[Caleb Houston]

 ==========================
…Wake Up…
11:45 am
December 15th, 2014
Las Vegas, Nevada
Cameras: OFF
===========================

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

The annoying beeping from the alarm quickly ripped me from my deep sleep. Brining both of my hands up to my face I began to rub the tired from my eyes. I looked at the white paint on the ceiling, and laid there for a few seconds longer as the rest of my body slowly began waking up. I groaned loudly as I reached over with my right hand and smacked the top of the alarm clock making sure the bone chilling buzzing would stop.

“Enough of that..” I said with a big yawn. I scooted my legs off the bed, and sat there in my boxers for a few seconds still trying to come to terms with this whole being awake situation. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed a pair of black basketball shorts. I reached over and grabbed them sliding them up over my legs. I looked around the bedroom for a few seconds, confused.

“Liz…” I called out as I pushed myself up from the bed, and slowly made my way out of the bedroom. Since Liz had started saying here full time the place was a lot cleaner. She didn’t really put up with the beer bottles and cigarette butts all over the place. As a matter of fact I don’t think I’ve smoked a cigarette inside these walls in about three weeks. What a change.

“Liz, are you here?” I called out once again as I made my way out toward the living room. I walked over to the island that separated the kitchen from the living room. There was a notepad laying on the marble countertop. I pulled out one of the bar stools sitting in front of the island and took a seat looking down at the notepad. I picked the notepad up, and read the note that was left for me.

“Caleb, went shopping. I left you pancakes in the fridge. Someone will be stopping by at some point this morning. They want to talk to you about a pretty big opportunity I set up for you. At least listen to them. For me? XoXo, Liz. P.S. Behave today mister!” I dropped the notepad back down onto the counter and looked over toward the fridge. It took me a little bit, but I was finally able to muster up the energy to walk over that way. Pulling open the fridge door I reached in and grabbed the plate of pancakes Liz had left for me. She had formed them into little heart shapes. It was the little things that like that meant so much. She had her own life going on. With her own goals, but she still made the time to do nice things like this for me. I carried the plate over to the couch with me, and sat down. After I turned on the television, and found my favorite Monday morning cartoons I began to dig in to this scrumptious breakfast. As I finished up the last bite I couldn’t help but wonder Liz had set up for me today. It could either be really good, or really bad.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

“Moment of truth.” I said to myself as I pushed myself up from the couch picking up the plate before heading over toward the door. I wasn’t really dressed to impress anyone right now. Hopefully the fact that I was half naked wouldn’t offend the person on the other side of the door. I set the plate down on the counter before I pulled open the door. Standing there in the hallway was a young woman, brunette, around the age of 25 years old. She was dressed in a black and white business dress, and her hair was pulled back in a tight bun. Most people would consider her attractive. I could see her eyes widen as I opened the door. I brought my right arm up and began to gently rub my shoulder. As if I was shielding her from seeing anything. She extended a hand to me, and introduced herself.

“Caleb..?” She asked. I nodded my head. “My name is Dana McIntyre. Liz told me to come by and meet with you today.” She said. In a polite gesture I shook her hand, and welcomed her inside the condo. She offered me a smile as she walked inside. Her eyes scanning every inch of the place. Her heels clicked against the tile floor as she made her way through the hallway.

“Nice to meet you Dana.” I said as I grabbed one of the t-shirts I had let laying on the table the night before. I pulled it on over my head, and continued a few steps behind Dana. “Would you like a drink or anything?” I offered. Trying to be as polite as possible.

“No thank you.” She said. “Did Liz give you any details as to what I had planned?” Dana asked me.

“No..” I shook my head. “She just told me someone was going to be stopping by. I didn’t have a chance to talk to her yet today. This is my one day to sleep in.”

“Ah, okay..” She said to me. I motioned her to come inside of the living room. I took a seat on the couch, and turned off the television. Otherwise I would be more focused on the cartoons instead of that she was saying. She took a seat across from me on the love seat, setting her purse down on the coffee table. Searching through it eventually pulling out a pen and a small pink notebook. Something about women, and the color pink. She focused her attention back to me with and offered me a warm smile.

“Well, like I said my name is Dana McIntyre and I work for WrestleHouse Radio. We are looking for someone to come on our show, and give a little insight to the wrestler world. Someone who lives the business each and every day.” She did her best the sell the idea to me. Something that I wasn’t completely sold on. I’ve never been the person to give an interview.

“Hmmm…” I responded bringing my right hand up to the back of my neck rubbing it uneasy. Liz had told me to behave so throwing this woman out now I don’t think would constitute as behaving. “…I’m not really the best person for an interview..” I told her.

“Why do you say that?” She asked furiously scratching away at her notebook. I tried to peek over and see what she was writing, but the scribbling was too fast and nowhere near legible.

“It’s just never really been my style.” I said to her. Sighing deeply I closed my eyes, and let my head fall backwards. I started at the ceiling for a few seconds before groaning loudly and looking back down towards Dana. “Fuck it… what do I have to lose.” I said to her. It was very tough for me to say these next words because I knew I would regret it. “I’ll do it…” An instant look of pain shot across my face as I said those words.

“Perfect. I’m glad this is working out.” Dana said as she took a break from her scribbling and focused her attention back up to me. She was beaming from ear to ear. This must have been a very big deal for her career. “Have you ever done anything like this before? Do you know what types of things to expect?”

“Honestly, no. I think in my career I may have given one or two interviews but that was about it. This is all new to me. I’m assuming they’re going to ask me a lot of questions and I’m going to answer them?” I said with a questioning look on my face.

“Pretty much. Normally we do things as a No Holds Barred type of questions. We want to know everything.” Dana told me.

“Alright… I’m going to warn you now my life isn’t too entertaining.” I told her.

“That’s fine. We’ll make it entertaining for the listeners.”

I shook my head, and rolled my eyes. “So when are we doing this?”

“Actually tonight.. Are you ready?”

I shook my head. “I guess I don’t really have a chance.”

“Hahaha…” She laughed uneasily. “No, not really!”

“Alright well just let me know the time and the place.” I told her. She smiled and pulled a card out from the back of her notebook. On the back she wrote down the time, and the address of where I was to meet her before handing it over to me. I took the card from my hands, and the two of us stood up. I extended my right hand to her for a shake. We offered each other another parting smile before I showed her to the door. As she left I glanced down at the card in my hand.

==========================
…On Air w/ Caleb Houston…
6:45 pm
December 15th, 2014
Las Vegas, Nevada
Cameras: OFF
===========================

Well, there was no turning back now I thought to myself as I made my way through the front doors at the radio station. I looked around the entrance way and was a little taken back by what I was seeing. I fully expected something different walking in here. I guess the ‘Airheads’ with Brendan Frasier, Steve Buscemi, and Adam Sandler was burned into my head. This was completely different. It was small. It smelled funny, and there was absolutely no one walking around the inside of this place. Dana rounded the corner and greeted me with a smile as she led me down a different corridor to where I was assuming the studio was. We stopped outside a small room with a black door. Dana turned her attention to me and asked me if I was ready. I nodded my head as she opened the door and we walked through. On the other side of the glass window was the radio personality Mike Payne. Noticing us walk through the door he raised his right hand to hold us back as he finished up his intro speech. The on air light switched off and he waved me through the door. I gave Dana one more glance before heading into the studio. Mike extended his hand to me and sat me down across from him. I placed the headphones over my ears and he did the same across from me.

“Test test.. can you hear me?” Mike asked.

“Yeah. Loud and clear” I responded.

Mike nodded his head. We listened to the last bit of commercials playing through. Most of them were promoting the different wrestling organizations. Featuring a few different superstars. The likes of Drake Green, Joey Harris, and Delia Darling. Mike presented his hand to me. Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

“Ladies and gentleman. As always my name is Mike Payne and I would like to welcome you back to WrestleHouse Raido. I am here with our very special guest this evening Caleb Houston. This is the first time we’re getting a candid interview with an active superstar. You’ve heard about this before, and many of you have given us questions to ask him. I will do my best to get through them all, but as usual we will be pressed for time. First off Caleb we would like to thank you for being here today.”

“It’s my pleasure. I’m looking forward to seeing what the wrestling world wants to know about me. As everyone knows I’ve always kept my personal life pretty much closed off. Now, may be your only chance to get to know what really makes me tick. Let’s make these questions worth my time, and yours.” I said. Almost as if I was challenging the listeners to get me to crack.

“Alright, well let’s get started here. The first question we have is easy and pretty standard for something like this, but the world wants to know. What inspired Caleb Houston to become a wrestler?”

“Well, I guess that goes back to me being a little kid. When I was about five years old I started wrestling for a local program. It was something I did to keep myself out of trouble. My father was never really around as a kid growing up. So I guess he signed me up for the wrestling program to make childcare a little cheaper on him. I started as a kid, but didn’t really fall in love with it until I made the team in middle school. Had a pretty solid career down there, and my freshman year of high school I made the varsity team. It was about 50 percent skill and 50 percent luck. There were only two other kids in my weight class, and they were pretty easy to beat out. Had I been up or down a weight class it could’ve been a completely different story for Caleb Houston.”

“Now, before you came here we did a little research on your high school wrestling career. What we found was that you were offered a full college scholarship in your junior year from three different wrestling programs. Oklahoma State, Penn State, and Iowa. But then after that we couldn’t find anything from your senior year, and it looks like there was never a college career. What happened there?”

“Actually Mike. I never returned to high school for my senior year. There were some things going on in my personal life around that time, and I just couldn’t bring myself to go back to that school anymore. Too many bad memories for me. Against the wishes of a lot of close people in my life I dropped out of school, and went to Taiwan. Kind of drastic I know, but it’s a decision that if I could I think I would go back and make again.”

“Well, maybe one day we’ll be able to get a little more information on that story. But that seems like it might be better suited for another place, and another time. Moving right along. What drives Caleb to continue his professional career?”

“This goes hand in hand with what I said before. I never finished high school. There aren’t many other options out there for a high school dropout. I don’t want to be just another statistic. I want to prove everyone wrong. The people who told me I would never amount to anything because of where I came from, or the decisions I made in my life. Each and every time I step into the ring it’s like I’m giving them the middle finger. Saying look at me now. It feels good.”

“Judging from your career it looks like you’re doing a great job with that middle finger. Keep that bitch extended Caleb. Whether you believe it or not there are a lot of people out there who are living for you, and people that find you as an inspiration. This next question comes from Jamie in Nebraska. Caleb, How did you decide which moves to use as your finishers?”

“Hmm… my finishers. That’s a pretty good question. Honestly, that just comes down to my fighting style. I’ve always considered myself a hybrid style of wrestler. I like to incorporate each and every one of my disciplines into what I do in the ring. When it comes to ‘That Sinking Feeling’ it’s a move I saw a few years ago and absolutely fell in love with. I feel like it’s something completely out of my element, and a move no one expects from me. ‘Down In Flames’ that’s my go to move. It’s basically something I use to put my opponent to sleep. Everyone in this industry has a big mouth, but NONE of them have the jaw to back it up. When my foot connects with your face it’s inevitable you’ll be hitting the canvas. Then there is the ‘Gold Rush’ that was actually the first finisher I ever used. The sleeper hold is a move that is used by just about everyone in this industry. Adding a suplex to that move and dropping your opponent right on their head is sure to take the wind out of their sails.”

“Have you suffered any severe injuries in the ring?”

“Severe injuries. Now you’re going to really make me think here. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever had anything that I would consider as severe, but my definition may be different from someone else. I’ve had the stitches, and broken bones. But I’ve never had an injury that kept me out of the ring for an extended period of time. Every break I’ve taken from this industry has been on my time not my bodies.”

“Speaking of breaks. What brought you back to wrestling after your hiatus?”

“Boredom? Lack of money? When I first walked away from wrestling back in February of 2013 I thought for sure I was going to be done for good. The gym was going great, and I was content with where I was in life. It got to the point where I was spending money a lot faster than it was coming in, and I was looking for any and all sorts of work. I actually picked up some work for Liz Smalls being her bodyguard as she was traveling, and going from event to event. We talked a bit, and somehow she found out that I was a former wrestler. She kind of pushed my back into the ring. Told me there was no sense being done with it when I was still so young, and still had so much more to accomplish.”

“Liz Smalls you say. Well I’m sure you know exactly where this next question is going. What’s it like dating ‘The Cost to Coast cover girl’?”

“Dating Liz is interesting. I guess I would be lying if I said I didn’t see it coming. It’s very rare you feel a spark with someone, but after our first few interactions I knew there was something there. I felt like she knew it was there, too. Since we actually took the leap things have been great. She’s been keeping me on my toes, and she’s been giving me that drive that I’ve been lacking for so long. I can’t say what’s going to happen next year, or next week even with this. But right now it’s great.”

“Staying on the same path here this next question comes from MG in Chicago. A lot of people are dying to know, and understand…. What on earth do you see in Liz Smalls?”

“What do I see in Liz Smalls? Well, where do I start? For one she’s one of the most beautiful people I’ve met in my life inside, and out. A lot of people dislike her I know that, but then again a lot of people can’t handle the truth. No matter what’s going on with her you know that you’re going to get exactly what Liz is thinking and feeling. She holds no punches. She’s also the person who helped me get my career back on track. Plus I just enjoy being around her. In an industry like this where you’re around people you hate on a constant basis it’s nice to be around people you like to be around. When you find them you need to keep them close.”

“This one comes from Tibalt in Nevada. JT, Hydro, Liz. Kill one. Marry one. Sleep with one.”

“Hmm.. tough question. Kill I guess would have to be Hydro. I guess because he always disappears on me. Sleep with one probably going to have to go with Liz. Because well… reasons that I don’t think we need to go into detail right now. Marry one would be JT. He makes good money I make good money. Why not make great money together?”

“What’s it really like teaming with JT?”

“Teaming with JT can be difficult sometimes. We have very different personalities. He likes to plan for things that are coming, and make sure each of us know exactly what we’re going to do before we do it. He’s a tactician, and sometimes it gets to be a little overwhelming. Me on the other hand I’m a bit more laid back. I roll with the punches, and take things as they come. I feel like if you go in there with a plan and something throws you off then you’re going to have a rough go the rest of the match. The way I do things I just react. I’ve always been a counter striker so my match is always laid out by what my opponent does. I will always find their weakness and I will always expose it.”

“Who is your greatest rival?”

“Another tough question here. There have been so many matches in my career. It’s tough for me to pick my greatest rival. If I have to pick someone on the spot right here right now I think I would have to go with Myke Adams. Currently we are 1-1 against each other. I feel like we need to have that third match. We need to find out once and for all who the better wrestler is. Will we ever get there? I’m not sure. Maybe that’s a match that’s best served not happening. Some questions are just better left unanswered.”

“Why SCW out of all the places out there?”

“SCW just felt like the best place to go when JT, Hydro and I were looking. The staff looked great, and it felt like they really cared about their competitors. We’re still in the honeymoon process right now. Maybe I’ll have a completely different view on the company in six months, but right now I feel like this was the best place to go to showcase my talents.”

“Your opinion on the current talent in SCW? And on the Champions Specifically?”

“The current talent in SCW… hmm. I feel like it’s hit or miss. You have some guys and girls in there who know what they are doing. They prove that each and every time the bell rings. Then you have some people who think they’re a lot better than they actually are. They can go out there and toot their own horn all they want, but everyone realize they’re just bitches. Right now I’m kind of just going to let everyone do their thing. It’s only a matter of time before they get booked with me. Then they’re going to be regretting each and every thing they said. The champions… I feel like the women’s side is set up right with the champions. You can justify why certain people have their belts. On the males side.. well that’s just a complete shit show. Their world champion is AVERAGE at best. They don’t even have a roulette champion, and the superstars they have booked in the running for that title couldn’t even wrestle their way out of a paper bag. Then, it comes down to the tag team champions. Right now they just have a placeholder. In a few weeks there will be relevancy brought back to the SCW Tag Team division when JT and I walk out with those belts. ”

“Who do you feel is your biggest rival in SCW?”

“I don’t think I can answer that question. I haven’t really been there long enough to develop a real rivalry. At this point I think I would have to say everyone. I’ve made it no secret that I don’t have much respect for anyone who wrestles inside of that company. I’m ready and willing to square off with anyone they place in front of me.”

“This next question comes from Chris in Idaho. What is the significance behind your ring entrance?”

“Honestly, I’m not even sure what my ring entrance is like. I’ve never actually watched one of my matches. I know a lot of these guys and girls have these very intricate entrances trying to hype up the crowd, or sell themselves a bit more to the crowd. Me, I’m not into that bullshit. When my music hits everything else shuts off. I have one goal in my mind. That’s to go out there and beat my opponent. I feel like from the time my music hits until the time that ending bell rings I turn into a completely different person. Everything is a blur to me when I’m in the ring.”

“A lot of people look at you as this dimwitted and, for lack of better term, stupid kid at heart kind of guy, but tell us. Who is Caleb Houston? Really?”

“Caleb Houston is just a guy who likes to wrestle. A guy who doesn’t really have many other options except to succeed. I don’t really care what anyone else thinks about me. I want to have a good time. A lot of people can’t accept that, and they get a little bent out of shape by the things I say or do. But fuck it right. You only live once.”

“This next one is from Abigal in New York. Where do you see yourself in the next five years?”

“Five years. Damn, I just want to be alive.”

“Alright. We have time for one last question. Let’s say wrestling was no longer in the picture for you, for whatever reason. What would you be doing with your life?”

“Damn. I guess it’s really tough to think about life without wrestling. If I wasn’t wrestling I would probably spend a little more time at the gym. Maybe take a bigger role in managing the day to day activities. Basically just trying to stay alive. Fighting the same fight everyone else is.”

With that said the on air light clicks off. Mike stands up from his seat across from me thanking me for coming on the show. He tries to convince me to come back onto the show again, but I was very reluctant to give him an answer. Where it was nice to be able to talk about some of these things I knew next time the questions would only get more personal. I was able to keep my composure this time, but I didn’t think I could continue to do that going forward.

===============


To Whom It May Concern,

So, another card, another tag team match. I swear, eventually Mark and Christian will realize that Caleb Houston isn’t exclusively a tag team wrestler. Eventually, they’re going to have no other option but to let me fly. You can only keep someone caged up so long. Hell, this could even all be part of their grand master plan. They’re always kind of tight lipped as to the future of their superstars. I could sit here and speculate on that for hours. But at this point, why? There is nothing I can do to change what is lined up for me this week. This week the lineup is a bit different from what I’m used to. Instead of teaming with JT I have a person in my corner who I don’t think I’ve said more than five word to in my entire life. I’ve tried doing my history homework on her, but there wasn’t much I could find. She’s not exactly a warm and cuddly type of person judging on what I’ve read. A few things I do know is that she’s aligned herself with the Mean Girls. So that must count for something, right? I don’t think Delia would allow someone without the ‘it’ factor to come near a wrestling ring with her. The other is I know she likes to get herself inside of her opponents head. Sounds almost identical to my MO. I just hope she decides to bring her A game on Sunday.

Now, the opponents. We start off with SCWs own Melody Grace. I guess the term young and dumb would be perfect to describe her. She likes to walk around backstage smiling, and bouncing around bringing ‘joy’ to everyone on the SCW roster. I guess you could consider her a skinnier, year round version, of Santa Claus. Except I’m not quite sure I’m buying completely into her deal. I think it’s all an act. She plays like she doesn’t know any better. But that’s exactly it. She’s just playing a game. She’s made her decisions on who she wants to align herself with in the SCW. Unfortunately for her that little team of ‘sinners’ she’s decided to stick with are on a collision course with JT and I. The shots have been fired. The battle has begun. In the end only one group will be left standing. Male. Female. It doesn’t matter to me. In the end the only thing that matters is winning. Proving to the world I am the superior competitor. Melody you were given an opportunity to make a change. Given the chance to remove yourself from this battle.  You made the wrong decision. Sunday night at Climax Control I’m going to show you just how big of a mistake that actually was. You’ll witness first-hand the beginning of the end. Are you getting it yet Melody? That Sinking Feeling…

Despayre…. Quite fitting we get this match this week, don’t you think? Sort of a little sneak preview for what’s going to happen in a few weeks at Inception.  A little warm up match to feel each other out for what is set to be one of the biggest matches of the year for SCW. Let’s get down to it here Despy… or whatever it is people call you these days. You’ve walked around with that gold around your waist long enough. This is the beginning of the end for you. This week you can’t hide behind your partner. You can’t hide behind Angel. When you’re in the ring. I’m in the ring. Simple as that. The past for you has been filled with a lot of ups, but life is just like a rollercoaster. You can tick along on that track going up further and further, but eventually that track stops, and there is only one option left. Only one more way to go, and that’s down. You’ve had your moment in the sun. Now it’s time all that fun goes Down In Flames.

The Man of the Hour,
Caleb Houston