next to me or draw another line of questioning from my bestie as to whether or not I was alright. God love her, she’s to the point of obsession when she thinks something is wrong where I’m concerned. I didn’t want to spend the rest of the flight assuring her that I was – even if I was not. I set my phone back down on the tray and picked up my drink, but it seems that the fates were against me partaking in any refreshment because the moment the cup touched my lips, my phone started to vibrate again with yet another text.
I paused, getting ‘that look’ on my pretty, pretty face and sighed as I set the cup down and picked my phone back up. I would have left it to vibrate but it was doing that “washing machine shuffle” across the tray and almost dumped itself into Ari’s lap.
I gave one look at who was texting me, and I almost dropped my phone - again. Mark Ward. “Hot Stuff” Mark Ward! The more favorable of the SCW bosses… I quickly checked the text and it simply said, “Swing by the office when you get to Vegas to sign your contract.”
I put my hand over my mouth and tried to collect myself but I could feel my eyes watering and the weight of the world suddenly being lifted from off of my shoulders. Mark didn’t question me. He didn’t ask if I wanted to… he simply never took the offer from all of those months ago off of the table. That was confidence. That was faith. And Mark and SCW as a whole had that faith and confidence in yours truly. I quickly calmed myself before anyone could notice and ask questions. I simply replied, “I’ll be there first thing in the morning. Thank you!” and hit ‘send’. I then set the phone down and picked my drink up, and I could not help but relax back into the comfort of the plush seat. SCW thought that highly of me that they waited until my obligations with SCU were complete and kept my contractual offer ready for me.
I was not going to disappoint them.
The Gateway of India
The Gateway of India was built over one hundred years ago as a welcoming gesture to the visiting dignitaries King George V and Queen Mary when visiting British India at the time. Resting on the banks of the Arabian Sea, perched at the Apollo Bunder waterfront, the Gateway had become one of the single most treasured and popular landmarks in the entire nation. It served as a gathering spot in Mumbai for tourists and locals alike, to people watch and/or indulge in many of the savory foods offered by the nearby street food vendors. And standing at the very edge of the wall at the base of the arches with Hindu and Muslim designed carved into the framework, was none other than the newest acquisition to the ranks of SCW’s Superstars, Helluva Bottom Carter.
Me, myself and I.
Straight from Sin City Underground, I, surprisingly so, had been signed almost immediately after SCU’s closure, remaining one of the loyalists who refused to abandon their home territory for greener pastures until all of my obligations had been met and fulfilled. Now look at me! Here I am, moving from one tour of Canada to another over seven thousand miles away to SCW’s “India Summer 2022” tour. With one of the more popular delicacies in my hand - the behelpuri, I munched away at the puffed rice snack as my eyes turned away from the people watching that I had been indulging in and focused instead on the many yachts and ferries that sailed across the waterfront and toward the sea while the sun slowly set and cast a memorable brilliance on the open waters.
“I’m still trying to wrap my head around everything that’s happened this past week. Losing the Underground Championship. SCU closing. Being out of work for maybe twelve hours at the most and then signed to Sin City Wrestling without question. I’ve experienced a lot since my debut two years ago, and everything that was crammed into the last few days?”
I smiled and paused as I shook my head in a sense of self disbelief, taking a bite of my savory treat.
“It’s overwhelming when you consider by professional standards, I’m still something of a wet behind the ears rookie. Pride Tag Team titles. TV title. Combat title. And yeah… the Underground Championship I failed so miserably at. And now here I am, starting a whole new path to my career. It’s not my first foray in the SCW ranks, but my previous two matches were more like guest spots. Ari and I challenged for the Mixed Tag Team titles and then got a match with Levi Russow during his so-called ‘Farewell tour’ that we didn’t know was. And admittedly…”
I shrugged somewhat helplessly.
“I could have done better. I mean, literally! Osbourne of London Underground pretty much made me his bitch in that title match, and Levi? Well he could have made me his bitch any day, but I still lost that match to him. Nothing to be ashamed of, but I wasn’t sure if both of those losses caused SCW’s stock in me to plummet. Yet here I am, and I need to correct a few mistakes of the past so I can move ahead into the future. And it starts this weekend when I make my OFFICIAL debut, teaming with my GO-GO Girl Krystal Wolfe to go up against Zoey Lukas and Sex On Legs, I mean … Miles Kasey.”
“I have no qualms in admitting I am greatly relieved that SCW doesn’t allow for intergender matches because Zoey Lukas is a bombshell among Bombshells, but she’s bigger than any of the rest of us in this match and probably stronger, too! So far this bad ass babe has done very well for herself, being unbeaten since she signed, but let’s face facts. Success is in Zoey’s blood because she is, after all, a Lukas! But while I’ve sat back and listened to a handful of people refer to her as ‘the sister of Alicia Lukas’ and saying some pretty cold shit, like she only got her job in SCW because of Alicia - and so on, and so forth. Well one, I don’t buy that for a second. As far as I know, Mark and Christian don’t play the nepotism game. They may give relatives of established stars a chance to impress, but if they don’t, they’re out the door.”
I closed a hand over my mouth and fake-coughed, “*cough*BrittanyWilliams*cough*!”
I patted my chest and smiled at a passer-by.
“Pardon me. Bone. My point is, Zoey has done nothing BUT impress. Winning the tag match for her and her sister, and gaining her first solo win a few weeks ago. And now here she stands opposite the ring from my girl Krystal, and you know something?”
I shook my head.
“I’m not worried. Look at who we’re talking about. Krystal Wolfe. The record-setting Bombshell Roulette Champion! A winning streak that went on for months before her eventual title loss. Krystal turned back so many challengers of every shape and size, so I have every confidence in the world that she’s going to be able to handle herself just fine when she’s up against Zoey. I just hope after the match that we’re all good because I like Zoey. She’s big, she’s bad and of course, she’s beautiful. And I have to say…”
I looked back and forth, jokingly ensuring that there were no witnesses nearby who might overhear what I was going to say next, when there was nothing BUT witnesses all around me. I then turned to the camera and beckoned it closer with a wave of my finger. The camera moved in ever so closer and I cupped a hand around my mouth to stage whisper.
“She has great taste in men!”
The camera pulled back as I straightened up and gave the camera a coy wink.
“And speaking of great tasting men…”
I stared off, losing myself in the moment before I shook it off.
“You know what I mean, I am, of course, referring to her partner and my opponent in this match - Miles Kasey. Funny thing, for all our interactions on Twitter … or should I say my unabashed flirting and Miles being the open minded gentleman in responding, I never really thought my first official match would be against him. Not that I’m complaining about having to get into the ring and get it on with that marvelous mass of mancake, but I honestly don’t know what to say or how to react because – I like the guy! And I don’t mean that from a physical standpoint but Miles is one of the single most genuine people on the entire roster. He ranks right up there with Ben Jordan. You just can’t help but like the man.”
“You also can’t help but feel for him as well, given everything that he's been going through over the past few months. I mean, over the entire course of the Summer XXXTreme X cruise, I felt like we were watching some morbid hybrid of the Amber Heard trial and Fatal Attraction. All rolled into one. I know it was the topic of conversation amongst many tables on the cruise and in the locker rooms. I also know that it embarrassed Miles because he never wanted his personal life to become so public. That was the crazy girlfriend’s doing. But it did, and I would have liked to have done nothing more than to be there for the guy. Not as an admirer or a seducer, but as a friend. Just an ear he could bend for his woes, but I can’t say that I put myself out there in a position to do so, or even if Miles would have accepted.”
“But that’s neither here nor there for now, because in a couple of days, I have to set aside any ideas of friendship because I’m in this match to win. I can’t be thinking about Miles’ good looks or how tight that bubble butt of his is looking in whatever outfit he sleeps in and has to compete in for this Strange Bedfellows match. I have to look past the boyish charm and wanting to be there for him for all the right reasons, and do whatever it takes to pin his shoulders to the mat.”
“Not an easy task, I know. Miles may not have won singles gold - YET - but in my opinion and in the minds of many, he’s got to be the greatest wrestler in SCW to have yet to do so. I’ve watched his matches from more than just a wanton admirer's point of view. As a professional, the man is incredible inside of the ring. Whether it be wrestling on the mat or flying through the air, Miles is an incredible athlete and I know it’s going to be a real challenge to walk away with ANY sort of advantage over him! But – I’m going to. I’m not just going to walk away with the advantage, but I’m going to walk away with the win. I have to. I have Krystal depending on me, and I have a new path that I have to forge here in SCW. And on a personal note? I’ve messed up a time or two recently and now…?”
Just then I felt an arm slip around my shoulder and I turned my head to see my bestie Ariana snuggling up against me to watch the ships and the sunset. After a few enjoyable moments between close friends, she then snaked her arm into my own and led me away.
“It’s time to start fresh. Because for a new path to mean anything, you have to forge it yourself.”
