06-26-2020, 08:09 AM
06-29-2020, 08:41 PM
Title:
Groundhog Day.
June 26th, 2020
Friday Night
Spice Bar & Lounge
Beverly Hills, California
Back in his youth, Blake Mason used to hit the bar circuit. Those bars were normally of the low rent variety. People going out of their way looking for a good time. To get drunk. To flirt a little. On the rare occasion wake up in someone's hotel room, bedroom, or somewhere nondescript. The goal on this evening wasn’t to revisit his more infamous days, infamous compared to what anyone who knows Blake Mason would question. Infamous as in, there wasn’t a bar he could go to without anyone knowing his name. The world is too small for anyone not to know who William Blake Mason is. The Spice Bar & Lounge is an upscale establishment. This is the first time he has been here. He needed a place to spend time in, the last thing he wanted to do was be alone. He sat at the bar. Jaxson Sullivan sat to his right. His bodyguard had his back facing the bar, someone needed to be Blake’s designated driver for the evening.
Blake lets out a sigh. His eyes are already somewhat bloodshot. He had enough faith in himself to deduce he is still legally sober. The suit he is wearing, the white button up shirt has the first three buttons unfastened. The jacket is open, not closed. Blake scans the room a couple times to ensure there is not anyone he knows in the immediate area. He doesn’t believe anyone is watching him, in this day and age one can not be too certain. The occasional thought bounces around in his head, what if Sienna is stalking him. Waiting for the moment to strike. Wouldn’t be the first time Sienna caught him in a compromising position. Him kissing Kelcey after a Trios loss back rings a bell. Considering Sienna is itching for the chance to enact a four year revenge fantasy, he has to keep his guard up, hence one of the reasons Jaxson was hired in the first place.
A black female bartender with long auburn hair was quick to greet the former SCW World Tag Team Champion. With a smile on her face she asked. “Evening gentlemen, what can I get you?”
Blake snaps out of his trance. Not at how beautiful the bartender is. No question she was that. He needed to stay focused on the present. Or escape it. Whatever one comes first. “I would say a private jet to get away from all this; already have one. Hit me with your strongest drink!”
The bartender tilts her head to the side. “Long day?”
Blake half smirks. “Groundhogs Day would be more appropriate.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” she says coming across genuinely concerned.
Blake looks at Jaxson. His bodyguard gives him a nod. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure there aren’t any prying ears.”
Blake turns back to the bartender. “What’s your name?”
She promptly answers back. “Nichelle.”
“Never heard of that name before.” Blake responds.
“Always wondered why my parents named me that. But this isn’t about me. What’s your story?” Nichelle says.
Blake sighs. “We would be here for a millennial if I told you everything my story encompasses. I’ll cut out most of my thirty years of existence and give you the reason why a guy like me walked into a bar like this--”
June 26th, 2020
Friday Morning...
In the comfort of Taylor Chase’s home in Malibu, California, William “Blake” Mason sat at the kitchen table. His Iphone rested on the table to the left of him, a bottle of scotch in a rocks glass off to the right. To any other person on Earth this would be too early to have a strong drink. Especially at roughly 6’oclock AM Pacific Daylight Time. Blake carried over his early riser routine with him from the East Coast to the West. While it was 9 O'clock EST on the East Coast when he set the Twitter world on fire with his interaction with Scott Cannon, he didn’t feel any chipper after. The conversation was sparked when Scott Cannon decided to criticize Kelcey’s choice of being in the ring on the June 24th edition of Breakdown. Her decision to play more of an active role led to Giovani Aires smashing a picture frame over her head, knocking her to the mat. Owen responded to Scott why don’t you try to stop her. Blake made the decision to like Owen’s post. Scott called him out, stating that of course Blake would like Owen’s tweet. From there Scott and Blake went back and forth, Blake played the Cannon card. The history between Blake and Chris was brought up. Kelcey did wind up diffusing the situation.
Blake does not feel great about it. Just like him reacting to Chris Cannon when he refused to do the right thing in the custody battle, just like whenever Giovani focuses his attention on Kelcey, Blake can not help himself swooping in like a knight in shining armor, being there for Kelcey on social media at every turn, for a man who is supposed to be engaged, he is not behaving like it with the world watching. Plus it didn’t help when Blake stepped on camera during Regan’s docuseries showing no shame whatsoever about being affectionate with Kelcey. As soon as he sat the phone down he walked over to the fridge, grabbed the bottle of scotch, poured himself a drink. Then he silently cursed himself for doing the same thing he always does. He should show more restraint he mentally tells himself. Especially with a sociopath like Giovanni Aires on the warpath.
Staring at the rocks glass, what Blake doesn’t notice is Taylor Chase walking into the kitchen. She has on a silk white robe. She pulls out a chair from the table. Taking a seat she says. “What’s wrong with you?”
Blake doesn’t initially react to Taylor’s probing question. It takes a few seconds to regain his barings. Looking up at his fiance, he pushes the phone over in her direction.
“Twitter.” Blake plainly states. While Taylor unlocks his phone to scroll through what Blake and Scott were up to, he takes another sip from the rocks glass to dull the emotions that are bubbling inside him. Doesn’t take Taylor long to slide the phone straight back to him.
Taylor rolls her eyes. She looks disappointedly at him. “Really?!”
All Blake could do was nod. “I know. Scott was out of line, the bastard may not want to talk to Owen but you’ll set him straight, no one talks to Owen like that.”
“Don’t you mean Kelcey?!” Taylor narrows her focus on Blake.
He knew Taylor wasn’t going to be thrilled by his behavior. Yet he still felt the need to hop on the defensive. “Come on, a conversation like that should be had off social media, not on it. What does he have to gain from pulling that crap?! That’s the problem with people today, social media is not the end all be all.”
“It is whenever you think Kelcey is in peril.” Taylor scoffs.
Blake wanted to argue Taylor’s assertion. There was no chance he could win that battle. Taylor calling him out on his behavior was what he needed. Blake takes another sip from the rocks glass. The scotch is now almost gone. “Sorry.”
“Doubt it.” Taylor fired back.
“What do you want from me?” Blake fired back.
“I don’t know, stop acting like Kelcey’s goddamn hero!” Taylor said in no uncertain terms.
Blake rose to his feet. He walked back to the fridge, opened the door, grabbed the half empty bottle of scotch. Walked back to the table. As he poured more scotch into the glass, Taylor got up. She snatches the bottom away from him. Then she grabbed the rocks glass. Blake felt compelled to follow her to the kitchen sink as she discarded the contents of alcohol. Again. Blake knew he was in no real position to get frisky with his fiance. Done discarding the contents of alcohol, she turns around to stare at Blake.
“For Christsakes you are doing it all over again. Look, I was cool with you wanting to lend Kelcey a helping hand with the custody battle. No child deserves to be raised by Chris and Sienna. What they are doing is wrong. Now Giovanni targets Kelcey. Here you are to the rescue, threatening to piledrive him? You are NOT going to miss Rise to Greatness because you can’t get Kelcey out your head!” Taylor’s words are strong. Decisive. Forthcoming. All qualities that made Blake fall madly in love with her in the first place. He didn’t mind at all how much of a straight shooter Taylor is.
Slamming his hand on the table, Blake insisted. “Giovani needs to be put down!”
“Why? So Kelcey can jump into your arms?” Taylor fired back.
Blake, agitated; rolls his eyes. “Jesus Taylor! Stop! Please, stop!”
“Can’t handle the truth?!” Taylor persisted.
It wasn’t that Blake can’t handle the truth. He accepts there will always be a part of him that can’t get Kelcey out his system. Everyone can’t resist using his affection, scratch that, love for Kelcey as a flag to continuously wave in front of his face. “Can we agree Giovanni is a deranged sociopath who needs to be taught that he can not go around attacking people the way he has? We both know Owen doesn’t have the courage to do what is necessary, that’s put Gio down for good. Owen’s moral code won’t allow him to do it. Kelcey sure as hell won’t do it. We both know I can. And I will. Gio can’t leave Breakdown under his own power. This ends next week.”
“You didn’t sound this fired up when Mr. D was assaulted in his office.” Taylor reminds him.
With a sigh, he asks his fiance. “Do you want me to forget about Giovanni? Not show up to the match?”
“Of course not. Kick his ass. The jerkface deserves it. Do you blame me for growing more and more sick of you reverting back to old habits? Instead of Chris, it's Scott now you are bickering with. It’s like you are addicted to going at it with the Cannon family.”
“Why do you think I’m drinking?” Blake smirks. In that moment Blake realizes everything that has transpired over the past couple weeks are coming to roost. He hasn’t been the most attentive fiance. Kelcey has dominated his mind. He hasn’t done a great job hiding it. He backed out of marrying Taylor the week off between Taking Hold of the Flame and Breakdown. The tension has come to ahead. All Blake wanted to do was fix things. “Before you walked in I was thinking, my life has become one continuous groundhog day. This was my fear when I returned back to the ring. I am living the same repeated cycle all over again. Maybe those people are right, for some reason I can’t help myself. Every time someone breathes on Kelcey I react. Believe me, I despise myself for putting you through this. I’ve been getting worse and worse. I just wish there was an answer to all this.”
“I got one.” Taylor takes off her engagement ring. She places it on the table. “I am calling off the engagement”
Blake’s eyes bulge. He was not expecting for Taylor Chase to place the engagement ring on the kitchen table. “Taylor--”
“No. Let me finish.” Taylor continues. “Blake... I love you. I always have. You bring a lot of joy to my life. What has become clear to me is you have never gotten over Kelcey. And it is not fair to me or my son if your heart is not one hundred percent in this. I am not naive to the effect that Kelcey holds over you for whatever reason. I am not going to wishfully think you are capable of snap those feelings away. I don’t want to get hurt.”
“It is not my desire to hurt you, Taylor.” Blake insisted.
“I believe that.” Taylor nods. “I knew there was a risk taking a chance on us. I should have listened to you when you said going back to Supreme Championship Wrestling would be problematic. Let's be honest. Even if you didn’t go back, you would feel the pull to leap to Kelcey’s rescue at a moment's notice. Do I have to put myself in danger to get attention? When are you ever going to move past her?”
Blake doesn’t bother pondering his next response. No sense lying to Taylor. “It’s not easy. Never has been.”
Taylor walks over to Blake. She kisses him on the cheek. “Thanks for being honest.”
“Would you like me to leave?” Blake asks.
Taylor doesn’t look into Blake’s eyes when she tells him. “That would be for the best.”
“Taylor. Listen.” Blake tries grabbing Taylor’s hand. She is having none of it. “The last thing I ever wanted to do was put you through this. I am sorry I could not be the man that you need. One day I am going to make this up to you, might not seem like it now but Taylor. I honest to God love you more than words can articulate. There will always be part of me that believes we can have a life together. Got to admit we bring excitement into each others lives. We make each other happy. Never wanted to cause you pain. That’s what I am doing right? Causing you pain just like I did with Bree. With Rachel. With Cameron. This never ending groundhog day. Pretty much all of my doing. I feel like such a villain.”
Blake walks past Taylor. Before he exits the kitchen he turns back around to see that Taylor does have tears running down her cheek. “Someone will stop by for my things; every instinct in me wants to make you a promise, in good conscience I won’t. You deserve better.”
Taylor shoots back. “You got that right!”
No argument there. Not wanting to make this harder than it already was, Blake retreated to the bedroom. He got a few small items. Passport. ID. The essentials. Got a few clothes. His computer. Anything he would need immediately until someone stopped by later to get the rest of what he brought with him when he moved into Taylor’s home back in 2019. Taylor wasn’t there to greet him at the door when he walked out. He didn’t expect as much. Putting his things into the back of the car, gets into the drivers side. Taking one last look at Taylor’s home he pulls out the driveway.
For the last time?
Only time will tell.
June 26th, 2020
Friday Night...
Spice Bar & Lounge
“-- moral of the story. Never make your fiancé feel like they are second best.” Blake concluded.
Nichelle reaches out and touches Blake’s hand. “I am so sorry. How are you feeling? Sorry. Bad question. You are here at a bar. Of course you’re not feeling great.”
“Great is not the word I would be using right now.” Blake smirks. “This is the story of my life, Nichelle. Burn everything good that comes into my life. When this gets out, I am guessing there will be a lot of people out there jumping at the chance to say I told you so. Especially my ex-wife. She has chosen to embrace her hate for me. Barely can resist the chance to respond to anything that happens... I bet she will try to call Taylor to get together for drinks. This is how toxic my life is.”
“Have you ever thought about stepping away from your profession if it’s making you that miserable?” Nichelle asks.
“Tried that more than once. Professional wrestling is a drug. I need confrontation. My life would be pretty boring without it.” Blake says.
“So you’re one of those guys.”
Blake raises his eyebrow. “One of those guys?”
Nichelle follows up by saying. “I wasn’t trying to be insulting. I know a few women like this too. Some people are driven by a cause, any cause, to latch on to to feel alive. Have you ever argued over minor insignificant things?”
“He has.” Jaxson chimes in. “One time--”
Blake cuts Jaxson off. “Hey. Whose side are you on?”
Jaxson pats Blake on the shoulder. “The side of truth, Mr. Mason.”
Blake shakes his head.
Nichelle is on the edge of her seat. “Come on. I want to hear this.”
“I would like my drink now, Nichelle.” Blake says forcibly.
She smiles. “Coming right up. You know my name, what’s yours?”
“William Blake Mason. Call me Blake. William. Doesn’t matter.” he says.
“William sounds cooler.” she responds.
“Then William it is.” Blake nods.
Nichelle walks off to go make Blake the drink he requested.
Blake turns to Jaxson. “Don’t tell anyone that story. Not one of my prouder moments.”
Jaxson chuckles. “She does have a point. As long as I’ve known you, you haven’t met a battle you couldn’t resist fighting. You had a good thing with Taylor. Try to make things right.”
Blake shrugs. “She is better off without me, Jax. Life would be so much easier if I could have both Kelcey and Taylor. Not even I am that good. Plus, there is no guarantee Kelcey will come where she belongs. Scott went against his own brother, nursed Kelcey back to health. How can she walk away from that? I am going to make one pledge, Jax. I am not going to put another woman through what I put Taylor, Bree, and the others through. No one will be made to feel second best because I’m an idiot.”
Jaxson pats Blake on the shoulder. “Sounds like a plan to me.”
Nichelle returns with the drink. She places it on the bar. “Enjoy, William.”
“I’ll try.” Blake grabs the glass.
Let the night of drinking commence.
==
<< PROMO TIME: >>
The scene opens on Blake Mason’s private jet. The former two time tag team champion is sitting by the window wearing a caramel colored three piece suit, with a white shirt and blue tie. Presently he is looking outside the window trying to gather his thoughts. Suddenly he gives the camera his undivided attention.
“I am not going to rant. That would be counterproductive, exactly what would cussing up a storm accomplish? Instead, lets talk about the power of belief. Human history is loaded with men and women who believed in a cause so much they were willing to literally die for it. Take Martin Luther King Jr for example, he was a man who fought for the day his kids could live in a nation where they would be judged by the content of their character. No matter what obstacle he faced along the way, he never gave up. On the darker end of the spectrum is a man like Jim Jones. He believed so much in his own power, he attracted a group of followers that literally drank the kool aid. They were willing to die believing Jim Jones was a savior of this world. Pluck a figure out of any time period and you’ll see, positive or negative, a man driven by a vision, worthwhile or unworthy, is driven by an ungodly power few mortals can understand.”
“My opponent this week, Giovanni Aires, is a man driven by his own ungodly beliefs. Some dismiss him as crazy. Psychotic. Most of the roster has used all those popular buzzwords, including myself, to describe the man. Extreme acts of violence have been inflicted on the leader of The Wonderland. James Evans on two occasions was under the assumption that his documented match victories would silence a man driven by a crusade to silence a Lizard King; I don’t think James truly comprehended the ungodly power Giovanni possesses. The power of unwavering belief. Gio is a man who does not waver. He somehow adapts, evolves over time, he continues to find new ways to suck us down his personal rabbit hole. Beating a man like this for the one, two, three, hell, my threats to put him in the hospital are hollow. Even if I lived up to my word, no act of physical violence inflicted upon Giovanni Aires would change the underlying reality.”
Blake allows silence to fill the air to create anticipation. “It’s hard to kill an idea.”
“Gio--” Blake points to the camera. “-- you are responsible for acts that I don’t approve of, namely your goons attacking Owen during our first defense of the tag team titles. Your heinous actions from last week smashing a picture over Kelcey’s head; no sense in denying your despicable actions against those I care about have not gone unnoticed. Go ahead, mock my affection for Kelcey. Post all your good boy gifs. I concede one thing you are right about, Gio... I am not going to be the man who puts you in the hospital. I can not allow myself to go down that road again. I have too much blood on my ledger as is. Some would argue I am responsible for creating a pretty toxic environment in Supreme Championship Wrestling. There are men and women I hurt who have chosen to embrace the pain I put them through to run roughshod through the roster. For all the pain and destruction you’ve caused, I have inflicted just as much, that is my legacy in Supreme Championship Wrestling, there is no way I am going to escape that. What I can do Gio is try to be somewhat better. I can refuse to give into the darkest part of my nature. I can choose to be somewhat of a positive influence, as minor as that influence may be. I can refuse to add more blood to my ledger. For chrissakes, enough of it exists. While a part of me will always believe I burn almost everything I touch, I can take solace in the fact that I am making a concerted effort to not be the Devil I once was; even if certain people will always view me as such.”
Blake takes a deep breath, composing himself. “When I look into your eyes Gio I am staring so deep into the abyss. He who fights with monsters soon becomes one? I don’t want to be a monster, again, trust me Gio, all it would take is one revving of the engine and your story ends in an instant. As omnipotent as you believe yourself to be, you are still a man. A man drunk on his own belief of a Lizard Kingdom that needs to be burned to ash, but a man nonetheless. Flesh and bone with an expiration date. I am not going to be the judge and jury of your end of days, Gio. Far from it.”
“This isn’t about revenge.”
“This isn’t about giving you a piledriver.” Blake shakes his head.
“The one lesson I learned in my life--” Blake holds up one finger “--the one that has kept me from crossing any real lines as of late, violence solves nothing. Piledriving you won’t make me whole. Embracing a revenge mindset won’t win me many favors. Unlocking the darkness won’t make me perfect. There is the adage of you can’t lock up the darkness. I can. And I will. For my own sake. Instead, I will embrace this fight. It has been awhile since I have had a singles match that has excited me so much. I begged Damian to give me the real him, he refused. I am comforted with the knowledge you are not going to hold back, I need that. The challenges that lay ahead, whatever Sasha officially decides for me at Rise to Greatness, our fight Gio will help me get ready for that. That is the perspective I need to hold on to when the bell rings. Believing in my desire to be a better version of me will keep me from crossing a line I don’t want to. From experience, fighting for revenge led me down a path I don’t want to revisit again. While I am quite confident no one would miss you if I unlocked the darkness, I would have to deal with the consequences. I don’t want to deal with the fallout of allowing myself to lose control.”
Blake nods. “I am staying the course. All I offer is a fight. No more, no less.”
Blake returns his attention to whatever he was looking at outside the window as the scene fades to black.
06-30-2020, 09:07 PM
OOC: Haven’t read Blake’s RP before posting...