Post by "Proud" Katie Pride on Sept 8, 2014 22:54:30 GMT
The roaring of terminal after terminal at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, North Carolina echoes about as busy people bustle about their lives, hurrying to or from their travel plans with luggage in hands or slung over shoulders or checked in properly to the travelers' respective airline choices to be delivered to their destinations. Through a window it can be seen that a plane is taking off, and almost simultaneously another air vessel touches down further down on a second runway and taxis in toward the terminal.
A few minutes later, airline customers can be seen filing into the terminal and hurrying out about their day, some straight from the plane out the door and out on their way while others file into the baggage claim area, waiting for their things to be returned to them after their plight to Greensboro. Many of the people flooding through the area seem to be oblivious to one another, but one person in the midst of the crowd of people seems to be taking things rather leisurely, enjoying herself and taking in the sights more than anything else.
The short, athletic, young brunette known to the IWF World as Katie Pride has arrived home after her debut, after the first round of the IWF Diamond Search competition, and after a dark match against "Mother" Figure in which she was victorious, a result that was rumored to have eliminated Figure from the competition. Upon making her way to the baggage claim, she sees her slow pace has significantly cut down on the waiting time, and bags are starting to cycle through as she approaches.
Grabbing her bag, Katie wastes little time turning and departing from the crowded claim, walking toward the door when her phone rings. Pulling it out of her pocket, she checks the caller ID and sees "Dad" written across the screen. She presses a button and holds the device to her ear as she keeps walking.
"Hello?"
Pause.
"Oh, hey dad, what's up?"
Pause.
"Yeah, we just landed. I'm on my way out the door now."
Pause.
"I'm going to be coming straight home. I'm not jumping right into training. I'll give Carl a call and let him know I'll meet him at the gym tomorrow morning then."
Pause.
"Yeah, I'm coming, dad, don't worry."
Pause.
"Thanks, dad. It means a lot to me to hear you say that."
Pause.
"I'll see you shortly, I'm gonna hang up now, okay?"
Pause.
"Okay, dad. I love you too. Bye, now."
The young Miss Pride hangs up her phone and tucks it into the pocket of her plaid, button-down shirt, having by this point a solid few minutes from the beginning of her phone call having made her way out the revolving door of the airport and out through a parking lot, crossing through cautiously while looking for her vehicle, whatever it is. However, the mystery doesn't last long before the four consecutive beeps of her car reacting to its key fob unlocking all the doors sounds, and the tail lights of a bulky, charcoal-gray Toyota 4-Runner flash, however dimly in the bright sunlight of just before midday.
Opening the trunk, Katie manages to place her big suitcase inside, and after closing it she moves to the driver's door and opens it, climbing in and setting her handbag on the seat beside her and fishing out a pair of leopard-print sunglasses, which she places over her eyes onto her face almost urgently. Reaching up, she removes a sunshade from the front windshield and inserts the key, bringing the engine to life with a roar before she places her phone into one of the cupholders. She turns the air conditioner on high and lets it sit for a moment before turning it down to just below medium intensity.
She pressed a button on her car's radio, and it turns on, and then another, and a third, and a ringing sound, much like that of a phone, is heard as she fastens her seatbelt and pulls out of her parking place carefully and with vigilance. The phone rings once, twice, and then in the midst of the third ring it shuts off and a second later, a male voice is heard.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Carl, it's me! It's Katie!"
"Katie, good to hear you made it home safe! You did good in that match it sounds like, and I heard you managed to pull off a win in your first match with the IWF."
"Yup, I did pretty good. That Mother Figure woman was a pretty tough challenge with her size, but I didn't let her get in my head or use her size the way she probably wanted to. All that agility work is really coming in handy!"
"Your agility alone won't win you a match, but it's something you can keep practice of on your own. You are planning to come in tonight, aren't you? I want to teach you a new move that should put you ahead of the competition. You're in a big match this week!"
"What? No, Carl, I'm going to be having dinner and catching up with home life a while this evening. I'll come in first thing tomorrow morning, though, okay? I think I deserve a night off after winning immunity!"
"Alright, fine. But two things. First, if you're not coming to the gym tonight, I want you to take a two mile jog and run an ab workout to keep yourself in shape. There is no excuse to let yourself get rusty unless you're physically unable to train, and unless you're trying to hide some secret injury from me, I don't see any excuse for you not to get to work after dinner, understand?"
"Come on, Uncle C! I've been working my butt off for months, I think a little break after that long plane ride and the big win I had the other night is in order."
"Katherine Patterson, you're treading real thin ice with me, young lady. I don't care if you're the Diamond's Champ, if you're my protege, you will get to the gym when I tell you to get here and do any extra work I tell you to do. Now, tell me what you're doing so I know whether to stay here or head home at closing time."
"Go home, Carl. I'll do my workout at home tonight, I promise. I'll just use my mom's treadmill down in the basement."
"Then make it three miles. That artificial thing doesn't give you the uphill and downhill that outside will."
"But Carl-"
"No buts, Katie."
"Okay, fine. I'll do it. Just, whatever. What's that second thing you were talking about?"
"Why aren't you inviting me to dinner? You know I like to see my big sister and her family."
"Dad's cooking, and I'm pretty sure he's already bought all the food."
"Well bring me some! I'm hungry."
"Very funny, Carl. You know my dad doesn't leave much in the way if leftovers."
"Whatever. Anyway, get your training done, and I'll see you bright and early tomorrow!"
"Okay, Carl. I'll talk to you later. Bye!!"
Katie presses another button on the radio and a low beep, presumably ending the call, sounds before the radio itself starts to play, about halfway through some punk rock sort of song that seems to instantly bring a sort of grin to Katie's lips. As it rolls to the chorus, the song can be identified as Hey Monday's "Hurricane Streets", Katie's entrance theme music. She pulls away from an intersection at a green light and continues on through to another intersection, turns, and drives directly past Carl's gym on her way home.
Pulling into the driveway of a two-story Colonial style house on a cul-de-sac, she turns her radio off, turns the air conditioning unit off, and then lets the engine's power die with the turn of a key. She climbs out of the car, handbag in her right hand, and proceeds to get her luggage out with her left, and then closes the back door, and the car emits a single beep as it locks. Proceeding up to the front steps, she turns the knob with her handbag precariously dangling from her lower two fingers. She pushes the door open and immediately is greeted with a loud bark and the rapid sound of paws approaching.
She drops her bags and pushes the door shut urgently, barely beating the jump of a large dog, looking somewhat like a mix between a Labrador Retriever and a Husky, up at her, pushing her stumbling backwards and against the door as the dog lands on its hind legs, almost able to lick her face from its position as Katie's hands reach out to greet the furry creature. She pets the dog for several moments before looking up to see her parents standing before her, and her little brother standing beside her mother, a step back from them. She smiles and as the dog lowers itself to all four paws again, she moves forward and greets her family heartily with hugs and smiles and kisses on the cheek.
"Hi, honey! How was your trip?"
"Oh, it was great, mom! The hotel was really nice, and getting to arrive at an arena for my debut was so much better than last time I tried this. And I won! I got to debut in a dark match and I won, so I think that makes me the top competitor in the competition right now."
"That's great, Katie! I guess you really are growing up!"
The boy maybe as old as thirteen steps back and lets Katie embrace her parents' admiration for a moment before chiming in.
"You better set a really big standard if you don't want me to do better than you when I start wrestling, Katie!"
"Better watch it, Zachariah! I might have to put you in your place!"
"You couldn't take me!"
"Zach, don't push your sister. She just got home."
"Don't worry, dad, I can handle this. You wanna try it, little man?"
"You're on!"
"Let's go, right now. No striking and keep your shoes off."
"Fine with me, just don't go whining to Uncle Carl when I beat you!"
The two barely get to their bare feet before they're locking up, burning energy in an attempt to pin one another down, and before long, Zach gets Katie to the ground, but Katie reverses his attempt at a pin and puts him face first in the hardwood floor of the entryway.
"Okay, okay, I give, you win!!"
"Thought so."
Katie gets back to her feet as if she'd been kneeling to pray and helps her brother up. Before either can say anything, their father interjects.
"Okay, now that's over, I'm just starting on supper. It'll be a bit still so you should have plenty of time to unpack and get comfy, Katie. I'll let you know when you need to wash up."
"As for you, young man..."
Katie interjects into the scolding of her younger brother.
"Mom, don't punish him. I'm fine with wrestling him down when his head gets too big for his body. It's no big deal."
And with that, Katie grabs her bags, moving to the stairs and starting up them before two pairs of footsteps thunder up from behind her. She looks back to see not two pairs specifically, but four paws as her dog follows behind her.
"Come on, Layla, let's go get ourselves comfortable, huh?"
She proceeds the rest of the way up the stairs with Layla passing her a couple steps from the top, and turns left at the top of the staircase pushing open a door and following behind as her dog pushes in. Inside, she flips on the switch and sees presumably her own bedroom, and she sets her luggage down closes the door, and tosses her handbag onto a nice armchair before opening the drawer of the nightstand beside her bed and lays back, still barefoot, on the bed, opening her laptop with a smile as the dog jumps up onto the bed beside her without protest. Signing on, a few clicks and some typing later, she can be seen to be starting up some sort of recording program, likely about to use her laptop's built-in webcam to her advantage.
"Hey guys, this is Katherine Patterson, but you might know me better as Katie Pride, and I'm signing in for a webcam session to let you guys know what's up. I just got home not long ago from my first trip out to the wrestling world, and I competed in my first match as a professional wrestler this past week, a dark match against a woman by the name of Mother Figure. I managed to pull off the win in dominating fashion and eliminated her from the IWF Diamond Search, and I've been informed that I've been given immunity from elimination this week. And while I love that, one week of immunity isn't good enough for me.
I've been told you guys get to see me compete in a match this week, and it's against the entire rest of the Diamond Search competitiorship... Is that a word? Competitorship? Well, anyway, it's a match against all the other competitors remaining in the competition except two of them, and I'm the underdog in this one with the small size, or so I've been told by just about everyone in the wrestling world who's ever fought in an elimination battle royal before. But hey... Since when has a size disadvantage stopped me before, huh guys?
Now now, let's not be too hasty here, shall we? I've got like eight or nine other girls to deal with this week, and I can't underestimate them, even if I'm not at risk for elimination. The winner of this battle royal gets immunity, and wouldn't it just be beautiful for me to pick up a free pass through a second straight week of competition? Y'all like the thought of that? I hope so! I'm not going to be eliminated without a fight, that much is for sure. I'm going to go in there and do what I do best: win. I don't care if they send out Ana Valentine or Alexis Caffrey or even the Diamonds Champ, Amber Richards, to throw us all a curve. I'm going to keep myself grounded until I'm the last one with my feet in that ring.
But rather than just talk about me, let's take a look at the competition so far, shall we? I mean, we've got several decent wrestlers, we've got some complete rookies like me, and we've got those scantily clad competitors who don't give a rodent's posterior about wrestling and just want to make money showing off the contents of their bra, and I can't wait to see them all get eliminated from this thing quite honestly. I know for a fact that the more experienced wrestlers of the group are the ones that deserve to be here, but those girls that don't even focus on the wrestling aspect of the competition need to go apply to one of those naughty magazines or try their hand at pornography, rather than disgrace the wrestling ring. Now, I may not be a seasoned veteran, but at least I respect my job and respect the wrestling ring that affords so many men and women their careers too, am I right?
Let's see now, who are my main threats in this competition? Well, there's obviously Becky Goodwin, another one of those women that seems to have a big size advantage in this competition and knows how to actually use it rather than just trying to intimidate people. I'll give her credit, I'm of the opinion that she could make this entire competition her domain and run this thing, for the most part anyway, if she wanted to. I'm not going to be any form of pushover for her to shove out of her way like everyone else, but I'm the kind of girl who can handle taking her on in the ring while knowing to respect that she may be able to beat me if I'm not on my A-Game.
Next, Esperanza Serranto. Now, not to be racist, but if there's one thing I learned in high school, don't mess with a crazy Latina woman. I'm not saying she's crazy, but I'll admit she looks tough and looks like someone not to mess with. Much respect to her, but I'm still of the opinion that I can beat her when I'm at my best, and for the entirety of this competition, I'm going to make sure I am. I keep training. I keep working. I don't care how 'threatening' she might look. I'm not letting her intimidate me.
Other than that, um... Gosh, I don't know, most of these names just run together and their efforts thus far have been rather up impressive. I'm not going to waste my time, and I'm not going to waste your time going on and on about these women when I know for a fact that I'm the one that everyone comes to see fight, and I'm the one everyone comes to see win. That's what I've done so far, and that's what I'll continue to do, and none of these ladies is going to stop me from becoming the Diamonds Search winner, and then, the Diamonds Champion.
I've been working at this long and hard, and I wasted no time at all putting my name in the mix, making myself heard, and showing everyone a glimpse of what I'm capable of in week one. Now, Mother Figure is done and gone and I'm very capable of turning another girl's dream into a nightmare in a match where everyone is a target and everyone can be eliminated from this competition, excluding myself of course. And all it takes is one girl underestimating me. All it takes is one girl thinking that because I'm not taller or larger or at least the type to show off her body that I'm not the kind of girl this competition wants. That's all it takes for me to capitalize, to strike, and to throw an opponent out of the ring and out of the competition.
And you know why that's so prone to happening? It's because I'm just that good. I'm just the girl who happens to be the new girl on the block. That much is coincidence. My athleticism, my natural abilities, my agility and skill and intelligence is all too real and all too intentional. And those who doubt that I'm the gifted one in this competition who just so happens to be the front runner after week one, those who think it's all luck, just watch. You'll see what I can do, and you'll see that I'm really the girl who I say I am. I'm not blowing smoke.
So with that, I'm signing off. Consider this your Storm Warning, ladies. I'm here, and I'm the best athlete, and the best competitor in this Diamonds Search, hands down. You'll see why they call me The Hurricane, and you'll understand why you made the big mistake deciding not to evacuate, because when Hurricane Katie comes through, you're going to be devastated."
Katie clicks a button on her screen using the D-Pad on her laptop, and then begins typing. After a moment, she hits enter with emphasis, and proceeds to close her laptop before rolling over and putting it back in the drawer from which she got it. She rolls back over and pets Layla, snuggling her big dog into her and laying her head on the bed, embracing her return home for a few moments until those vibrant gray-blue eyes start to drift shut, and almost as if he timed it that way, his father's voice echoes through the stairwell and can be heard even through the door.
"Katie, it's time for dinner, time to wash up!"
The young wrestler groans softly and rolls off the bed, with Layla jumping up right away and following her as she opens her bedroom door.
"Hey dad, what're we having? I don't want to risk spilling on this outfit if it's gonna stain!"
"Go ahead and change, then. We're having spaghetti and meatballs."
"Okay, dad, I'll be down asap."
"One piece of garlic bread or two?"
"Umm... Two, please. I'm hungry."
She smiles and steps back inside her room, closing the door and leaving Layla to proceed down the steps as she goes to change. Stepping out from her room a few minutes later, she has on a short-sleeved black tee shirt and yoga pants, and she proceeds into a room directly at the top of the staircase opposite the steps on the hallway, closing the door to turn on some running water, and a moment later she proceeds downstairs, hands still slightly damp from being washed despite drying them. She turns right from the stairs and into the dining room, and sits down along the side of an oval-shaped room where her meal is already in front of her and her family is waiting, including her dog laying on the floor beside her seat at the table.
After a short prayer from her mother, she picks up her fork and starts to twirl a few strands of pasta into it as her mother starts to speak in a more relaxed tone, rather than the seriousness of her prayer prior.
"So, honey, how long are you going to be home before you have to leave again?"
"A few days. I've gotta leave again on Saturday so I've got some time for here, but I think Uncle Carl is going to make me work my butt off even after that debut."
"But why? You won, didn't you?"
"Yeah, but apparently if I don't, I'll end up getting rusty in less than a week, according to him. I'm not going to argue. His methods got me one win, I'm sure if I keep up with what he's teaching it'll get me a lot more."
"Well, I think you deserve a break, but I don't want you to slack off and then lose because you weren't doing your best."
"Me neither, sis. Better listen to Carlton, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess so. But that means I'm going to need to use the treadmill for a little while this evening, okay mom?"
"Sure, honey. That's fine! Just don't work yourself too hard or you'll be sick."
"Alright, mom, I won't. I guess-"
A ding interrupts.
"There's the garlic bread! I'll be right back."
Katie's father stands and proceeds through a rather wide corridor into the kitchen and as he does, Katie slips a meatball off her plate using her fork, and pulls it from her fork with her hand before lowering it down to offer to her dog, who hungrily licks the excess sauce off Katie's hand to chase it down.
"I saw that."
Katie mumbles under her breath as the smile fades from her face.
"Shoot."
The scene slowly fades to black as the discussion starts to resume among the happy family, with Katie's father returning with a plate of garlic bread.
A few minutes later, airline customers can be seen filing into the terminal and hurrying out about their day, some straight from the plane out the door and out on their way while others file into the baggage claim area, waiting for their things to be returned to them after their plight to Greensboro. Many of the people flooding through the area seem to be oblivious to one another, but one person in the midst of the crowd of people seems to be taking things rather leisurely, enjoying herself and taking in the sights more than anything else.
The short, athletic, young brunette known to the IWF World as Katie Pride has arrived home after her debut, after the first round of the IWF Diamond Search competition, and after a dark match against "Mother" Figure in which she was victorious, a result that was rumored to have eliminated Figure from the competition. Upon making her way to the baggage claim, she sees her slow pace has significantly cut down on the waiting time, and bags are starting to cycle through as she approaches.
Grabbing her bag, Katie wastes little time turning and departing from the crowded claim, walking toward the door when her phone rings. Pulling it out of her pocket, she checks the caller ID and sees "Dad" written across the screen. She presses a button and holds the device to her ear as she keeps walking.
"Hello?"
Pause.
"Oh, hey dad, what's up?"
Pause.
"Yeah, we just landed. I'm on my way out the door now."
Pause.
"I'm going to be coming straight home. I'm not jumping right into training. I'll give Carl a call and let him know I'll meet him at the gym tomorrow morning then."
Pause.
"Yeah, I'm coming, dad, don't worry."
Pause.
"Thanks, dad. It means a lot to me to hear you say that."
Pause.
"I'll see you shortly, I'm gonna hang up now, okay?"
Pause.
"Okay, dad. I love you too. Bye, now."
The young Miss Pride hangs up her phone and tucks it into the pocket of her plaid, button-down shirt, having by this point a solid few minutes from the beginning of her phone call having made her way out the revolving door of the airport and out through a parking lot, crossing through cautiously while looking for her vehicle, whatever it is. However, the mystery doesn't last long before the four consecutive beeps of her car reacting to its key fob unlocking all the doors sounds, and the tail lights of a bulky, charcoal-gray Toyota 4-Runner flash, however dimly in the bright sunlight of just before midday.
Opening the trunk, Katie manages to place her big suitcase inside, and after closing it she moves to the driver's door and opens it, climbing in and setting her handbag on the seat beside her and fishing out a pair of leopard-print sunglasses, which she places over her eyes onto her face almost urgently. Reaching up, she removes a sunshade from the front windshield and inserts the key, bringing the engine to life with a roar before she places her phone into one of the cupholders. She turns the air conditioner on high and lets it sit for a moment before turning it down to just below medium intensity.
She pressed a button on her car's radio, and it turns on, and then another, and a third, and a ringing sound, much like that of a phone, is heard as she fastens her seatbelt and pulls out of her parking place carefully and with vigilance. The phone rings once, twice, and then in the midst of the third ring it shuts off and a second later, a male voice is heard.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Carl, it's me! It's Katie!"
"Katie, good to hear you made it home safe! You did good in that match it sounds like, and I heard you managed to pull off a win in your first match with the IWF."
"Yup, I did pretty good. That Mother Figure woman was a pretty tough challenge with her size, but I didn't let her get in my head or use her size the way she probably wanted to. All that agility work is really coming in handy!"
"Your agility alone won't win you a match, but it's something you can keep practice of on your own. You are planning to come in tonight, aren't you? I want to teach you a new move that should put you ahead of the competition. You're in a big match this week!"
"What? No, Carl, I'm going to be having dinner and catching up with home life a while this evening. I'll come in first thing tomorrow morning, though, okay? I think I deserve a night off after winning immunity!"
"Alright, fine. But two things. First, if you're not coming to the gym tonight, I want you to take a two mile jog and run an ab workout to keep yourself in shape. There is no excuse to let yourself get rusty unless you're physically unable to train, and unless you're trying to hide some secret injury from me, I don't see any excuse for you not to get to work after dinner, understand?"
"Come on, Uncle C! I've been working my butt off for months, I think a little break after that long plane ride and the big win I had the other night is in order."
"Katherine Patterson, you're treading real thin ice with me, young lady. I don't care if you're the Diamond's Champ, if you're my protege, you will get to the gym when I tell you to get here and do any extra work I tell you to do. Now, tell me what you're doing so I know whether to stay here or head home at closing time."
"Go home, Carl. I'll do my workout at home tonight, I promise. I'll just use my mom's treadmill down in the basement."
"Then make it three miles. That artificial thing doesn't give you the uphill and downhill that outside will."
"But Carl-"
"No buts, Katie."
"Okay, fine. I'll do it. Just, whatever. What's that second thing you were talking about?"
"Why aren't you inviting me to dinner? You know I like to see my big sister and her family."
"Dad's cooking, and I'm pretty sure he's already bought all the food."
"Well bring me some! I'm hungry."
"Very funny, Carl. You know my dad doesn't leave much in the way if leftovers."
"Whatever. Anyway, get your training done, and I'll see you bright and early tomorrow!"
"Okay, Carl. I'll talk to you later. Bye!!"
Katie presses another button on the radio and a low beep, presumably ending the call, sounds before the radio itself starts to play, about halfway through some punk rock sort of song that seems to instantly bring a sort of grin to Katie's lips. As it rolls to the chorus, the song can be identified as Hey Monday's "Hurricane Streets", Katie's entrance theme music. She pulls away from an intersection at a green light and continues on through to another intersection, turns, and drives directly past Carl's gym on her way home.
Pulling into the driveway of a two-story Colonial style house on a cul-de-sac, she turns her radio off, turns the air conditioning unit off, and then lets the engine's power die with the turn of a key. She climbs out of the car, handbag in her right hand, and proceeds to get her luggage out with her left, and then closes the back door, and the car emits a single beep as it locks. Proceeding up to the front steps, she turns the knob with her handbag precariously dangling from her lower two fingers. She pushes the door open and immediately is greeted with a loud bark and the rapid sound of paws approaching.
She drops her bags and pushes the door shut urgently, barely beating the jump of a large dog, looking somewhat like a mix between a Labrador Retriever and a Husky, up at her, pushing her stumbling backwards and against the door as the dog lands on its hind legs, almost able to lick her face from its position as Katie's hands reach out to greet the furry creature. She pets the dog for several moments before looking up to see her parents standing before her, and her little brother standing beside her mother, a step back from them. She smiles and as the dog lowers itself to all four paws again, she moves forward and greets her family heartily with hugs and smiles and kisses on the cheek.
"Hi, honey! How was your trip?"
"Oh, it was great, mom! The hotel was really nice, and getting to arrive at an arena for my debut was so much better than last time I tried this. And I won! I got to debut in a dark match and I won, so I think that makes me the top competitor in the competition right now."
"That's great, Katie! I guess you really are growing up!"
The boy maybe as old as thirteen steps back and lets Katie embrace her parents' admiration for a moment before chiming in.
"You better set a really big standard if you don't want me to do better than you when I start wrestling, Katie!"
"Better watch it, Zachariah! I might have to put you in your place!"
"You couldn't take me!"
"Zach, don't push your sister. She just got home."
"Don't worry, dad, I can handle this. You wanna try it, little man?"
"You're on!"
"Let's go, right now. No striking and keep your shoes off."
"Fine with me, just don't go whining to Uncle Carl when I beat you!"
The two barely get to their bare feet before they're locking up, burning energy in an attempt to pin one another down, and before long, Zach gets Katie to the ground, but Katie reverses his attempt at a pin and puts him face first in the hardwood floor of the entryway.
"Okay, okay, I give, you win!!"
"Thought so."
Katie gets back to her feet as if she'd been kneeling to pray and helps her brother up. Before either can say anything, their father interjects.
"Okay, now that's over, I'm just starting on supper. It'll be a bit still so you should have plenty of time to unpack and get comfy, Katie. I'll let you know when you need to wash up."
"As for you, young man..."
Katie interjects into the scolding of her younger brother.
"Mom, don't punish him. I'm fine with wrestling him down when his head gets too big for his body. It's no big deal."
And with that, Katie grabs her bags, moving to the stairs and starting up them before two pairs of footsteps thunder up from behind her. She looks back to see not two pairs specifically, but four paws as her dog follows behind her.
"Come on, Layla, let's go get ourselves comfortable, huh?"
She proceeds the rest of the way up the stairs with Layla passing her a couple steps from the top, and turns left at the top of the staircase pushing open a door and following behind as her dog pushes in. Inside, she flips on the switch and sees presumably her own bedroom, and she sets her luggage down closes the door, and tosses her handbag onto a nice armchair before opening the drawer of the nightstand beside her bed and lays back, still barefoot, on the bed, opening her laptop with a smile as the dog jumps up onto the bed beside her without protest. Signing on, a few clicks and some typing later, she can be seen to be starting up some sort of recording program, likely about to use her laptop's built-in webcam to her advantage.
"Hey guys, this is Katherine Patterson, but you might know me better as Katie Pride, and I'm signing in for a webcam session to let you guys know what's up. I just got home not long ago from my first trip out to the wrestling world, and I competed in my first match as a professional wrestler this past week, a dark match against a woman by the name of Mother Figure. I managed to pull off the win in dominating fashion and eliminated her from the IWF Diamond Search, and I've been informed that I've been given immunity from elimination this week. And while I love that, one week of immunity isn't good enough for me.
I've been told you guys get to see me compete in a match this week, and it's against the entire rest of the Diamond Search competitiorship... Is that a word? Competitorship? Well, anyway, it's a match against all the other competitors remaining in the competition except two of them, and I'm the underdog in this one with the small size, or so I've been told by just about everyone in the wrestling world who's ever fought in an elimination battle royal before. But hey... Since when has a size disadvantage stopped me before, huh guys?
Now now, let's not be too hasty here, shall we? I've got like eight or nine other girls to deal with this week, and I can't underestimate them, even if I'm not at risk for elimination. The winner of this battle royal gets immunity, and wouldn't it just be beautiful for me to pick up a free pass through a second straight week of competition? Y'all like the thought of that? I hope so! I'm not going to be eliminated without a fight, that much is for sure. I'm going to go in there and do what I do best: win. I don't care if they send out Ana Valentine or Alexis Caffrey or even the Diamonds Champ, Amber Richards, to throw us all a curve. I'm going to keep myself grounded until I'm the last one with my feet in that ring.
But rather than just talk about me, let's take a look at the competition so far, shall we? I mean, we've got several decent wrestlers, we've got some complete rookies like me, and we've got those scantily clad competitors who don't give a rodent's posterior about wrestling and just want to make money showing off the contents of their bra, and I can't wait to see them all get eliminated from this thing quite honestly. I know for a fact that the more experienced wrestlers of the group are the ones that deserve to be here, but those girls that don't even focus on the wrestling aspect of the competition need to go apply to one of those naughty magazines or try their hand at pornography, rather than disgrace the wrestling ring. Now, I may not be a seasoned veteran, but at least I respect my job and respect the wrestling ring that affords so many men and women their careers too, am I right?
Let's see now, who are my main threats in this competition? Well, there's obviously Becky Goodwin, another one of those women that seems to have a big size advantage in this competition and knows how to actually use it rather than just trying to intimidate people. I'll give her credit, I'm of the opinion that she could make this entire competition her domain and run this thing, for the most part anyway, if she wanted to. I'm not going to be any form of pushover for her to shove out of her way like everyone else, but I'm the kind of girl who can handle taking her on in the ring while knowing to respect that she may be able to beat me if I'm not on my A-Game.
Next, Esperanza Serranto. Now, not to be racist, but if there's one thing I learned in high school, don't mess with a crazy Latina woman. I'm not saying she's crazy, but I'll admit she looks tough and looks like someone not to mess with. Much respect to her, but I'm still of the opinion that I can beat her when I'm at my best, and for the entirety of this competition, I'm going to make sure I am. I keep training. I keep working. I don't care how 'threatening' she might look. I'm not letting her intimidate me.
Other than that, um... Gosh, I don't know, most of these names just run together and their efforts thus far have been rather up impressive. I'm not going to waste my time, and I'm not going to waste your time going on and on about these women when I know for a fact that I'm the one that everyone comes to see fight, and I'm the one everyone comes to see win. That's what I've done so far, and that's what I'll continue to do, and none of these ladies is going to stop me from becoming the Diamonds Search winner, and then, the Diamonds Champion.
I've been working at this long and hard, and I wasted no time at all putting my name in the mix, making myself heard, and showing everyone a glimpse of what I'm capable of in week one. Now, Mother Figure is done and gone and I'm very capable of turning another girl's dream into a nightmare in a match where everyone is a target and everyone can be eliminated from this competition, excluding myself of course. And all it takes is one girl underestimating me. All it takes is one girl thinking that because I'm not taller or larger or at least the type to show off her body that I'm not the kind of girl this competition wants. That's all it takes for me to capitalize, to strike, and to throw an opponent out of the ring and out of the competition.
And you know why that's so prone to happening? It's because I'm just that good. I'm just the girl who happens to be the new girl on the block. That much is coincidence. My athleticism, my natural abilities, my agility and skill and intelligence is all too real and all too intentional. And those who doubt that I'm the gifted one in this competition who just so happens to be the front runner after week one, those who think it's all luck, just watch. You'll see what I can do, and you'll see that I'm really the girl who I say I am. I'm not blowing smoke.
So with that, I'm signing off. Consider this your Storm Warning, ladies. I'm here, and I'm the best athlete, and the best competitor in this Diamonds Search, hands down. You'll see why they call me The Hurricane, and you'll understand why you made the big mistake deciding not to evacuate, because when Hurricane Katie comes through, you're going to be devastated."
Katie clicks a button on her screen using the D-Pad on her laptop, and then begins typing. After a moment, she hits enter with emphasis, and proceeds to close her laptop before rolling over and putting it back in the drawer from which she got it. She rolls back over and pets Layla, snuggling her big dog into her and laying her head on the bed, embracing her return home for a few moments until those vibrant gray-blue eyes start to drift shut, and almost as if he timed it that way, his father's voice echoes through the stairwell and can be heard even through the door.
"Katie, it's time for dinner, time to wash up!"
The young wrestler groans softly and rolls off the bed, with Layla jumping up right away and following her as she opens her bedroom door.
"Hey dad, what're we having? I don't want to risk spilling on this outfit if it's gonna stain!"
"Go ahead and change, then. We're having spaghetti and meatballs."
"Okay, dad, I'll be down asap."
"One piece of garlic bread or two?"
"Umm... Two, please. I'm hungry."
She smiles and steps back inside her room, closing the door and leaving Layla to proceed down the steps as she goes to change. Stepping out from her room a few minutes later, she has on a short-sleeved black tee shirt and yoga pants, and she proceeds into a room directly at the top of the staircase opposite the steps on the hallway, closing the door to turn on some running water, and a moment later she proceeds downstairs, hands still slightly damp from being washed despite drying them. She turns right from the stairs and into the dining room, and sits down along the side of an oval-shaped room where her meal is already in front of her and her family is waiting, including her dog laying on the floor beside her seat at the table.
After a short prayer from her mother, she picks up her fork and starts to twirl a few strands of pasta into it as her mother starts to speak in a more relaxed tone, rather than the seriousness of her prayer prior.
"So, honey, how long are you going to be home before you have to leave again?"
"A few days. I've gotta leave again on Saturday so I've got some time for here, but I think Uncle Carl is going to make me work my butt off even after that debut."
"But why? You won, didn't you?"
"Yeah, but apparently if I don't, I'll end up getting rusty in less than a week, according to him. I'm not going to argue. His methods got me one win, I'm sure if I keep up with what he's teaching it'll get me a lot more."
"Well, I think you deserve a break, but I don't want you to slack off and then lose because you weren't doing your best."
"Me neither, sis. Better listen to Carlton, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess so. But that means I'm going to need to use the treadmill for a little while this evening, okay mom?"
"Sure, honey. That's fine! Just don't work yourself too hard or you'll be sick."
"Alright, mom, I won't. I guess-"
A ding interrupts.
"There's the garlic bread! I'll be right back."
Katie's father stands and proceeds through a rather wide corridor into the kitchen and as he does, Katie slips a meatball off her plate using her fork, and pulls it from her fork with her hand before lowering it down to offer to her dog, who hungrily licks the excess sauce off Katie's hand to chase it down.
"I saw that."
Katie mumbles under her breath as the smile fades from her face.
"Shoot."
The scene slowly fades to black as the discussion starts to resume among the happy family, with Katie's father returning with a plate of garlic bread.
Well howdy there pardner.