Post by Dorian Hawkhurst on Mar 13, 2017 5:29:03 GMT
Despite his impending match with Will Peterson at Open Fight Night 18, Dorian Hawkhurst's mind couldn't be farther from the ring. He sits, rather uncomfortably, in his rental car outside of the McDonald Keohane Funeral Home in South Weymouth, MA. It is a plain white two floor building with black shutters. It has all the usual perks a funeral home has... spacious parking lot, a roof extending over the entrance to protect those surviving from the elements, and depressing gloom that surrounds the building regardless of the weather.
Dorian is dressed to the nines, fitting in with the funeral goers as much as he feels out of place. He takes a deep breath. He was about to say goodbye to one of his oldest friends and, at one time, closest friends. Dorian turns and reaches for a case of beer he has sitting in the backseat. He brings it forward and gets out of the car. You can see his reflection drop the beer into a garbage can as he walks towards the entrance.
Dorian sits through all of the normal "she will be sorely missed" bullshit and everyone sugar coats everything. When given the opportunity, Dorian stands up and walks to the front. For the first time in a long time, he is nervous speaking in front of a crowd.
"Like many of you here, I knew and loved, Lillie. I guess the difference is that my relationship was different than a lot of yours. I've known Lillie since we were children. I remember sitting in Mrs. Beal's class on the first day of first grade and being completely smitten with the cute little blonde sitting two rows to the left and three seats in front of me. I remember her parents put her in black tights and a pink "My Little Pony" dress. She had a sparkle in her eyes, and a smile for miles. Until the very end, she was as beautiful as the flower she was named for."
"Lillie was a lot of things to me. My first crush. My first love. I remember my first kiss with anyone was when Lillie kissed me under the oil tankers down on Collins Court. It was probably the least romantic place you could have a first kiss in the world. Unfortunately, I moved out of town at the end of fourth grade. When I came back, everything had changed. I moved back, and she was in another school. We didn't talk much after that. Things were the different. Time had forced us apart. Still, as we got towards the end of high school, there was a tie that still bound us. That tie was addiction."
Dorian starts tearing up.
"Back in those days, it was beer, vodka, whatever we could get our hands on. It was all your typical partying that you hear about every now and then. It was, at the very least, what seemed like normal teenage bullshit. Sorry, I said the brown word. Anyway, we moved on and Lillie went to college. We lost touch. It might not seem like it right now, but I was lucky. I was addicted alcohol. For all the problems it has caused me, I know it could have been worse."
Dorian is doing his best to talk through the tears. He is completely choked up, but fight through his emotions.
"Lillie wasn't as lucky. As I fumbled through my life, trying to get act together, failing miserably, until recently. Lillie went off to college. There she discovered heroin and meth. I know she struggled. Last time we talked, I thought she was clean. She seemed happy. She was talking about how well she was doing at work. She was talking about Austin and Alexis, and how proud she was that they were getting good grades. And now..."
Dorian takes the handkerchief from his breast pocket and wipes the tears from his eyes.
"Now, I need to take the steps I should have taken a long time ago. I'm sorry, for your loss. All of you, her dad, her friends, her family, and most of all, her two sweet children. I had a twelve pack of Bud in the car on the way over here. I threw it out. I need to do everything I can to make sure I am here in the future. Lillie gave me one last gift. She gave me the gift of life. Austin, Alexis, I know it might sound hollow now, but if you ever need anything, I will do my best to be there for you."
Hawkhurst looks over at the two siblings crying and just loses it himself.
"I'm sor... I'm.... sorr.... I have to go."
Dorian quickly walks out of the service and out to his rental car without looking back. Despite his emotion, he slowly pulls out and drives off into the distance.
Dorian is dressed to the nines, fitting in with the funeral goers as much as he feels out of place. He takes a deep breath. He was about to say goodbye to one of his oldest friends and, at one time, closest friends. Dorian turns and reaches for a case of beer he has sitting in the backseat. He brings it forward and gets out of the car. You can see his reflection drop the beer into a garbage can as he walks towards the entrance.
Dorian sits through all of the normal "she will be sorely missed" bullshit and everyone sugar coats everything. When given the opportunity, Dorian stands up and walks to the front. For the first time in a long time, he is nervous speaking in front of a crowd.
"Like many of you here, I knew and loved, Lillie. I guess the difference is that my relationship was different than a lot of yours. I've known Lillie since we were children. I remember sitting in Mrs. Beal's class on the first day of first grade and being completely smitten with the cute little blonde sitting two rows to the left and three seats in front of me. I remember her parents put her in black tights and a pink "My Little Pony" dress. She had a sparkle in her eyes, and a smile for miles. Until the very end, she was as beautiful as the flower she was named for."
"Lillie was a lot of things to me. My first crush. My first love. I remember my first kiss with anyone was when Lillie kissed me under the oil tankers down on Collins Court. It was probably the least romantic place you could have a first kiss in the world. Unfortunately, I moved out of town at the end of fourth grade. When I came back, everything had changed. I moved back, and she was in another school. We didn't talk much after that. Things were the different. Time had forced us apart. Still, as we got towards the end of high school, there was a tie that still bound us. That tie was addiction."
Dorian starts tearing up.
"Back in those days, it was beer, vodka, whatever we could get our hands on. It was all your typical partying that you hear about every now and then. It was, at the very least, what seemed like normal teenage bullshit. Sorry, I said the brown word. Anyway, we moved on and Lillie went to college. We lost touch. It might not seem like it right now, but I was lucky. I was addicted alcohol. For all the problems it has caused me, I know it could have been worse."
Dorian is doing his best to talk through the tears. He is completely choked up, but fight through his emotions.
"Lillie wasn't as lucky. As I fumbled through my life, trying to get act together, failing miserably, until recently. Lillie went off to college. There she discovered heroin and meth. I know she struggled. Last time we talked, I thought she was clean. She seemed happy. She was talking about how well she was doing at work. She was talking about Austin and Alexis, and how proud she was that they were getting good grades. And now..."
Dorian takes the handkerchief from his breast pocket and wipes the tears from his eyes.
"Now, I need to take the steps I should have taken a long time ago. I'm sorry, for your loss. All of you, her dad, her friends, her family, and most of all, her two sweet children. I had a twelve pack of Bud in the car on the way over here. I threw it out. I need to do everything I can to make sure I am here in the future. Lillie gave me one last gift. She gave me the gift of life. Austin, Alexis, I know it might sound hollow now, but if you ever need anything, I will do my best to be there for you."
Hawkhurst looks over at the two siblings crying and just loses it himself.
"I'm sor... I'm.... sorr.... I have to go."
Dorian quickly walks out of the service and out to his rental car without looking back. Despite his emotion, he slowly pulls out and drives off into the distance.
Dorian Hawkhurst sits against a brick wall with a brown bottle in his hand. Although you cannot see the brand, the words "Root Beer" can be clearlu seen on the bottle. Dorian is relaxed, compared to his usually amped up self. He moves his hair out of his face and begins speaking.
"Will Peterson, you and I have quite the history. Last time we met, I was the better man. But, if it's one thing I've learned this last week, it's that win or lose this week, I am the better man regardless of the outcome. That's not a knock on you. Believe it or not, I respect the hell out of you, despite the bullshit that you've tried to pull. You've had a fire under your ass that has caused me to raise my game, and I'll be damned if I don't raise a glass to you for that."
Dorian raises his bottle in the air and takes a sip.
"I'll tell you what, this is some nectar of the Gods kinda stuff right here. I'm not going to say who made this unless they decide to pay me to be a spokesman. You can't blame a man for trying. Right?"
"So here we stand at the precipice of another war. Another chapter in our story, a story that has the potential to be a saga. This has been written, and it is "The Underdog" that stands tall. It's up to you, Willy, to decide if that story is fact or fiction."
"Here's a few little pieces of information that are undisputed fact. Fact: I am going to beat you once again at Open Fight Night and I am going to put you in the rear view mirror. Fact. I am going to pick up where I left off and start going after Pooler and that Invictus Championship. Fact. I am going to be the reason you become a footnote in IWF history. Fact. I am not going to be denied anymore."
"If it's one thing I've learned this week it's that life is short and we have to make the most of our time here. Once I finish you, I am done with you. It is more important to make the most of my opportunities. Perhaps there's something out there that's more important than titles in this business. I pray, that one day, if I find something that good, that it doesn't just disappears in front of my eyes because I took it for granted."
Dorian pauses, with a serious look across his face.
"This could be that chance, Peterson. Don't blow it."
Hawkhurst winks at the camera as it fades to black.
"Will Peterson, you and I have quite the history. Last time we met, I was the better man. But, if it's one thing I've learned this last week, it's that win or lose this week, I am the better man regardless of the outcome. That's not a knock on you. Believe it or not, I respect the hell out of you, despite the bullshit that you've tried to pull. You've had a fire under your ass that has caused me to raise my game, and I'll be damned if I don't raise a glass to you for that."
Dorian raises his bottle in the air and takes a sip.
"I'll tell you what, this is some nectar of the Gods kinda stuff right here. I'm not going to say who made this unless they decide to pay me to be a spokesman. You can't blame a man for trying. Right?"
"So here we stand at the precipice of another war. Another chapter in our story, a story that has the potential to be a saga. This has been written, and it is "The Underdog" that stands tall. It's up to you, Willy, to decide if that story is fact or fiction."
"Here's a few little pieces of information that are undisputed fact. Fact: I am going to beat you once again at Open Fight Night and I am going to put you in the rear view mirror. Fact. I am going to pick up where I left off and start going after Pooler and that Invictus Championship. Fact. I am going to be the reason you become a footnote in IWF history. Fact. I am not going to be denied anymore."
"If it's one thing I've learned this week it's that life is short and we have to make the most of our time here. Once I finish you, I am done with you. It is more important to make the most of my opportunities. Perhaps there's something out there that's more important than titles in this business. I pray, that one day, if I find something that good, that it doesn't just disappears in front of my eyes because I took it for granted."
Dorian pauses, with a serious look across his face.
"This could be that chance, Peterson. Don't blow it."
Hawkhurst winks at the camera as it fades to black.
Well howdy there pardner.