Deanna Frost vs. Adam Allocco

[QueensGuardSCW]

Project: Black Ice

”A Moment Tainted: Burden of Proof”

Norton Sound Regional Hospital
Nome, Alaska
June 20, 2022
10:21am

Once more, Deanna stole a glance from the corner of her eye from where she sat, taking in the pale skin of her beloved wife as the two Frost women sat in their chairs next to each other. They had been sitting this way for the better part of an hour, both at various levels of anxiousness. For her wife, Deanna could see the Snow Queen’s hands tighten into fists and then relax over and over again. Several times, Deanna had reached out to take one fist into her hands, squeezing or massaging them. Selena never said anything when she did this, but neither did she pull her hand away or smack Deanna’s hands away.

This ‘stealing glance’ was not such a time, as Deanna was merely taking her wife’s appearance in once more, emerald eyes observing every detail on her wife’s face – from the round, purple sunglasses she wore (even though they had been inside the hospital for close to an hour), to the platinum-blonde hair the was tied into its iconic braid, which rested just below Selena’s shoulder blades. It was the right eye that the redhead was laser-focused on, the one uncommon thing about her wife’s appearance.

It had been about four days since she had become Television champion, four days since she had made the challenge to Adam Allocco for the upcoming Breakdown episode… and four days since the assault in  the parking lot on her beloved wife. Two amazing things… Deanna thought, Yet all overshadowed by one bad… like that mark overshadowing my wife’s beautiful face… 

The spike of sadness overtook her temporary rush of pride at such a ‘poetic observation’, preventing her from sharing it with her wife. Instead, her eyes continue to secretly stare at the discolored skin hiding under Selena’s purple sunglasses. Both women had acted quickly since the incident, Deanna out of love and care and Selena out of mere common sense, icing the Snow Queen’s eye immediately and throughout the night and day that followed the attack. The swelling went down relatively quickly because of their vigilant care and the discoloration, while parts were still purple and red, had began to recede into light yellow/green. Had they’d been anywhere but Nome, Alaska, essentially ignored by the rest of the world, Selena would have insisted on wearing makeup as she had the day of their travel to cover up the discoloration. Last thing either of them wanted, as Selena had put it, was to be accused of being the ‘new Johnny Depp/Amber Heard drama’ – which was a bit tasteless of a remark, but Deanna forgave it of her wife, given the accuracy of the situation.

The seconds continued to tick away within the small sitting area of the regional hospital, the white lights illuminating the dark tiles of the floor and the wooden beams that decorated the ceiling. The area was not very populated right now – perhaps that was to be expected with such a low population as Nome. 

Despite herself, Deanna bit her lower lip to stop herself from talking her thoughts aloud – specifically her frustrations. The two women had JUST, less than two hours ago, touched down in Nome and gone straight to the Norton Sound Regional Hospital for a single purpose… Because Selena hadn’t really thought things through.

When Selena had run away from Nome nearly nine years ago, she had escaped to Ottawa first for the End of the Year event and then traveled from ‘dingy lodging’ to ‘dingy lodging’ until she had enough money as a wrestler to settle in New York. It wasn’t until then that she had sought out a ‘permanent’ doctor – putting herself on the ‘patient-list’ of Dr. Anderson’s practice. Why was this relevant now? Because, when she had done so, she had lied about ‘never having a family doctor’. She had wanted to forget about her life in Nome at the time. Wanted to forget being trapped there for her entire life. She wanted to start anew, so she had abandoned everything she could regarding it. While Deanna could sympathize with that, it also meant that her wife’s ‘file prior to SCW’ was still here – in Nome.

And it was that file that the Frost wives were after. And with this small town hospital “strongly preferring” requests to be filled out and submitted ‘in-person’, well… No place like Nome!

Deanna exhaled a little loudly, her eyes fluttering close as she waited with her wife for the staff to process the request they had submitted upon arrival. She quickly scanned the front desk, seeing the secretaries and nurses behind there, some clearly working and some clearly not. 

“Frost?” the voice came suddenly from behind said desk just as Deanna turned away, Selena getting to her feet first to march across the small space to the desk. By the time Deanna was on her feet and caught-up with her, the platinum-blonde had taken a large-sized folder from the secretary and was on the move again, marching out of the hospital, almost frantically. What else could the redhead do but follow, throwing a ‘thanks’ to the older woman sitting behind the desk for her assistance. Within minutes, the couple had exited the building and made their way through the parking lot, Deanna, on instinct, scanning every inch of the space that she could see and shifting even closer to her marching wife. She only managed to breath a quiet sigh of relief when the pair had entered their rented car and shut the doors, Selena yanking off her sunglasses and opening the folder. There were stacks and stacks of papers and forms stapled together, all with so much information and data that, at first glance, Deanna’s eyes hurt. She could see names, numbers, chicken-scratch that served as writing – it was an eyesore at first glance, yet Selena stared at it intently, sapphire eyes darting left to right in quick scanning. 

“Selena…” Deanna tried, biting her lower lip. “It…it doesn’t matter…” she tried to assure her wife. “Even if, by some insane notion that it’s true. Remember what Jonathan and Alejandra said. It doesn’t matter.”

Selena remained silent until her breath hitched, her entire body going stiff as she beheld her current page. Without a word, she thrust the paper into Deanna’s space, allowing the redhead to take it and read it.

“January 13, etc. etc. etc. child brought in…” her eyes flew across what ‘doctor’s notes’ she could legibly read. “Parents: Donovan Frost… Alejandra Alden… Can’t believe they kept that in the records.” She said offhandedly before continuing, checking various notes on ‘tests’ and ‘procedures’ of the Newborn-Screening. Everything appeared normal (from what little Deanna, herself, understood about the medical practices – using her own pregnancies with David and Amiliah as her guide). However, as she turned the page, the entire sheet was dedicated to “Pulse oximetry newborn screening”, simply due to all the notes therein – not merely an “all good” like the others. Eyes narrowing, Deanna continued to read. “Patient suffers from ‘atrial septal defect’. Refer to page 9 for further details.” She turned to it but the jargon only became more complicated and unintelligible to her. “Must monitor…refer to page…age 2…. What is all this?” she asked, turning her head to see Selena checking her phone avidly, googling away.

“It means…” the Snow Queen took a staggering breath. “That Selena Frost was born with a hole in her heart…”

There was a dead silence between the two as the words sunk in. “H…hole?” Deanna asked, earning a nod from Selena. “That… is such a thing possible?”

“It’s right there in black and white.” Selena stated sharply. “Which means…”

And when the aforementioned child was born and brought back to Nome, imagine his frustrations when he found that she was ‘less than perfect’. That she wasn’t as smart as some of the others or as strong as the others. All he could see were her many faults. A good scare from a biological condition she had and suddenly, he couldn’t handle it anymore. Not when he had come so close to getting the heir his family deserved. Killjoy’s words echoed in both Selena and Deanna’s mind but it was only Selena who spoke.

“It means Killjoy was telling the truth.”
“The hell it does!” Deanna remarked sharply. “It could be a coincidence!” she grabbed Selena’s phone, wrestling it from the older woman’s grasp. “See!” she pointed out as she read the screen. “It says it can happen and cure itself in many cases as the child ages!”

“It also says that it might not.” Selena countered.
“She’s lying, Selena!” Deanna finally shot out, tossing Selena’s phone to the back seat, which she regretted doing later as it was unfair to the phone but in that moment, she didn’t care. “This is all some stupid, sick game by someone PRETENDING to be you, okay?! PRE-TEND-DING! Why does it matter?! You’re Selena! Who cares what Killjoy says?! Who cares if it’s even true?! It changes nothing for us! For Jonathan and Allie! For our children! Just…”

Her emotions running high, Deanna collapsed back into her chair. “Just…let this go, please.”

Slowly, Deanna opened her eyes, immediately seeing the bruised and emotionally broken face of her beloved.

“I can’t.” Selena half-cried, the saddest of smiles gracing her features. “Remember last week? When I was jumped? All on someone pretending to be Selena Frost?”

Deanna nodded at the recollection of the ‘cat-fishing incident’.

“I didn’t feel mad or even bitter at those boys. I felt… I felt like I was just as bad. Worse. Because what have I been doing for years but the same thing? If Killjoy is telling the truth…” her sapphire eyes fell to the paper. “Then what have I been doing but pretending to be Selena Frost? And… if that’s so… who am I really?”

She sat back in her seat, her hands resting on the steering wheel. Suddenly, her passiveness and immediate forgiveness over being assaulted in the parking lot made sense to Deanna. But it was the most unfair assessment she had ever heard! The person that had catfished those boys had done it intentionally and with malice! Selena, even if all this was true, had, and continued to be, an innocent victim in this madness!

“The Paternity Test.” She stated, reaching out to take Selena’s hand strongly into hers. “That will make everything clear.” Her voice held no room for doubt – she couldn’t allow it to for her wife’s sake. “You’ll see. It will work out! It’ll prove you’re the real Selena and Killjoy is just a…a… I can’t think of the right words for her now, I’m so angry at her!”

It was enough to cause a small smile to form on Selena’s face. “You’re too optimistic.”
“Says the woman that continues to tell people to ‘believe’.”

Shaking her head knowingly, Selena released her wife’s hand and started the car, beginning the travel to the private airport, which would take them to Indianapolis… to Breakdown… to the only thing right now both of them were absolutely sure of. 
__________________________________________________

The Guard Tower

”Oh boy! Deanna’s really done it now! Girl wins one title and now she thinks she can take on the world!”

First of all, me challenging Adam Allocco has nothing to do with ‘taking on the world’. I felt that when Selena told me she loved me back over nine years ago. Yeah, talk about empowering. Love, go figure. Granted, winning the Television title was pretty damn empowering for me as well. I mean, even a year ago, no one would have given any real thought to me being a wrestler – except me and Selena. But even then, the idea of winning? Of beating a former world champion like Dawn Lohan? Of WINNING an actual SCW singles title? Even I wasn’t that optimistic, and I like to think I’m pretty optimistic! There’s a 70% chance of shower today… and I’m going for a ‘pre-Breakdown’ walk after this recording without an umbrella! See? Optimistic!

But yeah, maybe I am ‘biting off more than I can chew’ a little with this challenge. I mean, not only am I challenging the new Taking Hold of the Flame royale winner, Adam Allocco – but the man that has been a wrestler for over two decades. That’s more than Selena and I combined – even if I include my years as Selena’s manager as ‘experience’. On top of that, the man is riding high from his royale win. And, yeah, I’m doing pretty well myself, but so was Samuel Davis, right? A man full of every confidence, he then thinks he can take on Selena and win with ease – that was not a pretty match to watch…

So, what? Do I think things will be any different when I take on a person with decades more experience and natural talent than me?

Maybe… then again, maybe not. Maybe I will get trounced. Maybe I will get beaten and look foolish. And what’s wrong with that? What’s wrong with fighting someone out of your league? Of fighting someone that’s got so much advantage over you? Do you go to the gym and say “meh. I’m only going to work out what I’m capable of.”? Or do you push yourself to your limits and try and surpass them?! You think Selena got to where she is by staying in her ‘safety zone’? No! She challenged SCW’s way of thinking and continues to do so! She went outside her comfort-zone and continues to do so for all of SCW and for integrity!

So, why can’t I? Why can’t I challenge such a talent as a refocused, passionate, driven man as Adam Allocco? Why can’t I be excited about what I can possibly learn from this? How I can use this match to become a better wrester and, maybe even, a better champion?

Isn’t that what you want, Adam? To show the world that you’re so much better than you were earlier this year? I mean, I’ll give you every credit! You did a SUPER job winning the royale! Beyond super! A SUPER-DUPER job! And you surprised so many people, including me and Selena – not that you aren’t capable of it but… you know with the problems and all that…

Anyway, you’re coming in after winning a royale and you’re wanting to ‘take on the world’, right? You want to fight Selena and prove you’re ‘the best wrestler in the world’ at Rise to Greatness, right? I mean… is that so different from me? I don’t want to prove something as false as that – me, being ‘the best wrestler in the world’ after one match – but I want to prove just how far along I’ve come in less than a year. Yes, I’m a champion, but you’re a league above and beyond what I’ve dealt with, aren’t you? You’re a tactician! You’re a mastermind! You’re resourceful! You’re, without question or doubt, the biggest challenge I have ever faced since I began wrestling singles matches.

But I’m not afraid of you, Adam. I’m not. And it’s not out of disrespect to you – I’m not knocking you or what you can do in the ring – like I would make such a mistake as underestimating you, pffft. The reason I’m not really scared, aside from taking value in the idea of a loss, is because I feel a sense of kinship with you.

I know! I know! You hate my wife, you think she’s this and that. Blah blah blah. I didn’t say I like you! I still remember the stuff you did in those ‘darker days’ of your time in SCW earlier this year and last. I don’t like you, but I feel a kinship with you because I think you, too, have something to prove tonight as I do.

And I think it’s more than just saying you’re ‘at the top of your game’. I think it’s more than just proving to Selena or the SCW Universe that you can ‘still go and wrestle’. I think this is about proving it to yourself too. I think, despite your self-assessment and acceptance of who you are, you still have some doubts. You still are uncertain. I think that, while you WANT your path to be as you said on Breakdown – inevitable - part of you isn’t sure just yet. 

Maybe that’s what this is to you? The beginning of building your confidence to where you can stand and say proudly that you are a bona-fide challenger for the SCW World title! Just like I want to prove that I can hold my own against a man of your talents!

I mean, can you imagine that? Shaun Cruze asked me to bring ‘integrity’ to the Television title after it’s been dragged through the mud by so many superstars, including you.

I remember that time, Adam. I had just returned to SCW after my wrongful incarceration. Selena was in the midst of a war with Syren that would, eventually, lead her to the World title… and you were the Television champion. And I’m not talking about the super-embarrassing stuff like ‘the Viagra incident’ I had to watch or you vomiting on live television or whatever – I think those infamous moments speak for themselves. But I mean how you tricked an official to disqualify Gavin Taylor. How you used the ropes to pin Ravyn. Used Lexy as a distraction against Crystal - I could go on, Adam, but you get the point. Your reign with the title I now hold, to be blunt, was an embarrassment to everything SCW should be about and I think you know it.

And when I became TV champion, it was that kind of bad-stuff that Shaun Cruze asked me to fight against, even if the title isn’t on the line.

So… what does that mean? Well, remember when Samuel Davis and Giovanni Aries came in and declared that Samuel was suddenly a ‘success’ – that he was suddenly a ‘star in SCW’? Selena came out and dared him to prove it. To prove their words and all their ‘claims’ were genuine. 

You say that you’re a changed man? Different than the man that once held this title and embarrassed it, SCW, and himself? A man different than the person that needed distractions and interferences and cheap ploys to gain victories? I am daring you to prove it! 

Prove it against me here in Indianapolis! On the main-event of Breakdown! Prove to me and to the world that things are different – that you are different! I want to see that, Adam! Are you kidding? Can you imagine if I can go toe to toe with Adam Allocco in a clean match? If I can make a promise that, as Television Champion, I can be better than the ‘better version’ of one of its former champions? 

Cause whether it’s foolish or ‘overly-optimistic’ of me to challenge you, my intention is still to win. Make no mistake of that, Adam. I don’t just want to make you prove yourself to all of SCW and the True Believers, I also want to beat you. I want to prove to all of them that, like you, I am different from who I was even a few months ago! I want to prove I am every inch the Television Champion AND the Queen’s Guard tonight! 

And, on a personal note, I want you to realize the kind of war you are in for. You came to the ring full of piss and vinegar last week. Appearing so sure of yourself – of your ‘path’ to, inevitably, become world champion... 

Personally? I think you’re still a bit on the arrogant side and need to see reality for what it is. It’s NOT going to be that easy. It’s not going to happen JUST because you say so. It’s going to be brutal and against someone far more dangerous and far more experienced than I am…

But I want to be the one to make you realize that. I want to be the one that makes you understand that. To understand that while you were happy to swim around at the bottom of the barrel of integrity/decency for so long, The House of Frost spent that time swimming with the sharks and rose the standard. And while you may want to prove that you can hang around at that standard now, I am going to prove to you that it is not going to be as easy as you think it is.

Tonight, Adam, I am going to give you all that I have in this ring. I am going to give you every breath of my ability, my hopes, my dreams for this title and for SCW. I am going to fight until I can’t anymore – for my wife, for this championship, for SCW. And when I am done, I am going to follow your example and offer you my hand.

The question is, Adam Allocco, will be if you’re a different enough man to accept it.

Are you, Adam? Even if it’s you that may be the one that’s biting off more than he can chew?

Checkmate, bitch.