Chapter 21: The first words

Remember when we used to be inseparable
And the late nights sitting by the fire
We'd fall asleep knowing we would wake up by each other's side
We never had the fear that we were losing time
Remember the sound of the voice that would call our name
A sense of comfort fell upon our heart
Now the voice fades in thе distance, a life changed in an instant
I can't look at you bеcause it's tearing me apart

Love.

Love is a lie.

A word with emotions behind it that are used by terrorists to influence your thoughts and feelings. To manipulate you. To break down your walls that you put up to prevent being hurt so you will bend to their will. Love is a form of control. Nothing more, nothing less.

And it is one that all of us fall for. No matter how mentally strong you are or how fortified your emotional state. The word itself, just said out loud to you can melt your heart. It can take down those walls and worm its way into your mind. It can break you, destroy you and make your life a new level of hell.

And the worst part?

You’ll thank the person for it.

You’ll smile, look them in the eye and feel a sense of happiness. A bonding experience that life and media tells you is meaningful and deep. That love is the greatest thing you can feel. Higher than any other feeling or emotion. Higher than disappointment, anger or anxiety which are viewed as negatives, Higher than even pride.

You are taught from a young age, love is the highest form of accomplishment. To love and be loved.

It’s a joke.

Love is nothing but a tool used by the strong to control the weak. After all, what is a relationship if not a constant power struggle between two people to be dominant? Tell me I’m wrong, try and make your argument. But then stop, think and go back over every relationship you have had. Ever moment and argument. Everytime your man or woman pushed you and forced you into something you didn’t want to do. All while using that one fucking word.

Love…

Love is just a camouflage, for what resembles rage again.-Corey Taylor

Chapter 21:The first words…

It all escalated fast. The relationship, the feelings and thoughts. From Billy refusing to leave, coming to see Kayla for more than just the base instincts of physical pleasure. She crumbled, she allowed him in and they decided to be together. And the last few weeks had been awkward. Forced conversations, Billy trying to be sweet, caring. He even referred to himself as “her boyfriend” when introducing himself at a show. And in turn...at a mainstream show he uttered those words that made her skin crawl and her stomach turn.

“My girlfriend”

Her eye twitched, she swallowed hard and couldn’t talk or say a word. Instead she forced a smile, a nod, a friendly gesture. Billy walked away for his match, Kayla sat backstage in silence, seething under her burning gaze as she watched the monitor. But that moment and interaction would not mean anything compared to a few short weeks later….

A family dinner.

Kayla put on her mask. She was all smiles and polite conversations. Billy's mother compliments her on her eyes and smile while eyeing off her tattoos with a polite and well hidden judgemental stare. His father didn’t care about the tattoos, much more impressed with her figure, complimenting Kayla on how physically fit she was while giving Billy a lighthearted “good job boy” She hated it, she hated everything about it. Meeting people that were near and dear to Billys heart while having to fake interest.

Being paraded forward like a piece of meat at a show. Being judged for her looks, personal choices, style and body art.

They smiled, said goodbye and made their way back to their hotel. “We should probably get some sleep. We have an early flight tomorrow and then I need to get my shit and fly out to California…” Kayla was booked, Billy wasn’t. It would be their last night together for the next three weeks. Part of Kayla was relieved. She needed time away from him, from the relationship she let herself get talked into. Billy looked sad, his face changing from the usual happy go lucky goofball to someone alot more serious.

This stirred something in Kayla. She felt bad. She felt...sympathy.

She sighed and reached out, her hand finding his as she offered up a small smile and a nod. Billy looked up, his eyes meeting hers, she leaned forward giving him a light kiss before breathing deep. “It won’t be too lo-”

“I love you Kay.”

It was sudden, it was unexpected and it was shocking. Kayla stopped mid sentence, her eyes widening as Billy smiled faintly and squeezed her hand. She had no idea what to say, everything went out of her mind, everything she could plan on saying or thinking just went blank. She felt sick, she felt horrible and at that moment wanted to run. But where? She was trapped, trapped in the room, in the relationship and now she had no idea what to say in response. Her gut reaction was to deflect it, talk about something else. Roll her eyes, even laugh and ridicule him.

Instead Kayla did something unexpected and against her nature. “I love you to…”

The words came out of her mouth, but she didn’t mean to. Billy smiled, he looked happy, Kayla smiled back, a faint half assed one. But he didn’t notice or care. Kayla's heart sank, it was too late to take it back now.

She was trapped.

Payne in the ass…

“Did I tell you so? I think I told you so.”

Kayla smiles wide, like an arrogant cat, proud of herself as she pushes her chest out and folds her arms over her chest.

“You all thought lil miss Betsy Granger was going to walk into Annihilation and stop me didn’t you? That good would triumph over evil, that Betsy would do you all proud and stop me from being one of the most dominant names in PWE. Now, here’s the problem, good did triumph over evil. See, I am, in fact, the lesser of two evils. I know you all don’t see it yet, but Betsy is a fake, a fraud and a phoney. And I have taken steps to expose her. I looked all of you in the figurative eye and said I would do anything to beat her. Take any shortcut, bend any rule and do what I needed to do. And I did. I was honest. I was completely forthright in my plans and where I was going.”

“Betsy can never say that. She uses other people to further her agenda and even now as I stand her victorious and ready to push my case for the Pro Wrestling Excellence title shot she is making whispers and waves, scheming to get a rematch with me. Well, I’m sorry little schemer. Much like James Raven will when he figures you out...I’ve moved on…”

“But, Betsy will spin this, like she always does. She will tell you all I cheated and that I’m not as good as her and needed to resort to such tactics. Lets face it, Betsy Granger complaining and whining is the status quo…”

“Kayla Richards though? Well I’m looking onwards and upwards. I’m undefeated. William Blake Mason, El Landerson, Betsy Granger. They have all fallen to me in one on one competition and while William Blake Mason is talented, and Landerson is a joke, the biggest scalp was Betsy. She was being looked at as a future title contender to Damian Ayla, but what now? What now that I have taken a wrench and thrown it into the plans of this company and I have disrupted and broken the narrative of Ophelia Knight and Charlie Jones? Hmm? Where does the company go now? I guess you could make an argument for Allen Chaney, but lets face it, Allen beating down a small metrosexual fuckboi is not as impressive as what I did…”

She shoots an arrogant smile. Kayla is in her element. Her upper body covered by a vintage looking Metallica Kill em all shirt and a leather jacket, completing the look with torn black jeans and leather boots.

“So, again I ask the simple question of where does the company go from here in regards to me? Face it, I’m a nightmare. I’m a PR nightmare, I’m a nightmare for the competition here and Damian Ayla as great as he is, is scared of me. The best in this company have been lucky that I have been busy with Betsy. Xaria, Zoey, Tara, Damian, Nathaniel, Allen...they have all been LUCKY that I have been busy”

“That time though, that time has come to an end. With Betsy out o0f the way I can do what I want. I can beat that snivelling little irishman and take his title, I can expose the fake magic of the magician, I can beat the big bad champion Damian….I can take anything I want, whenever I want.”

“However, did you notice a name missing from the list of “top” talents I decided to name?”

“Amber Payne. My opponent for Victory V. I didn’t name you in my list for a reason. It’s a very simple one and one that you need to get in your head and listen to. I didn;’t mention you in the list of top talents because...you’re not one of them. Simple right? You Amber Payne, kinda suck.”

Kayla pauses and lightly shrugs, not even getting angry about the situation or her match, meeting Amber, her name and her personality with a quiet indifference.

“I have seen you in and out of companies for years. Kingdom, Project Honor, WWH, bouncing around, in and out and all the while never m,making an impact. You make grand promises of grandeur and tell us all how you’re going to end up and be a dominant champion but nothing ever comes of it. And when you do, nobody takes any notice Amber. See, if you join fifty companies, run your mouth in all of them and become successful in one of them, it does not negate the 49 other failures…”

“Do you know what I do Amber? Do you?”

“I go into companies and I become a champion, I become dominant. I take titles and names, I end careers. I essentially do everything that you wish you could do, that you promise you do. And what’s worse is you don’t ever see it. You think you’re playing chess, but honey, you’re not even playing checkers, you’re playing fucking dominoes.”

“You promised to win the Victory championship and you failed. But will that failure make you reevaluate your career? Your choices or decisions? Will you stop making these stupid promises and try and improve in the ring? I highly doubt it. No, I know your type Amber. You will spout off about how you’ll beat me, maybe list off some of your accomplishments like they matter when...as I said, they really don’t when you have been in and out of so many companies and your failures outweigh your successes by such a large margin.”

“The sad part is Amber, before Annihilation you finally showed some of that fire that you pretend to have. You looked into a camera, you played your little game of chess and you made some interesting points and were actually, legitimately entertaining. But, then the match happened, you got in the ring and you failed. You failed to become the first ever Pro Wrestling Excellence Victory champion. And now, well now you have drawn the short straw, you have been sacrificed to me by the powers that be here as they start to just throw competition at me in some vain hope that it slows me down. But it won’t...you Amber...won’t….”

“Victory V, you get taken down and broken in half….and then you can make all the excuses you want…”