Post by logansky on Apr 29, 2024 20:12:24 GMT
Kurt looked around his lunchroom with a frown on his face as he hefted his violin case. There was a concert that was coming and they had messed up his normal lunch times for practice. So now he faced the worst possible option for a 6th grader.
Picking a lunch table. His normal friend group had the first lunch and now he was stuck in third. He could sit with some of the other band kids, but they often made fun of him for playing the violin. He couldn’t sit with the other violinists cause they were all girls. That would cause even more problems for his social life. Also, girls were scary. Plus his mom insisted on packing his lunch for him. She didn’t trust the school cafeteria food. So while everyone else was having Pizza, he had a salad. He liked the salad. It was tasty. But it wasn’t pizza and he didn’t know why his mom couldn’t understand that.
He spied a table that had an opening. A bunch of boys he didn’t really know that well but a couple of them were in his science class. In fact, taking another look, one of him was in his lab group. That might be a good spot to try. He prepared himself for a moment before walking over to the table.
They were in a heated discussion about something as he approached but they all stopped when he came over. He took a deep breath and lifted his chin.
“Hi. Mind if I sit here?”
They stared at him for a moment and Kurt tried to suppress the nervous feelings that flooded his stomach before his lab member grinned.
“Hey, sure thing. Guys this is Kurt. Kurt’s cool. You aren’t normally here for third lunch.”
“Ya, band practice. We got a concert coming up.”
Introductions were given and Kurt took his seat gratefully and started to unpack his lunch. It seemed like they were talking about some sort of fighting event. He listened curiously as he started to unpack his lunch. His mother didn’t approve of those sorts of things but like any young boy fighting sports was something he was curious about.
“No way! Dean is totally going to win again.”
“Nuh uh! Warren’s got his number this time. He’s gonna put that crazy guy down.”
“It doesn’t matter. Caleb’s gonna cash in on whoever wins. Just you watch.”
“What do you think Kurt? You watch wrestling doncha?”
Kurt stopped with a forkful of salad halfway to his mouth.
“Uh, no. My mom doesn’t let me.”
They all nodded in understanding.
“One of those moms that thinks it’ll make ya violent. Tough deal.”
“Hey guys! Cliff posted the card for sacrifice on Tiktok”
The boys crowded around the table as the boy who spoke up set his phone up so they could watch the video as stills flashed past with dancing Bobba graphics. Logan got up and moved to look so as not to feel left out. FIrst a pair of ladies flashes across the screen. It seemed the boys didn’t have much thought for either of them. But then the next slide came across. He knew one of them immediately. He watched Seth Evan’s twitch stream from time to time. But then he froze up at the man’s opponent. The face paint covering half of his face was strange, but the uncovered portion?
“Grandpa?!”
“Wait, WHAT!?”
~_~
Our scene opens up on Logan walking through a gym with a backpack slung over his shoulder. He’s wearing a simple loose gray t-shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. There’s a yoga mat sticking out of his bag.
“Two weeks ago I had one of the biggest matches of my career against Madjin. The kid is legit, no matter how much of a little asshole that he is. I came up short and I won’t lie that it eats at me. But for anyone saying I’m just cruising on a retirement run they can think again. Been here for less than half a year and I’ve earned two attempts at championship gold. The Machine is still up and kicking and don’t you ever forget that.”
He shifts his backpack on his shoulder and stares into the camera.
“I’ve taken a much needed rest. I’ve recuperated. But don’t think that I’ve been slacking. I’ve spent my week of rehabbing my body and training. I have no intention of slowing down. Not me, not ever. I don’t take any extended breaks and I never stop coming. Which brings me to my opponent for this week. Seth Evans, you’re an old hand at this business. Hell you even took your time behind the scenes. But you’ve been out of the game for a while now and want to come back into it. I can respect that. But don’t think for a single instance that you are coming into anything easy. While you’ve been playing video games and chatting with your friends I’ve been in the gym. I’ve been in the ring. This is my life. I live and breathe this sport. Do you?”
Shaking his head, Logan continues his trek through the gym.
“I can’t be sure, Seth. You come and you go from this business when you feel like it. After all, you got your video game streaming to fall back too. That seems to be your main focus. Maybe this time you’ll actually devote yourself. Prove that you are more than a trainer for more dedicated individuals. I honestly hope so, Seth. You seem a decent sort. But first you gotta come through me. I’m your welcome wagon and you best believe that I am gonna hit you like a truck. See you in the ring.”
Logan shrugs his backpack higher on his shoulder before walking forward and past the camera. It swings around to follow him as he pushes the door open to the outside would and steps out.
Picking a lunch table. His normal friend group had the first lunch and now he was stuck in third. He could sit with some of the other band kids, but they often made fun of him for playing the violin. He couldn’t sit with the other violinists cause they were all girls. That would cause even more problems for his social life. Also, girls were scary. Plus his mom insisted on packing his lunch for him. She didn’t trust the school cafeteria food. So while everyone else was having Pizza, he had a salad. He liked the salad. It was tasty. But it wasn’t pizza and he didn’t know why his mom couldn’t understand that.
He spied a table that had an opening. A bunch of boys he didn’t really know that well but a couple of them were in his science class. In fact, taking another look, one of him was in his lab group. That might be a good spot to try. He prepared himself for a moment before walking over to the table.
They were in a heated discussion about something as he approached but they all stopped when he came over. He took a deep breath and lifted his chin.
“Hi. Mind if I sit here?”
They stared at him for a moment and Kurt tried to suppress the nervous feelings that flooded his stomach before his lab member grinned.
“Hey, sure thing. Guys this is Kurt. Kurt’s cool. You aren’t normally here for third lunch.”
“Ya, band practice. We got a concert coming up.”
Introductions were given and Kurt took his seat gratefully and started to unpack his lunch. It seemed like they were talking about some sort of fighting event. He listened curiously as he started to unpack his lunch. His mother didn’t approve of those sorts of things but like any young boy fighting sports was something he was curious about.
“No way! Dean is totally going to win again.”
“Nuh uh! Warren’s got his number this time. He’s gonna put that crazy guy down.”
“It doesn’t matter. Caleb’s gonna cash in on whoever wins. Just you watch.”
“What do you think Kurt? You watch wrestling doncha?”
Kurt stopped with a forkful of salad halfway to his mouth.
“Uh, no. My mom doesn’t let me.”
They all nodded in understanding.
“One of those moms that thinks it’ll make ya violent. Tough deal.”
“Hey guys! Cliff posted the card for sacrifice on Tiktok”
The boys crowded around the table as the boy who spoke up set his phone up so they could watch the video as stills flashed past with dancing Bobba graphics. Logan got up and moved to look so as not to feel left out. FIrst a pair of ladies flashes across the screen. It seemed the boys didn’t have much thought for either of them. But then the next slide came across. He knew one of them immediately. He watched Seth Evan’s twitch stream from time to time. But then he froze up at the man’s opponent. The face paint covering half of his face was strange, but the uncovered portion?
“Grandpa?!”
“Wait, WHAT!?”
~_~
Our scene opens up on Logan walking through a gym with a backpack slung over his shoulder. He’s wearing a simple loose gray t-shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. There’s a yoga mat sticking out of his bag.
“Two weeks ago I had one of the biggest matches of my career against Madjin. The kid is legit, no matter how much of a little asshole that he is. I came up short and I won’t lie that it eats at me. But for anyone saying I’m just cruising on a retirement run they can think again. Been here for less than half a year and I’ve earned two attempts at championship gold. The Machine is still up and kicking and don’t you ever forget that.”
He shifts his backpack on his shoulder and stares into the camera.
“I’ve taken a much needed rest. I’ve recuperated. But don’t think that I’ve been slacking. I’ve spent my week of rehabbing my body and training. I have no intention of slowing down. Not me, not ever. I don’t take any extended breaks and I never stop coming. Which brings me to my opponent for this week. Seth Evans, you’re an old hand at this business. Hell you even took your time behind the scenes. But you’ve been out of the game for a while now and want to come back into it. I can respect that. But don’t think for a single instance that you are coming into anything easy. While you’ve been playing video games and chatting with your friends I’ve been in the gym. I’ve been in the ring. This is my life. I live and breathe this sport. Do you?”
Shaking his head, Logan continues his trek through the gym.
“I can’t be sure, Seth. You come and you go from this business when you feel like it. After all, you got your video game streaming to fall back too. That seems to be your main focus. Maybe this time you’ll actually devote yourself. Prove that you are more than a trainer for more dedicated individuals. I honestly hope so, Seth. You seem a decent sort. But first you gotta come through me. I’m your welcome wagon and you best believe that I am gonna hit you like a truck. See you in the ring.”
Logan shrugs his backpack higher on his shoulder before walking forward and past the camera. It swings around to follow him as he pushes the door open to the outside would and steps out.
Well howdy there pardner.