Post by JC Keeton on Mar 14, 2022 4:37:12 GMT
March 12th, 2022
Blackburn Correctional Complex - Lexington, KY
JC Keeton sat behind the wheel of his royal blue Mercedes-AMG GT as it idled in the line three cars back from the guard shack. A sign on the shack read "Visiting Hours Sat-Sun 9am-3pm". He glanced at the clock on the display and it read 8:57am. Those three minutes seemed to creep by but the light came on in the shack and it wasn't long before the two cars in front of him were gone and it was his turn to talk to the guard.
"Inmate's name?"
"Oscar Lynch"
Oscar was JC's high school wrestling coach. In 2019 he was convicted of paying an athlete and providing steroids to them. The guard taps away at the screen and motions for JC to pull forward. He takes off and the scene fades. It reopens with JC now inside the prison seated on one side of the glass; the room on the other side is empty until the door opens and an older African American man in an orange jumpsuit is led into the room by a guard and takes a seat across from JC. The old man picks up the phone on his side and smiles as JC does the same.
"Well if it's not the pride of Avista Prep. What are you doing here Keeton?"
JC makes sure to point out the Avista Prep t-shirt he's wearing which Lynch gives a nod of approval.
"I ran into O back in August and I've been meaning to come see you since but things have been a bit crazy between my Dad getting shot and finding out I've got a daughter."
"Congratulations and I heard about your Dad. Damn shame, Jake's a good man deep down and an even better father. I must have failed as a father, Omar hasn't been to see me at all."
"O's just hurt Coach. If I'm being honest the whole community is. No one expected you to end up behind bars instead of on the mats coaching the next generation of great Avista wrestlers. Omar was so proud to be your son, he was always telling people about all the state championships and coaching awards you won. He'll come around eventually. Y'all have the same kinda bond me and my Dad have and there's been plenty of times I didn't want to see him. Now I'm just thankful I still can."
"I'm not so sure he ever wants to see me. I'm a cheater and an embarrassment to my family, the school, hell the whole world. I owned my mistakes and admitted to them and everyone still sneers at the mention of my name."
"I don't. I still talk about you with the same pride I did before you got in this mess. What you did don't erase all the good you've done for me and the positive influence you've had on my life since I was 12."
The coach looks to be truly touched by JC's words.
"Thank you, I need to hear something good I've done for someone instead of all the bad for once. So what brings you here Jonathan? I've known you long enough to know when something's on your mind, you're not just here to catch up."
JC nods.
"I'm in a slump Coach, bad. I've only won one match all year. I know it's only March and I've got time to turn it around but this turn around needs to happen now. I've got this huge battle royal called The Roulette coming up with a chance to headline the biggest show of the year for the World Championship and…"
Lynch cuts him off.
"It's the basics. The fundamentals of any athletic competition. You've gotten so good that you've forgotten the simple things because you don't have to use them as much because you've mastered the advanced stuff. Start over. Train like it's the first day and you don't know a damn thing about being a wrestler."
JC looks like a lightbulb just lit up over his head.
"That's it. I'm trying to do more than I need to when I should be focusing on what got me to this point to begin with. This is a battle royal, it's ok to be basic."
"Exactly."
"Thanks Coach. I gotta go but I'll be back to see you, I promise."
"I'll hold you to that. Take care of yourself Keeton, I believe in you."
JC smiles wide as he hangs up the phone and walks out of the room with a lot more exuberance than he walked in with as the scene fades.
Sometimes the things you're missing have been there all along you just forgot about them. I finally figured out what I've been doing wrong the past three months.
Nothing.
I'm doing everything right, I'm just doing too much. It seems like every week lately I've been adding a new move to my repertoire when the old ones have worked for the last six years. It's nice to be able to pull out the flashy moves that make the fans pop but they pop even louder when I win and I ain't been doing much of that.
In a match like The Roulette I won't be hitting any Brainbusters on the apron cause I don't wanna be on the apron. Ain't no Frog Splashing taking place either cause that top rope is off limits. Just cause I can do all this stuff I've been doing lately doesn't mean I have to in every match. Especially not this one.
The fans might be disappointed if they're expecting me to be on the highlight reels when the Roulette is over cause the only highlight I care about making is the one where I'm pointing up at the Night of the Immortals logo when High Stakes ends.
I don't have to be the best wrestler in the ring, I just gotta be the last.
Blackburn Correctional Complex - Lexington, KY
JC Keeton sat behind the wheel of his royal blue Mercedes-AMG GT as it idled in the line three cars back from the guard shack. A sign on the shack read "Visiting Hours Sat-Sun 9am-3pm". He glanced at the clock on the display and it read 8:57am. Those three minutes seemed to creep by but the light came on in the shack and it wasn't long before the two cars in front of him were gone and it was his turn to talk to the guard.
"Inmate's name?"
"Oscar Lynch"
Oscar was JC's high school wrestling coach. In 2019 he was convicted of paying an athlete and providing steroids to them. The guard taps away at the screen and motions for JC to pull forward. He takes off and the scene fades. It reopens with JC now inside the prison seated on one side of the glass; the room on the other side is empty until the door opens and an older African American man in an orange jumpsuit is led into the room by a guard and takes a seat across from JC. The old man picks up the phone on his side and smiles as JC does the same.
"Well if it's not the pride of Avista Prep. What are you doing here Keeton?"
JC makes sure to point out the Avista Prep t-shirt he's wearing which Lynch gives a nod of approval.
"I ran into O back in August and I've been meaning to come see you since but things have been a bit crazy between my Dad getting shot and finding out I've got a daughter."
"Congratulations and I heard about your Dad. Damn shame, Jake's a good man deep down and an even better father. I must have failed as a father, Omar hasn't been to see me at all."
"O's just hurt Coach. If I'm being honest the whole community is. No one expected you to end up behind bars instead of on the mats coaching the next generation of great Avista wrestlers. Omar was so proud to be your son, he was always telling people about all the state championships and coaching awards you won. He'll come around eventually. Y'all have the same kinda bond me and my Dad have and there's been plenty of times I didn't want to see him. Now I'm just thankful I still can."
"I'm not so sure he ever wants to see me. I'm a cheater and an embarrassment to my family, the school, hell the whole world. I owned my mistakes and admitted to them and everyone still sneers at the mention of my name."
"I don't. I still talk about you with the same pride I did before you got in this mess. What you did don't erase all the good you've done for me and the positive influence you've had on my life since I was 12."
The coach looks to be truly touched by JC's words.
"Thank you, I need to hear something good I've done for someone instead of all the bad for once. So what brings you here Jonathan? I've known you long enough to know when something's on your mind, you're not just here to catch up."
JC nods.
"I'm in a slump Coach, bad. I've only won one match all year. I know it's only March and I've got time to turn it around but this turn around needs to happen now. I've got this huge battle royal called The Roulette coming up with a chance to headline the biggest show of the year for the World Championship and…"
Lynch cuts him off.
"It's the basics. The fundamentals of any athletic competition. You've gotten so good that you've forgotten the simple things because you don't have to use them as much because you've mastered the advanced stuff. Start over. Train like it's the first day and you don't know a damn thing about being a wrestler."
JC looks like a lightbulb just lit up over his head.
"That's it. I'm trying to do more than I need to when I should be focusing on what got me to this point to begin with. This is a battle royal, it's ok to be basic."
"Exactly."
"Thanks Coach. I gotta go but I'll be back to see you, I promise."
"I'll hold you to that. Take care of yourself Keeton, I believe in you."
JC smiles wide as he hangs up the phone and walks out of the room with a lot more exuberance than he walked in with as the scene fades.
Sometimes the things you're missing have been there all along you just forgot about them. I finally figured out what I've been doing wrong the past three months.
Nothing.
I'm doing everything right, I'm just doing too much. It seems like every week lately I've been adding a new move to my repertoire when the old ones have worked for the last six years. It's nice to be able to pull out the flashy moves that make the fans pop but they pop even louder when I win and I ain't been doing much of that.
In a match like The Roulette I won't be hitting any Brainbusters on the apron cause I don't wanna be on the apron. Ain't no Frog Splashing taking place either cause that top rope is off limits. Just cause I can do all this stuff I've been doing lately doesn't mean I have to in every match. Especially not this one.
The fans might be disappointed if they're expecting me to be on the highlight reels when the Roulette is over cause the only highlight I care about making is the one where I'm pointing up at the Night of the Immortals logo when High Stakes ends.
I don't have to be the best wrestler in the ring, I just gotta be the last.
Well howdy there pardner.