Post by Ace Bennett on Sept 16, 2013 0:03:38 GMT -5
"I mean, it's worth a shot.”
This was the thought running through Ace Bennett's head as he sat on his sister's leather coach, his cell phone in grasp. He knew that he had to at least try. For some unknown reason, Trace Demon was still screwing with him despite the fact that he had made it abundantly clear that he had not a single care in the world that he was now running the place. The newest attempt has come in the form of once again teaming him with Thunder, the man who he had teamed with two weeks prior before defeating a week ago. The thought of the whole thing brought a smile to his face as he sat in the barren room. His sister was at work, about to come home from an early shift. He had turned the television on for background noise as he dwelt in his thoughts. Letting out a sigh, he began to scroll through his contacts. In his brief meeting with Shawn Malakai and Xavier Pierce before returning to the WFWF, he had received the contact information of all members of the so called “Team Xavier.” This would be the first time he would be taking advantage of that information.
His fingers glided down the touch screen as names rolled in and out of vision. Ace tapped the screen, causing it to stop on the names beginning with “T.” Tapping a contact labeled “Thunder” Ace let out another sigh, clearly not wanting to even try to talk to the man. What is Thunder's real name anyways? He looks like a Maurice to me. It was pretty abundantly clear that he and Thunder would never see eye to eye on any matter, especially not this match. Well, at least not any time soon anyways, but he knew he had to at least try to explain to Thunder his mindset the past few weeks. And Ace wanted to know his partner's mindset as well, because the two were clearly not on the same page. As he pressed the call button, he heard the front door slam as Alicia arrived back home.
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Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice messaging system. At the tone, please record your message. When you are finished recording, please hang up. Thank you.
So Thunder doesn't know how to change his voicemail message either. Not that Thunder struck Ace as a technical type of person anyways, but it gave Ace a warm feeling on the inside to know that he wasn't the only one who didn't know every in and out of his phone. He slunk back as the message played all the way through, awaiting the obnoxious tone to go off so he could leave his message.
Ace: Hey, it's Ace. I know this is weird that I have your number and everything and quite frankly I don't expect you to call me back, but I figured this was worth a shot. The numbers on your phone now where you can reach me if you do end up wanting to talk. I've been meaning to have a sort of one on one with you anyways sometime in the future so-
And the tone sounded. That was one thing that Ace didn't really like about messages, he couldn't really express what he wanted to say without calling back three or four times and sounding like that annoying ex-girlfriend that everyone has that tries to call you over and over again in the middle of the night in an attempt to rekindle the relationship. He wasn't going to bother calling Thunder back, it wasn't like he was going to answer or respond to him anyways. He slunk even further into the chair and paid attention to what was on the television. It was one of those horrible court television shows. His sister watched these a lot, but they weren't really Ace's cup of tea. In the background, the sound of water rushing from the bathroom could be heard as Alicia took her evening shower.
Deep within his own mind, Ace thought about his goals once again. How he was here to right the wrongs that he committed in the days earlier in his career. How he had brainwashed himself to believe that cleansing the WFWF by physically dismantling all who stepped in his way was the right thing to do. And he thought of his list, and how two names on it were on two opposite sides of the spectrum in terms of being crossed out. On one side you had Dave Demento, who Ace crossed off the list after forming an alliance and reforming the friendship the two had during their days on the independent circuit. On the other, Thunder, whose relationship had only been further muddied after his actions in the past few weeks. About how, in saving Randel Benjamin from a brutal beating at the hands of Thunder he had further gained the respect of Dave Demento at the cost of stability between he and Thunder.
Alicia: Something the matter?
In his thoughts, he hadn't realized that his sister had gotten out of the shower and was now standing there in front of him, donned in bathroom and towel in hair. A look of concern was on her face as she gazed down at her brother, who had been slouched over, elbows on knees.
Ace: Oh, it's nothing. Just thinking.
Alicia: About?
Ace: Thunder.
Alicia: Ah, ah, ah. I don't think so. Tonight is not a night to be thinking about wrestling. Tonight is supposed to be a night for fun.
Alicia shook her finger at her younger brother with a smile on her face. Ace stared at her with a confused look. What the hell was she going on about? Fun? How could he have fun when his boss was essentially toying with him for something he didn't even do? She stared back at him, clearly excited.
Alicia: You don't remember?!
Ace: Please don't tell me it's board game Friday.
Alicia: Better!
Ace: Trace Demon got hit by a truck?
Alicia: Ace! I can't believe you don't remember! Tonight is your big date!
Worst case scenario. Deploy jet pack and fly to the moon.
Ace: I'd much rather do board game Friday.
Alicia: Nope, you promised! Now come on, we gotta get you ready!
Ace: I look fine the way I am.
Alicia looked down at Ace. He was wearing a generic WFWF t-shirt that you would see jobbers wear and a pair of grimy gray sweat pants. His hair was matted and greasy and he had allowed his facial hair to grow out in a patchy mess. Leaning in, Alicia takes a sniff of her younger brother. Letting out a heave, she holds in the urge to vomit on the floor. Ace smiles at his older sister, who is now clearly making fun of him.
Ace: You hatin' on the man stank?
Forcing a smile, Ace looks at his sister and releases some air from his nose. Alicia lets out a laugh before dragging her younger brother off of the couch he had been planted on for the entire day, in preparation for his upcoming date.
Joy.
After three hours of prep for Ace's big date, Alicia finally deemed her younger brother ready for the big night. She had really put him through the cleanliness gauntlet that night, as he showered, brushed his teeth, flossed, clipped his fingernails, shaved, showered again, an then had a 25 minute conversation with his sister about how he, in fact, did not need a haircut. He was lucky if he did all of those things in a month normally. The sun had long ago left, and Ace, donning a new suit that his sister forced him to purchase just for the occasion a couple days ago, was ready to leave. Ace looks at himself in the mirror on the wall next to the front door. He hadn't dressed up this nicely since, well, ever. His sister emerges from the kitchen and approaches him, proud of her handy work. Adjusting his collar, Alicia pecks her younger brother on the cheek.
Alicia: Well look at you. You clean up pretty well.
Ace: Heh, right. I still really don't want to do this.
Alicia: Whelp I guess that's just too bad now isn't it? Good luck, be yourself.
Ace: Me? Acting like someone I'm not? Where would you get such crazy ideas?
Ace rolled his eyes and laughed at his own terrible joke. Alicia play slaps her younger sibling in the face and simply shakes her head. Giving her one last hug, Ace bids Alicia goodbye, taps his pockets to make sure that he has everything that he needs, and exits the apartment. Walking down the creaky stairs had become a daily routine for him, so the three flight orchestra that accompanied him on the way down was mostly ignored by its audience. Closing the door behind him, Ace exited the apartment. He pulled the piece of paper that had directions to the restaurant that Alicia had reserved seats at for Ace and his date. Beneath the directions is a message from his sister.
Ace,
I hope you understand why I set this up for you. You deserve to be happy and not constantly stressed out by your wrestling career. I know that you will think this is going to go badly, but who knows? Maybe she's the one. Maybe this is the girl you marry. Have a great time tonight, don't let wrestling get into your head. For me.
Love,
Alicia
As much as he'd hate to admit it, that put a smile on his face. However, as much as he knew her intentions were good, he couldn't take his mind off of the WFWF. More specifically, he couldn't take his mind of how badly things had gone south with Thunder lately. As he entered his car, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket once again. Keeping his eyes on the road as he drove, he once again pulled up the the address book entry of Thunder. Don't drive distracted kids.
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Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice messaging system. At the tone, please record your message. When you are finished recording, please hang up. Thank you.
Nothing again, not that it surprised him or anything. He felt weird having called another man looking to have a heart to heart conversation twice in one night now. Awaiting the end of the automated voice, Ace cleared his throat in preparation of his second message.
Ace: Hey, it's me again. I know this is probably really off putting to you but I really need to talk to you or at least for you to hear me. I've done a lot of wrong things in my life and have done bad things to a lot of people who really didn't deserve it. After that match where I kinda got you fired, I felt happy to have gotten you out of the way. But-
The tone could not have come at a worse time. Yeah, that's definitely what he wants to hear; about how you indirectly got him fired after beating him for a championship. Why not tell him you had sexual relations with his girlfriend while you're at it? Ace throws his phone onto the dashboard, frustrated at what had just transpired. He had no choice but to move on at this point, as he had arrived to his destination. He pulled into the parking lot, as a valet opened his front door from him. Smiling, he allowed the valet to drive away in his teal 2001 Geo Prizm. Yep, that's what Ace Bennett drives. A Geo Prizm. Haters. Gonna. Hate.
The name of the place was some French word that he couldn't pronounce. So that's a good start. As he walked in, he surveyed the scene. It was your stereotypical “fancy” restaurant, with the lighting so dim that you needed a flashlight. Really all Ace could make out was the white table cloths, illuminated by the candlelight. Everything else was too dark to see, including the several faceless patrons of the establishment. Due to the light, he had to squint to see his watch and realize that he arrived 5 minutes early. He saunters over to the hostess to explain his situation.
Hostess: Welcome to Les Herberderber (that's what Ace heard). How may we assist you this evening.
Ace: So, I'm here for a blind date. But my sister didn't even give me a name. Is there anyone else here for that?
Hostess: Actually yes, that woman over on the waiting bench has been here for about ten minutes waiting for that same reason.
Squinting over, Ace sees a woman wearing a short skirt and low cut top. He can't quite make out her face, but he decides to keep an open mind and approach her.
Ace: Hello. Are you-?
Date: OH MY GOD! HIIIIIIII!
She quickly pops up and wraps her arms around his shoulders and squeezes tightly. The surprise death grip nearly causes him to pass out. Her voice sent chills down his spine, and not the good ones. It was someone threw an angry cat at a chalk board, claws first. Ace cringes, but decides to put a faux smile on his face and tried to troop through it.
Ace: Hi, I'm Ace. And you are?
Date: Like, I'm Spice. I'm like so excited for tonight and to like meet you. This is totes gonna be such like a blast!
As she spoke, it was like every word was dragged out farther than it needed to be. Her voice would enter this low pitched rasp on the last letter of every word she said. In infinite cringe mode, Ace and Spice were led to their table by the hostess. Now that he had gotten a good look at her, he wasn't sure what to think. She was quite short, and her brown hair was put up in a way that gave her the appearance of having a brain tumor protruding from her skull. Her skin was the color of an Oompa Loompa and looked to have the texture of a reptile. Oh God. His sister had put him on a date with Snooki. And yet, she looked strangely familiar.
Ace: So, Spice, that's an interesting name.
Spice: I know right!? Like, it's my wrestling name.
Ace: Wrestling name?
Spice: Uhhhhh, yeahhh. You know, like when like you fight people in a big ring thingey with ropes and stuff? Like with the punchy things and suplex thingys.
He knew he had heard the name before. Little did Ace, and surely not Alicia, know, she had set him up with former WFWF wrestler Spice. Her claim to fame was teaming with Sugar in a tag team known as Double D, going undefeated in one tag team match-up. Thankfully, this was before Ace's debut with the company. Ace found his spine stiffening like a board, as he wanted nothing to do with this anymore. Although one thing was clear, she did not keep up with the current happenings of the WFWF. He deduced because she had no idea who he was.
Ace: So what's your real name then? Spice can't be your real name.
Spice: Like, people always ask me that! Oh my God! Like what's wrong with Spice, you know? So like, my mom totally like gave me a real name but you know, I don't like remember. I like, totes really like being called Spice though. You know? It's like deep, I don't know, like a deep thing for me. You know?
Nope, he didn't know. But yet, he nodded. A waitress approached the table as Ace puts his head in his hands. At the sound of her voice, his head perks up.
Waitress: How are you guys doing tonight? My name is Christine and I will be serving you tonight. May I start you off with any drinks?
Spice: OH MY GOD YES! I'll like have one of those apple thingys with like the stingy juice stuff and the like funny shaped cups.
Christine: …....an appletini?
Spice: Ohmygawd yes! Those are like sooooo yummy.
Christine: Alright then. And for the gentleman?
Ace: Something to make me forget this night.
At the punchline, a sound emitted from Spice's mouth that sounded like an elephant had just stepped on a land mind. I think this is how this species laughs. Christine and Ace both jump back, startled at the sound. Ace looks at the waitress with a sincere look, clear that he isn't kidding.
Spice: Oh mah god, you are sooooo funny!
Christine: I'll be right back with those orders for you guys.
Spice: Thank you soooo much. You are like such a sweetheart! Oh my gosh!
So Alicia definitely wasn't going to hear the end of this. Realizing that he had to drive home, Ace was unable to drink whatever concoction that Christine had the bartender brew up for him, so he was going to have to deal with this the whole night. Spice refused to stop talking, and Ace had to listen to her voice for what seemed like hours. After having took their orders, Ace tried to tune his date out of the conversation but was failing.
Spice: And then she was like NOOOO. And I was like YEAHHH. And then she, being the skank whore that she is was all, get out of my face. And then my friend Samantha was all like getting in everyone's like business, you know? But it was alright because we are all totes getting ready to go anyways, because like it was like not a good time at all.
All he could do was nod and stare in dumbfounded amazement. She picked up the pepper grinder from the table and started to shake it up and down with a confused look on her face.
Spice: What is this thingy? It's like soooo weird! It's like making all these shakey noises on the inside. I have a thingy at home that kinda looks like this thingy, but I don't like know why it's like here, you know?
I bet you do.
Spice: So like, I'm like totally going to use the little girl's room because I gotta go pee pee, but I'll like be riiiiiiiiight back!
Much like she has done everything else, Spice obnoxiously left the table, turning over seemingly everything in her path to the bathroom. Ace reveled in the silence that Spice's departure had provided. His head was ringing from the stupidity that was projecting from her mouth and raping his ear holes. Head rape, it should be a felony. As Ace popped an aspirin that he had brought along with him, Christine the waitress arrived with their food. Seeing that he was alone, she conversed with him.
Christine: Blind date?
Ace: How'd ya guess?
Christine: Welllllll you like, look like you are totes having sooooo much fun!!! Like, oh my God!
Ace: Like, totallyyyyyyyyyy.
The two laughed at their impressions of the ditzy Spice. He looked up at Christine and noticed her for the first time. His first thought upon seeing her was, why couldn't she have been the date instead? She was gorgeous. Her long brown hair flowed to her back and framed her fair face, her brown eyes sparkled as she smiled and let out a cute little giggle that was the antithesis of Spice's donkey call.
Ace: So what's a girl like you working at a pretentious place like this for?
Christine: A broke college student will do what they need to do to put food on the table. Plus, the tips here are amazing.
Ace: Ah, a college student eh? What school?
Christine: UNLV. Are there other schools around here?
Ace: I have no idea.
Christine: DUHHHHHHHHHH.
The two laughed once again at the expense of Ace's date. Looking around, Christine realizes that she probably spent far too much time on Ace's table and by now had lost at least a portion of the potential tip she had coming.
Christine: Well, enjoy your food. I'll be back around to check on you-
Ace: Wait, just one more thing, and then I'll let you be.
Christine: And what would that be?
Ace: I know this probably sounds crazy to you, but maybe would you like to take the place of Spice on a date to be determined at a later time?
Christine: I barely know you.
Ace: Well, isn't that the point of a date?
Christine: I guess yeah, but I don't even know your name!
Ace: It's Ace. Alright I'll tell ya what. Give me one chance, no strings attached. We can go to the movies, have some dinner. It won't even be a date. Consider it two buddies going out to have a good time.
Christine stood there for a second, contemplating Ace's offer. She beckoned him to give him his hand, before pulling out a pen and writing down some digits on his arm. She nods at him, before walking away without a word to tend to other tables. Ace looks down at his arm to see what is clearly a phone number. With the word “Christine” and a heart underneath it.
Ace: Nice.
And because I'm sure none of you want to read more of the obnoxiousness that is Spice, I will say that nothing else eventful happened. Except for apparently, Spice takes a half hour in the bathroom because she needed to reapply the makeup that was already caked to her face beyond belief. I mean, she looked like Cake Boss' latest masterpiece. And then she complained that her food was cold for the rest of the night. After Ace said goodbye and Spice threw herself (and her tongue) at Ace, he departed back to his car glad to be rid of her. Sitting there in his thoughts again, his mind raced back to where he was prior: Thunder. Looking back to his phone that he had left in the car, he knows that he must call one more time to clear the air. Reaching to the dashboard, Ace retrieves his phone and once again begins to scroll through his address book. Arriving to the same contact that he has brought his finger to three times now, Ace presses call.
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Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice messaging system. At the tone, please record your message. When you are finished recording, please hang up. Thank you.
As was to be expected.
Ace: Look, I know we don't exactly have the most friendly of pasts, but we don't really have much choice but to work together, am I right? And I hope I sound genuine here, but I really and truly want to apologize for anything I did in my last run here. I wasn't myself. I hope we can work together and pull out the win. I'll see you there.
Hanging up the phone, Ace let's out a sigh of relief now that he was finally able to say what he'd been wanting to say the whole night. Whether or not he and Thunder could work together was still to be seen, but he knew that he had at least addressed the elephant in the room between them. Maybe the two of them could pull off the victory together after all. Placing the key in the ignition, Ace leaves the pretentious restaurant happy with his days exploits.
“Ever since he has risen to the top of the food chain in WFWF's executive order, Trace Demon has seemingly had some sort of personal vendetta against me. Marking me as one of those who was against him in his power struggle against Xavier Pierce, he has placed me in match-ups alongside and against my so-called allies in an effort to put my in my place. Now, I'm sure we are all fully aware that Trace Demon is not the brightest crayon in the box, but I don't see how anyone could make it any more obvious that they are not in any way shape or form a part of this war, and only used it as a way to catapult myself back into the WFWF. But yet, Trace continues to 'punish' me for my acts against him.”
“But you know, I guess it isn't all bad. In fact, I'm pretty happy with the whole situation. Trace Demon has inadvertently helped me more than any other person within the WFWF could possibly help me. He was partially responsible for booking me against Dave Demento and Randel Benjamin. He was the man who pitted me against Thunder just a week after I teamed with him. And of course, he is the man who has once again decided to team the very man that I faced last week with myself again against Yukio Blaze and Brock Maxx. You follow that? I team with Thunder, and then I face Thunder, only to team with Thunder once again. Pretty clever huh? I mean what better way to get back at me, then to constantly break the stability of the relationship between myself and the man who I defeated for the tag team championships and indirectly caused to lose his job? A relationship that was already among the most unstable in the entire WFWF? Real smart.”
“Let's move beyond that though, because as we've covered before, the WFWF is currently run by a gorilla. How about we cover the purpose of Trace doing this. To get back at me. For crossing him. For being on the opposite side of some war, when in reality I couldn't possibly care less about said war. And you know what? He's even failing there. Hard. It seems like Trace Demon, while meaning to punish me, is benefiting me in every match that he puts me in. I couldn't thank Trace Demon any more for helping me with my purpose of even being back in the WFWF. I realize I've been looking at this entirely the wrong way. Instead of being upset that I'm the target of some sort of vengeance, I should bask in all the benefits it is affording me.”
“At Battleground, I was teamed with Thunder to take on Randel Benjamin and Dave Demento. In the course of that night, I not only got a victory under my belt in my return to the company, I rekindled a friendship that I had lost previously with Dave Demento while inadvertently aiding him in his well deserved rise, and helping him get rid of the parasite that was Randel Benjamin on his own terms. I mean, sure, things between Thunder and I didn't exactly go swimmingly, but to come out of Battleground with a former enemy turned ally, point for me.”
“On the next edition of Revolution, Trace Demon decided to pit me against the man I teamed with at Battleground in an effort punish us for supporting Xavier Pierce. Not beating a dead horse, Thunder and I do not have the best of history. So putting us in a match would not only keep myself within range of Thunder for another week, but give both of us a chance to put on a competitive match against one another. With both of us recently coming back, this tune up was probably good for both of us, but specifically me, who once again came up with the win. It gave me a chance to get momentum back on my side after a while away from the ring. Perhaps the only negative to come out of this would be that once again the relationship between myself and Thunder would be a little worse for wear. Despite that I would still gladly say; Ace Bennett- 2, Trace Demon- 0.”
“Now let's review, what is the only negative consequence of the matches that Trace Demon has booked for Ace Bennett since his valiant return to the ring? Well, anyone with a brain can see that would be the fact that the relationship between myself and Thunder, a relationship that I'm trying to rekindle, has been adversely impacted by the booking of these two matches and that I am further than I have ever been from crossing Thunder's name from my list of those I wronged. So, why in God's name would Trace Demon once again team me with Thunder against Yukio 'Jobber to the Stars' Blaze and Brock 'I'll Be Shocked If He Even Shows' Maxx and give me a chance to reestablish a positive relationship with the man he's been trying to break up over the course of the past two weeks? Is he even thinking? Probably not, but that's beside the point.”
“You see, Trace Demon thinks that I've returned solely for the glory, solely for the championships, solely for selfish reasons. But he doesn't realize that I'm here for deeper reasons. He doesn't realize that I don't actually want to be here in the WFWF. He doesn't realize that I couldn't care less if it were my shoulders pinned to that mat week in and week out and not my opponent's, as long as I accomplish what I am here for. I want the forgiveness of those who I have wronged, at least those who I can get in touch with now. Four names were on the list that I can help right now. One day, I hope that the other names on the list come out, but for now, these four will have to do. Samael Ahriman. Mak Cross. Thunder. Dave Demento. But ignorance is bliss I guess, not only for Trace Demon but for Ace Bennett as well. Trace Demon, you have aided me in crossing out one of those names, and you have aided me in getting close to crossing off a second. So for that, I thank you. For as hard as you have try to quell me from reaching my goals, you have done the exact opposite of that.”
“As for my opponents, they honestly aren't even relevant as far as I'm concerned. Brock Maxx is likely just another face to pass through the ranks of the WFWF with little fanfare other than one or two matches before faded away into obscurity where he belongs. I will not be some rookie's stepping stone to the top here, especially not in their first match. They didn't use to call me the Streak Destroyer without reason you know. As for Yukio Blaze, we know what to expect from him. The executives feed him a few bottom feeders for a couple weeks to get him some momentum before feeding him to the big dogs. And let me tell you something right now, I am no bottom feeder. But they really aren't that important as far as I'm concerned. They could be anyone. What is important to me is Thunder and that I show him that I am a worthy partner.”
“Thunder and I may not be the well oiled machine that some of the WFWF's past teams were, but let me tell you this. We will be on the same page, and we will do everything in our power to make sure that we are the ones whose arm's are raised at the end of the match. After all we have been through, I owe him that much. And if that means for me to take the brunt of the beating at the hand of Blaze and Maxx and give him the pinfall, then so be it. I'm not the selfish type. At least not anymore. At Revolution, I will show Thunder that I am worth his forgiveness and cross him off of my list.”
OOC: Well isn't this shocking? Me posting an RP this far before the deadline, I don't think I have done this since I first started. I had a lot of fun writing this, and was quite excited to introduce the new character. I'm trying to make Ace follow my personality and some real life traits, so the introduction of Christine was pretty crucial to me. I plan on delving into her more in later works. Special thanks to B-Radimus Prime for allowing me to include Spice, it was a lot of fun writing. I hope you guys get at least a small laugh, as I think this is my best work in a while.
Edit was a minor coding change.
This was the thought running through Ace Bennett's head as he sat on his sister's leather coach, his cell phone in grasp. He knew that he had to at least try. For some unknown reason, Trace Demon was still screwing with him despite the fact that he had made it abundantly clear that he had not a single care in the world that he was now running the place. The newest attempt has come in the form of once again teaming him with Thunder, the man who he had teamed with two weeks prior before defeating a week ago. The thought of the whole thing brought a smile to his face as he sat in the barren room. His sister was at work, about to come home from an early shift. He had turned the television on for background noise as he dwelt in his thoughts. Letting out a sigh, he began to scroll through his contacts. In his brief meeting with Shawn Malakai and Xavier Pierce before returning to the WFWF, he had received the contact information of all members of the so called “Team Xavier.” This would be the first time he would be taking advantage of that information.
His fingers glided down the touch screen as names rolled in and out of vision. Ace tapped the screen, causing it to stop on the names beginning with “T.” Tapping a contact labeled “Thunder” Ace let out another sigh, clearly not wanting to even try to talk to the man. What is Thunder's real name anyways? He looks like a Maurice to me. It was pretty abundantly clear that he and Thunder would never see eye to eye on any matter, especially not this match. Well, at least not any time soon anyways, but he knew he had to at least try to explain to Thunder his mindset the past few weeks. And Ace wanted to know his partner's mindset as well, because the two were clearly not on the same page. As he pressed the call button, he heard the front door slam as Alicia arrived back home.
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Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice messaging system. At the tone, please record your message. When you are finished recording, please hang up. Thank you.
So Thunder doesn't know how to change his voicemail message either. Not that Thunder struck Ace as a technical type of person anyways, but it gave Ace a warm feeling on the inside to know that he wasn't the only one who didn't know every in and out of his phone. He slunk back as the message played all the way through, awaiting the obnoxious tone to go off so he could leave his message.
Ace: Hey, it's Ace. I know this is weird that I have your number and everything and quite frankly I don't expect you to call me back, but I figured this was worth a shot. The numbers on your phone now where you can reach me if you do end up wanting to talk. I've been meaning to have a sort of one on one with you anyways sometime in the future so-
And the tone sounded. That was one thing that Ace didn't really like about messages, he couldn't really express what he wanted to say without calling back three or four times and sounding like that annoying ex-girlfriend that everyone has that tries to call you over and over again in the middle of the night in an attempt to rekindle the relationship. He wasn't going to bother calling Thunder back, it wasn't like he was going to answer or respond to him anyways. He slunk even further into the chair and paid attention to what was on the television. It was one of those horrible court television shows. His sister watched these a lot, but they weren't really Ace's cup of tea. In the background, the sound of water rushing from the bathroom could be heard as Alicia took her evening shower.
Deep within his own mind, Ace thought about his goals once again. How he was here to right the wrongs that he committed in the days earlier in his career. How he had brainwashed himself to believe that cleansing the WFWF by physically dismantling all who stepped in his way was the right thing to do. And he thought of his list, and how two names on it were on two opposite sides of the spectrum in terms of being crossed out. On one side you had Dave Demento, who Ace crossed off the list after forming an alliance and reforming the friendship the two had during their days on the independent circuit. On the other, Thunder, whose relationship had only been further muddied after his actions in the past few weeks. About how, in saving Randel Benjamin from a brutal beating at the hands of Thunder he had further gained the respect of Dave Demento at the cost of stability between he and Thunder.
Alicia: Something the matter?
In his thoughts, he hadn't realized that his sister had gotten out of the shower and was now standing there in front of him, donned in bathroom and towel in hair. A look of concern was on her face as she gazed down at her brother, who had been slouched over, elbows on knees.
Ace: Oh, it's nothing. Just thinking.
Alicia: About?
Ace: Thunder.
Alicia: Ah, ah, ah. I don't think so. Tonight is not a night to be thinking about wrestling. Tonight is supposed to be a night for fun.
Alicia shook her finger at her younger brother with a smile on her face. Ace stared at her with a confused look. What the hell was she going on about? Fun? How could he have fun when his boss was essentially toying with him for something he didn't even do? She stared back at him, clearly excited.
Alicia: You don't remember?!
Ace: Please don't tell me it's board game Friday.
Alicia: Better!
Ace: Trace Demon got hit by a truck?
Alicia: Ace! I can't believe you don't remember! Tonight is your big date!
Worst case scenario. Deploy jet pack and fly to the moon.
Ace: I'd much rather do board game Friday.
Alicia: Nope, you promised! Now come on, we gotta get you ready!
Ace: I look fine the way I am.
Alicia looked down at Ace. He was wearing a generic WFWF t-shirt that you would see jobbers wear and a pair of grimy gray sweat pants. His hair was matted and greasy and he had allowed his facial hair to grow out in a patchy mess. Leaning in, Alicia takes a sniff of her younger brother. Letting out a heave, she holds in the urge to vomit on the floor. Ace smiles at his older sister, who is now clearly making fun of him.
Ace: You hatin' on the man stank?
Forcing a smile, Ace looks at his sister and releases some air from his nose. Alicia lets out a laugh before dragging her younger brother off of the couch he had been planted on for the entire day, in preparation for his upcoming date.
Joy.
After three hours of prep for Ace's big date, Alicia finally deemed her younger brother ready for the big night. She had really put him through the cleanliness gauntlet that night, as he showered, brushed his teeth, flossed, clipped his fingernails, shaved, showered again, an then had a 25 minute conversation with his sister about how he, in fact, did not need a haircut. He was lucky if he did all of those things in a month normally. The sun had long ago left, and Ace, donning a new suit that his sister forced him to purchase just for the occasion a couple days ago, was ready to leave. Ace looks at himself in the mirror on the wall next to the front door. He hadn't dressed up this nicely since, well, ever. His sister emerges from the kitchen and approaches him, proud of her handy work. Adjusting his collar, Alicia pecks her younger brother on the cheek.
Alicia: Well look at you. You clean up pretty well.
Ace: Heh, right. I still really don't want to do this.
Alicia: Whelp I guess that's just too bad now isn't it? Good luck, be yourself.
Ace: Me? Acting like someone I'm not? Where would you get such crazy ideas?
Ace rolled his eyes and laughed at his own terrible joke. Alicia play slaps her younger sibling in the face and simply shakes her head. Giving her one last hug, Ace bids Alicia goodbye, taps his pockets to make sure that he has everything that he needs, and exits the apartment. Walking down the creaky stairs had become a daily routine for him, so the three flight orchestra that accompanied him on the way down was mostly ignored by its audience. Closing the door behind him, Ace exited the apartment. He pulled the piece of paper that had directions to the restaurant that Alicia had reserved seats at for Ace and his date. Beneath the directions is a message from his sister.
Ace,
I hope you understand why I set this up for you. You deserve to be happy and not constantly stressed out by your wrestling career. I know that you will think this is going to go badly, but who knows? Maybe she's the one. Maybe this is the girl you marry. Have a great time tonight, don't let wrestling get into your head. For me.
Love,
Alicia
As much as he'd hate to admit it, that put a smile on his face. However, as much as he knew her intentions were good, he couldn't take his mind off of the WFWF. More specifically, he couldn't take his mind of how badly things had gone south with Thunder lately. As he entered his car, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket once again. Keeping his eyes on the road as he drove, he once again pulled up the the address book entry of Thunder. Don't drive distracted kids.
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Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice messaging system. At the tone, please record your message. When you are finished recording, please hang up. Thank you.
Nothing again, not that it surprised him or anything. He felt weird having called another man looking to have a heart to heart conversation twice in one night now. Awaiting the end of the automated voice, Ace cleared his throat in preparation of his second message.
Ace: Hey, it's me again. I know this is probably really off putting to you but I really need to talk to you or at least for you to hear me. I've done a lot of wrong things in my life and have done bad things to a lot of people who really didn't deserve it. After that match where I kinda got you fired, I felt happy to have gotten you out of the way. But-
The tone could not have come at a worse time. Yeah, that's definitely what he wants to hear; about how you indirectly got him fired after beating him for a championship. Why not tell him you had sexual relations with his girlfriend while you're at it? Ace throws his phone onto the dashboard, frustrated at what had just transpired. He had no choice but to move on at this point, as he had arrived to his destination. He pulled into the parking lot, as a valet opened his front door from him. Smiling, he allowed the valet to drive away in his teal 2001 Geo Prizm. Yep, that's what Ace Bennett drives. A Geo Prizm. Haters. Gonna. Hate.
The name of the place was some French word that he couldn't pronounce. So that's a good start. As he walked in, he surveyed the scene. It was your stereotypical “fancy” restaurant, with the lighting so dim that you needed a flashlight. Really all Ace could make out was the white table cloths, illuminated by the candlelight. Everything else was too dark to see, including the several faceless patrons of the establishment. Due to the light, he had to squint to see his watch and realize that he arrived 5 minutes early. He saunters over to the hostess to explain his situation.
Hostess: Welcome to Les Herberderber (that's what Ace heard). How may we assist you this evening.
Ace: So, I'm here for a blind date. But my sister didn't even give me a name. Is there anyone else here for that?
Hostess: Actually yes, that woman over on the waiting bench has been here for about ten minutes waiting for that same reason.
Squinting over, Ace sees a woman wearing a short skirt and low cut top. He can't quite make out her face, but he decides to keep an open mind and approach her.
Ace: Hello. Are you-?
Date: OH MY GOD! HIIIIIIII!
She quickly pops up and wraps her arms around his shoulders and squeezes tightly. The surprise death grip nearly causes him to pass out. Her voice sent chills down his spine, and not the good ones. It was someone threw an angry cat at a chalk board, claws first. Ace cringes, but decides to put a faux smile on his face and tried to troop through it.
Ace: Hi, I'm Ace. And you are?
Date: Like, I'm Spice. I'm like so excited for tonight and to like meet you. This is totes gonna be such like a blast!
As she spoke, it was like every word was dragged out farther than it needed to be. Her voice would enter this low pitched rasp on the last letter of every word she said. In infinite cringe mode, Ace and Spice were led to their table by the hostess. Now that he had gotten a good look at her, he wasn't sure what to think. She was quite short, and her brown hair was put up in a way that gave her the appearance of having a brain tumor protruding from her skull. Her skin was the color of an Oompa Loompa and looked to have the texture of a reptile. Oh God. His sister had put him on a date with Snooki. And yet, she looked strangely familiar.
Ace: So, Spice, that's an interesting name.
Spice: I know right!? Like, it's my wrestling name.
Ace: Wrestling name?
Spice: Uhhhhh, yeahhh. You know, like when like you fight people in a big ring thingey with ropes and stuff? Like with the punchy things and suplex thingys.
He knew he had heard the name before. Little did Ace, and surely not Alicia, know, she had set him up with former WFWF wrestler Spice. Her claim to fame was teaming with Sugar in a tag team known as Double D, going undefeated in one tag team match-up. Thankfully, this was before Ace's debut with the company. Ace found his spine stiffening like a board, as he wanted nothing to do with this anymore. Although one thing was clear, she did not keep up with the current happenings of the WFWF. He deduced because she had no idea who he was.
Ace: So what's your real name then? Spice can't be your real name.
Spice: Like, people always ask me that! Oh my God! Like what's wrong with Spice, you know? So like, my mom totally like gave me a real name but you know, I don't like remember. I like, totes really like being called Spice though. You know? It's like deep, I don't know, like a deep thing for me. You know?
Nope, he didn't know. But yet, he nodded. A waitress approached the table as Ace puts his head in his hands. At the sound of her voice, his head perks up.
Waitress: How are you guys doing tonight? My name is Christine and I will be serving you tonight. May I start you off with any drinks?
Spice: OH MY GOD YES! I'll like have one of those apple thingys with like the stingy juice stuff and the like funny shaped cups.
Christine: …....an appletini?
Spice: Ohmygawd yes! Those are like sooooo yummy.
Christine: Alright then. And for the gentleman?
Ace: Something to make me forget this night.
At the punchline, a sound emitted from Spice's mouth that sounded like an elephant had just stepped on a land mind. I think this is how this species laughs. Christine and Ace both jump back, startled at the sound. Ace looks at the waitress with a sincere look, clear that he isn't kidding.
Spice: Oh mah god, you are sooooo funny!
Christine: I'll be right back with those orders for you guys.
Spice: Thank you soooo much. You are like such a sweetheart! Oh my gosh!
So Alicia definitely wasn't going to hear the end of this. Realizing that he had to drive home, Ace was unable to drink whatever concoction that Christine had the bartender brew up for him, so he was going to have to deal with this the whole night. Spice refused to stop talking, and Ace had to listen to her voice for what seemed like hours. After having took their orders, Ace tried to tune his date out of the conversation but was failing.
Spice: And then she was like NOOOO. And I was like YEAHHH. And then she, being the skank whore that she is was all, get out of my face. And then my friend Samantha was all like getting in everyone's like business, you know? But it was alright because we are all totes getting ready to go anyways, because like it was like not a good time at all.
All he could do was nod and stare in dumbfounded amazement. She picked up the pepper grinder from the table and started to shake it up and down with a confused look on her face.
Spice: What is this thingy? It's like soooo weird! It's like making all these shakey noises on the inside. I have a thingy at home that kinda looks like this thingy, but I don't like know why it's like here, you know?
I bet you do.
Spice: So like, I'm like totally going to use the little girl's room because I gotta go pee pee, but I'll like be riiiiiiiiight back!
Much like she has done everything else, Spice obnoxiously left the table, turning over seemingly everything in her path to the bathroom. Ace reveled in the silence that Spice's departure had provided. His head was ringing from the stupidity that was projecting from her mouth and raping his ear holes. Head rape, it should be a felony. As Ace popped an aspirin that he had brought along with him, Christine the waitress arrived with their food. Seeing that he was alone, she conversed with him.
Christine: Blind date?
Ace: How'd ya guess?
Christine: Welllllll you like, look like you are totes having sooooo much fun!!! Like, oh my God!
Ace: Like, totallyyyyyyyyyy.
The two laughed at their impressions of the ditzy Spice. He looked up at Christine and noticed her for the first time. His first thought upon seeing her was, why couldn't she have been the date instead? She was gorgeous. Her long brown hair flowed to her back and framed her fair face, her brown eyes sparkled as she smiled and let out a cute little giggle that was the antithesis of Spice's donkey call.
Ace: So what's a girl like you working at a pretentious place like this for?
Christine: A broke college student will do what they need to do to put food on the table. Plus, the tips here are amazing.
Ace: Ah, a college student eh? What school?
Christine: UNLV. Are there other schools around here?
Ace: I have no idea.
Christine: DUHHHHHHHHHH.
The two laughed once again at the expense of Ace's date. Looking around, Christine realizes that she probably spent far too much time on Ace's table and by now had lost at least a portion of the potential tip she had coming.
Christine: Well, enjoy your food. I'll be back around to check on you-
Ace: Wait, just one more thing, and then I'll let you be.
Christine: And what would that be?
Ace: I know this probably sounds crazy to you, but maybe would you like to take the place of Spice on a date to be determined at a later time?
Christine: I barely know you.
Ace: Well, isn't that the point of a date?
Christine: I guess yeah, but I don't even know your name!
Ace: It's Ace. Alright I'll tell ya what. Give me one chance, no strings attached. We can go to the movies, have some dinner. It won't even be a date. Consider it two buddies going out to have a good time.
Christine stood there for a second, contemplating Ace's offer. She beckoned him to give him his hand, before pulling out a pen and writing down some digits on his arm. She nods at him, before walking away without a word to tend to other tables. Ace looks down at his arm to see what is clearly a phone number. With the word “Christine” and a heart underneath it.
Ace: Nice.
And because I'm sure none of you want to read more of the obnoxiousness that is Spice, I will say that nothing else eventful happened. Except for apparently, Spice takes a half hour in the bathroom because she needed to reapply the makeup that was already caked to her face beyond belief. I mean, she looked like Cake Boss' latest masterpiece. And then she complained that her food was cold for the rest of the night. After Ace said goodbye and Spice threw herself (and her tongue) at Ace, he departed back to his car glad to be rid of her. Sitting there in his thoughts again, his mind raced back to where he was prior: Thunder. Looking back to his phone that he had left in the car, he knows that he must call one more time to clear the air. Reaching to the dashboard, Ace retrieves his phone and once again begins to scroll through his address book. Arriving to the same contact that he has brought his finger to three times now, Ace presses call.
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Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice messaging system. At the tone, please record your message. When you are finished recording, please hang up. Thank you.
As was to be expected.
Ace: Look, I know we don't exactly have the most friendly of pasts, but we don't really have much choice but to work together, am I right? And I hope I sound genuine here, but I really and truly want to apologize for anything I did in my last run here. I wasn't myself. I hope we can work together and pull out the win. I'll see you there.
Hanging up the phone, Ace let's out a sigh of relief now that he was finally able to say what he'd been wanting to say the whole night. Whether or not he and Thunder could work together was still to be seen, but he knew that he had at least addressed the elephant in the room between them. Maybe the two of them could pull off the victory together after all. Placing the key in the ignition, Ace leaves the pretentious restaurant happy with his days exploits.
“Ever since he has risen to the top of the food chain in WFWF's executive order, Trace Demon has seemingly had some sort of personal vendetta against me. Marking me as one of those who was against him in his power struggle against Xavier Pierce, he has placed me in match-ups alongside and against my so-called allies in an effort to put my in my place. Now, I'm sure we are all fully aware that Trace Demon is not the brightest crayon in the box, but I don't see how anyone could make it any more obvious that they are not in any way shape or form a part of this war, and only used it as a way to catapult myself back into the WFWF. But yet, Trace continues to 'punish' me for my acts against him.”
“But you know, I guess it isn't all bad. In fact, I'm pretty happy with the whole situation. Trace Demon has inadvertently helped me more than any other person within the WFWF could possibly help me. He was partially responsible for booking me against Dave Demento and Randel Benjamin. He was the man who pitted me against Thunder just a week after I teamed with him. And of course, he is the man who has once again decided to team the very man that I faced last week with myself again against Yukio Blaze and Brock Maxx. You follow that? I team with Thunder, and then I face Thunder, only to team with Thunder once again. Pretty clever huh? I mean what better way to get back at me, then to constantly break the stability of the relationship between myself and the man who I defeated for the tag team championships and indirectly caused to lose his job? A relationship that was already among the most unstable in the entire WFWF? Real smart.”
“Let's move beyond that though, because as we've covered before, the WFWF is currently run by a gorilla. How about we cover the purpose of Trace doing this. To get back at me. For crossing him. For being on the opposite side of some war, when in reality I couldn't possibly care less about said war. And you know what? He's even failing there. Hard. It seems like Trace Demon, while meaning to punish me, is benefiting me in every match that he puts me in. I couldn't thank Trace Demon any more for helping me with my purpose of even being back in the WFWF. I realize I've been looking at this entirely the wrong way. Instead of being upset that I'm the target of some sort of vengeance, I should bask in all the benefits it is affording me.”
“At Battleground, I was teamed with Thunder to take on Randel Benjamin and Dave Demento. In the course of that night, I not only got a victory under my belt in my return to the company, I rekindled a friendship that I had lost previously with Dave Demento while inadvertently aiding him in his well deserved rise, and helping him get rid of the parasite that was Randel Benjamin on his own terms. I mean, sure, things between Thunder and I didn't exactly go swimmingly, but to come out of Battleground with a former enemy turned ally, point for me.”
“On the next edition of Revolution, Trace Demon decided to pit me against the man I teamed with at Battleground in an effort punish us for supporting Xavier Pierce. Not beating a dead horse, Thunder and I do not have the best of history. So putting us in a match would not only keep myself within range of Thunder for another week, but give both of us a chance to put on a competitive match against one another. With both of us recently coming back, this tune up was probably good for both of us, but specifically me, who once again came up with the win. It gave me a chance to get momentum back on my side after a while away from the ring. Perhaps the only negative to come out of this would be that once again the relationship between myself and Thunder would be a little worse for wear. Despite that I would still gladly say; Ace Bennett- 2, Trace Demon- 0.”
“Now let's review, what is the only negative consequence of the matches that Trace Demon has booked for Ace Bennett since his valiant return to the ring? Well, anyone with a brain can see that would be the fact that the relationship between myself and Thunder, a relationship that I'm trying to rekindle, has been adversely impacted by the booking of these two matches and that I am further than I have ever been from crossing Thunder's name from my list of those I wronged. So, why in God's name would Trace Demon once again team me with Thunder against Yukio 'Jobber to the Stars' Blaze and Brock 'I'll Be Shocked If He Even Shows' Maxx and give me a chance to reestablish a positive relationship with the man he's been trying to break up over the course of the past two weeks? Is he even thinking? Probably not, but that's beside the point.”
“You see, Trace Demon thinks that I've returned solely for the glory, solely for the championships, solely for selfish reasons. But he doesn't realize that I'm here for deeper reasons. He doesn't realize that I don't actually want to be here in the WFWF. He doesn't realize that I couldn't care less if it were my shoulders pinned to that mat week in and week out and not my opponent's, as long as I accomplish what I am here for. I want the forgiveness of those who I have wronged, at least those who I can get in touch with now. Four names were on the list that I can help right now. One day, I hope that the other names on the list come out, but for now, these four will have to do. Samael Ahriman. Mak Cross. Thunder. Dave Demento. But ignorance is bliss I guess, not only for Trace Demon but for Ace Bennett as well. Trace Demon, you have aided me in crossing out one of those names, and you have aided me in getting close to crossing off a second. So for that, I thank you. For as hard as you have try to quell me from reaching my goals, you have done the exact opposite of that.”
“As for my opponents, they honestly aren't even relevant as far as I'm concerned. Brock Maxx is likely just another face to pass through the ranks of the WFWF with little fanfare other than one or two matches before faded away into obscurity where he belongs. I will not be some rookie's stepping stone to the top here, especially not in their first match. They didn't use to call me the Streak Destroyer without reason you know. As for Yukio Blaze, we know what to expect from him. The executives feed him a few bottom feeders for a couple weeks to get him some momentum before feeding him to the big dogs. And let me tell you something right now, I am no bottom feeder. But they really aren't that important as far as I'm concerned. They could be anyone. What is important to me is Thunder and that I show him that I am a worthy partner.”
“Thunder and I may not be the well oiled machine that some of the WFWF's past teams were, but let me tell you this. We will be on the same page, and we will do everything in our power to make sure that we are the ones whose arm's are raised at the end of the match. After all we have been through, I owe him that much. And if that means for me to take the brunt of the beating at the hand of Blaze and Maxx and give him the pinfall, then so be it. I'm not the selfish type. At least not anymore. At Revolution, I will show Thunder that I am worth his forgiveness and cross him off of my list.”
-Ace
OOC: Well isn't this shocking? Me posting an RP this far before the deadline, I don't think I have done this since I first started. I had a lot of fun writing this, and was quite excited to introduce the new character. I'm trying to make Ace follow my personality and some real life traits, so the introduction of Christine was pretty crucial to me. I plan on delving into her more in later works. Special thanks to B-Radimus Prime for allowing me to include Spice, it was a lot of fun writing. I hope you guys get at least a small laugh, as I think this is my best work in a while.
Edit was a minor coding change.
