February 6
Climax Control
She was conflicted.
The bell had rung, and the announcement rang out that she and Todd had secured the victory. Any other time, she would have been over the moon. Her first match back postpartum, and she came out on the winning end. But the fact that she had been up against her own husband tore her up inside. Not to mention the fact that her partner was a showboating, loudmouth narcissist who had no qualms about using underhanded tactics to pick up a win. He was the polar opposite to her in every way. She knew it was all luck of the draw in terms of who she got partnered with for this tournament, but at the moment she felt like the unluckiest woman in the world.
When Todd grabbed her up to celebrate in the centre of the ring, it took every fiber of her being not to slap him silly. She simply wrenched herself out of his grasp and immediately went to check on Jack…but found that he had already rolled out of the ring and headed backstage. When Todd tried to grab her hand again, she simply shot him a look and immediately got out of the ring and took off running up the entrance ramp.
She burst through the curtain that separated the stage from the backstage, her head snapping every which way as she searched for her husband. She descended the short staircase to the floor and sprinted into the hallway in the back of the arena. When she didn’t find Jack, she let out a sigh and leaned up against the wall, putting her hands over her face.
When someone reached out and touched her shoulder gently, she let out a shriek of surprise and jumped away from the wall, only to breathe a sigh of relief when she saw that it was Jack. “There you are! I’ve been all over looking for you.”
“Just wanted to give you space to celebrate your win,” he said. His tone was neutral, and it made Alanah pause a moment.
“Are you…OK?” she asked, twisting her fingers together nervously. “Honestly, I didn’t know that Todd was going to try to cheat in this match or I would have done something to -”
He gently grabbed her shoulders and pulled her towards him to stop her babbling with a kiss on her lips. When he pulled away, there was a smile on his face. “Babe, you have nothing to worry about. Yeah, Todd Williams may be a fuckin’ tool - nah, he’s the whole damn bag - but you were incredible out there. I’m hella proud of you for getting back in it and showing everyone that you still got it. If anyone’s gonna represent the Russows in this thing, I’m glad it’s you.”
The relief was evident on Alanah’s face as she buried her face into Jack’s chest. “Oh, I was just so worried about what your reaction was going to be.”
“Hey, hey, none of that. Just cause you drew the short straw when it came to partners doesn’t mean that I’m not gonna be happy for you. I want you to go all the way and win the damn thing! Even if you gotta drag that dumbass with you like a dead weight.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they started off down the hallway together. “Now, let’s get out of here and go home. I got some baby faces to smoosh!”
—-----------
Opening the scene up in the picturesque sunroom of her New York home, Alanah Russow stood by the glass wall separating her from the snowy expanse of her backyard. She gazed out over the white expanse that sparkled under the afternoon sunlight, and then turned towards the camera. Dressed in a knee-length pale pink sleeveless dress and black pumps, she was the picture of classic beauty as she gave a wry grin towards the camera.
“Well, I can’t say that this tournament run has gone exactly how I anticipated, but we did advance to the next round, so I guess I’m happy about that. But the way it happened…” She gave a shake of her head, tucking a lock of her blonde hair behind her ear. “I would never have forgiven myself if one of Todd’s underhanded little tricks had actually won us the match. I came into this tournament because I thought it would be a good way to get myself back into wrestling after over a year away. A chance to try something new and different. Now, I almost regret it.”
A little smirk tilted the corners of her lips. “Key word - almost. I’ve never been a quitter, and I’m sure not about to start now. Even though I am partnered with perhaps the most insufferable man on the planet, I don’t intend to give up quite so easily. I came into this tournament with visions of grandeur, and I’m going to make them come true. No matter what I have to do, or who I have to go through.”
She folded her arms across her chest and took a power stance, her legs planted wide. “Granted, that’s not going to be so easy this round. While my partner has to contend with Max Burke, I am up against arguably one of the greatest Bombshells on the roster, Myra Rivers. No pressure, right?” She let out a little chuckle. “But in all seriousness, I am very much looking forward to getting in the ring with you, Myra. I’ve been keeping an eye on you in SCW and I have to say, you and I are very similar. We’re both passionate as hell for this business, we fight the good fight, and we’re both talented and good at what we do. But the big difference between us is you’re a seasoned veteran, and I’m the relative newcomer. Which will win the day? Experience or youth? The known commodity or the dark horse? This may not be as dramatic a match as the last one I was involved in, but the stakes are certainly just as high. In all honesty, I think this match can go any which way, when you add up all the factors involved. But that’s not to say that I’m not going to fight like hell to make sure that the odds stay in Todd and I’s favour. With both my husband, sister-in-law and aunt-in-law now unfortunately eliminated, I’m the family’s last hope at glory. And I don’t plan on disappointing them.”
Her hands moved to plant on her hips as her face shifted to a look of pure confidence and determination. “I have no doubt in my mind that you and Max are going to give Todd and I the fight of our lives come Sunday night, but I welcome it. I crave it. Because I want to know that we earned our way into the next round. I want to truly show the world what I am capable of. I want to continue to ascend the ranks in SCW, and claim my shot at the Bombshell Championship. So Myra, Max…get ready to bring everything you’ve got to that ring on Sunday night. I know that the four of us are going to blow the roof off of the building and put on the match of the night. I also want you to know that regardless of the outcome, I will absolutely shake your hand and thank you for the match. I just hope you won’t be too proud to accept it from the woman who beat you.” She gave a cheeky wink and a little giggle as she turned to leave the sunroom as the scene faded to black.
