Post by Roy Speede on Feb 18, 2018 23:38:33 GMT -5
12 February 2018
The scene opens up post-Clash, where Roy Speede has just defeated Adam Young and is making his way back to the locker room. The corridor leading down toward his chance to change attire is barren, most if not everyone else probably crowding around the entryway to the arena or the nearest television screen to see who will walk out the first Action Wrestling titleholder, more specifically the first TV Champ. However, before he can turn the knob and enter the locker room, he is stopped by a female probably around his age.
"Mister Speede, Mister Speede, a word if you would, please?"
Jenna Bauer had managed to find him just in time for his first true 'interview' with Action Wrestling, and he would be wise to oblige. Stepping away from the door, he puts on a bit of a faux smile before responding.
"Yes, ma'am? Is there something I can do for you?"
"Oh, pardon me! I didn't introduce myself, did I? I'm Jenna Bauer, one of the backstage interviewers with Action Wrestling. I understand if you haven't seen too much of me lately. I was asked to come speak with you about your match tonight and see how you were feeling heading into next week?"
"Oh, alright. I guess we can talk for a few minutes. Is the camera rolling, or do you need to cue me in like an actual interview, or-"
"Of course, just if you could, the camera is actually directly behind you."
He spins, eyes wide in surprise, having just walked that hallway and not seen anyone there a moment ago.
"Okay..."
"Alright, in three, two... Ladies and Gentlemen, my guest at this time is Roy Speede! Roy, congrats on the big win tonight! How are you feeling after making your Action Wrestling debut?"
"I'm pretty content, I'd say. Adam put up a good fight, but if there's one thing I've learned in my past about Adam Young, it's that a never-say-die attitude sometimes doesn't hold up when your mouth writes checks that your ring abilities can't cash. All in all, I'm not gonna lie, it was a good match. I think the fans are pretty content with the showing he put up, and the performance I put up held up enough to pick up the win. I feel like Action Wrestling is a great new start for me, and I'm going to wind up needing this company as much as they'll need me."
"What do you mean by 'as much as' we 'need' you?"
"Every wrestling company needs an established name or two on the roster to draw in crowds or it can never get its feet off the ground, and even with Torture and Gravedigger behind the scenes, somebody has to hold their own in the ring for the ticket sales to actually start rolling in. We've got Deruty, Young, and I among others who are recognizable faces, and yeah, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if we weren't here, the big-shots wouldn't be able to bring in fans on their own, especially since they're not actually competing."
"Alright, well, speaking of Donald Deruty, he and six others also made their way to the second round. I know a lot of people heard the remarks you made before this week's show, and aside from John Frost and Beverly Adams, all of the people you talked about are in the second round. Any worries going forward?"
"There are always going to be people waiting in the wings, but seeing as this is a tournament, I'm not going to sit here holding my breath and worrying about any more than what's right in front of me. I put my match earlier down as a win before I even got to the arena today, and that nearly cost me this entire tournament before it even got going. I won't do that again, especially now that the competition is going to be that much tougher."
"Well, your opponent next week is Camila Gonzales, who put on a convincing performance against Cheyenne earlier tonight. What do you think about your chances moving forward?"
"One in sixteen became one in eight, Jenna. And I'm not going to guarantee anything here, but I will say that if everything goes according to plan, that number will become one in four this time next week."
"'According to plan'? What is that plan for this next week?"
"The same as always. I'm going to spend the week prepping for the match ahead of me, do a little gameplanning and strategizing, and probably the night before the show, I'll take the opportunity to really sit down and talk my way through everything, a little 'State of the Locker Room Address' if you want to call it that."
"Awesome! So, this week we saw the debut of your new finishing move, the Headshot? Have you talked to the friend of yours that you supposedly borrowed that one from?"
"I haven't really called him up or anything yet, but I imagine if he was watching that match, or any of my future matches, he'll give me a call asking about it. Franky probably won't mind, though; he's always been a pretty laid-back dude in terms of that stuff, but if he insists, I'll get rid of it."
"Glad to hear you're keeping in contact with old friends! One last question: I think the world is wondering, are wrestlers the same as the rest of the world? Do you actually have a Valentine's date?"
"Nah, I'm not that kind of person. I don't believe in a special day dedicated to hiking the prices on little heart-shaped boxes of candy and flowers. If you're gonna be nice to a girl, don't wait for Valentine's; just go out there and do it!"
"Great, now you sound just like Shia LaBeouf."
"That was the joke."
"You heard it here, folks, Roy Speede is single as a Pringle on Valentine's Day to focus on his upcoming match! Thanks again for your time, Mr. Speede, and-"
"Roy. Call me Roy. Or Speede. I don't really care. But start adding that 'mister' crap and I get annoyed real quick."
He pushes open the locker room door and leaves her standing out in the hallway, mouth slightly ajar as if she were about to say something. Once the door closes to a click of the latch, she lets out an exasperated huff and walks away. In a matter of five minutes, Speede is back out the door, out of his ring gear and into a tee shirt, jeans, and a blue hoodie with his signature 'Speede' emblem on the breast, almost as if it were a letterman jacket. He proceeds out the door to the arena as an even louder pop echoes through the hallway and the faint sound of Shinedown's "45" rings through the corridor behind him, and crosses the parking lot to his car, speaking softly to himself as though he had forgotten the camera was still rolling.
"If I hurry I can still go get me some Starbucks."
As he opens the door to his 2010 Honda, the camera-person climbs into the back seat, as if Speede actually was intending for him or her tag along. Over the course of the drive, he starts speaking to himself again.
"I appreciate the opportunity, Jenna, but seriously, I've got things to do. Ask for permission before you start filming next time. For the love of crud, what the hell? And seriously, the Valentine's Day question? The fuck? Yeah, I'm single, but I intended it that way! Don't sit there fuckin' advertising it to everyone like- Oh, I'm speaking out loud, aren't I?"
The camera rotates up and down a couple times.
"Great... Well, the point still stands. I'm not interested... So Jenna, if you see this, take notes."
He lets out a sigh and raises both hands to 10 and 2 on the steering wheel, stepping down a little harder on the gas pedal as the car jerks forward from its stop at a light, and within a couple minutes more, the vehicle pulls into a Starbucks parking lot. Speede gets out and looks out across the city and chuckles softly to himself before heading into the building to see a lack of any sort of line between himself and the register. Roy approaches.
"Welcome to Starbucks! What can I get started for you?"
"I'd like a large black coffee, please."
"Alright, a venti Pike Place coffee, would you like room for cream?"
"A ven-what Place? A black. Coffee. With no room for cream."
"Right, a venti is our word for a large-sized cup, and Pike Place is our signature medium roast coffee."
"Okay, yeah, that sounds fine."
"Anything else for you today?"
"No, thanks."
"Alright, that'll be $2.63, can I get a name to put on the cup?"
"Nah, just call out the order. There aren't any other customers waiting for drinks, are there?"
"No, but the computer wants me to-"
"Fine, call me 'The Sensible One'. What kind of crazy chai tea soy frappa-java ordering... Oh, right, Camila."
He hands her his money and turns to go wait for his coffee, but before he can take a step he sees a girl, maybe sixteen years old or so, standing there behind him.
"Excuse me, can I take a photo with you?"
"I'm sorry?"
"Roy Speede, right? The professional wrestler dude."
"Yeah, but I haven't really done much in the last few years or so. I'm surprised anyone recognizes me."
"Last few years? What about earlier tonight? I was watching your match with Action Wrestling tonight on my phone!"
"Oh, wait, ADub is streaming these things?"
"Yeah! A few of my friends wanted to get together and watch the show so we sat in the corner and streamed it. I can't believe I'm actually getting to meet you, though! This is so cool!"
"Well, I mean, sure! A photo is fine!"
They pause to quickly pose for a photo. Speede turns to see his coffee has been prepared and placed on the end of the bar, where the barista is giving him the sort of evil eye mixed with a 'really' glance.
"Thank you so much!"
She runs off toward her friends, while Speede makes his way over to his cup of coffee. Taking a sip, he follows it with a deep breath before swallowing and turns to see a line of girls all about the same age holding their phones, faces all adorned with wide grins.
"Oh, alright."
He sets the cup of coffee back on the counter for the series of pictures he seems destined to be posing for, and the scene fades to black.
---
14 February 2018
Speede has made his way back to his hotel room; the sun has set as can be seen out the window, but the nightlife of Las Vegas, even on Valentine's Day, has lit up the night sky as brightly as the noonday sun. He has taken a seat on his bed, while opposite him in a comfortable-looking chair sits Nolan Walker.
"Alright, so remind me again why you had us fly out to Vegas to hang out with you?"
"It's Las Vegas, dude! What in the world would have you opposed to coming out here for a few days? This place is a blast!"
"Well, for starters, my girlfriend is back home in Richmond, probably furious beyond belief that I would actually take you up on this offer at all, let alone over the week of Valentine's Day!"
"It's your fault! I told you to bring her."
"Yeah, that's exactly what I wanted to do. 'Hey babe, let's go to Las Vegas for Valentine's Day! No, it's not suspicious at all! I'm not trying to get hitched in some spontaneous marriage during a Vegas party. We're just going out there to support my best friend in his wrestling career, since he just debuted with a new company this past week!' Yeah, that's a real convincing argument to make. And not to mention, look what Alex decided to do- he's off with some girl he met at a club earlier! Or at least, I hope she was a girl. She sure had a strong jawline for a girl, so I'm not so sure, but what're we gonna do, cockblock him?"
"Oh, calm yourself, Nolan! He doesn't have anyone back home to risk making upset, so he wants to have a little fun out here in Vegas while he has the chance! We're going to be shipping out to L.A. before too long; the big Pay-Per-View is being held at the Staples Center, I hear."
"Good for you! Another city where you can spend all the time you want partying and chatting it up with hot girls instead of focusing on your career. I thought this was going to be your big chance, dude? Action Wrestling was a new start, and in the span of a month, you've gone from putting all your effort into getting back into ring shape, to Starbucks, girls, and parties. What's going on?"
"You want an honest answer?"
"Yeah, I really do. What sort of excuse do you have for all this?"
"Well, for one, I'm not being insanely reckless like some people have been, but at the same time, I'm not the only one on the roster who's been enjoying Vegas either, or at least, I wouldn't expect to be. I mean, look at Charlie freakin' Rossi; dude just won the first gold Action Wrestling has ever given out. You can't tell me he ain't on cloud 9 right now."
"Yeah I can. He's out there living it up, and sure, he's the first champion in ADub, but he also has the chance to lose that belt before any other title is even claimed. He earned the right to celebrate a title win, but if he's at all reckless beyond celebrating a bit, he's going to cost himself in the end. Have you seen him out doing anything stupid?"
"Really? That's the argument you're making? He won the title, so he'll be the first to lose it? And no, I haven't really kept up with most anyone from the rest of the roster the last couple days. I'm using Valentine's Day as a day to chill, and tomorrow I'm starting back into the gym as if I never even took the day off to-"
Speede is interrupted by a knock at the door. He stands and makes his way over, checking out the peephole before unlatching the chain and pulling the door open. Standing in front of him is a tall blonde woman of about thirty wearing high heels a skimpy skirt and tube top combo.
"Can I, uh... can I help you?"
"I'm looking for a Roy... is it Speedy?"
"I'm Roy Speede, but why do you..."
He stops himself from asking the question, but not fast enough.
"Yeah, someone hired me to come give you a Valentine's Day to remember, honey. Can I come in?"
"Who the.. No, you cannot come in. I'm not interested!"
"Well, you still owe me my money, sweetie. That'll be one-fifty."
"A buck fifty? You're not even one of the expensive hookers! Who the fu-"
"Who you callin' cheap, sugar? I said a hundred fifty, as in dollars."
"No. And before you try to stick your foot in the door to stop me from slamming this thing, keep in mind I'm a professional wrestler, and you're wearing heels."
Her eyes go wide, and she takes a step back in astonishment, allowing Speede the chance to close the door in her face.
"Fucking hell, Alex, I swear if I find out it was him behind this I'm gonna-"
"You're gonna what?"
"I'm gonna have him on the first flight back to Richmond and he ain't gonna get the chance to come visit a professional wrestling locker room again."
"Oh, damn."
"Yeah. And if you don't mind, man, I'm gonna call it an early night so I can get going early tomorrow. You're welcome to join me at the gym, though."[/coor]
"Nah, I got a bottle of vodka in my room. I think I'm gonna have a shot or two and sleep in."
"Getting wasted in Vegas? Talk about irresponsible!"
"No way! Just a couple. You'll see."
Nolan gets up and proceeds to the door; as he opens it, the blonde is still standing at the door, or rather, across the hallway, arms crossed and leaning against the wall.
"I knew you'd see it my way."
"Not a chance!"
Nolan paces out the door past her, and Roy again forces the door shut with a sense of urgency; the scene cuts to black with the click of the latch and the sound of the deadbolt locking into place.
---
18 February 2018
"Welcome one and all to the State of the Locker Room Address, February 18th edition."
The scene opens on Roy in his car, on his way... somewhere. The camera angle is coming from closer to the front of him, angled up as though recorded on a phone placed in the cupholder of his car or something. The sky is dark in the background, indicating it is again nighttime footage.
"So, I promised last week that I would collect my thoughts and get them on record the night before the show, and here we are, less than twenty-four hours until Clash episode two comes out, with yours truly again on the microphone getting the chance to go off on the entire ADub roster. But unlike my last rant, I'm not going to worry a whole ton about a lot of people.
We already know I'm a fan of Donald Deruty's work, I have a good feeling about how far Dionysus could go in this company and in the business, and that I called TFK out as a wildcard from the beginning. But they're not my priority right now. Right now, I'm working on getting myself ready for a match of my own. Let them fight it out on the other side of the bracket; when the time comes, we'll go up against one another, whether it's in the tournament or not. Tomorrow, I've got bigger fish to fry in the form of one Camila Cabel-I mean, Gonzales.
First off, my bad on the name; it's hard to remember, or at least hard enough to convince myself, that I'm not going head to head with another fifteen-seconds-of-fame spotlight hog straight out of NYC. Last I checked, Camila was the name of a pop star dreaming about Cuba, and now I've got to log it in my brain as the first name of a professional wrestler. Hell, I even googled your name and I got nothing back except your little Action Wrestling website page; that proves to me one thing and one thing only. You're some young thing using your daddy's money to try out different ventures in an attempt to get everything you want, thinking that just because you can afford the nicest fitness equipment and personal trainers, you're going to have success in a wrestling ring; basically you're the hispanic Paris Hilton.
Now, I know, I know, you beat that walking zombie with an attitude, Cheyenne, but let's face it, even a blind squirrel finds a nut. I mean, Adam Young has a couple title reigns on his resume from WCF, and you saw what I did to him. You got a first round win, but you are no Adam Young. I even went and tried to do research to see what I was up against with you, and I wasted my time. I've got to look out for, what, a rear naked choke? Sweetie, I'm not some five foot three, hundred-pounds-soaking-wet little girl, and I definitely have experience on my side when it comes to getting out of a move like that; don't even waste your time. When it comes to the ring, you aren't going to have that easy clench around my neck for a victory; you've got a lot more work to do."
The sound of tires screeching interrupts his speech, and the phone bounces around in the cupholder a couple of times before Speede readjusts it.
"Dammit... Anyway, as I was just getting to, I do admire you going after what you want in life. That's something we have in common, Camila. We both don't seem to be hesitant to set our sights on something challenging and go for it. But unlike you, I have experience on my side; you dove into this business way too early to ever dream of the kind of success that comes with years of hard work. You haven't put in the countless hours of film sessions to prepare for each and every opponent you've had; you haven't faced every hold and suplex and strike known to humankind just to know what sort of moves you might be faced with, and no amount of training will ever replace the knowledge and readiness that comes from having been in that ring before and done what I've done. Are you ready to see a steel cage put in front of you as a means of keeping you from your goals? Are you ready to go diving head-first off a bridge in the midst of a slug-fest to try to make your title dreams happen? There are matches out there so sadistic that someone like you would fly back to New York in tears at the thought, let alone the torment that comes with fighting in them.
Unlike some of those matches, though, I'm going to give you a privilege that some haven't. You won't need to suffer the kind of insanity that I've seen for your career to flatline. I'm going to leave your heart beating and your lungs gasping for precious air following our match, because you've at least earned another chance after this. The state of the locker room is strong; too strong for daddy's girl, anyway."
Speede reaches down and cuts the phone camera off, ending the scene.
The scene opens up post-Clash, where Roy Speede has just defeated Adam Young and is making his way back to the locker room. The corridor leading down toward his chance to change attire is barren, most if not everyone else probably crowding around the entryway to the arena or the nearest television screen to see who will walk out the first Action Wrestling titleholder, more specifically the first TV Champ. However, before he can turn the knob and enter the locker room, he is stopped by a female probably around his age.
"Mister Speede, Mister Speede, a word if you would, please?"
Jenna Bauer had managed to find him just in time for his first true 'interview' with Action Wrestling, and he would be wise to oblige. Stepping away from the door, he puts on a bit of a faux smile before responding.
"Yes, ma'am? Is there something I can do for you?"
"Oh, pardon me! I didn't introduce myself, did I? I'm Jenna Bauer, one of the backstage interviewers with Action Wrestling. I understand if you haven't seen too much of me lately. I was asked to come speak with you about your match tonight and see how you were feeling heading into next week?"
"Oh, alright. I guess we can talk for a few minutes. Is the camera rolling, or do you need to cue me in like an actual interview, or-"
"Of course, just if you could, the camera is actually directly behind you."
He spins, eyes wide in surprise, having just walked that hallway and not seen anyone there a moment ago.
"Okay..."
"Alright, in three, two... Ladies and Gentlemen, my guest at this time is Roy Speede! Roy, congrats on the big win tonight! How are you feeling after making your Action Wrestling debut?"
"I'm pretty content, I'd say. Adam put up a good fight, but if there's one thing I've learned in my past about Adam Young, it's that a never-say-die attitude sometimes doesn't hold up when your mouth writes checks that your ring abilities can't cash. All in all, I'm not gonna lie, it was a good match. I think the fans are pretty content with the showing he put up, and the performance I put up held up enough to pick up the win. I feel like Action Wrestling is a great new start for me, and I'm going to wind up needing this company as much as they'll need me."
"What do you mean by 'as much as' we 'need' you?"
"Every wrestling company needs an established name or two on the roster to draw in crowds or it can never get its feet off the ground, and even with Torture and Gravedigger behind the scenes, somebody has to hold their own in the ring for the ticket sales to actually start rolling in. We've got Deruty, Young, and I among others who are recognizable faces, and yeah, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if we weren't here, the big-shots wouldn't be able to bring in fans on their own, especially since they're not actually competing."
"Alright, well, speaking of Donald Deruty, he and six others also made their way to the second round. I know a lot of people heard the remarks you made before this week's show, and aside from John Frost and Beverly Adams, all of the people you talked about are in the second round. Any worries going forward?"
"There are always going to be people waiting in the wings, but seeing as this is a tournament, I'm not going to sit here holding my breath and worrying about any more than what's right in front of me. I put my match earlier down as a win before I even got to the arena today, and that nearly cost me this entire tournament before it even got going. I won't do that again, especially now that the competition is going to be that much tougher."
"Well, your opponent next week is Camila Gonzales, who put on a convincing performance against Cheyenne earlier tonight. What do you think about your chances moving forward?"
"One in sixteen became one in eight, Jenna. And I'm not going to guarantee anything here, but I will say that if everything goes according to plan, that number will become one in four this time next week."
"'According to plan'? What is that plan for this next week?"
"The same as always. I'm going to spend the week prepping for the match ahead of me, do a little gameplanning and strategizing, and probably the night before the show, I'll take the opportunity to really sit down and talk my way through everything, a little 'State of the Locker Room Address' if you want to call it that."
"Awesome! So, this week we saw the debut of your new finishing move, the Headshot? Have you talked to the friend of yours that you supposedly borrowed that one from?"
"I haven't really called him up or anything yet, but I imagine if he was watching that match, or any of my future matches, he'll give me a call asking about it. Franky probably won't mind, though; he's always been a pretty laid-back dude in terms of that stuff, but if he insists, I'll get rid of it."
"Glad to hear you're keeping in contact with old friends! One last question: I think the world is wondering, are wrestlers the same as the rest of the world? Do you actually have a Valentine's date?"
"Nah, I'm not that kind of person. I don't believe in a special day dedicated to hiking the prices on little heart-shaped boxes of candy and flowers. If you're gonna be nice to a girl, don't wait for Valentine's; just go out there and do it!"
"Great, now you sound just like Shia LaBeouf."
"That was the joke."
"You heard it here, folks, Roy Speede is single as a Pringle on Valentine's Day to focus on his upcoming match! Thanks again for your time, Mr. Speede, and-"
"Roy. Call me Roy. Or Speede. I don't really care. But start adding that 'mister' crap and I get annoyed real quick."
He pushes open the locker room door and leaves her standing out in the hallway, mouth slightly ajar as if she were about to say something. Once the door closes to a click of the latch, she lets out an exasperated huff and walks away. In a matter of five minutes, Speede is back out the door, out of his ring gear and into a tee shirt, jeans, and a blue hoodie with his signature 'Speede' emblem on the breast, almost as if it were a letterman jacket. He proceeds out the door to the arena as an even louder pop echoes through the hallway and the faint sound of Shinedown's "45" rings through the corridor behind him, and crosses the parking lot to his car, speaking softly to himself as though he had forgotten the camera was still rolling.
"If I hurry I can still go get me some Starbucks."
As he opens the door to his 2010 Honda, the camera-person climbs into the back seat, as if Speede actually was intending for him or her tag along. Over the course of the drive, he starts speaking to himself again.
"I appreciate the opportunity, Jenna, but seriously, I've got things to do. Ask for permission before you start filming next time. For the love of crud, what the hell? And seriously, the Valentine's Day question? The fuck? Yeah, I'm single, but I intended it that way! Don't sit there fuckin' advertising it to everyone like- Oh, I'm speaking out loud, aren't I?"
The camera rotates up and down a couple times.
"Great... Well, the point still stands. I'm not interested... So Jenna, if you see this, take notes."
He lets out a sigh and raises both hands to 10 and 2 on the steering wheel, stepping down a little harder on the gas pedal as the car jerks forward from its stop at a light, and within a couple minutes more, the vehicle pulls into a Starbucks parking lot. Speede gets out and looks out across the city and chuckles softly to himself before heading into the building to see a lack of any sort of line between himself and the register. Roy approaches.
"Welcome to Starbucks! What can I get started for you?"
"I'd like a large black coffee, please."
"Alright, a venti Pike Place coffee, would you like room for cream?"
"A ven-what Place? A black. Coffee. With no room for cream."
"Right, a venti is our word for a large-sized cup, and Pike Place is our signature medium roast coffee."
"Okay, yeah, that sounds fine."
"Anything else for you today?"
"No, thanks."
"Alright, that'll be $2.63, can I get a name to put on the cup?"
"Nah, just call out the order. There aren't any other customers waiting for drinks, are there?"
"No, but the computer wants me to-"
"Fine, call me 'The Sensible One'. What kind of crazy chai tea soy frappa-java ordering... Oh, right, Camila."
He hands her his money and turns to go wait for his coffee, but before he can take a step he sees a girl, maybe sixteen years old or so, standing there behind him.
"Excuse me, can I take a photo with you?"
"I'm sorry?"
"Roy Speede, right? The professional wrestler dude."
"Yeah, but I haven't really done much in the last few years or so. I'm surprised anyone recognizes me."
"Last few years? What about earlier tonight? I was watching your match with Action Wrestling tonight on my phone!"
"Oh, wait, ADub is streaming these things?"
"Yeah! A few of my friends wanted to get together and watch the show so we sat in the corner and streamed it. I can't believe I'm actually getting to meet you, though! This is so cool!"
"Well, I mean, sure! A photo is fine!"
They pause to quickly pose for a photo. Speede turns to see his coffee has been prepared and placed on the end of the bar, where the barista is giving him the sort of evil eye mixed with a 'really' glance.
"Thank you so much!"
She runs off toward her friends, while Speede makes his way over to his cup of coffee. Taking a sip, he follows it with a deep breath before swallowing and turns to see a line of girls all about the same age holding their phones, faces all adorned with wide grins.
"Oh, alright."
He sets the cup of coffee back on the counter for the series of pictures he seems destined to be posing for, and the scene fades to black.
---
14 February 2018
Speede has made his way back to his hotel room; the sun has set as can be seen out the window, but the nightlife of Las Vegas, even on Valentine's Day, has lit up the night sky as brightly as the noonday sun. He has taken a seat on his bed, while opposite him in a comfortable-looking chair sits Nolan Walker.
"Alright, so remind me again why you had us fly out to Vegas to hang out with you?"
"It's Las Vegas, dude! What in the world would have you opposed to coming out here for a few days? This place is a blast!"
"Well, for starters, my girlfriend is back home in Richmond, probably furious beyond belief that I would actually take you up on this offer at all, let alone over the week of Valentine's Day!"
"It's your fault! I told you to bring her."
"Yeah, that's exactly what I wanted to do. 'Hey babe, let's go to Las Vegas for Valentine's Day! No, it's not suspicious at all! I'm not trying to get hitched in some spontaneous marriage during a Vegas party. We're just going out there to support my best friend in his wrestling career, since he just debuted with a new company this past week!' Yeah, that's a real convincing argument to make. And not to mention, look what Alex decided to do- he's off with some girl he met at a club earlier! Or at least, I hope she was a girl. She sure had a strong jawline for a girl, so I'm not so sure, but what're we gonna do, cockblock him?"
"Oh, calm yourself, Nolan! He doesn't have anyone back home to risk making upset, so he wants to have a little fun out here in Vegas while he has the chance! We're going to be shipping out to L.A. before too long; the big Pay-Per-View is being held at the Staples Center, I hear."
"Good for you! Another city where you can spend all the time you want partying and chatting it up with hot girls instead of focusing on your career. I thought this was going to be your big chance, dude? Action Wrestling was a new start, and in the span of a month, you've gone from putting all your effort into getting back into ring shape, to Starbucks, girls, and parties. What's going on?"
"You want an honest answer?"
"Yeah, I really do. What sort of excuse do you have for all this?"
"Well, for one, I'm not being insanely reckless like some people have been, but at the same time, I'm not the only one on the roster who's been enjoying Vegas either, or at least, I wouldn't expect to be. I mean, look at Charlie freakin' Rossi; dude just won the first gold Action Wrestling has ever given out. You can't tell me he ain't on cloud 9 right now."
"Yeah I can. He's out there living it up, and sure, he's the first champion in ADub, but he also has the chance to lose that belt before any other title is even claimed. He earned the right to celebrate a title win, but if he's at all reckless beyond celebrating a bit, he's going to cost himself in the end. Have you seen him out doing anything stupid?"
"Really? That's the argument you're making? He won the title, so he'll be the first to lose it? And no, I haven't really kept up with most anyone from the rest of the roster the last couple days. I'm using Valentine's Day as a day to chill, and tomorrow I'm starting back into the gym as if I never even took the day off to-"
Speede is interrupted by a knock at the door. He stands and makes his way over, checking out the peephole before unlatching the chain and pulling the door open. Standing in front of him is a tall blonde woman of about thirty wearing high heels a skimpy skirt and tube top combo.
"Can I, uh... can I help you?"
"I'm looking for a Roy... is it Speedy?"
"I'm Roy Speede, but why do you..."
He stops himself from asking the question, but not fast enough.
"Yeah, someone hired me to come give you a Valentine's Day to remember, honey. Can I come in?"
"Who the.. No, you cannot come in. I'm not interested!"
"Well, you still owe me my money, sweetie. That'll be one-fifty."
"A buck fifty? You're not even one of the expensive hookers! Who the fu-"
"Who you callin' cheap, sugar? I said a hundred fifty, as in dollars."
"No. And before you try to stick your foot in the door to stop me from slamming this thing, keep in mind I'm a professional wrestler, and you're wearing heels."
Her eyes go wide, and she takes a step back in astonishment, allowing Speede the chance to close the door in her face.
"Fucking hell, Alex, I swear if I find out it was him behind this I'm gonna-"
"You're gonna what?"
"I'm gonna have him on the first flight back to Richmond and he ain't gonna get the chance to come visit a professional wrestling locker room again."
"Oh, damn."
"Yeah. And if you don't mind, man, I'm gonna call it an early night so I can get going early tomorrow. You're welcome to join me at the gym, though."[/coor]
"Nah, I got a bottle of vodka in my room. I think I'm gonna have a shot or two and sleep in."
"Getting wasted in Vegas? Talk about irresponsible!"
"No way! Just a couple. You'll see."
Nolan gets up and proceeds to the door; as he opens it, the blonde is still standing at the door, or rather, across the hallway, arms crossed and leaning against the wall.
"I knew you'd see it my way."
"Not a chance!"
Nolan paces out the door past her, and Roy again forces the door shut with a sense of urgency; the scene cuts to black with the click of the latch and the sound of the deadbolt locking into place.
---
18 February 2018
"Welcome one and all to the State of the Locker Room Address, February 18th edition."
The scene opens on Roy in his car, on his way... somewhere. The camera angle is coming from closer to the front of him, angled up as though recorded on a phone placed in the cupholder of his car or something. The sky is dark in the background, indicating it is again nighttime footage.
"So, I promised last week that I would collect my thoughts and get them on record the night before the show, and here we are, less than twenty-four hours until Clash episode two comes out, with yours truly again on the microphone getting the chance to go off on the entire ADub roster. But unlike my last rant, I'm not going to worry a whole ton about a lot of people.
We already know I'm a fan of Donald Deruty's work, I have a good feeling about how far Dionysus could go in this company and in the business, and that I called TFK out as a wildcard from the beginning. But they're not my priority right now. Right now, I'm working on getting myself ready for a match of my own. Let them fight it out on the other side of the bracket; when the time comes, we'll go up against one another, whether it's in the tournament or not. Tomorrow, I've got bigger fish to fry in the form of one Camila Cabel-I mean, Gonzales.
First off, my bad on the name; it's hard to remember, or at least hard enough to convince myself, that I'm not going head to head with another fifteen-seconds-of-fame spotlight hog straight out of NYC. Last I checked, Camila was the name of a pop star dreaming about Cuba, and now I've got to log it in my brain as the first name of a professional wrestler. Hell, I even googled your name and I got nothing back except your little Action Wrestling website page; that proves to me one thing and one thing only. You're some young thing using your daddy's money to try out different ventures in an attempt to get everything you want, thinking that just because you can afford the nicest fitness equipment and personal trainers, you're going to have success in a wrestling ring; basically you're the hispanic Paris Hilton.
Now, I know, I know, you beat that walking zombie with an attitude, Cheyenne, but let's face it, even a blind squirrel finds a nut. I mean, Adam Young has a couple title reigns on his resume from WCF, and you saw what I did to him. You got a first round win, but you are no Adam Young. I even went and tried to do research to see what I was up against with you, and I wasted my time. I've got to look out for, what, a rear naked choke? Sweetie, I'm not some five foot three, hundred-pounds-soaking-wet little girl, and I definitely have experience on my side when it comes to getting out of a move like that; don't even waste your time. When it comes to the ring, you aren't going to have that easy clench around my neck for a victory; you've got a lot more work to do."
The sound of tires screeching interrupts his speech, and the phone bounces around in the cupholder a couple of times before Speede readjusts it.
"Dammit... Anyway, as I was just getting to, I do admire you going after what you want in life. That's something we have in common, Camila. We both don't seem to be hesitant to set our sights on something challenging and go for it. But unlike you, I have experience on my side; you dove into this business way too early to ever dream of the kind of success that comes with years of hard work. You haven't put in the countless hours of film sessions to prepare for each and every opponent you've had; you haven't faced every hold and suplex and strike known to humankind just to know what sort of moves you might be faced with, and no amount of training will ever replace the knowledge and readiness that comes from having been in that ring before and done what I've done. Are you ready to see a steel cage put in front of you as a means of keeping you from your goals? Are you ready to go diving head-first off a bridge in the midst of a slug-fest to try to make your title dreams happen? There are matches out there so sadistic that someone like you would fly back to New York in tears at the thought, let alone the torment that comes with fighting in them.
Unlike some of those matches, though, I'm going to give you a privilege that some haven't. You won't need to suffer the kind of insanity that I've seen for your career to flatline. I'm going to leave your heart beating and your lungs gasping for precious air following our match, because you've at least earned another chance after this. The state of the locker room is strong; too strong for daddy's girl, anyway."
Speede reaches down and cuts the phone camera off, ending the scene.