Post by RAM on Jul 15, 2024 4:23:49 GMT
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February 14, 2020 -- 6:30 PM
At RAM's house on his 16th birthday...
We find RAM, Rydia, and Tommy enjoying a friendly game of poker in the game room. Despite the laughs and jokes, the world outside was changing by the minute. Covid-19 pandemic had just gotten underway, and the trio was forced to adjust to a new way of life.
Classes at Watauga High School were now conducted online via BlackBoard.
Many bars, restaurants, and other public places were shut down or forced to adopt delivery or pick-up services.
Despite the changes, there was a feeling of joviality in the air on this seemingly random night. After all, it was RAM's 16th birthday.
"Got another ace in the hole, Rydia?"
"Pffft, Tommy-boy...you're such a goofball."
Rydia giggled.
"Here comes the turn…"
She drew a card -- a nine of hearts -- and placed it in the middle of the table. Tommy pounded his fist, realizing that he didn't have a very good hand.
"Aww man, I fold."
He placed his pair of cards face down on the table. RAM got a perverse chuckle over the younger Figgins' misfortune. Rydia batted her eyelashes and stared directly at the spikey-headed sophomore.
"Looks like it's down to you and me, handsome..."
Pause. RAM stared down at the pair of jacks he had in his hand. Rydia gave the classic poker face, attempting to lure him into a bluff.
"Don't you know what today is...?"
"It's my birthday...!"
"Of course it's your birthday, silly goose! It's also Valentine's Day! I was hoping for some Lindt chocolates..."
RAM sighed.
"What's up, you don't celebrate Valentine's Day?"
"I...I don't care for Valentine's Day. Not at all…"
Tommy raised his left brow. Rydia's jaw dropped to the floor. RAM cleared his throat and tried to rationalize his hatred for the occasion.
"Valentine's Day is for pussies, a glorified ego-masturbation session that ultimately gives people falso hope that they'll find love someday."
Rydia couldn't help but muster a sly grin as Tommy chimed in.
"Only a statistical few people around the world say that hate Valentine's Day--"
"Oh, cram it Mr. Spock..."
Tommy facepalmed.
"Besides, I...I don't know what love's all about anyway. All I've known is hatred and torture -- not exactly the most pleasant of things."
Rydia blushed before pressing on, not willing to accept RAM's argument.
"Aww, c'mon! Didn't you ever play make-believe when you were younger?"
"Yeah, I used to make-believe my uncle David would stop beatin' the lovin' shit out of me and Aunt Liz."
RAM stopped himself before fully raising his voice.
"I'm sorry, I just--"
"Hey, hey, hey...it's alright."
The freshman from Brooklyn gently patted RAM on the arm.
"If anything, I...I'd rather live my life and die alone. With nothin' else but the demons and scars I've accrued in my lifetime..."
Tommy, whose family originated from Chicago, solemnly shook his head.
"That's not a good thing, man. Living with demons your whole life…"
"Who the FUCK are you now, Mr. Rogers!?!"
"To be honest, I want to be a counselor, to learn how to understand the mind."
Rydia smiled.
"Tee-hee, that's a great idea!"
RAM scoffed.
"You think you can fix a broken person like me...?!"
Tommy, perhaps trying to be a second voice of reason for the troubled RAM, took a deep breath.
"I don't think you're broken."
"Well...then what am I then, huh?!"
"You're gonna have to figure that out for yourself…"
Rydia nodded warmly, knowing that Tommy was right. At that moment, the sound of the front door opening could be heard. RAM stood up and peeked out of the game room, watching as his Aunt Liz placed seven pizza boxes on the dining room table.
"Pizza's here! Oh, RAM-hunny...before you three chow down, I...I have to talk to you about something."
RAM perked up both of his brows as he listened to his aunt, her voice seemingly suggesting that she had something important in mind.
"It's a little seomthing that I think you ought to know about..."
RAM nodded and headed towards the living room. He plopped himself on the leather recliner as Tommy and Rydia sat on the sofa. For the young Robert Allen Marshall, this particular birthday was one he would never forget.
"Babes...I have something to tell you about your father...your real father..."
To be continued...
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February 14, 2020 -- 6:30 PM
At RAM's house on his 16th birthday...
We find RAM, Rydia, and Tommy enjoying a friendly game of poker in the game room. Despite the laughs and jokes, the world outside was changing by the minute. Covid-19 pandemic had just gotten underway, and the trio was forced to adjust to a new way of life.
Classes at Watauga High School were now conducted online via BlackBoard.
Many bars, restaurants, and other public places were shut down or forced to adopt delivery or pick-up services.
Despite the changes, there was a feeling of joviality in the air on this seemingly random night. After all, it was RAM's 16th birthday.
"Got another ace in the hole, Rydia?"
"Pffft, Tommy-boy...you're such a goofball."
Rydia giggled.
"Here comes the turn…"
She drew a card -- a nine of hearts -- and placed it in the middle of the table. Tommy pounded his fist, realizing that he didn't have a very good hand.
"Aww man, I fold."
He placed his pair of cards face down on the table. RAM got a perverse chuckle over the younger Figgins' misfortune. Rydia batted her eyelashes and stared directly at the spikey-headed sophomore.
"Looks like it's down to you and me, handsome..."
Pause. RAM stared down at the pair of jacks he had in his hand. Rydia gave the classic poker face, attempting to lure him into a bluff.
"Don't you know what today is...?"
"It's my birthday...!"
"Of course it's your birthday, silly goose! It's also Valentine's Day! I was hoping for some Lindt chocolates..."
RAM sighed.
"What's up, you don't celebrate Valentine's Day?"
"I...I don't care for Valentine's Day. Not at all…"
Tommy raised his left brow. Rydia's jaw dropped to the floor. RAM cleared his throat and tried to rationalize his hatred for the occasion.
"Valentine's Day is for pussies, a glorified ego-masturbation session that ultimately gives people falso hope that they'll find love someday."
Rydia couldn't help but muster a sly grin as Tommy chimed in.
"Only a statistical few people around the world say that hate Valentine's Day--"
"Oh, cram it Mr. Spock..."
Tommy facepalmed.
"Besides, I...I don't know what love's all about anyway. All I've known is hatred and torture -- not exactly the most pleasant of things."
Rydia blushed before pressing on, not willing to accept RAM's argument.
"Aww, c'mon! Didn't you ever play make-believe when you were younger?"
"Yeah, I used to make-believe my uncle David would stop beatin' the lovin' shit out of me and Aunt Liz."
RAM stopped himself before fully raising his voice.
"I'm sorry, I just--"
"Hey, hey, hey...it's alright."
The freshman from Brooklyn gently patted RAM on the arm.
"If anything, I...I'd rather live my life and die alone. With nothin' else but the demons and scars I've accrued in my lifetime..."
Tommy, whose family originated from Chicago, solemnly shook his head.
"That's not a good thing, man. Living with demons your whole life…"
"Who the FUCK are you now, Mr. Rogers!?!"
"To be honest, I want to be a counselor, to learn how to understand the mind."
Rydia smiled.
"Tee-hee, that's a great idea!"
RAM scoffed.
"You think you can fix a broken person like me...?!"
Tommy, perhaps trying to be a second voice of reason for the troubled RAM, took a deep breath.
"I don't think you're broken."
"Well...then what am I then, huh?!"
"You're gonna have to figure that out for yourself…"
Rydia nodded warmly, knowing that Tommy was right. At that moment, the sound of the front door opening could be heard. RAM stood up and peeked out of the game room, watching as his Aunt Liz placed seven pizza boxes on the dining room table.
"Pizza's here! Oh, RAM-hunny...before you three chow down, I...I have to talk to you about something."
RAM perked up both of his brows as he listened to his aunt, her voice seemingly suggesting that she had something important in mind.
"It's a little seomthing that I think you ought to know about..."
RAM nodded and headed towards the living room. He plopped himself on the leather recliner as Tommy and Rydia sat on the sofa. For the young Robert Allen Marshall, this particular birthday was one he would never forget.
"Babes...I have something to tell you about your father...your real father..."
To be continued...
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Well, well.
It seems like Imperial has a Rob Diamond fetish.
Seriously...if there's anything I've learned since joinin' this shithole of a company two years ago, it's that the system is rigged to see you suffer and fail. That is, of course, if you check off the right boxes. In other words, if you've spent the past 20 years or so makin' dick and fart jokes, tellin' people to suck it, and pretendin' that Retro is somehow cool again, you get the license and the platform to say whatever you want without consequence.
The system wants folks to believe that Rob Diamond is some kind of untouchable god.
What, 'cause he communes with dead people all of a sudden?! I get it, though...Steve Awesome was a friend of his, alongside Fiona McFly and James Gilmore. Poor Rob, stuck with a loony, a goofball, and a formerly drunken has-been that sobered up in time to revive his career. Of course, what Rob Diamond forgets to mention is that, much like all good things, time has a funny way of huntin' you down and makin' the kill.
Here he is, cryin' about how he's missed the game.
About how nobody else can do what he does.
And I say...fuck off. You're livin' in the past, bubba. You think you can just start over from scratch and act like nothin's happened to you?! Like...as if you didn't EARN the things you earned when that Being Infamous stable was around?! What a way to shit on yourself and your legacy, man.
Nothin'...and I mean nothin'...is gonna absolve you from the beatdown you're gonna get.
Think Jack Ferriman will have somethin' to say about that?!
I get it...the guy's makin' inroads and all that shit. We ALL do, that's what makes us who we are. Yet time and again, he often found himself frozen up like a corrupted hard disk drive. Joinin' a pain cult, bein' recruited by Nate Harris...yeah, yeah, I've found myself goin' to therapy much like him. The only problem with that is...nothin' really came out of it.
Nothin' ever will.
You think sidin' with those diversity jackoffs is gonna help you in the REAL world, Jack?! On Fox News, they often say that mornings are better with friends, but when the sun goes down?! When the weather turns dark and stormy?! Those are the moments that create scars that never truly go away. They fester inside your mind, callin' your ass out with a single dose of truth:
You ain't as good as you think you are.
Neither are you, Rob Diamond.
Let's face facts, bitches...none of you can't stand on your own two feet like I can. You've always had someone in your ears, coddin' you and insulatin' you from the outside hell and tellin' you how good you really are. How pathetic, how wasteful it is for the two of you to grandstand people without takin' the BIG chance to prove me wrong.
It'd be a shame for y'all to piss it away in the land of the rising sun.
After all, nothin' is truly successful unless I leave you in the same manner as how the system left me -- broken, battered, alone. For me, it ain't simply about breakin' the system apart piece by piece.
I AM the system -- and this is a One. Man. Show!!
Well howdy there pardner.