Post by Brooke Hernandez on Apr 22, 2023 20:14:43 GMT -5
I can't believe I am back here. Somewhere. Nowhere. Everywhere. I vowed to never return once I left for college, but there I was, my perfect feet standing on the fading pavement once again. This total abortion of a place is called Macgregor. It reminds me of a banana republic run by some dictator—the balance of wealth is unbelievable! It has beautiful beaches and mansions that belong in a magazine, but when there is rich…..there is poor. Very poor. Like didn’t study for the test and you got your graded exam back with red ink on it poor. Like standing on the side of the freeway with a cardboard sign and your entire life packed into a dingy sleeping bag poor. Like the reviews on the movie “The Room” poor. You catch my drift. I told her to meet me here so she could see why I'm proud of who I have become in such a short time. I invited her to meet me here because I knew she was from a troubled background as well. Maybe, if she saw that we aren’t so different, she would understand.
Like the grim reaper reaching out to pull me into the abyss, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned, ready to fight. To die, if need be.* "A little jumpy aren't we?"
It was Synn, my friend.. I think? Honestly the relationship Synn and I shared wasn’t normal….far from it. She licked my face for god sakes! I felt a range of emotions whenever she stared at me with those dark black eyes, like I was looking into a portal of hell and standing at the gates of heaven at the same time. My judgment day in pupil form. I shook my head as I shot back, perhaps bitchier than initially planned. "Synn, this area is a crime polluted area. You can't just sneak up on someone like that!"
The demon wasn’t phased. She clicked her tongue as she looked at me. She looked me up and down. I had never felt so judged and stripped down before (other than at the gym because, lets face it, men are pigs). She leaned in and whispered in her oddly soothing yet extremely terrifying voice. "You have to embrace the fear to overcome it.”
I began to roll my eyes. The same spiel over and over…..get a new act, jack! But she kept going, as if implanting a message in my mind that I had no control over stopping.
"They will pray on your downfall. Just when you get to the tippy top, they will want to send it tumbling like jenga blocks. Good. Let them. But it is when you let them get into your head, poison you with your own self pity, make you fear failure….that is when you fall. Failure is nothing but a stepping stone to success. Pain is nothing but weakness leaving the body. Fear is nothing but—”
I listened intently and felt kind of insulted that she was, in theory, fitting me into the dumb blonde stereotype. I took psychology classes, okay! I know all this!
“.........save that for a time when you’re a little less afraid, and a little more…….ready.”
I snapped back in a sharp tone. "Ready!? I’ll have you know that I am much more “ready” than that pathetic shell of a woman you met months ago was."
Synn placed a finger to my lips, curling up my top one. My lipstick stained her fingertip. Why was I wearing lipstick on such a hot day? Why did I think she’d care? She shushed me. I can't believe she actually just shushed me! She pulled her finger down off my mouth, dragging it over my bottom lip, spreading more of the red paste across my perfectly moisturized skin.
I locked eyes with her and felt… calm.
Why did I feel calm when she looked at me like this?!
It was borderline hypnotic. I felt the hairs on my arms stand up but, at the same time, I felt a sense of tranquility like a soft snowfall on a peaceful winter day.
She spoke again. I listened. "Why are we here?”
Her voice was almost the hiss, like a snake marking its position. “Why did you bring me here?”
[/color]Like the grim reaper reaching out to pull me into the abyss, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned, ready to fight. To die, if need be.* "A little jumpy aren't we?"
It was Synn, my friend.. I think? Honestly the relationship Synn and I shared wasn’t normal….far from it. She licked my face for god sakes! I felt a range of emotions whenever she stared at me with those dark black eyes, like I was looking into a portal of hell and standing at the gates of heaven at the same time. My judgment day in pupil form. I shook my head as I shot back, perhaps bitchier than initially planned. "Synn, this area is a crime polluted area. You can't just sneak up on someone like that!"
The demon wasn’t phased. She clicked her tongue as she looked at me. She looked me up and down. I had never felt so judged and stripped down before (other than at the gym because, lets face it, men are pigs). She leaned in and whispered in her oddly soothing yet extremely terrifying voice. "You have to embrace the fear to overcome it.”
I began to roll my eyes. The same spiel over and over…..get a new act, jack! But she kept going, as if implanting a message in my mind that I had no control over stopping.
"They will pray on your downfall. Just when you get to the tippy top, they will want to send it tumbling like jenga blocks. Good. Let them. But it is when you let them get into your head, poison you with your own self pity, make you fear failure….that is when you fall. Failure is nothing but a stepping stone to success. Pain is nothing but weakness leaving the body. Fear is nothing but—”
I listened intently and felt kind of insulted that she was, in theory, fitting me into the dumb blonde stereotype. I took psychology classes, okay! I know all this!
“.........save that for a time when you’re a little less afraid, and a little more…….ready.”
I snapped back in a sharp tone. "Ready!? I’ll have you know that I am much more “ready” than that pathetic shell of a woman you met months ago was."
Synn placed a finger to my lips, curling up my top one. My lipstick stained her fingertip. Why was I wearing lipstick on such a hot day? Why did I think she’d care? She shushed me. I can't believe she actually just shushed me! She pulled her finger down off my mouth, dragging it over my bottom lip, spreading more of the red paste across my perfectly moisturized skin.
I locked eyes with her and felt… calm.
Why did I feel calm when she looked at me like this?!
It was borderline hypnotic. I felt the hairs on my arms stand up but, at the same time, I felt a sense of tranquility like a soft snowfall on a peaceful winter day.
She spoke again. I listened. "Why are we here?”
Her voice was almost the hiss, like a snake marking its position. “Why did you bring me here?”
I went to speak again, but SYNN cut me off.
“You want to show me where you grew up because you want me to think you’re tough because you’ve faced challenges. That you are somehow better than the people who didn’t make it out, and you think in that brain of yours that I’ll be impressed that you didn’t grow up in glitz and glamor?”
I bit my lip, nodding.
SYNN, to her surprise, smiles.
“So let's go see just how scary this place really is!”
“No, SYNN, lets not ruffle any…..”
“........you’re the tour guide, blondie. I’ve never been here before. Giddy up cowgirl!”
Now, more than ever, I was questioning my own motives. Why had I brought her here? She was eccentric sure but I could just see the headline now. "OCW Champion shot and killed. Co worker arrested for conspiracy." I couldn't give into fear… not now… not in front of her. She was trying to teach me a lesson in my own backyard. I would be damned before I allow her to show me up. She was testing me again. I just knew it. I pointed to a shack of a trailer. I nodded as I spoke to her, my voice changing to a more somber tone. "This was me just a few years ago. This was where I lived. I know it isn't what most expect when they look at me."
Synn stopped me mid sentence with a laugh that sent chills down my spine. Again, she was not impressed. She spoke again, this time with a more direct tone. "Brooke, I was kidding. I know why you brought me here and l, quite frankly, it was unnecessary. I see something in you that I like and I don't say that about many people, anyone really. You are something special. I know it. It is time that you show them. Give the fans what they want to hear but give Moonlight Rose the match of a lifetime and pry that title from her pathetic little hands."
She grabbed my hands and led me away with a brisk walk. "Come, we will get you whipped into shape in no time."
I followed the woman who I saw as fear personified. She was completely in control…
… Or was I? Maybe that is what SYNN wanted me to see. Even if I follow her guidance, like a submissive to dominant relationship, the submissive (me) was in control.
"That's just it Moonlight Rose. You don't get to be in control. SYNN isn't fear personified… you are. You are someone who has to have control, or maybe you just want to feel like you have control. Sure, you beat Crash Rodriguez which is all fine and dandy but I think we can all agree that Crash had mentally checked out. You didn't beat Crash, Crash beat Crash.
Keep stroking your own ego little one. Keep thinking you are a champion when you are nothing more than a placeholder in a company that is mid shift. The paradigm in OCW is shifting. Gone are main stays like PIC and Crash Rodriguez and on Piledriver we ushered in a new era with SYNN reigning supreme. Every kingdom needs a second in command, a knight to protect the kingdom from peril. I am that knight and you, my dear, are the dragon from whom I shall protect OCW."
The light in the room illuminated my face as I smirked. The smirk was a cross between maniacal and cocky and, if I were honest to myself and you, it scared me a bit. Was the warrior deep within me awakened by this new found friendship? I clicked my tongue in disappointment as I spoke again, using my sword, my words, to strike the dragon. "Rose, you want to know what really ticks me off? Now that Leo isn't guarding the archived footage of OCW I went looking deep within the vaults and found that you haven't really done much of anything since before I arrived. You simply were handed a belt after the old guard went missing, never to be found again.
At Wheel of Misfortune, you are gonna envy the plane that took Marcus Welch away. When you step in the ring with me, you are in for pure unadulterated hell. You are in for the match of your life and I don't think you understand what I am going to do to you. I'm willing to die to prove myself. Are you?
Are you willing to lay your life on the line for that title that you haphazardly threw on a shelf and forgot about until Tamika called you and reminded you that you had to make an appearance on Piledriver? Or, like the former champion will you tuck your tail and run like a scolded dog?
The wheel didn't decide your misfortune. Oh no. You see, your misfortune isn't the fact that you can't use OTK. Your misfortune was when Tamika put you in the ring with me. I am one of the hungriest competitors out there. Three months into my career and I am finally finding my stride. From beating Serena Riot, a bonafide legend in this business, to advancing to the semi finals of TPWs S.E.X. cup I am doing it all. You aren't going to be able to stop me. I am finally standing up and facing my fears. For so long I held myself back due to my biggest fear… appearing ugly. You don't seem to understand that not everyone hides behind a mask such as yourself. Some of us have to keep ourselves up. We have to do our hair toss and check our nails to make sure we feel good as hell. It's a whole vibe really. I was that person. I have come to realize there is a time and a place for everything and for everyone. Wheel of Misfortune is my time and place to become a champion. The paradigm is going to continue to shift. Now is my time. You will be slayed by this blonde knight. It's only a matter of time.
Tick…
Tock…
Time for the bell to toll for you. I hope you're ready to hand MY title over to me because I sure as hell am ready to take it."
I traced a finger over my lipstick, much like SYNN had done before. I wrote a message on the wall in my (blood) red lipstick. The camera zoomed out to show the message on the wall. It read…
"FACE YOUR FEARS"
I winked as I spoke again, this time more focused than ever. "At Wheel of Misfortune you will face your fears, Rose. Your fear is fading back to mediocrity while new people continue to rise past you. I have passed you up and you fear the fact that you are irrelevant and will continue to be. At Wheel of Misfortune I will end your reign and I will laugh as I do it."
I cackled a bit as I felt myself slipping into a dark place. A place I hadn't tapped into since Macgregor. I was scared of it but in the best way possible. Maybe this is what has been missing. Me not being afraid of returning there. I don't mean Macgregor. I mean that mental place that I fought so hard to escape. Maybe my success was dependent on going back there…
… Even if I swore never to return again.
I kissed the wall leaving a set lipstick lips. We see, on the wall, is a picture of Moonlight Rose with the lip mark right on her face. I laughed as I winked again, this time it was hard to tell if it was a seductive or tongue in cheek wink and I loved it that way. Take it however you'd like.
