-Fly From The Inside-
‘...here’s the weight of the world on my shouders…
…here’s the weight of the world on my shoulder…
…ON MY SHOULDEEEEEE-’
*Record Scratch*
Jack Russow: OH…HELL…TO THE MOTHERFUCKING NO.
(And our black screen shatters like glass as we open to see Levi Russow walking into the second part of The Family’s museum. He’s briskly squared up by a cross-armed, absolutely fuming Jack Russow.)
Levi Russow: Son! Hel-
Jack Russow: Don’t you son, ME!
Levi Russow: So…you’re in a bad mood then?
Jack Russow:/b] I finally got a fan…ONE FAN…everyone else is all “ooh Bella! Ooh Miles! Ooh Lachlan!” and they forgot about ME…but not THEM!
Levi Russow: Them?
Jack Russow: HELLUVA. BOTTOM. CARTER.
Levi Russow: …oh.
Jack Russow: That was MY sweet, sweet man candy they was after and I finally had acceptance and adoration and it felt WONDERFUL and then you had to take your little shirt off and flip your little hair like an Abercrombie & Bitch and you're even using Uncle Jesse's entrance music as inspiration, well NO MORE!!! You are not to harm a SINGLE HAIR on that darling’s head!
Levi Russow: Well I mean we’re gonna have a great wrestling match but I-
(Jack’s hand darts out and yanks one of Levi’s hairs out of his head.)
Jack Russow: NOT A SINGLE. HAIR!
(He rubs his fingers together letting the hair fall to the floor as he points in his father’s face and stomps off in a huff…there’s an awkward silence for about fifteen seconds until Levi snaps back to reality, OPE! There goes rabbit! He…well you get the idea…on we go! Levi turns around and sees a bunch of old photographs adorned with different replica championships. He’s looking at a picture of “The Family’ in it’s prime on the wall. There’s him and his wife Emma. Her sister Jami and brother in law you all know and love…Slappy McGoo. He seemingly towers over the already large Nick Madison who’s got his arm around Laura Phoenix who stands next to her sister Cameron O’Neil…who has Jesse Russow’s arms around her. Just behind Jesse giving him bunny ears is the third brother Daniel Russow who’s holding hands with his wife Audrey who’s rolling her eyes visibly.There are various other people filling out the photographs who are just memories now…as Levi can’t helps but beam.)
Levi Russow: The Family…Mi Familia…La Familia De Russow. The Russows. The Jesse and Dan Super Extravaganza Experience of a Lifetime. We went by a couple names over the years. We all came under the banner of “The Family” though…Jesse was close to Nick. Nick and I grew close enough to officially become blood brothers. And wouldn’t you know, while all this was going on? Nick was preparing to marry Laura…then we caught Jesse and Cam makin’ out in a broom closet together! S’a fuckin’ small world dude, I’m tellin’ ya!
(Levi turns and flds his hands behind him as he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before speaking into the camera.)
Levi Russow: Helluva Bottom Carter…my God, still the greatest name I’ve heard to this date. I don’t want you to think I called you out because I’m offended by your wonderful compliments, that’s certainly not it. And I also don’t want you to think that I called you out BECAUSE of our shared adoration of each other. I called you out…to wrestle. Because I’ve been where you are. I’ve been watching what’s been going on since before I got here. They don’t respect you. And for Chrissakes you’re a former World Champion, right!? No no no…I called you out…for the simple hope that if my pathetic, vainglorious last victory lap can put any kinda shine on your talent THAT’S what I’m back for!
(Levi runs his hands along the glass containing gear and more replica championships.)
Levi Russow: You could be asking yourself, if you don’t know who I am, what all these empty replicas on my wall are. They’re memories. They’re reminders of who I am and what I’m capable when I put my mind to “this shit”. We’re not “Jokes” to anyone…anymore. I know what it feels like to start out different. This wasn’t even my dream…I didn’t even know pro wrestling EXISTED until I got community service cleaning up the arena. And I saw what these “superstars” were doing and here, I’d been popped for fist fighting full grown men for spare change. What did they have over me? But there was one guy…and I’ve never, ever talked about this.
(Levi runs his hands through his hair as he continues.)
Levi Russow: He was my first…tag team partner. And this was 22 years ago so there was no “private jets” yet, there was no “luxury tour buses”, there was a car…with five, maybe six if two of them are luchadors all piled into one of ‘ems Grandma’s Cutlass Supremes to trek up and down the road trying to make this shit pop. Turns out…he and I were the two luchadors…so we were smashed together often.
(Levi wipes a tear from his eye as he sniffles.)
Levi Russow: And y’know they tell ya when you start tagging to pattern your gear together so we would come out matching, cut as all Hell, looking twice as good maybe three times better than the main event and because we didn’t have beer guts and back acne from shooting steroids in our asses…because we had the long hair and the flowy moves. Y’know…you’ve heard it I’m sure. “FAG”, “KILL SQUAD ARE FAGGOTS! GO BURN IN HELL QUEERS!!!” and this was before your YouTube and your uploading and your social media. Before your "It Gets Better" and your suicide hotline. And we just didn’t know how to…cope! We knew there was something there but we also saw all this…this HATRED. This burning rage towards us. It didn’t matter who we were or what we could do, it only mattered what we “were”. HBC, I see you. Of COURSE you made the list of names I wanted to face, I cannot WAIT for this match. Because I’m going to make you show the world what you can do and when we’re done they’ll never question or judge you again. As God as my witness you and I are gonna be match of the night. As for the story…well…we got nothing but…
…time.Levi Russow: I’ll see you there, boo!
(The scene cuts out like someone turned off the TV switch.)
