Post by Mia Stone on Mar 26, 2014 17:21:04 GMT -5
The cool March breeze mixed with the unexpected warmth from the sunshine had brought many families out to the park. The high pitched screams and laughter of children filled the air and was an almost calming sound compared to the regular hustle and bustle of regular city life. I sat quietly in the drivers seat of my hire car allowing the world to fly past as I was transfixed to one particular family. I barely blinked as I watched a young mother no older than her mid 20's sat on the grass playing with her child, I observed for what felt like hours as they playfully wrestled with one another, laughing and chattering away as if they didn't have a problem in the world.
At that point in time this woman lived in a perfect world. In her mind nothing could go wrong, there was no war, no poverty, no evil human beings. Her world was right there before her and anything that plagued the rest of humanity stood still and was none existent. All her hopes and dreams were forgotten her life now destined to be lived through her child. If only she knew how cruel this existence could be, how in a blink of an eye this happy moment could be torn apart. If they could see even 3 years into the future they might choose to do things differently.
I know I would.
“So this isn't at all creepy.”
A male voice proclaimed as he opened up the car door climbing inside and sitting down. A carrier bag flew past my head as he emptied its contents onto his knee.
“I mean its a bit strange Mia, there is people watching and then there is possibly get arrested because you look like you are stalking people watching.”
My old friend from home Jack had been bumming around the world now for a couple of years, he had spent a long time in far off countries working bizarre jobs just to avoid actually growing up. But as he was preparing for his final flight back to London to finally face becoming an adult he couldn't resist one last trip. Which seemed to actually just be one more chance to wind me up.
“Like are you spending all your spare days acting like a peeping Tom in the park? Pretty fucking weird if you ask me. Fucking weird.”
He emphasised again while hitting me playfully on the arm.
“Shut up Jack.”
I snapped back at him, hitting his hand away from me. We had been friends for years and as a result he always knew exactly how to get a reaction from me. His attention span had diminished over time and after sensing it was probably best not to keep pushing for a real reaction he attempted to change the subject.
“So tell me about the OCEWEF”
“OCW.”
I corrected him as he handed me a drink from the pile in his lap.
“Excuse me, the OCW.”
“Well I fight.”
“And how many of these fights that you have been in have you won then?”
With what can only be described as perfect timing I quickly opened and took a large swig of my drink. More to buy me a little bit of time to decide quite how best to not sound like a total failure in describing my current job role.
“So come on Rocky, how many?”
“Well...”
He impatiently waited for a response as he began to stuff his face with sweets and crisps.
“One, (I shock my head as he spoke) two, (not quite) three, (getting colder) it's never four?”
He sounded surprised as he spoke with a mouthful of food. For me this was a slightly awkward subject, mainly due to the fact that as of that point I hadn't actually won any. Not through lack of trying. I had spent my first few matches fighting multiple opponents which even for the most fearsome fighter is a tough feat. As much as I enjoy the challenge of facing more than one person it means that being alert and on your toes is paramount. If you lose focus for even a second it could all be over before you have even registered that the bell has rung. It is the single most frustrating thing in a fighters life to keep falling short when all you want to do is create an impact. No one wants to be known as the wrestler who just never quite made it and I feared that if I didn’t win my next fight this was exactly where I was heading.
“Well what? Come on.”
“I haven't quite won any yet.”
“None at all?”
“I have only been there a couple of weeks.”
“Shit Mia, I thought you were supposed to be some sort of machine, what happened to you.”
What happened? What happened was I joined what I thought was going to be a competitive company with serious fighters and what I got was a homeless bulimic and a man riding a fucking unicorn.
“Yeah well, lets just say things haven't quite worked out as planned so far.”
“Bloody hell you're not kidding. Unless your plan was to join and be shit. Then to me it looks like its going great.”
I didn't really have anything to come back with. To be perfectly fair, he was right... for the first time in my life I was shit.
“Well what's happening this week? You said that you missed Black Out, so you must be booked for action?”
I sighed. It was the sort of sigh that you know that if you lose this fight you might as well not bother getting out of bed any more. It was an admit defeat and call it a day kind of a sigh and personally there was so much riding on my future in this match, I didn't want to think about it.
“Yeah you could say that.”
“Against...”
“New chick, Ana Archia.”
She was a standard new comer to the OCW, another fruit loop. I wasn’t quite sure if I had missed something when I signed my contract but I thought that fighters had to go through urine tests to check for drugs, mainly just making sure they weren't completely a sandwich short. When actually what seemed to happen is that the stranger you were the more likely you are to be all signed up to a full contract.
“I think I know who you mean, I am sure I read about her at the show the other day, is that the ravioli chick?”
“God knows what she is. I don't know who I have pissed off to be booked into this fight. But someone is seriously looking down on me and laughing.”
I wasn't normally one to cause a fuss, but the fact I was again facing a contender for mental patient of the year had started to wear thin, it had really got me wondering what exactly was coming next. It funnily enough wasn't due to lack of actual talent, there were plenty of decent wrestlers among us, it just seemed that each week I drew the shortest straw and this week against Ana took the biscuit.
I had seen some crazy people come and go in this industry but word from the guys backstage included this New Girl turning up at the PPV barking like a dog. I am all up for creating your own little niche and starting new trends, but at what point does a gimmick turn from mildly amusing to full on ghastly. This could be a case of a desperate girl trying to do anything to get herself noticed, but having met most of the current roster, my better instincts told me otherwise.
“You won't stay shit forever. Some one shitter will come along and eventually you will win.”
Words of reassurance and wisdom from the bloke who has spent the last 3 years picking beetroot.
“Gee thanks for your kind words.”
“Well look on the bright side spud, at least you can't get any worse.”
He smiled clearly pleased and amused with himself.
“I spoke to your Aunt the other day, She said you haven't called.”
“Got nothing to say.”
I cut him off almost instantly. I knew exactly where he was headed and I wasn't about to get into this with him. It surprised me that it had taken almost 3 days together before him to bring her up, but as predicted he just couldn't help himself.
“Its been almost 10 years Mia.”
“Yep and I still have nothing to say.”
“She is all you have left.”
“And exactly whose fault is that? I don't need anyone’s help Jack least of all Becky's. I think the next time you happen to speak to her it's best if you just don't mention me.”
“Real mature Mia.”
“I am not trying to be mature Jack. Just being honest. I could lie and tell you I will call her tomorrow but what's the point in the bullshit.”
“Fine don't bother then. Sorry for asking.”
“I really don't plan on it, trust me. You carry on in blissful ignorance over what happened but I am not ready to forgive and forget.”
The tone of our voices slowly became angrier, neither party ready to admit defeat and back down.
“You know, you are eventually have to speak to what remains of your family, otherwise you will end up a lonely old lady.”
“Maybe that's exactly what I am planning on doing.”
“Whatever. But when you know what, when you have no one and nothing you remember this day.”
We sat in silence it was killing me to not have the last word, but I didn’t have the energy to fight with him over this. It was the same conversation each time we met up. Becky was Jacks God Mother and he desperately wanted me to smooth over years of bad memories with a single phone call. He was cross, I could see it in his face, but what he didn't seem to understand was that sometimes in life there is no going back. We all make decisions. Good or bad, and we just have to deal with it, this was my decision and I was sticking to it.
What Jack didn't understand it that sometimes its not the battle that defines us it's our actions before and afterwards that determine who we are. It's accepting the outcome and holding our heads high no matter what. There were many areas of my past that I am not proud of but I like to think that where I am now is what makes me the person here today, looking down the barrel at early retirement in the OCW. If the next chapter of my journey involved getting my first win over some one whose gimmick was basically eating cold ravioli out of a tin then amazing, if not, well...hopefully that's not the case.
“Casino?”
Jack broke the silence.
“We could head to that one on the back of that leaflet we saw, if you like?”
I nodded. I didn't really want to go what I wanted to do was smash Jacks face repeatedly against the wall until he understood that I wanted nothing more to do with my Aunt. But since those sort of actions are highly frowned upon in public, casino it was.
I turned the key of the car which roared to life instantly and shoved it into gear and for the next 5 minutes we said nothing.
“You think you will beat Ana?”
This was his attempt at smoothing things over and even though part of me wasn't in the mood to chat, I knew that we only had another couple of days before he flew back home. It would be stupid to let this ruin it.
“I hope so.”
It was hard to decide if Ana was lucky or unlucky being placed in a match against me. Yes I might not have the record to leave her trembling in her...ravioli, but by the same token I have nothing to lose and a desire to chance my future that will drive me to leave only the skid marks of tomato sauce in the ring when I am finished with her. I couldn't let my current unfortunate streak knock my confidence, whether I liked it or not it wasn’t a case of wanting to win this fight against Ana, I NEEDED to win it. I couldn't quite put my finger on what was going wrong, on why my luck seemed to be in a bit of a downward spiral when it came to the OCW, but I knew that if I didn't take charge and start to turn things around things could only go from bad to worse.
I was the only one that could make the change from the nearly there girl to the hardened fighter that I wanted the world to eventually see. It was up to me to ensure that I didn't allow Ana to gain the upper hand at any point, before or after the match. I had never seen a company that featured so many powerful females but I was on a mission to ensure that I became the Queen Bee at the expense of all that stood in my way. It wasn't just a decision that would change my future, if I have my way it will rock the very foundations that the company is built on, and will define the talent that follows in my footsteps.
If I have my way, this will just be the beginning.
At that point in time this woman lived in a perfect world. In her mind nothing could go wrong, there was no war, no poverty, no evil human beings. Her world was right there before her and anything that plagued the rest of humanity stood still and was none existent. All her hopes and dreams were forgotten her life now destined to be lived through her child. If only she knew how cruel this existence could be, how in a blink of an eye this happy moment could be torn apart. If they could see even 3 years into the future they might choose to do things differently.
I know I would.
“So this isn't at all creepy.”
A male voice proclaimed as he opened up the car door climbing inside and sitting down. A carrier bag flew past my head as he emptied its contents onto his knee.
“I mean its a bit strange Mia, there is people watching and then there is possibly get arrested because you look like you are stalking people watching.”
My old friend from home Jack had been bumming around the world now for a couple of years, he had spent a long time in far off countries working bizarre jobs just to avoid actually growing up. But as he was preparing for his final flight back to London to finally face becoming an adult he couldn't resist one last trip. Which seemed to actually just be one more chance to wind me up.
“Like are you spending all your spare days acting like a peeping Tom in the park? Pretty fucking weird if you ask me. Fucking weird.”
He emphasised again while hitting me playfully on the arm.
“Shut up Jack.”
I snapped back at him, hitting his hand away from me. We had been friends for years and as a result he always knew exactly how to get a reaction from me. His attention span had diminished over time and after sensing it was probably best not to keep pushing for a real reaction he attempted to change the subject.
“So tell me about the OCEWEF”
“OCW.”
I corrected him as he handed me a drink from the pile in his lap.
“Excuse me, the OCW.”
“Well I fight.”
“And how many of these fights that you have been in have you won then?”
With what can only be described as perfect timing I quickly opened and took a large swig of my drink. More to buy me a little bit of time to decide quite how best to not sound like a total failure in describing my current job role.
“So come on Rocky, how many?”
“Well...”
He impatiently waited for a response as he began to stuff his face with sweets and crisps.
“One, (I shock my head as he spoke) two, (not quite) three, (getting colder) it's never four?”
He sounded surprised as he spoke with a mouthful of food. For me this was a slightly awkward subject, mainly due to the fact that as of that point I hadn't actually won any. Not through lack of trying. I had spent my first few matches fighting multiple opponents which even for the most fearsome fighter is a tough feat. As much as I enjoy the challenge of facing more than one person it means that being alert and on your toes is paramount. If you lose focus for even a second it could all be over before you have even registered that the bell has rung. It is the single most frustrating thing in a fighters life to keep falling short when all you want to do is create an impact. No one wants to be known as the wrestler who just never quite made it and I feared that if I didn’t win my next fight this was exactly where I was heading.
“Well what? Come on.”
“I haven't quite won any yet.”
“None at all?”
“I have only been there a couple of weeks.”
“Shit Mia, I thought you were supposed to be some sort of machine, what happened to you.”
What happened? What happened was I joined what I thought was going to be a competitive company with serious fighters and what I got was a homeless bulimic and a man riding a fucking unicorn.
“Yeah well, lets just say things haven't quite worked out as planned so far.”
“Bloody hell you're not kidding. Unless your plan was to join and be shit. Then to me it looks like its going great.”
I didn't really have anything to come back with. To be perfectly fair, he was right... for the first time in my life I was shit.
“Well what's happening this week? You said that you missed Black Out, so you must be booked for action?”
I sighed. It was the sort of sigh that you know that if you lose this fight you might as well not bother getting out of bed any more. It was an admit defeat and call it a day kind of a sigh and personally there was so much riding on my future in this match, I didn't want to think about it.
“Yeah you could say that.”
“Against...”
“New chick, Ana Archia.”
She was a standard new comer to the OCW, another fruit loop. I wasn’t quite sure if I had missed something when I signed my contract but I thought that fighters had to go through urine tests to check for drugs, mainly just making sure they weren't completely a sandwich short. When actually what seemed to happen is that the stranger you were the more likely you are to be all signed up to a full contract.
“I think I know who you mean, I am sure I read about her at the show the other day, is that the ravioli chick?”
“God knows what she is. I don't know who I have pissed off to be booked into this fight. But someone is seriously looking down on me and laughing.”
I wasn't normally one to cause a fuss, but the fact I was again facing a contender for mental patient of the year had started to wear thin, it had really got me wondering what exactly was coming next. It funnily enough wasn't due to lack of actual talent, there were plenty of decent wrestlers among us, it just seemed that each week I drew the shortest straw and this week against Ana took the biscuit.
I had seen some crazy people come and go in this industry but word from the guys backstage included this New Girl turning up at the PPV barking like a dog. I am all up for creating your own little niche and starting new trends, but at what point does a gimmick turn from mildly amusing to full on ghastly. This could be a case of a desperate girl trying to do anything to get herself noticed, but having met most of the current roster, my better instincts told me otherwise.
“You won't stay shit forever. Some one shitter will come along and eventually you will win.”
Words of reassurance and wisdom from the bloke who has spent the last 3 years picking beetroot.
“Gee thanks for your kind words.”
“Well look on the bright side spud, at least you can't get any worse.”
He smiled clearly pleased and amused with himself.
“I spoke to your Aunt the other day, She said you haven't called.”
“Got nothing to say.”
I cut him off almost instantly. I knew exactly where he was headed and I wasn't about to get into this with him. It surprised me that it had taken almost 3 days together before him to bring her up, but as predicted he just couldn't help himself.
“Its been almost 10 years Mia.”
“Yep and I still have nothing to say.”
“She is all you have left.”
“And exactly whose fault is that? I don't need anyone’s help Jack least of all Becky's. I think the next time you happen to speak to her it's best if you just don't mention me.”
“Real mature Mia.”
“I am not trying to be mature Jack. Just being honest. I could lie and tell you I will call her tomorrow but what's the point in the bullshit.”
“Fine don't bother then. Sorry for asking.”
“I really don't plan on it, trust me. You carry on in blissful ignorance over what happened but I am not ready to forgive and forget.”
The tone of our voices slowly became angrier, neither party ready to admit defeat and back down.
“You know, you are eventually have to speak to what remains of your family, otherwise you will end up a lonely old lady.”
“Maybe that's exactly what I am planning on doing.”
“Whatever. But when you know what, when you have no one and nothing you remember this day.”
We sat in silence it was killing me to not have the last word, but I didn’t have the energy to fight with him over this. It was the same conversation each time we met up. Becky was Jacks God Mother and he desperately wanted me to smooth over years of bad memories with a single phone call. He was cross, I could see it in his face, but what he didn't seem to understand was that sometimes in life there is no going back. We all make decisions. Good or bad, and we just have to deal with it, this was my decision and I was sticking to it.
What Jack didn't understand it that sometimes its not the battle that defines us it's our actions before and afterwards that determine who we are. It's accepting the outcome and holding our heads high no matter what. There were many areas of my past that I am not proud of but I like to think that where I am now is what makes me the person here today, looking down the barrel at early retirement in the OCW. If the next chapter of my journey involved getting my first win over some one whose gimmick was basically eating cold ravioli out of a tin then amazing, if not, well...hopefully that's not the case.
“Casino?”
Jack broke the silence.
“We could head to that one on the back of that leaflet we saw, if you like?”
I nodded. I didn't really want to go what I wanted to do was smash Jacks face repeatedly against the wall until he understood that I wanted nothing more to do with my Aunt. But since those sort of actions are highly frowned upon in public, casino it was.
I turned the key of the car which roared to life instantly and shoved it into gear and for the next 5 minutes we said nothing.
“You think you will beat Ana?”
This was his attempt at smoothing things over and even though part of me wasn't in the mood to chat, I knew that we only had another couple of days before he flew back home. It would be stupid to let this ruin it.
“I hope so.”
It was hard to decide if Ana was lucky or unlucky being placed in a match against me. Yes I might not have the record to leave her trembling in her...ravioli, but by the same token I have nothing to lose and a desire to chance my future that will drive me to leave only the skid marks of tomato sauce in the ring when I am finished with her. I couldn't let my current unfortunate streak knock my confidence, whether I liked it or not it wasn’t a case of wanting to win this fight against Ana, I NEEDED to win it. I couldn't quite put my finger on what was going wrong, on why my luck seemed to be in a bit of a downward spiral when it came to the OCW, but I knew that if I didn't take charge and start to turn things around things could only go from bad to worse.
I was the only one that could make the change from the nearly there girl to the hardened fighter that I wanted the world to eventually see. It was up to me to ensure that I didn't allow Ana to gain the upper hand at any point, before or after the match. I had never seen a company that featured so many powerful females but I was on a mission to ensure that I became the Queen Bee at the expense of all that stood in my way. It wasn't just a decision that would change my future, if I have my way it will rock the very foundations that the company is built on, and will define the talent that follows in my footsteps.
If I have my way, this will just be the beginning.