Chapter 67: Trauma

Sometimes you have no one to blame but yourself. You can get yourself in such a state, in such a mood that it brings everything and everyone around you down. And sometimes, it can be because of others and their attitudes towards you. Something that they have said to trigger something: a memory, a moment, some past trauma that is buried deep down inside. But you can’t always blame others. You can’t always look at someone and know that they are the reason for your anxiety, your depression, and your otherwise terrible mood.

No, sometimes all of that shit is squarely on your own shoulders. Bringing something up, talking about it, feeling those walls slipping down, but coming right back up again as your entire body starts to shake and you withdraw within yourself. Even with those around you, with those closest to you. Members of your family and people that you love. They don’t always understand. And sometimes, withdrawing from them is the first step toward healing. Other times, withdrawing from them just hurts you and hurts them even more. The trick is knowing which is which.

I’m not sure I’m at that point yet where I can identify which way I’ve gone and which way I should go.

My sister gave me a great piece of advice.

But I ignored it.

She told me I should talk to the man I love. To tell Finn exactly how I felt and what I wanted. And the truth is? I should. I should walk over to him right now, give him a kiss and then tell him that I want to be a mother. I should have the confidence that he will look past everything he’s gone through in his life and want the same things that I do. But that’s what scares me. I don’t know what will happen.

What happens if I walk over to him? Kiss him, tell him I want to be a mother and he rejects it? What if everything he went through with his bitch ex-wife completely ruins everything that I want to have in our future?

I don’t know if I would be able to handle that. Emotionally, physically, I just don’t know if I would be able to go on and be in a functional relationship ever again. This truly is my last shot. Because I don’t want to have children with anyone but him. I don’t want to live with anyone else but him. I want to grow old with this motherfucker. And I just need to tell him that.

But, I’m so scared that looking at him across the room right now and thinking about being that honest and open with him is breaking me from the inside out. Normally, he would see what was going on with me. But luckily, or unluckily, depending on how you look at it, he is so driven to get back into the ring and so focused on his recovery that I no longer have to worry about him seeing through the facade that I put in front of my face.

The mask that hides my true emotions.

Something that Finn would usually take off, something that he would see right through.

Right now, he was sitting at the kitchen bench, looking through his laptop at different treatment options. His arm was still bound close to himself in a brace, the sling forgotten two weeks prior. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, my hands gripping the side of the couch as I went to stand up. But something stopped me. I remember the last time I went to talk to someone who I was in a relationship with about this. And to say it didn’t go well is an understatement.

It was years ago. Well before I even met Finn. I was in a relationship with a man named Matt Shields. Some may have heard of him, others maybe not. In certain circles of this business he is still looked at as a dominating world champion and an excellent professional wrestler. But, to me he was a self-centred abusive piece of shit. Matt and I met and had a shared love of beating people down verbally and physically. He claimed me as his “queen”.

And, as a couple we were almost unstoppable. Together, we ruled the company we were in with an iron fist. Both of us becoming world champion, sharing the tag team championships, destroying everyone in our path. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? But the difference between Matt and Finn is night and day. Finn, despite his prickly attitude, treats me with dignity and respect and love. He treats me like an equal and someone who matters to him. Matt didn’t. He treated me like an object, like I was to be owned and possessed. And it came through in a certain conversation that we had toward the end of our relationship. One where I revealed my wants and needs.

lHey, got a minute?” I smiled, entering his home office. Matt sat behind a large, mahogany desk. Different championship belts hung high over his head behind him. Different magazine covers from Japan littered the area. He slowly smiled, his long hair done and dreadlocks tied back away from his face.

”Yeah…two seconds…” he stretched and grabbed a bottle of water, standing up as he moved around the desk. He took a sip and then reached out wrapping his arm around my hip and pulling me toward him. It wasn’t kind or gentle, his grasp was forceful and domineering. His hand gripped the other side of my thigh as his forearm dug into my lower back, jerking me forward against him. I stumbled and fell. My teeth were grinding together, but in that moment I allowed him to assert his control and dominant over me. ”Mmm, you are wearing too many clothes, woman.”

I ground my teeth together again, pushing the urge to slap him across the face deep down. I knew what I was getting into when Matt and I met and when we got into a relationship. But at the time, I thought he and I were a perfect match. How wrong I was. “We can talk about my abundance of clothing in a moment. There’s something I wanted to talk to you about, something important. It’s just something I’ve been thinking about, and it’s something I feel that you and I need to discuss before we really get into what our relationship is going to be.”

Matt released his grip and stood back. His eyebrows followed and I knew that look. He hated to have deep and meaningful conversations instead preferring to simply go to the bedroom. That is how we sold most of our fights. Verbally, we would eviscerate each other and then physically we would destroy each other in the bedroom. But when all was said and done it would be buried and we would be happy. “Sounds serious.” he chuckled, under his breath and moved to the table, leaning back against it and folding his arms over his chest. Puffing his chest out as a way to show his masculinity and dominance. “Well? What is it?”

His tone was dismissive and almost jovial. Like he wasn’t going to take anything I said seriously. I remember my fists closing as I felt my nails dig into my palm. “We’ve been together a few years now. And I’d like to think that you and I have crossed that bridge in our relationship where it’s clear that we want to be together forever.” He nodded, a sign for me to continue. Without him adding anything to the conversation. ”So…we’ve never talked about children. I need to be very clear on this that I do want to be a mother someday.”

I thought I was prepared for anything that Matt would say or do. But I wasn’t. I wasn’t prepared at all. He laughed. Laughed. He made a joke out of something that was supposed to be sincere and from the heart. I don’t even remember what my face would’ve looked like. I don’t know if I was showing how upset I was or if I was just blank and emotionless. But as his laughs subsided, and he put his hand up as he calmed himself down enough to speak, what he would say woud scare me forever in a way that I didn’t think possible.

”You? A mother? Kayla, you are many things, a great professional wrestler, a smoking hot woman, a great girlfriend, a future wife and maybe even my queen. But a mother? A mother is not one of them.”

My heart sank into the pit of my stomach and I felt my entire body start to shut down, I held it together and stared ahead as Matt moved past me. He chuckled, repeating what he said on his breath as he moved past me. I held back the tears that day, I held back the screams and the angle. I held back the anxiety and the scars. But, while I held them back, the scars were still there. They were just deep. Because that’s where I was cut, deep.

”Hey, you hungry?”

”Hmm?”

I snapped out of my memory, right back to the present. I looked up, Finn tilted his head, reaching out with his good arm to help me up. ”Chipotle? Chinese? Eat in or go out?”

I smiled, because I knew he was genuinely asking me my opinion. He wasn’t just giving me some vague choices with a decision already made in his head. I bit my lip, taking his hand and standing up before stepping forward and wrapping my arms around his neck before kissing him softly. He smiled as I pulled back, slightly surprised by my sudden show of affection and love. ”Chinese…and delivered…. I don’t feel like sharing you with anyone tonight.”

He smiled and gave a small nod, pulling out his phone as we started to discuss what we wanted to eat. In my heart, I know I could tell him what I was thinking and feeling. But there was still a small part of me that was scared to death. I can stand here and I can tell you all how unbelievably strong I am. How I’m a former world champion and how I’ve beaten everyone in front of me, as well as living through some horrible abuses from my own father all the way through my other relationships. But when it comes to something this important…

I’m still just a scared little girl.



G.F.Y.

”Seems like I can work with anyone as long as they have the same goal that I do. Funny, isn’t it? That’s exactly what I said was going to happen. I told the entire world that Frankie and I were going to be able to coexist. And we did. In fact she did an excellent job. as I was pinning one of the idiots, she took out the other one to stop the match from being saved.”

Kayla smiles slowly and shakes her head. Her long black hair tied back away from her face as she flippantly threw her left hand out.

”Seleana and Diamond are not on my level or Frankie’s. I don’t know exactly how good Frankie is yet ,but I will definitely say that those two on any day can’t stand up to her. So the two of us as a team, despite the fact we have trust issues and don’t know each other very well, were never in danger of losing that match as long as we both were working towards the same goal. Victory. Complete and utter domination. When the match was over and the bell rang, she and I went face-to-face and I expected that to happen. But, she seems smarter than the average bear.”

“She didn’t start a fight that I would have to finish. She let it go, backed off and the two of us went our separate ways. At least that’s how it will be until we meet in the ring at Summer Xxxtreme”

“Then all bets are off.”

“Seleana and Diamond couldn’t be more opposite. You see, Diamond still has a chance to make a name for herself in this company and this business. She has a chance to shrug off any negative vibes that she’s gotten from her first few weeks here. I know that first impressions are important, but what is more important is how you pick yourself up when you have a failure. And trust me on this, while I haven’t had many failures in my career, every single time I have lost a big match. I’ve dusted myself off, I’ve stood up, and I’ve come back better than ever”

“And I understand what most of you were thinking, why am I giving a pep talk to someone who I just stepped on a few weeks ago?”

Kayla shrugs and continues.

”Never let it be said that I can’t be altruistic. But that is only one side of the coin. Diamond being a new name here has a chance of redemption. Someone that has next to no chance at that is her tag team partner. Seleana Zdunich.”

“A woman who has all of the attributes of a company's dream. They could put her out the front as the face of the company and everyone would be in absolute rapture and awe at how amazing she is as a human being.”

“I mean, when Seleana isn’t getting cucked by Crystal, she is being a loving sister, an animal lover who is saving our furry friends lives, and very rarely says a horrible word about any of her coworkers. But with that being said, she is also one of the most unbelievably lazy human beings I’ve ever seen. She never lives up to her potential, she had one moment in the sun over five years ago and since then she has been limping along destroying her own reputation in the process. Sounds a little bit familiar.”

“Doesn’t it, Mercedes?”

Kayla laughs to herself again and shakes her head even more. Imagining the clarity of the situation that she currently finds herself in. She steps forward and picks up the Bombshell’s Championship, putting it on the table and leaning in close.

”Before I get to you let me just say that the rumours of Andrea Hernandez packing her shit and leaving just makes me smile. Because she has proved me right. And at this point, I need to start printing T-shirts that are simply black with white text saying: ‘Kayla was right’. Because it happens a lot. In fact, a scary amount. I keep telling you all when I get beaten by someone that I’m going to come back and destroy them, I keep telling you that there are certain people in this company who aren’t good enough to be a champion and will never be a champion. And behold, many of them have left or are finding themselves a nice full corner of this company to live in around the Roulette and Internet Championships.”

“I told you all that I broke her. I tried to give Andrea the benefit of the doubt and I tried so hard to believe that she was going to rise back up and come after me and not let the fact that I made her entire reign and her entire existence as a laughing stock stop her from coming back stronger.”

“But from what I hear, since she doesn’t talk to me and instead prefers to talk to other people, she’s lost her entire personality and all of her motivation.”

“That’s hilarious.”

“But, what does all this have to do with my opponent? Mercedes Vargas? Well, quite a bit actually. You see, I have asked Mercedes time and time again over the last couple of years – every single time I’ve had to face her – to quit. I have asked her to simply walk away because she hasn’t been living up to her reputation and has very slowly been destroying that same reputation and her legacy. She was a once great champion who would destroy anyone who she had to face. A woman who has gone through amazing and game changing rivalries with the likes of Crystal whateverthefuckhernameis, and Roxi Johnson and even my very own older sister, Amber Richards.”

“I wanted her to walk away. I begged her to walk away.”

She takes a deep breath and holds it before releasing it in a moment of contemplation.

”But, she didn’t listen to me. And the truth is that maybe for the first time ever, I was wrong. You say I have told people like Andrea that they need to keep going when clearly she shouldn’t. And at the same time, I’ve told people like Seleana and yourself to quit. And while I was right about Seleana, I was clearly wrong about you. See, you’ve never beaten me, Mercedes. But the last few months, you also haven’t given up. I’ve thrown jokes at you, talking about your age and your motivation and how you constantly let people down. Yet the last month or so, maybe even two months, you’ve had this different look in your eye.”

“This spark. A spark of motivation. And in that time you have gone from being a laughing stock who is destroying her own legacy to adding to that same legacy. And you’ve done it by becoming the Internet Champion and beating Bella Madison for it. And I have to applaud you for that. No bullshit, no punchline, congratulations. I mean that. You didn’t quit no matter how much I told you to. No matter how many times I beat you, you would just keep coming back and coming back and finally you are a champion again.”

“And hey, I have a soft spot in my heart for that championship.”

“I held that championship three times”

“I made that championship a relevant prize so women like you would want it. And now, it’s your turn to do something with it. And maybe you will. Or maybe you won’t. But I was getting bored with facing you time and time again, because it was the same song and dance. You would try and guess that I’d call you old and you would be right but I do it in such a way that was so entertaining the people would laugh and then the match would happen the bell would ring and I would destroy you and slam you into the mat and leave you as nothing but a overly make-upped wrinkly stain on the canvas.”

She tries hard to hold back laughter a small smirk escaping her lips as she quickly composes herself and continues

”And I’m sure you are going to be full of confidence after you were able to keep that championship. And you want the same thing that I do as we head into the next supercard. That cruise ship is coming, Mercedes. We are going to be on it and you are going to be defending that Internet Championship, just like I will be defending my SCW World Bombshell Championship. And here’s the thing. I’m proud of you. Again, this is just me being sincere and shooting from the hip and not being the bitch that everyone makes me out to me. I am legitimately proud of you.”

“Some might talk a lot of shit and say that it is a step down for you. The Internet Championship being less important than the World Bombshells Championship and to a degree that is true. You see, you holding that Internet Championship means you are a champion. A champion. But the World Bombshell Championship, as you well know, makes you THE champion.”

“And we find ourselves in a conundrum. We are facing each other, champion against champion. And if you lose to me, you can still walk into your match at Summer Xxxtreme with your head held high. After all, you got beaten by a dominant champion who is still the best of the best. It won’t really affect you. You’ll still have momentum going into your match and you will still be able to beat anyone they throw out you. but that isn’t the same for me, Mercedes.”

“No matter how much I’m personally enjoying this Renaissance that you find yourself in, I can’t allow you to get a win over me. I am facing the blast from the past winner. I am facing Frankie fucking Holliday. And this woman is a bigger threat to the division of my championship than anyone else who has come before. Because people like you, and Andrea, and everyone else that this company has put in front of me I’ve been able to do research on and study and no. but Frankie Holliday is a different beast.”

“So I need everything.”

Kayla‘s jaw clenches as her teeth grind together, her hands fall up into fists as she tries to keep her anxiety in check and make sure that no one can see it, but her mask slips, she’s scared. Frightened of what he’s going to happen when she faces Frankie. But as quickly as the moment of vulnerability bubbles to the surface, it disappears and the green emerald eyes of Kayla Richards snap forward and she continues her thought process.

”As good as you have been the last few months, and as great as you see yourself to be and as great as you were once years ago, I still can’t let you get a win over me. Not now. I can’t let my motivation get interrupted. I have to keep going and get as much as I can and unfortunately, that means I have to beat you down like I’ve always done whenever you and I have gotten into the ring. But, in the past when I have been getting ready to face you, I’ve become bored with it. And truth be told, I haven’t given you my best.”

“And I know how that sounds. Believe me I do. But it’s true. I have never given you my best Mercedes because I’ve never taken you seriously as a challenge. There’s going to be a lot of people rolling their eyes at that statement. But you are one of those people that I would only rise to a muted level to beat you. Not to my best. But congratulations are in order for the second time. I congratulated you for winning the Internet Championship and now I’m going to congratulate you again. Because you finally got to that point where you are getting my best.”

“Because you deserve my best.”

“But, this is something that you are going to live to regret. Because Andrea Hernandez, a woman who beat me, who pinned me to the mat. Something you have never done. A woman who was the SCW Bombshells champion, something you haven’t done in years, she had my best. She got my best, she realised that at my best she couldn’t beat me and it broke her. I just hope you’re a stronger woman. And it’s not going to break you. But I guess we’ll see. Good luck, Mercedes.”

Chapter 63: Sacrifice

I was furious.

That may have been an understatement. Furious is too light of a word for how I feel right now. Completely and utterly enraged might be a better description. For the last few days, I had been stomping around the house. A simple act like making a coffee becomes an exercise in futile anger. Stirring the milk into my coffee the spoon made a loud clinking noise before I tossed it into the kitchen sink with a force that could be described as violent.

And it shouldn’t be this way. I shouldn’t be stomping around My Home in such a state. I know it, Finn knows it in fact everyone else who has come to visit knows it. But I simply can’t help myself. No matter how happy I am about my own success I find myself at the precipice of falling into a psychotic rage. I want to tear them both apart. I want to walk into the SCW locker room with a steel chair in my hand and start swinging. I want to scream in anger in their faces and tell them exactly why this is happening to them.

But I can’t.

Right now, I am standing in my home in Colorado. The home that Finn and I bought together. A symbol of just how far our relationship has come. Everyone has to remember that this shouldn’t have happened. A person like myself and a person like Finn forgetting everything that has happened to us in our past and coming together in a relationship is not something that happens every day. In fact, I would refer to it as a miracle. The kind of miracle that some people write about in those religious books that they put so much belief in.

That isn’t really my thing but to each their own

But I can’t deny that this is a miracle. Everything that Finn went through with that wretched bitch Erin, everything that I have been through with my daddy issues mixed with all of the stupid relationships that I had been in as well as my own psychosis when it came to feelings of any kind of romantic nature Fin and I being together, being happy and taking a step as big as owning a home together is not something that happens every day and it is something that should be studied and celebrated. I know this, Finn knows this. But right now it doesn’t mean that much to me.

While I’ve been able to step forward and become a champion again and raise my hand high fin lost his title. He lost his championship to someone who lied to his face and took advantage of him. He lost his championship because of his ex-wife and her manipulative bullshit ways. But, I seem to be the only one who was angry about it. I took a sip of my coffee and looked over at Finn who was sitting back and flicking through a book. I shook my head and paced back and forth.

Finn looked up and raised an eyebrow before shaking his head and slowly closing the book. ”You’re going to wear out a track in the floor” I stopped and tilted my head staring at him. Finn nodded slowly and put his book on the coffee table before sitting back. ”Alright, we’ve been home a few days, we have some time off and get to enjoy ourselves. But you’ve been miserable.”

I took a deep breath trying to keep it all in. ”I’m not miserable” I huffed and folded my arms over my chest ”I’m angry. I can’t believe you were robbed like that. And what’s worse is you seem to be okay with it.”

”Kayla”

I continued, Finn, sitting there and staring at me. ”Why aren’t you furious? Why aren’t you angry? Why aren’t you on the phone right now demanding a rematch and getting ready to kick the shit out of Alex and take back your championship? Why aren’t you letting me go after Aaron?”

”Because it doesn’t matter right now” I stopped and looked over at him. I was confused. How could it not matter? Why would it not matter? He cleared his throat and got to his feet stepping toward me. ”You did something that many thought was impossible. And you went out there and did it after seeing what happened to me. I don’t want to think about that right now and instead, I want to celebrate you. Celebrate your success.”

I shook my head and cleared my throat before stepping toward him. I took a deep breath and looked up before shooting a small smile at him. ”You make it impossible for me to stay angry you know that? You lost something special. I’m proud of what I did but at the same time I’m furious about what happened to you.”

Finn shook his head, his hand found my chin, and lightly lifted my head so I was looking straight out of him. He smiled lightly and leaned down before kissing my forehead. ”You can be angry or annoyed about what happens to me later. But for now can we please celebrate what you accomplished? You’re the champion again. Just like I knew you would be. I’m proud of you. I hope you know that.”

I closed my eyes taking in a deep breath. As I exhaled all of that anger and frustration left my body. My shoulders dropped and I relaxed. Something that Finn noticed. ”I guess I need to take my own advice. I keep saying that taking a loss is a learning experience and that you can always come back stronger. I expect that from myself, why wouldn’t I expect the same thing from the man I love?” 

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around me, I relaxed and stood there in his embrace. He was right. Getting angry about what happened to him was going to diminish what I accomplished. And that would be just another victory for Alex and Aaron. Another win for them over us. I couldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t let them think that they were able to get under our skin to the point where I couldn’t enjoy something that I was able to pull off.

This relationship was a miracle.

My miracle. I don’t know what I would do without him. I don’t know what I would be able to accomplish without him. But I knew what I’d been able to accomplish with him in my life. And now it is time to continue my work. It was not over. Just like I knew it was not over for Finn. God help everyone when he gets back. Because he’s going to be even better. Just like Me.

Blind leading the blind

There was a sharp inhale. Kayla Richards the new SCW world bombshells champion is sitting in her hotel room in Oslo Norway. She smiles slowly until her head looks over at a cup full of an amber liquid. She picks it up and gives it a sip before taking a deep breath and continuing.

”Strange isn’t it? Time after time and week after week I keep telling you people what is going to happen. I have always been honest. You can laugh all you want and you can think that I’m not but the truth is that every single time I open my mouth, I’m telling you the truth. Now, truth is a loaded word. Because one person‘s truth is another person’s lie. One person’s truth is another person‘s nightmare. Now, what is my truth? My truth is the collective nightmare of every single woman in that locker room. My truth is making every single one of them look substandard and worthless.”

She laughs and takes another sip of the liquid before putting it down. She then grabs a bottle, pulling it sideways and we see for the first time the label. Mjøderiet mead. The best in Norway. After all, Kayla is nothing if not a classy bitch….

”Think back. Think back to before the elimination chamber. What did I tell everyone? I told each and every woman in that match that I was going to be coming back better than I was before. But Andrea beating Me had made it harder for them. And it was true. You look back over my history, not just in this company but my history in general and you will see a distinct and clear pattern of brilliance. I am an excellent professional wrestler. Regardless of what you think about me personally you have to admit I am one of the best to put on a pair of boots and get into a professional wrestling ring whether that ring has four sides or six sides, whether or not it is a regular match or if it is in a giant steel cage.”

“I am one of the best to ever do this. And I told them all, I told them that I was going to get into that ring and I was going to leave us the champion. I told them that Andrea beating me meant I was going to come back stronger because that is what I have done every single time. I lost the Internet championship three times. And twice I got it back because I wanted to and I beat the people who beat me for it. There was one exception, and it was because I was ready to move on.”

“It’s because I set my sights on the world bombshells championship. And along the way, I won the world mixed tag team championships with Finn. We stood above everyone and set records, and we lost them. We lost them to the team of Eddie and Victoria Lions only to grab them right back in short fashion. And this company has struggled to find anyone willing to face us because every single one of you are cowards.”

“That is why that division is failing. Because there are no teams that have the balls to come up and face us.”

Kayla grows, clearly angry about the situation. She takes another sip of the Me. If she’s going to get drunk, this could get interesting.

”But, now what? Now that I have regained what is mine and I am back on top of the mountain where does this championship and Its champion go from here? My first run I beat almost everybody, I even beat Andrea one-on-one. She ended my rain and then I got the championship back in a match that featured almost all of the top contenders for this title. So, if I’ve just beaten everyone where do we go from here?”

“I could just wait for the blast from the past winner to reveal themselves. But that’s never been my style. And I will be getting back in the ring against Harper Mason this week but the more I think about facing her the more my stomach starts to churn and the more I want to throw up. Not because I’m scared or intimidated by Harper Mason but because I don’t like facing people who are not on my level or can’t ever reach my level. And trust me, Harper, despite what you believe you aren’t on that level and you never will be with the attitude that you currently have.”

“The same night that I was able to regain the top prize in women’s wrestling you lost to Bella Madison. And hey I’m not gonna stand here and say that Bella Madison is a bad champion and that you should be ashamed of yourself but you still lost in an Internet championship match. The title that I made famous that I hold three times you can’t even get your hands on and now you want to talk some shit while coming into a match with me?”

“Honey, I don’t know who you pissed off to get put in this match with me but you better find out their name and you better go apologise to them real fucking quick”

“And it’s also really cute that you’ve sat there and had this little talk with Victoria Lions on climax control. And I would take whatever that bitch says with a grain of salt. While she is the queen of the roulette division and she did win the queen for a day her other claim to fame is being able to wrestle the mixed tag team championships away from Me for a month before Finn and I snatched them back. Every single time Victoria has gotten the ring with Me I have beaten her and I have embarrassed her just like I did with you.”

Kayla rolls her eyes and folds her arms over her chest before sitting back and kicking her legs up on the chair that is next to her.

”I have had almost 50 matches in this company. 47 to be exact. And out of those 47 matches 40 of them I’ve won. You were one of those wins. And well I have watched my career from mountain top to mountain top. You have done nothing. You’ve lost a Bella Madison a few times, you’ve challenged some of the best that this company has to offer and you failed every single time. And now you get to face me again. Congratulations. You get to be in a non-title match against me. And if you should somehow win, if you should somehow shock the world and beat me then I dare say you have earned the right to face Me for the title.”

“But then what? Look back into your grand scheme and your grand plan Harper. What then? You somehow fluke went over me and then you get an opportunity for the bombshells championship. With my track record and my history, I come back stronger than ever and I beat you again. And your track record and your history says that the second you get an opportunity to make something of yourself, you will fail. You will choke.”

“That right there is the difference between people like me and people like you”

“I get an opportunity and I take it with both hands and do everything I can to make it count. I step above everyone and I take everything that I’m offered. I have already had a Hall of Fame-worthy career. Three-time Internet champion two two-time mixed tag team champion record mixed tag team championship rain and now a two-time bombshell champion with over 300 days combined. Tell me Harper, what makes you believe that you should even be allowed to step in the ring with Me? What makes you believe that you can beat me? What makes you believe that if you do beat me this is going to do anything but make your career even sad when you get another shot at Me and you inevitably choke and fail.”

“No, I have to save you from yourself. And I have to make sure this company knows that they made a mistake putting you against me. Then, if your little mentor who has been whispering in your ear wants to try and face Me? I will bury Victoria Lyons right next to you. This is your final warning, don’t fuck with me, Harper. You will regret it.”

Chapter 59: Focused Anger

”That classless, ratchet ass, boy-chested cunt!”

I was furious. In fact, that is probably a severe underestimation of my feelings toward the subject. Since Aaron had come back into our lives, I had been annoyed. Twitching and trying to push down that annoyance and act normal was becoming a daily struggle. But this? This was a step over that fragile line that was keeping me from snapping and wanting to rip someone’s head off. And unfortunately, the woman whose head I wanted to rip off was currently out of my reach. I took a deep breath pacing back and forth through the kitchen. A cup of tea sat in front of me that had been made for me.

Kallie Reznik, my innocent, sweet, blonde, best friend and apparently my tea maker sat nervously fidgeting at my kitchen bench. She swallowed hard, her hands wrapped around her teacup as she stared down at the swirling milk. I hadn’t noticed as I kept pacing back and forth. She had always been very awkward when it came to me talking about Aaron. You see Aaron had a massive hand in training her. Truth is she was Kallies mentor. And Kallie considered her a friend.

She is very naive

I, on the other hand, knew exactly the type of woman that Aaron asphyxia was ”She walks back into Finn‘s life, he has to deal with her at work, then she starts hanging around like a bad smell, and starts trying to get into his head, she then joins the goddamn company he works for and starts to torment both of us. And then, we find out that bitch never signed the goddamn divorce papers. And why? Why is she doing this? He’s happy with me we’ve moved in together. This is fucking ridiculous.” Every single one of my words was spat with the same amount of venom that was usually reserved for people that I hated while cutting a promo for any company that I happened to be working for.

Kallie sat there sipping her tea and looking nervous. And it was at this point that she finally spoke up, that she finally decided to add her two cents into the conversation. ”Maybe she still loves him”

I stopped pacing, I shook my head, and tried to take a deep breath to calm myself down. I turned leaning back against the opposite kitchen bench where the stove top was, the unused stove top, don’t judge me. I wrapped my arms over my chest, almost hugging myself as I tilted my head looking at Kallie. ”You said that with a hell of a lot of certainty.” I could see it, I could see it in her eyes and her body language. I could see it in the way that she was breathing. She knew something.

Kallie took a deep breath and shrugged ”I-I mean, it makes sense right? Why would she be doing all of this? She has to still be in love with him.”

I placed my palms onto the kitchen bench and leaned right across getting closer to Kallie and tilting my head ”You have something that you want to tell me, don’t you? Come on Kallie…” She stumbled over her words her nerves becoming more exposed.

”Well, no, I mean it’s just obvious-“

”KALLISTO!”

”I was talking to Aaron and she told me that she and Finn were technically still married and that she really wanted him back because deep down she was in love with him and she realized that that wasn’t going to go away and she says that they are meant to be together and she’s going to do everything in her power to be with him. I’m paraphrasing but that's basically what she said.”

Kallie closed her eyes. When she’s nervous she speaks fast. I was able to catch everything and I shook my head. I swallowed hard trying to push my emotions down. I was still angry. I was still furious. But I needed to keep calm. I couldn’t let Aaron win. I couldn’t let her strip me of everything that I had. all of the growth that I had been through. I used to push people away, I wanted to be alone because I didn’t want people relying on me or wanting to be around me. But now I had friends, I had family, I had a man who loved me. Despite everything.

Kallie looked up at me, I could see it, she was worried because I was staying silent and I hadn’t said anything. ”I’m sorry, she told me and I had no idea what to say, and before I could make sense of it and come and see you she had revealed the whole thing to Finn.”

I moved around the bench, stepping to the side I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her. My hand lightly rubbed up and down her back. ”Shhh it’s ok…” I stepped back and shot her a small smile. Kallie looked at me surprised.

She took a deep breath and took a sip of her tea ”You're not mad at me?”

I shook my head and took a sip of my own tea. She seemed relieved. And now I had to form a plan. ”I’m mad at Erin. I’m mad at her for not just letting it go, I’m mad at her from not only my standpoint of being in love with the same man that she’s in love with but I’m also mad at her for putting you in the position that she did. That is not something a friend should do. So I’m removing you from the middle of it. you don’t need to worry about it.”

”What are you going to do?”

I laughed and sighed heavily. ”Right now? Nothing. Because I don’t need to. Aaron is trying to make our lives a living hell but she also wants me to snap and push everyone away. Why do you think she told you? She wants me to be angry at you and push you away. She wants me to be angry at Finn because of this whole situation which was one of her making. I’m not going to let her do this. I’m not going to let her get into my head so I push the people I love away from me…”

Kallie had no idea what to say. I could see it, she was shocked at me bearing my soul and my heart to her. But it was true. She wasn’t just my friend, she was my family. And Aaron had tried to use her as a pawn in her little chess game. I wasn’t going to let her do this. I wasn’t going to let her win.

Perfect Soul

”I lost it…”

Kayla closes her eyes taking a deep breath, her long black hair is tied back away from her face in a bun, showing off her razor-sharp cheekbones, her green emerald eyes and a small twisted grin that appears to most people fear.

”Are you all expecting me to throw some kind of tantrum? To say that it was a fluke? To disrespect our new SCW world bombshells champion? Because that isn’t what’s going to happen. I lost, I lost a woman who on that night was better than Me. and I say on that night because it doesn’t mean she’s better than me as a whole. Some nights people are just on another level. And that’s what Andrea Hernandez was. When we stepped in the ring together at inception there was something different about her. The way she carried herself, the way she moved about the ring. She was a better version of herself than I had ever seen.”

“So, congratulations Andrea. You beat me. You stopped me from reaching 300 days as the world bombshells champion. I’m not going to say that it doesn’t hurt or that it didn’t make me angry or frustrated, because it did. Losing never feels good. Especially for someone like myself myself who feels that pressure so rarely. I’m not someone who loses all the time so when it does happen? It almost feels like a new sensation every single time. I’ve never become complacent in my losses. But, I did become complacent in my victories.”

“Thank you, Andrea…”

“Thank you for beating me. Thank you for giving me the gift of a loss. A singles loss. One-on-one in the center of the ring fair and square, you beat me. And I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, you learn more from a loss than you do from a win. Every single time I have been beaten, I have come back stronger. And with the exception of one person who did return to this company but has been hiding from Me like a little bitch weakling, I have avenged my losses. I have been that woman. The one who will lose but comes back and decimates opponents in ways that so many others wish they could.”

Kayla chuckles, closing her eyes as her mouth twists again into that same twisted grin.

”And the clock is ticking. At blaze of glory, I’m going to get into that elimination chamber and I get to destroy every single one of you who dare step foot in there with Me. And it’s strange because while I am the former champion and I should be looked at as someone who could walk out as the new champion, I’m at a disadvantage. You see while everyone else in this match gets to just focus on either retaining their championship, like Andrea, or winning the championship like everyone else. I have to keep one eye open for an obsessed bitch named Aaron asphyxia.”

“I have to deal with her as a distraction. I have to deal with her constantly getting involved in my business. Not just my personal life now but my actual business. And I can’t let her distract me or stop me from getting my championship back. But first, I have to team with the woman who beat me. And some of you might be expecting me to lash out at this fact. To be angry about the fact that I’m teaming with Andrea Hernandez.”

“That couldn’t be further from the truth. Normally, I hate teaming with anyone who isn’t named Finn Whelan. But in this case, I’ll make an exception. And it’s for one reason reason. I look over at Andrea and I see someone who has the exact same attitude as I do. She’s a competitor. She’s a pit bull. She will scratch claw bite and fight her way through anyone to get the win. She hates losing just as much as I do so I know damn well that when Andrea and I step into the ring, we will both be fighting for the same goal. To walk out as winners. This might sound strange but I trust Andrea. And I hope she trusts me. Because between Bell to Bell from the moment that match starts to the moment that match ends I’m going to be her partner. I’m going to do everything I can to win that match.”

“After the match though?”

“Well, when the dust has settled and she and I have our arms raised then I will be keeping an eye on Andrea just like I know she’ll be keeping an eye on Me. Another thing she and I have in common either we’re not stupid. I know that when the bell rings and she and I have won this match she could very well hit me from behind and try and get an advantage, just like I would. That is where the trust ends, that is where the road to the elimination chamber and blaze of glory begins. And we can work together in this tag match, I know we can, but when we get in that huge structure? I’m going to be doing everything I can to rip your head off and take my championship back.”

“Respectfully…”

She chuckled and took a deep breath turning and revealing that she was wearing a thin Whelan T-shirt. Maybe a small sign of support for her boyfriend?? Or maybe she’s just being snarky. You can never really tell with Kayla.

”Now, onto two people who I don’t have respect for. Cassie Wolfe and Mercedes Vargas. We have one young barely out of diapers rookie and one grandma who is nearly back into diapers. The two of you are going to be in the elimination chamber but let’s face it. You are just making up the numbers. Especially you Mercedes. I can understand Cassie being in this match. Her getting an opportunity to earn the right to get into the chamber makes sense. She’s a young hot prospect that the company hopes is going to become something. But you? You shouldn’t be in this match. You shouldn’t be in any match for an opportunity at the world championship.”

“And don’t think I have forgotten about you deciding to cut a little interview on climax control. Yes Mercedes you are going to be locked in that cage with me. The difference between you and me is that when I say I’m going to do something I actually do it whereas you keep spouting off nonsense about the things that you’ve done in the past and then doing nothing with that information or time. All of that experience you have, all of that unbelievable knowledge that is stuck in that aging brain of yours is useless. You would be better served as a manager to a young talent imparting that knowledge on them and finding glory that way.”

“And yeah, I understand that you are sick of hearing the whole argument that you are old. So, let’s switch gears a little. You’re also selfish. You are a selfish, self-centered egomaniac and you can’t see past your own insecurities and your own failures to step back and reevaluate your life. They constantly say that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks and bitch you can’t learn shit.”

“I get it though, you don’t want to fade away. You don’t want to be forgotten. So you’re doing everything you can to scratch and claw your way into relevancy. You got into the chamber and now you’re just going to be there. Hoping and praying that you’re able to somehow get lucky and walk out of that cage as the bombshells champion. And anything can happen. This is an unpredictable match. So somehow, someway, you could fluke a win and we could see Mercedes Vargas as the world bombshells champion in 2025. And somewhere Samantha Marlowe just had a coronary….”

Kayla chuckles again and shakes her head before refocusing on the other opponent in this tag match.

”Oh, Cassie Wolfe. The little puppy that could. You just keep coming back, don’t you? We have to admire your tenacity. You are still young enough that it makes sense. You are still a piece of clay that can be molded into a champion or someone great. Unlike Mercedes who has passed her prime and use-by date, you are just coming into your own. Now, you deserve to be in this match. You have that mixture of youth and desire that everyone loves to see in a challenger. But you have to realize what you’re getting into. This week you are in a tag match, you have to tag with a woman who is always out for herself, against a team where All we care about is winning. You are teaming with a woman who needs a walker to get around against perhaps the two best bombshells currently signed to this company. The current champion and the former champion.”

“That’s what you are dealing with at climax control. In a few weeks at Blaze of Glory, you’re going to be locked in a massive steel structure. Vargus will be there. You will be there. I will be there. Andrew will be there somehow will be there. And of course, another spot that we will probably have to fill. Because people are dropping in and out of this company like fucking flies at this point.”

“Thing is, I brought up desire. I brought up your desire and your youthful exuberance. But I want you to have a look at my desire. If I wanted to Cassie, I could’ve waited until the end of the chamber match. I could’ve waited to see who came out of that match as the champion and then put my rematch clause into effect to face whoever the champion was. But I chose to enter that chamber. I chose to put myself in that situation with the rest of you.”

“And that should frighten you”

“But, before we get to that match. Before you are locked inside that huge cage with me, you are going to have to face me and Andrea. And whether or not you and Vargas believe it or can see it, you are both pretty much fucked. Andrea and I are going to get into that ring and we are both going to want to prove a point. And you two are going to be the victims. So I’ll see you at climax control, and then when all is set and done, I’ll see you with the cage. All three of you.”[color]

Chapter 55: I’m only human, after all

There had been so many pleasant distractions over the last few weeks. Finn taking me to meet his family was one. That feeling I had being able to get to know him on a deeper level. I mean yeah I love him, and I know he loves me, but neither of us are very good at the whole relationship thing, and we have completely ignored that side of us. The side where we are supposed to meet our families and let them into our lives.

Well, we’ve crossed those lines. I met his mother, he met mine.

As I said - pleasant distractions. With everything going on in our lives right now it was refreshing to do something that didn’t involve us being tailed by a group of Romani. Or being “protected” by a group of Yakuza. Some time where we were able to simply be a couple instead of having to worry about flying in and out of airports and going to shows and doing meet and greets and all the other crap that our job makes us do. We got to act like a normal everyday couple.

But as soon as it ended and we came home, I felt the weight of the world back on my shoulders again. I felt the eyes of the Romani on me as I walked down the street. When I went to the gym, when I got something to eat, when I got my morning coffee. When I left or returned home. They were always there, always watching. At first I treated them with a quiet indignation. Glaring at them occasionally, flipping them off and then I started doing things like smiling and waving at them just so they knew I was there and I knew that they were there.

Finn told me I should stop.

I didn’t listen. And I have been trying to instigate them for the better part of the last few months. However, there is something else. Every single time I think I’m going to go over there and force them to take me to Jace, something happens and my plan crumbles to dust. But today, nothing was going to stop me. I woke up, I had my coffee, I grabbed my bag and got dressed. Getting my gym clothes on and holding my bag, I was getting ready to leave and walk right out the door.

Nothing was going to stop me.

”It’s not going to help…”

”Working out?”

Finn shook his head and slowly put down his newspaper. He stood up from the couch and moved toward me. He had a look in his eye that told me he was eager to say something. My hand tightened around my chin bag. It was a subconscious move.”Going and seeing him…”  I shouldn’t have been surprised that he knew. In another life, I think he would’ve been some form of detective, his detective powers and reasoning have always been top-notch.

”You keep saying that…. Any time you know I’m thinking about it. It’s the same argument over and over and over again. But, doing nothing isn’t changing anything either.” I was right, at least I thought I was. We were in some kind of weird holding pattern. Everything was the same day in and day out. No matter what we did, nothing was changing. So I was going to force a change.

Finn shook his head, folding his arms and leaning back against the kitchen bench I could tell that he was deep in thought. ”He’s not the type of man to be reasoned with. You keep on thinking that if you get him alone, he’s going to listen to you. That you can change his mind and just get this whole thing taken care of. He’s not going to listen. He’s not going to stop this.”

”Then what exactly are we meant to do?” I moved closer to Finn. I couldn’t hide, neither the annoyance on my face nor the slight pang of worry. ”We’re constantly being watched. They are always there. This is only going to get worse and we need to do something. Ignoring them hasn’t worked, you trying to talk to them hasn’t worked. The last thing left is for me to go and talk to him.”

Finn shook his head and reached out wrapping his hands around my arms ”Not the only thing left.” I tilted my head, there was something in his voice that made me think he had a plan. But what that plan was, I simply was not prepared for. ”Let’s get out of New York. Move away from here, they won’t care if we leave. There’s plenty of places out there where we would be happy.”

”Move?!?…. to where?”

”Florida? California?… don’t even have to stay in the US. You could move back to England, or we could go to Ireland.” he flashed a boyish grin at me. He knew damn well what he was doing with that smile. Usually he could get me to do whatever he wanted by using that.

This time, however, was different. ”No, no, no and no. Florida is filled with crazy people. If we moved there, Aiden would go from bringing home wombats and wallabies to try to bring home a pet alligator. California is filled with the most fake people on the planet Earth. England is rainy and dreary and I did everything I could get out of there and as for Ireland? See England without me trying to get out of there and you’ll see why we’re not going to step foot in that country.”

Finn chuckled and gave a small nod, before his hand drifted up to my face moving a few strands of hair from my eyes. His thumb grazed against my cheek and he leaned in kissing me on the forehead. ”Look… I don’t care where we go. I just want to get us away from them. And as long as I’m with you, I don’t care where I live.” I took a deep breath and before I could give him my answer he added something else in. ”Besides… we could go house shopping”

I couldn’t help but laugh. Thinking back when I moved into this large penthouse apartment with him, I was able to get away with so much. I changed parts of the decor. I bought furniture that he hated. I even made plans to knock down one of the walls to make it a more open living space. He knew what I wanted and knew that I’d say yes. ”That’s cheating…”

I shuffled closer and his hands slid from my arms to around my back. I leaned against him. It’s not that we were never affectionate toward each other, we just weren’t the type of people to make a big public display of it, preferring to wait until no one else is home to be able to show each other just how we feel. ”So, is that a yes?”

I looked up, getting on my tiptoes to give him a small kiss on the lips before nodding ”Yes…. I’ll move anywhere with you.” He leaned in close, looking for another kiss, and loudly, we both heard the door lock click. We heard the voices of everyone else coming in. Dickie and Aidan‘s laughter, Amelia and Kallie following. I groaned and took a step back, tilting my head. ”Maybe now we can get rid of the island of misfit toys…”

I moved into the kitchen to make some coffee as our friends returned. They took a deep breath and shook my head, this wasn’t the result I wanted. I still wanted a chance to talk to Jace, and I wanted it to end on my terms. But, as much as it pains me to admit it. Finn was right.

Lyon Hunt


”Hey look at that. Another SuperCard comes and goes and I am left standing yet again as the SCW World Bombshells Champion. Another challenger who was supposed to be the end of me. And it’s funny, because it’s not like Andrea Hernandez would have been any nicer of the champion than me. She doesn’t ingratiate herself to you people any more than I do; yet somehow, you got it in your head that she would have been a better champion than me. That this reign of terror that you all think I’m perpetrating on the Bombshells Division would’ve ended just because Andrea would be the champion – despite the fact that she and I have very similar thoughts on what should happen as a champion and where the division is going.”

Kayla takes a deep breath closing her eyes before clutching the championship title over her shoulder with one hand. The small smile comes across her lips as she pats the other side. The empty side. Almost as if something is missing.

”Every title defence, all of you get your hopes up that I’m going to get beaten and the title is going to be taken away from me. You got your hopes up with Tempest, you got your hopes up with Andrea, you even got your hopes up with Luna. And I’m not going to stand here and lie to you people, those three were real challenges. Those three are names that I can look at and know that I wasn’t necessarily going to walk out of the match as champion. But I did. All three of them are what I call the legitimate challenges. My first title defence was against the woman. I took it from and Julianna tried her hardest and was also a legitimate challenger..”

“Not everyone can stake that claim. Because not everyone is on a level that they can challenge me. That is something that Aleesha Jones should consider. See, I saw her win that little battle royale. And now she has a championship match in her back pocket and she can announce going after whichever one that she wants. A lot of people might not remember this but she beat me for the Internet championship. She ended up leaving the company before I could get my revenge and if you all remember correctly whenever I face someone who has a victory over me, I fucking destroy them.”

“Something to think about Miss Jones, before you go opening your mouth and making the worst mistake you could possibly make. And I’m not saying this because I don’t want to face you. To the contrary. If you pick me, I’ll be the happiest little girl in the world because that means I get to destroy you and put to bed any of these foolish notions people have that you are in any way, shape, or form better than me.”

“But the lesson that I want to teach you is one that one of my opponents this week already knows. Don’t you, Victoria?”

Kayla tilts her head, looking down at the Bombshells Championship, and then back over at the empty shoulder shaking her head. Clearly thinking about how she used to have two championships – one for each side – and now she has to move one title between the two like a peasant.

”Now, before I get to Victoria, let me shift focus a little over to Eddie. You see, while Miss Jones won the female battle royale Eddie Lyons was able to best everyone else there and get his shot at Finn. And let’s be honest here, Eddie. We all know that you have eyes for Finn‘s World Championship. and hey, at least you earned your way there, and challenging him face-to-face is something that a man would do. Maybe Miles Kasey should take note. Because it seems like no one wants to earn anything any more and no one wants to live up to the code that all of us professional wrestlers like to live up to and come at someone direct.”

“But, that is something that I do like about you, Eddie. You will come at someone direct. I know that you’re going to walk out onto that show and challenge Finn and tell him you’re coming for that World Title. Right before you and your cousin defend those Mixed Tag Team Championships against us. and I know for a fact that you will be up to the challenge because you are always up to the fucking challenge. Your cousin on the other hand, well…”

“Victoria, the last time you and I saw each other, I was beating you down one on one. And it’s funny, because you have been the most vocal about the mixed tag team titles and the fact you and your little pinhead cousin got the win over us. And I congratulated you, and I meant it. We could stand here and make all the excuses in the world as to why you actually beat us. It’s not like you guys had your hands clean.”

“Miles was as big of a part of you winning those championships as anything else. But, a win is a win and you should congratulate yourself and pat yourselves on the back because you beat the most dominant team that this company has ever seen. In fact, you two beat the two most dominant professional wrestlers that this company has ever seen. We sweep awards, we break records – that is exactly what myself and Finn do.”

Kayla steps forward, moving the Bombshell Championship from her right shoulder over to her left taking a deep breath before she continues. Her green emerald eyes burning forward as her red painted lips twist into some kind of arrogant, yet angry smirk.

”And, what have you done with those Mixed Tag Team Championships since you beat myself and Finn? Nothing, you’ve done nothing. He and I took them to the Main Event. He and I got everyone interested in them. Meanwhile, your first defence is also going to be your last. And the only reason that matches going to be in the main event is because of us. Because of myself and Finn. Because the two World Champions are going to be allowing you two idiots to bask in our fucking glory and feel the spotlight down onto yourselves. Now, Eddie has a shot at actually being a main event but you Victoria? As good as you believe yourself to be, you are not on the same level as myself, Tempest, Luna, or Andrea.”

“Sure, you like to walk around with the Roulette Title like some kind of prize and you like to be snarky to people like Bella Madison on Twitter or X or whatever the fuck it’s called. But when you get in the ring with someone who is a real champion, you fail. It wasn’t even you who beat us. Eddie was the one who got the pin, Eddie is the one who earned himself a World Championship match and you? When you had a chance to show the world that you were just as good as me, that you could beat me, you failed.”

“You failed.”

“You called yourself a queen, you tried to convince everyone that you are one of the best professional wrestlers on the planet, but when push came to shove and you looked at me in the eye, all I saw was a scared little girl who tries to put her angry face on whenever she gets in the ring. Someone like me. This isn’t a mask. I’m a raging bitch and I know it and I will do everything I can to keep my championship over my shoulder and now I’m going to do whatever I can to snatch those Mixed Tag Team Championships back. And it’s not because of any other reason that I want to.”

“See, Finn and I are already the longest reigning Mixed Tag Team Champions with the most amount of defences and at this point if we take those championships back, we’re doing so just to compete with ourselves. And it’s kind of fitting that he and I are competing with ourselves, because there is no other team that can.”

Kayla scoffs and shakes her head.

”In fact, when we take those championships back, we will be entering a very exclusive club. While Mercedes Vargas likes to talk about how she’s held the Mixed Tag Team Championships three times, she only did it twice with the same partner. So it’s going to be Vargas and Kain, and London Underground, and us. The only two time Mixed Tag Team Champions as the same team.”

“So, maybe we should be thanking you. Because allowing us to beat you and win them back means that we get to say we are two time SCW Mixed Tag Team Champions. And it gives us a chance to beat our own record.”

“And you two? Well, at least you can say you beat us to end our first reign and you get to say you were the Mixed Tag Team Champions.”

“Cause there will be no Miles Kasey to help you this time. Victoria, you already know that I can beat you, you already know that I’m better than you, and Eddie isn’t stupid enough to underestimate the World Champion. He knows how good Finn is, and he also knows how good we are as a team. When the dust settles, Finn and I are going to take back our championships. And then, if Eddie really is going to do what we all think he’s going to do, then I’m going to sit back and watch as Finn dismantle him for the World Championship. And you Victoria? Maybe one day you’ll earn the right to have a championship match against me, but we all know how that’s going to end, don’t we dear?”

Chapter 51: In a sisters shadow.

So many things have been happening in my and Finn‘s household. The last week also had been a whirlwind of action and moments. From Dickie and Aiden coming over and speaking to Finn, to my efforts trying to keep everything together with both of my sisters and Amber trying to connect with her young son Luca who was still living in the large apartment With Finn and me. Not to mention my complex feelings toward my nephew whom Finn had been able to rescue. My heart aches for him knowing that all he ever wanted was to be loved and cherished by his family and the feeling of rejection that he must’ve had when Amber struggled to connect with him.

But today was different. Amber had walked in bringing both Nova and Luna her twin daughters with her introducing them to Luca before taking him by the hand and taking him down the street to get something to eat and bond with him. She left her twin daughters with me and Finn allowing us to babysit the 2 6 year-old girls. Nova, who had always been headstrong and confident ran around and helped Finn with the different things he was doing around the house.

I on the other hand sat with Luna, she had always been the one who seemed to fade into the background standing in her more charismatic sister's shadow. I sat back slowly flipping through a magazine and showing it to Luna, we started talking about different dresses and clothes, allowing me to get an idea of what Luna wanted for Christmas.

I smiled at my niece. The truth is Nova and Luna reminded me of myself and Amber. While Amber and I were not twins and we had different views on life, we were only separated by three years. We had very similar personalities to each other, whereas Nova and Luna were completely different but I still had a soft spot for Luna. The young girl had always struggled and I wanted nothing more than to make sure my niece was going to be successful in life.

”Auntie Kayla…” I raised an eyebrow looking down at my niece. I acknowledged her voice before sitting back waiting to see what she wanted. ”Nova and I just started first grade. And it’s really weird. She has more friends than me. I don’t think people like me.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. Shaking my head I gave her a pat on the head ”It's ok no one likes me either”

Luna raised an eyebrow I know she wanted me to elaborate. I could hear Finn moving around close to the door. Stopping as he listened to the exchange. ”What do you mean Auntie Kayla?”

I sighed shaking my head ”When I was a little girl and I went to school your mother was one of the popular ones all through high school she had a lot of friends and had fun….I wasn’t as popular….I felt like I was in her shadow…” I took in a deep breath, shaking my head as I looked down at her. Luna studied me trying to figure out if I was telling the truth or if I was lying to her. She was so perceptive, as she always had been.

”And what did you do?”

”Nothing.” I smiled as Luna looked at me confused unsure of what to make of my statement. I cleared my throat deciding to elaborate. To let her know my secret the reason why I never cared if anyone disliked me. ”You will always find people, people who accept you for who you are. The most important thing is never changing. I could have, I could’ve changed and been more like your aunt Tasmin or been more like your mother, but I didn’t.”

She gave me a small nod understanding what I was trying to say. ”But didn’t you get lonely?”

I took in a deep breath smiling weekly before deciding on an answer ”A little bit. But eventually, you find people who want to spend time with you and like you for you. That’s what I got…. besides, I like you.” I smiled, Luna laughed and leaned over giving me a hug. I gave her a small paddle on the head kissing her forehead before she jumped down and ran to go find her sister.

Finn stepped around the corner moving up to me and folding his arms over his chest before leaning on the kitchen counter ”You are really good with kids”

I laughed and shook my head ”You seem shocked…”

Finn took a deep breath and stared ahead, he was choosing his words carefully. Smart man. ”Maybe. It just goes against what most people think of you. I know you have a side of you that you keep hidden, so it’s not shocking to me, but I just thought you should hear it. You do an amazing job with all of your family.” I simply smiled. It was a good feeling knowing that my efforts had always been noticed. Finn cleared his throat with a small smile coming across his lips starting in the corners it twisted upward ”Was that true? What you told Luna about how you felt? Being in Amber‘s shadow?”

”Oh god no I’ve always been fabulous…”

Finn stared at her, looking deep into Kayla's eyes with a small smirk ”Right, that’s what I thought…” he laughed moving around me and putting his hand on my shoulder. I reached up and squeezed it. As he released, he walked away spending some time with my nieces as I got to my feet and decided it was time to make a coffee. Being the favorite aunt is exhausting work and I needed energy.

”Auntie Kayla….come play hide and seek with us…Uncle Finn is gonna look for us…” Luna grabbed me by the hand, pulling me sideways as Nova came up as well giggling like a lunatic. I moved over looking across the room at Finn.

”Uncle Finn?” He shrugged that adorable boy screen plastered back on his face. He knew how to make my heart flutter. But I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that’s the kind of effect he had on me. I heard him start to count Nova Luna and I separated going and hiding. I sat in my hiding spot my arms folded over my chest looking out to see if I could see Finn coming. It hit me like a tonne of bricks. I was having fun. It was all about family…

Apex Predators.

The silence is broken by the sound of chuckling. Just a small one, a sharp inhale of breath as Kayla Richards comes interview. Her long black hair was tied back in a bun showing off her slender neck and strong jawline. She takes a deep breath tilting her head sideways with her tattooed arms folded over her chest.

”Well I wonder if anyone in the peanut gallery is still laughing at my expense? I told the world that this isn’t easy, I told the world that I was the best to do this and people still for some stupid reason doubt me. Tempest doubted me, so she decided to open her mouth and cast a shadow on my world bomb shield championship rain and make it sound like I wasn’t a worthy champion. Tell me Tempest, how did that go for you? How did all those stupid little comments about my actions as the champion of this division turn out for you? Because last time I checked, I’m still standing here as a double champion and you’re still standing there unable to break through the glass ceiling above you despite your enormous head and ridiculous height.”

Kayla lets out a small scoff noise shaking her head and throwing her hands in the air before placing The back around her chest, folding them over.

”It’s amazing to me how people seem to downplay what myself and Finn have been able to accomplish. What we’ve been able to do in the last year and a half. See, everyone keeps on pointing to other times throughout history in this company where people have held two championships concurrently. They talk about Roxi Amber and Mikah, and how they all held championships at the same time. But, what he and I have been able to accomplish our completely different. I’m not taking anything away from those women and the fact they were able to win a championship while still holding a championship.”

“But this is not the same. Both Finn and I have been able to defend the mixed tag team and world championships at the same time. We didn’t have to drop one of them within a month of holding it. We have been the mixed tag team champions for over a year and are well on our way to making sure that our names are forever etched in the histories of the biggest championships this company has. Nobody, and I mean nobody has done what he and I have been able to accomplish yet. There are still some people out there who want to run their mouths and discount both myself and him like nothing. Like we’re just pretenders to some imaginary throne that they’ve cooked up in their stupid little heads because they think they know better.”

“Finn just beat that overrated hack, Kris Ryans”

“It seems like his wrestling ability has aged about as well as his taste in women. I just beat Tempest. A woman who many thought was going to be the biggest test of my career because she was being locked inside a steel cage with Me. But he’s the problem, I wasn’t locked in that cage with her. She was locked in there with me and she was locked in there with the best fucking bombshell on this roster. So I walked out with that championship held high and now Finn and I are going to defend our mixed tag team championships against the Lyons family”

She steps forward, wearing a white crop top that shows off her midsection and the tattoos across there as well as her rather ample chest she leans forward. Her emerald green eyes piercing straight through the screen as if she’s looking right into the audience's soul.

”This match comes at a really horrible time for both of you. See, I would always be up to defend those championships against anyone let alone two people who have had a fair amount of success in this company and have shown themselves to be talented. But, coming out of my match against Tempest I was in a good mood but by the end of that super card not so much. You see I had to watch a stupid British ingrate turn around and stab a knife in my boyfriend‘s back in front of the entire goddamn world. That cowardly little douchebag who didn’t have the common decency to go up to Finn and say to his face that he wanted a championship match, so I’m not in the best of mood right now and because of that I’m getting into that ring and I’m looking to hurt someone”

“And that someone is going to be Victoria Lyons.”

“Under normal circumstances, I will just be looking at going in there and humiliating you because I don’t like you. Think you are quite literally one of the worst people on the planet and coming from Me someone who is universally disliked by 90% of the people in this company should tell you something. Victoria you are a skidmark on underwear that is found on a park bench frequented by old people, perverts, and homeless men. You are the type of person who would walk into a McDonald’s and then you would complain about the quality of the food. You are the type of person who thinks that Taco Bell shits are a right of passage.”

“You are the type of person who walks around in the summertime asking people about the heat.”

“Now, i’m not gonna sit here and say that you and your cousin aren’t great professional wrestlers because the truth is that you are. Hell, I even admire the way that you put Bella Madison against Me Victoria. I pointed it right out to Bella that I knew what you were doing because it was a brilliant move. You were putting Bella against me because you know I destroy her both mentally and physically making your job easier at violent conduct. And it worked, you came out the other side still holding your championship. You left Bella lying in the ring, as a nothing a nobody, and a broken shell. But, your choices helped you with that therefore I should be given an assist. So I guess I will say one small thing to you about that match.”

“You’re welcome…”

Kayla laughed to herself, shaking her head and looking down before looking back up with a small spark in her eye, it’s a spark of anger and frustration and a need to break someone.

”Now, well I can fully admit that you and Eddie are both talented, and I can even go as far as The say that you might be a threat to our championship rain and you could put up a good fight if you came after my bombshells world championship and Eddie might give Finn a small run for his money when it comes to the world championship this is not the week to be facing us. Your last name is not some kind of accident.”

“A lion is viewed as king of the jungle. An apex predator in a land of dangerous predators. And while Eddie takes the road of being honorable and trying to do the right thing in the right way you Victoria are more of a woman like me. A woman of my own heart as it were. You will do whatever you can to get an advantage because you know that that’s what this business is all about. But the problem is that you actually think of yourselves as apex predators in this business and this company.”

“But you’re not.”

“Finn and I are at the top of the food chain. We’ve proved time and time again through winning championships and defending them. He and I both took this company by storm and went right to the top. We’ve done things that nobody has ever done before and we have started taking off other records. He and I are both undefeated this year. He’s 14 and nothing and I’m 15 and nothing. Neither of us has felt defeat and neither of us has known what it’s like to walk out a loser. We are the best of the best. You and Eddie can do everything you can to take these championships from us and I’m sure you will do everything that you can even though you can’t stand each other.”

“But in the end, you’re both going to fall and fail the same way everyone else has. Because you simply are not on our level.”

Chapter 47: Unwind

”But WHHHHYYYY”

That is how my night started. If I can, I want to take you guys back a few hours. I was sitting in the lounge room of my home. Both of my sisters, Amber and Tasmin along with someone who many would consider to be my best friend. Kallie Reznik. And of course, she was the one who let out that long whiny question. They had all tried to get Me out of the house. They were ganging up on me and telling me that I needed to get out and clear my head.

And their idea? Their great revelation on how to make sure that I’m focused on my life and I can breathe easier and be happy? Simple. They want me to go clubbing. Yes, clubbing. It was Tasmin and Kallies idea. Not that I should be surprised. I stared at all three of them, they stood shoulder to shoulder with my sisters flanking Kallie on either side. Meanwhile, I sat on my couch, my arms folded over my chest staring up at all three of them with all of indignation and annoyance.

If looks could kill indeed.

I shook my head, Tasman rolled her eyes and turned around while Kallie threw her hands in the air. They both stomped off as Amber shook her head and stepped toward me before sitting across from Me on the singular chair. She leaned forward, her elbows leaning on her knees as she tilted her head and looked me up and down. ”The little twit is right….this might be a good idea for you to unwind a little

”I don’t need to “unwind” I need to be left alone”

Amber laughed, she shook her head and looked me dead in the eye. ”Right, you aren’t uptight at all, are you? Even though it looks like we could shove a lump of coal up your ass and diamonds would come out in about five seconds.”

”That’s because I’m fucking fabulous” I spat out the words with venom with a straight face. It was a half joke half statement of intent and annoyance. More and more I was getting agitated and they could all see it in my face. But I could also see there’s that they were not going to let this go.

So I agreed.

And that’s what led me hear. Pumping electronic music, neon lights, and drinks that had an odd almost radioactive glow. I hated it. I sat at our booth, drinking my third drink of the night because I thought alcohol might help. Amber hated these things too but she seemed to have an odd look of satisfaction on her face as she watched me squirm. Tasmin was enjoying herself, dancing and bopping to the music but Kallie?

Well, this was something that gave me a little bit of satisfaction. She realized the grave error that she had made. ”OH MY GOD IT’S SO LOUD” She whimpered and covered her ears. I shook my head and drank the rest of my neon green colored martini.

”Come on, you should be enjoying yourself…like Tas..” Amber motions to our sister, she was swaying and lightly sipping her drink while listening to the music. She was enjoying herself, and why wouldn’t she? It was a night away from Adam and their child. Everyone needs that time away, I suppose. ”Kallies husband seems to be enjoying herself..”

Ahh yes. How can I forget? The moronic Australian insisted on escorting us. Saying that New York City late at night was no place for four unescorted women. He was trying to be sweet. And it made it easier since they were childless this weekend with his parents being in town. I couldn’t help but laugh looking over at the idiot. Covered in glow sticks, shirtless, wearing board shorts and skater shoes dancing to the music while blowing a whistle. And yes, before anyone asks he was doing a robot. ”Might be worth it just to see that…”

”Have you told him?” and there it is. Amber never failed to get he as soon as anyone was looking to get out of that kind of situation.

”No.”

Simple and concise. I was nothing if not these things. Especially when it came to my personal life. But I also knew that my sister was not going to let this stay where it was. Amber always had this need to get down to the bottom of everything. ”He needs to know…”

I took a deep breath, holding it in before pushing it out and shaking my head turning to Amber and holding my drink in my hand. ”Why?” I said forward laying closer to my sister. Kallie still had her hands over her ears. ”I don’t want to revive all of it. Besides, it’s not like it’ll make much of a difference. We deep in this shit.”

Amber shook her head and folded her arms over her chest sitting back ”He might understand. Besides, he needs to know. He needs to know everything that you’ve gone through and why you are, you know, the way you are.”

”The way I am?” I laughed to myself and shook my head. I knew what Amber meant. I know that I’m not the easiest person to get along with or get close to. And while I can’t blame all of that on my past it certainly made it worse. ”Yeah… it seems like he loves me despite all of that. Maybe he will understand. But not now. I’ll tell him, I will. But when I’m ready.”

Amber took a deep breath and nodded her head toward Me. Acknowledging that it was time to drop the subject. I drank the rest of my drink putting it down. I took a deep breath and smiled the alcohol starting to take effect. I looked over and laughed as I saw my sister dancing. Tasmin was never the most graceful. Think of a baby giraffe on ice. I slid to the side of the booth getting up and pulling Amber toward me. The two of us went over to our baby sister to save her from herself. I couldn’t help but laugh, and the three of us started to dance.

Kallie joined us. And for the first time in a long time, I felt myself having fun. Letting loose and just trying to forget about all of the problems in the world. The issues with Finn‘s brother, the issues with the Romani. The pressures of being a world champion and face of a huge company. All of those stresses just washed away in a haze of thumping electronic music and neon-colored alcohol. ”See, I knew you’d have fun.”

I didn’t want to admit that Kallie was right. The stress had melted away and I was enjoying myself. As the song started to wind down I realised I needed a drink, but that’s when it happened. I turned and looked over to the bar and my stomach started to hurt, my heart dropped into it And I took a deep breath. He was there. Jace. Standing at the bar, holding a small glass and taking a sip. His long hair was tied up in a man bun as he tilted his head and leaned backward against the bar. A tight black shirt clean to his huge muscular frame he raised the glass up to me and gave me a small wink.

I took a sharp breath in and had to get out of there. I turned to move past both my sisters as well as Kallie. I needed air, I needed to get out. As I made my way out onto the street, I heard footsteps behind Me and spun around. Only to find Amber. ”…..what happened?”

I closed my eyes and shook my head looking down. ”You didn’t see him? Jace. He was at the bar.”

Amber blinked a few times obviously trying to process what I said. She then took a deep breath and shook her head. ”I’m sorry Kay, none of us saw him.” I took a few deep breaths and shook my head, Amber‘s face changed. She looked concerned.

”I just want to go home.” They all looked at me, never giving a small look of acknowledgment to everyone else before reaching out and taking Me by the arm. They understood and we were ready to go. But I couldn’t get it out of my mind. The wink, the fact he knew exactly where I was. And the fact he got away with everything.

I needed something to be done about this.

Unstoppable

”Some victories can be viewed as losses if you go too far celebrating them. Especially when it’s a victory that doesn’t deserve to be celebrated.”

Kayla laughed to herself, shaking her head and folding her arms over her chest. Her two championship belts sit close by as always. Deliberately placed to show off that she is a double champion and is due all the respect in the world.

”See, if you kick a can down the road and you happen to do it over and over again, do you celebrate it? Is it fun to do? Because that’s the situation I find myself in right now. I am a world champion. I am the world champion of the bombshells division. I faced and beat one of the best up-and-coming champions that this place had. I then defended the championship against a woman who went through an entire tournament just to get an opportunity at the title. I have done everything I can to make sure people look at the world Bombshells championship with respect admiration and lust.”

“I want people to lust after this championship. To want it. The same way I feel about the mixed tag-team championships. But the Bombshells championship is what I defended last week. And the victory from that is a hollow one. I can’t sit here. Tell you all that it was a great victory in a hard-fought match because it wasn’t. That was an easy match that I knew I was going to win and those matches do not excite me. They do not get my blood running. They don’t get their adrenal and coursing through my veins. Matches like that do not make me love professional wrestling which is one of the few things in this life that I enjoy.”

“Beating Seleana is not something that I’m going to stand here and celebrate like it is a great thing. Because it wasn’t.”

“The Bombshells championship deserves better. It deserves Me facing the best of the best and she damn sure wasn’t the best of the best. I am a woman who enjoys being challenged. And when I’m not? I get bored. And if I get bored, I get mouthy. It’s the entire reason why I ended up going toward the world bombshells championship in the first place. Because I was bored and decided to mouth off and constantly call out Juliana DiMaria. And that led me to be a champion but it also was one of the hardest and most infuriating moments of my career. And here I am holding two championships and again I’m going through the same bullshit because I’m starting to get bored. This company needs to do better and present me with challenges. And that leads me into this next match.”

Kayla can’t help her take a deep breath and shake her head before refocusing. Trying to suppress anger and frustration.

”A mixed tag team title match. Against the team that Finn and I have already beaten over and over again. Miles and Alexandra. I understand I do. You two want these championships so bad that it is burning a hole right through both of your brains. At least it would if anything went through Miles's brain except for Carter. Now, something that you two boneheads need to realize is that other teams have made the excuse that they are real teams and that Finn and I weren’t. Even in the beginning, that was a stupid thing to say. He and I are well-oiled machines and we make up a team that is greater than the sum of parts. And that is a major problem for you.”

“See, it’s a major problem because he and I are also also the world champions. These titles. These mixed tag-team titles have been overlooked. They’ve been used and abused by different teams just because they wanted to get the Rob. He and I wanted to make these championships mean something and we have worked day and day out weekend out in and out for almost almost a year to make sure that these championships are ones teams want to hold and are after as more than just to pad your fucking resume.”

“We have taken them to the main event. We have made the mean something.”

“And you both seem to believe that you’re going to do better than us? That you are worthy of holding them? Look if you are good enough as a team to beat myself and Finn then yeah you deserve to call yourself champions but the problem is, you already think you are in your head. Thinking and believing these things and proving them are completely different. So many others have said they’re better than me but they yet fucking prove it. Others have talked shit about Finn saying that they can beat him but none of them have proved it. But hey you two are ready to force a change right? That’s what Alexandra said?”

she can’t help but laugh and shake her head again.

”Let’s talk about that then. How exactly are you both? Going to accomplish this? Do you think you’re gonna do it by just being better than us? Sorry not gonna happen. You look at both of your careers and you look at what you’ve accomplished as a team and you still don’t come anywhere close to being that good. now, miracles happen. That is a straight-up fact miracles in this business happen and upsets happen. If Finn and I both have an off day you might be able to sneak in a quick win with a roll-up, a handful of tights, or if we slip on a banana peel, whatever the fuck”

“But it’s going to take a hell of a lot more than wishes upon a star and potential to beat us. And that is the albatross that’s been hanging around Miles. That albatross around his neck. The word potential. And there was a time when I agreed with that. We all looked at you Miles and thought that you had untucked potential and you were good enough to become a world champion. You’ve had these opportunities gifted to you over and over again only fall short each time and you’ve had nobody to blame except for yourself.”

“And for a while, your personality came through. That determination you had to be the best. That determination you continuously talked about in promos where you wanted to show the world that you were capable of more. But that personality is slowly disappeared replaced by something that makes the rest of us roll our eyes in total cringe.”

“Your entire personality has changed from being someone who wants to improve and wants to be the best to simply being Carter's husband. That’s it. Your entire personality your hopes your dreams your aspirations your past your future every single thing you could possibly imagine and everything that you have accomplished will accomplish or could accomplish boiled down to one simple statement and one simple thing. You are Carter's husband.”

“The end…”

She rolls her eyes and throws her hands in the air before continuing

”But Carter is technically Finn‘s problem. Alexandra is mine. And what a problem she is. It’s funny how people sit there and constantly talk about me and how I will say things that get me into trouble and how I’m this horrible, arrogant self-righteous piece of shit yet out of the two of us who has been more problematic Alexandra? which one of us causes more problems for those in our lives. Because you have been dragging Miles into the mixed tag division and costing him so much just because you want these championships. And without a good enough partner, you would have no chance at taking them from us.”

“But it’s time for a change right? That is this rhetoric that you decided to throw out there on social media. Talking about all due respect and all this other stupid bullshit. Let me lay it out for you. Respect is something that is earned. You should respect myself and Finn because we have a track record of winning. We have a track record of being the best. Not just in the mixed tag team division but also in the main event. He is a two-time SCW world champion and I am a three-time Internet champion and the current reigning defending undisputed bombshell world champion.”

“You should respect us. And if you didn’t, I certainly beat it into you.”

“That respect that you gave us? It’s one-sided. Because as I said, I don’t respect you. I don’t respect you as a woman I don’t respect you as a performer. I don’t respect you as a challenger. I do not respect you one bit. And if I had children, I wouldn’t respect you as a mother either. A mother is supposed to be somebody who sets an example for her children. The only example that you set for your child is being a leach when it comes to talent and fame and not having a goddamn lick of purpose in a company like this. Your legacy and your example to your daughter is that of failure and being a liability to not just your tag-team partner but the fucking company.”

“And you will drag down these mixed tag-team championships with your inability to be anything more than a joke. And I will be dead in the cold cold ground before I let you destroy something that I’ve built up so much. So you and Miles can do everything you possibly can to beat us, but in the end, all you are going to be is a failure.”

Chapter 43:Rememberence.

I never was one to follow orders.

I suppose it’s the rebellious streaking me. One that I’ve had since I was a little girl. This entire thing has to do with me. But I’ve been told to stay out of it. To stay away. Finn wants to handle it. And part of me wants to believe that he can. Part of Me wants to give up that control and let him. But, I still need to do something. Just sitting around and watching all of this pass by is enough to drive anyone insane. And that’s what has been happening to me.

The feeling of very slowly going insane. Watching someone else be responsible for a situation that involves both of us. So, I decided that I was going to see the one person who could possibly understand what I was feeling and what I was going through. The one person on this planet who had gone through something similar and escaped from the other side. Part of me didn’t want to. I didn’t want to bring up those memories, I didn’t want to go to her with this only because I knew that she was in a good place right now.

I know I joke around about my sister now being a domesticated house plant, but she’s happy. Away from the life of a professional wrestler, away from the crazy carnival that we’ve all been part of.

But it isn’t just that.

She was also away from the Romani life. A life that she got sucked into many years ago a life that she had to put up with. The painful life of abuse, physical and mental. All because we chose wrong when it came to significant others who have drawn us in with their charm only to become monsters behind closed doors.

I know she felt guilty.

You say it was Amber who introduced me to Jace.

She was the one responsible for all of this. Even though she didn’t want to admit it. I took a deep breath and knocked on her door, I wasn’t sure what the reaction was going to be. The door popped open. She tilted her head and smiled before folding her arms over her chest. ”Well…..lovely for you to drop by….for once….” She gave me a sarcastic smile, I rolled my eyes and gave her a nod before walking in. Nova and Luna, my twin nieces ran up to me and gave me hugs.

They both talked at the same time rattling off everything that was going on in their lives. After a few minutes of talking, giving them hugs, and letting them know that I was proud of them and I missed them too. And that was it. The novelty of Auntie Kayla wore off very quickly. Amber shook her head and sat down sliding a coffee to

”As much as I know that you’ve missed your nieces, why are you actually here?”

I took a deep breath, I closed my eyes and I looked around to make sure that the girls were nowhere to be seen. ”I….need your advice.” Amber scoffed and stepped back, folding her arms over her chest as she leaned against the kitchen bench. I understood the look in the feeling, I very rarely came to her for advice and when I did, I didn’t often listen to her. ”Jace came to see me…”

In a swift moment, the arrogance was gone. Amber went pale. Well paler than usual, her eyes wide and as she shook her head and looked away. ”No. no Kayla. This isn’t funny. If this is some kind of joke, if this is you just trying to fuck with me, I don’t appreciate it. There is no way any of them would come to you. We were done, we were gone. Renée is dead. We have nothing to do with them anymore and I will not have you coming into my house and bringing this to my doorstep.”

”M-ai adus la ușa lor și acum s-au întors în viața mea”(You brought them to my door and now they are back in my life) I couldn’t help it, I had to slip back into Romanian. Just emphasise the point. It stopped her rambling, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. ”I wouldn’t have come here if I didn’t have a good reason. Finn said he would take care of it.”

”prost al naibii”(fucking fool) part of me wanted to laugh. I hadn’t heard her speak Romanian in a while let alone swear. ”You can’t let him. I do not doubt that Finn is a dangerous man. Or dangerous than maybe you know. But you can’t let him do this okay? You know how dangerous Jace is….”

She was right. I did know how dangerous Jase was. I closed my eyes and I could smell it. The cigarette smoke in the air, Jack Daniels flowing. Jace and Renée. The oldest brothers of the Pleasant family. One of the oldest Romani families in the Americas. Tracing their history all the way back to the early 18th century. They were both Romani princes ready to take charge of the family. And Amber and I were their gateway into the world of professional wrestling. A business where they could not only make some money but also push their criminal trades further.

The brothers took us out for what they promised was a nice dinner. But we ended up at a bar in upstate New York. I still remembered the smell, I still remember the awkward glances that Amber and I shot each other when we walked in. I remember hearing Jace and René talk to each other in Romani. Amber and I could only pick up a few words, neither of us was fluent at that point.

I sat down, looking over at Amber as Jace stood up, walked across the bar, and then with an evil grin grabbed the small balding older man who sat at the bar. He kicked the stool out from under him and in one motion pulled him back, slamming the old man against his knee. He fell to the ground heaving heavily as he was barely able to breathe. Amber and I were both scared. René just chuckled. A cold glare in his eyes. He was holding himself back from getting up and doing more damage. Preferring to leave this moment of intimidation and violence to Jase. ”We told you, we warned you. Your little mafia family isn’t in charge anymore. This whole area is ours. This was a warning. Hopefully, you can regain feeling in your fingers, and your legs. Because you need to run along to your bosses and tell them exactly what I just said. If not? they’re gonna have to put you back together from all the body parts that they’ll find.”

When Jase turned around, I still had the look on his face etched in my mind. It was cold and uncaring, the only emotion I could see was that of a man who was enjoying what he was doing. And it terrified me. Amber closed her eyes and shook her head. And that’s what I knew, I knew that she had seen stuff like this before.

”Yeah, I remember what they were like. I remember how dangerous they were. I get it. But I still don’t know what to do.” I swallowed hard. Letting the memories get pushed down. I hated everything. I hated how that made me feel. I hated the fact that Amber had to deal with it too. I looked up and noticed that she had a look on her face that I had seen. 

Remorse

She felt guilty. ”If you want my honest advice?” I said nothing, just staring ahead with a small move of my eyes to let her know that I did want her opinion. Amber took a deep breath and leaned in. ”Give the Romani whatever they want. Whatever they’re asking for. Just give it to them. Hopefully, they’ll forget you exist, hopefully, they will just leave you alone. But that’s my advice take it or leave it.”

I grabbed my coffee, chugging it down before pushing off the kitchen table to stand up. ”Yeah….thanks….I don’t know I’ll figure it out….take care of yourself.” Amber smiled grabbing my hand as we both squeezed each other. I moved out of the apartment letting the door close behind me. I took a deep breath grabbing out my phone. This was horrible. And I was still in the dark about what I should do.

Challenge

”I would say that it is hard being me. But that’s a lie. It is amazing being me.”

Kayla Richards, current SinCity wrestling mix tag team champion and world bombshell champion. She was on top of the world, arrogant and Happy. And why wouldn’t she be?

”I mean, my accomplishments speak for themselves. Since I came into this company, I have done nothing but win. And admit it was a spotty start. You say I am under the impression that this company didn’t want me. When I first came in to SCW I was only known by reputation. I was a champion and other places and everyone knew it. But I also had the reputation that I was arrogant and a bit of a bitch. Which, is absolutely true. And I don’t apologize for it. In fact, I own it. But this company did everything they could to not let me succeed.”

“A few weeks later, after I had kicked and screamed and booted that door down I was ready to take this company by storm. I went after the roulette championship. A title that, to be honest, I didn’t want. My heart wasn’t in it and it was at a summer extreme in an ultimate X over the pool that I tasted defeat. But I wasn’t pinned, I didn’t submit. I fell into a fucking pool.”

“I became the best Internet champion this company has ever had. I helped make the mixed tag team championships mean something. I have become the bombshells champion.”

“I am SCW.”

“Now a lot of the voices that are within the company, ones that talk to shit, have been silenced. But that doesn’t stop others from outside the company, who used to be here, from running them out. Jealousy is a hell of a thing. And if anyone wants to sit there and say that I’m jealous of certain people who used to be here? You’re blind. I am a double champion. Holding two championships simultaneously and defending them simultaneously. Something that’s never been done in this company. Myself and Finn are the first two people to do that.”

She can’t help but laugh, her British accent shining through as she looks over at the two championships sitting on the table. Both of them face the camera, both of them with her name on the bottom of the nameplates.

”Finn and I are not just world champions. We are also the longest-reigning mixed tag team champions of all time. We also have the most defenses. And even though we went a while without defending them due to this company needing to find actual challenges for us, we are now going to defend these championships twice in one month. Yet those voices still persisted. The last time you saw us, the last time we walked down to that ring to defend these championships it was against two people who are in a similar position to myself and Finn.”

“We defended them in the main event against a number one contender Famai title and the roulette champion. Alexander Raven and Luna Paisano. These are two people who are worthy of respect because they go down to that ring every single time and leave it there. Alexander is a possible opponent for someone like Finn and Luna is going to be coming Famai Bombshell championship. At summer extreme she’s going to find out that the beating she took in the mixed tag team match is nothing compared to what will happen one on one.”

“But, that isn’t where our story is ending is it?”

“You see in an effort to give teams a chance at our mixed tag team titles. They have brought back a team that has already challenged us. A team that under any other circumstances might have a shot at being the chance. But, that would require me and Finn not to be here. That would require Alexander and Luna not to want these championships. Unfortunately, we are here and we are the champions.”

“And no, we are not about to start singing Queen.”

“Miles and Alexandra. A team we have faced and beaten before. But so much has happened between then and now. See Finn and I have defended our world titles, defended the mixed tag team titles, and have done nothing but show the world that we are the pinnacle. While you two have….”

“…..existed.”

Kayla offers a small shrug and sits down. Dressed in a tight-fitting long white dress with a plunging neckline, she crosses one leg over the other and throws her arms over the large black leather couch that sits in the hotel room that she’s been given a five-star suite because she’s a fucking champion.

”I mean it really does say a lot that your biggest accomplishment over the last couple of weeks is going to be that you are main inventing the 400th edition of climax control. Cause god knows you both don’t have much else. I mean, Miles, you haven’t been doing anything except getting fed to Peter Vaughn. All we keep hearing is that Miles Kasey has all this potential. Potential is a word that gets thrown around with you a hell of a lot. We’ve gone through it before and we’re going to go through it again.

“Potential doesn’t mean anything if you don’t eventually capitalize on it. People once told me I had potential. When I was a 21-year-old rookie. When I was struggling to keep up with women who were so much more experienced than me. People said I had potential when I first got in the ring with Mercedes Vargas years ago. And she put a beating on me that many others would kill to do now. People said I had potential when my own older sister was a world champion and gave me a shot against her and she did the same thing. Mercedes did.”

“They said I had potential.”

“But, that potential got turned into an opportunity. Those opportunities got turned into accomplishments. And those accomplishments have been turned into a legacy. I have been a champion at every single company I have ever stepped foot into. I have been to the top of the mountain in multiple companies. I’ve done things that will live in the hearts and minds of fans all around the world whether they love me or hate me. I’m wrestling royalty. And you? You are just someone who we are waiting for.”

“Waiting to do something. Anything. But do you know what you do, Miles? Disappoint us. Every single time you take one step forward toward a goal, every time you take one step forward toward being something more than just a kid with potential you think it’s slacked right back because you can’t handle the pressure. You beat once when he didn’t care and instead of capitalizing on that and becoming something more, you ended up failing. And that’s all you have done.”

She laughed again, shaking her head and reaching forward, she picked up a small glass filled with whiskey taking a sip before placing it back down and stretching.

”Finn he’s going to destroy you in this mixed tag team match. He’s already done it once and he’s going to do it again. All because deep down he is sick of you. He is sick of everyone talking about your potential. He’s sick of you not being focused on your career. And he’s sick of you not stepping up and being the man that we all thought you were.”

“And me? Well, I’m going to take your bean head tag team partner and I’m going to crush her like the insignificant little worm she is.”

“And yes Alexandra, I’m talking about you. Here I am talking to someone who thinks they’re on a higher level than they are. And truth be told, that is what makes me want to crush you. See I can handle people who have an ego who have earned it. I can handle people who have tried to better themselves. Shit, I can respect people who will do everything they can to realize their dreams and their goals. But what I can’t handle and what I can’t stand is someone like you.”

“You believe yourself to be a worthy contender. Someone who stands on the upper echelon of what the bombshells division needs. I want to be very clear on this, right now in the bombshell division there are a handful of women who I would consider to be the best of the best.”

Kayla leans forward taking another sip of her whiskey before shaking her head and staying close.

”Myself, Luna, DiMaria, Hernandez, Johnson, shit even Bella Madison. They are all above you. Even someone like Mercedes Vargas, a returning Alicia Lukas, and Ariana Angelos even though I’ve kicked her ass more than I have anyone else in this company. All of them I would consider to be somewhat close to the other names I mentioned. But you? You are not there.”

“You are known for what?”

“Hmm?”

“Getting dragged kicking and screaming to the blast from the past final by Alexander Raven? Let’s face it, he got you there. And you are damn lucky you didn’t lose that toy championship that you were running around with them. And the second that you had to defend that championship? The second you had to step up and try and be something more than the pathetic piece of crap that we’ve all come to know and not respect? You failed. You lost that championship. The roulette championships are the biggest jokes that I’ve ever seen in this company and you couldn’t even hold onto that.”

“And now here you are trying to get championships that means something. And you’re trying to do it by getting miles to help you.”

“Shameful.”

“Now, I’m going to let you in on something that we all know but you somehow don’t. An open secret as it were. Nobody wants you here. Nobody. You’ve even become an inconvenience for your friends. Now, I’m a complete bitch. I’m arrogant, self-righteous, I’m way too good at what I do and it makes everyone hate me. But even I have people in this company who want me to stay. All your friends? They want you to leave. They talk about you behind your back because they don’t have the heart to say it to your face.”

“You’re a liability.”

Kayla clears her throat and leans back. Taking a deep breath before finishing her whiskey and holding the empty glass in her hand.

”Now, I’m not usually in the business of doing favors for people. But I’m going to do Miles and his brother a favor. I’m going to get rid of you. Going to walk down to that ring, I’m going to beat you so bad that there is no chance of you ever wanting to come back out to that ring and attempt to be a professional wrestler. If you’re lucky I might leave just enough that you can roll yourself into a little ball and go back to PWS where you belong”

“You are not on my level Alexandra.”

“And Miles isn’t on Finns.”

“As individuals, he and I are almost unstoppable. As a team? We are basically unbeatable. It’s why we’ve held these championships for so long. It’s why we’ve already beaten you. It’s why we’ve beaten other teams that are worthy of facing us. Because you aren’t. You are not worthy of facing us. You are not worthy of being in that ring with us and I don’t even know why you’ve been handed this opportunity. But I’m going to make sure you never get handed anything ever again. And when all is said and done, Finn and I will be standing tall with all our gold.

Chapter 39: Birthday Blues

If there is one thing I hate more than Christmas is this wretched time of year. A time of year that sends a shiver down my spine as we get closer and closer to a day that most people seem to enjoy. But for me it is a day where I get the wrong kind of attention. The type of attention where I am flat bang at the center of it. Being celebrated for something that is completely out of my control and is inane and pedantic.

It’s my birthday.

And every year is the same thing. My sister asked me if I want to do anything. I say no. And she orchestrates some kind of surprise birthday party. Some kind of elaborate event that she thinks I’m not going to catch onto. Meanwhile, my brother and my older sister as well as my mother all get in on the act.

I talk about how they know I don’t want it to happen and they will respect my wishes.

No matter how many times I tell them I don’t want it to happen.

They say they know. They say that I will get my way this year.

And then every single May 13th it happens. Someone comes over to distract me. Whether or not that is Amber, my mother, or someone else who is floating around in my life like a certain ex who shall remain nameless as he pumps himself full of steroids. One of them comes over, they take me out for some stupid reason. And then I come home. The lights will be off and everyone will then say surprise.

Only it’s not a surprise.

It is a vomit inducing forced interaction with people that I really really don’t want or understand. And as the date has come closer this year part of me has been wondering just what they will do to distract me. Of course, this year I have other things to do and other things that I want to happen.

But, that is another bridge I need to cross. Conversations that need to be had. And none of them, and I mean none of them, have to do with my birthday. But here I was knowing exactly what was about to happen and the conversation I was about to have. I pulled the door open, Tasmin smiled at me. Her long blonde hair tied back. She had made a point to start coming around without her daughter. Mainly to give my niece and her father some daddy daughter time.

”So this time of year….” and there it was. She hadn’t even had time to put her handbag down before she decided to pull the conversation toward my birthday. ”Look, I know what you’re going to say, but this year is different. You have friends and family who care about you…..and want to celebrate another year of you being alive…” My nostrils flared and I ground my teeth together as my arms instinctively crossed over my chest. ”Why don’t we plan a party here? You won’t even have to do that much….Kallie and I will do the legwork…”

I shook my head and took in a sharp breath. The truth was that I didn’t even think I would be in this apartment by the time my birthday rolled around in a week. I had people circling to buy it. Because I was going back home. Something that Finn and I had talked about but others didn’t know about yet. For reasons that we hadn’t gotten into. ”Not here….somewhere else but not here”

Tasmin’s eyes lit up as I said it could be somewhere else. It was an instinctive moment. It was Me trying to cover up the fact that this apartment that I made such a big deal out of acquiring and making into a home was soon going to be sold to someone else because I was going back to my real home. The place that I actually felt comfortable. And I couldn’t tell her. As much as I wanted to. ”Okay I can do that. I wonder if Kallie will have an idea…” and like clockwork and timing. There was a knock at the door. I walked over and undid the latch opening it.

On the other side was Kallie. A large smile on her face as she held Dax in her arms. She waved with her free hand and made her way in looking over at Tasmin who smiled. ”Like oh my god, sorry I’m late but like this total “see you next Tuesday” was all over the road” she put Dax down in the small play area that I had brought into My Home. Full of children’s toys due to the fact that so many of my friends and family were reproducing and I didn’t want to have to deal with it.

Tasmin flashed a smile and moved across closer Kallie. ”Get your planning hat on. We are going to do Kayla’s birthday somewhere. Just not here. So you need to come up with a good idea on where-“ Kallie put her hand up in front of Tasmin’s face and narrowed her eyes. She moved over closer to me, circling Me and leaning in and out her eyes narrowing and opening before she put her finger up on the tip of her chin and tapped it.

”You and Finn made up. Not just that. You’ve told each other you love each other.

My job popped open, I started but was unable to make any noise that would be considered a word. Tasmin stood there and blinked, unable to fathom what she was saying or how Kallie  would know. Kallie though, she just stood there. I finally brought it back together enough that I was able to form a sentence. ”Who…how?….” okay, it wasn’t a sense. But it was close enough give me a break.

Kallie smirked. ”How did I know? Kay, c’mon, I have like total EST about these things…”

”ESP”

”Yeah that’s what I said”

Tasmin went to open her mouth and say something. But stopped herself as she realized that Kallie was not going to get it or understand or even care at this point. ”Ok, so it seems like there are a few bridges that we need to cross here. But I’m not ready. I understand you both probably have questions. But the truth is that hand and I have no idea where this is going on what we are doing. I will say that I know where I’m going to be living but that’s beside the point”

Kallies eyes widened, Tasmin smiled. ”So, you’re moving back home?” Home. The way she said it made me smile. I tried to hide it but there was a small flicker when my lips twisted. Enough that they both saw it.

I snapped out of it and shook my head, folding my arms back over my chest again as I regained my composure. I needed to nip this in the bud right now and stop it from going any further. ”There is a reason why I haven’t told anyone. You both cannot tell anyone else. Tasmin that means you cannot tell Adam and Kallie you cannot tell Aidan. Believe me I didn’t tell you to for a reason and if I’m not going to tell my sister and my best friend. You have to understand why I don’t want you telling your husbands.” I sneered and narrowed my eyes.

Kallie took a sharp inhale and her hands moved up to her chest as her fingers spread. She breathed in and out a few times looking like she was about to cry as both myself and my sister looked over at her tilting our heads in confusion. ”You said I was your best friend?”

I took a deep breath in and clenched my hands together into fist. I realized my mistake. But now it was too late.

Kallie smiled and bounced up and down. ”Best friend best friend I’m your best friend”

I shook my head and threw my arms in the air, Tasmin leaning close and shook her head as well. ”You see what you’ve done now?”

I had seen what I’ve done. But I’ve seen it too late. I needed to make sure that no one else knew what happened. At least not until I could talk to Finn and we could decide where we were going with this. What we were doing. All the happiness that I had, everything inside me that had been singing with content calm since he and I revealed our feelings for each other was also scared to death.

And that was a problem.

Waste of my time

”Aren’t you all getting sick of this?”

Kayla takes a slow deep breath in, closing her eyes before exhaling and calming herself down. After all there is no point in getting angry before getting into the meat and potatoes of the promo.

”I mean, I walked into this company and every single female in the roster acted like I didn’t exist. I signed my contract on the dotted line after being away from professional wrestling for about a year. But before I left, I was dominating companies like they were going out of fashion. I walked into one comp and smashed up a championship against someone who is apparently a legend. After coming from two other companies where I was the world champion, and I took out every single one of their so-called heroes.”

“I have a track record of being one of the best and most brutal professional wrestlers on the planet today. And I took every single criticism that the fans had. I took every single criticism that the office had. And I made myself better. It is incredible to me how even after they forgot to book me and seemingly forgot that I existed I have come all the way up to be one of the most decorated professional wrestlers on the planet today. I held the Internet championship three times and I beat everyone who came at me. When I lost the championship, I got it right back by beating the people who beat me first.”

“This is what I do. I then snatched up those mixed tag team championships and save them from a team that honestly had no idea what to do with them. They wanted to elevate them by barely holding them and being a couple of moronic chuckleheads who talked about the future while simultaneously living in the past and stayed nestled in the shadow of their mentors, one of which doesn’t have the guts to walk her aging ass back in the ring to face me, instead being content with talking shit on twitter.”

“It was pathetic. But I still went ahead and took those championships. That would be impressive enough right? Beating some of the so-called Hall of Fame stars that this company has while beating every single young star that this company also has, while defending and regaining a championship that so many other people had forgotten about until Tempest got her hands on it and restored some of the glory I gave it….. I made the SCW Internet championship matter. Just like I have made the mixed tag team championships matter.”

Her nostrils flare as she looks down at the bombshells championship sitting in front of her. Sitting right next to the tag team championship that she mentioned. She closes her eyes again and calms herself down. Again, no point in snapping and going too far overboard.

”But, after all of that I was still being ignored. I was. You can all deny it and you can all say that I had a certain amount of respect but I didn’t. And I watched the biggest prize in this company, at least for the bombshells, was being disrespected. Not even buying unworthy champion. Because Julianna as much as I dislike her was a worthy champion. She just wasn’t the type of champion we needed. see Julianna. DiMaria believes that the title makes the champion not the other way around. Where is I know you need to make the championship. After so many big names holding this thing, for it to fall how it has is more indicative of where the division is as a whole.•

“And I refuse to let this championship fail. I refuse to let it fall to the places that other titles have in this company. I mean I get it, Julianna isn’t the one who made this championship fail. It was Courtney Pierce. But she had so much to live up to. Courtney was a champion that had to follow Amber Ryan Roxi Johnson and Masque De Lune  trading the championship back-and-forth over and over again for essentially two years”

“I’m here to do what needs to be done and restore the championship to where it needs to be.”

“And I did by taking the championship to the main event. And I continue to do that by main eventing and being a star. Last time you all saw me I destroyed Ariana Angelos again. That match was quite honestly a waste of my time. That is a woman who I have beaten so many times that you’d think if she was presented with a contract to face Me the first thing she would do is tear it up and the second thing she would do would be to yell at management and tell them that she doesn’t want to face me ever again. That is what a sane person would do. Unfortunately the little Greek twit has no idea what she’s doing with her life. So in a moment that is quite literally the definition of insanity. She keeps throwing herself at me like a desperate woman in her mid forties would to a halfway decent looking young man at a bar.”

“And much like that man I have to tell you Ariana, I’m not interested.”

Kayla laughed to herself and shook her head before reaching down and picking up the SCW bombshells world championship and throwing it over her leather jacket clad shoulder. She holds the title close and smiles before shaking her head.

”Now while I know that I have to keep on jumping into the ring and staying active, I have a very large match coming up that I need to focus on. I’m facing Julianna DiMaria one on one in a two out of three falls match. And as I focus on that I am staying warmed up and staying in match shape by facing some of the apparent best that this company can throw with Me. Ariana is definitely not a name that I would consider to be a threat to me. But Harper Mason? While she she is certainly much more of a challenge than Ariana is I also wouldn’t consider her a threat and I would also consider this match to be a colossal waste of my fucking time.”

“Now, Ariana has held a roulette championship as well as holding the Internet championship after I was done with it. She wasted both of those opportunities in both of those divisions. Harper Mason hasn’t had opportunities in those divisions. So you might think that because she hasn’t been a champion I might believe she isn’t as big of a threat as Ariana was. The truth is? I know Harper is a bigger threat. Because Harper hasn’t been tainted by the same brush of failure that Ariana has. Harper, you are a struggling new name in this company. You are someone who does have talent. But you’re also someone who hasn’t been able to realize that potential that everyone including management apparently sees in you.”

“Potential  is a loaded word in this company.”

“I was painted with the potential brush when I stepped in here. And that’s all I ever heard. Even as I had a winning record all through the first two years I was here, I still didn’t get to where I needed to be until I stood up and talk what I was owed. Shit, I am undefeated on climax control, I am undefeated this year. And I need to stop myself because as I use that word undefeated I’m starting to sound like Julianna DiMaria and nobody wants that.”

She chuckles again and gives a small shrug before looking down at the bombshells championship and running her thumb across her nameplate. A huge smile comes across her face as she is filled with a sense of pride and happiness.

”The fact remains that I am one of the scariest women on this roster. You can look at women like Tempest or Zoey Lukas who are huge and muscular and can break people in half. You can look at women like Bella Madison who have legacies with their parents on their side. but when push comes to shove? When you really look at who is the most dangerous Harper, you look at a woman like me. Because I am a woman like you who had that word potential thrown at me. But unlike you who isn’t really living up to it, unlike you who is sitting back and smiling as she gets given opportunities like this one, I’m a woman who takes opportunities. This isn’t the type of opportunity that you want.”

“This is a non-title match on a show where I’ve never been defeated as I’m pissed off and heading into a huge title defense. And most people would believe I’ll be distracted by that right? The looming defense on the horizon. But I want you to look at it this way. I was embarrassed by my challenger, she attacked me and I have not been able to get my hands on her. She taunted me and I wasn’t able to smack that smug look off her face.”

“So, let’s say I have some pent-up aggression”

“Let’s say I have some anger issues.”

“Who do you think I’m getting ready to unleash all of that on? You are coming into this match with a huge smile on your face thinking it is some type of gold and opportunity. And I admit facing a world champion in a main event for someone like you is an opportunity. but against a woman like me in the mood that I’m in, it’s less of a golden opportunity and more of a punishment. So I have to wonder just who the fuck you have pissed off. Because you could put in a good showing against me and I could slip on a banana peel or have some kind of concussion or get stung by a Madagascan wasp thereby making me paralyzed, that is the only way that you would ever come out of this a winner.”

Now she starts letting herself get angry, sneering as the words come out with a certain venom.

”No, the reality of this situation is going to hit you. You’re going to walk down to that ring, you are going to get between those ropes, and instantly you are going to be in deepwater unable to breathe. Because I am going to drown you. I’m going to drown you in the realisation that I am a champion who has been backed into a corner. A champion who has been embarrassed. A champion that had to claw her way up through everything and earn everything and take everything. Who now has to be put against a woman who has potential, the potential to be good.”

“Good…not great.”

“And with what I have coming at me? The type of woman who I know has nothing to lose and that makes her dangerous? Facing you Harper? I’m going to have to use you to make a statement. It might be cruel, it might be something that you never expected, but it is something that I have to do. so when the dust is settled and you are laying there staring up at the lights I want you to know something. This was never ever. But if you want to blame someone, for what is about to happen to you. For the pain that you are about to go through. Then you need to go and find Julianna DiMaria after this match and you need to get her to apologize to you, because everything that I’m about to do is her fault. And I’m not sorry.”

Chapter 35: More Questions Than Answers

One of the biggest problems having people who care about you is that they want to know everything about what is going on in your life. There are very few people who feel that way towards me. I’m not really what you would call a likable person, and I accept that. I have a handful of friends, And while I’m grateful to have them, I’m not entirely certain the feelings that we have are mutual. I would be more than happy to be left alone to just enjoy my life. Without them. But for some odd reason, there are a few certain individuals who can look past all of my anger, issues, and narcissism and see someone worth knowing.

Among these people are members of my family. I have an interesting relationship with my brother Jax. He and I never really got along. Not until he came back into our lives after he disappeared, and I saw what he went through. For years, I blamed him for leaving, but now there is quiet respect. Then there’s my oldest sister, Amber. A woman who I was constantly trying to follow in her footsteps, and live up to the reputation that she had earned as a professional wrestler. A woman who shadow that I had felt for the longest time.

But out of my siblings, the one who was closest to Me was Tasman. The baby of the family. The youngest, and in some ways, the black sheep. Out of the four of us, she was the one who had the nicest upbringing. Coming into her own, and having memories after our father had passed away. She had been raised without that dark cloud hanging over her head. As such she only heard stories of what myself, Amber, and Jax had to go through.

However, Jax and Amber knew that there would be certain things in our lives and the amount of patience and quiet we needed. To respect each other’s privacy. If something was going on in Amber‘s life, I was not going to press and prod. I was going to let her come to me with any problems that she had if she wanted to talk. And she had that same respect for Me. Tasmin, however, didn’t have that same respect.

She wanted to know what was going on, she wanted to know what everyone’s deep and dark secrets were. And she knew that I was hiding something. She knew I was hiding some kind of pain deep down inside, an anger that wasn’t there before, she could see a plane as day. And what made it worse was that I knew she could. I felt it, her eyes moving across the room and coming to a stop on Me. Studying Me, looking for any subtle movements that would clue her into what exactly was going through my mind

My upper right lip twitched, and my nostrils flared as I tried to keep myself from exploding at her and asking her just what it was. She was looking at. I took a deep breath and cracked my neck. Tasman moved closer, placing her hands on the black marble of my kitchen countertop, and leaning forward with a tilt of her head. I swallowed, closing my eyes to calm myself, so I would not yell right in her face, Tasman chuckled and shook her head, stepping back and folding her arms over her chest

”So, did you talk to Finn? Get all this nonsense sorted out?” I stayed silent, ignoring her. I really should have known better, she was never going to take that as an answer, and she was not going to let Me get away with it. ”Hmmm? Did you ask about that Kei guy? What was going on? Did you find out what you wanted to know?”

My eye twitched. Tasmin leaned in and got even closer. Her way to let me know she wasn’t going to let this go. ”No. I got nothing out of him. It is probably nothing anyway.”

Tasmin put her finger to her lips and made a small “tut” sound. She sneered and shook her head. She was having none of it. ”Do I look stupid to you Kay?” Before I could answer in my usual bitchy way she conti her. Ruining my fun. ”I can tell by the look on your face there was more than that. Spill the tea!” She folded her arms. Clearly, she was determined and that just annoyed me even more.

I huffed and rolled my eyes. ”Let's just say we had a difference in philosophy.” Tasmin blinked a few times. That answer didn’t satisfy her. She just continued to stare at me. Pushing further and deeper. I growled and threw my arms in the air unable to hold back the anger and frustration that was bubbling up about this entire situation. ”That man just refuses to listen to reason or my fucking opinion.”

Tasmins ears perked up. ”Oh? Opinion about what?

She was baiting me. She knew it. I knew it. But fuck it. In for a penny in for a pound. ”I know he’s hiding something Tas. That Kei is bad news and he gives me this sick messed up feeling I haven’t felt since I was with the Romani.” Tasmin raised an eyebrow. She had heard about it all third hand. In fact, the closest she came was one time that Jace saw her. The only time that he did. ”He’s playing a dangerous game here. I basically told him I was sorry for fucking caring.”

Her eyes widened she raised her hands to her mouth with a sharp inhale of surprise. ”Awwww you care about him!!!” She missed the point. Completely missed it. I blinked a few times and closed my eyes. She zeroed in on the one point I didn’t want her to or need her to. ”About time you admitted it…”

”I care because we’re tag team champions Tasmin, I need him to stay on top of his game..”

”Ya huh…bullshit.” She scoffed and shook her head, fluttering her hand with a dismissive arrogance. ”You don’t have that kind of tone in your voice if it’s professional care. It’s personal…” My nostrils flared, I closed my eyes again and took a deep breath before backing up and turning to Tasmin.

”Fuck off.”

Tasmin squealed and spun around with laughter. ”Ha! See!. You care about him, you keep trying to hide it but here you are…you see him in trouble, you’re worried, it’s cute…” My annoyance was palpable. My hands clasped into fists and I stayed staring ahead. I was angry, furious, frustrated. And it was for one simple reason…

She was right….

I did care about him. Very much so. Seeing him in pain, angry, or in trouble or hurt. I hated it. I growled under my breath and folded my arms over my chest closing myself off. ”So, what do I do?” I waited for an answer, stepping forward and throwing my hands in the air. ”Exactly. You don’t have an answer. I don’t know what he’s going through, he won’t tell me and if I care then I’m going to go fucking insane…”

I knew what was about to happen, I felt it, I folded my arms over my chest and I pouted. Yes, me, I pouted. But pfft, it’s only me and Tasmin, no one else knows.

”So…..you’re not going to admit it?”

” ….I hate you…”

Misdirection

”Last time you all saw me in a match I had my hand held high, the next time after that was standing toe to toe on the mic with Julianna DiMaria. Another victor as I verbally beat her down. But the last time you guys saw me in a non-in-ring role was the contract signing. And I hate that she got the better of me…”

Kayla growls, narrowing her eyes and trying to breathe

”But with a match of that magnitude looming on the horizon I’m sure most of you inbred, incel, incompetent idiots think I’ll lose focus on the mixed tag team titles. But you could not be further from the truth. But don’t get me wrong, I’m looking forward to that match, a chance to be the SCW bombshells champion…..”

“There is still so much work to be done with these tag titles I am not prepared to give them up. Even if I do have a huge match on the horizon I have never been someone to give in to pressure or crack. See Finn and I want to be the best mixed tag team champions ever. We want to overtake and be better than Wolfslair, Team Eggplant, Austin and Tempest, and of course London Underground.”

“You notice how I didn’t include Limitless in that little list?”

“You know why?”

“Cause they aren’t in the conversation for the best ever. But Finn and I are. From winning the titles to defending them against Miles and Alexandra, Ben and Samantha, and of course a rematch against Eiley and Oz, we have set the standard and will continue to do so.”

Kayla folds her arms over her chest, showing off her tattoos as she sneers and shakes her head.

”I am not going to let my aspirations to return to singles glory stop me from keeping my promises. My promise to make sure these tag team championships mean something. To return them to the glory that they have only had small sporadic moments in the past. We have had some great mixed tag team champions, but none of them have ever been able to get to the heights that they  deserve.”

“But why is that? One of the big reasons was the rule that if you were a mixed tag team champion, you could not go for singles gold. Now that that rule is dead buried where it should always have been, you will see a lot more people willing to come after these championships. which has made it all the more impressive that we have been able to hold onto them as long as we have. Turning back challenges of champions and former world champions who have been put together in teams..”

“So yes I will be going for that bombshell championship. And yes it will take some of my focus away from the mixed tag team championships. But not on days like today. Not on weeks like this week. Not when I have a defense looming.”

“So, now we get to a new defense. A few weeks after it should have happened. And all jokes aside about Miles Kasey and Carter I’m glad to see Carter has recovered and he is ready for this. It’s just too bad a talent like him is being weighed down by Ariana.”

Cute the classic eye-roll from Kayla as she remembered her matches against Ariana

”Now don’t get it twisted here. I’m not saying that Carter would be able to beat Finn and take that world championship. I’m not even saying that Carter is on the same level as Finn but what I am saying is that he would at least put up a fight, and he is at least someone who can have glory in SE as long as he actually tries. As long as he takes things seriously and steps up to the plate, the sky is the limit for a man like Carter. He is amazingly popular, flamboyant, charismatic, and so much more athletic than anyone gives him credit.”

“As well as being tough as nails. He took that beating from Austin like a champ.”

“I wish Carter had a halfway decent partner. Cause it isn’t fair that he’s being dragged down by Ariana. However, I don’t think Carter is ready for this. I don’t think he realizes just how sadistic Finn can be and how tough he is. Finn is our world champion. For a reason, he has had a sporadic time in this company that has always come out on top at is now two-time world champion. He’s one of the most dangerous men on the roster and one of the most dangerous human beings in this business. and he and I team together almost unstoppable, and Carter would’ve needed a partner with a damn”

“Too bad he has a partner that is worthless as the gum on my boot.”

She moves around and paces back and forth. An angry and annoyed look was etched on her face.

”The reason I can say that is simple. Ariana and I know each other very well. Don’t we Ariana? You and I have gone too many times in this company. And what has happened every single time? Tell me Ariana what has happened? Because I can tell you exactly what’s happened. I have beaten you. I beat you for my Internet championship time and time again, any time they put you against me. I have stood tall with my hand raised while you have laid on the mat crying like a little bitch because you couldn’t get the job done.”

“And now it’s even worse. Because now instead of you just letting yourself down or members of your family down you are going to let Carter down. This isn’t just about you anymore. It’s about him. The worst part about all of this is that you’ve been letting him down for a long time now. When you pick up your phone and put out a tweet or an ex or whatever they want to call it, you embarrass yourself and you embarrass your partner. The stupid things that you say in the stupid claims that you make always end up, coming back and biting in the ass”

“You don’t care though.”

“Cause you don’t care about anyone. You are selfish. You don’t care about Carter and you don’t care about how all of these things make him look. You don’t care that every single time you step in the ring with him, he has to drag you to victories while you drag him to losses. and this time you are going to lose the mixed tag team championships for him. Because that is all you know how to do. You drag everyone around you down because that’s the kind of person you are. Even now you want to be selfish when it comes to these championships.”

Kayla’s voice raises up into almost a yell

”These titles need champions that are going to push themselves further. These championships need champions who are going to be able to have one foot in the mixed tag team division at one foot in any singles division that they choose to be in. They need people who are good enough to shoulder that load and handle that pressure and sweetheart you are nowhere near that level. In fact, you aren’t even close.”

“You couldn’t handle playing second fiddle to me in the Internet division. You saw me rising up to become a champion that everyone looked up to and wanted to beat, and you decided to continuously throw, tantrums over and over again. And I couldn’t let you hold that championship. I couldn’t let you have it and say that you were the champion because all that would do Is devalue it.”

“So now, here we are. Another championship another division and another chance for you to make a complete asshole of yourself. But as I said this time, it’s not just yourself you’re dragging down it’s Carter as well.”

“So I can’t let someone like you hold these titles.”

“I will do everything in my power to keep them away from you. Anything that I have to do. Any trick that I need to pull, no matter how unbelievably brutal I need to be. I am going to do everything I can to stay one-half of the mixed tag champions. And then I will go on to do something that you can never dream of doing. I will become a double champion. But it all starts with beating you and Carter and you better believe that that’s what I’m going to do.”

Chapter 31: Gypsy Blues

There are certain notes in my past that I struck a line through. Notes and stories that, quite simply put, did not belong in my vocabulary of things I wanted to talk about, think about or relive whatsoever. But with every year that goes by, I can’t help but think of where I have been in relation to where I’m going. And where am I now? Well, home. Alone. As the new year rings in, gone was the happiness, real or fake, of Christmas. Now it was all about renewal. It was all about the same lie everyone always talks about.

New year….

New me…

That mantra ran through my head as I stood in my lounge room, staring out my large bay window and out into the city lights and to the ground. I couldn’t help but wonder to myself, how many of those people thought that? How many people looked into the mirror and lied to themselves? Fully believing that, as the new year dawned, they were somehow going to magically change everything about themselves and become a new person? I was willing to bet that it was well over half of them. But unfortunately, for everyone else in my life – whether that is my coworkers or my friends – it isn’t New Year, New Me. It’s New Year, but same old Kayla fucking Richards.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, cracking my neck as I tried to get my head back in the game. I had so much to plan, so much to work toward, and it all was going to start this week. In the morning I had to organize my flight to Colorado. I had to pack my gear, extra clothes, book an Uber to the airport. All the usual things I needed to do every single time I went to work.

I was ready, mentally and physically. While so many others gorged themselves on fattening food and became lazy, I went to the gym. I worked my ass off all in preparation to come back in even better shape than when I left.

I prepared to go to bed with just a few things left to do when there was a knock at the door. I raised an eyebrow, moving toward it while I looked at the small screen that connected to the camera above the door. My heart dropped and then suddenly raced. ”Jace?” I couldn’t believe my eyes or my own voice as his name escaped my lips. He knocked again and I jumped.

What did he want? Should I let him in? After everything?

I leaned my head against the wall next to the door and shook my head, realizing he wasn’t going to leave. And, against my better judgment, I opened the door. There he stood. 6’7, 280 pounds, still in amazing shape. His long blond hair tied back in a bun, his beard neatly trimmed and dressed in a black suit with a white shirt left open at the top. A very different look from what I remember. ”Kayla…..Se Poate?” He was testing me, trying to see if I still remembered Romani.

I turned to the side, letting him in, and as he walked past me my mind flashed. Right back to the last time I saw him.


5 Years Ago.

Blood dropped from my bottom lip, my body ached as I took a deep breath in, the bruises on my ribs making every breath a chore. A painful one. I winced again as I looked down at my knuckles, bloody and beaten. But this was my life after moving in with the gypsies. The compound they had bought and built in upstate New York. My sister Amber had married Renee, their heir apparent and prince, and at the same time I had been given to…him.

Jace Pleasant. The younger brother of Renee. Just as big, just as strong, just as impressive. But while Renee was held to the traditions of a Romani prince, that being honor through strength and domination, Jace was kinder. His actions spoke louder than words as he cared for me, and despite the fact I didn’t love him, I accepted my fate with him as long as I could.

Becoming a Femeie Soldat.

Every fight I had to prove my worth was a step toward respect. But, there was something in the air tonight. Something that felt wrong and different. I heard loud talking. I made out a few words in both English and Romani – something big had happened. There were footsteps, heavy ones, and they drew closer. Before I knew it, the door swung open. Jace slid down to one knee. ”Kay, we need to go….now.” He held out his hand, I raised my eyebrow and shook my head. I was sure that this was some kind of trick or test to make sure I was still loyal to the clan.

He groaned and reached down, pulling me up by force and taking my hand, leading me out the door and down the hallway. ”Where are going?...” He didn’t answer me, his head darting side to side as we watched others run toward the back of the compound. ”What happened?” Still nothing as we reached the gate. I ground my teeth together, sick of being kept in the dark, and planted my feet before yanking my arm from his grasp. [color]violet]“JACE!....what happened?”[/color]

He swallowed and shook his head before looking back at me. His eyes were different. Still very much him, but a deep sadness behind them; he looked down at me and shook his head. ”Renee he…he’s dead.” A shiver went through my body. The patriarch of the clan. Dead. ”Someone got to him, I don’t know who, but he’s gone Kayla.” A few moments passed, he seemed distracted by it all before snapping himself back to reality, in a smooth movement he turned and kicked the side door open.

”What are you doing?”

”Go…” I was confused, lost; I had no idea what to do. Jace looked down and for a moment questioned his own choices before again snapping back to reality. ”Go Kay…you don’t belong here, your sister has already gotten out. Go…please….” I took a deep breath and moved through the door before stopping and turning, kissing Jace on the cheek before backing up and running as fast as my legs could take me….


Present Day

”What are you doing here, Jace?”

He moved across the floor, moving down to the large white leather lounge sitting in front of my large crystal glass coffee table. Moving to the far left, sitting down and making himself at home, much to my disgust. ”An old friend can’t come to visit?”

I took in a sharp breath, my nostrils flaring as my arms folded over my chest. ”Let me rephrase…” I moved closer. ”What the fuck are you doing here?”

His cocky shit of a smile faded. He realized I wasn’t in the mood for bullshit. So now it seemed like he was ready to get down to business. He sat forward, but for now stayed seated. ”You really don’t know why I’m here?”

”I don’t even know how you found me…”

I had kept off most public directories, keeping myself somewhat under the radar in my personal life. Jace chuckled and shook his head. ”You think I had to find you?” He scoffed and shook his head, raising his eyebrows. ”We never lost you…We’ve always known where you are, Kayla. You’re a loose end. You know our inner workings, our hierarchy. You know a shit ton that could hurt us…so…we kept tabs on you…a job I took personally…”

I narrowed my eyes and shook my head, clicking my tongue before shrugging. ”So what? You’re just checking I haven’t been squealing on you? News flash, once I left I wanted nothing to do with that life. Same as Amber, we got out, we want to stay out…”

”Really?” He pushed his hands off his knees standing up and towering over me. Even as he stayed on the floor below the three steps leading up to my kitchen and doorway area. ”Then can you explain why your friend, fuckbuddy, tag partner, whatever he is, has ties to the Yakuza?”

There was awkward silence.

I fluttered my hand and rolled my eyes. ”The fuck are you on about? This is seriously what you’re going with?” Jace stepped back, now it was his turn to be confused. I threw my hands in the air and laughed to myself. ”I see what is going on here. You heard I was single, and have been for a while and you missed me. But the thing is, I want nothing to do with you….ever…end of story…so take your little stories…and leave.”

”You really don’t know do you?” He chuckled, confusion ran through me as he went from chuckling to flat out laughing at me. ”Seems like you don’t know Finn as well as you seem to believe. But, on a personal note. I have been monitoring your socials. And I know you’re single. But…I prefer my conquests to be a little…less used…” I ground my teeth together and he reached out, placing his right hand on my cheek, his pinky, ring finger, middle finger and pointer all stretching all the way around to the back of my neck and head while his thumb came to rest on my bottom lip.

”But, I still know what kind of man you want…” He smiled, my heart raced, his eyes then changed, his hand moved and grabbed my head and neck, hard. Pulling me closer as his voice lowered. ”I also remember what kind of man you need…and Finn ain’t it. But then again…you know me…” He released his grip stepping back with a coy smile before moving past me toward the door. ”Seems like you don’t know Finnegan….maybe you should ask him about his little Yakuza friend…and how he knows him…cause honestly…Finn and I aren’t that much different…”

He adjusted his suit, opening the door and disappearing. As the door closed, I let out the breath I had been holding, my chest heaving as I started to shake, moving fast I deadbolted the door and turned leaning my back against it, sliding down to the floor I felt tears well up from deep below. I was scared.

I don’t do scared….


Future

”I never get tired of saying “I told you so” and honestly. Why should I?”


Kayla sights heavily, sitting down on a large red rock in the middle of the famous Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, her hands clasped together as she takes in a deep breath of fresh, cold air. Snow on the ground nearby, but far from the blizzard downpour down the mountains.

”I have made a career out of defying what people say about me or think about me. I have made a career at being able to laugh in the faces of people who think they know me but really know nothing. Do you all think that this company is my first foreign into being told this stupid crap? When I was younger, it was all about being in my sister’s shadow. Everyone knew Amber Richards. Everyone knew what she was capable of and everybody knew that she was a former champion. And who was I exactly? I was just her stupid little younger sister, trying to make a living.”

“Thing is, it’s always something new. It went from my sister to any of my friends that I happen to be hanging out with at the time. See, some people know this and some people don’t, but I’m actually very good friends with Crystal Hilton. I know she goes by many other names, and she has become the butt of so many jokes in this company, but the truth is that for the longest time I was accused of riding her coattails because of who she is and what she’s accomplished.”

“I know. Weird, right?”

“But now, well, now it’s all about Finn. Apparently, he is just carrying me towards championships and towards titles. Even though before he and I decided to team together, I was already winning championships and proving that I wasn’t the weakling of anything. People seem to forget that I’m a three time Internet Champion, and that I have beaten some of the best of the best in this company. And before I talk about the match that I have coming up just down the road at the Denver Coliseum, let me give you a few New Year’s resolutions for 2024. That seems to be what we all want to do. You’d like that right? To know what I have planned for the New Year? Because I can assure you, while being part of the greatest tag team that this company has ever seen is definitely on the top of that list, it is not the be all, end all of what I want to accomplish this year.”

Kayla gets to her feet, her black and white converse runners letting out a crunching noise as she stops on the rocky path below, turning and looking up at the impressive formations made from hundreds of thousands of years of water and wind erosion. She turns back toward the invisible fourth wall and sighs heavily.

”Keeping the Mixed Tag Team Championships out of the hands of teams that are undeserving is certainly something that both Finn and I want to do. That includes the former champions, one half of which I am being forced to face this coming week. But aside from that, aside from keeping these championships in highest esteem and high regard, making them a prize to be wanted and looked at as a true pinnacle in this business, I also want to expand my horizons when it comes to what I’ve done and what I’ve been able to do. Everyone knows the other disdain I have for the Roulette Championship so please for the love of God, Mark Ward, Christian Underwood, please do not put me in any matches for that piece of shit championship.”

“But what of the Internet championship? Do I want to become a record setting four time champion? Do I want to hold that championship again and break all previous records including defenses and days held? Maybe. But I also hate repeating myself. No, this year, Kayla Richards is shooting right to the top. I am going to go for that World Bombshells Championship. In between my duties as the Mixed Tag Team Champion along with Finn, I fully intend on doing everything I can to get my hands on that World Bombshell Championship. That means any opportunity I have in a singles match, well, I have to just knock it out of the park. But wait, I’m a tag team specialist now right?”

“How can I be expected to win the biggest singles championship in this company when the only way I can do anything is by being dragged along by Finnegan? At least that’s what my opponent this week would have you believe since that’s what Eiley seems to think. About everybody. She has one of those diseases where she believes herself to be far superior to everyone. And talks a lot of bullshit to make people convinced of it.”

Kayla laughs to herself, shaking her head and walking down the rocky path by herself.

”I get it though. I’ve known girls like you my entire life, Eiley. You’ve been told by people over and over again, just how good you are, and how good you are going to be. They’ve built your ego up. Your mentors, your partner in crime, all of your friends. They have all built you up to make your ego as big as it possibly can be. You’ve even had some success to actually show that they might not be wrong. Before you and Ollie became the Mixed Tag Team Champions, you did have some single success. You got in the ring with people, like Samantha Marlowe and Mercedes, Vargas, and had some success. You beat two Hall of Famers who were both world champions.”

“Then again…who hasn’t?”

She can’t help but shrug, waiting for laughter to her punchline that due to the sheer isolation won’t ever come.

”You and I are looked at as the future of this division. You have to be blind if you can’t see that. We are both looked at as the ones who are going to carry this division through the next five years as some of the older, more established stars either leave or end up getting burnt out. That’s what they’re banking on. That’s why this match has been billed the way it has.”

“Eiley versus Kayla Richards.”

“The heat and hatred we have.”

“If there is heat between us, then it is definitely one-sided. You see, Ei, I don’t care about you enough to hate you. But there seems to be some form of belief that there is hatred there. If you hate me, then that’s on you. I greatly dislike your attitude, and I think you have a massive problem. And I get that seems rich coming from someone like me. I’m arrogant, I’m brash, I’m insulting, I’m a bitch – I get it. But that arrogance and ego I have earned years of blood, sweat, and tears, and through being able to beat everyone who they put in the ring with me at one point or another. If I’m beaten by someone, I get my win back – that is just who I am and what I do and what I’m about..”

She stops turning and shrugging.

”You’re too arrogant and self righteous to ever admit you’re wrong. And the worst part, Eiley, is that it’s all there, plain as day for the world to see why you and Oliver lost to us. And it has nothing. NOTHING to do with any perceived carrying on Finn’s part. No, I can show you with proof, Eiley, why you and your boy toy failed TWICE against us.”

“Look at what hapopned when this match was announced. You and I performing on the first Climax Control of the new year. I got excited despite the fact I had to face you…again. Your partner celebrated not being booked and being able to take a “longer” vacation while you had to “go to work”. Finn on the other hand? He got annoyed he wasn’t booked, he booked tickets to come to the show JUST IN CASE. Because he’s a professional...unlike you and Oliver…”

“It goes back further than that, Eiley. It goes back to when you and Oliver lost to us the first time. Instead of acknowledging it, seeing where you went wrong, you both threw tantrums and fell into deep depressive bullshit and lost over and over again. Time and time again, you two just ignored the elephant in the room. And no, I don’t mean Kris Ryans and Mikah’s egos. I mean the loss. You were so unbelievably shocked that we beat you that you just ignored it.”

“Like a child afraid of the monster under the bed, you shut your eyes tight and hoped and prayed it would go away.”

Kayla closes her eyes tight, mimicking the action as she balls her fists together before opening her eyes with an arrogant sneer.

”Only we didn’t go away. We defended those titles and showed the world we were the best while you two fumblefucked your way through match after match and lost time and time again before beating the Barnharts and taking your rematch. One you never really earned. Only to lose again. So, we circle back around to why the marketing for this match is all wrong. See, SCW wants all the people at home to believe this is going to be some sort of fiery, epic clash between two women who hate each other and want to settle a score.”

“But the score is settled. It’s the final and we won. And now you have to drag your ass to the ring one on one after all the shit you talked and try and claw back some form of dignity as you push a narrative that makes no sense. Eiley, you seem to think I have to beat you one on one to prove you wrong or validate my existence when in reality, that’s on you.”

“I already mentioned the fact I’m a three time internet Champion.”

“The women you beat, I beat too.”

“And you look at my history in this company and I have lost four times. FOUR. I am undefeated on Climax Control. I have already proved myself cause honey, because out of those four losses, none of them, NONE of them have been to you. But how many of your losses have been to me? And you think out of some misguided fake confidence that you are going to beat me because this match is one on one? Bring that confidence, Eiley. Bring all of it. Bring Mikah and Kris and Olly and that little yapping puppy you got, bring all of Jet City. I don’t care. All that confidence, all that bravado is just a mask because the one thing you could do to beat me you just won’t ever do because you ego is not capable…”

“Acceptance.”

“Accept the fact your mentors failed you, accept the fact you have lost and need to realize you are not as good as you believe yourself to be. Accept the fact that blow by blow I am better than you. Then maybe. Just maybe, you’ll rise above and be the challenge you seem to think you are…”