Post by AngelicaVaughn on Oct 6, 2017 21:14:07 GMT -5
Saturday, September 30th
Somewhere along Convery Boulevard, New Jersey
Late afternoon
Somewhere along Convery Boulevard, New Jersey
Late afternoon
They’d been driving for a while now. As soon as Angelica had returned home from Cincinnati for LFL related events, Ash had been there at the airport, waiting for her on one of the many parking lots. Standing near her Chevy Impala, they’d exchanged a nice long-time-no-see hug and had started the drive. Ash had been teasing her with a ‘surprise’ over on Twitter yesterday, so they were now on their way to collect it.
It was a long drive, and Ash and Angie had been blabbering about all sorts of things: the weather, soccer results, the LFL, video games, musicals and of course, their upcoming LAW match against the Sugay Sisters. It was going to be another big test for the relatively new team. After their loss against the Boardwalk Angels and Stacy Jones, Angelica and Ashley had vowed not to let it affect them too much. In fact, they’d accomplished much of what they’d originally set out to do: leave an impression that would last a long, long time. And they did. The BWA had been excellent opponents and were going to be very hard to knock off their perch when the time for a legit title shot came, but Ash and Angelica were starting to gel together nicely, every match and every training session an excellent learning experience and a step in the right direction.
The weather was nice, Ashley had popped Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in the CD player, and after they both sang along to ‘With a Little Help From My friends’, Ashley turned the volume down a bit.
“So,” she said, taking a quick look over at her leggy blonde tag team partner. “We’ve got a little while to go yet. Why don’t you tell me about your boyfriend, Ange? When do I get to meet him? It’s almost like you’re sheltering him from me! We’ve never even met, nor do you ever even talk about him!”
Angelica started to blush. It’s true, she HAD been seeing someone recently, but Angelica wasn’t sure how serious they were getting. They’d been spending as much time together as possible, but with him working overseas and their schedules seemingly conflicting at every twist and turn, they’d been forced to take it slow. Very, very slow. Almost so slow that Angelica feared their relationship was going to slow down to a crawl almost before it had even started. And she could hardly invite him over to live with her, since Angie herself was only a live-in guest in Ashley’s house in Monmouth.
Still, Angelica wasn’t really comfortable talking about the subject, not even to the woman she was closer to than almost any other person on the planet. But she couldn’t blow Ashley off this time, since her interest was genuine.
“I… I dunno, he’s not really my boyfriend, but he's really nice, we’re taking it slow and stuff. Haven’t even been able to see him this week though, but we keep in touch on the regular. It’s a bit annoying he wrestles over in the UK. We’ll see how it works. If it works. I dunno.”
Ashley smiled. “Still, it’s good you finally found someone you think you like. I’m happy for you, just make sure he treats you right, okay? I’m getting too old to still be tearing the scrotums off of my tag team partner’s boyfriends.”
Angelica returned the smile. She was grateful to have Ash looking out for her like this. She knew she only wanted the best for her, even if that sometimes meant they ended up disagreeing or quarrelling. Ashley was so much better at the dating game, so much better in opening up, showing her emotions and passions, so much better at getting people to like her or fall for her… it was a talent Angelica knew she’d never possess herself, and she was rather jealous of Ashley for it. She lacked the outgoing and flirtatious nature of her mentor, and it was making it hard for her to really establish a relationship that went beyond one of a professional nature.
“But how are things going between you and Katie?” Angelica asked, eager to turn the subject around. Katie Anderson was Ashley’s girlfriend for a little while now, but Angie hadn’t really talked about or to her much.
“Katie? Love that girl to death. She makes me happy, Angie. She’s good for me. Mentally...physically… although I’ll spare you the details on that last part. You guys should really spend some alone time together some time. My two favorite girls in the world need to be on friendly terms, don’t you think? They can’t be strangers.”
Angelica agreed wholeheartedly. She was happy Ah had finally found that special someone who loved and accepted her for who she was, but could also give her something that Angelica never could. She decided not to press the matter any further.
After about fifteen more minutes of driving, Ashley pulled up near an apartment building. It was tall, modern and fancy, the stone exterior white and spotless. It was obviously a new building; in fact, the entire neighbourhood looked brand new, with a sidewalk so clean you could eat your dinner off of it, and lush trees lining the streets, birds happily chirping as they went about their day.
“What are we doing here?” Angie inquired as they got out and Ash got up the steps to the tallest building on the block.
“You’ll see. Just follow me, would you?”
Angelica did as requested as Ash jingled with a pair of keys and the door opened. They stepped into quite a magnificent hallway, its walls so clear and pristine they could hurt your eyes if you stared at them for too long. It still smelled of paint, a clear sign that the building had finished completion not too long ago. Their heels echoed throughout the marble-tiled hallway as they walked to an elevator, its frame lined with golden inlay. They entered and Ash pushed the highest button, taking them to the upper floor.
“I’ve been thinking,” Ash said as the elevator started its ascent, “that we could branch out a bit. Monmouth might be a bit boring, especially for you. So I wanted to find a new place, closer to the Big Apple. We were living rather secluded after all. I mean, it’s not the end of the world, but it’s no place for a young woman like yourself to come into her own, is it?”
“But I like Monmouth!”
“Sure, but this new place I picked out for us is amazing! Just come and have a look with me, and tell me what you think, okay?”
The elevator dinged, and as they stepped out, they walked straight into the living room. It was spacious and warm inside, the walls painted a very light shade of pink, and the corner to corner carpets felt soft and fuzzy. A massive cornered couch was set up in front of an enormous wall-mounted flatscreen TV, and the open kitchen island that bordered to the living room was nothing short of spectacular.
“So, first impressions?” Ash asked.
Angelica looked around the place. She absolutely loved it. She hadn’t even seen the bathroom and bedrooms yet, but if the living room, with a pretty overhead glass chandelier and its stylish wooden coffee table in front of the TV were anything to go by, she was not going to be disappointed.
“It’s amazing!” Angelica replied, to which Ashley responded with a bright smile. The senior QoW walked over to her younger counterpart and draped an arm over her shoulders.
“Hold out your hands,” Ash said. Angelica frowned, but Ashley’s look on her face made it crystal clear that there was no arguing her. Angelica did as requested and when she did, Ash dropped a pair of keys in her palms that merrily jingled on contact. The Vaughnemous One looked up, or rather down because she’s five foot nine lest you forget, at Ash, with a puzzled look on her face.
“W-What…?” she stammered.
“All yours, missy. This whole place. My gift to you.”
Angelica was overtaken with emotion. Disbelief, first and foremost. Her own place? It seemed almost impossible. She’d spent so much time on the road, staying in hotels, or being a live-in guest at Ashley’s house. In a way, she was extremely grateful to Ash. In another way, she couldn’t get rid of a nagging feeling inside her gut. She loved Monmouth County. Loved spending time at Ash’s place, goofing around, training, playing with her cats and talking to her best friend and mentor whenever she wanted. While this was a big step for her growing up, she wasn’t entirely sure whether she really wanted this?
Ash seemed to sense that something was off. She frowned and pulled Angelica in a little closer.
“What’s the matter? I thought you’d be happy?”
Angelica looked at the keys in her palm.
“Are you… kicking me out of the house then?” she asked, her voice shakier than she had expected when it came out.
Ash took her by the arm, and looked into her eyes.
“Hey look here, Missy. It’s nothing like that, okay? This is a gift, not a punishment. I don’t want you to think I’m giving you this to rid myself of you. Why do you think I chose this place? It’s relatively close to both Monmouth and the city so you can have the best of both worlds! You can come visit me whenever you want, and you have the whole world waiting for you over in the Big Apple. I want you to have a place of your own because I feel like I’m holding your development back, Ange. You’re an exceptionally talented young woman. You’re a pretty young lady who has her whole life and career ahead of her. You need to be out in the open, not holed up in a mansion with little old me!”
“But I like it there! I like being with you! Is this because I walked in on you and Katie the other day? Or those times I walked in on you and Ga…”
“No, no, no, nothing like that. Well, it was a bit annoying and maybe you should’ve knocked, but…”
“The door was open! Like, always!”
“Well, maybe you should’ve… Covered your ears? Anyway, what I’m trying to say is: I do have a girlfriend now, Ange. I love her with all my heart, and sometimes it would be nice to have a little bit of privacy. But the same goes for you! Won’t dating be a lot easier for you if you knew you didn’t have to bring him home to a place where I’m constantly looking over your shoulder? Because let’s face it, I’m a nosy bitch!”
Ash smiled, the last sentence obviously not meant to be taken seriously. But what she said did have an ounce of truth to it.
“I guess… you could be right?” Angelica looked around the room. It felt strange, knowing that she’d be be living here alone. She’d gotten so used to Ash’s presence or to being on the road travelling, that having her own little base of operations felt weird to say the least.
“Hey! Don’t fret, Ange. Nothing changes between you and I. We’re still the Cue Oh Dub. You’re still my good friend and tag team partner. We’ll still hang out, travel together, fight alongside each other and train together! This is just natural progression. One day, you were a lost little birdie…”
“I ‘m five foot ni…”
“Don’t you say it! Let me finish… One day, you were just a lost little birdie, fallen from the nest, unable to fly, with your wings broken, lying in wait on the ground until some predator put you out of your misery. But I scooped you up off of the ground. I put you in my own nest, fed you, nourished you, taught you how to fly and take care of yourself. Now, the next step is to help you fly the nest so you can start building something for yourself. It doesn’t mean we’re no longer friends, partners or allies! If anything, this might strengthen our bond, Angie. This is what we’re going to be about, you and I, as the QoW. No more mentor-protégé shit. You’re coming into your own nicely and there’s only so much I have left to teach you. We’re equals. Friends. Sisters. Partners….”
Ash couldn’t finish her sentence before Angelica hugged her. She understood now. It was a sign of faith. Friendship. Confidence. One last push to help her on her way to becoming what she knew she could be: the true Future of Female Wrestling.
As the hug broke, Ash pointed to the shelves underneath the TV. “Go have a look,” she said. Angelica walked over and crouched, finding stacks upon stacks of DVD’s. She grabbed some, noticing they were all wrestling tapes, from a whole variety of companies, going back years and years.
“You’re a good kid who does her homework,” Ash said, “and I know you love to watch wrestling and scout your opponents. So I had someone set up a whole library for you. I hope it’ll come in handy.”
“This is amazeballs!” Angie exclaimed. “You think…” Angie rummaged through the stacks, and made her way to the back, to the pile marked ‘X’. “There you go!”
She retrieved a DVD, labelled as ‘Best of the Sugay Sisters in XWF’. A DVD featuring some of their upcoming LAW opponents’ greatest matches. Angelica looked over at Ash.
“What do you say we give this big TV a test run and get some scouting in right out of the gate?” Angelica suggested. Ash grinned.
“Shit yeah. Pop it in there, Ange. I’m going to go get all the nacho’s we can eat.”
---
“The Sugay Sisters.”
Angelica and Ashley stand in front of the camera, clad in their QoW attires. The Maple Leaf on Angelica’s pants sparkles as she stops to the front.
“We’ve heard your names. We’ve seen you in action. Color the Cue Oh Dubs impressed. We’ve seen your work in XWF and other companies. You’re a close unit, with a lot of experience. You’ve known each other all your lives, you communicate on an almost subconscious level. You work together almost telepathically, and that is a gift that is only reserved for the truly great tag teams.
But what you forget, is that we’ve been in the ring with one of the all time great tag teams. Last week, we went toe to toe with the Boardwalk Angels, the reigning champions, the benchmark of this business when it comes to tag team wrestling. We took them to their limit, we forced them to up their game, we made them dig deep into their reserves and they only won because of one slip up. One single slip up that cost us the match. But we oh so nearly did it, and on any other given day, we could very well have beaten them.
Now why is this relevant. Because as much as we like you, Tala and Jazzy, you’re not the Boardwalk Angels. You’re not the dominant champions that hold their well-earned titles in honorable fashion. You’re good, and you have held championships in the past, but what does it matter when faced with one of the most up-and-coming tag teams on the planet? You may think this is going to be a walk in the park for you, and on paper you might be the favorites. But Ash and I, we’ve been working harder than ever, and the tale of the tape is irrelevant.
This is not some kind of throwaway match for us. We take it seriously. We told the Boardwalk Angels we’d be back, better and stronger than ever, ready to take them down and claim their titles. And guess what? That’s not going to happen unless we win matches like these. We gotta beat you and leave you in our rear view mirror, because if we want even an opportunity at the LAW Tag Team Championships, we need to rack up wins. That is the way we operate. We don’t expect to be handed anything. We work for our opportunities. We grind for our successes. And the greatest success of all, the LAW Tag Team Championships, will not slip from our grasp! I know you two have the same objective. We respect that. You want those titles, just like we do, and you’ll try and take down the Boardwalk Angels, just like we do. But we want it more. We’re hungrier. More focused. I’m the Future of Female Wrestling. Ashley is The Game. You’re not skipping in line ahead of us. It starts right behind our backs. And that, is where you will remain.”
Angelica takes a step back, and Ashley smirks.
“I guess you’ve been wondering why I’ve been so silent?”
She walks over to the camera and goes face to face with it.
“Well, I’m sorry. For now it’s Game Over. Insert another coin. You’ll hear from us again very soon.”