Annie's Story 040

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That wasn’t a good night by anyone’s standards. Annie should’ve known better than to wear the Yankees jersey in Queens – that’s Mets territory! – but she couldn’t resist wearing the pinstripes instead of the zebra stripes. She can already see the Kayfabe News headline in the morning, mocking her for getting booed again – hell, she’d probably be booed out of Yankee Stadium for the shame she’s brought to that jersey in recent weeks. But if that doesn’t come to fruition, then maybe a proper news site will pick up the story and report it. Just to make her feel worse than she already does.

She thought that maybe a hot shower would help wash away the shame, so that’s what she did. Nearly fifteen minutes, soaking and scrubbing, and scrubbing some more to rid herself of some of the remnant odium she’s garnered as of late. The layers of disgrace and infamy that have built up since Final Frontier. And to make it all worse, she let down her friends Salem and Savannah; they could have had an awesome match if it wasn’t for Annie. The last ever EXODUS Pro World Champion against one of HKW and FGA’s hottest rising stars battling it out for the first time ever – and those fans were robbed of that match because of Annie. Because of her antics.

She let herself down.

She let her friends down.

She let the fans down.

And Annie knows this all too well. It’s why she wept during that shower. But she needed to put on a brave face when she got out. Melody was waiting for their gaming session after the show, so she could learn why people advise playing Mario Kart against Annie…but before that, Spencer Burke had asked for her to do a brief interview.

“Annie, quite a night for everyone involved,” Spencer started as the pair of them met in the hallway. Ever the professional, he’s wearing his familiar white dress shirt and slacks, while Annie has resorted to a pair of sweat pants and a black FGA Lion tee. “But what everyone will want to know are your thoughts about what happened in the Salem versus Savannah match?”

“I messed up,” Annie admits, with sorrow in her voice, “there’s no other way to really put it. I just, like, let things get away from me and I ruined what shoulda been an amazing match…”

“There were some decisions that people are questioning. But most people are talking about the ending where Savannah had a fall on Salem, only for you to miss the count because you were arguing with fans in the front row…” Spencer trails off; his tone masks the mild disgust, but his face can’t hide it for long. The narrowing of the eyes, the scrunching of his nose. It’s enough to cause Annie to sigh as she lowers her head.

“I’m sorry,” she says, “to both Savannah and Salem, I’m sorry. You both deserved better than that.” Annie sighs again as she shakes her head. She pushes her hair back from in front of her eyes as she raises her head, looking at Spencer with a pout on her face. “I’m sorry.” She repeats.

“Well it looks like you might be able to make it up to Savannah on the next episode of Vertigo,” Spencer says as Annie’s eyes light up; the possibility to make it up to her friend after accidentally costing her the match tonight is exactly what she wants!

“Really?!” Annie asks in shocked delight.

Spencer nods his head, a smirk crossing his lips. “It’s been made official already. On the next episode of Vertigo you’ll be teaming with your friend, Savannah Taylor–” Annie’s eyes widen further, “–in a tag team match against–”

Fuck. That’s the word that passes through Annie’s mind as Spencer makes the reveal; they’ll be facing the team of Salem Cartier and the Mid-Atlantic Legacy Champion, Izzy Anders. The woman who Annie annoyed to no end earlier tonight, and the woman who essentially tried to maul Annie a few weeks ago. The stiff elbow strikes to the head, the fall from the top turnbuckle all the way to the outside, the repeated dragon suplexes – Annie still feels all of them.

And now she has to go through that again?

---

[REC]

“Heyyy guys,” Annie chirps, a wide smile plastered on her face as she waves at the camera with her free hand. The Tokyo hotel room is visible behind her, a half-packed suitcase on the bed and her friend Kickass Smurf, who’s sitting next to the container with a PS4 controller in his hands. He’s teaching Annie how to play FIFA 16 so the next time she faces Melody or Molly, maybe Annie won’t lose so badly. Also she’ll hopefully learn not to play as Crystal Palace.

“I’m here in Japan for the GFP tour at the moment, and I dunno what time Evolve will show it back in America, so I won’t ruin any results for you…” Annie bites her bottom lip playfully, “…but be sure to tune in to watch me and LDFC’s own Crimson Baroness face each other in the second round of the Glory Cup if you get chance!” She winks at the camera, shooting it a thumbs up as well, before giggling. Annie pushes her hair back behind her ear as she turns briefly to see Kickass celebrating a fantastic volley from the edge of the area; his arms raised above his head as he says “Smurf Yeah!” rather loudly.

Annie moves to the other side of the room to get away from the excitable Englishman. “But I wanted to take a moment to talk my Anniemaniacs back home, ‘cause there’s this FGA show coming up on February 6th and I’m in the tag match with Savannah against Salem and Izzy. And in particular I really wanna just send a message to Savannah…” she trails off with a sigh.

“I hope you can forgive me for what happened on the last show,” Annie pleads, “I was an awful referee and I cost you the match. And I’m sorry, Savannah. But I promise I’m gonna try and make this up to you. Really, I am.” She pauses for a moment. “I’ve made loads of mistakes lately, like, loads, but I’m gonna make amends for them all. Even if it takes a lifetime. That’s a promise I made to my Anniemaniacs and it applies to you too!”

“And next week I’m gonna be the best tag team partner you could ever want,” Annie states, a feint smile crossing her lips, “like, seriously, I’m gonna go into this match against Izzy and Salem like it was me and Laurel competing for the titles all over again. I’m gonna fight with all the heart and determination I show whenever I’m defending the GFP Jr. Tag Team titles. And I’m gonna try and help you find your winning ways here in FGA.”

“That’s my promise to you, Savannah.” She says, holding a hand over heart. The heart shaped tattoo next to her thumb is visible, just to double up on the effect.

“So if you’ll let me, I wanna rock the show with you in White Plains. I wanna take the fight to the Mid-Atlantic Legacy champion, and her next challenger for that belt…” Annie pauses, holding an index finger up to the camera, “…which is gonna be awesome! Like, I literally can’t wait to see that match at Canadian Stampede. But, this week,” she tries to get back on track, “this tag match I’m gonna make it up to you Savannah. You’re the last ever EXODUS Pro World Champion, you’re one of the hottest names in independent wrestling, you’re my friend, and you deserve better than what happened last week. So, again, I’m sorry. And I hope to see you in White Plains.” Annie blows a kiss at the camera before waving good-bye. She stops recording and tucks the phone back into her jeans pocket before rejoining Kickass Smurf for a friendly game on the PS4.

“Mighty smurfy of you, buddy. But, one thing: you might wanna lay off the whole Savannah is my friend thing.” Kickass advises her.

“But she is…” Annie protests.

“I know you like her, buddy. She’s kinda smurftastic,” he says, referring more to her curves than any other aspect of Savannah Taylor, “but she’s got a bit of a reputation.”

“Nooo,” Annie whines, “she’s a good person really.”

“Buddy, trust me. Laurel and Leanne have smurfed about her before, I heard some things, is all.” Kickass reiterates his point.

“What kinda things?” Annie asks after a moment. She had to wait for Kickass to defend the corner, otherwise he might accuse her of distracting him. And damned if he’s going to lose to the computer!

“Did you ever smurf her tag match with Justin Brooks last year?” he asks.

Annie shakes her head. “Nuh uh, I never really watched EXODUS…” she admits, with a hint of disappointment in her voice. “…Dom didn’t want it in the house, so I dunno, I never watched it. What happened, though? Like, with her and Justin.”

“Buddy…” he starts, grimacing to himself before he regales Annie with how Savannah attacked the then International Champion, Justin Brooks with not just one, but two superkicks after a tag match together. The chilling details being laid out by Smurf as to how cool and calm Savannah was before the tag match itself strikes particularly close to home to Annie, given what the pair of them have coming up next week. He says it was because Brooks had the title that Savannah was due to challenge for, which Annie might take as a comforting sign if she didn’t think Savannah valued her first FGA pay-per-view appearance highly.

This is Savannah’s first real chance to make a name for herself on the East coast, and if she has a history of doing these things then what’s to stop her from delivering a superkick to Annie after their upcoming match?!

---

[REC]

“Heyyy guys,” Annie chirps as she waves at the camera. She’s wearing a wide smile on her face as she sits down on the edge of her bed once again, but something’s different than the other times. The stuffed toys are still there along with the cushions, her hair is cascading down across her shoulders. But her shirt … Annie is wearing a white Tottenham Hotspurs shirt, as part of a losing bet with her ‘brother’ Christian Kane. The number 10 and Kane printed on the back, even if that’s for Harry Kane.

“It’s almost time for another episode of Vertigo, and fortunately for everyone, this time I’m not a referee!” Annie grimaces, pulling an awkward side eye stare as she grits her teeth. “I’m gonna leave that to the professionals and focus on doing what I do best and that’s popping people…” she feigns a right hook at the camera, “…POW! Right in the kisser.”

Annie giggles, pushing some hair back behind her ear before she takes a soothing breath in. The cute little smile appearing on her face again as she continues. “And I know there’s, like, literally tonnes of talking points about this show. Like, there’s the debut of one of my best friends, Molly Reid, and we’ve got Rev Ellion debuting as well. And I can’t wait to see them both in action. There’s the returns of both Kevin Hardaway and Mark Storm. On top of all of that, there’s the finals of the Jokers Wild Tournament to determine the new number one contenders for the FGA World Tag Team Championships!” Annie exclaims, gesticulating with both hands for emphasis.

“And even more still!”

“But you already know which match I’m excited about. And I sent a video out a few days ago to my tag partner for Saturday night-” she says, referring to the cell phone video she recorded in Japan and uploaded to Youtube for Savannah to see. “-so fingers crossed that she’s gonna choose to forgive me, and we can work together in this match. ‘Cause I know I made such a mess of refereeing last time; if I were Savannah or Salem I’d be really annoyed with me too, but I’ve got a new respect for what the referees go through now. And if I hadn’t already forgiven him, I couldn’t even be mad at Drew Landry for disqualifying me in the round robin qualifier match against Jimmy Page…” she shakes her head.

“There’s just so much going on all at once, and I couldn’t do it. I messed up, again. But I’ve made a promise to Savannah that I’m gonna make it up to her this Saturday night in White Plains, so all that remains now is to talk to my opponents.” Annie takes a deep breath. “And I’m not even gonna, like, sugar coat this one. I’m not looking forward to getting into the ring with Izzy again. I can still feel those elbows you threw last month, I’ve still got a crick in my neck from those dragon suplexes you hit me with, and my legs still ache after you pushed me off the top rope, all the way to the outside.”

“But I’m not gonna back down.” Annie states, defiantly. “I’m not gonna let you strong arm me, Izzy. You’re not gonna get to intimidate me to try and stop me from kicking your butt all over that squared circle. ‘Cause when we’re in that ring on Saturday night, I’ve got a partner I trust, and a partner who’s gonna-” hopefully “-have my back every step of the way.”

“This week, though, I’m gonna put aside what you did at Final Frontier. I’m gonna put aside what happened last month.” Annie gestures with her hands as if she’s pushing something away. “This week, me and Savannah have a tag team match against the most dominant Mid-Atlantic Legacy champion in FGA history, and the woman who might beat her for that very title later this month at Canadian Stampede. And I know what you’re thinking, ‘cause you’re gonna say that me and Savannah are opponents that night too.”

“And you’re right.” Annie shrugs.

“There’s a couple of differences, though. Like, neither me or Savannah are defending our title that night. Mainly ‘cause we don’t hold titles…” Annie looks puzzled for a second before regaining her focus, “…and more importantly, neither of us are grade A jerks like you, Izzy. ‘Cause this situation we’re in right now, it’s kinda common. And one of the ways it usually ends is with someone like you laying out someone like Salem, and costing them the match. You leaving her for your opponents to finish off, so she takes all the punishment before your big match…”

Annie shakes her head. “Not gonna happen.”

“You try to leave Salem alone, I’ll drag you back to that ring myself. I’ll chase you all the way backstage if I’ve gotta, Izzy, ‘cause there’s no way you’re getting outta this match. There’s no way you’re gonna get to be mean to Salem on Saturday night.” She shakes her head again. “Not while there’s anything I can do about it. ‘Cause your descent into the darkness doesn’t sit well with me, Izzy. And you can push me around all you want, blame me ‘cause I stopped you from crippling Dom Harter or whatever you want. That’s fine, I can take it. And I’m not in line to challenge for your title, so maybe you can regain some of your lost honour if you don’t attack Salem before then. Maybe you can convince some fans that you’re not a total lost cause by not taking the low road. By not trying to make your next title defence easier.”

“You two can have an amazing match at Canadian Stampede if you let it happen. But this Saturday night, you don’t get to take a shortcut. And the only way you’re leaving this match early is if I get to pop you, POW!” Annie feigns a left hook this time, “Right in the kisser! And you get knocked out cold. ‘Cause if you think this is gonna go down the same way it happened last month, you’re so wrong. This time I’m just coming to kick your butt and to make sure these FGA fans, and all my Anniemaniacs get a match they wanna watch. And I’ve gotta tell you, Izzy, some of them really wanna see you get your butt kicked…”

Annie pulls a #grrface for the camera, flipping up the devil horns as her top lip curls upwards as well. After a moment her expression returns to normal, and she giggles. Another deep breath to calm herself, and Annie resumes talking. “…but we can’t say the same for your partner. ‘Cause Salem might just be one of the sweetest people around, and I’m proud to be able to call her a friend.”

“But I’m even prouder that I get to stand across the ring from her as an opponent for the first time ever. ‘Cause I used to watch her back in GPW, and she was awesome then. I’ve watched her in HKW, and she’s always amazing there. And I’ve seen her go to that ring each time and give it one hundred and ten percent ‘cause that’s how she rolls!” Annie exclaims with pride, only to burst out in giggles again. “Whether it’s Jimmy, Savannah, Tony, or whoever else is facing her, she does what she gives it everything she has.”

“She’s gone toe to toe with Jimmy Page twice!” Annie says in admiration, “And I know that’s not easy. But Salem didn’t back down, not even once. So I watched those matches and I cheered her on both times, but they ended in draws. One of us holds a victory over Jimmy Page though…” Annie mock boasts, winking at the camera before her expression sours. “…and then got concussed by him after the match.” She shakes her head. “And it’s never easy going up against Tony, but Salem didn’t let that defeat get her down. She knows that you can learn more from a loss than you can from a win, so she’s taking that lesson from our Pride Champion and she’s gonna use it in her title match at Canadian Stampede.”

“And I respect that about Salem, I love that about Salem. I really do. And I wish her all the luck in the world at Canadian Stampede, ‘cause I wanna see her as the next Mid-Atlantic Champion…” Annie pauses, “…which is why it’s gonna suck having to pop you like bubblewrap this week!” she winks at the camera before giggling. “I’m just kidding, Salem.”

“But I’m gonna do the same thing you do every time you step in the ring, so you know just what to expect. I’m gonna give it everything I’ve got this week, and I just hope I’m a better wrestler than I am a referee, otherwise this one isn’t gonna go for very long.”

“And I know I messed up as the referee last time, Salem, and – again – I’m sorry for ruining your match. But I’m making it up to both you and Savannah this Saturday night, and to do that I have to put on the best match I can. To be on top form, and make sure I walk away with the win.” She pauses again, “So that’s what I’m gonna do. That’s what me and Savannah are gonna do, so you two better get ready ‘cause we’re gonna rock the whole show!” Annie pulls another #grrface for the camera as the scene comes to an end with the fade to black.

---

Finally, after all the travel in recent weeks, Annie is back on American soil. And she doesn’t have to be anywhere for a few more days before she heads up to New York again for Vertigo; Annie now knows why people are hesitant to work in Japan, with the thirty plus hour round trip. But the experience of wrestling there is like no other. Then she has trips to New Orleans for Mardi Gras next week, and her commentating debut for Ronie’s Rasslin’ Services on Valentine’s Day in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

She’s even been inventing names for moves for that show, just to mess with people’s heads .

But for a few days, she can wake up in her own bed, surrounded by Rolf, Animal, and her stuffed toys. So she can throw on her own dressing gown instead of a hotel supplied one, and have breakfast in her kitchen. Which is exactly what Annie is doing this Thursday morning.

As she walks down the hallway, Annie notices the guest room door is open. She pokes her head around the corner and sees the room is undisturbed. Annie giggles as she walks away, “You go girl…” she whispers as she looks over at the closed, and presumably locked door to Dom’s room. Rolf follows her down the stairs, walking a few paces ahead of her so he doesn’t accidentally trip Annie up…again.

As she gets to the kitchen, Annie makes herself a coffee with the Keurig, opting for a breakfast blend K-Cup, as well as a bowl of Lucky Charms. Rolf gets his bowl filled with food, and then Annie takes a seat at the dining table as she browses her social media accounts.

Instagram, Facebook and Twitter all seem relatively uneventful as she continues to scroll through her feeds when, suddenly, her phone begins to ring. It’s her agent.

“Heyyy Lisa,” Annie says as she lifts the phone up to her ear.

“Annie, darling!” comes the reply in a style reminiscent of Estelle from Friends – which isn’t an accident. Lisa puts on the voice to make Annie laugh.

Which it does. Annie finishes giggling before she speaks again. “It’s still funny!” she proclaims, pausing only to catch her breath. “So how you doing?”

“Even better than usual after I heard this news, sweetie.” Lisa dangles the hook.

“Is it good news?!” Annie asks, her eyes wide with excitement. Phone calls from Lisa usually lead to modelling jobs, and that’s something Annie needs to pick up again – the scars from the deathmatches have healed now, she’s good to go!

“The best news we’ve had in a while. And I think this is something that’s right up your street.” Lisa assures her. Annie whispers a brief yes to herself as she fist pumps with her free hand. “But before I tell you what it is, answer me this, have you heard of the photographer Marcus St. Croix?”

The name is spoken with apprehension. The enthusiasm with which Lisa approached the call fading quickly away as Annie replies that no, she’s never heard of Marcus St. Croix.

That’s going to make selling this to Annie even more difficult than Lisa had first expected…