{The scene opens the next day following High Stakes. Roxi lays in bed with Keira both of them sleeping well into the morning. Keira however is the first to wake up and rolls over and kisses Roxi on the forehead before slowly and quietly scooting out of bed. She stretches and walks over to the balcony door, parting the curtains to look at the sun outside which is up and bright as usual. She opens the door, letting in a small breeze, but leans up against the railing, and smiles to herself. She heads back inside and pours herself a cup of coffee, before heading back out and simply enjoying the view from the balcony.
Roxi slowly rises from sleep herself. She is... less bright eyed and bushy-tailed about the day, but none the less finds her way onto the balcony along with Keira, throwing an arm around her and kissing her on the head.} Roxi – How'd you sleep?
Keira – Like a million bucks.
Roxi – Good.
Keira – I just... I can’t believe that, it’s over. You know? Just... over now. I can finally just... be Keira.
Roxi – You mean you haven’t been Keira this whole time?
Keira – No, smart ass. I don’t have to be me turned up anymore. I woke up and I look at my hall of fame ring, and my plaque, because I wondered if everything that happened this entire weekend was just a dream. I needed to assure myself it was real.
{Keira looks down with a satisfied grin at her finger.} Keira – And it is.
Roxi – As long as you got everything you wanted.
Keira – I did. I really did. And I couldn’t have done it without you.
Roxi – I was just there for moral support really.
Keira – But you were there.
Roxi – Of course I was. I’m your wife. I will always be there for you. But the point is, you didn’t need me to do anything for you. You did all of that, you did. Not me.
Keira – But, you were there. That’s what more important than anything to me.
{Kiera and Roxi share a kiss and Roxi heads back inside and prepares herself a cup of coffee and sits down at the kitchen table, making herself some breakfast. Roxi’s mother Elizabeth is already at the table, reading the newspaper and doing the crossword puzzle.} Roxi – Nate was all set, right?
Elizabeth – Yes, dear. I got him ready like always.
{Roxi frowns at this.} Roxi – It was a long night.
Elizabeth – I'm aware. It’s not a bother, dear.
Roxi – But he’s our son.
Elizabeth – And he’s my grandson. It’s fine.
Roxi – No, it’s not. We should be getting our own son ready for school.
{Keira walks in with her cup of coffee and sits down at the table.} Keira – Well, now I can do that.
Roxi – I... I guess... I guess you can.
Keira – It’s not like we haven’t done it before. I just... I get to do it more regularly now. So there’s that.
Elizabeth – So, what is the next step for you?
Keira – I guess... I’m running Hero Academy full time now. Keri and Angelica should be happier now that I get to be around more often to help. I really should have waited until after all this stuff to open a school.
Roxi – You took them on a boat, so there’s that. And Cassie seems to be doing well.
Keira – But she’s just the start, and she’s a pain in my ass a lot of the time.
Roxi – I think you just enjoy making her do stuff.
Keira – That too, but don’t ruin my fun. The point is, there’s a lot to do, even though I’m not gonna wrestle anymore.
{Keira pauses for a moment to let that sink in.} Keira – I can’t believe I just said that.
Roxi – You can always un-retire.
Keira – Not funny.
Roxi – I'm just saying.
Keira – That's not what we’re doing. I finished up everything the way I wanted to. It’s all over. Time to move on. I guess the bigger question is, what are you going to do?
Roxi – I mean, it’s not like I haven’t wrestled before without you. I’m sure it will be fine.
Keira – Are you though?
Roxi – What? Am I magically not going to be any good anymore because you’re not there? I wrestled like a year ago in a place that you weren’t in. I wrestled for many years without you there. I understand that it’s not going to be the same anymore, but... it’s still the same. I still have a lot left to do.
Keira – Then don’t let me stop you.
{The scene fades.}
{The next two weeks go by with Roxi and Keira adjusting to Keira’s retirement and Roxi sits in their duo’s home gym, training herself as Keira isn’t there watching, having busied herself with Hero Academy and being a stay-at-home mom now. Roxi finishes her workout and looks around, but again, Keira isn’t there.
Finally, the next week arrives as Roxi recieves her plane ticket for the upcoming SCW Climax Control, having been alerted to her booking. Keira is washing a dish in the sink when she sees Roxi come in the door from running an errand.} Keira – You got your travel.
Roxi – Thanks. Did...
{Roxi stops herself.} Roxi – Right. Never mind.
Keira – It's been weird for me too.
Roxi – It's just taking some getting used to. How’s the school?
Keira – More signups and these kids are starting to grate on me a little. Jessie stopped by to do some classes, There’s two new students that...
{Keira pauses} Keira – They remind me of us.
Roxi – I don’t know if it’s a good or a bad thing.
Keira – I'm not sure yet.
{Keira shuts off the sink and drys her hands before checking her watch and picking up her purse.} Keira – I have to go pick up Nate. I’ll be back in a little while.
Roxi – Yeah...
{Roxi looks over at the lone plane ticket and sighs. Keira sees this and walks over, hugging her tightly and smiling.} Keira – You'll be fine. I’ll always be with you, like you were for me. I know you’ll do great. You did great things before I was there, and you will now.
{Roxi smiles.} Roxi – Thanks.
{Keira and Roxi share a kiss, as Keira leaves and Roxi goes to prepare to pack her gear up for the next part of her journey. The scene fades.}
"I'll always be there. Always. It's not the powers. Not the cape. It's about standing up for justice. For truth. As long as people like you are out there, I'll be there. Always."
- Superman (Action Comics Vol 1 #840)
Hello SCW.
I know that I began this whole journey solo. It was actually a couple of years in SCW for me before Keira joined me, and so, after the events of a few weeks ago, I was okay with the time off and really coming to terms with everything. I anticipated that things would just be normal. The only difference between now and a month ago is that Keira is at home. She’s not traveling with me anymore and she gets to do the things she wants to do now, and not worry about wrestling. I’ve traveled alone before, I’ve been doing it for a long time, in different places. Keira doesn’t always come with me. And that, felt normal. But that was everywhere else. SCW was the one different spot. I had become so used to when SCW sends up travel, that there were always two tickets. And now, there’s just one. Now, it’s just me. And while I never thought it would be strange... it is. It’s very strange.
I know in my heart, and I heard from Keira that she is happy with how everything turned out. A hall of fame induction, a great overall weekend, and the fight she always wanted. She got everything she asked for, and now, she’s ready to move forward with the next phase of life, and really... so am I.
I made the announcement back on the 6th of October that, much like Keira, my ride is slowly coming to an end, and I think that 2023 is going to be it for me. But there’s a lot of time between now and then and things can change. But, seeing my wife happy has made me happy and now, I drift more towards being satisfied with things, and less content. But for now, I am not satisfied and I am simply yearning for more.
And I know I’m going to get all I can handle this week. Because Seleana has yet to disappoint me in the ring, or as a person.
Make no mistake, the SCW Bombshell’s championship is obviously still in my sights, and my number one future priority. But that comes down the road. We’ve got time for that. Right now, it’s all about Seleana and finishing what I feel is one of my most successful years in SCW the right way, and I know Seleana will be there, every step of the way to make that happen.
I know that people like Mercedes always want to try and being Seleana down, and look at records and numbers and throw them all in there and call Sel a failure, or a loser, and you can look up and down this roster, and nobody is without a loss. It happens, sometimes it’s your night, and sometimes it’s not. That’s just how it works. There’s not one person in this whole game who hasn’t lost to someone, somewhere. The point is, unlike a lot of people, I don’t see Seleana for how many losses she has.
In any sport, you can have a run of bad luck, you can lose a lot of games or matches, but the season continues and you go out and you play the next game, because you are trying to win. I don’t understand why people like Mercedes try and say things about Seleana like Seleana doesn’t go out there and give it her all each and every time she’s out there. I’ve never seen Seleana roll over and give up because she hasn’t done X or Y. It’s absurd that we have to go through this kind of stuff.
There might be people who don’t like Seleana for whatever personal reason or professional reason, but I am very proud and very happy to call Seleana my friend, and I am always happy to step into the ring with her. Not because of any record or grudge, but because she’s a great wrestler and a great opponent. There’s a reason she gets thrown into matches and championship opportunities time and time again, because she’s there, she’s consistent, and at any moment she can go out and win a match, or any title. Because she’s good.
And I suppose this is a new beginning for the both of us at this point. Well, for me anyway, but now I know how Sel felt after all she went through. I swore to myself I would make it through this without mentioning it, and so that’s all I’ll say about it. I know that Seleana is a trooper and she will give me her best and that’s all I want out of this match.
To be honest, that’s all I want out of pretty much every match at this point. Just the opponent giving me their best. I’ve reached the point now where I see a lot more clearly the way it all goes. This isn’t about me trying to beat Seleana again just to say that I did. This is about me, having a wrestling match, against my friend. And I’m not going to let what other people say and think about her, or me for that matter, get in the way of that.
I’m not paying attention to the win-loss record thing, that’s almost never been my thing. But this match is important for me to try and win. This is the start of a whole new solo adventure for me in the wrestling ring. Maybe that makes me a bigger target than usual. Perhaps people think that because Keira is no longer here with me physically, that all of a sudden, I am vulnerable. That I’ve lost some kind of edge or confidence. The fact is, I’ve never needed Keira to fight my battles for me, and Keira never needed me to fight hers. But those same people also say “Roxi was the better of the two, she was the better half.” You didn’t see Keira out there with me before, no you no longer have to worry about it. My wife is all set. And now, I continue on, because I still have plenty of unfinished business I need to attend to.
But it all starts with Seleana. That’s who is in front of me, and regardless of how our past meetings have gone, this is a brand new one. This is the next one. I have my sights set on another victory, after another great match between the two of us. I have no ill will toward Sel, she’s always spoken highly of me, and I will always speak highly of her. She’s great, and sooner or later, she will get back into the fray, and she’ll have a title around her waist.
I could sit here and say that Sel has been lacking in success, and I have taken note of her not putting it all together, but that happens to everybody. There was that period for me, and at the end of the day, you simply need to focus up, and get your head in the game. Sel should be clear of all those distractions now, which makes this match all the more intense, and all the more important.
The road to becoming a contender to the Bombshell’s championship once again starts this Sunday in California. I love being on the west coast, it’s pretty much like Florida, except they have earthquakes instead of hurricanes. But that’s where all of this starts for me. It will be different, but the goal remains the same: Not only get back into the hunt, but to win the Bombshell’s championship once again. And the first step to that is to beat Seleana. So, Sel is first on the list, and she’s going to get everything I have. Win/loss record be damned. This is going to be a great match, and I am looking forward to it, much like I have every time. This time will be no different.
So, with all that being said, I will wish Seleana the best of luck, as she is my friend. I look forward to yet another encounter between us, and I look forward to walking away with the victory, and knowing that you gave me your best, because you will certainly get mine.
I will see you all there.
The journey continues.
