Pasts and Futures
Dec 13, 2020 23:49:56 GMT -5
“The RevolutiDaddy” Wesley, CJ Phoenix, and 2 more like this
Post by The Following on Dec 13, 2020 23:49:56 GMT -5
The clock in the corner turns to 1:00 and the doors to the meeting room in the Following’s compound open. The first men to take their seats at the table are Kyle Kemp, Wesley, Dandy DiVito and Chase Jackson. They look at each other and smile as two other men walk in and take seats at the table with them. Those men are CJ Phoenix and Miguel Guerrero. The amount of followers grow with each day and adding these two men will continue to set them apart.
“First and foremost I want to welcome CJ and Miguel to the table. You both have earned your spots here and I want to be the first to congratulate you both being here.”
The rest of the men applaud as CJ and Miguel smile and nod to Kemp.
“Adding you two to the fold is great for all of us and continues us on the path that we have begun to cut out for ourselves. I for one cannot wait to see what we accomplish next. Obviously this year has been hard for a lot of people and we have been a beacon of hope for many of them. We show people day after day that it’s ok to ask for help and as the year turns to 2021 I believe that we have some real opportunities in front of us.”
Dandy slaps the table.
“Ya ain’t fuckin’ lyin’! We’ve got some shit cooked up that’s gonna knock the people on they asses and take us to a whole new fuckin’ level!”
Wesley puts his hand up.
“I want to interrupt for one second and tell you all how much I appreciate your support during and in the days after the Wrestler of the Year tournament. You guys have been a real inspiration. Look at what we’ve accomplished so far. Trios Champions. Tag Team Champions. Growth in membership. I can’t even imagine what’s going to happen when these new plans we have start.”
Kemp reaches over and puts his hand on Wesley’s shoulder.
“I told you when you joined that you were joining a family and that is what we are. The support we gave you will always be there through wins, losses, tough times and the good times. This is what The Following is all about.”
CJ can’t hold it in anymore and blurts out.
“So what are the plans going forward?”
Kemp smiles.
“I love your enthusiasm, CJ, but I don’t want to put any pressure on you yet. I want you to focus on the CruiserHavoc Rumble. The potential is there for you to do great things and I want you to be ready. That is why I want you to get some training time scheduled with Wesley and Chase. I want you to take Miguel and go over the specs of our compound. I want the security here to be ready for what is to come.”
Miguel nods without changing his facial expression.
“Get to it and leave me with Dandy.”
The others get up and walk out of the room which leaves Kemp and Dandy sitting across from each other. Kemp stands up and walks over to a cabinet on the wall behind the table. He opens it and grabs a bottle of whiskey out and places it on the table. He pours it into a couple glasses and slides one over to Dandy.
“What’s this for?”
“You’ve got to take time and enjoy the good things Dandy and at Turmoil we had a good thing happen to us. We both exercised a couple of demons and won a championship. We haven’t had time in the days since to celebrate and I just want to take the time to acknowledge what we have accomplished.”
Dandy smiles and takes a sip of the whiskey.
“That’s some good shit. It sho’ did feel good to get that fuckin’ win back ova Lock.”.
“I know it did, because it felt good to get that win over Spencer, too. Now we just need to finish the year strong against Teo and Jensen.”
“I love how they talkin’ ‘bout that shit as an exhibition. Just a match between two sets of cham-peens. Don’t they know betta? We ain’t treatin’ this shit like no exhibition.”
“No, we aren’t. They aren’t gonna know what hit them.”
Kemp holds his glass up and Dandy clinks his against Kemps before each take another sip.
It’s fitting for my 2020 to end with a chance to showcase how far I’ve come by taking on Teo Blaze. Teo falls into the same category for me as Spencer Adams. Longtime rivals, former friends, and an unfortunate measuring stick. Does that sound about right to you Teo?
It should. We have been tied together for years just like me and Spencer. It has always been who is the better wrestler between the three of us and I just proved that right now I’m better than Spencer. I’m going to prove that I’m better than Teo. This has been a long time coming Teo. Just like Spencer you are the one that ruined our relationship and I’m sure you don’t understand why.
I’m sure you hear me say these things and you go sit in your dark room where you talk to yourself and psych yourself up to just leave the house and are asking yourself why do I hate you so much. I hate you because you are just one of many people that have screwed me by putting themselves first over the team. I have always been the backbone. I was when Spencer and I were Tag Team Champions. I was when John Rabid and I were Tag Team Champions. And more so than ever was I the backbone when we were Tag Team Champions. I carried you. You can deny it all you want but that is a fact!
What? Do you think this is a secret? Do you think nobody knows this? Everyone that comes in contact with you ends up dealing with your bullshit. It’s only a matter of time until Jensen sees it even if he’s dumb for not already knowing it. You are a basket case. That is no more evident than the countless amount of times we’ve had to deal with your issues with your mask. Should you wear it? Should you take it off? Is it speaking to you? Is it making you do things you wouldn’t normally do? We are all tired of hearing these questions. We are tired of the excuses. We are tired of your own personal never ending edition of Dr. Phil that plays out. It’s like clockwork Teo. Once you get over your issues for a second, they pop back up at the most inopportune time.
When we were Tag Team Champions together in WCF I knew there was going to be a shelf life on our reign. I knew it was only a matter of time until these issues took us down and that is where you put yourself before the team. I was Omega Champion! We were Tag Team Champions! We were on a roll and I was headed to bigger and better things and that is when you decided that you needed to try to take the spotlight from me. You had to screw your partner out of the Omega Title. You had to put yourself first and what did you blame it on? You blamed it on the voices from that ridiculous mask. You couldn’t just say you were stabbing me in the back because you were jealous. You couldn’t just come to me as a man and say that you wanted what I have or wanted a shot at me. You had to do what you always do and turn it into this circus that you call your personality.
Well let me be the first to stand here and tell you that I’m sick of it Teo. I’ve watched you from afar, biding my time till I could get back in the ring with you and now I finally get that chance. I finally get to take you on and pay you back for the pain that you caused me. Because emotional pain is all I have when it comes to you. I haven’t forgotten how you ruined the charity dinner that would have kept the Kemp Foundation alive. I haven’t forgotten how you ruined my relationship. I haven’t forgotten how you decided to attempt to ruin my life. Old wounds don’t heal Teo and that is why I can’t wait till Clash.
Allow me to be the adult out of the two of us and allow me to tell you exactly what my intentions are at Clash. This is no exhibition to me. This isn’t a fun match where the Tag Team Champions of both shows put on a fun match and shake hands at the end. This isn’t a nice little holiday send off before we take a break for Christmas. This is retribution. I’m going to walk up to you in the middle of the ring and I’m going to slap the taste right out of your mouth. How’s that for full transparency?
And let me be clear about one other thing. Us teaming with Alex Richards last year to win Trios was not us making peace. It was only a break in the war. I did that to raise my profile and because I made the mistake of trusting you one more time. Everything I just said that you did you did then. I was fooled again into thinking that we were friends. I was fooled into thinking that you were going to be there for me when I was down. Where were you after Walter put me in the hospital? I didn’t get a card. I didn’t get a phone call. I didn’t even get a generic text. I got nothing and it showed me that I was right all along. You, just like Spencer, are all about you!
And just like Spencer you are going to get what has been coming to you. I’m going to kick your goddamn head off at Clash. It’s going to feel good. I can’t wait to hear the sound of the air leaving your body and watching your eyes glaze over when I’m done. You reap what you sow and I’ve been holding onto this for far to long Teo. It’s time you paid.
And when you are lying there in the middle of the ring, looking at the lights and wondering just what happened, you are going to see me and Dandy standing over you. I’ve taken all the digs and the insults and the back stabbing you and Spencer have done to me and used them to mold together my new family. The Following.
You should be happy Teo. You should know that your legacy as a shit human being and a complete nut job is what helped push me to make The Following. That will live on. Just like it will live on that Super Clash Awards show in 2020 was not a night that Teo won a huge award. You didn’t win moment of the year. You didn’t win Tag Team of the year. It will live on because it will be the night that The Following end Teo Blaze’s career and put his mask on a stick out front, warning anyone and everyone to not follow in your footsteps.
This exhibition will end with one thing. Everyone will…..FOLLOW THE FOLLOWING!
Dandy walks down the hallway of The Following’s compound, and as he rounds a corner, he and Miguel Guerrero collide into each other. Miguel stumbles back and falls to the floor.
“Ah, shit, man. Sorry. You good?”
Dandy reaches out a hand to help Miguel up from the floor. Miguel reaches out with his right but his left arm firmly holds his ribs as he winces. Dandy helps him up to his feet but something is clearly off with Miguel.
“Dude, you fuckin’ good?”
Miguel rattles his head around neither shaking nor nodding it, no confirmation or denial.
“It’s just my ribs. I’ll be fine. When that asshole blindsided me, he kinda fucked me up. I’m fine though. Nothing to sweat.”
Miguel desperately attempts to hide his pain, but Dandy sees through him.
“Nah. Fuck that. You ain’t goin’ wit’ us this week, dude. You gotta stay here an’ rest up. We’ll hold that shit down. It’s jus’ the fuckin’ Gents. We can handle that fuckin’ shit fo’ sure. We gonna need you a lot mo’ when shit gets real in 2021, but this show? Fuck, man. Ain’t fuck all to go worryin’ ‘bout, ok?”
Miguel moves to protest but Dandy cuts him off.
“Nope. You ain’t goin’, an’ that’s fuckin’ that. Hol’ down the fort, mo’fucka. The rest a’ tha crew will handle business at SuperClash.”
Miguel, still holding his ribs, quietly concedes.
“Alright. Fine. If you insist, I’ll just focus on wrapping up my security assessment of the compound then. I might be down right now, but nothing can put me out entirely.”
Dandy smiles as he reaches a hand out to gently pat Miguel on the shoulder.
“That fuckin’ spirit’s why yo’ ass is here, Miggy.”
Oh, man. The Gents! Fun shit. You boys is so cute. Teo doin’ what he do to pretend to be the real deal wit’ his mask that looks like it was made outta paperplates, pipe cleaners, an’ Elmer’s glue by Ms. Magillicutty’s Kindergarden class in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jenson, hidin’ he tiny li’l nuts in a dice pouch he keepin’ under that ugly fuckin’ dress.
Look, Jenson, they ain’t no gimmicks fo’ my promos. They ain’t no games a’ chance that decide them ways I’ma dissect yo’ fuckin’ spineless ass in-ring game or talk all the shit I wanna talk in this world. But you, man? You all gimmick, an’ that’s fuckin’ sad as shit.
I get that you boys playin’ in the fuckin’ little leagues down there. You king shit when yo’ opponents ain’t big enough to ride fuckin’ Splash Mountain, but this week? Y’all steppin’ up a weight class an’ yo’ usual smoke an’ mirrors shit ain’t gonna cut it when you lookin’ ‘cross the ring to see the fuckin’ top tag team this fuckin’ game is offerin’ today starin’ back atchu. We ain’t the fuckin’ chil’ens who made Teo’s mask, Jenson. We ain’t the help you can pay to say you a big bad man back in Kem. No, no. Kemp and me is entirely different than the fuckin’ li’l fellas you used to smackin’ aroun’. We fuckin’ blood thirsty. We skull crackers. We sure as fuck ain’t no Karlie Nash an’ Nikki Vaughn push over types. Shit, if thems the most decorated champs in yo’ division, I think the fuckin’ decorations is less streamers and ticker-tape and more straight up used fuckin’ toilet paper.
An’ fuck, the best thing ‘bout it all, man, is we ain’t gotta have no fuckin’ dice tell us what we gon’ do next. When you at my fuckin’ mercy, you gonna be wishin’ I’d roll them dice instead a’ jus’ smacked the fuck outta yo’ ass. ‘Cause look, fella, I know you gonna make yo’ choices wit’ yo’ li’l stand-in balls you callin’ D20. What’s it gonna take fo’ you to throw a punch? Is that a 1 or a 12 or a 7? You know what that motivation’ factor is fo’ me? The drive to put you down like a fuckin’ dog, Jenson. It don’t take no outside fuckin’ metrics for me to decide to smash you. But you indecisive and you hesitate mo’ than I ever hesitated in my fuckin’ life. Sometimes, that hesitation can be a lifesaver: waitin’ to go when the light turns green can save yo ass from a car wreck an’ shit, right? But what does waitin’ in a fight get you? Pretty simple answer: it gets yo’ ass beat. So Jenson, you gonna be sittin’ there playin’ wit’ yo’self an’ rollin’ yo’ dice, an’ me an’ Kemp is gonna be sharpenin’ our claws, settin’ shit up to rip out yo’ goddamn throat.
An’ don’t let yo’self get all deluded into thinkin’ that yo’ fantasy world’s gonna save yo’ ass neither. Hell no, Jenson. They ain’t nothin’ you gonna be able to do in yo’ made up li’l country, ain’t no price you can pay in yo’ made up fuckin’ money, ain’t no spells yo’ ass can cast, ain’t no favors you can call in from yo’ ol’ buddy Magic… Nothin’s gonna save yo’ ass from the fuckin’ beatin’ The Followin’s gonna dish out on The Gents come SuperClash, Jenson, because you two fucks has just been spendin’ yo’ time tossin’ midgets and y’all ain’t ready for the two giants of the game you got on yo’ plate this week. We two of the most important mo’fuckas ta eva grace the ring in this comp’ny, an’ y’all just think ya gonna crawl outta the woodwork, come up to our weight class an’ start throwin’ live rounds? Fuck. That. Shit. We ain’t scared of yo’ best shit, Gents. Hell, fo’ yo’ sake, we hope you ain’t shown the world yo’ best shit yet honestly, ‘cause if that has been it? Well, fuck… this match is beggin’ for a ref’s stoppage or it’s gon’ end in AW’s second and third funerals of the fuckin’ year.
You Duk-koo Kim lookin’ mo’fuckas can jus’ start callin’ me an Kemp Boom Boom Mancini now, but shit, even if we beat y’all’s asses that bad, I wouldn’t feel that special. Hell, it wouldn’t even be the first time Andre got he ass beat so bad he disappeared now would it? I mean, fuck, does this mo’fucka just get lost goin’ back to his made up fuckin’ homeland or some shit? ‘Cause unless he just playin’ opportunist an’ only showin’ his face when he sees an openin’ he can take advantage of in them li’l fucker ranks, I can’t make no heads or tails of what it takes for Andre Jenson to show up in the fuckin’ ring. What is it, Andre? You jus’ need to know there’s some fuckin’ no-charisma fucko waitin’ to rub yo’ dice pouch in order fo’ ya to show up or what? Like, honestly, you been gone ‘bout as much as a fuckin’ shithead kid who’s dad went out for smokes 4 years ago. At least wit’ ciggy daddy, we know that mo’fucka improved he life by dodgin’ that snotnosed li’l shit. Wit’ you? Fuck me, man. Ya ain’t doin’ nothin’ in Kem that you ain’t doin’ here. Findin’ more ways to be totally forgettable? You can do that shit in both places fo’ sho’. Findin’ out how to swing an’ miss on gettin’ yo’self some pants action? You’ll be as dick-dry here as you is there as long as we ain’t countin’ the sheep of Kem. Just face it, yo’ ass leaves this fuckin’ place every time you realize you can’t fuckin’ hack it, an’ I’d bet my left nut you ‘bout ta disappear again, mo’fucka. ‘Cept this time, you gonna get yo’ ass beat so fuckin’ hard you don’t gotta worry ‘bout havin’ that creepin’ moment of doubt where you forget why you left in the firs’ place and yo’ ass comes stumblin’ back fo’ a reminder. No, no, no, mo’fucka. When The Followin’ lays in it’s licks, you don’t fuckin’ forget ‘em. When Kemp and Dandy beat yo’ li’l beta asses, you gon’ go lick yo’ wounds an’ yo’ ain’t never gon’ fo’get that shit.
You comin’ to SuperClash is worse than a dice roll, Jenson. At least wit’ a dice roll, you got a fuckin’ chance of gettin’ what you want. You step into the ring wit’ The Followin’? You rollin’ snake eyes every goddamn time.
Dandy is sitting in his room in The Following’s compound thumbing through photos and texts on his phone.
A knock on the door causes Dandy to frantically close his messages app before responding to the knock.
“Come in.”
The door cracks open and Chase Jackson walked into the room. Dandy sees Chase enter the room and a slight smile creeps across his face.
“If it ain’t the fuckin’ savior of Turmoil him damn self!”
Chase looks at Dandy sceptically, trying to discern if Dandy’s being genuine or fucking with him.
“Are you…”
“I mean it, Chase! You mighta saved the fuckin’ match for me an’ Kyle. No bullshit.”
Chase is astonished by Dandy’s humility.
“Wow. Uh, Dandy, I, um…”
Dandy smirks and chuckles to himself.
“I just want you ta know that I know that shit was you an’ me turnin’ a corner into bein’ fuckin’ good, Chase. I know that shit was tough fo’ you. Swallowin’ ya pride ain’t never fuckin’ easy, but I knew you was jus’ goin’ through some shit, man. I knew yo’ heart was in the right fuckin’ spot.”
Chase smiles and looks down to the floor, averting eye contact.
“Dandy, I…”
Chase momentarily trails off.
“I just wanted to say thank you.”
“I mean, you was the one eatin’ that fuckin’ punch, man, so it ain’t even like I did nothin’. But don’t mention it, man. You welcome an’ all that.”
“No, Dandy. For real. You had my fate in the palm of your hand, and you... you gave me another chance when we both know I wouldn’t have done that for you. But you, man…? You did it for me like there wasn’t an option in it all. Thank you, Dandy.”
Dandy smiles wide.
“Chase, it was the right fuckin’ thing to do, so I did it. Ain’t a thing to make into a big hairy deal, brotha. The fuckin’ facts is real simple: we all got a role to play in this fuckin’ organization. Mine’s differ’nt than yo’s, Wes’ is differ’nt than CJ’s. Kemps’ is differ’nt than MIggy’s. I just made sure you had the time to figure out what the fuck yo’s was.”
Chase nods.
“That’s kinda why I wanted to talk to you, Dandy.”
Dandy’s eyebrows rise.
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. I… I don’t actually know what my role is. At this point, I know what my role isn’t more than I know what it is.”
Dandy nods knowingly.
“Ah, yeah, man. I get ya. Shit’s confusin’, man. But look… Kemp is organizin’ the whole fuckin’ show, Wes is trainin’ mo’fuckas, Miggy is security, I’m Kemp’s right hand, and you? You the left, man. You feel me?”
“I… I think so…?”
“Most important thing is just fuckin’ rememberin’ that we all on the same team an’ we out fo’ e’rybody else in the damn team, not ourselves. Miggy never stepped foot in a ring befo’ the Cup, an’ he did it fo’ us. You wasn’t gonna hold the tag strap up at the end of Turmoil but you ate shit so Kemp and me could hold ‘em up. That’s team shit, son. That’s where we is right now, an’ I guess in that way, I was wrong befo’. We ain’t got differ’nt roles; we all got the same role: do the damn thing fo’ the fuckin’ team, no matter what the damn thing is. You know yo’ role perfectly good, Chase. That fuckin’ shiner Lock gave yo’ ass is fuckin’ evidence.”
Chase smiles and turns to leave Dandy’s room.
“Thanks, DD. I’m sorry about everything the past few weeks.”
“Ain’t necessary. Fuck the past, man. It don’t mean shit. We here all ‘bout the future. No mo’. No less.”
Chase nods as he exits the room and closes the door. Dandy almost immediately gets his phone out again and opens up his history with Yaz.
Dandy mutters to himself.
“The past don’t mean shit, man.”
Dandy lets out a sigh and tosses his phone onto his bedside table as he gets up and exits his room.