Do you know what perhaps the best thing is that Sin City Wrestling has going for it? Aside from the top level talent that put their bodies on the line for the amusement and entertainment of the SCW Universe, and how week in and week out, Mark Ward and Christian Underwood deliver some of the best in-ring competition seen inside of a ring. No, there is something else that SCW is known for overall, and what has lured men and women from across the globe to sign on the dotted line;
Opportunity.
It does not matter if a wrestler has been actively competing for ten years or ten days, Mark and Christian give the men and women that they are responsible for every chance to deliver and earn for themselves both the recognition of the fans, and reward them with more lucrative chances against bigger and better competition. Of course, if you ask someone like Adrienne Beaufort, who tried to accept the open challenge of the World Champion Amber Ryan and got stonewalled by boss and peer alike, she might raise an objection to the point. However, this isn’t about Adrienne. It’s about someone who is under contract to Sin City Underground, not Sin City Wrestling. It’s about someone who Adrienne is actually quite familiar with, as like she did herself, he graduated from the famed GO Gym and went on to do both Gabriel and Odette Stevens proud by capturing multiple championships in both the singles and tag team divisions in his relatively short career.
The flamboyant Helluva Bottom Carter.
Carter McKinney aka HBCarter, has had a rather rough past several weeks, ever since he lost the chance to become SCU Underground Champion in controversial fashion. Sp,me have declared him bitter or a “sore loser,” but when you lose the match without actually being beaten and the new champion was awarded the championship just for standing there, one might forgive Carter for his fighting back over what he thinks is an unfair decision. Carter started speaking his mind heavily on social media, and as warned by his bosses, he has been sitting things out ever since. He has not had a match since High Stakes XI, and that was when SCW came calling.
Las Vegas, Nevada
It’s been some time since this particular abode had been seen up close; over two years to be more precise when Carter teamed up with his best friend to challenge then-Mixed Tag Team Champions London Underground for the gold in an unsuccessful attempt to make their mark on the ‘main roster.’ So many Superstars and Bombshells portray themselves to be ludicrously wealthy with huge houses and mansions, but not so much Carter. Carter lives in a modern junior one bedroom that is just big enough for one, with the odd visitor every now and then. The apartment itself was immaculately clean, such was Carter’s personal habit. There was little to no clutter and every piece of furniture was on a “need” basis. In Carter’s mind, it just seemed silly and perhaps even self serving to go about collecting bric a brac, when it felt just wrong to openly indulge.
This would be his last evening in Las Vegas until the show in Phoenix this coming weekend. A show in which he did not petition the higher-ups for a chance to showcase his in ring skill. That time would come soon enough. No, this time it was SCW who did the inviting. His name was on a ‘bucket list’ of desired opponents for the DILF (as Carter calls him) ring veteran, Levi Russow. Levi’s signing made waves and was huge news, so it was a matter of ‘what Levi wants’... and Levi wanted Carter. IN THE RING!!!
It was early evening in his small, junior one-bedroom apartment, barely six o’clock, and Carter was busying himself in the small kitchen area, fixing for himself something of a treat; a big pot of spicy beef curry. His bestie Ariana was busy with a new “friend,” so Carter was ready to make a night of it all on his own. The smells from the pot on the stove smelled absolutely heavenly, the mix of beef, garlic and spices all conspiring together for a scent that was positively hypnotic to the nose. Carter stirred the curry lightly and lifted the wooden spoon for a small taste and…
“OH! OWOIWOWOWOW!!!” He yelped as the flames were practically dancing on the tip of his tongue from the spicy dish. Adrienne had asked him when giving him the recipe if he wanted spicy or mild, and being the daring soul, he did say he wanted his curry spicy! Buyer beware! He was leaning over the edge of his small kitchen table, already flushed and sweating until he finally stood upright and gazed at the pot.
“Could use a bit more peppercorn…” He casually mused before he walked over to his cabinet and opened it up to take out a freshly opened bottle of red wine. He took out a wine glass from the same cabinet and set it down before removing the cork to allow the wine to breathe. Walking around the kitchen and to the front living room, he leans over the back of his sofa and picks up the remote to turn Netflix on.
Back in the kitchen, he doles out a healthy portion of the curry into a ceramic dish and is about to pour some of the wine when there’s a knock at the door. He glances up casually; couldn’t be Ari. She has her own key. So he’s left wondering just who could be calling on him as he opens the door, and finds his breath stolen away, albeit temporarily.
“Lazarus…” Carter blinked back his surprise, addressing the young man standing on the opposite side of the door. Yes, Lazarus Cohen, the young man who not too long ago had moved upstairs and captivated both Carter as well as his bestie, Ariana, sparking a friendly rivalry of sorts over the attention of Carter’s new and favorite neighbor.
“My modeling shoot ended early.” Lazarus said too casually as he leaned inside through the door frame as if interested in something but trying to play it cool. “And you told me you were staying home, so thought I’d see what you were up to, if you wanted to watch a movie … something smells good.”
Ahh, there it is! Lazarus was a model and told him he always seemed to be on some fad diet thanks to his agent, sparking the need to stay slim yet maintain the well toned nature of his physique. Carter took a step back, giving the hottie a silent invitation to come in as he shut the door behind him.
“It’s curry. Adrienne's recipe.” Carter informed him as they walked closer to the kitchen. “I made a big pot.” Carter stood back and watched as the object of his admiration leaned over and took in a deep whiff, eyes closed and it was clear as day that he had appreciated the scents emanating from the pot. Carter then opened the cupboard door with a smile, saying, “Okay, I can take a hint!” But he spoke in good humor as Lazarus never came to any neighbor looking for food or anything, really. Aside from hanging out with Carter now and then (and Ariana too when she could wedge herself into their plans)(, Lazarus pretty much kept to himself. For a pretty boy model, he didn’t exactly ‘get off’ on being an attention whore.
Lazarus took a step back as Carter took the lid off the pot and he started to dish up another bowl, but paused as he looked at his guest.
“But aren't you on a diet?” Carter asked. “Should you be eating this?”
To which Lazarus shrugged, “If you don’t tell my stomach, I won’t.”
A half hour later
Carter and Lazarus sat on the love seat in the front room, their eyes glued onto an episode of Supernatural, when Lazarus set his mostly eaten bowl down and picked up a glass of wine that Carter had poured for him.
“Arizona? Why would anybody go to Arizona willingly?”
“It’s not so bad.” Carter smiled as he leaned back against the cushions of the love seat, his own wine glass in hand. “Granted, it’s like Bedrock, but I have a match scheduled for SCW on Sunday in Phoenix…”
“SCW?” Lazarus frowned, slightly caught off guard or confused. “I thought you worked for a place called SCU?”
“Yeah, you’d think wouldn’t you?” Carter sighed, trying to keep his tone casual and not give away how upset recent events had made him. After all, you don’t air dirty laundry where guests are concerned. He continued, “But a fella, real hot sort, named Levi Russow listed a number of guys he wanted to wrestle. My name happened to be one of them. I haven’t had a match in about a month so figured why not…”
“Why haven’t you had a match?”
Carter sighs, “I guess I just pissed off the wrong person. I called my bosses out for some bullshit and…”ew job, taking v He looked up and into Lazarus’s eyes, and was surprised to realize that he was listening to every word. Lazarus had confided to both Ariana and himself that wrestling was not his thing. He didn’t attend the shows nor watch on TV. He checked himself for going so long winded and finally Carter shook his head and said, “I-I’m not going to bother you with this shit. Let’s just say that it’s been a pretty challenging past couple of weeks and I…”
But whatever else Carter was going to say, got stuck in his throat as Lazarus had leaned over and quickly silenced him by pressing his lips to Carter’s. It seemed to last for an eternity, the best things do in Carter’s experience, until the kiss was broken and their lips separated. Lazarus was smiling confidently, and Carter was for once at a loss of words until…
Carter asked, “What… what was that for?”
Lazarus smiled, resting his arm on the back of the love seat and his chin on the curled fingers of that very arm. He answered, “You’ve been having a trying time. I just thought I’d try to cheer you up.”
“Oh…” Carter murmured, turning his head away to think or process the fact he just got kissed by the man of his dreams. He then turned his head back to Lazarus and said, “Yeah I’ve been REALLY down. I mean SERIOUSLY…”
Which just led Lazarus to smile and cup the back of Carter’s neck in his hand and drawing him closer…
“P{art of me is thrilled, another part of me feels almost insulted. Thrilled because I think it’s been painfully obvious that Levi Russow is probably the hottest thing to ever step through a set of ring ropes. Seriously, the man is sex on legs! And me - he wanted ME specifically in a match. When Levi listed a number of names that he wanted to wrestle in an SCW ring, somehow, by some MIRACLE, my name just happened to be on there. I have to admit that it caught me by surprise because ninety nine perfect of the time, my opponents don’t really want to get into a match against me for fear that I might make lurid attempts to cop a feel. And where Levi is concerned, it’s going to be a test of Biblical proportions!”
“I’m insulted, however, or close to, because it took THIS in order to get a match f0r myself. I’ve been waiting over two months for SCU to put me in a match, preferably a title shot against the Underground Champion, and yet here I am, waiting once again. Well what I said about it being nice to be appreciated? I meant it! The bosses in SCW, Mark and Christian? They faxed me everything I needed to know and about blew my shorts off when they told me it was against Levi Russow, father of Jack Russow and you have GOT to know who that is! But to be signed to a contract and overlooked left, right and center, and I have to pick up a match somewhere that I don’t even compete! It was nice what I said about being appreciated. SCW obviously appreciates me enough to call me up for a match against a valued opponent.”
“But make no mistake Daddy! You know how I feel, you’d have to be blind and deaf not to! But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to try every little thing I know in order to come put on top of this match. Pun intended. You’ve been doing incredible work, ever since you signed to SCW. Me? I’d like to think I’ve done pretty well for myself too; undefeated Pride Tag Champions! TV Champion! Combat Champion! And I swear that sometime sin `22, I will become the youngest Underground Champion in SCW history. Good looks, good personality, great cake -- those aren't going to be enough to make me not go out there and fight with everything I have to get the big W. Maybe then SCU will watch and learn to not take me for granted.”
