The scene opens to show Natalie McKinley inside a gym in an undisclosed location - undisclosed because she does not want you knowing her whereabouts
- in the week commencing Monday 3rd October. Dressed in a pair of black leggings and a white crop top, Natalie is nearing the end of a personal training session with a client of hers named Emma Olson - a woman in her thirties with short brunette hair, who is herself wearing a pair of purple leggings and an orange tank top. Natalie is currently spotting for Emma as she performs a set of squats.
With Emma starting to look shaky, as she reaches her final rep, Natalie steps forward to help Emma complete the repetition, putting her arms under Emma's arms, and across Emma's shoulders. Natalie maintains positive control, helping to guide Emma so that she does not miss the J-hooks, as she racks the weight.
Natalie: 'Okay, it's racked.'
Stepping out from under the weight, Emma goes to retrieve a towel and a water bottle; she takes a deep breath, as she wipes off some of her sweat, and turns back to look at Natalie.
Emma: 'Thanks for saving me there.'
She then takes a drink of water from her bottle.
Natalie: 'It's okay, that's why I'm there to spot for you: to make sure that you don't end up having the weight fold you up like an accordion.'
Emma winces at the thought.
Emma: 'Have you actually seen something like that happen?'
Natalie laughs gently.
Natalie: 'I haven't, but I've heard tales from people that have witnessed such incidents; I'm sure there's probably videos to be found on the internet of nasty looking accidents in gyms.'
Emma: 'I think I'll pass, thanks.'
Natalie smiles, before then letting out a sigh.
Natalie: 'Unfortunately for me, the worst thing I've known happen in a gym from firsthand experience is when I dislocated my left shoulder.'
Instinctively, Natalie touches the shoulder that she dislocated around a year and a half ago.
Emma: 'Yeah, I remember you telling me about that.'
While Emma then has another drink of water, Natalie looks at a watch she is wearing on her left wrist, to double-check the time.
Emma: 'Is my time up?'
Natalie nods.
Emma: 'Have you got any sessions with other clients left today?'
Natalie: 'No, you were my final one of the day. Now I'll just get in a workout of my own, before then heading home. When's our next session?'
Natalie frowns, trying to think of the answer to her own question.
Natalie: 'Friday?'
Emma: 'It was supposed to be, but I need to cancel that one, so the next time you'll now see me will be Saturday.'
Natalie: 'Okay. Can you send me an email confirming that, so that I don't forget?'
Now it is Emma's turn to nod.
Emma: 'Of course - I'll send you one shortly, from my phone.'
Natalie: 'Thanks.'
Emma takes another drink from her bottle.
Emma: 'Before I go to shower and change, and leave you to your workout, may I ask you a non-gym related question?'
Natalie: 'Sure, I guess.'
Natalie gives a slight shrug.
Natalie: 'What do you want to ask me?'
Emma: 'Well, my husband seems to think that, as well as being a personal trainer, you're also a wrestler - is he right?'
Emma's question draws a smile from Natalie.
Natalie: 'Yes and no. I mean, I've been involved in wrestling for two or so years, but it's been a couple of months since I last set foot in a ring for a match, so I'm not exactly an active wrestler at present.'
Emma: 'I'm assuming that's by choice, rather than due to injury - since I became one of your clients, I can't recall having seen any evidence of you being hurt.'
Natalie: 'I have actually wrestled in the past while suffering from niggling injuries, but no, in this case you're right, it is by choice that I haven't wrestled since the end of July.'
Emma hesitates briefly, before asking a further question.
Emma: 'This is probably none of my business, but may I ask, why is it that you're choosing not to wrestle at the moment?'
Natalie: 'It's fine, Emma - I don't mind talking to you about it.'
Natalie exhales, before continuing.
Natalie: 'Have you ever wanted something - I mean
really wanted something - and then when you got it, it wasn't as good as you thought it would be? That's pretty much how I feel about my career as a professional wrestler.'
Natalie takes a quick glance around the sparsely populated gym, before looking back at Emma, and continuing.
Natalie: 'While I was studying at university, whenever I thought about what I was going to do once I graduated, the only job I ever saw myself doing was being a personal trainer - with how much I love being in the gym, it was an obvious choice.'
Before Natalie can say any more, she is interrupted by Emma.
Emma: 'Yeah, your passion for fitness is clear for anyone to see. So when did wrestling enter into the equation?'
Natalie: 'I've been a fan of wrestling for about fifteen years, although it was only about three years ago that I decided I wanted to try to become a professional wrestler. By then I had already been attending a wrestling school for a while, as I had been using wrestling training as a form of cardio exercise to supplement my weight training.'
Emma: 'If it's okay with you, I think I'll stick to more typical kinds of cardio exercise, like using a treadmill, or swimming.'
The two share a laugh.
Natalie: 'So going back about three years, I had graduated from university, and I was working as a personal trainer at a gym in my hometown - just as I had envisioned myself doing. But as a wrestling fan, and with all of the training that I had done, increasingly I found myself wondering, if I tried to actually compete as a wrestler, how would I fare? Well, there was only one way for me to find out.'
Emma: 'When did you have your first match?'
Natalie: 'July...no...'
Natalie pauses, before amending her answer.
Natalie: '...August...of two years ago. A few months earlier, I'd had a chance meeting with another wrestler from the UK, who helped to get me a spot on the roster of a wrestling promotion based in Las Vegas called Sin City Wrestling; I've competed elsewhere since then, but SCW is where I've mainly worked - on and off - during the past two years.'
Emma: 'And right now it's a case of "off," rather than "on."'
Natalie nods.
Natalie: 'Correct - and I expect it to remain that way for the foreseeable future.'
Emma: 'What has happened then, that has made you choose to put your wrestling career on hold?'
Natalie sighs.
Natalie: 'I've become disenchanted with wrestling. I know that doesn't really answer your question, but if you wanted me to give you a full explanation, then we would end up being here all night. Essentially, there are things that have happened, some of which were due to bad choices I made, and some of which were beyond my control, but all of which have resulted in me no longer having feeling the same way about wrestling as I did a couple of years ago.'
There is then another, gentler sigh.
Natalie: 'I used to get anxious if I went a couple of weeks without having a match, whereas now, like I said a few minutes ago, it's been over two months since I last competed in a match, and you know what, Emma? I'm not in a hurry to get back in the ring - I don't miss it; I'm happy being a personal trainer again, working with clients like you.'
Emma: 'It almost sounds as if it wouldn't bother you if you were to never set foot inside a wrestling ring again.'
Natalie: 'That's not that far from the truth. I wanted to have a temporary break from wrestling, but now I'm thinking that I might prefer to have a more permanent one.'
A surprised expression crosses Emma's face.
Emma: 'Wow, you really are thinking of giving up wrestling altogether. I would've thought that you would have a long career ahead of you - you're only, what, twenty-five?'
Natalie corrects Emma.
Natalie: 'Twenty-four. And yes, I am seriously thinking of giving it up. I do want to have at least one more match though, if only so that my wrestling career doesn't finish on a loss.'
Emma nods.
Emma: 'Okay, well, I don't want to pry any further - I think I've asked you enough questions already.'
Natalie: 'Really, Emma, it's fine.'
Emma drinks some more water from her bottle.
Emma: 'Well, I think I ought to go shower and change, and then get home to my family. Plus, I think I've delayed your workout long enough.'
Natalie smiles.
Natalie: 'Okay. I'll see you on Saturday then, Emma.'
Emma: 'Yes, Saturday - I'll remember to send you that email.'
Natalie: 'Thanks.'
Emma turns to make her way towards the changing rooms.
Emma: 'See you on Saturday, Natalie.'
Natalie: 'Bye, Emma.'
After watching her final client of the day walk off, Natalie's thoughts then turn towards her own workout, and as she prepares to get to work, the scene fades to black.
The scene opens to show Natalie inside a coffee house, again in an undisclosed location, now in the present day. Wearing a pair of dark grey leggings and a cyan sleeveless t-shirt this time, Natalie is sat in a private back room of the coffee house. Hanging on the back of her chair is a black coat is, while on a table in front of her, is - unsurprisingly - a mug of coffee.
Natalie directs a half-smile towards the camera, before she then starts to talk.
Natalie: 'We're just two days away from SCW's second biggest show of the year, High Stakes VI. Until a few weeks ago, it's a show that I wouldn't have expected to be a part of, but here I am now, forty-eight or so hours away from getting in the six-sided ring for a tag team match against the Justice League, Zuri Chastain and Belinda Warwick, with Lowri Moss as my tag team partner for the night.'
Natalie leans forward slightly, to grasp her mug of coffee.
Natalie: 'I assume that at some point in the coming hours, a video will be uploaded to the SCW website in which Zuri and Belinda will appear together on camera, to talk about our forthcoming match. However, unlike our opponents, Lowri and I will not be appearing together on camera - at least, not until Sunday - as we are currently several thousands of miles apart. Instead, Lowri recorded a video yesterday, giving her thoughts about the match, which we are going to cut to in a matter of seconds, and once that finishes, I'll then talk some more.'
Natalie then picks up her drink.
Natalie: 'I'll see you again shortly.'
The scene changes to show Lowri Moss inside the living room of her home in Cardiff. Lowri - who is wearing a pair of light blue jeans and a replica Wales rugby union jersey - is sat on a sofa, leaning towards the camera. She then sits up straight, smiles at the camera - a proper smile, unlike the one from Natalie - and begins to speak.
Lowri: 'Hi there! Do you remember me? I'm Lowri, and the last time you saw me in SCW, I was being hit with a steel chair, before then having a can of petrol poured over me - or gasoline, as I believe it's called by those of you that are from North America. That wasn't quite how I like to spend my Sunday evenings, although given that my opponent in my SCW debut was Twisted Sister, I probably shouldn't be surprised that things turned out the way that they did. I did at least win though, and now, six weeks later, I'm coming back for more.'
Lowri turns her head to look in the direction of the living room window.
Lowri: 'The videos I recorded to preview that against Twisted Sister were both filmed outdoors. Unfortunately though, the weather outside at the moment is miserable, and it's dark out there, so this time I'm sticking to the warmth of the indoors.'
She then turns back to face the camera.
Lowri: 'When I was asked a couple of weeks ago by Natalie McKinley whether I would be interested in teaming with her at High Stakes to take on the Justice League, it must have taken me...ooh, I think, maybe, an entire second to say yes; I was being offered the chance to team with a fellow Welsh wrestler, on one of SCW's biggest shows of the year - how could I possibly turn that down? Of course I said yes - I jumped at the chance. In fact, I might actually have literally jumped when Natalie contacted me to ask me to be her partner for this match against Zuri Chastain and Belinda Warwick. Now though, it's up to me to help Natalie win the match, to show that she was right to choose me to be the one to team with her, and also ensure that my feelings of excitement aren't replaced by disappointment.'
Lowri looks down at the floor a few seconds; she then looks back up at the camera, and continues.
Lowri: 'Prior to the match I had against Twisted Sister, I told you all that I was yet to lose a match in my career - and I'm happy to report that that's still the case. What I failed to mention, though, is that the match against Twisted Sister was the first - and so far, only - singles match of my career, as every other match that I've competed in has been a tag team match. In the promotion here in the UK where I wrestle most frequently, I'm part of a tag team with another rookie wrestler from Wales, named Neal Durden - I promised that I would namecheck him this time.'
Lowri winks at the camera.
Lowri: 'As I just referred to, Neal and I are unbeaten as a tag team, and while Natalie and I have never teamed together before, the fact that I'm used to winning tag team matches gives me confidence that she and I can win the match on Sunday against the Justice League. I see this as another part of my development as a wrestler, as I step out of my comfort zone for a match with a different partner, someone that I'm not used to teaming with, a scenario that will force me to have to learn to adapt to different situations; it's all part of my wrestling education, but it's a test I know I can pass, and together with Natalie, I reckon I can be on the winning side on Sunday evening, against Zuri and Belinda.'
Lowri smiles confidently.
Lowri: 'Zuri and Belinda obviously have the advantage of being an established team, but they're both capable singles wrestlers in their own right. Belinda is a powerful, imposing force, whereas Zuri, while not possessing the strength of her partner, is probably the more well-rounded wrestler of the two. They both have the upper hand against me as far as size is concerned, but when I look across the ring at them on Sunday, they will not strike fear into me. I've been in the ring before with an opponent who is more than six feet tall, and when the match was over, I got my hand raised, not her - and I don't plan on things being any different on Sunday: Zuri and Belinda may both be able to look down on me when they're on their feet, but at High Stakes, Natalie and I will leave them on their backs, looking up at the lights.'
Lowri points towards the ceiling.
Lowri: 'Like Belinda, Natalie's biggest asset is of course her power, but what do I have in my favour - what can I use to try to thwart the Justice League? Well, I would like to think that neither Belinda or Zuri can match my strikes - that could be the thing that gives me the edge over them on Sunday. Because no matter how big you are - whether you're an inch taller than me, or a foot taller - I can still kick you in the head, and a few well placed kicks will cut anyone down to size; from there, I've got you right where I want you. Belinda and Zuri: you won't have to wait very long to find out exactly what it's like to be on the receiving end of one of my kicks - and it won't be to your liking.'
Lowri shakes her head.
Lowri: 'I could say more about the forthcoming match, but I don't want to outstay my welcome. Besides, this is Natalie's match really, I'm just her guest, and because of that, I'm going to leave it to her now, to tell you she feels about the match. So I’ll see you all on Sunday, in Los Angeles, but until then, breuddwydion melys nos ac yn dda.'
Lowri waves at the camera, and within seconds the scene switches back to the coffee house, and to Natalie, who is drinking from her mug of coffee.
Natalie: 'Welcome back.'
She then puts her mug down, on the table.
Natalie: 'When I set foot in the ring at High Stakes, for the match against the Justice League, it will be the sixth time that I've competed at an SCW supercard, but it will be the first time I've been involved in at match at a supercard in which a title hasn't been at stake. That's perfectly fine with me, though. And anyway, after failing to take the roulette title from Kate Steele at Summer XXXTreme IV, I wouldn't expect to be challenging for a title again so soon, nor do I have any desire to. Instead, all that's at stake in this match against Belinda and Zuri is pride, but that's still enough of an incentive for me to do everything I can to ensure that Lowri and I are the ones that walk away with the win.'
There is a small sigh from Natalie.
Natalie: 'As I said earlier, until recently, I didn't expect to be in a match at High Stakes, and I don't know quite why Belinda decided to issue me with a challenge for a match, but I'm glad that she did. You see, I used to take some pride in being the strongest bombshell in SCW - if you want proof of that, go back and look at what I tweeted last year, when someone had the temerity to describe Traci Patterson as being "by far the single most physically powerful specimen in the Bombshell division;" really, Traci Patterson?'
Natalie flexes her right bicep.
Natalie: 'As I'm sure you can tell, I took offence to that statement.'
Natalie clenches - and then unclenches - her hands.
Natalie: 'Now though, I'm willing to admit that I may no longer be able to lay claim to being the most physically powerful bombshell, as that title probably now belongs to Belinda Warwick. However, I would be willing to bet that, pound for pound, I'm stronger than Belinda is. For example, my deadlift personal best is 336 pounds - that's more than two and a quarter times my own bodyweight, and only five pounds less than the combined weight of Belinda and Zuri.'
Natalie flexes her lats, pushing her triceps out to make them look bigger.
Natalie: 'This seems like an appropriate time to remind you all that you can get a ten percent discount at GymShark.com by using the code "McKinley10" at the checkout; McKinley10 is all one word, and it's the numbers one and zero, not the word ten.'
There is a brief pause, before Natalie continues.
Natalie: 'Anyway, as impressive as my feats of strength may be, I know you're not watching this because you want to hear me boast about my prowess in the gym - you're expecting to hear me talk about wrestling. Because after all, when Belinda and I are in the ring on Sunday, with Zuri and Lowri by our respective sides, we're going to be competing in a wrestling match, not a strongwoman contest; that suits me just fine, because with my track record in SCW, I think I can confidently say that I'm a better wrestler than both Belinda and Zuri, and I'll be happy to prove that at High Stakes.'
Natalie smiles.
Natalie: 'The one thing that I probably have counting against me is that I don't have as much experience in tag team matches as Zuri and Belinda. I have been in a handful of tag matches in SCW before though, and I'm able to say that I've won more of them than I've lost. In the past I've had success with partners such as Roxi Johnson and Melody Grace, and while Lowri would be the first to admit that she's not yet at the level of Roxi or Melody, she's a very proficient wrestler for someone at such an early stage of their career, so I believe that she'll be an adequate partner for me on Sunday. Plus, Lowri has one important attribute that not even a soon-to-be Hall of Famer like Roxi has: she's Welsh!'
Natalie's smile broadens into a grin, before she then taps her chin.
Natalie: 'On second thought, forget adequate, she's perfect - she's everything I need in a partner to defeat the Justice League on Sunday.'
Natalie then picks up her mug of coffee again.
Natalie: 'Two days - that's all that's left until High Stakes VI. I don't know what the future will hold for me following Sunday, but what I do know is that when I show up in Los Angeles, I will have no intention whatsoever of losing. Justice League; Zuri and Belinda - this is one battle you won't win. Cyrmu am byth.'
Natalie raises the mug before then taking a drink from it, and as she does so, the scene fades to black.
