Kandis / Williams versus O'Brian / Jackson

[thisisemerge]

DEADLINE 1 - 1X 2,500 word limit RP, in whatever format you choose
FRIDAY 26TH OCTOBER 2018 2359 GMT

DEADLINE 2 - 1x 750 word limit SHOOT rp, to be used in the show. This rp must be sent to the EMERGE PM box before the deadline of SUNDAY 28TH OCTOBER 2018 2359 EST

GOOD LUCK

[Kandis.]

September 21st
West Hollywood
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“... and so I basically told her to go fuck herself.”
I downed the rest of my beer, sitting on Nate's porch with him. It was Friday night, he had invited me over for dinner. Clarissa cooked a roast. I played with Devin, my nephew, a little while. Clarissa was trying to get him to bed though so Nate and I went outside. He knew I had something to tell him that I didn't want his wife to hear – about the phone call I got from Jennifer a few days prior.
“I don't get it... why would you flat out refuse? You have a chance to make that bastard pay, and you're not taking it?”
“She said they had proof of this latest one. They don't really need me, Nate. I don't know why she bothered trying. Don't you remember what they told me back then?”
Nate nodded, anger crossing his face. “Yeah. I do. And that's the point-”
“No! The point is, I don't want to do it! They didn't want to hear it then, so why should I speak now when it's convenient for them?”
“Justice? Closure?”
“They didn't give a fuck about justice fifteen years ago. Seventeen. Whatever.”
I opened another beer and stared off into the distance across Nate's backyard as I drank it. He was talking again but my mind had already gone somewhere else....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

December 2000
Santa Monica
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School this day had been a real pain in the ass. I had been attending since the year started, but I was 'the new kid' and on top of that, I was 'the white girl.' In the predominately black and Latino neighborhood, that was two ways I didn't fit in. My foster family was a black one, that didn't bother me – it was a house where I had my own bedroom. Although, soon after getting there I learned that wouldn't prevent me from being hurt. The father, Danny Anderson, took a liking to me right way... and I don't mean in a good way. I mean in a creepy way. It was bad enough that the kids as school gave me relentless shit, but also when I got home, I soon got harassed relentlessly, too. At first I didn't think too much of it, it's not like I really knew any better, right? Maybe it was how real loving families were supposed to show affection. But it got progressively worse, until the first time good ole 'dad' crossed that special line, and at least I knew that was wrong. As of this day, it had been three weeks since that first happened, and it had happened again several times.
School though.... there was this huge fight. Something like four or five older girls had jumped me. I apparently looked at one of them wrong or something, I don't even remember what my offense was... walking down the hall while white, maybe. I fought back as much as I could, but they had me on the ground and if it hadn't been for the teachers who finally broke it up, I would have been seriously hurt. But, those same teachers also refused to acknowledge the fact that they ganged up on me, and suspended all of us. Well, Kathy - “mom” - didn't mind so much, she was sympathetic to my explanation.  But Danny? “Dad?” He pretended to get it. Until after I went to my room and after Kathy went to bed. Then.... oh boy, did he let me know how he really felt. My brain blocked out most of the details but I do remember a lot of pain, and that it lasted twice as long as the other times he assaulted me. After he left my room, left me crying and bleeding and so fucking angry, I waited at least an hour, to make sure both of them were asleep, then snuck into the kitchen where a phone was, and  I called Jennifer, my social worker. It had been around three in the morning, but she always told me, if I needed something call, it didn't matter what time. So... I called. She answered groggily.
“... 'lo?”
I spoke in a loud whisper. “Jennifer? It's Kandis...”
“Kandis....? It's the middle of the night... are you okay?”
“No. You have to get me out of here!”
I could tell she was wide awake at that point. “Let's talk about this a minute, okay? What's wrong? Did you have a fight?”
“I'll tell you everything when you get here, just please come get me! Right now!” I was starting to cry again and I tried not to, so they didn't hear me. The result was loud sniffing and my breath catching.
“Okay... okay. Calm down sweetie. Take some slow breaths... I'll be there as soon as I can. Twenty minutes.”
I sighed in relief. I was leaving. “Thank you, thank you! I'll be outside.”
I hung up before she could reply. I then went back to my room, grabbed a duffel bag, and shoved as much clothes as I could fit into it, along with a stuffed rabbit I'd had since I was a baby. Everything else would have to stay, I didn't care. I crept as quiet as possible to the door and opened it slow, holding my breath, hoping it wouldn't creak. It didn't. I sat on the porch with just that bag and the shoes on my feet, waiting for rescue.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Kandis!”
Nate yelling my name snapped me back to the present. I shook the memory away and looked up at him.
“Sorry... what did you say?”
“I said... what about justice for that thirteen year old girl Jennifer told you about? Do you really think she'd ask for your help if she didn't think they needed it?”
I downed some more beer, and glared at Nate over the top of the bottle. I almost said something, but just shook my head, and drank more.
“Don't brush me off, Kandis. I'm serious. It's not just about you anymore. That girl endured the same thing you did. No one helped you back then, you're right. And I know you're still angry about that. Do you really want to do the same thing to that girl?”
I stood up and hurled the now-empty beer bottle past Nate's head, missing on purpose. He ducked and cringed anyway.
“Fuck you, Nathan! Don't try to fucking guilt trip me! How the fuck is me refusing to relive that bullshit the same thing as the goddamn director telling me to keep my mouth shut, huh? I'm just doing what they told me, right? The fucking state doesn't deserve my help in fixing a problem they created by not listening to me!”
Nate sighed, and spoke back calmly. He's used to my angry outbursts, and knew that yelling back never leads to good things.
“Then don't look at it as helping the state. You're really not. You'd be helping Jennifer... you know, the woman who actually did listen to you and took you out of there without making you explain first. And you'd be helping that little girl. She's thirteen, Kandy... younger than you were. What about what she deserves? Or what Anderson deserves?”
I just stared a few seconds, then sat back down, leaning over with my face in my hands. I can't remember the last time I actually teared up, much less cried, over anything. But the way Nate put that into words.... he was right. I had been too caught up in my own anger to see the important part... some other little girl would grow up like I did – thinking she did something to draw that kind of attention. Thinking that now she was damaged or worth less than before after being used.

Maybe thinking no one actually cared about her, they only pretended to.

I looked back up at Nate, and nodded once.
“Fine. I'll call Jennifer tomorrow.”
Nate reached over and squeezed my shoulder. I just nodded some more. I didn't even know the little girl's name, but I couldn't let her grow up feeling like that, like I did. Maybe I wouldn't be the way I am now if someone had stood up for me then. Most of the time I like who and what I am, but there are moments  where I wonder if I would have turned out what society considers to be normal, if things had been different even back then. I could be a part of giving that girl a better chance than I had. Adults had failed me but it didn't have to be that way for her.

---------------------------------------

October 11th
Los Angeles
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Jennifer and I were in the District Attorney's office, waiting to speak to him. I had called her the next day after talking to Nate, just like I said, and told her I changed my mind and would help in whatever way I could. It took this long to get an appointment with the DA, thanks to a very backlogged docket, and also my schedule with Emerge. I got home from Toronto yesterday, buzzed about my big win over the Rush Champion Gavin Taylor, but that wasn't important right then in the DA's office. I was going over in my head what I wanted to say when Jennifer spoke.
“Before this gets going, I want you to know how much I appreciate you doing this. I know it's difficult.”
“It is. And don't take this wrong, cause you know I love you... but I'm not doing it for you. It's for her. The girl.”
“Carla.”
I felt the blood drain from my face. “What...?”
“That's her name. Carla. I told her one of the girls from a while ago agreed to help. She wants to meet you, if that's okay.”
I could only nod. I had still been a little skeptical about this whole thing, but hearing that not only solidified that I made the right decision, but wavered my years-long belief that God didn't exist.

Carla was my mother's name. My birth mother.

*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*

You know... just when I thought maybe things were starting to change around here... that those in charge – Vanilla or Daniel or whoever – were actually paying attention, and giving me the spotlight I deserve? Something like this had to happen.

Was it not me who defeated the current Rush Champion, the self-proclaimed All-Star, Gavin Taylor? Was that not enough in the way of earning a place, like Miss Skyy said people were going to have to do? Clearly not... since once again... I am being treated as an afterthought, put into a meaningless tag team match, that has no bearing on anything important! Who even are these guys Kimmie and I are facing, anyway? And don't tell me their names, I know that much. I know the one guy is the brother of a chick that was in SCW... is she still there? Maybe? Is she MIA? Who knows.... and the other guy is a literal rookie, he won a spot on the roster by winning a tournament at World Hazard a few months ago.

Okay, so technically I am a rookie in wrestling too... I've been in less than a year, right?

But what have I done in that year? Beat almost everyone put in front of me. I have pinfalls over both the current Emerge Champion and Rush champion... and yet. Here we are. One more meaningless tag. One more month where I am jerked around!

I know I enjoy bedroom activities more than the average person, but this is not the kind of up and down, up and down that I like dolls!

So listen up.

I am going to, once again! Go out in front of that crowd, into that ring, and do what I do better than most in this company, and most certainly better than anyone with my amount of experience in wrestling. I'm gonna shake my ass a little... kick ass a lot... and get the win for my team. And after my boy Drake puts away Gavin... proving who the better of the two of them really is? I'm going to not-so-patiently expect to be given the opportunity that I earned when I defeated Gavin myself.

A chance to relieve him of the burden of carrying a title that's too heavy for him to hold.

So, Kim. Doll. Do me a solid and bring your stabbiest attitude. We have work to do.