Body, Heart, and Soul #2
January 10
New York City
Ante Up NYC
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Tommy and I left Philadelphia Saturday morning, went back to my room in New York City, and pretty much stayed there til Monday morning. We'd spent more days apart than we're used to and had time to make up for. Come Monday morning though, we knew we had work to do at the gym, so we got down to business.
As we walked up to the building, I saw Tommy look up at Orlando Cruze's name over the door, and shake his head. We walked in, and as we were just a few steps inside, some heads started to turn. No one had given me a second glance when I got here last week, but Tommy Valentine walking in? Yeah, that got attention. Sabrina walked up, I assume to introduce herself, but she seemed a little nervous.
“Good morning.”
“Hey Sabrina. Tommy, this is the assistant manager I told you about.”
Tommy offered her his hand. “Nice to meet you, I'm Tommy Valentine, but you probably already know that.” He grinned.
“I did, actually. But its great to meet you, too. Finally.” Sabrina smiled.
“Yeah... about that. I don't want anyone here to think I don't care about this place. It's just been a struggle getting the main facility-”
“Kandis already explained. Staff understand. Obviously you care, the money never stopped coming in for necessities.” Sabrina grinned. She got over her nervousness quick.
“I'm glad there's never been an issue with your payroll or ordering supplies.” Tommy grinned back. “Are you the only staff here this early?”
“No, Trent is here.” Tommy gave me a look. I nodded. That was the person I mentioned who was rude the first day. “And Neil will be here in an hour.” He was the striking coach, I'd met him the previous week and had a good talk with him. We subscribed to a lot of the same methodology.
“How about you let Sabrina show you around babe? While I get into the office and get ready for my interviews.”
Sabrina smiled. “I'd love to.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
“Follow me, we'll start with the equipment that needs attention, if that's okay with you?”
“Sure, Kandis told me about some of it.”
The two of them walk off in the direction of the dead treadmill. I went into the office, set up my laptop, and pulled up my email, and three resumes. As I was reading emails, I got a call from one of the people I had scheduled for the day, a woman from New Jersey whose cover letter said she was willing to relocate. She canceled her appointment, as she had accepted another job offer. I had her scheduled first, so the cancellation freed up my morning. I closed my laptop and went back out to the main floor. Sabrina and Tommy were near a ring towards the back, speaking with Trent. I didn't want to interrupt since they seemed to be getting along well. When Tommy saw me though he waved me over.
“Hey, I thought you had an interview first thing?”
“She canceled.”
“Oh. Another job?” I nodded. “You have some free time then. It looks like a few clients are starting to come in. How I let these guys get to work and you show me the rest?”
“Okay.”
Sabrina didn't seem bothered by this at all. “If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. It's usually not super busy here til later in the morning.”
“Right, my class doesn't start until ten.” Trent offered up.
“Why so late?”
Trent shrugged. “Just seemed to work best for everyone. Any earlier and people were showing up late. Public transit is a hot mess in the mornings.”
“Oh... yeah, I hadn't thought about that. That's great that you were able to adjust things to suit.”
“We try to be as accommodating as we can.”
“Glad to hear it.” Tommy looked around, a group of about five people walked in. “Speaking of, you're about to get busy. We'll get out of the way.”
Tommy and Trent shook hands and we walked off.
“You told me he was a dick.”
“He was! At first. He accused you of forgetting about this place.”
“He did mention that, but he wasn't a dick about it.”
“Because you're you. I'm just me.” I shrugged.
“That sounds ridiculous... but you might be right.”
I led Tommy to the side wall, where most of the pictures we would be taking down were. He looked at each one briefly.
“Anyone who didn't know better would think this place was still owned by the Cruze family.” He shook his head.
“Right? Why did David keep this shit here after you guys bought it?”
“Some sense of respect I guess. Maybe there was blowback about changing things? I don't really know, he handled most of it. It was his idea, I just sorta waved my hand and said yeah sure brosef, whatever you want.”
“Well, it's been almost two years since he sold up. None of this is relevant here anymore.”
“If the clients like it though I can see why the last GM left it up. Does it really bother you that much?”
I scoffed, jaw dropped. “Are you telling me it doesn't bother you? This building doesn't even say Ante Up anywhere on it! Instead it's got the name of a dead guy, who's kid stuck himself into our business.”
“Okay, the name on the building does bother me. This stuff, not so much. But you do make a good point. Having this around when that family isn't involved with this at all and is actually actively trying to make our lives hell is a bad look. Let's start changing that right now.”
Tommy grabbed the picture on the wall in front of us, and pulled it down. It was one of Orlando Cruze holding a championship belt that read IWC. I didn't get to read what the name of the title was though. Because Tommy tucked the frame under his arm, and stepped to the side. He grabbed the next picture. Then the next. I think my love for him doubled in that moment. He turned to me, holding frames awkwardly in both hands.
“Is there a box somewhere?”
“Actually, there is. In the office I've bee using. I'll get it.”
I went into the office and grabbed the empty banker's storage box I had seen on top of a filing cabinet. I hoped it was big enough. The faster this shit was taken off the walls, the happier I would be. I walked back out, empty box in hand. As I went towards Tommy, a man walked up ahead of me and spoke to him.
“I'll be damned, it's Tommy Valentine!”
“In the flesh, last I checked.”
“Guess I lost a bet, I didn't think you'd ever turn up here.”
Tommy smirked. “Sorry to have lost you some money.”
The man laughed. “Nah man, I'm just messin' with ya. It's great to see you around, always wanted to meet ya.” He stuck his hand out, but Tommy's hands were full of the pictures. “Oh, look at me being a dumbass.”
“No worries. Sorry I'm a little busy at the moment.”
“I see that... wait, you're takin' all those down? That's the Icon right there!”
“Yeah, it is. And I am.”
I saw my moment and walked up, handing Tommy the box. “Here you go, babe.”
“Oh, thanks.” I helped him stack them in the box, standing up to make more room. The man watched.
“You guys know he's a legend around here, right? He started this place!”
“We know. And Ante Up kept it in business after this guy was gone. Did you forget that part?”
“No... no I didn't. But-”
“Listen.... what was your name?”
“Oh. Sorry. It's Mike.”
“Mike. You've been coming here a long time, right?” Mike nodded. “Okay. I'm gonna be up front with you, and you can spread the word. Ante Up buying this place to keep it going? All Dave's idea. He didn't want to see the place go under, sold to someone who would have turned the building into another Starbucks or a parking lot. It was also his decision to leave all this stuff in here, as some kind of tribute. But Dave isn't a part of Ante Up anymore.”
“Yeah, I knew that. I just-”
“For a while now. I've had my hands full getting things out west going the way I wanted, and now it's time to do the same thing here. This place needs a refresh. Equipment, paint. Artwork.” Tommy gestured over his shoulder backwards to the “Icon” wall. “I don't mean any disrespect at all, but this facility should reflect what Ante Up is now, rather than a past that has no influence on the place anymore.”
“I see. Yeah... I get where you're coming from, man. You gotta put your own mark on the place. But... what are you gonna do with all of this?” Mike pointed to the box of pictures Tommy was holding. “You're not gonna just throw em away, are you?”
“Of course not. I know I have a reputation for being a hardass but I'm not that cold. We're gonna donate it all to the memorial down the street.”
“Ohhh yeah. That place. My kid loves the fountain. Great idea!”
“Glad you approve.”
The men shook hands and Mike walked off, headed to the weights.
“For a moment there I thought he was gonna start shit.”
“Doesn't mean he still won't. Word of mouth, that kind of thing.”
“He's more than welcome to repeat anything I said. Anyone who doesn't like it is welcome to find another gym. I'd rather lose the business than argue about it.”
“Something tells me it won't be a huge loss.” I looked around, the gym had filled up considerably while we'd been talking. No one was paying any attention to the two people removing pictures from the wall.
“You're probably right. Which means this is absolutely the right course to take. I'd love for that Olivia bitch to have a problem with me making Ante Up look like Ante Up.”
Tommy had told me about the woman who arrived in his office informing him of the whole GM oversight. She was sent by Mr. D, but the way Tommy talked about her, she sounded to me like she took more pleasure in being a bitch about it than D would have cared to do. Then again, he could be a petty motherfucker himself when need be, so who knows.
“Fuck her, she's probably never been to either location or cared to until she was sent.”
“I'd rather not fuck her, thanks.”
I laughed. “Thanks for sharing.”
We took the rest of the pictures down, and Tommy carried the box to the office. Tommy made a call to the office of the Cruze memorial and explained, then offered the items to them. They happily accepted. Tommy then grabbed the box and left, to take the pictures to them right away. I wanted to dance around the office as soon as he left. Unfortunately, my interview was arriving. I'd have to save my celebration at dismantling everything Cruze for later. The guy, Joseph Martin, was a complete idiot. He didn't know David Helms wasn't part of Ante Up anymore, and asked me if he'd get to meet him. I nearly laughed, but somehow kept my composure as I broke the news. He then got upset, accused me of misrepresenting the business. As if I placed the fucking ad! I stood up and declared that this was clearly not going to work and asked him to leave. He said nothing else, just stormed out. Holy shit, had he been living under a rock for the last two years?
I had scheduled the last interview for immediately after the first. Since Martin left after only a few minutes, I had some time to kill. I walked around the gym a bit, watching what was going on. A few people waved or said hi to me, but I didn't interfere in anything that was going on. I just wanted to see how things were run here. It looked good. When it was time, I went back into the office, and Sabrina led my last prospect into the office. His name was Micah Hart, and holy fuck he was sex in jeans.
“Good morning, thanks for coming, Mr. Hart.”
Micah sat, and gave me a smile. “I'm really glad you called me. I applied to this on a whim, but I guess whims turn out to be good instincts.”
“Sometimes they do. I see on your resume that you're currently working for Josh Hudson at House of Hudson.”
Micah nodded. “That's right. I'm an assistant wresting coach there, which just means I'm one of eight other trainers. We're all called assistants, other than Josh himself.”
“Sounds like him.” I smirked. Hudson would give everyone except himself the same title, to make himself stand out. “Do you have any managerial experience?”
“A little bit. There's a handful of us that Josh trusts to run the place when he's out of town. Myself, Chris, and Stacy. So when he's not around, we rotate who sets up schedules, both for work and for the students' classes.”
“Sounds like exactly what we're looking for. Is there a particular reason you're looking to leave Hudson?”
“You're asking if I''m unhappy there.”
“I am.” This guy was perceptive.
“I'm actually very happy there. I know he has a reputation but he's actually very easy to work for. He likes things done his way, and as long as you stick to that, no problems. I'm sure every boss in America is the same way though.”
“I'd say Tommy is that way, too.”
“Would he be here often? I know he runs most of the training out west.”
“Not too often, although he does plan on coming out here more than he has been.” Which hasn't been at all, but if Micah didn't know that, then I didn't need to volunteer the information.
“So, whoever fills the position would be working mostly independently?”
“That's correct. The staff here already have their processes for setting up classes, vetting students. If you'd want to make any changes to that, it should be run by them, and then through Tommy before being implemented. But for the most part, you'd be self-sufficient.”
“See, that's what drew me to this. Don't get me wrong, as I said I love my current job. But there doesn't seem to be any room for growth. I could be a coach for the rest of my career, following someone else's plan. Or, I could have a part in creating something, have a more hands on approach in teaching.”
I smiled. He was hot, smart, and ambitious. This was the guy. We then discussed salary, he was asking for slightly more than he got paid at Hudson's place, but not out of the range Tommy had given me. Everything was falling into place for Micah.
“Well, thanks again for coming, and we'll call you in a few days either way.”
“Alright, I look forward to hearing from you.”
We shook hands and Micah Hart left. I admit I watched him walk out. Those jeans left nothing to the imagination. I had to admit the best part of this guy was the idea of basically poaching a good worker from Hudson. I mean, we didn't headhunt the guy, he came to us. But, he would be leaving there for here. There's not much I like more than getting under the skin of people who annoy me.
When Tommy came back from taking the pictures to the memorial, I asked him to meet me in the office. We sat down and I gave him details of everyone I'd spoken to.
“So, I was really hoping to get your opinion on everyone.”
“I don't have one.”
“Tommy.”
“I don't. I didn't meet them, you did. I gave this task to you because, for the seventeenth time, I trust you. You need to trust yourself. I'm sure that whatever decision you make will be the right one. Once you've done that and made the call, I'll be more than happy to meet the person then.”
I sighed. “You're really persistent about me doing this on my own. Why?”
“Maybe you'll finally realize that you're a bigger part of this than just staff, or just my girlfriend.”
I had no idea what Tommy meant by that, and honestly? I was afraid to ask. I just smiled, acting as if I understood. “Okay. Well, I think I'm pretty sure who I want to go with.”
“Think? Pretty sure? Maybe you should sleep on it to be certain.”
“Good idea. I'll do that. If I still feel the same way tomorrow, I'll make the call.”
“Good. Invite them back and I'll introduce myself and handle the paperwork.”
After that was taken care of, I told Tommy the idea I had to use this place for my promo. Owen Cruze (I refuse to call him Lee, that's just stupid) had no idea what he was in for.
ON CAMERA
The scene opens to a shot of the outside of a building, specifically the front doors. In front of the doors, blocking the entryway, is a large scaffold, with a ladder on one side. The scaffolding partially blocks the wording over the door, but as the shot zooms in, the angle changes and the words can be read.
The Orlando Cruze Academy of Wrestling
Shortly, a figure moves into the shot, coming up the ladder off to the right. The size and shape of the rear end immediately tell viewers that Kandis has entered the scene. She climbs all the way up, and walks across the scaffolding. She's in cargo jeans, a long sleeved plain olive green t-shirt, and a black baseball cap turned backwards. Embroidered over the snapback is the Ante Up logo. Of note, there is a hammer slid into the loop on her cargo jeans. Kandis looks up at the building, and shakes her head before turning to the camera.
I'm sure a lot of you recognize this place. It's in New York City, it used to be... well, that.
Kandis points at the lettering.
But not anymore. Not for a few years. After the untimely demise of the man known as the Icon, this facility was purchased by Ante Up, and kept in business as a wrestling school. Quite a few people well known to SCW have come through here. I'm not in the business of name dropping though so if you don't know, fucking Google it.
You might also remember that about a year and a half ago, former half-owner of Ante Up David Helms threw a hissy fit of epic proportions and sold his half of ownership, to a silent partner. He didn't want to do business with Tommy Valentine anymore, so he literally threw his toys away and found new toys. Didn't matter to Tommy, he was sick of David's shit anyway. The silent partner has remained mostly silent, other than pointing out a few things here and there that inadvertently got overlooked while Tommy was busy making the main Ante Up branch the best it can be, putting his own mark on the place. This place here? It went mostly under the radar because it was run so well that it didn't need Tommy's attention... until recently. Some kind of email snafu or clerical error resulted in both his and my presence being needed here. Imagine our shock and horror when we saw this relic still over the fucking door!
Kandis looks up at the lettering again, and shakes her head once more.
Somehow, for years, the fact that this facility is no longer in the Cruze family has gotten overlooked. But not anymore. After rectifying the situation that brought us here, Tommy and I? We decided to do a little housekeeping. Some renovation. Freshen the place up, you get my meaning. We've already taken down all the pictures inside and sent them to somewhere they actually belong. But this? I saved this for last, and I wanted to do it myself. As you can see... I even braved climbing up here to rip this shit down with my own hands, because it's that disgusting to me that property owned by Tommy and that I have interest in still has a name on it that, no offense meant, is irrelevant now.
Kandis pulls the hammer from the pant loop and holds it up, the claw end facing the lettering. The scaffolding is set up so that anyone standing on it is at eye level with the metal letters. They're in all capitals, and about a foot tall each, to be better seen from the sidewalk below. Rather than start at the beginning with the T from 'The', Kandis takes the claw end of the hammer to the O, in Orlando. She pulls, near the post that holds the letter onto the concrete wall. Soon, the top of the O spins down, making it uneven with the rest of the lettering. Kandis does the same thing with the bottom post, and succeeds in pulling the O completely off the wall. It falls and clatters to the scaffold surface, then bounces and falls off the side. A second later, a metallic thud is heard from below, the sound of the O hitting the sidewalk. Kandis turns back to the camera.
Don't worry, the front door is blocked off, all patrons for the next few days are being directed to use the side entrance. We don't want to hurt anyone with falling trash.
Kandis continues prying letters of f the wall as she speaks.
I thought I would do this as I spoke about, and to, Owen Cruze. He can call himself Lee if he wants, but I'm not gonna do that. I'll get to that in a minute. I just thought he might appreciate watching me take his father's... well, relatives? Name off the wall, since he disowned the man and his family. It probably bothered him that this was still here, since he's called the man a liar. Misled him his whole life. For a hot second I thought maybe Owen might get upset... he did a of training here himself, the staff here told me. But then I realized... nah. He'd see it as a favor. If he doesn't give a fuck about Orlando or the name Cruze anymore, then why should anyone?
The R is gone, and the L clatters down as Kandis smirks.
Listen, Owen. I understand all about hating your name. I've hated mine since I was a child and understood where it came from. I hate it so much that to this day, I refuse to use it in any professional setting. It's even in my contract that I will never be referred to anything other than Kandis in public. I only use it when I have to for legal reasons. And no, I am not going to tell you what it is so you can use it against me, I'm not that fucking stupid. I'm just making the point that I can relate. To a degree.
What I can't relate to, is throwing a tantrum just because you found out that the man who raised you isn't your biological father. Sounds like bullshit to me. The man who finished raising me, who I didn't meet until I was fourteen and placed in his home as a foster child, isn't my biological father. I have no idea who that person is, and I don't care to find out. But that man... the one I call Dad to this day... if I could have taken his name I would have.
Kandis hangs the hammer on the rail of the scaffolding and leans on it, taking a break from prying letters off.
You have no fucking idea how good you had it, how privileged you've been. Imagine growing up with literally nothing. Nothing, but a stupid last name given to you by a social worker, and distrust of everyone, because everyone who claimed to want to help you, only hurt you instead. Now imagine a person like that looking at you, and the life you were brought up in, the family that raised you and loved you and gave you everything you needed and wanted, responsible for everything you have.... and watched you throw it all away because of fucking DNA.
Kandis shakes her head in disgust.
You're the most spoiled, tone-deaf, irritating little shit I've ever met in my life.
Kandis grabs the hammer and turns, resuming her task, now up to the N. She looks back and forth between her task and the camera as she works.
You decided to make your grand return by getting into Jackals business. I can almost see where you're coming from. We're the biggest threat on this roster, and it's personal. Your pretty little friend Peyton Rice is gone from the business partially thanks to me. Minerva and I came up with a plan and she carried it out... yet she isn't here for you to do something to try to make up to the woman for your stupidity last year in giving a psychopath like Aries the time of day. So, you picked on me instead. I get it. It's almost as stupid as your temper tantrum earlier this year, but I get it. Only thing is, I'm not gonna let you off nearly as easy as SCW did. You can't pay me a fine and get me to back off. You put your hands on me, unprovoked. You stuck yourself into me and Tommy's business. I wonder who's bright idea that was? Not yours... you don't think for yourself. You never have.
Kandis stops a moment, looking up at her handiwork, All that's left of 'Orlando' now is the capital DO. She kicks her foot, and seconds later more metallic thuds are heard, as letters hit the cement. Kandis points the hammer at the camera, as she makes her points.
You came in here under the guidance of your uncle Shaun, found yourself mentored by Kelcey Wallace as part of the Perfect Pack... until Aries helped with some bullshit that got both Kelcey and Sienna Swann hurt, then your little pack was broken up. How did you handle that.... by listening to Aries' bullshit! Cause that made perfect sense, right?
Kandis laughs.
Literally everyone told you that you were being stupid, you were being tricked, you were listening to and following the wrong person. Everyone! I've never seen SCW so united in their distaste for one person as they were against you deciding Aries made sense. You followed his words, even his footsteps when you attacked D. Oh but according to you, you weren't aligned with him, you weren't friends.... you just thought maybe he was right about this one thing. No one bought that at the time and it pissed you off. You literally took your ball and went home.
No one has any idea what happened while you were away, what you were up to, other than your little DNA discovery and getting involved with Daisy Lee... yet another person you are allowing to lead you around by the nose. Do you really believe Daisy is the one person who really has your best interests at heart and can push you to your potential? Every other person you've followed in way or another has turned out to be a bust, so what makes her any different?
I'm legitimately asking you, because I don't think you've realized the truth of the world yet, thanks to your protected and privileged upbringing. You can't trust anyone. No one who claims to be helping you get ahead is really that generous or sincere. Everyone in this world is only ever looking out for themselves, and if you keep letting other people think for you, you'll never get what you want. Look at everything you've accomplished already. You're the youngest World Champion in SCW history. You've beaten rising stars and legends alike. You became a tag champion with zero notice you were even having a title match, and finding out your partner on the same show.... and you did that by beating The Connection, clean. That's not an easy task for a regular team, much less a thrown together one dictated by Fatal Fortunes. That takes skill.
Kandis pries off the O, but instead of letting it fall, she holds it in her hands as she continues.
Now just imagine where you'd be if you told everyone to fuck off and did things your own way? Maybe you wouldn't have had to throw a tantrum, because you'd have had everything you wanted and claimed SCW was holding you back from. But nah, you don't see it like that. You still have the mentality of a child, someone who needs his hand held and to be led everywhere, rather than the man you want everyone to see you as. Despite the fact that everyone in your past who tried to help you only made things worse, you are perfectly content to just let Daisy tell you what to do, how to think, you even took her name! Did she adopt you? Are you married? What's going on here, huh? The whole thing is fucking creepy, all because you found out a truth you didn't like. Just threw your name away like it meant nothing. Like everything the man who raised you ever did for you meant nothing.
Kandis takes the O in her hand and tosses it over the side of the scaffolding, almost like a Frisbee. Seconds later, we hear it's clang on the ground. She grabs the hammer again and gets back to work, starting on the C of Cruze.
My whole life has been one truth after another I didn't like. I'm not gonna lie and say I always handled it rationally, but I also didn't wallow in it or do drastic shit like listen to people who have their own agendas, or try to be something I'm not by changing my name. Distancing myself from the name I was given doesn't change who I am. I'm still Kandis. You can call yourself Owen Lee all you want, but underneath the label you're still the same shitty kid trying to play grown up games. Thing is though, you're never gonna be seen as an actual adult as long as you keep letting other people lead your life, or as long as you keep throwing tantrums every time something doesn't go your way. You want to reclaim your name? Maybe try using it instead of pissing all over everything you were privileged enough to be born into. Cause this whole name change bullshit? It's not hurting your father – the man who raised you. He's dead, he doesn't care.
You're only hurting yourself.
Kandis had let the R fall, and pulls off the U. She tosses it backwards over her shoulder. It lands on the scaffolding. Kandis shrugs.
But hey, what do I know? I'm just a whore who likes to show off, right? I get off on hurting people who disrespect me. That's my reputation, much like yours is that of a spoiled brat. You Owen? You disrespected me. You used the Jackals as your starting point to get back into SCW, when everything that was going on had absolutely nothing to do with you. Maybe Daisy gave you that idea, she saw that we were the biggest target in the company, we are the ones who's been running rampant around this roster, not you like Jordan Majors seems to think. So your newest mentor chose a target. And you attacked, without really thinking it through. Why would you need to, right? Someone else already did the thinking. So... You fucked around.
The Z clatters down and bounces off the scaffolding edge. Kandis continues to speak as she works on the E.
Now you're gonna find out. Just like Peyton Rice. Just like David Helms. You probably thought you were done with us after you eeked out a lucky shot and win over Drake at the End of the Year. You must have forgotten that the Jackals, the Connection... and most importantly me? We don't quit. We don't give up.
I don't give up.
Not until I feel like the disrespect has been paid for. Not until I feel like I've done enough to make you understand that fucking with us isn't the best idea, no matter who's idea it was. Not until I feel like the way I leave you broken and bruised and probably bloodied is enough for everyone be reminded one more time who I am, and what I am capable of, if you piss me off enough.
Kandis pulls the E off finally, and turns to face the camera fully, holding the last bit of Cruze in one hand.
It doesn't really matter to me what you want to call yourself, by the time I'm through with you Sunday night, you won't even remember your name... whatever it might be.
Kandis throws the E off the side of the scaffolding. We hear the clatter down below, but the camera focuses on the wall behind Kandis. All that's left of of the lettering is:
The : : : : : : : : : : : : Academy of Wrestling
The rusty post holes all that's left of the name that was discarded.