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OFF CAMERA
Location: Kaneohe, Hawaii.
Date: Monday, July 8, 2024
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Eiley sighs as she looks at the outside of the front of Mikah’s gym and she chews nervously on the inside of her bottom lip. She knew that she had technically been kicked out of Mikah’s gym, but that was not really her but her long lost twin sister, Aisley instead. But Eiley had yet to build up the courage to go inside to try to talk to Mikah about what had happened and see if she could get that lifted. She desperately needed to get back into a routine of training and working out again. It was hard enough trying to fit back into what was once her normal life, it was even harder to get into a gym to work on training if there was only one “known” gym on the island.
She takes a step forward but then steps back into her previous spot on the sidewalk she had been standing in. She really didn’t know how to approach Mikah, who she had seen walk into the gym approximately twenty-five minutes ago with her and Kris’ nine month old in her arms and Myles running in front of her. She knew that Mikah was inside of her gym but that still didn’t ease the anxiety that she was feeling at the moment with trying to build the courage up to walk inside and approach Mikah for the first time since January.
Eiley takes a deep breath before pushing herself forward and walking to the front doors of the gym and she takes a deep breath before pulling one of the doors open. She steps into the building and glances around, quite expecting to feel flames burning her skin or some sort of trap that would only be triggered by her own arrival. She relaxes just a tiny bit as nothing extreme happens to her and she walks farther into the building and stops abruptly when she runs into Kendall.
◘KENDALL◘ “Eiley…hi.”
Eiley can see the surprise on Kendall’s face but it wasn’t exactly a bad look of surprise or a startled look but more so a look of surprise in the fact that Kendall didn’t seem to think that Eiley would have shown up so soon after what had happened to her.
•EILEY• “Hi…is…Mikah busy?”
Eiley wasn’t sure that she wanted to talk with Kendall at the moment as she felt as if the anxiety was going to eat her alive. Kendall smiles in a slightly sympathetic manner before pointing in the direction of Mikah’s office.
◘KENDALL◘ “She’s in her office. She’s been expecting you for the last couple of weeks.”
Eiley nods her head and glances in the direction of Mikah’s office before looking back at Kendall. Kendall offers her a friendly smile.
•EILEY• “Thank you, Kendall.”
Eiley doesn’t look back as she walks to the stairs to go to the upper level where she knew that Mikah’s office was. She jogs up the steps, allowing her heartbeat to beat a little faster and harder inside her chest. She straightens out her simple cropped tank top. She takes another deep breath before she walks to Mikah’s office door and she holds her hand up to knock but hesitates for a moment. She glances around but there wasn’t a lot of people around and so she knocks on the door three times, rapidly. She waits for the okay from Mikah, which comes just moments later, before walking into Mikah’s office.
Mikah looks up and raises an eyebrow at Eiley but Eiley relaxes as she doesn’t immediately kick her out. Mikah gestures to the seat in front of her desk and Eiley takes a seat. She glances around and notices that Ridley, Mikah and Kris’ nine month old daughter was crawling around, getting into things.
;;MIKAH “I’ve been waiting for you to show up, Eiley.”
Eiley nods her head as she crosses one leg over the other and for a moment, her eyes land on a scar on her ankle from her time being kidnapped and held hostage. She gets lost in her own thoughts for a moment as she remembers how it felt to be locked in the living quarters of Kaleb’s boat. It had been traumatizing enough to live through it but it was even worse when she had to relive it in her dreams and it made it nearly impossible to sleep at nights. She takes a moment or two to clear her head before she looks back at Mikah.
•EILEY• “I…didn’t know how to…or…if you would have me immediately kicked out or not.”
The anxiety she was feeling had reached her voice, made her a little unsteady and a little uneasy when it came to talking. She takes another breath, trying to rid herself of the anxiety she was feeling but it did little to help her, so instead she just forces a smile on her face.
;;MIKAH “Ah…so the fake you must have told you that I had kicked her out of the gym, right?”
Eiley nods her head with a small sigh of what can only be described as relief.
•EILEY• “Yeah…that was …. Apparently my long lost identical twin sister, Aisley. I…it’s a lot to explain.”
The truth was that Eiley didn’t know how to explain what had happened since January until last month without having a complete mental breakdown. She didn’t want to go through it with Mikah and fall apart completely in her office in front of her. It would make her feel small and she didn’t want to feel like that in front of Mikah. She also wasn’t sure how she could deal with it, either. She even had yet to face Oliver after her return and wasn’t sure how that would happen either.
;;MIKAH “I don’t really need to know everything that happens or happened, Eiley. I understand people have histories and trauma and things happen. The most important thing is that you know that you need to deal with it before it eats you alive. Therapy is not … the worst thing that one can go through to help them through something rough that a person doesn’t know how to sort through themselves. It is not shameful to be in therapy, Eiley. I had a therapist for years and still think I need one. It’s not something to be ashamed of.”
Eiley just nods her head, not knowing what else to say at the moment and she glances down as her eyes fill with tears at the thought. She had considered therapy, but there was something that was stopping her from making that phone call. She wasn’t exactly sure what it was but she wasn’t sure she wanted to unpack the box of trauma from being held hostage just yet. She wanted to pretend that it exist and that she hadn’t gone through something traumatic. And she could fake it until she makes it until she can’t any longer.
•EILEY• “I know, I know. I just…I don’t know if I’m ready to face it just yet. It would make what happened to me…that much more real and that’s just…I have to deal with some other things before I can unpack that box.”
Mikah nods her head and Eiley lets out a breath of relief. She had thought for a moment that Mikah would try to push her into therapy or something that she wasn’t ready for but she was pleasantly surprised to find that Mikah wasn’t going to push her to do anything that she didn’t seem to want to do. It did seem to ease some of the anxiety that she was feeling about everything that was happening around her.
;;MIKAH “That’s your decision and I think it’s the decision that only you can make for yourself. However, what I am interested in knowing is if you’re ready to return to the gym and resume your training? I know I kicked the fake you out, but that obviously doesn’t transfer to you.”
Eiley looks just a little shocked about the words that had just come out of Mikah’s mouth. She hadn’t fully expected Mikah to just open the doors to her training abilities so freely and without an argument to take place. Eiley had been fully prepared to launch an argument about why she should be allowed back into this gym but now, she didn’t have to launch herself into that speech.
•EILEY• “I…I’m definitely ready. I need an outlet for everything that I’ve been feeling.”
Mikah grins at her and then glances over at her nine month old who made a loud noise of excitement. Eiley watches as Mikah just smiles at the nine month old, a look of complete adoration on her face. Eiley sits back for a moment to enjoy a side of Mikah that not many people got to see. Mikah always seemed to have a rough exterior and wasn’t exactly always nice to everybody else and she had a reputation for cutting people down without remorse but Eiley noticed that when she wasn’t dealing with the people on social media or in the spotlight, she seemed to be a completely different person. Mikah looks over at Eiley and raises an eyebrow at her but doesn’t say anything for a moment before she stands up and walks over to the nine month old and picks her up.
;;MIKAH “Perfect. We’ll see you this afternoon then.”
And with that, Mikah walks out of her office, leaving Eiley to do the same. Eiley just nods her head, feeling a little better that her meeting with Mikah had gone better than expected.
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ON CAMERA
Location:Ontario, California.
Date: Friday, July 12, 2024.
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A LETTER TO TEMPEST
I haven’t been myself lately or the self that you’re used to facing and losing to. I haven’t been the former Mixed Tag Champion that most of this company is used to seeing. It’s been a little bit of a rough ride since January and I can only imagine that most everybody is confused or perhaps maybe they’re not. Maybe they don’t give a shit because I haven’t been good since…well, I don’t even know when. It’s been a funk, a downhill slide for me for a while and it has just been hard to get out of this state and Tempest, the whole turning it around for the sake of my career is going to start with you.
It's not your fault that you got saddled into a match against me when I’m trying to re-start my career. It’s not my fault that you’re stumbling into this match against an Eiley who has something she needs to prove. And it’s not something I need to prove to anybody other than myself. Honestly? I don’t care what anybody else thinks about me and I don’t have to prove to anybody other than to myself. This is the match that I’m going to use to prove it to myself that I can still do what I used to do in that ring. The way that Olly and I used to tear things up in the ring and before things started to fall apart and we dominated the Mixed Tag Team Division, before the current champions killed it. I’m sure somebody will bitch about me saying that but hey, I didn’t choose to hold both championships and only defend the top one in a decent time frame. Let’s face it, the mixed tag division? It’s dead and the murderers are Kayla Richards and Finn Whelan. The end. That’s all she wrote.
However, this match? It has absolutely nothing to do with the mixed tag division as it’s a singles match against you, Tempest. A match that both of us want to win but only one of us can. I’ve beat you before in tag matches, but I’ve had Olly on my side to help secure the win when our team needed it the most. This time? It’s just you and I out there, no partner to save the either of us and we get to fight it out in the ring to try to prove one is better than the other. Or maybe just better in the moment, is more like it. I fully believe that every Superstar and Bombshell that are currently contracted to appear for SCW have days where they’re not at their best and they’re not performing at the level that they always have before. And it’s perfectly okay to have a match or two that do not come out the way you wanted them to, however if one hangs their hat on a career where their losses are greater than their wins, it would be something that would need to be looked at more.
I know that you have a reputation for being off your rocker, batshit crazy. But I’m not worried about stepping foot into the ring with you, one on one. I fully believe that we are two very capable adults that are able to control their emotions and able to put on one hell of a match. Granted, it’s not the main event and that’s fine because we need to give the viewers and the fans something to watch and something to be excited about. Although, I’m honestly not sure why anybody does anything for the fans anyways. I’m more partial to do things for myself compared to doing thing s for other people. I only have myself to rely on making my career something to be proud of once I officially hang up my boots and am done competing for good.
Some people could look at this match as a filler match and as a bathroom or concession break. And that’s fine for those who view it as such but it’s not going to be that sort of match. Because I’m determined to walk into the match with the capability to turn this match into something special, something that the fans will want to see or regret missing it. I want those who use our match as a bathroom break to regret doing so and express it willingly. We can only make the most of what we’re giving and I’m going to do whatever I can in order to get the win.
But then again, I’m sure that is something that you are expecting as well, is it not? You also want to walk into the arena on Sunday and into our match and walk out the winner. I’m very aware that you’re good in the ring and you bring a physical presence that some Bombshells cower from but I’m not going to be that type of Bombshell. I’m going to fight you with the most that I have and I’m going to try my best to turn this match into a candidate for match of the year. Or at least one of the options on the ballot. I want this to have people surprised at how well it goes off and surprised at who wins.
Granted, I fully expect that I’m going to win on Sunday, that’s just how it is. I don’t give a fuck whether or not you have a physical presence in the ring that some cower before. Or that people call you batshit crazy, I can be just as crazy as the next woman. And maybe that’s just your shtick and an act, and that’s fine. You should run with it because honestly? It suits you well and you seem to do alright with it but I’m not going to be some fucking sacrifice like others have been before me.
I’m not going into this match as a punishment for making poor decisions the week before or whatever it is they like to use you for. I’m not scared of you and I’m not scared of what crazy antics you might have when it comes to stepping into the ring. I can bring it just as crazy as you can and I can do it without hesitating. I’m every bit of capable in the ring as you are and on Sunday?
I’m going to prove it. I’m going to prove that I still have whatever it takes to make it in this company. I’m going to prove that I did in fact earn that award that I received at High Stakes last year. I’m not going to be just some flash in the pan when it comes to SCW. I have everything left in front of me that I need to achieve. And I’m not going to fucking do it for anybody other than myself because fuck everybody else.
It’s time that the Eiley Era begins and everybody else should be on notice. And Tempest is just going to be the stepping stone to what could propel me into the career that I have dreamed of since I signed my contract with SCW. It’s not personal and I’m not about to make it so.
It’s just business. But even if you’re batshit crazy, Tempest, you’re likely to understand that aspect, right? You understand when things aren’t personal and are just business. You’re batshit crazy, not stupid and I know how often people can sometimes mix the two of them up. But not me. I know crazy people are some of the smartest people alive but some don’t understand what drove them to that.
Not that I care what drove you to that, but I’m just saying I get it.
And I hope you’re prepared to bring your crazy on Sunday because I’m prepared to handle whatever you want to throw at me. And walk away with the win.
See you soon,
Eiley.