By Law
It had been months since Alex had heard from his ex-wife, or soon-to-be ex-wife. They had separated, and it was far from mutual. Sonya had stormed out after their fight, Alex finally letting go of all the frustrations that he had kept inside for the better part of the year. Never fully feeling supported by his wife. The woman he had shared almost a decade of his life with. A woman he had a child with, built a business with. He never wanted to be with anyone else, he wanted to grow old with her, to ride off into the sunset with her.
But as the passion for professional wrestling returned, she didn’t feel the same way. Instead of believing that Alex should stay retired, to give up any lingering dreams he had and motivation for getting back into a professional wrestling ring, she wanted him to stop, to give up, to walk away. And that was something Alex could never do.
When he put his mind to something, he would do everything in his power to make sure his dreams came true. And as such, the marriage ended. A side effect of that was that Alex had fallen for and started a relationship with Finn Whelan’s ex-wife, Aaron Asphyxia.
And now Alex found himself sitting in his lawyer’s office. His hair tied back in a bun as he wore a black and white suit, his hands clasped together as he stared across the large mahogany table at the ageing man who had always taken care of his legal troubles. Anytime Alex needed a contract drawn up or something legally done with the gym, he would come to this man. Robert Stevens. A man in his late 60s who was not just a partner at his law firm, he was one of the founders.
He had short grey hair, wire-framed glasses that he only ever used for reading the fine print, which currently sat down the bridge of his nose as he slowly and meticulously went through the small stack of papers in front of him. Alex leaned on his left arm, his elbow on the side of the chair as he stared across, wondering exactly what Robert was about to say. After a few moments, the older man cleared his throat and put the papers to the side before taking his glasses off and placing them on top of the stack. His voice was deep and gruff and commanded respect. Before Robert had gone to college to become a lawyer, he had spent four years in the military. This man was disciplined and regimented. His presence commanded respect, and he was one of the few people on this planet that Alex respected implicitly.
”Well, your wife has waived all rights to the gym. All she is seeking is a small amount of alimony for your son. And she has also agreed to joint custody. In fact, this is one of the fairest agreements I’ve ever been sent by a lawyer.”
Alex laughed to himself and ran his index finger and thumb across his forehead. ”Yeah, I figured she’d be fair. She always said if we ever broke up and needed to separate, she would be.”
Robert chuckled and shook his head. ”I still wouldn’t normally trust a soon-to-be ex-wife. I’ve had to do a lot of paperwork for a lot of messy divorces. But yours so far has gone very smooth. In fact, so smooth that it should only be a week or two before we get everything done. We’ll just need a few more signatures, and you and Sonya will be officially divorced.”
Alex stayed silent for a moment. He looked down at his hand, his eyes focusing on his finger where his wedding ring used to be. He lost himself in the moment, the seconds ticking by as they seemed to stretch out. Robert cleared his throat, and it snapped Alex out of it. He looked up at his lawyer with a small nod. ”Good… thank you.”
Alex stood up. Robert took a deep breath and sighed heavily. ”Are you alright? And don’t bullshit me, kid. Going through a divorce is never easy.”
Alex just shook his head and moved toward the door. ”Yeah… it’s not. But life isn’t meant to be easy.” He opened the office door, walking through it and hearing it click behind him. He still had a long way to go, but at least this part of his life, this chapter, was almost closed.
Too easy
”This company does not deserve me.”
Alex takes a deep breath, his face a mixture of mild annoyance and frustration.
”A few months ago I was the world champion. I saved this company from dealing with Finn Whelan being champion. I took that championship out of his hands and made sure that his reign of terror ended. And how was I thanked? I had to put my championship on the line against someone I had beaten not too long before. And then, in one moment of weakness, he was able to beat me. A fluke. A one-in-a-million chance. Lightning struck, and he was able to become the luckiest human being on the face of this fucking planet. And Carter McKinney held the SCW World Heavyweight Championship over his head.”
”And how was I thanked? I was put against him in a non-title match before he went to face that arrogant clown J2H. And I beat him. I beat him because 99 times out of 100, I destroy Carter McKinney.”
”But then what?”
”I beat the kid who is the current champion. I beat him before, and I beat him after. I never got my rematch. But I was shifted to the side while J2H took his shot. I had to listen as that arrogant little douchebag ran his mouth about things he has no idea about, and he ended up failing. He failed to beat Carter. And he didn’t fail because Carter is a better wrestler. He didn’t fail because Carter is a deserving champion. J2H failed because he beat himself. He beat himself because he couldn’t get past his own ego. And because of him, Carter is still the champion. I don’t have my rematch, and instead, I’ve got to sit back and watch as a kid from my gym steps up and gets a chance.”
Alex scoffs and throws his hands in the air.
”And I am absolutely proud of Aiden. And I’m going to step back and let him take charge and go for the World Championship. But don’t take this as an admission that I’m suddenly too old to step up and become champion again. Because trust me when I say this, I still have a hell of a lot left in the tank. But one thing that has really gotten under my skin, aside from not being able to get my rematch and being shoved aside, is that I’m now being put up against people who have absolutely no business being in the same ring as me.”
His voice rises and some bass enters it.
”Justin Smith. One of the biggest jokes in this company that isn’t named Bill Barnhart. I mean, what kind of bullshit is this? Some wannabe hardcore deathmatch indie mud show wrestler who made his name getting into bare-knuckle brawls going up against me. A three-time SCW World Champion. A man who has won over 10 world championships and has been at the top of his game for the better part of two decades. And I’m expected to get into a professional wrestling ring and face this buffoon? This absolute joke of a human being who has one of the worst records in this company? What exactly do I have to gain by wrestling you, Justin?”
”Well?”
”Cause I can answer that right away. I gain nothing. I beat you, and it doesn’t advance anything. I don’t get to say that I’ve beaten the top contender. I don’t get to say that I’m still on top of my game. I beat you, and I say that I beat a nobody. Someone with a horrible record. But if you somehow shock the world and beat me, then I’ve lost everything. I’m no longer the world champion, I’m no longer a top contender, and I lose all credibility to everyone and everything in this business. So I am going to do everything in my power to stomp your head into the mat and walk away as the winner, but I just want you to know how offended I am that I am even in this match. And how offended I am that I have to sully my reputation and my legacy by beating you.”
”So get ready, Justin, because this week I’m coming for your head and nothing is going to stop me.”
