==========
Off Camera
==========
“So is this it?”
Her sister’s
question echoes loudly within the ears and mind of Angelica Jones as they sit
on a bench against the wall in their dressing room backstage after the SCW pay
per view. The sisters contemplate their
future following the loss of the SCW World Tag Team Championships at Final
Level. Granted, it could have been
worse. They could have lost the belts to
Jake Starr and James Evans. That didn’t
happen. Instead the team that walked out
with the gold was Autumn Valentine and Gable Winchester. Angelica and Kayla can live with that. Nevertheless, losing the championships stings. It always stings. This is different. Angelica and Kayla had reunited The
Sisterhood and they had immediate impact, winning tag team gold in two separate
companies. But now they lost both sets
of tag titles. There is nothing to hold
them together except their sisterly bond.
And Kayla’s
actions recently have not gone unnoticed by Angelica Jones. The younger sister within The Sisterhood team
has begun to go out on her own seeking her own individual success. She has openly stated that she wants to
pursue another world championship and, at the same time, she is also pursuing a
career as a manager of other wrestlers.
The only thing that held them together was the SCW World Tag Team
Championships but now, after tonight’s loss, that is gone. There is no reason Kayla should continue
working with her.
And this
question from Kayla’s own mouth doesn’t make things any better.
“Huh?” Angelica asks, feigning as if she
didn’t hear her younger sister.
“You heard me.” Kayla retorts. “Is this it?
We lost the tag gold. Are we now
going our separate ways?”
Angelica
shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t know,
Kay. Should we?”
“You tell me.” Kayla snaps back, not in
an angry tone but definitely in a quick, short tone of voice that lets her
sister know she means business. “I mean,
you are scheduled to be in the Shot of Adrenaline Tournament. Not me.”
Angelica
frowns. Kayla is, of course, referring
to the Shot of Adrenaline Tournament, a yearly tournament held by Supreme
Championship Wrestling. Angelica Jones
was in last year’s Shot of Adrenaline Tournament and made it to the semi-finals
along with Dawn Lohan, Red Rayne, and Selena Frost. The last few months Angelica Jones has spent
with Kayla Jones in The Sisterhood, competing in the tag team division and
eventually defending the titles until losing them tonight. And yet sometime along the way she must have
convinced someone in SCW management that she deserved another shot at a
successful singles career in SCW, for she has been entered in this prestigious
tournament.
Angelica
never asked for this opportunity. The
truth is, she knows that her time in a wrestling ring is drawing to a
close. She knows she doesn’t have that
many years left before she will have to retire.
Seeing David Helms compete in his last match tonight forced her to think
about those prospects much more.
Angelica has a family to think about, three daughters, a
grandchild. Plus she has done virtually
everything there is to do. She has been happy
with her career. What she wanted was to
dominate the sport with her sister one last time. She did that, didn’t she?
“Kay, look…” Angelica’s voice trails off
as she tries to find the right words “…I
didn’t ask for this.”
Her eyes
narrow as a newfound intensity comes to the forefront. “But if you’re asking me to back out or back down then think
again. I never back down from any
challenge, Kay. You should know this
better than anyone else. I am a
competitor first and foremost and there is no way in hell I am going to stop
striving to be the best.”
“What about The Sisterhood?” Kayla asks inquisitively.
“Is The Shot of Adrenaline more important
than what you and I have?”
Angelica
immediately stands up, shooting quickly off the bench. Kayla, noticing the anger that seems to seep from
every orifice of her sister’s body, stands up as well, but braces herself at
the same time, for the possible verbally onslaught that may come.
“How dare you ask me that question?!”
“What do you mean?” Kayla asks, feigning
innocence. “It is a legitimate question.”
“Legitimate?” Angelica points an
accusatory finger at Kayla. “How about
you look into the mirror?”
Kayla tilts
her head to one side and frowns. “What do
you mean?”
The elder
Jones rolls her eyes. “You really want me
to do this?”
“Yeah…” Kayla’s voice trails off “…do it.”
“Fine.” She holds up one finger. “First there is your constant talk about
winning your next world title.”
Kayla shrugs
her shoulders. “Yes, and so what? Who wouldn’t want a world title?”
Angelica holds up two fingers. “And of course you have Jones Wrestling
Incorporated. You started your own
managerial service, Kay, and you have not involved me in that.”
Kayla nods
her head. “Yes, fair enough.”
“So how the hell can you stand there and
accuse me of ignoring The Sisterhood when you are also branching out on your
own, looking out for your own interests?”
There is a
long tense moment as the sisters stare one another down. This isn’t the first time they have had an
argument, nor will it be the last, but it has been quite a long time since they
have had an argument. Neither sister
expected this. Anything could
happen. And yet…
…a chuckle
escapes Angelica’s lips. Then Kayla starts laughing. Eventually both of them are laughing out
loud. Then they embrace in a big hug. After breaking the embrace it is Angelica who
breaks the silence.
“I’m sorry for lashing out at you, Kay.”
“No, no, it’s ok. I should apologize to you for accusing you of
trying to get away from The Sisterhood.
I mean, it isn’t like you had a choice here. You were, for all intents
and purposes, drafted into this damn tournament.”
Angelica
nods her head. “True…”
“I still hate it though.” Kayla muses
out loud.
“Me too, but Kayla, things change. The situation changes. And honestly, I believe our situation has
changed.”
“Obviously.”
“Think about it, we have dominated tag team
wrestling over this past year. We have
ruled atop several companies together as The Sisterhood, but perhaps there are
other ways The Sisterhood can dominate this business?”
Angelica
places a hand on Kayla’s shoulder. “You
are the manager of champions. And you
could become a champion again yourself.
As for me, I have Shot of Adrenaline.
Think about what happens if I win it all. Think of the doors that would open just by
winning that tournament. We have the
name, Kay, the Jones name is wrestling royalty, but maybe it’s time to remind
the wrestling world why we are wrestling royalty. And The Shot of Adrenaline Tournament is my
way of doing just that.”
“So your mind is focused?” Kayla asks.
“Yes, definitely.”
Kayla looks
on skeptically. “Are you sure?”
“Of course I am.” Angelica insists. “This is my chance to shoot myself back to
the top of SCW. Of course I will be
focused and ready. What else could
possibly have my attention or focus?”
“Jack.”
Angelica looks
on curiously. “Jack who?”
“Seriously?!” Kayla asks in an exclamatory
manner. “You have got to be kidding me,
sis!”
“Uh,” Angelica shakes her head “no, not kidding. Sorry.”
“Jack…Jack the guy I caught you sleeping
with the other night.”
Angelica
pauses again to think it over. Finally a
look of realization crosses her face and she nods her head.
“Oh yeah!
Jack!”
“Right, Jack…what about him? Is he on your mind?”
Angelica
shakes her head. “No, he was just a one
night stand.”
Kayla sighs
deeply and slaps her forehead. “Angelica…”
“What?”
“What about Lindsey?” Kayla asks,
looking back up at her sister.
“What about her?”
“She’s your wife!” Kayla exclaims. “Aren’t you and Lindsey trying to work
things out with one another? Aren’t you
trying to fix your marriage?”
“Yes…”
“Then why the games? Why the one night stand with Jack? Angelica, if you are going to continue
sleeping around with random guys, then just break up with Lindsey, if you’re
serious about saving your marriage, then save it, but don’t lead her
along. She deserves an answer.”
Angelica
sighs. “It isn’t that simple.”
“Why not?” Kayla asks, placing her hands
on her hips.
“You don’t understand. I have had so many relationships with so many
guys that I thought were the one…the perfect guy…my handsome prince…but all of
them turned out to be nothing. I am
afraid of commitment. I want to be sure
that this is right.”
Kayla
frowns. “I don’t understand? I was married to Jason Redfield. I dated Andreas Lasiewicz.”
“Fine…you got me there…”
Kayla places
her hands on Angelica’s shoulders. “Point
is, I know the emotional roller coaster you’re going through. I know it’s rough. But I also know that your current wife
deserves an answer eventually.”
“I know and you’re right, Lindsey does
deserve an answer. I just have no idea
what I will say to her next time I see her.”
Kayla
smirks. “But first you have to actually
see her, right?”
Angelica chuckles.
“Right.”
==========
Shot of
Adrenaline
On Camera
==========
We open in a
large living room area. There is a cream
colored couch and two small brown tables on either side, by the arms of the
chair. Two small plants sit on each of
the small brown tables. The sofa itself
is a golden color and appears to be quite comfortable.
The sound of
heels again a marble floor can be heard off in the distance. The clicking sound grows slightly
louder. Eventually we see Angelica Jones
stepping into view, wearing a classic little black dress with thin straps and a
hemline that stops just above the knee.
Her feet are encased in black high heeled pumps and her long red hair
hangs freely to just below her shoulders.
“Greetings! Angelica Jones here, minus my sister Kayla
and also minus the SCW World Tag team Championships.” She playfully frowns.
“And yeah, we're kinda bummed, but that's ok, you know why?”
She grins,
also playfully.
“The Shot
of Adrenaline Tournament is back and that is precisely what The Sisterhood and
yours truly needs right now...we need that shot of momentum to send us back on
the right path and in the right direction!”
Angelica
sits down on the sofa and ostensibly crosses her legs.
“They say this is the sport of kings, but
that was proven to be incorrect a long time ago when the likes of Kelcey
Wallace, Taylor Chase, and yes, yours truly stepped up onto the world’s stage
and dominated the so-called sport of kings.
They also said that to succeed in this sport you have to be the best and
you have to prove yourself to be the best.”
She shakes
her head.
“That is also an incorrect statement. I stand before you as evidence that you do
not necessarily have to be the most talented wrestler to get ahead in this
game. Fighting and physical prowess is
only a small factor in this sport.”
Jones taps
herself on the head with her right index finger.
“If you ask me, the vast majority of what
makes you successful in this sport has to do with your intelligence. The smartest and most cerebral of athletes
will get ahead while the meat-headed muscle-brained idiots will be left in the
dust to flounder in irrelevancy. That is
a fact and if you do not believe me then just look back to last year’s Shot of
Adrenaline Tournament, because living proof of the truth of my statements
stands before you right here and now.”
The lovely
Boston native spins around three-hundred sixty degrees to where she is facing
the camera again.
“Me…I stand here before you as evidence,
proof positive, that intelligence and a good strategy is the most important
thing to have when you step into this ring.
Last year in the Shot of Adrenaline Tournament I cut through the
competition like a hot knife through butter and I did it by using the rules to
my advantage. A disqualification or
count out win counted just as much as a pin fall or submission win, right? So who cares about HOW you won just so long
as you won and that is exactly what I did.
I won…I won and made it to the semi-finals. I even made our current Adrenaline Champion
tap out. Now Snow White and her dwarf
may whine about how it was a draw, but that’s a technicality. She tapped out. Plain and simple.”
Jones shrugs
her shoulders.
“So who is the favorite to win the
tournament? The favorite is the person
not only with experience but with the right game plan on how to win and that is
me. Now don’t expect me to use that same
strategy again. That would be
foolish. Or then again, I just might use
it in order to throw you off. Who knows
what I will do? But the Shot of
Adrenaline Tournament is all about strategy.
The competitor with the right strategy and game plan will advance and
win it all while those with no strategy and no game plan whatsoever will
ultimately fail. Last year I succeeded
in making it to the semi-finals. This
year, I am going to win the whole damn thing and I am going to win it because I
have the right strategy.”
Angelica
sighs and shakes her head.
“Not everyone knows how to use their
head. Take Jake Starr, for
instance. Jake is my first opponent in
the Shot of Adrenaline Tournament.
Lately the crazy bastard has been running around with a steel chair as
if it’s a security blanket swinging wildly for the fences with no real aim,
rhyme, or reason behind his actions other than to attempt to remain relevant in
this sport.”
A knowing
smirk spreads across her face.
“How is
that working out for you, Jake? You
tried to go for the tag titles and, hell, I will give you credit, you did make
it to a match on the Final Level pay per view card. But you did it by taking sides with James
Evans? You hate him. But in a desperate move to stay relevant, you
teamed with him to go after mine and Kayla’s tag titles. And your reason behind it was just as
lame. You two were out there on
Breakdown whining about not being respected.
Seriously, Jake, you and Evans were worse than a pair of women on the
rag. To top it all off, you didn’t even
succeed. You are not the tag team
champions of the world. Autumn and Gable
are. Now while the fans were blessed
with what had to be a show stealing tag team match at Final Level, they were
also left scratching their heads wondering what the hell was Jake Starr's point
again?”
Jones shrugs
again.
“No one
knows why you do what you do, Jake. I
guess the real problem, though, is that you don't even know why you do what you
do. You have you security blanket,
running around to anyone who will listen, trying to convince them you're
relevant and if they don't listen you hit them with your security blanket. That is who you are. You are predictable and boring and no one
gives a damn about you.”
Angelica
shakes her head.
“That
isn't a strategy, Jake. Running around
like some maniac, bitching and moaning, swinging a chair, is NOT a
strategy. It is NOT a game plan. You have no strategy and you have no game
plan. You may get a win or two or three
here and there as the tournament proceeds but ultimately it won't be enough to
get you through. Ultimately you will
fail. Ultimately...”
She snickers
“...you are just a place holder.”
She nods her
head.
“You are
filler. You are irrelevant and you are
filler. No one expects you to win. No one expects an irrelevant pile of crap
like you to do anything with this tournament.
You were not put into this Shot of Adrenaline Tournament with any
expectations of winning. You were put in
hoping that you still had at least some amount of talent left to put on some
good matches with the other competitors in your block but that's it. That is the only expectation anyone in
management has of you. They expect you
to put on a good show for the fans but ultimately to lose when the points are
tabulated. Your job is to show up and
get your ass kicked week in and week out.”
The redhead
motions to herself.
“My job,
on the other hand, is to be the one who kicks your ass from one side of that
arena to the other and finally, for the sake of the fans, for the sake of the
SCW roster, and for the sake of anyone who has had to read or hear any of your
bullshit, to shut you up...for good.”
“You see,
Jake, nothing is expected of you because you are a loser. But me?
I'm Angelica Jones and I'm a winner.
I have been in this tournament before and I came oh so close to winning
it all but overconfidence got the best of me.
I have studied tape, I have done my homework, and I know my
weaknesses. I know where I screwed
up. I also know the weaknesses of my
opponents and when they screw up. I will
not mess this up a second time. This
tournament belongs to me, Jake, and you are just the first obstacle in my path
to victory.”
